Dan held on tight to the case as Liam directed them through the corridors. First left, then a right, all in dim corridor lighting. After the fourth turn, Liam stopped. He concentrated and started walking. He appeared to be counting doors, and when he reached the tenth, he stopped. All of the entrances had code pads, and Ed had warned them that if they were at the wrong door, their code would set off an alarm. Guards would surround them before they had a chance to get out, and death was certain.
“You sure this is the right one?” Dan asked in a whisper.
“Um, I think so.” Liam went back to the end of the corridor and counted again.
John stood by the pad, his hand poised and ready to type in the numbers.
Liam shook his head and went back to the end. He pointed at the original door.
“Shit, no, don’t John!” Liam knocked John out the way.
Dan glared at him, and John looked ready to faint. He had not quite pressed his finger down on the first number.
“Left side of the corridor.” He shrugged apologetically. “It’s that one.”
“You sure this time?” Dan asked. “We can’t be wrong. Our families die if you’re wrong. Remember that.”
“I’m sure.” Liam frowned and looked to be counting again. He nodded. “I’m one hundred percent certain.”
John checked with Dan, who raised his eyebrows.
“Should I?” John asked.
“It’s the right door,” Liam said. He put his hands at his sides as if by way of apology. “It’s the right one.”
“Okay then. Here goes nothing.” John punched in the code. For a moment, nothing happened. Cassie watched as Dan bunched his fists up, knuckles white. If the alarm went, was he going to attack Liam before attempting to make a getaway? She saw him glance at Liam, fire behind his eyes.
But then the door clicked and swung silently open.
The light flickered on as Dan and Cassie entered the room. Everything was set up as an eerie duplicate to the lab in England. Then she realised it was England that was the copy. Blimey, she thought, even down to the observation room. Cassie peeked through the glass, half expecting some near-dead person to stagger into view.
“Cassie, no time for sight seeing.” Dan undid the case and pressed a button to get the coolant going. Let’s get the vials and get the hell home.”
She found a box of latex gloves on the counter. Cassie took two out and put them on. Then with infinite care, she opened the fridge.
The Germans must have been having more luck making the virus. There were about sixty vials crammed in the little fridge. Cassie took out one and slid it into place in Dan’s case. Ten vials later, and Dan let the lid snap closed.
“Let’s go,” he said.
“Just a minute…” Cassie turned back to the fridge.
“We don’t have time for prettying things up, time to go!”
“No, Dan listen. When they notice the vials are gone, they’ll go looking for the thieves. Let me just tidy it up a bit, make it look like nothing’s been touched.” She didn’t wait for a reply and started moving vials about.
“Don’t drop any.”
Cassie nodded. “Then stop pestering me.”
She bought the rows behind forward to disguise their theft, and then closed the fridge. “Done.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here.” Dan opened the door. Liam and John were out there, both pacing about the corridor in nervous little steps. Dan guided Cassie out and then whispered, “Hang on a minute.” He dipped back inside the room, pulling the door to. Moments later he reappeared, a serious expression on his face.
“What were you doing?” John whispered.
“Nothing,” he said. Then quietly for John, he whispered a word. Cassie thought she heard him say: “Security.”
Liam led them back through the corridors and to the exit.
“Think it’s safe out there?” John asked.
“Only one way to find out.” Dan opened the door and slid out along the wall. John went next, then Cassie. Finally Liam left the laboratory, and the door clicked closed behind him.
They waited for Ed’s whistle. None came. They were so exposed here against the wall. Cassie stared into the shadows. Maybe he hadn’t noticed them – or what if there was a patrol on the way? Cassie glanced to Dan and realised he’d had the same thought.
“We’re sitting ducks here. We’ve got to move on.” Dan started shuffling along, still with his back up against the wall. Where the hell was Ed? And why wasn’t he whistling to them?
“What about going into the laboratory again?” Liam asked. “We could do that, just until we hear Ed’s signal.”
