“Planned on marrying a chef, did you?”
“Planned on take-out.”
“Huh, hasn’t seemed to hurt your waistline.”
“And here you’ve been insinuating I was an elephant.” Megan’s smile softened words.
“Nah, I was just grumpy.”
“A novelty, I’m sure. Ya know, if they do have animals in the basement as we suspect, it really would help if we could sneak one out to examine.” When she held her hand out, the shepherd nudged her fingers then rubbed her head against Megan’s leg. The soft swish of the dog’s tail brushing the tile swept a clump of hair under the chair.
“Unless they’re mice you can slip in your purse, not gonna happen.”
Chapter Thirteen
Megan swallowed hard and plastered a bright smile on her face before sliding her key card through the door’s slot. Each night she entered work equated tumbling into the depths of another realm full of demons, mad scientists, and assassins. “Hey, Mike. How’s it going?”
“All quiet, as usual. Looks like your workload doubled, though. Meredith called out sick.”
“Well crap. I’ll bet Charlotte’s in a great mood.”
Mike chuckled as he waved her through. “Yeah, looked like it. You and your supervisor have fun tonight.”
Through her mic, Lucas whispered, “Good, looks like we caught a bit of a break.”
“I’ll have to pull double duty.”
“You’ll be too busy to entertain the guard.” Satisfaction inflated her heckler’s tone.
Sour and disgruntled would’ve been an upgrade in her supervisor’s demeanor when Megan approached the time clock in the break room. Instead of the routine cup of coffee before work, the older woman sat with a gardening magazine crushed in her fist.
“Mike said Meredith called out.” Megan bought a soda from the vending machine, needing the caffeine to get through the next few hours.
“Yeah, that means you’re gonna have to move your skinny ass a whole lot faster than normal. I’m not picking up all the slack. I already cleaned the CEO’s office, so you won’t have Kilregard breathing down your neck while you work.”
At least she called me skinny. “No problem. I’m ready.”
In her ear, Lucas whispered, “Music to my ears.”
Sputtering and choking on her drink snapped the supervisor’s attention up with a snort.
“Yeah, that’s what Kilregard’s hoping, too. But I’m watching his ass tonight. I’ll start on the west wing and you’ll do the east. Don’t make me have to work on that side, too.”
“West hall, got it.”
“No! You start on the other side, ditz. The one with the cafeteria overlooking the parking lot. That should make it easier to remember. I hate picking up all those chairs then setting them back in place.” Shaking her head, the older woman ambled to her feet and stalked out, mumbling about ignorant twits.
Megan began with the lunchroom, racking the chairs before mopping the floor. Starting there and working her way toward Reinhardt’s office would provide time to bolster her nerves and for Lexi to take over the video CCTV. The backache earned from mopping the floor didn’t compare to putting the room to rights afterward. “When I was little, I told my parents I wanted to grow up to be a maid.”
“That’s great! When we get home, I’ve got an apron and cap for you, a cute little number I’ve been saving for a special occasion. I’m glad you didn’t make me wait too long.”
Luc’s sotto comment earned him ex-lax in his next meal.
“Hey, Megan. I’ve been trying to catch a minute for us to talk.” Kilregard’s husky command comprised one part request and two parts lust as he stopped within inches of contact.
Chair seats squeaked along the laminate-topped table when she tilted her head up to meet his gaze. “Hey, how’s it going?”
Luc’s low growl in her ear attested to his thoughts about her present companion.
“I’m good. Missed you this past week.”
“I’m a bit under the gun. My supervisor—”
“Has been on my ass all night. I told her to knock it off or she’d be due for a strip search.”
“Shame he doesn’t use that tactic with Meredith—might wear him out.” Luc’s snark preceded Lexi’s shooshing noise in the background.
“Figures. About tonight.”
“I know. You’ve got double duty and we’ll need to raincheck our date, again. Damn shame.” Disappointment didn’t stop him from crowding closer or brushing the back of his knuckles along her cheek.
“Thanks for understanding. I really am bushed.” Using work as her excuse, she smiled before stepping around him to finish resetting the chairs.
