Delta Fringe Series Boxset: Books 1-3

by Heather Lee Dyer

  I stop for a minute and survey the room. Darkness doesn't bother me since I've lived most of my life underground in the mines. What does bother me is that the room is very cold. I've never been in this lab before so I'm not sure if this is normal or the only way I have to get to Derek from this direction is breached.

  I bite my bottom lip and take one step at a time toward the other door. I make my way around tables neatly stacked with utensils, tools, and med containers. There are two other doors that I can see in the dim lighting. There are too many doors in this place. I'm not sure which direction Derek is from here. I head to the door closest me and place the temp disc on the door.

  Great. Wherever this door led to, it's in the breach now. I wipe my sweaty hands on my pants and make my way toward the other door. I hear commotion outside and freeze. They've made it into the storage room I was just in.

  I look around trying to figure out what to do. If they find me in here, they'll figure out that Derek is nearby. On one of the long counters, I spot some familiar bottles and rush over to grab one.

  I scan and enter the code quickly on the second door. It opens and I throw the med bag inside. My heart stops as I realize I didn't even check to see if this one was breached or not. Titan’s Moons, I need to be more careful.

  My hands are shaking but I hold the door half open and lean around it. I open the bottle and let the cold spray cover the door. When I think I've got an even coat on it, I pull myself into the next room and close the door. I take a deep breath and face the wide-open expanse of the pharmacy.

  I grab the med bag and hope the guards are only judging the doors by feel. The chemical I sprayed on the door should stay cold for at least an hour.

  Lights come on above me and I wince. Good grief. I hurry back to the door and override the lighting so it stays off. I don't want any chance that light will show around the door.

  Using the tablet light on low, I make my way across the pharmacy to the back room. I follow the same path to the storage room, and the secret room behind. I carefully close each door behind me, hoping even if the guards make it this far, they won't know to look behind the storage rooms.

  I open the small door carefully, my heart beating madly again. I'm afraid I'm too late when I find the room silent. I slip in and close the door. I feel around on the floor but just find empty space where I left Derek. My whole body goes cold. I press the tablet to full light and turn to find a shelf coming toward my head.

  I step backward against the door and stifle a scream. Right before the shelf makes contact with my head, Derek pulls back in recognition.

  "Bren!"

  He lowers the wood as he drags in a breath.

  "You scared the crap out of me, Derek."

  "Ditto." He places the shelf back on the wall and steps forward to envelope me in a tight hug.

  I melt into him, my adrenaline rushing away in relief. "You're alive."

  "Yes, thanks to you." He pulls back with a grim look on his face.

  I help ease him back down to the floor. I place my hands on either side of his face and kiss him. "You're feverish still."

  "Do you only kiss me to tell my temperature?" He smiles crookedly.

  I remove my hands and reach for Markov's med bag, my face flushing warm. I hope he can't see the giant grin on my face.

  "No. But it's a useful way to tell right now." I busy myself with getting the blood ready and prepping Derek's arm for the infusion. He watches me with a smile that never leaves his lips.

  This closet is maybe two meters by ten meters and seems suddenly very claustrophobic. It's so easy this close to Derek to forget how much danger we're in.

  I start the IV in his arm and reality settles back over me. My body feels weak and I take a deep breath as I watch the blood drip steadily into his arm. "We've figured out two guards that we suspect working with Scott." I scrunch up my nose as his eyes widen.

  "Who?" He straightens a bit.

  I describe the two guards following me.

  He looks miserable. "Did they say or do anything to you?" There's an edge to his voice that I'm not sure is unbelief or nerves. I carefully weigh my answer.

  "After I brought you here, I found them looking for me. They said Markov sent them. When we got back to Markov, he told me he didn't, and that those two had been arguing in the corner before leaving the autopsy room. Markov couldn't leave the patients to stop them."

  "They could've just been nervous about you getting lost." He tilts his head and looks at me.

  "I thought about that. But they kept pestering me about where you were. I think they've figured out that I've told you about Scott. They're trying to cover their tracks."

  Derek hangs his chin to his chest. "So many people I've trusted since I've been here have turned out to be traitors. How are we supposed to trust anyone else?"

  I touch his warm cheek. "I know a few people we can trust, now. Annie for one. She's looking for Scott on Delta's public vids. We need to call her back to see if she's found anything."

  He looks up, a small glimpse of hope in his eyes. "I forgot to turn the cube back on." He reaches under the shelving and slowly pulls out my pack. I pull the cube out and turn it on.

  Fuzzy lines flash up toward the ceiling in several different colors. They bathe Derek and me in a strange mixture of light.

  "I guess it's still audio only." Derek grins through the beams of light at me.

  I smile and push the comm button. "Annie?"

  Derek and I stare at each other as we listen to the static crackle.

  "Annie? It's Bren. Please answer."

  Derek shakes his head. "Maybe we're still on the closed side of the emergency door. Too much interference."

  I don't answer as I listen to the static. I change to another emergency channel and am greeted with voices. I listen for a second before I recognize Annie's among several others. I place a hand over my racing heart. "Annie!"