“Doesn’t save us from the guards patrolling around inside the lab complex, and we’d be even more exposed there. The only room we have a code to is the one they’d be most likely to check on.” The building ended not far away, with an alley offering some cover. Dan moved quickly towards it.
“I hear something,” John said in a harsh whisper. Cassie stopped and listened hard.
Footsteps. She could hear them. People were coming towards them – a police patrol, must be.
“Move it,” Dan whispered and jogged into the alley. John dipped out of sight, right behind Dan. Cassie ran in on the heels of John as the steps got even louder. The police would be in view any moment now.
Liam ducked in. The Germans must have rounded the corner. Their voices were suddenly clear, their footsteps loud. She pressed up against the wall, hoping the shadows would be enough to hide all of them.
“Oh my God,” Cassie muttered under her breath as they passed by. She’d not actually set eyes on any of the Germans yet. Somehow, she’d always been at the back when they hid out the way of a patrol on their journey to the laboratory. But she got a full view of them this time. There were only two of them, but they were big. Both men were tall, rounded – not skinny like all of them were. They even dwarfed Ed, and she’d thought of him as very well fed – government fed. But these men, they really were fit, she could see it in the way they moved, the way they held their weapons, they way they marched in sync. If they realised there were people hiding in the shadows, she guessed it would take them only minutes to kill each and every one of them.
Cassie pressed her back up against the wall and held her breath. One glance to the side, one noise to alert them, and the Germans would have them. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something across the street. Something sticking out of a shadow – Ed! He was in a deep recess, with only his boots visible, and only if you knew where to look. She’d been lucky to see anything at all. Relief flooded her. At least he hadn’t abandoned them completely.
Then the Germans stopped. They stood chatting, downwind of their hiding place, and close enough she could smell the scent of soap on them. Perfumed soap – what a luxury. She remembered perfumed soap as a child, she’d not seen any in so many years. One of them let out a guffaw, and slapped the other on the back. Their moment over, they turned and started back up the street. Cassie’s head had started to spin. She dared inhale slowly as they moved out of sight.
Dan didn’t waste any time. He was already stood at the head of the alley, watching the police depart. Then he indicated for the rest of the group to follow, and he darted across the road. He must have seen Ed’s boots as well, as he headed directly there. Indecision flooded Cassie. What if the police returned? What if they weren’t far enough away, and they saw her running out of the alley? Liam didn’t give her time to think anymore about it. He shoved her out of hiding. She sprinted over to Dan and Ed, and waited for John and Liam. Dan was handing the case of vials over. Carefully, Ed undid his pack and placed the case inside. He buckled the pack back up, with a care she’d not see before. Was there a danger the virus might get out? The case must have been designed for this, Cassie thought. Surely if it bounced around, none of the vials would break? They’d be safe in their cushioned prison. Cassie watched as Ed carefully shouldered the bag. Their guide obviously had doubts.
&n
bsp; Ed stepped out of the recess, and kept the group close to the walls until they ducked down the way they’d come. He negotiated the streets at a speed Cassie had trouble keeping pace with. Would he ditch them now he had what they’d come for? He’d spoken so much of his trips out here. He’d have no problem getting back without them. But they would be lost forever. Cassie forced her tired legs to go faster, just as she realised he’d stopped.
They were at the edge of the fields. Cassie was once again struck by the openness, the vastness of the space. Night winds swept across the crops, making the plants rustle with a hypnotic shushing sound. But there was no time to rest. Ed was on the move again. If the rest of them didn’t hurry, they’d lose him in the corn.
Dan was already across and disappearing into the crop. Cassie glanced in both directions and made the dash over. From somewhere in the distance, she heard a shout.
