The familiar tag hung from the deceased’s toe, nothing new for Halliday. But in this “house of horrors” he felt queasy.
The camera shutter clicked like chattering teeth.
He leaned in, read the tag, and said, “Male Caucasian, sixty-six years old.”
“That’s odd,” Laurel said.
Everything here appeared beyond odd. He pulled back the sheet, exposing the man’s body.
Laurel gasped.
Doctor Krabbi’s words, “Our poster boy,” rang in his ears. Lamar Festus, or what used to be Festus, was stretched out on the gurney. He touched the skin. The texture felt rubbery. It held the same green hue as Laurel’s when he had first encountered her in Jillian’s basement.
Her heavy breathing stopped. “Laurel?”
“Laurel, say something.”
“How could anyone…? These scientists must be insane.”
“We’re almost done here.”
Halliday strode around the staging room, ripping curtains apart. Seven gurneys held the remains of seven geriatric vagrants. He winced at missing limbs and ghoulish faces. One man had missing both eyes. No doubt the vagrants would match up to Rich Gladstone’s missing person list.
“Laurel, I’m sorry, we need face shots of all of them.”
The camera shutter clicked away amid her sobs.
Chapter Forty Nine
Halliday’s eyes were glued to the seven corpses. The brutality they had faced could easily have been the work of a deranged serial killer.
Static on the two-way startled him.
“Security, this is Brad Palmier,” the radio blurted out. “All personnel switch to security channel six.”
Halliday switched to channel six.
“This is Palmier. Be advised I am the active security chief in the absence of Chief Altman. We have a code nine, I repeat a code nine. All designated security personnel report to building C14. All other security personnel secure the perimeter of the campus. No employees or visitors are allowed in or out of the campus until I give the all clear sign.”
“We’d better hurry,” Halliday said to Laurel.
He couldn’t resist the urge to leave proof of his visit. He disabled the robot with three quick, solid blows with the crowbar. As he departed he jerked the curtains off the support rods. Let them try to cover anything up now.
Laurel said, “Good job detective,” as she opened the door leading to the corridor.
“I don’t see anyone,” she whispered.
Halliday glanced in both directions. “Follow me.”
He sped down the corridor. Escape would be difficult now. Security would have all the exits guarded. Halliday discarded the notion of shooting his way out of Genevive Labs. Even if he survived he’d end up in prison, or worse, in a mental ward over at Atascadero State Hospital.
As Halliday approached an intersection he slowed and removed Altman’s gun.
“Our priority is to get you out of here unseen with the evidence,” he said over his shoulder.
“We’re in this together,” she replied.
Arguing would accomplish nothing. “We need to create a diversion,” he said. “Follow me.”
Fueled by adrenaline, Halliday turned down another corridor. It led toward the large cylinder with the warning sign. At another intersection, he glanced over his shoulder then turned right.
“Stop right there, detective.”
Brad Palmier aimed a gun at Halliday’s chest. “Put the gun on the floor.”
Halliday slowed to a halt, making as much noise as possible to mask Laurel’s squeaky tennis shoes. “I thought you were in a meeting with your mad scientists, Palmier.”
“Kick the gun in this direction.” Palmier stared at Halliday as if he had never seen him before. “Halliday, I admit I’ve underestimated you. First, you manage to pull a Houdini act by escaping from the security annex. Now you’ve done the impossible by gaining access to C14.”
“I’m highly motivated,” Halliday said, “The law is on my side.”
“No one is on your side any longer. Where is George Altman?”
“The FBI is escorting him to a safe house as we speak. They’re returning with a team to shut this place down… Unless Morning Glory storms the walls and does them a favor.”
“Halliday, I don’t have time for your bullshit tales.” Palmier peered at him in disbelief. “I know you have accomplices. You’ve compromised a member of my security crew. Where’s Blake, the security man at the entrance?”
“A fine help one of those hillbillies would be. It’s me alone, Palmier.”
