by A. A LEVINE
Why would Orion need so many secret tunnels and where do they lead other than to each building? Chloe said they were once used for emergency evacuations, but who would have been getting evacuated and why would it need to have happened in secret?
Because you can’t cover up the truth with people watching. I recall Gwynn’s words that Millicent was missing before she came back to Orion and when I checked in with Aiden; he said those other students are still unaccounted for. Secret rooms in secret tunnels would be the perfect place to hide recruits that never go back to the main Palmer Biotech campus.
Ok Holli. Get a grip. Are you really suggesting that Orion locks the dropout recruits in a secret bunker? No, but no harm in looking, right? The gym is the building that I have the most access to. Guess I’ll be digging through the library for blueprints of that building next.
It takes me a week to find the most current schematics for the gym and they’re still seven years old. The whole second floor cardio room is missing. As I squint over the documents, I see something else is missing to. Only, it’s not what’s not on the blueprints that have my attention. It’s what is on them. A utility closet in the sparring room. I’ve been flungaround on the mats enough to know what every wall looks like. The little door against the far wall, is not there, but the cabinet with the spare towels is.
I’m dressed in workout clothes so that I don’t arouse any suspicion about being in the gym at this time of night. The sensor controlling the lights flicks on as soon as I step into the sparring room. I strap on some gloves and walk over to the heavy bag to practice a few punches and kicks waiting to see if the lights draw any attention. After ten minutes with no visitors, I’ve worked up a nice little sheen of perspiration and figure I’m in the clear.
I stand in front of the towel cabinet dabbing at the drops of sweat on my face and neck. There’s nothing remarkable about the cabinet and nothing to make me think it’s a secret door. Check behind it, Holli, secret doors are always hidden behind the unassuming cabinets. I casually lean against the aluminum cabinet and give it a little push. It slides over revealing the trap door. I take a second to think about what this means. It means I found a secret passageway and my too curious brain wants to know what’s down there.
I step through the wardrobe and steel myself not to jump when the cabinet slides into place behind me. The passageway is dimly lit and my footsteps echo eerily off the tunnel floor. The tunnel I’m in comes to an abrupt stop at the end of the hall. The connecting shoots branch left and right. Maybe I should’ve dug deeper to see if there was a map to this place too.
It’ll come down to a coin toss only I don’t have a coin. Left or right, left or right. Left or right. Okay Holli, let’s see just how well those lessons work in the real world. I close my eyes and slow my breathing taking in the feel of the air around me. With each breath I quiet my mind, searching for a small string. There’s a remnant of a psychic imprint in the hall to the left. Like the person traveled through here months ago. Left it is. This hall curves left than right and ends at a door. I step through and take the stairs at the end of my current passageway. I keep going walking deeper and deeper into what’s starting to feel like a maze.
I’ve taken turn after turn and walked up three flights of stairs and I’m finally ready to concede there’s nothing here. I head back the way I came but when I get to the last door I walked through; it refuses to open. Or rather, it doesn’t have a handle that I can use to open it. I know it swung inward, so there should be something so I can pull it open.
Well Holli, this place is old. Maybe the handle broke and nobody fixed it. I see a small light at the end of the hall. It closes behind me with a thud. I glance down and see this one doesn’t have a handle either. So how the hell am I supposed to get out of here? The light is coming from a room at the end of the hall. I stand in front of the door labeled archives. It has a modern cypher lock on it. This building is not so abandoned after all, which means there’s another way in here. Hall, after hall, stair after stair and the way out never appears. When I was coming up with this plan, I hadn’t counted on getting caught. Who makes doors that only open from the outside? People who don’t want their secrets getting out, that’s who.
I’ve been trying not to make any assumptions here, but it’s getting harder for me to pretend that something’s not quite right here. I just don’t understand why I’m the only person who can see it. Or in my case, hear it. If the S-chips don’t work on Aiden, and me shouldn’t there be more telepaths that are immune to them? I can’t worry about that now, I have to get out of this building. An air vent would come in handy right about now. I mean, if I had a map of the building and knew where it lead.
I hear whistling coming from the opposite end of the hall. It’s low and fades as if it’s traveling away from me. I walk towards it but when I peek around the corner, it’s empty. I turn to go back to my original starting point. I saw another hallway, which may have a usable door on it. The whistling starts again, off to my right. I run after it and once more there’s no one but me in this abandoned wing and I’m wondering if the anxiety I’m feeling is causing me to imagine it. That could be it right? I’m hearing things? More things. Hearing more things than usual. And this time they don’t exist.
Another whistle leads me another fifty feet down the hall. Deeper into the building, away from the light, deeper into the dark. There’s a door at the end of the hall that’s older than the others and it has a handle. I pull on it and breathe a sigh of relief when it opens. I descend the stairs imagining I’m walking straight into one of my nightmares. The stairs lead to an empty room and another door. This one also has a handle. I yank on it and it flies open like it weighs nothing at all. I stumble into the streaming light from the industrial strength lamppost around me and blink trying to clear the glare. I look behind me and the door seems to have disappeared. No. It’s there only it blends in with the shrubbery that covers it.