  "Bren?"

  "It's good to hear your voice again, Annie."

  "Oh my gosh. I've been trying to locate you on all the channels." Her voice rises into an octave higher than normal, ending the relief I felt at hearing from her.

  "What's wrong, Annie?" I look quickly to Derek.

  "We've lost Scott. But we're fairly sure he's still on the station."

  Derek's eyes get big as he stares at me.

  "You're sure, Annie?" I suddenly feel cold all over.

  "Yes, we saw him double back on the vid. And we finally got some answers out of the captain of the attacking ship. He's fairly sure Scott's looking for you. They think you have whatever it is they came here for."

  I break eye contact with Derek and look up at the med box where the drive is hidden. "That's because I do have it. And a copy of it in a separate location. And I think Scott might be at the hospital waiting for us." I chew my lip as I look up to see Derek's distraught face turn even paler. "And we now know that two of the guards trapped here with us are working with Scott."

  "Bren! You need to get out of there!"

  "I'd love to, but we're trapped."

  "Where are you, I'll send someone that way. Maybe we can get our guys to you before the others do." I hear sniffling over the comm.

  "Annie, it's going to be all right. But I can't tell you exactly where we are because I'm not sure who else might be listening. The plans they're after are priceless. And apparently worth killing for." I tip my head back to look up at the ceiling.

  Annie's voice is quiet. "So if you think they're at the hospital, how are you going to get past them?"

  I smile as I stare at the pipes and conduit that snake overhead. "I think I might have an idea, Annie. I'll comm you when I know it's safe." I click the cube off and put it back into my pack.

  31

  Tunnels

  I pull on clean gloves and turn toward Derek.

  "I'm not going to like this, am I?" Derek looks away as I take the IV out of his arm.

  "It's already out, you can look now." I place the used
IV and needle into a disposable red bag.

  "I don't mean the IV. I'm talking about your plan to get us out of here."

  I look up to see Derek frowning at me. I finish checking his wounds and then stuff extra med supplies from Markov's bag into my pack. "Probably not. But I don't see any other options."

  "Will you at least tell me what you're thinking?"

  I stand up and secure my pack over both shoulders. I reach down and help Derek up.

  "No time. You feeling all right to walk?"

  "Walk, yes. But I'm not sure I'm up to more than that." He narrows his eyes at me as he leans against the wall.

  I put both hands on my hips and push my bottom lip out. "What, you don't trust me now? How many times have I saved your life today?"

  I must not pull it off very well, because Derek starts laughing.

  "Fine. Laugh. But we really need to get going. I tend to really lose time when I'm with you." Our eyes meet and Derek's expression sobers.

  We silently step toward the door and I listen for any movement on the other side. I shrug and open the door, my palms suddenly sweating.

  The room is empty and I feel a bout of nausea as again it hits me how much danger we're in. I help Derek out and seal the door. We look down the pharmacy shelves for any sign of life.

  Holding Derek's good arm, I lead him down the farthest aisle. We're soon at the pharmacy window overlooking the store. We squat down behind the counter and watch for movement or lights. After several minutes, we stand back up and head back to the door I came in.

  I carefully open this door and am greeted with an empty room. The door is still cold to the touch. I have no idea where the guards went, but I have a feeling I'm running out of luck.

  I guide Derek in the dark toward the back of the room. I've set the cube on very low light, but I can see just fine. I bypass both the door I know is breached and the door out toward the corridor.

  "How many doors are in this lab?" grumbles Derek.

  "That's all of the doors." I pull him down beside one of the lab worktables. "But I've got an idea."

  I push the worktable away from the wall as quietly as I can. I take my pack off and rummage in it until I find my universal tool. I use it to open a metal grate screwed into the wall.

  "What are you doing?" Derek whispers.

  "Delta has an air purification system, so we aren't breathing the same old air. And what better way to purify the air than run it through not only filters, but with natural atmosphere." I smile and plant a kiss on his cheek. "You first. I need to close this back after us in case they come back looking for us."

  Derek hesitates but then crawls into the vent tunnel. He holds his injured arm up to his side, so he's a bit awkward crawling through.

  My heart starts racing as I hear voices. I hurry in behind Derek and pull the table as far to the wall as I can, and lean the grate flat against the wall. If they move the table, they'll see the screws are out. I just hope they aren't smart enough to remember this ventilation system.

  We move at a slow pace because we need to be quiet. It feels like every movement in the metal vent we make echoes all over the station.

  The muscles in my face and neck are tense from grinding my jaw, and my hands are cramping from using them to crawl with. I feel bad for Derek who only has use of one arm and several injuries. Hopefully the movement isn’t tearing open the gash in his back again.

  We finally come to a large junction, and I'm able to crawl up next to Derek. He sinks down and lies carefully on his side to rest. I place my head next to his and whisper in his ear. "We're almost there. This junction is on the far side of the hospital. We should be underneath the walkway soon."

  He turns until our lips meet and gives me a kiss that effectively relaxes my jaw. I smile at him as he catches his breath.

  "How's your arm?"

