Kenji felt his stomach tighten, “We need to go down to security and check the tapes. If anyone used her card, it would have been logged. Then we can find out where this person may be.”
“Agreed,” Muller stated, beelining for the door, “I’ll lock the door behind us. I just hope no one notices until we figure things out.”
Kenji moved out into the main room, welcoming the fresh air, heading to the elevator, not waiting for Muller. It arrived, and they climbed on board, pressing the ground floor button. With a soft ding, the doors opened into the lobby, where they both jogged to the desk.
Rodger spun in his chair, facing the pair, “Hey, how’s it going, guys?”
“Rodger, I need access to the security tapes,” Muller demanded.
He stood up, confused, “What’s going on? Did something happen?”
“We don’t have time to explain, just take us to the security tapes!” Muller yelled.
Kenji watched Rodger's normally joyful demeanor change in an instant, and he quickly walked over to a door behind the desk, pulling out his key card to unlock it.
Wordlessly, Kenji and Muller followed him into the small room beyond the door, containing a desk and several closed-circuit television screens. Rodger sat down at the main screen, entering his password, “What are we looking for?”
Muller piped up, “I got a call from her around one am, to show the Congressman to a room for the night….so try the camera near her office around that time.”
Rodger clicked on a video file, bringing up the camera that watched the main room, just on the right-hand side of the screen, Dr. Victoria's office door was barely visible. The seconds ticked by, with nothing moving as the only staff on the floor would be in the command room. Suddenly, the Congressman came into view; his suit jacket draped over his arm as he stopped in the doorway, talking, before leaving, heading toward the elevator.
“Okay, that’s him leaving. Do you see anyone else?” Muller asked.
Kenji's eyes strained, taking in every pixel of the screen. A full five minutes passed before suddenly in the corner of the camera view; a flash illuminated the doorway into Dr. Victoria's office. Another minute passed as a figure in all black appeared from the darkened recesses of the doorway, sticking to the shadows as it moved toward the stairwell in the corner of the room.
“Son of a-that’s our person. Please tell me we have cameras on the stairs!” Muller exclaimed.
Roger paused the video, “What did I just witness?”
“Just pull up the next video!” Muller ordered.
The video changed to the back stairwell, where someone sprinted down the stairs, taking multiple at a time. Kenji noticed they had a handgun ready at their side in one hand, and a small bag in the other.
Kenji pointed at the screen, “Look, he’s carrying a bag; that must be the drives.”
“Someone needs to tell me what is going on! Why is there a gunman running around in the building?!” Roger demanded.
With a heavy sigh, Muller looked at Kenji first before beginning, “Rodger, whoever that is on the video, they murdered Dr. Victoria and stole the hard drives from Japan.”
“What?! How did no one notice until now! I need to get a security team on this immediately!” Rodger exclaimed.
“No,” Muller said forcefully, motioning for Rodger to calm down, “We need to keep watching first, to see where they went.”
Doing his best to piece together multiple camera angles, Rodger switched once more to the camera at the bottom of the stairs. The person stopped at the door, cracking it open to see beyond. Whatever they saw made them turn in the other direction, approaching the exit door. They stopped, examining the door, before setting down the bag and pulling out a knife.
The figure bent down, prying the security system panel open and began cutting a few of the wires. Quickly grabbing their bag, they exited through the door to the outside. The next camera angle was from above the door itself, giving a slightly fish-eyed view. The figure emerged from the door, hugging the wall, moving out of sight of the camera, fading into the darkness.
Rodger flipped to the next camera, hoping to see the figure, but found no one, just an empty courtyard. He fast-forwarded the video, hoping to find the person again, but was unable to spot them.
“Where’d they go?” Muller asked.
“I don’t know, they should be in view of this camera, but I don’t see them anywhere,” Rodger said, flipping through multiple camera angles of the courtyard.
“Are there any blind spots?”
“A few, but they aren’t big enough for them to easily slip by. We should be able to spot them, but it’s like they just disappeared.”
Kenji spoke up, “What about her card, they took that too, can’t we track where it’s been used?”
“Yeah,” Rodger whispered, opening another program on the screen, “Here, just one sec.”
He signed into the program, and then searched for Dr. Victoria’s card, which had a unique signature tied to it. Selecting the card listed, a spreadsheet opened, listing the times the card was used, and which entry point by location.
“It says…the last time it was used was…just over an hour ago. The lab building,” Rodger said, pointing at a row of information.
“The lab?! Can you pull up the live feed for that building?”
“Sure,” Rodger replied, moving back to the camera system, “Uh…”
The screen was black, for each camera listed for the lab building.
“They’re all out. That should have sent a warning system. There are only two things that could cause that, a lab lockdown, or someone shutting the system off from inside,” Rodger explained.
“So, that means they probably still inside the building?” Muller asked, jumping back from the desk, “Rodger, keep this quiet, radio for a security team to station outside the lab building. Keep an eye out and radio us if you see anything.”
Both Kenji and Muller were already in the lobby, running for the lab building before Rodger could reply. Time wasn’t on their side, but they hoped that they could contain the situation and catch the person before any more harm could be done.
