Jericho steered her inside. She felt tiny compared to the three large men sharing the elevator. Trey Roberts stared at her in a way that had her dropping her gaze to the floor, a sense of apprehension knotting in her stomach. Something was wrong but she didn’t know what. Fear inched up her spine but there shouldn’t be a reason for it. It still remained. She chalked it up to a little nervousness about being around free New Species.
It had been a dream of hers to get them out of those cells and to the NSO but she had dealt with dangerous ones. They killed humans when given the opportunity, though it was totally justified. The difference between imagining standing next to them once they were free and actually doing it seemed a logical reason for her to feel a bit paranoid. She dismissed it as the cause of her uneasiness.
The elevator doors opened into a large windowless room with a few thick beams to support the enormous space. Jericho moved and gently drew her forward until she got a view of the other side of the room. Three rooms with bars for walls lined one wall, each set up similar to jail cells but with nicer bedroom furniture. Her gaze lingered on them, happy to see they were empty.
A chair had been placed in the center of the large room with one brighter light turned on above it. She was led there and Jericho nodded. “Have a seat.”
She sat, staring up at all three of them as they surrounded her. The mood was grim, their features were, too, and that uneasy feeling grew ten times worse inside Jeanie. She’d expected to be taken to an office or at least a real room with chairs, maybe a desk and a window. Instead she was in a dim, dank environment that left her wondering if anything lurked in the unseen corners. She hugged her waist and huddled in the seat as her gaze drifted to that darkness.
“What’s going on? What is this place? Why am I here?”
She heard a soft thump and turned her head. Two big men stepped out of the shadows to her left and drew closer. Movement from her right had her turning her head. 710’s blond hair almost glowed as he stepped into the circle of light. She couldn’t see his face but she knew it was him. A human stood next to him. Jeanie’s gaze lingered on 710 until a man in uniform stepped between them, blocking her view. He was human as well.
“New Species get upset when they hear women scream. This place has reinforced walls and sound is muted.”
“Easy, Chris.” Trey Roberts shot him a dirty look.
The implied threat slowly sank in and she swallowed, fear growing by leaps and bounds. “What?” She hoped she hadn’t heard right.
The human guy in the uniform who’d stood next to 710 approached and crouched, invading her space when his hands gripped the sides of her chair. He frowned.
“I’m Jordan.” The man was in his mid-thirties and had frosty gray eyes. “You’re lucky to be alive, Jeanie.”
She nodded. “I know.”
Her gaze darted to 710. He stood about eight feet behind the man crouching in front of her. His arms were crossed over his chest and his lowered chin kept his features concealed in the shadows. Jordan moved his head in a way that completely shielded 710 from her view.
“Eyes right here, Jeanie. Look at me.”
She did as he asked, staring into cold gray irises.
“What was on the mainframe computers at Cornas Research?”
She hesitated. “All the files on the experiments they were conducting.”
“You poured coffee into the computer.”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“Why?”
She licked dry lips, wishing for more water. “They installed poison gas dispensers inside every room that held New Species. I knew they’d kill them if I didn’t take out the computer. Anyone in Security could have accessed the program and activated it from their desk terminals.”
Jordan frowned. “We didn’t find any poison dispensers. Their security was lax, if anything.”
“Check the fire alarms in each of the rooms where the New Species were kept. I spoke with the guy who installed them. He thought he was really smart and no one would look there.” She swallowed. “I guess he was right if you didn’t find them. The only thing I could think of on short notice was to pour coffee on the mainframe computer and fry it. I couldn’t risk just unplugging it in case someone noticed. It had to be something they couldn’t fix in time. I thought about smashing it but it would have made too much noise. I probably could have opened the casing and removed parts if I’d had more warning but I wasn’t told the raid was going down until the night before. I couldn’t exactly clock back in at work that night or show up early for my shift. It would have raised suspicion. I only had about two minutes to take out the computer and get to the lower floors to deal with the card-reader locks. It still wasn’t enough time since I wasn’t able to disable them all.”
Jordan didn’t appear convinced. “How did you know we were coming?”
His question stumped her for a few seconds. She wondered if the agent she worked with had bent rules to warn her in the first place. It didn’t matter in the end though. She wasn’t going to lie to the NSO.
“I read the text around nine the night before, telling me to call in sick the next day. He didn’t outright say why but it was implied that Cornas would finally be raided just after the morning shift changed.”