Disappointment shadowed his brow. “I checked the schedule and saw that you’re on again tomorrow. I’m off duty but I can meet you after you punch out. That way your supervisor can’t interfere.”
The graze of his fingers down her spine induced a shiver she couldn’t suppress. Afraid to sidestep for raising his ire, she offered her best flirty smile over her shoulder and prayed he didn’t notice the tremble in her limbs. Just because he couldn’t follow through on the ravenous promise in his gaze at that moment, didn’t guarantee he wouldn’t coerce her into the maintenance room, a place her supervisor, for some reason, avoided.
“Okay.” Quiet breaths rasped her dry throat, waiting for him to move. The smile she received bore as much determination as frustration.
He feathered his touch up her back then rested his palm against her neck. “Your pulse is pounding.”
“Tomorrow, yours will be, too.” It was a promise she prayed wouldn’t be tested.
It was a long minute before he walked away. Despite his words and actions, suspicion and something undefinable mingled in the depth of his eyes. Like sedimentary rock, he had layers, distinct, twisted by life events she could only imagine. And like rock over a fault line, he appeared ready to snap under pressure. She couldn’t relax when he was near.
The sharp exhalation heard through her electronics made her smile. If she weren’t so nervous about snooping and scared to death of Kilregard, she would have flirted for the satisfaction of enraging Lucas.
“Deep breath, Megan. It’s time to get moving.” Lexi’s excitement was contagious. “I’ve found the digital key to enter the basement from Reinhardt’s office. Kilregard’s heading back toward Mike, so you’re clear for a bit.” Lexi’s news obscured the background grumbling. “Let her concentrate, Luc.” Several deep sighs registered through her mic. “Megan, I’m switching on the infrared. Once you’re inside the office, don’t forget to clip the thermal imaging camera to your shirt pocket.”
Though sweeping and emptying trash was a far cry from Megan’s chosen profession, it allowed time to calm her heart and breathing in preparation for the next phase of her endeavor. Some of her greatest epiphanies came during mindless grunt work.
By the time she padded to the hall’s opposite end, her imagination had conjured formless monsters from the ominous shadows, demons waiting to abduct her into a world where madness reigned and anyone with the devious intelligence, money, and connections could chart a course unrestrained by morals or legal issues. Whatever the upscale thugs were planning, it was big, dangerous, and could affect thousands of people if left unchecked.
The rhythmic hitch of her rolling cart multiplied the obscure, if prophetic sense of disquietude. Each squeaky thud emphasized the class difference within ClickChip. Those on higher rungs sat on fine leather instead of plastic, utilized top-of-the-line equipment that didn’t rattle, and employed the likes of Mindy, people who were expendable and held little meaning above the lowest primate.
Despite the million-dollar revenue, the powers that be maintained low lighting during off hours. It was both a blessing and a curse, for in Megan’s mind, an assassin lurked around every dark corner.
“Okay, Megan, I stopped the control room’s viewing after you went into the cafeteria and I’m replaying you coming out of succes
sive rooms at intervals,” Lexi murmured.
Instead of cleaning each office, she had simply entered, emptied the trash, and then hurried to the next. Lexi’s replay of the tape would show Kilregard and Mike, along with whomever glanced at the monitors, that she worked her way down the hall.
Lexi’s soft voice urged her forward. “I’m ready to unlock the bookcase door. Shove your cart next to your last stop and leave the door open.”
Some undefined quality gave the office an ominous air, as if fate closed an invisible noose about her neck. She didn’t turn on her flashlight for fear of some unseen entity locking onto her presence.
“Where’s Kilregard?” For their plan to fool the roving sentry, he had to believe she was somewhere near the middle of her routine.
“Still chatting with Mike at the front entrance. You should have about thirty minutes if he maintains his usual schedule.” Luc’s former flirty demeanor evaporated in favor of the cold, calculating, cunning presence she’d first encountered.
The laptop and desk lamp held their same positions and took shape from meager ambient light. If not for her mental template formed from her first visit, she’d have tripped over the sofa.