Chapter 40
Kenji ran behind Muller, dodging a pair of workers from the admin building, arriving for their shifts.
“Sorry!” Kenji yelled as they passed, continuing toward the lab building.
Muller stopped, and Kenji almost crashed into him.
“Where are you going in such a hurry?” The Congressman asked, standing in their path, “I was just on my way to say my farewell to the Director.”
“Sir, we have a breach. The Project…they’re here,” Muller exclaimed.
The Congressman’s face changed instantly from cheerful to terrified, “How bad is it?”
“Dr. Victoria, she’s been murdered, and the killer is possibly in the lab,” Muller stated, taking small steps toward the lab, “Go to the admin building, the guard at the front desk, Rodger, tell him I sent you, he’ll keep you safe.”
The Congressman nodded, jogging toward the admin building.
Kenji began running once more, “So, he knows about everything?”
“Yes, Dr. Victoria told him last night. He is supposed to help us.”
Muller stopped at the door to the lab building, swiping his badge. It beeped, and he yanked it open.
“Where are the guards?” Kenji asked, noting their absence.
“Look.”
Kenji spotted what Muller was pointing at; a small pool of blood on the ground. He knew that wasn’t a good sign, and probably meant that whoever the person was that killed the Director, had probably done the same to the guards. Muller drew his handgun, as they approached the elevator, leaving Kenji wishing he had a weapon. The elevator doors opened, finding it as empty as the lobby, and they got on.
“Well, I’m guessing the security system has been deactivated; otherwise, this wouldn’t be working,” Muller stated.
“Yeah,” Kenji replied, nervously shifting.
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His stomach gave a small lurch as the elevator stopped, and the doors opened with a ding. Beyond was a sudden change, as the dead body of one of the guards lay on the ground, several gunshot wounds to the chest, blood pooled around him. The power was off, and only the backup emergency lights were on, casting long shadows throughout the otherwise normally bright area. Muller turned on a small flashlight, holding it alongside his sidearm, clearing the immediate area, before bending down to the dead guard, grabbing his sidearm out of the holster.
“Here,” He said, handing the weapon to Kenji.
Kenji felt better having a weapon to defend himself with, flipping the safety off. Muller signaled he was heading to the control room, wanting Kenji to watch his back. Moving as quietly as possible across the lobby, they found the door open, and Muller checked both corners of the room. He cursed under his breath; the figure had destroyed the console inside, rendering it useless.
Well, there goes our way to quarantine the lab from down here.
Muller left the room, and Kenji followed as they began making their way into the main section of the lab. With Muller’s flashlight as their only source of light, Kenji tried to do his best at watching the darkened areas. Creeping through the labs, it was eerily quiet, and Kenji could hear his own heartbeat over everything else.
He hadn’t been this on edge in quite some time. Facing the infected was stressful, but a live combatant was something he had never had to deal with. His senses were on high alert, keeping close to Muller, expecting to be ambushed at any time. Moving past the first two labs, they began heading back toward the back half, to the containment room where Evans and her blood samples were kept.
Turning the corner, Kenji spotted someone standing around the corner, midway down the hall. He tapped Muller’s arm, pointing the person out. Receiving a nod in response, Kenji gripped his sidearm tighter, ready for a fight. Muller moved to the corner, using it as cover, taking aim at the person.
Squinting, Kenji made out it was man, tall, with a large build, standing motionless, slightly hunched over, arms held at odd angles.
That’s odd, it almost looks like…
Muller turned toward him, “That’s one of the guards. I think he’s infected.”
Kenji nodded, “So, that means there could be at least five other infected if the virus got out.”
This guard, and the two assigned for Evans, and the two lab techs. One live target.
Muller knocked on the wall, and the guard’s head snapped up in response. A deep moan echoed in the hall, confirming their assumption. Muller took aim, firing a single shot, hitting the man in the head. The body dropped to the floor in a heap.
Suddenly, from the same direction, moans filled the hallway. Kenji knew that more infected were headed their way. Hoping to use the darkness to their advantage, he knew the infected were mostly blind. Two more figures materialized out of the darkness in the hallway, and Muller waited until they were closer to take another shot.
Kenji stood beside him, ready to act if needed, watching as the infected closed in on them. Muller easily dropped the first one, using the white lab coat of the now-dead scientist to help track it in the darkness. The second infected was one of the guards detailed to watch Evans, that stumbled as Muller’s shot grazed the side of its face, shredding it. The infected guard ignored the wound, moving toward them, before Muller lined up another shot, dropping it.
Muller motioned to Kenji, he was moving up and began to walk past the bodies, down the hall. He followed, keeping a close eye out for more infected or the assailant. Muller entered one of the side rooms, clearing it before reappearing next to Kenji. They neared the containment room where Evans was supposed to be, finding two more bodies next to the door, one a guard, the other the second lab tech.
Kenji approached the room, seeing that the door was open, and stopped, his stomach feeling like it had sunk to his legs.
“She’s out,” He whispered.
Muller stopped, shining his light into the room, finding it indeed was empty.
