“I think that’s the route we take,” I said.
With a decision made, we followed Stanyan until we reached the juncture with North Ridge, which was a trail that shifted back and forth up the hill with multiple switchbacks. Eventually, we intersected with another trail, Fairy Gates, but decided to stick it out on North Ridge since it literally would take us to the top of the mountain.
Interestingly enough, we discovered that North Ridge Trail intersected with a road: Medical Center Way.
“Hmmm. Barnes didn’t mention anything about crossing a road,” I said.
Kang pulled up the map on his phone. “Looks like there are two roads that cut across the mountain. I say we stick with the trail, since it continues to the top. We can pick it up on the other side of the road.”
The entire North Ridge Trail loop wasn’t very long, just two miles total. I did find myself enjoying the scenery—the entire woods had a magical, fairy-like appearance to it, and the wonderful scent of the eucalyptus trees was intoxicating. As we neared the top, fog had begun to roll in. Smoky-gray mist drifted slowly between the trees. I half expected a tiny hobbit to appear, asking for directions.
“If this hike gets any more magical, I’ll have to backtrack and check to see if we accidentally passed through a wardrobe.”
“I hear you,” Kang said. “This is my first time up here. I had no idea how beautiful it is.”
“Isn’t it always like that? The places where we live, we explore the least.”
As we continued through a section of steep switchbacks, I noticed a few tire treads.
I pointed at them. “Looks like mountain bikers utilize this trail.”
“Over here,” Kang said as he gestured toward a small trail that cut through low bushes and funneled into the main trail. “I guess the bikers go off trail. This isn’t a maintained footpath. Let’s follow it for a bit.”
The trail was barely visible, maybe a little more than a foot wide—enough for a bike. It weaved around trees and larger bushes. In some instances, it widened to about three feet, and in other parts, it almost disappeared. We stopped in an area where it widened and disappeared into a small clearing of brush. That was when I spotted footprints.
I smacked my forehead. “Tell me we can’t be this lucky.”
Kang stood next to me, staring at the footprints in the hardened mud. “I think we are.”
We followed the prints through the low-lying brush for another twenty yards or so before I spotted what looked like a piece of cloth caked with mud.
“Kyle, over here. I think I found Barnes’s hospital gown.”
I grabbed a small branch off the ground and used it to lift the material up into the air.
“Certainly looks like one.” He removed a plastic bag from his back pocket. He held it open, and I used the stick to shove the gown inside.
“I think we need to buy lottery tickets once we’re off the mountain,” he said as he closed the zip seal.
“You got that right. Splitsies if either of us wins, okay? Now that we’re in the area where Barnes’s memory starts, we should comb the area more carefully. Maybe we can figure out how he ended up here.”
We split up again, looking to pick up Barnes’s trail. Kang found it a few feet away, on the makeshift bike path we had originally followed.
“Looks like he was right about following the biker down the hill,” I said.
We followed Barnes’s tracks, and eventually the path intersected with the North Ridge Trail, albeit higher up the mountain.
“So, up or down?” Kang asked, looking in both directions of the trail.
“I say we head up. I imagine we’re near the top.”
Kang pulled up Google Maps to find our location. “You’re right.”
The trail began leveling out as we neared the top of the hill. My neck was slick, but my breathing wasn’t taxed. The hike, while beautiful, was actually very invigorating. Kang was a few steps ahead of me when he stopped.
“What’s up?” I asked as I caught up with him.
“Look over there, through the small clearing in the trees.”
I looked over to where Kang was pointing and spied what looked like a small field of some sort. As we made our way over to it, we could see that it was anything but a field. A large section of the area was concrete pavement, as if it were the foundation for an old building that had been completely demolished and its remnants removed. Old fencing, barely propped up by a few rusty poles, surrounded part of the area.
“Strange seeing this in fairyland. It’s like a cruel reminder of the urbanization surrounding Mount Sutro,” I said.
We made our way across the pavement. Graffiti covered parts of it. There were a few old soda cans and other unidentifiable garbage. We neared the fence and viewed the rectangular concrete pad. Directly in the middle were two narrow steel plates, which were now rusted an orangey-brown.
“What do you suppose this is?” I asked.
“You know, I think this might be the remnants of an old missile site.”
I looked at Kang. “Are you serious?”
“I remember once Sokolov and I were having a conversation about the days of the Cold War and how both governments were sticking missile silos just about everywhere. While he was living in Novosibirsk, the military installed one in the park that he used to play at. He mentioned there were silos hidden in San Francisco.”
“You think this is one of them?”
“Abby, these aren’t just large sheets of metal. These look like blast doors. Look, there’s a split down the middle. That’s where it opens up.”
Now that he had mentioned it, they did look like large, metal doors. We walked around the blast doors. They looked as if they hadn’t been opened in years.
“Why would the government just abandon it and leave it here? Makes no sense,” I said as I studied them.
Kang had made his way to the far end of the doors and knelt.
“What are you looking at?” I walked over to him.