“They’ve seen us.” Ed called out from within the plants. “Run! Guards are on the way!” He didn’t wait to see if they moved. She momentarily caught sight of him before he took off between the rows. Dan was only steps behind. Cassie glanced back for Liam and John, already moving at a run. Her foot caught on a stalk of corn. She half-tripped, and used the momentum to force herself into a faster run. The other two were right behind her, and they tore through the crop to catch up. What would the Germans do to them? Did they know they’d stolen the vials of virus, or had they been sighted as simply citizens breaking curfew?
No time to think or worry. Cassie concentrated on negotiating the rows of corn.
A siren wound up, maybe from over where they’d heard the shout. Then another blared out from the other direction. The noise was deafening, almost stopping Cassie in her tracks. Without slowing, Liam grabbed her hand and dragged her along.
Another noise joined the alarms. A kind of yapping sound.
“Oh my God, are those dogs?” Cassie cried out in horror. She’d only ever seen them on the television. The government kept a few breeds, saving them from extinction and used them for crowd control. Cassie had watched the dogs attack people on the news channels. If they were caught, they’d most likely be ripped to shreds. She pounded the ground harder. John had overtaken them, Dan and Ed were almost out of sight. What if they lost them? They’d be dead before the others even realised they’d gone.
Not far ahead the buildings started up again. Liam pointed and darted off in a different direction as he caught sight of Ed switching rows, and then they were out of the crop. No time to check for guards. Ed sprinted out of the cover of the corn and straight over to the buildings. How did he know which was which, Cassie thought fleetingly, they all looked the same. Then Liam had dragged her across the clearway, and in amongst the structures. Ed and Dan had disappeared from view, but they saw the last of John as he ran inside a doorway. Moments later, Cassie and Liam were inside the room with the others.
She panted and tried to catch her breath. Each intake burned her throat, and her legs felt like jelly. And they still had to get to France. Ed shoved her out the way and slammed the door shut. He threw a barricade into place.
“You don’t have much time.” He yanked off the heavy metal cover let it fall to the side with a loud thunk. He dropped into the tunnel. “I wait for no one,” he said, “And I mean it this time.” Then he disappeared.
Chapter 27
“Get in!” shouted Dan and pushed Cassie in the hole.
She fell hard onto the tunnel floor. Pain exploded in her knees, but there was no time to think about it. Liam was halfway through the hole already. Cassie wouldn’t make the same mistake a second time. She whipped her pack to her front and started crawling forward as quickly as she could. It didn’t matter that her hands were getting torn to shreds by the rough concrete. She needed to move as fast as possible. The dogs were almost at the door, their barks filtered into the tunnel, sharp and high-pitched – and dangerously excited.
Something sharp dug into her leg, and Cassie collapsed with a shriek.
“Move!” Liam yelled. “The dogs are right behind us!”
The flesh in her thigh made a sickening ripping sound as she yanked her leg free. She had to keep going. Pain attacked her in waves, shooting up through her with each movement. Blood soaked her trousers, so they became instantly slick with blood. Could the dogs smell it, even on the other side of the door, where she hoped they still were? Their barks escalated to a frenzy. The sound of their claws on the other side of the door mixed in with their barks. A faint feeling was coming over her. It was all the blood pouring out of her. She was going to collapse right here, and the rest of them would die because of her. Cassie concentrated on keeping conscious. If she collapsed now, she’d trap them all. Would guilt travel with her to the afterworld? Place one hand in front of the other. No stopping. No thinking about the pain swimming up to grab her. Ignore how the tunnel appeared to be getting smaller as her vision buckled in on itself.
There was a bright light suddenly in her eyes – her first thought was she’d died. This was God coming to fetch her. But something was pulling her. Someone had her by the back of her shirt. They yanked her out and tossed her on a dirty floor. She landed on the rip in her leg, and a fresh bolt of pain bought her back. This wasn’t heaven. She was out of the tunnel, in the safe room on the French side.
“Get out the way,” Ed ordered. “Now!”
He was on his feet, taser aimed at the tunnel. Cassie rolled out the way, a hand pressed down on the cut, and glanced back to see Liam crawling into the room. His face was white, and somehow got even paler as he found the taser pointed less than a meter from his head.