Panicking, Kenji wiped his brow, knowing that they had another problem at hand, worse than the person who had murdered Dr. Victoria.
“Clear!” Muller called out, having checked the last room, “Whoever was here is gone. We will have to lock down the lab by stopping the elevator upstairs. The Security should be up there by now, c’mon.”
Kenji nodded, staring at Evans’ empty room.
This is bad. We have to find her.
✽ ✽ ✽
The elevator doors dinged softly again, and Muller pressed the emergency stop button. Making sure that if somehow, they had missed someone below, they couldn’t leave the lab. Muller opened the door to the outside, finding three armed security personnel turning to face him, rifles at the ready.
“Friendly!” Muller exclaimed, approaching the guard in the middle, “Don’t let anyone in or out of that building, understood?”
“Yes, sir. Hostile engagement?” The guard asked.
“Force if necessary,” Muller nodded, grabbing his radio, “Rodger, do you copy?”
A moment of silence, before, “Yes. Muller, I reviewed more of the footage. I found the killer leaving the lab about forty minutes ago, headed toward the airfield. I have a security team sweeping the area already, but I also spotted a woman leaving the lab building, heading for the barracks, not too long before you got there. The campus is in full lockdown now.”
“Alright, thanks,” Muller replied, squeezing the device in frustration, “Kenji, I want you to take one of these guards with you to the barracks, I’ll try and meet up with the search team at the airfield.”
“Okay, I’ll keep in touch,” Kenji stated, as one of the guards walked up to him, “We are going to the barracks building, expect a fight.”
Kenji set off with the guard in tow, heading across the open courtyard, toward the building. From the outside, Kenji didn’t spot anything out of place but was apprehensive about the inside. Approaching the main entrance, he couldn’t see anything inside, swiping his card to unlock the door. It took longer than normal but eventually opened.
The cafeteria was immediate to the left of the entrance, open and wide. No one was currently in sight, probably due to the current lockdown. However, several trays of food lay on the tables spread out, and a few chairs knocked over. Kenji motioned for the guard to clear the kitchen, and moved deeper into the building, clearing out the desk at the front.
Kenji stopped, moving down the hallway, checking inside each room that was left open. As he approached the other end of the building, where the common room was located, he spotted a trail of blood leading to the stairwell door, where a bloody handprint was clear against the gray color. Inching toward the common area, he held the sidearm up, angled slightly downward.
Expecting the worst, he quickly turned the corner, planting his feet, ready to fight. However, it was devoid of anyone; only finding blood splattered across the room, he knew someone had been attacked here. Knowing that upstairs would be the most likely place the infected would be based off the trail of blood, he waited by the stairs until the guard reappeared, joining him.
Clearing the staircase was simple enough, as they followed the trail of blood to the next floor. Opening the door to the hallway, they spotted three infected soldiers. The guard raised his rifle, but Kenji stopped him, placing his hand on it.
“Hold on, I’ll make some noise first, to see how many there really are.”
Kenji tapped his sidearm against the metal frame of the door, alerting the infected of their presence. The three began their way toward them, as two more emerged from the third room on the right side of the hallway.
Kenji aimed, taking a shot at one of the infected that emerged from the room, taking it down. The guard sending a burst toward the second, cutting it down. Kenji knew that he didn’t have ammo to spare like the guard did, allowing the rifle’s superior stopping power to do its work. The guard took down two more, leaving only one infected left. Befor
e Kenji could give warning, he caught movement from behind them.
An infected man grabbed the soldier, biting into his neck, taking a large chunk of it. Kenji didn’t have a clear shot, so he pulled the soldier toward him, giving him the clearance he needed to make the shot. He quickly turned to see the distance of the one in the hall, taking aim before firing at it. His shot was true as it fell to the ground.
The guard was already dead by the time Kenji looked down at the man, knowing there was nothing he could do to save him; he put a round into the man’s brain. Kenji grabbed the guard’s rifle, and extra magazines, knowing he still had several floors to clear. He began to climb the stairs to the next floor, knowing he would have to be more careful.
A laugh stopped him in his tracks, catching a glimpse of someone running through the door just above him.
That was Evans! I know that laugh.
Chapter 41
Evans sat up in her cot as one of the guards posted outside her room opened the door, entering in after one of the scientists. She noticed they carried needles and supplies to take more of her blood. The other scientist stayed outside of the room, staring nervously.
“How are you doing today?” The scientist asked, trying to be pleasant.
“Fine,” Evans replied shortly.
“I’m just going to take another vial of blood really quick.”
Why do you let them do this to us? Keep us locked away from our true potential. You think staying in this lab will amount to anything? We both know we are never going to leave this room.
Evans did her best to ignore the voice in her head, holding out her arm for the scientist. Wincing as the needle enter her arm, she wished they would hurry. The voice grew stronger and stronger every day and feared she would soon lose control entirely.
Suddenly, three cracks rang out from down the hall, making her jump.
“What was that?!” The Scientist exclaimed.
The guard outside locked the room, pressing the intercom button, “Stay inside.”
What Remains (Book 3): Epidemic Page 25