“What are you doing here?”
I jump at the sound of John’s voice and try to find an excuse. One that makes sense and doesn’t include me admitting I was snooping where I shouldn’t have been.
“Holli? What’s going on?” I groan inwardly. Xander’s here too.
“I was just out for a walk.”
“This place is off limits to recruits.”
“Really? I didn’t know.”
“That’s funny. The sign pretty much says it.”
Sign? “Uh, I-, I didn’t see a sign.” He points to the yellow and black placard behind him.
“I got turned around. I was so caught up in my own head trying to figure out how to get back to the dorms, that I guess I notice it.” That much, at least, is true.
“Stay on the path and turn left at the old fence.” Xander warns. “Get going before you miss curfew.” I give a curt nod and hurry past them. Was Xander mad, suspicious, or disappointed that I was here? I wish I had time to talk to him, but with John around, there’s no way I can get him alone. I slow my steps hoping he’ll try to catch up to me, but the path is silent for any activity. Sorry boys, but I gotta hear what you’re about to say. I let my mind connect with Xanders.
What do you think? Accident or not? John asks.
I think we shouldn’t assume the worse.
And I think the turtle isn’t as innocent as she wants us to believe.
What’s that supposed to mean? Xander's voice goes cold.
I mean week after week. Test after test. She’s managed to hang on while some of our top performers have slipped position and been removed.
She works hard and wants it more.
Or she’s finding ways to sabotage them or she’s getting help.
Xander’s voice veils an unspoken threat. If you’re suggesting I’m-.
I’m not. I think I know you well enough to know, that you wouldn’t do that. But maybe one of the upper-class men?
Xander disagrees. She keeps to herself and her grade level.
Yeah. As far as we know, or r
ather she used to stick to her grade level. Tell me you haven’t seen her hanging with Shane and his friends. We already know the seniors are grooming them. Someone could have gotten to her and convinced her that this is the way to get ahead.
Knowing that if she gets caught she’ll be punished?
Sometimes the risk is worth it.
I don’t need to hear anymore. On this John and I agree. The risk of being caught is worth finding out the truth. And now that I know for sure that there is a system of interconnected secret tunnels and there is a way out of that building, I can’t wait to go back.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Holli
At the start of Phase III there were 207 recruits remaining. My sessions with Mrs. Price are getting more intense and now I’m required to do weekly physicals.
“Holli. Right this way, please.”
I follow the nurse to the exam room and take the seat she points to. My vitals signs are checked and rechecked and I try to keep my heart rate under control. I have somehow developed a case of white coat syndrome. I’m gulping at air on the verge of hyperventilating.
Holli. Holli, are you okay?
Aiden?
Holli, what’s going on?
I don’t know. I’m at a routine checkup and feel panicky all of a sudden.
Relax Holli. Just breathe. Focus on your breathing.
I do and the fear subsides.
Someone else is comes into the room and asks, Aiden my man, you ready?
Our link breaks and now that my breathing is calmer, I can see through the distractions in my head. I’m not the one in distress. Whoever he is-is on one of the floors above me. Or is he behind me? The layout of the building makes it nearly impossible to tell. “The building is bigger than it looks.”
“Why yes it is.” Dr. Glassman scrubs sanitizer on his hands and takes the swivel stool in front of me. “The architect found some ingenious ways to incorporate the terrain in its design.”
He reads my chart and points for me to get on the hospital bed. “So how have you been feeling?”
“Good.”
“No headaches, ringing in your ears, or pressure? Nosebleeds?”
“Nope. None of those.”
“Good. If you experience any of those symptoms come in right away.”
I look down at the chart he’s holding in his hands. “Is there something wrong with my labs?”
“No. Not at all. Your labs are perfect. But with your gift, we try to be cautious of any neurological changes. They could be signs of stress or overuse of your gift.” He scribbles something and smiles. “But like I said. Everything looks great and we don’t have any cause for concern.”
I lie across my bed and exhale to relieve the tension in my body. I swat at my arm to annihilate the insect that bit me. I realize it’s not a bug when the impression of a needle slides into my vein. I’m linked to someone in the medical building but I can’t get passed the titanium door to see what’s going on.
The anxiety the patient is feeling is more than normal needle jitters. It's pure terror and I’m shaking all over. It’s the same fear I felt from Millicent, who I haven’t seen since last week.
It might be time to take a trip through medical.
◆◆◆
“Okay Holli. Let’s pick up where we left off. Do you see our target?”
“Yes.”
“What’s she doing?”
“Picking out clothes.”
“I want you to describe the room, the target and the clothes one item at a time. Really focus in on the details.”
I describe the room I’m seeing and the woman with a blonde bun. I see her standing in front of the closet trying to decide what to wear. Her hands reach for the grey-colored slacks. I pose my voice over when her phone buzzes. I can see the time and weather forecast. The brown pants and the cream sweater would be a better choice.