“These two smaller metal slabs look like doors to an entranceway.”
“Yeah, and…?”
“It’s just that the larger blast doors look like they’ve been sealed shut, but not these.”
“Maybe the person who abducted Barnes kept him here,” I said. “Come on. Let’s pull them open.”
Kang reached down and gripped one of the handles. I gripped the other, and we both pulled. The doors opened with surprising ease. They weren’t as heavy as they looked.
Inside, a metal ladder descended maybe ten feet or so. I removed my flashlight from the holder hooked to my waistband, and shone the light inside. I saw broken beer bottles, some empty spray cans, and what looked like an old beach towel.
“Teenagers might have used the space to party a while ago,” Kang said, as he, too, shone the beam from his flashlight inside.
“Only one way to be certain.” I climbed down the ladder. Kang followed.
The concrete floor was wet in some areas, and the space had a musty smell. Along one of the walls were lighting fixtures, but they were empty, no bulbs.
“Man, I can think of a trillion other places to drink beer with my friends.”
“Watch your step; there might be needles,” Kang said.
The space continued to the right and into a short corridor, about five feet in length, where it ended with a metal door secured by a large padlock—one that was brand new.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
There wasn’t much more to look at after we hit the secured door. We took another look around the silo but found nothing strange. The anomaly was the brand-new padlock. Everything else looked as if it hadn’t been touched in years. Did the government provide periodic maintenance and had it found that the lock needed replacing? Had someone else replace it? Someone who had no business being there? Those weren’t questions we would find the answers to while on the mountain.
We made good speed down the mountain and stopped at a nearby deli, where we hurriedly munched
on roast beef sandwiches and washed them down with cold pressed juice. It was a little after one o’clock when we started our drive to the facility.
Kang said, “We should find out who is responsible for maintenance in or around that silo. City or the military?”
“That’s very proactive of you,” I said.
“Just so you know,” Kang glanced at me, “I haven’t quite bought into a connection between Xiaolian and our two abductees, but I do think there might be a connection between Barnes and Hammond. I’m curious to know what’s behind that door.”
“Likewise.”
When we arrived at the facility, we spotted Yates walking toward the entrance of Building D. He seemed to be in a hurry. Kang honked the horn, and Yates nearly jumped out of his shoes. I waved at the doctor as we pulled into a parking stall. He looked irritated.
“Agent Kane. Agent Kang. How good of you two to make it here today.” He shielded the sun from his eyes as he squinted at us.
“We got held up with another investigation,” I said as I closed my door.
He nodded. “Multitasking. It’s good to see our tax dollars hard at work.”
Yates held the door to the building open for us. Once we had passed through the waiting area and through the security doors, he spoke again. “She’s been agitated all morning.”
“Why’s that?” I asked.
“It’s not something new. I’ve seen this side of her before. You have too—on your first visit. It’s just that these mood swings have progressed. There have been outbursts.”
“What do you mean?”
“I think it’s better that I show you.”
We entered Yates’s office. Kang and I each took a seat in the chairs in front of the doctor’s desk.
“I have some footage I’d like to show you.”
He tapped at his laptop and then turned it around so we could see the screen. Video footage of the recreation room filled the screen. It looked empty, but a few seconds later, an object flew across the screen.
“Was that a pair of boxing gloves?” I asked.
A chair followed next. That elicited a “Whoa!” from both me and Kang.
A short beat later, Xiaolian appeared in the frame. Her fists were balled tightly, and her feet stomped the floor with each step. She had a determined look on her face. And, if I wasn’t mistaken, she was talking to herself.
“This is what’s become of her lately,” Yates said. “There’s more.”
He fast-forwarded the video footage until we saw Xiaolian in her bedroom. The lights were off, so the footage had the green-colored effect, but we could clearly see Xiaolian’s glowing eyes as she stood next to her bed, staring at the camera.
“That happened this morning at approximately three forty-five a.m. It’s not the first time she’s done this.”
“What’s she looking at, besides the camera?”
Yates looked at me. “Nothing’s there but the camera. She stood staring at it for twenty minutes before returning to bed.”
He tapped at the keyboard. “This took place earlier in the night, at eleven p.m. She started this routine shortly after we stopped strapping her to the bed.”
Xiaolian was on the floor next to her bed, doing twisting sit-ups.
“If my count is accurate, I believe she does fifty crunches before switching to fifty push-ups.”
“Why weren’t we informed of this earlier?”
“I had orders not to mention this to anyone.”
“So why the sudden change of heart?”
Yates closed the laptop and then leaned back in his chair. “I’ll be frank. I’m not making the progress that I’d hoped I would. I can continue showing you what she’s capable of, but what I can’t figure out is why she’s this way. Why does she have mood swings? I don’t know. Why does she stare at the camera late at night? I don’t know. Why is she trained in hand-to-hand combat? I don’t know. I can continue to discover unique things about Xiaolian, but it won’t answer the bigger question, the motive or reasoning behind everything about her. Those answers, unfortunately, are not something science can answer, but she might be able to. However, as much as I try, I can’t get her to open up. You are the only person I know of who has shown some ability to break through her wall. With that said, I also think you too are being hampered.”