A soft click sounded on her right. “Megan, I just disengaged the lock, see if one of the bookcases opens to a stairwell.” Arrhythmic tapping of Lexi’s keyboard combined with the wind’s soft hiss through the hacker’s woodland hideaway added a spectral suggestion to the scenario.
Shuffling to the wall, Megan tugged then pushed on each bookcase. The one closest to the glass gave with the slightest tug. “I got it.” Opening the hidden door, she slid between and felt her way. Ephemeral fingers brushed her skin to spread goose flesh up her arms and neck. “Freaking creepy. I feel like I’m entering Frankenstein’s digs.”
“You are. So be careful.” The serious note in Luc’s tone wasn’t new. The concern, however, offered a welcome slice of the curmudgeon’s personality.
A cautious, sliding step forward revealed a small landing. “Lexi, I’m gonna leave the door open just a hair in case I need to make a quick exit.”
“Got it. Infrared is showing a steep and narrow stairwell. Watch yourself. There’s a light switch on the wall, but I’d use your flashlight instead.”
“Guys, do you think all the guards know about this level?” Her racing heart couldn’t pump any harder or faster as each tentative step down the open metal staircase took her into someone’s twisted version of a sociopathic adventure. The smooth handrail to her left guided her way while high risers made for fewer paces but a steeper incline. Rubber-padded treads and tennis shoes muffled her steps. Her small flashlight cut a sharp swath in front while all around, the foreboding atmosphere pressed in, hugging her in malignant warning.
“A few have to know of its existence, but I imagine they use the elevator. I doubt Reinhardt would let anyone use his private entrance.” Lexi’s speculation came from years of snooping.
“Two more steps and you’re at the bottom. I see a small lever about waist high to your right. That should give you entrance to the lower level.” Luc’s tone remained all business with a slight edge.
The lever consisted of a small protrusion below the light switch but engaged without sound. “I got it.”
The first hesitant nudge yielded a heavy door that swung quietly on well-oiled hinges. When she stepped through, she realized that on the other side, the handle was disguised in a slight indentation under the industrial-style chair railing. “Reinhardt loves his privacy.”
“Do a slow three-sixty so we can get a view of the space,” Lucas suggested.
She knew he hadn’t wanted her to return, concerned she’d overstep bounds with the guard. Lack of alternatives vetoed his decision.
“I can’t see a damn thing down here.” Megan pivoted as requested, stopping at required intervals. She could’ve been standing in the bottom of an open grave for lack of light and an undefined musky scent crushing in from all sides. “It smells like wet dogs.”
Background keyboard tapping heard over the whisper of wind designated Lexi at work. “Okay. You can use your flashlight. Looks like you’re alone and there’s no windows, so I can turn on the backup lighting. It’s not much but it’ll take out some of the creep factor. There appears to be a lab and office to your left. Head to the office first.”
She’d been lucky the past few nights in that Mike had not searched her before leaving. The thought of Kilregard and Mike switching places brought a new level of anxiety. “If anyone figures out this spy shit in my pockets, I’m dead meat.” A soft click delivered a narrowed beacon of light across the concrete floor. The modified flashlight, heavy and compact within her grasp, could double as a weapon of sorts. It was rare that she’d resorted to violence. Jackie had been the scrapper.
A quick visual search revealed the basement to be a large open space with rooms on one end and empty cells along the farthest wall. “You all hearing that clicking noise?” Spasmodic, the tick-tap metronome from hell induced images of Lucifer using his baton to control her heartbeat.
“Yeah, sounds like maybe exhaust duct expansion and contraction related to the furnace. If they’re using a water softener, that can make noise, too.” Luc’s smooth baritone murmured reassurance in her ear.
A deep-throated growl to her right warned of dire consequences from a four-footed enemy. Her modified flashlight’s beam picked up what she’d missed before—demonic red eye shine that would’ve glowed silvery-gold under normal circumstances. “There’re wolves in cages down here. I didn’t see them at first.”