Palmier couldn’t hide his dejection. “You caused the deaths of Coulter and Dr. Krabbi, didn’t you, Halliday?”
“When Coulter found out that your team murdered Jillian Andrews he developed a death wish. Unfortunately, Dr. Krabbi happened to be in the passenger seat when he decided to carry it out.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“You’ve lost your main players.” Halliday let that sink in then added, “Give it up, Palmier. Your Doctor Frankenstein antics are over.”
A gray pallor ran across the man’s face. He raised his two-way with his free hand. “Level five Team Alpha personnel please assemble on the third floor at area A6, over. Be advised, I have a suspect in custody. One or more armed accomplices are in the building.”
Halliday felt a sickening pain in his head. Too many blows to the head had made it difficult to think straight. He waited at the edge of consciousness for the spasm to pass.
“We’ll do this my way, Halliday,” Palmier said, lowering his weapon. “Tell me who’s working with you or I put a bullet through your kneecap.”
“I told you. I’m alone.”
“Genevive is aiding the government,” Palmier said, searching for higher ground. “The stealth agents that we’ll produce will be superior in many ways. I married Laurel because she represented the perfect female human specimen. Her body DNA exhibited no flaws… The perfect female agent of the future.”
“You married her for a sample of her DNA? Come on, Palmier. Wouldn’t it be easier to prick her finger?”
“Her athleticism and sound… She would have been our female model, had we not lost her in the New Mexico cave. We also require imperfect specimens. That’s where you come in Halliday.”
“You were about to say Laurel had a, ‘sound mind,’ weren’t you Palmier? That doesn’t fit in with delusional.”
Palmier’s expression could be described as insane. He said, “Dr. Krabbi’s findings indicated that the ASCENT project will eventually lead to invisibility. Think of it, Halliday, Invisible agents privy to secrets around the globe. We’d become the most powerful nation in recorded history. Genevive Labs could add decades onto people’s lives.”
“Dr. Krabbi’s accident may delay your schedule a few years.”
“We never intended for the brilliant, but petulant Dr. Krabbi to hold all the cards.”
“You’re playing God, Palmier,” he said.
“Do you know how much money people spend on cosmetic surgery? All in an effort to regain youth?”
The man’s sense of righteous entitlement angered Halliday. He wasn’t sure if Atascadero State Hospital had a ward for the likes of this guy. “Mankind will never be ready for this.”
What happened to Laurel?
“Mankind is ready and willing,” Palmier said. “Body organs are extremely expensive. We saved the vagrants from further pain and humiliation. For example, Lamar Festus had liver cancer. Normally, Genevive Labs does everything according to the letter of the law. Now, the future won’t wait.”
“You’re insane, Palmier,” he said. “How many abducted vagrants do you intend to dump down the well during the next few years of experimentation?”
“Tell me the name of your accomplice now or I shoot.”
Halliday saw a fire extinguisher shift on the wall. “It’s your late night security manager, Sam Waylen. You must have really pissed him off.”
While Pal
mier raised his two-way he took a pause to try to read Halliday. “Sam Waylen, this is Brad Palmier. Report to me at station A6, ASAP.”
Halliday watched the fire extinguisher pull away from the wall. It floated behind Palmier’s head. He grinned as the red cylinder retreated into a long arc.
Palmier said, “What’s so amusing, Detective Halliday?”
The hollow thud made Halliday wince. Palmier’s limbs resembled a marionette’s before his body dropped to the floor in a neat pile. Halliday reached down and felt Palmier’s pulse.
“The jerk’s alive, but unconscious,” he said to Laurel. “I believe you did incapacitate him.”
“And you never saw me do it.”
As Halliday grabbed Palmier’s gun, he heard voices near the entrance to the third floor.
“Come on,” he said.
Halliday scrambled down the hallway to the sign labeled DANGER—FLAMMABLE. They hid behind the huge cylinder where a jungle of pipes jutted to the ceiling. The sounds of voices told him that the security force had found Palmier. Halliday lowered the volume on the two-way radio so it wouldn’t give away their location.