“I would agree. There are times I feel she’s shutting me out.”
“It’s this place,” Kang said as he gestured around us.
“Yes, I would agree with you, Agent Kang. Xiaolian is essentially a prisoner here, and until her circumstances change, we’ll continue on this merry-go-round ride.”
“What are you getting at, Dr. Yates?” I asked.
“I now believe in order for us to get to the truth about Xiaolian, we must release her.”
My chest rose with excitement. “You’re letting me take her home?”
“I wish it were that easy, but that decision is beyond my scope of authority.”
“Who around here holds that authority?”
Just then Yates’s door opened, and in walked Archer. He was wearing the same hoodie I had seen him in the day I’d first met him. He had a lollipop in his mouth.
“Agents.” He leaned against the wall and folded his arms across his chest. “I’ll get right to the point. Your progress with extracting information from the girl has been disappointing.”
“I would say the same about the facility’s efforts, but Dr. Yates has already covered that with us.”
A wry smile appeared on Archer’s face. “Feisty. I like that about you, Agent Kane.”
He bit down on the candy and quickly crunched it into small pieces, his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. He tossed the stick into a nearby trash can.
“Well, now that we’ve stated the obvious, how about we do something that doesn’t waste anymore of our time?” I suggested.
“What are you proposing, Agent? That you take the girl home?”
“I know you think waterboarding her will yield the results you want, but, yes, I am proposing that.”
Yates cleared his throat. “If I may speak candidly here. I’m in agreement with Agent Kane. We’ve hit an impasse. The facility has become a block that, unless removed, will not allow us to move forward.”
Archer licked his lips. “All right. Let me see what I can do. But until you hear back from me, she is not to set foot out of this facility. Is that understood?”
I saluted him. “Aye, Captain.”
Chapter Thirty
Yates thought it was better we not meet with Xiaolian that day. He had given her a sedative earlier in the morning to keep her calm.
It surprised me to hear they were drugging her. Of course, I’m sure there were a number of things being done to her that we weren’t privy to. Thinking about that really put her situation into perspective for me.
She was a twelve-year-old in a foreign country with no family or friends—with the exception of me, and even that was being generous—being held prisoner by the government so they could perform experiments on her. I thought back to my mindset at that age, and quickly concluded that I would have cracked half a day into my imprisonment.
“Do you still hold the same belief about her?” I asked Kang during our drive back to the offices.
“What? That she’s a spy?” He tilted his head from side to side. “You know, sometimes I’m completely convinced, like after watching the video Yates showed us, and at other times, I see an innocent girl having fun at an amusement park. It’s weird. You?”
“I’ve moved into your boat. At first I thought it was really unlikely, but now… I mean forget about her combat training, but a twelve-year-old girl having to endure what she’s enduring physically and mentally and not break? I dunno. That seems like training to me, especially after watching those videos.”
“Yeah, totally different Xiaolian. It’s hard to argue. And it’s not like she’s just throwing a temper tantrum. It’s like there’s something going on inside her head.”
“You think there’s a chance she snapped and has just completely lost it?
“Maybe.” Kang steered the vehicle over to the carpool lane. “I’m a little concerned about you taking her out of the facility and bringing her into your home. You’ve got the kids and Po Po to think about. Granted, before we didn’t know, but now…”
“If I don’t do it, Archer will get his way, and she’ll be tortured, perhaps even moved to a black site and kept there for Lord knows how long. She’ll essentially disappear. I hate to think that harm would come to my family because of her, because deep down inside, I still see Xiaolian and not some Chinese spy.”
“Unless that’s part of her training. Look, we’ve got to come at this without bias. If she is a spy, the whole ‘innocent girl’ is just an act.”
I shifted in my seat. “I realize she could be playing us, and that we have to accept the fact she’s good enough to counter our actions with changes in her personality.”
“It would explain what Yates thinks are mood swings. It’s hard to see her that way, but we have to assume she’s capable of anything. She’s smarter than we realize—that, I believe.”
Later that evening, Albert Shi sat in the driver’s seat of his vehicle, parked two houses away from Abby’s home, while he listened to their dinner conversation through a pair of earbuds attached to a cell phone. Another cell phone sitting on the passenger seat buzzed. He removed an earbud and answered the call.
“Anything to report?” Connie asked.
“Nah. So far it’s just normal family talk about everyone’s day. Lucy is still pondering joining the Brownies. Is Hailey still interested?”
“She is if Lucy is. Did Ryan mention anything about Colin at the dojo?”
“He talked a little about the dojo, but Colin never came up. We should push him to tighten his friendship with Ryan. It couldn’t hurt. You know, I’d hoped she would mention the facility, since they showed up there today, but she remained tight-lipped.”
The Curator: SG Trilogy Book 2 (Abby Kane FBI Thriller 8) Page 11