Jordan blinked. “Who warned you?”
She frowned, concerned since he should already know that information. “Agent Terry Brice.”
“Really?”
It had been a dream of hers to get them out of those cells and to the NSO but she had dealt with dangerous ones. They killed humans when given the opportunity, though it was totally justified. The difference between imagining standing next to them once they were free and actually doing it seemed a logical reason for her to feel a bit paranoid. She dismissed it as the cause of her uneasiness.
The elevator doors opened into a large windowless room with a few thick beams to support the enormous space. Jericho moved and gently drew her forward until she got a view of the other side of the room. Three rooms with bars for walls lined one wall, each set up similar to jail cells but with nicer bedroom furniture. Her gaze lingered on them, happy to see they were empty.
A chair had been placed in the center of the large room with one brighter light turned on above it. She was led there and Jericho nodded. “Have a seat.”
She sat, staring up at all three of them as they surrounded her. The mood was grim, their features were, too, and that uneasy feeling grew ten times worse inside Jeanie. She’d expected to be taken to an office or at least a real room with chairs, maybe a desk and a window. Instead she was in a dim, dank environment that left her wondering if anything lurked in the unseen corners. She hugged her waist and huddled in the seat as her gaze drifted to that darkness.
“What’s going on? What is this place? Why am I here?”
She heard a soft thump and turned her head. Two big men stepped out of the shadows to her left and drew closer. Movement from her right had her turning her head. 710’s blond hair almost glowed as he stepped into the circle of light. She couldn’t see his face but she knew it was him. A human stood next to him. Jeanie’s gaze lingered on 710 until a man in uniform stepped between them, blocking her view. He was human as well.
“New Species get upset when they hear women scream. This place has reinforced walls and sound is muted.”
“Easy, Chris.” Trey Roberts shot him a dirty look.
The implied threat slowly sank in and she swallowed, fear growing by leaps and bounds. “What?” She hoped she hadn’t heard right.
The human guy in the uniform who’d stood next to 710 approached and crouched, invading her space when his hands gripped the sides of her chair. He frowned.
“I’m Jordan.” The man was in his mid-thirties and had frosty gray eyes. “You’re lucky to be alive, Jeanie.”
She nodded. “I know.”
Her gaze darted to 710. He stood about eight feet behind the man crouching in front of her. His arms were crossed over his chest and his lowered chin kept his features concealed in the shadows. Jordan moved his head in a way that completely shielded 710 from her view.
“Eyes right here, Jeanie. Look at me.”
She did as he asked, staring into cold gray irises.
“What was on the mainframe computers at Cornas Research?”
She hesitated. “All the files on the experiments they were conducting.”
“You poured coffee into the computer.”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“Why?”
She licked dry lips, wishing for more water. “They installed poison gas dispensers inside every room that held New Species. I knew they’d kill them if I didn’t take out the computer. Anyone in Security could have accessed the program and activated it from their desk terminals.”
Jordan frowned. “We didn’t find any poison dispensers. Their security was lax, if anything.”
“Check the fire alarms in each of the rooms where the New Species were kept. I spoke with the guy who installed them. He thought he was really smart and no one would look there.” She swallowed. “I guess he was right if you didn’t find them. The only thing I could think of on short notice was to pour coffee on the mainframe computer and fry it. I couldn’t risk just unplugging it in case someone noticed. It had to be something they couldn’t fix in time. I thought about smashing it but it would have made too much noise. I probably could have opened the casing and removed parts if I’d had more warning but I wasn’t told the raid was going down until the night before. I couldn’t exactly clock back in at work that night or show up early for my shift. It would have raised suspicion. I only had about two minutes to take out the computer and get to the lower floors to deal with the card-reader locks. It still wasn’t enough time since I wasn’t able to disable them all.”
Jordan didn’t appear convinced. “How did you know we were coming?”
His question stumped her for a few seconds. She wondered if the agent she worked with had bent rules to warn her in the first place. It didn’t matter in the end though. She wasn’t going to lie to the NSO.
“I read the text around nine the night before, telling me to call in sick the next day. He didn’t outright say why but it was implied that Cornas would finally be raided just after the morning shift changed.”
Jordan blinked. “Who warned you?”
She frowned, concerned since he should already know that information. “Agent Terry Brice.”
“Really?”