“Laurel, whatever happens, you have to escape with the evidence. Head back to the mountaintop.”
“Forget it,” she said. “We’re together on this.”
He examined the control panel. The main valve controls were housed in a locked steel and glass case. Next to it, a series of large conduits ran into the large cylinder. He thought it controlled the environmental system. At the top of the panel an ominous sign warned: DO NOT REGULATE LPG ABOVE YELLOW ZONE.
Liquefied Petroleum Gas or LPG was highly flammable. For now, the LPG meter read in the green zone. He smacked the glass enclosed panel with the butt of the revolver. It bounced off. “It must be hard plastic,” he said.
“John, I heard a voice,” Laurel whispered.
He couldn’t fire a shot into the hard plastic panel and risk a ricochet. He saw a crawl space behind large pipes. “Follow me.”
Hidden by a jailhouse of pipes Halliday scanned the wall adjacent to the large cylinder. He estimated the distance to the large LPG control valve up on the wall a doable twenty foot shot.
“Get down behind me,” he said to Laurel.
He felt her steady hand on his back. He took careful aim.
The shot missed to the right. It took a chunk out of the wall. It also alerted the entire security force.
He pulled the trigger a second time. The bullet hit the valve square on.
They smelled gas followed by a burst of flames that streaked toward the ceiling.
Halliday knew if they didn’t leave soon they’d be toast. Laurel’s hand clutched his shoulder.
“Turn off the LPG mains,” a frantic voice cried from a distance.
An overhead sprinkler system rained on the blaze. It only slowed the spread of the flames.
Chapter Fifty
In front of them the fire fed a long row of storage shelves, sending flares streaking to the ceiling. The wires hanging from the ceiling lit up like long tailed fuses reaching for the overhead trolleys.
They had to move fast. “Laurel, follow me.”
The fire had not reached the main corridor in the direction of the refuse room yet. Halliday raced a short distance until he found a small alcove that afforded temporary shelter.
“Put the gun down,” a voice called out.
A security man walked out of the shadows. He pointed a gun at Halliday’s chest. He held a steady gaze, as if Halliday hid more secrets than Genevive.
Halliday realized they were trapped. Laurel, behind the man, hadn’t made a sound.
“Put the gun down, slowly.”
He laid the weapon on the floor.
The wild-eyed security man kicked it aside. “You son of a bitch, do you know what you’ve done?”
“If you knew the crimes committed in this lab, you would put your weapon down,” Halliday replied.
The man’s eyes darted around. He feared ambush.
The fire had doubled in size and strength. A flame rose not far away. Smoke rolled in their direction.
“Where are the others? Where are they?”
“I’m alone,” Halliday said.
The overhead sprinkler threw water over them.
The security man blurted into his two-way, “Mr. Palmier, this is Riley, over. I have a suspect under control on the third floor behind station A16.”
“Roger, be alert Riley,” Brad Palmier’s voice blared out. “At least one accomplice is hiding out on the third floor.” A short pause lingered until Palmier added, “Team Alpha, priority one is to extinguish the fires. Riley, I’ll be there in five.”
“Roger, standing by,” Riley said.
Halliday’s surprise at Palmier’s recovery elicited a questioning stare from Riley. “I swear I’ll shoot your ass if your partner tries to ambush me.”
Riley’s shaky promise bothered him. Fear made it easier to pull a trigger. “Relax Riley,” he replied in a calmer voice. “There’s no reason for violence. Besides, I said I’m working alone.”
The young security man leaned back, watchful but no less tense. “I don’t believe you.”
He kept his eyes locked on Riley’s, fearing the man might look around and see what he saw. It must have been the sprinkler water. Standing off to the left, behind the security man, Laurel had begun to lose her transparency.
“I’m a cop,” Halliday said.
“Mr. Palmier already warned us about you,” Riley said.
“They’ve deactivated the LPG mains valve,” a voice called out of Riley’s two-way.