“Move it,” Ed’s concentration did not waver from the tunnel.
Barks echoed out of the tunnel. The dogs must be by the entrance. Dan crawled into view. Blood ran in streaks down the side of his face. His hands were torn, and not just from the tunnel. He jumped free of the entrance and rolled out of the line of fire.
“They’re following us, they attacked us in the room. I knocked one out. John was right behind me, but the dogs are in the tunnel.” He panted, trying to catch his breath.
All of them waited, watching the entrance for a sign of John.
But John didn’t appear. Echoing out from the tunnel they heard a thump, followed by a yelp. Then came a deep resonating growl, snapping and barking at the same time, and a sudden cry of pain.
“Where’s John?” Cassie cried. She backed away from the entrance. Something was coming through, the scuffling from inside the tunnel was getting closer. Please be John, she thought. Please don’t let him die.
A deep growl resonated out of the tunnel. Moments later, a beast leapt out and straight towards Ed. There was no hesitation. Ed fired the taser, and the dog fell down dead. Its back legs twitched a couple of times, and then it stilled.
“Incoming,” Ed warned, and a second dog lurched out. Ed shot, but the creature was wily. It dodged to the side, and lunged at Liam, teeth bared. Liam kicked out, and then cartwheeled back and straight into a wall.
“Shoot it!” Liam yelled, as he somehow held the dog back.
The dog growled, and let out a deafening series of barks. It launched at his face. Liam put an arm up instinctively, and the dog latched on and sank its teeth in. Another bang sounded, and for a moment the dog did nothing. It stared at Liam, and then let go and fell to the ground.
“How many?” Ed shouted at Dan.
“Where’s John?” Dan tried to get back to the tunnel, but Ed seized him by the arm.
“How many dogs?” he asked again. “I need to know.”
“Three, maybe four. They kept attacking.” Dan was crying, the tears mixing with the grime on his face. He had incisor marks on his arms and blood seemed to be trickling out from everywhere.
Ed turned back to face the tunnel as another dog came into view. It clambered out, went straight into a run, and charged at Ed. There was no hesitation this time. Ed fired the taser.
For a moment there was silence. Liam dropped down into the
corner, one hand clamped down on his arm. Dan collapsed down to his knees, his eyes fixed on the tunnel entrance. Ed took a tentative step forward. He gave a quick glance in the tunnel. Then allowed himself a longer look.
“Looks safe.” Ed crouched down and stared into the dark. “There’s a shape, just out of reach. I’m going to see if it’s John. Dan, do you know how to use a taser?”
Dan nodded and reached out for the weapon. His hands were shaking so violently, Cassie wondered if he’d have any chance of shooting straight. But once the taser was in his grasp, he held it still, pointed at the tunnel. “I’m good,” he said.
Ed crawled in and moments later backed out. He was pulling something large. Cassie couldn’t understand what she saw at first. There was so much blood. Then she realised he’d dragged a dog out. He pushed the corpse out the way and went back in. She heard a yell, then a pain-filled moan from the tunnel.
“John,” Dan called. He dipped down to his knees and tried to peer into the dark.
Ed backed out. An arm was draped over his shoulders. Dan dropped the taser and rushed to help. John was barely conscious. He was covered in blood. Half his face was missing, a flap of skin hung from where his jaw line used to be.
“I got the bastard,” he whispered. He gave a weak smile, and his eyes closed.
“No! John!” Dan gave him a shake. “You can’t die, you’re not allowed to…”
A slight breath passed out of John, but he didn’t draw another. His eyes, fixed on Dan’s – almost apologetically, then glazed over. Ed laid the man on the floor.
“He’s gone,” Ed said, and put a hand on Dan’s shoulder and glanced over to the tunnel entrance. “Last thing I want to do is rush you, but if we don’t go soon, there’ll be more. Then we’ll all die as well.”
The Ultimate Choice Page 21