Someone pushed against the door which moved an inch then stopped due to the blockage. Carter smiled, then took her phone from her pocket. A moment of satisfaction as she realised she was safe.
The water dispenser shifted.
Dropping the phone into her pocket, she rushed to the dispenser and pushed it back into position, waiting for the next attempt. When it came, she was jolted back and had to raise her arms to stop from falling face first into the wall.
A part of her wanted to cry out that this wasn’t fair. How dare they use their brute strength to undermine that?
Movement caught her eye along the corridor and she saw more figures behind the glass. With a tremendous crash, the creatures smashed the windows. Desperately, she scanned the room, but there was never going to be any more barricades she could use to block their ingress.
And then she saw it. Her only chance of freedom.
At the far corner of the gym, a skylight.
She could make it onto the roof and then she’d be in a good place to raise the alarm and call for backup. She still could do this. And save Payne.
The skylight was high though. Reaching it without something to stand on would not be possible. And jumping for it in the vain hope of pulling herself up—not going to happen. She might not be the unhealthiest person in Payne’s squad, but it had been some time since she’d been to a gym and done any kind of pull-ups. Even holding on to Ewan’s monkey bars in the garden she’d felt like her arms were being pulled out of their sockets.
No more time.
The Faceless were staring, if staring was the right word, in her direction willing her to do something. Like a chorus of bystanders, they watched to see what she might do next. They were enjoying their hunt. Her heart pounded.
Keep focusing on Ewan. She would get back for him. No doubt.
She left the doors and ran to the broken chair by the back wall. One leg was twisted, but she thought it might still support her weight. In a flash, she grabbed the chair and ran to the back of the gym. The ceiling sloped down a little at this part of the building and wasn’t as high as she’d thought. This crazy plan of hers might stand a chance.
Carter positioned the chair under the glass and stood on it. It wobbled precariously, threatening to topple her at any moment. She chanced a glance at the window and the line of blank faces pointing in her direction. Some of them seemed agitated as if they were itching to get in here and finish their hunt. Others looked like they were content to stand back and watch her make a fool of herself.
Better to die trying, she thought and pushed at the skylight’s catch. It was stiff under her fingers and barely shifted. But it shifted a little. Hold on to that.
She tried again.
A scraping noise came from the gym doors. She paused. The water dispenser was being eased aside.
They were coming in.
As if this was a cue, the others began to move into the room. The windows in the corridor came above waist high, so the first one to try looked almost comical as it tried to get a leg up to the frame and over.
She tied the catch again. This time it didn’t budge at all.
Shit. What was wrong with it?
More Faceless were trying their way through the broken windows. A noise like an injured cat broke their silence. She saw one stepping back, clutching its wrist. And then she saw the blood on the broken glass that hadn’t been cleared away from the frame.
Good to know these bastards could be hurt then.
Again, the thought of confronting them crossed her mind, and again she dismissed it. She was so close to getting out. She would try one more time with the catch and if that didn’t do it, she was prepared to smash the skylight and risk getting cut on the glass herself.
But it worked. With a satisfying click that lifted a load from her heart, the clasp switched to the left and the skylight pushed open easily.
Something had changed. The Faceless were quickening. Sensing that their prey was about to get away from them, the ones by the windows were forgoing trying to lift their legs up and had instead decided to toss themselves head first into the room. More inhuman screeches and more blood.
They were human once, she thought.
Carter gripped the edge of the skylight’s frame and tried to pull herself up. For a moment she was several inches off the chair, but her arms couldn’t do it. It was too much to take, and she dropped again, ready to jump up instead and get her body better out the window.
The chair didn’t break her fall. It collapsed under her weight and she fell to the gym floor, confused. The leg had crumpled away, useless. She scrambled to her feet.
There were about a dozen Faceless in the room with her now. She grabbed the chair and brandished it like a shield.
She would not go out without a fight. If she could push enough of them back to the windows, she could make a break for the door and maybe back downstairs.
“Boss!” she yelled. “I could do with some help!” Annoyed with how panicky her voice sounded, she stared at the advancing figures. “You don’t want to do this. I’m a nobody. I don’t want to hurt any of you.”
She sensed their movement before it happened, like a rush of wings as the nesting sparrows took flight. They came for her.
Carter ploughed ahead. Her last thoughts as the Faceless hands grabbed her and tore her improvised shield away from her, was that Ewan would never know what happened to her.
43
3rd June 2013
Throwing Carter back into the changing rooms had been the smartest thing he’d done since getting here. The poor girl had told him again and again that they should have had backup and like a blinded fool, he’d continued to disregard her advice like he had something to prove.
And look what a mess it had got them both into. If she’d had any sense, she’d have headed straight for the back door where they’d come in and done her best to raise the alarm.