  "Exhausted and aching. Like the rest of me. I'm not used to crawling around on three limbs." He winks and then sinks his head back down.

  I scoot past him. "I'll go first from here. We're almost there."

  "Almost?" I hear him turn over and pull himself back onto his knees.

  "I'm not very good at judging distances. We just have to make it under the walkway, then we'll be at the greenhouse junction."

  "Greenhouse? That's where we're going?"

  "Yep."

  "Why?"

  "It's the only way to get on the other side of the hospital without being noticed. From the greenhouse we can access the far door by the comm room."

  "Good grief, I didn't even know these ducts existed down here, and I definitely didn't know you could access the greenhouse in so many ways." Derek swears as I hear him bump his arm on the wall.

  "You all right?" I pause and look behind me.

  Derek nods, but I can see from here that the wound on his back has definitely opened back up and is bleeding through the bandage. Crap.

  "I've been here a lot longer than you, and I'm in security. How do you know about all these tunnels and entrances to the greenhouse?" He's slowly moving.

  I sit and turn to wait for him to catch up. He scrunches as close as he can to me in the small space. I pull out a length of bandage from my pack and wrap it tightly around him to cover the wound.

  "I've had incentive to stay out of everyone's way." I look up, our faces just inches apart. "To stay invisible I've found other ways of getting around the station to avoid people." I try to smile, but all the lonely days I've spent come crushing back upon me. I feel close to tears and try to look away.

  Derek leans in and kisses me fiercely. I can feel the warmth radiating from him in this small area. I smile and lean away to pull out another med tab.

  He shakes his head and grins as I place it on his tongue. I trace his cheekbone with my finger and kiss his forehead.

  I turn away from his feverish face and turn to continue down the tunnel. I flinch as I hear boots clanging above before I remember they can't see us. I crawl forward a few more meters until I can see the walkway grates ahead. I get to the edge where there's an open gap between the walkway and the mechanism that usually runs the moving belt.

  I peer up through the crack and see several guards jogging toward the hospital. I frown. How many are on Scott's side?

  Slowly, I crawl under the walkway. The smell of grease and metal brings to mind the hours I spent in the mines with Mom, the large machines lurching to a stop so that I could get a better look at how they worked.

  As we move under the walkway, we have to be careful of the sharp edges of gears and grates that are meant to be in motion. A shiver of fear snakes through my body. I hear more boots coming our way. I'm not sure if they'll see us down here, but I don't want to be here to find out.

  I only stop when I come up against the sealed door to the greenhouse. I study the door as I wait for Derek. It's not an electronic lock, so my wrist implant won't help. The door itself seems to open to the side and there are a few levers and a wheel on the front.

  The metal walkway above us groans and bounces slightly as heavy boots slow to a walk right above our heads. Derek reaches me and we press up against the strange door and hold our breaths.

  32

  Left Behind

  The voice above us makes my heart rate spike. "They have to be nearby. There aren't many options left to leave this area." I look at Derek, who has an equally scared look on his face. Scott. I don't recognize the other man he's talking to, but I'm betting Derek does when I see his expression turn from fear to anger.

  "We've looked through all the connecting rooms. They're all empty or lead to the breach."

  "You've been here longer than I have. Is there any other way out of the hospital?" We hear one of them stumble and fall against the greenhouse wall right above us. Dust falls on us from the walkway grating.

  "Let go of me and let me think." More scuffling. "The hospital is pretty self-contained. It's got its own water and energy sources, backup generators, even their own incinerator. The only thing shared is
the air ventilations system."

  "Vents?"

  "Yeah, you know, to circulate the air throughout the station."

  "Wouldn't they want each section kept separate in case of something bad in the air?"

  "It's separated in a way. Each building section has its own circulation and seals. But then all areas are then circulated through the greenhouse." A loud tap on the glass above us makes me jump. "We use the fresh organic air from the greenhouse to keep the air in the station from getting stale."

  "Are these air ducts big enough for a person to get through?" Scott's voice is louder, angrier.

  I look at Derek, tensing, and mouth "crap." His eyes are wide in agreement.

  "Sure, yeah I suppose so. They're all probably sealed off now though because of the emergency measures."

  "Show me," Scott orders.

  "From the hospital entrance?" whimpers the guard.

  "Yes, then where it comes out into the greenhouse. Come on."

  Scott and the guard stomp off across the walkway, back toward the hospital. I let out a sigh of relief and turn back to the hatch.

  "We've got to get this open before he comes back this way. It'll be too easy to spot us in the greenhouse." I frantically try all the levers with no luck.

  "I think we have to turn this metal wheel. But my arm is still worthless." He frowns.

  I study the wheel and grab onto the outside metal ring. "Which way?"

  "To the left." He reaches out his good arm and finds a spot above my hands to get leverage.

  "Okay, here goes."

  I put my whole weight into turning the wheel. It makes a horrible metallic scream, and I just about throw up in fear of it being heard by Scott. I look over my shoulder at Derek.

  We stay silent and still for a second and then I adjust my feet and pull on the wheel again. This time it turns, with Derek's help, but still screeching. I keep turning until it swings open toward us.