“Each of you grab a fire extinguisher,” Palmier’s frantic voice sounded. “Douse these flames before they get out of control.”
“The flames are already out of control,” Halliday said in a calm voice. “Riley, if you don’t leave the building now you’re never getting out.”
“Mr. Palmier knows what he’s doing.”
The fool believed it.
“There’s another suspect loose,” Brad Palmier’s voice squawked over the two-way. “I don’t want him escaping the building.”
“Roger, Mr. Palmier, this is Bravo team leader. We have all the exits blocked.”
Halliday figured there were at least four more security personnel on the third floor, including Brad Palmier. Laurel should have hit the louse harder. Behind them, the flames roared into the ceiling. The onslaught from fire extinguishers toted by the security personnel merely slowed the fire’s progress. Moist funnels of gray smoke curled from where Halliday and Laurel had hid under the LPG pipes minutes before. A new bank of flames threatened off to the right.
“Down on the floor, face down,” Riley said.
Halliday considered his options. He gazed over Riley’s left shoulder and did his best impression of a man who had just seen a ghost.
The security man glanced behind him. He saw Laurel’s body, in a half transparency state. He began to shake.
Halliday lunged for the man’s midsection. As Riley’s gun fired, the man tumbled backwards. Halliday felt a sting in his left arm. He rolled over and grabbed Riley’s weapon on the floor. With a steady right hand he shot the man in the leg. Riley went down hard.
“I can see you,” Halliday said to Laurel.
“Oh no. It’s the water. Now what’ll we do?”
“Riley, this is Palmier, over.”
Riley had lost consciousness. Halliday picked up the two-way. He held off answering it. Laurel, without transparency, couldn’t escape undetected. They had no place to go.
“Riley, answer up.”
Halliday made a decision. He said to Laurel, “We have to find a better shelter.”
Her hand found his shoulder.
“Stay close and do what I say.” He leaned toward the main hallway corridor. The smoke made it difficult to breathe and to see. They would have to navigate the main hallway for thirty or forty feet before they reached the refuse room. Palmier and the security men would
have a shot at them.
“When I say go, you run to the refuse room. Stay low. Run as fast as you can. Got it?”
“Yes, I’m ready.”
The overhead sprinklers had ceased. Her transparency had improved to the “soap bubble” state. The smoke would help shield her.
“Here,” he said, waving Altman’s security card at her. “This will unlock the door. Hold it open for me.”
She grabbed the card. “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”
“All personnel, this is Brad Palmier,” the two-way chattered. “A suspect has terminated Officer Riley. All personnel proceed to area A16. You are authorized to shoot to kill.”
During the lull, Halliday snuck to the intersection of the main corridor that led to the refuse room. He fired off shots from Riley’s gun. The nearby ceiling fixtures burst. The area around them dimmed.
Another fire lit up the opposite end of the floor. Flames blazed toward the ceiling. Confused voices yelled out.
He had spent Riley’s ammo. Clutching Altman’s semiautomatic, Halliday said to Laurel, “Go.”
He fired off several rounds in the direction of the security men during Laurel’s retreat.
They didn’t return fire.
Halliday moved to the main corridor. He pivoted, firing off several rounds. Then he shot off the remainder of the bullets as he raced toward the refuse room.
No shots were fired during his retreat, either.
He stopped at the refuse room, shielded by a wall of vertical steel pipes. He peeked around the corner. Palmier’s men had to vacate. The fire had cut across the corridor to the exit.
The fires stretched in all directions. They would soon converge into a monstrous blaze that would consume the third floor. The security men must have realized that if they didn’t vacate the building soon everyone inside would perish.
A funnel of smoke rolled into his face. It took his breath away.
Chapter Fifty One
Laurel slammed the refuse door behind Detective Halliday. She watched him, bent against the wall, lungs full of smoke. Although the interior reeked of the putrid odor, it was smoke free.
Transparency: Bio-Tech Cavern Secrets Untold Page 29