These things were fast. And strangely coordinated. He considered whether they were connected in some way. They didn’t seem to communicate with each other, but was that just his assumption that all communication should be vocal? Without mouths, they would find traditional communication impossible. And yet, these things were fast and seemed to anticipate and structure their hunt to be the most effective.
After throwing Carter to safety, Payne had raced to the far side of the pool. The Faceless had been gathered within the empty pool itself and had scrambled towards the shallow end where they could clamber out easily enough. That was why Payne was heading for the deep end where the walls were over two metres high. A large number of Faceless, more than half, were tracking his escape—yes, he liked to think he was escaping—and had run along inside the pool towards the deep end then realised that they weren’t able to climb its steep walls; there were no grips to get hold of. Some of them were acting stupid and weren’t moving back to the shallow end, but many had clambered out and were running along the edge of the pool to where he was racing.
His plan had only been to create a more interesting target than what Carter offered. Damn. Several of the pack had broken off and had gone through the changing rooms instead of following him. Still, he hoped that he’d given her enough time to get outside. The last thing she wanted to do was get stuck in this complex. There was no way of knowing how many other exits there were.
Upon reaching the far end of the pool, Payne turned and headed for the fire exit at the far corner. He had a chance.
But he pressed down on the bar and shoved against the door. The door had been bolted and padlocked. He was running out of options. The Faceless were cutting off his escape.
Payne ran to the spectator seating. He might do better with a higher vantage point. When he got to the first row of seats, he clambered over a low barrier and started making his way up the rows of seating.
A strange noise came from one of the Faceless behind him, a call or a cry. Whatever it was, a chill ran across his shoulders—it was inhuman.
His pulse w
as racing as he climbed over the next row. The first of the Faceless approached, a tall creature that had once been a man, wearing a tattered pair of trousers and a business shirt with half of its buttons missing. A sleeve was half rolled up and Payne could see the scratches on his arm. Bruising as well.
He looked around for a weapon. A broken seat knocked by his feet. He picked it up and hurled it at the closest creature. It took the full blunt of the impact on its chest but didn’t fall. If they couldn’t feel pain, or remorse or emotion then what was left of the people they’d become? Was it going to be possible to ever turn these creatures back into people?
Payne climbed over the third row. Only two more rows to go until he reached the back wall and then what was he going to do? He was getting himself trapped in a corner of the building. Then he looked up and saw that far above him, in a wall that was impossible to get to, was a row of small windows. Even if they hadn’t been boarded up, there was no chance he would be able to reach them.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Payne pulled his phone out of his pocket. By his reckoning he was dead. There was no chance he would get out of this. He had a few seconds left, maybe. There was still a chance he could get a message through to someone and tell them about this hive of Faceless. Tell someone before it was too late.
He swiped his phone over the unlock screen and opened the dialler app.
The Faceless swarmed towards him.
44
3rd June 2013
The fire escape he’d tried moments ago, crashed inwards and men appeared in the doorway wearing dark tactical trousers and jackets. They looked like a swat team. Payne fell back against the wall, not clear what he was witnessing but glad the Faceless were no longer interested in him.
The men ran into the pool area, armed and shouting at the Faceless to stand back. The orders were ignored, but the men were unconcerned. Payne noticed the strange tube like weapons they were carrying.
The Faceless sensed they were in trouble. A universal cry swept across them. A low mournful cry that spoke of anger and fear. Payne was forgotten. This time, they weren’t so aggressive. There was no attempt to run to these newcomers, nor was there an attempt to run from them. It was a curious standoff as they seemed to evaluate the threat these newcomers posed.
The newcomers weren’t so hesitant. They spread into the room, taking up strategic points, fanning out along the far edge of the pool, boots clomping on the tiles. Payne tried to make out any markings on their uniform that would indicate their provenance.
When the first Faceless finally started to charge, they all did. Payne saw the movement first, saw that initial sense of rustling that warned they were about to act and he wanted to shout out a warning. but it wouldn’t have made any difference. This would not be a fair fight.
The first Faceless to get within twelve feet of the nearest swat guy was shot by a blue bolt of light. He fell soundlessly to the floor.
“Take them down,” the leading swat guy called to his men. And the attack continued. Guns were raised, shots were fired, and Faceless fell.
Not wanting to be trapped in the corner any longer, Payne saw his opportunity to make a break for the far end of the hall. The end where the combat guys weren’t was a more desirable place than where all the shooting was taking place. The Faceless were still pushing towards the troops who were taking them down with ease. None of them had that base survival instinct in them to even consider a withdrawal.
He reached the poolside and then ran along the far side of the pool, aiming for the changing rooms on the opposite side. Faceless were falling every second. At least half were now incapacitated and the ones at the back of the pack were having to climb around those that had fallen to get close to the troops. But the fallen Faceless were forming an effective barrier making it even easier to take down the rest.
Payne didn’t want to watch any more. He wanted to get out of here and find Carter and make sure she was OK. Then he needed to get onto Linwood and demand that she get here and take charge. This was some serious effort being put into the incapacitation of the Faceless.