“Not a priority, Megan. We need information.” Logic prioritized Luc’s censure while stripping emotion from word and thought.
“I’m not leaving them down here like this. Once Lexi’s into the files, I’ll figure some way to cut them loose.” No creature, whether two-legged or four, deserved to be the recipient of experimentation.
“Once we shed a spotlight on what these assholes are doing, they’ll be set free,” Lexi promised. “You can’t set them free in the basement. Even if you could do it without becoming a giant chew toy, they’d never make it to the outside.”
Riding on the delusion of getting them to the first floor, she knew they’d be shot by the armed guards.
An open-ended if undefined threat hugged her like a second skin. The last time she’d experienced an equal degree of fear occurred while filming her neighbor’s violence. Jackie was with me then.
“Time to see what’s behind door number one.” Without further investigating the cavernous room, she made her way to the office suspected of housing the twisted data waiting for an equally misshapen mind to manipulate for maximum fear and chaos. “Well shit. It’s locked.” Megan shone her light through the half-glass wall to the interior. A large executive desk sat catty-corner to the rest of the room while several low filing cabinets lined the walls.
“Hold on. I’m working on it. It uses a keycard, so I can unlock it. Give me a minute,” Lexi drawled.
“While she’s doing that, Megan, see if you can push the cabinet to your left aside. If there’s an electrical outlet, you can plug in the device we gave you. It’s a keylogger.” Luc’s explanation of electronic snooping might as well have entailed space ships and atomic weapons.
Megan wedged herself between the office wall and the first cabinet, shining her light in the small space behind. “Yeah, it looks like there’s an outlet, but I’ll have to move all the cabinets, so none look out of place.” Flashing her light down the row, she sighed.
Moving the first unit to plug in the small device gave her courage to tackle the next two. The last case, however, took all her strength to align with the others. “Hell, what’s in this damn thing? This is heavy as hell.” It never occurred that snooping required muscle. Trying the bar-shaped knob, she found it locked. “I need a key to open these.”
“Never mind them now. Stick to the plan,” Lucas advised.
She’d never shared Jackie’s gift of foresight, but Me
gan’s intuition alerted of imminent danger. Perpetual menace clutched her mind and accelerated her breathing and pulse while shadowy anarchist fingers tightened around her throat. “I’m still alone down here, right, guys?”
“I had to turn off the sensors before you entered, Megan. Otherwise your presence would send an alert. I’m trying to trace where it leads but getting you out of there undetected is top priority.”
“Does that mean they can see me with infrared upstairs?”
“No. We’ve looped their camera feed,” Lucas murmured.
“Let’s get into the office. I’ve got it unlocked.” Excitement threaded Lexi’s prompt.
“Good. I don’t want to be down here any longer than necessary.” Again, the sense of impending doom hunched her shoulders and dried her mouth. “I think I’ll have a stiff drink before I go to bed this morning.”
“How about I just make you a stiff. Figures I’d find you down here, Mindy. You didn’t play your part very well.” Power and menace radiated from the voice while a small round object poked her spine. The tone more than the words, suggested lots of pain from various sources. “What?”
“So, I did a little checking. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that a shrewd gaze and ditzy speech are incongruent and makes for a feeble spy?”
Shit.
“I have to admit, this is one interrogation I’m going to enjoy.”
Chapter Fourteen
No sound had betrayed death’s approach, but the hand curling around her throat instilled a terror she’d never known. Her scream was cut short and her flashlight’s narrow beam cut chaotic swaths of light with its tumble to the floor.
“Who you talking to, cutie? How many more will I be killing tonight?” Maggot-infested words caressed her hair like the breath of a tiger before powerful jaws snapped its prey’s neck.
“Fuck you.” Additional words failed to rasp past her narrowing airway. Frantic clawing at the vise constricting her windpipe failed to slow the instinctual terror or grant the slightest easement of breath. Pain from her body slamming into a solid wall of male didn’t compare to the bastard’s other hand snaking across her torso and squeezing her breast.
McAllister Justice Series Box Set Volume Two Page 11