"What else do you see Holli?"
I sweep back around the room the target is back at the closet. She’s put the grey pants back and chooses the brown ones instead.
"Holli?"
I rush through the rest of the description and turn around to see the video on the screen. The replay shows exactly what I described. I watch as she reaches for the grey pants. I see the phone flash and wait for her to look at the updated weather forecast. I’m confused when she never makes the walk across the room. My jaw slacks when she picks up the pants and takes them back to the closest to select the brown ones in their place.
It’s a coincidence. She must’ve seen the forecast on her watch or something. She’s not a telepath, she’s an Orion agent that volunteered for this assignment, and so she couldn’t have been reading my thoughts. My preference for her outfit had no bearing on her choice. Did it?
My already long Saturday is about to get longer. I had a bonus tutoring session today, because I had to skip it and my medical appointment yesterday for an Operations meeting. I was supposed to meet Indira thirty minutes ago to work on the science project we’ve been forced to team up for.
I’m apologizing from the moment I walk through the door but she doesn’t seem to care. Explaining my telepathy tutor held me up makes the apology that much worse.
“Let’s just get to work turtle.” She says using the name they all know I despise. I ignore it because today, she has a right to be mad. I have no idea how mad until twenty minutes later.
“Chloe?” I’m trying to think of a hundred reasons why my friend is in my room in the middle of the day going through my things. The paint on my clothes and in my hair compliments of Indira is bad enough.
“Holli. You were supposed to be-,”
“Working on a mock-up of the DNA helix for breakouts with Indira? I know. She got mad I was late for our meeting and when I made a suggestion that we suspended it from a wire, she accidentally spilled paint on me.” Chloe looks nervously around the room. “I came back to change into my workout clothes before my doctor’s appointment so I won’t be late for our sparring lesson.” Gwynn’s not here, so how did Chloe get in? “What are you doing here?”
“Nothing. Waiting for you.”
Now that’s not true. “Really? Because just a second ago, you said you thought I was with Indira.” I point to the book she has in her hand. “Is that my diary?”
She looks at it as if she’s seeing it for the first time. “Oh. Yeah. I sat on your bed and it fell off.”
From under the pillows? I doubt it. She’s thinking of puppies? That’s cute. I know she doesn’t know I can read her thoughts so why is she protecting herself just in case?
I’m good. She trusts me. Play it cool. Reggie’s been right all along.
The only Reggie that I can think of is a senior. What was it John said about juniors being coerced into cheating? It’s irrelevant that he insinuated that I was the cheater. I’m sure at one point or another, the student’s that were dismissed, have all professed their innocence so I can understand his distrust. Chloe is supposed to be my friend, but she’s also the one who said this place is like High School edition of Survivor Island. Her being in my room is making a lot more sense. Slowly we’ve been losing people. Recruits that we all know are stronger than me. Faster than me. And faster than Chloe.
“Please tell me you haven’t been playing some type of art of war games and getting people tossed out of the program.” My eyes go to my diary again. Her eyes shift away from me and she doesn’t answer. “You’ve been sabotaging people this whole time? Why?” A more important question is why is she suddenly targeting me?
“Holli, please believe me, it’s nothing personal. It’s just that I need to find whatever advantage I can get, and we all know you’re close with Xander, so he can use his instructors challenge to fight to keep you.”
Her words don’t match her thoughts. She’s giving me a half-hearted apology but her mind floods with dozens of rationality’s and excuses.
I’m sorry. I didn’t want to have to do this. But you’re getting better. They’re focusing on y
ou. I heard my science teacher saying you’re special. Which means they won’t bounce you and I’m the next person closest to falling below the red line. If they think you cheated, they’ll get rid of you first. I need this internship.
I wish I couldn’t hear her thoughts, because it’s like having a front row seat to a bad traffic accident. I’m careful not to react. If she figures out, I can read her mind, she’ll have all the ammunition she needs to get me out of the way.
“But Chloe, if they think I’m cheating, that won’t matter. I’ll be out and he won’t be able to save me.”
“I know. I, I didn’t think about that part. I was really just trying to find out if maybe he told you some tricks that I could use too. I need to be here next semester.”
If I’m not here, Reggie will move on to someone else.
So she’s seeing Reggie. This is how far she’ll go for love?
“You should probably go.” She still has my diary in her hand. I mentally chide her to drop the book. Her fingers unfurl and it falls to the bed with a heavy thud. She still has trouble meeting my eyes when she leaves the room.
My heart is beating in my chest. It’s just another coincidence that she dropped the book after I thought about her doing it. She was planning to leave it behind, anyway. Since she got caught, there was no reason to follow through on her plans.
I retrieve my diary from where it landed and skim through the pages feeling the words and experiencing the emotions I had when I wrote them. Aside from the invasion of privacy, I don’t care that she was reading it. I never write anything in it I’m afraid of having discovered. Having a pesky twin brother taught me a valuable lesson at a young age. How to be better than the average person at hiding things that I want to keep secret.