It was only when he got into the empty reception area that he wondered how they’d known to get here at all. Carter must be alive and well and had somehow got through to someone in a high enough position that they could call on these troops.
Beyond all reason, he was beginning to relax, knowing that she was all right and that the problem had been taken out of his hands.
As he ran outside into the evening air, he quickly realised that maybe he’d misjudged the situation completely. It took a moment to register the number of vehicles on site.
Then urgent hands grabbed him from behind.
45
4th June 2013
Payne spun around in shock to see Sally before him. She put her finger to her lips then indicated they should move to the far side of the complex. Payne ran after her, his heart lifting as he came to terms with her being alive. She’d managed to get out of the building unharmed and undetected by the men with guns.
When they reached the security building by the main entrance to the complex, Carter hesitated, then veered off to her left. Payne followed and was quickly dragged down behind a fenced off area. They were hidden from view and Payne opened his mouth to speak. Carter clamped her hand over his mouth and shook her head.
He understood why almost immediately. Voices from the other side of the security building. Carter had prevented them from both walking into the men they were trying to evade.
“Any sign of the woman?” one voice asked. He spoke in a no-nonsense Welsh accent.
“No. Are you sure she was here?”
“Our contact told us they both came here together.” Footsteps then, running up from the pool building.
“Sir, we’ve found her mobile. They were both here.”
“Find them,” the man in authority ordered. “There can be no witnesses.”
Chills ran down Payne’s arm. What the hell did that mean? They had guns. Were they operating a shoot to kill order or were they planning to take them into custody? And that begged the question, what were they doing here in the first place? They were never here to help him; it was all about the Faceless. Then he remembered the vans he’d seen by the pool. Why had they come with such large vans? There were only a dozen armed men, the vans weren’t necessary for them, so that meant they had to be intended for the Faceless.
Carter had brought them in this direction and now they were trapped only feet away from the men looking to capture them. He glanced at his colleague. She had her head pressed tight against the wall, her knees up to her chest, trying to hide in the shadows. They couldn’t stay here for long. If the troops were implementing a search of the site, they were too exposed right now.
Payne’s phone vibrated. With lightning speed, he dug his hand into his pocket and thumbed the call to reject. Carter’s eyes widened in horror in the glow from his handset and he sighed at his quick reaction.
A cry of panic from the pool building and a shout for help.
“Come on,” the Welshman said. And then several sets of footsteps ran off away to the pool.
We need to go, Payne mouthed. Carter crawled to the edge of the fencing. She nodded back at Payne and he came to join her. Three men were running back along the access road to the pool building, dressed in the same black uniforms as the men who’d been disabling the Faceless inside.
Seizing the opportunity, Payne kept low and ran out onto the access road keeping close to the fence and around the corner of the security building. He stopped short when he saw a black transit van in front of the complex’s main gates and felt sure he’d led them both into more troops, but the van had been abandoned. All the men must be up at the pool building, trying to contain the Faceless.
He didn’t stop checking for troops as he led Carter out through the gates—they’d been forced open—and then they were out on the main road leading to the beach. Payne’s car was waiting for them in the lay-by where he’d l
eft it but as he approached, he saw that the troops had already taken precautions. The back two tyres had been slashed with a knife. Escape would not be so easy.
He shook his head in disbelief, then Carter grabbed his arm and gestured to the beach road. He followed as she led them into the safety of the sand dunes. The wind brought a cold breeze and the salty air from the sea. At this time of night, the area was deserted and Payne was glad that no one else would get hurt tonight on account of his own short-sightedness. What was he even doing here? He should have listened to Nixon and Taylor.
Carter was clambering up a sand dune and Payne did his best to keep up. At the top of the dune, they both crouched and observed the scene across the beach road. From here they had an unobstructed view of the leisure complex. There were three vans, dark blue with black markings on the side.
“Do you see that?” Payne indicated the markings. “Those men are part of TALOS.”
“Those men were armed. You said TALOS was a research facility. Are they from this other group? Department 5?”
“I don’t know enough about them. Possibly.” And Payne was reminded once again how little he knew about these organisations that were running the operations around the Jodrell Bank Incident. “What happened to you? How did you get past them?” Carter shifted beside him. He thought she might even be shaking. He put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed fatherly. “Don’t. You'll be fine. We’re safe.”
“I was cornered in a gym. The Faceless were hunting me. I tried to get out but I couldn’t. And then, they all just turned about and left, ignored me. Like they’d heard something. Been called away.” She was hiding more, Payne knew, but he didn’t press her. When she was ready, she’d talk, maybe not to him, but probably to Nixon.
He took out his phone and checked the missed calls list. With a grin, he pressed the call button but was interrupted by a figure making its way up the dune towards them.
The Faceless Stratagem Page 20