They’re like zombies, Hill,” Brogue said while they moved toward the steps along with the others. “Freakiest shit I’ve ever seen. If he tells ‘em to blow it, trust me, they will. Hope you brought along a few extra cars?”
“We got it covered. You got a count?”
“Kids? Staff?”
“Screw the staff.”
Brogue nodded in grim agreement. “Three hundred and twenty-six kids. They do a bed count every night.”
“Three twenty-six? That’s a weird number.”
“There’s a high mortality rate around here.”
“Son of a bitch.” Hill growled.
Conversation broke as the men took the steps that seemed to go on for miles. Brogue had already shared that the kids were kept on the lower three levels.
“Cai, we’ll be ready for transport teams soon,” Hill spoke through his headset and listened while his brother issued the necessary orders. “Where is he?” He asked his cousin, as they took the last of the steps down.
Brogue understood. “There’s another level beneath the residential floors. It’s immense. Shelanon runs everything out of there.”
“How do you know his real name?”
“He told me himself,” Brogue sent his cousin a bland look. “That’s when I knew I’d probably never get out of here. Not alive, anyway. How’d you figure it? Let alone figure out where I was? I didn’t even know that.”
“Found it in a book I read.”
Brogue gaped.
Hill shook his head. “Why the hell is
everyone so surprised by that?”
~~~
The combined teams worked for an hour and a half. Some carried out their duties, assuming command of the scene by either restraining or eliminating the property’s impressive security force. Others were charged with seeing the juvenile residents to the surface. In a steady, silent stream they traveled, climbing the stairs without argument. They were a heartbreaking lot- used to following orders and with an efficiency that had a bittersweet effect on their rescuers.
“We could be marching them to their deaths and they wouldn’t care,” Olimi Shales said to her boss.
Sandawe Webb eyed the children with a mixture of sadness and awe. “They haven’t been alive in so long, they wouldn’t know the difference.”
Persephone’s, Dena’s and Bill’s teams had been assigned with securing the staff. They proved to be even less of a challenge than the children. That is, if one didn’t count all the crying, claims of innocence and pleas for mercy. Those pleas earned them a shove to the floor or a blow to the stomach from the butt of a rifle. There would be no mercy.
Dena’s team made quick work of rounding up guards and cowering staff on the level they swept. They had completed their task and were awaiting orders to see their detainees to the determined locale when Dena heard her name echoing out.
“Yeah Ford?” She’d followed the man’s call to what looked to be a storeroom- a gym sized, well-stocked storeroom.
“Weird spot for this place, don’t you think?” Fred Gough eyed the area speculatively. “We found all the rest of these storerooms on the upper levels.”
“Yeah…” Dena studied the room as well. She was about to transmit the find when Caiphus’ voice came through her earpiece. He was ordering all detainees to be taken top side.
“Let’s move!” Dena nodded
to Ford and then turned to study the labeled vials lining the
room’s walls.
~~~
Persephone had been making a final sweep of her area when she came upon one of the gym sized storerooms. After calling in her report of the area, she continued her sweep. Everyone had been told not to attempt access of the lowest level of the facility until all other areas had been confirmed clear. There had been no orders on what to do if entry to that level was already accessible.
Gripping her rifle, she prayed this wasn’t another instance of her flying blind with her own terribly thought out plan. She firmly proceeded to the open door next to a chrome plate engraved with a down arrow.
She cleared the door and was a quarter of the way down the stairwell. There, she hesitated and gave a defiant shake of her scarfed head.
“Hill and the girls,” she spoke the words as if they were a meditation. “No more flying blind.”
Decided, she turned to ascend the stairwell
and froze. Marcella Cannon was smiling down at her.
~~~
“He’ll sleep until they’re ready to talk to him.” Marci indicated the syringes that had aided in the fact.
Persephone observed an unconscious Jake Shannon aka Jacob Shelanon. Then, she whirled around to face the girl-woman she hadn't seen in a lifetime. “Marci how-”
“That night they-they put me on a plane to this place.”
Persephone closed her eyes. Head bowed, she began to massage her temples. “Marci…”
“Hey…” Marci moved in to pull Persephone close. “Don’t blame yourself. I can see that’s what you’re doing.” She smoothed her hand over Persephone’s cheek and smiled. “I was terrified when they took me, but I’ve been treated well. Mr. Shelanon’s been like my own father-better than,” she added.
“This isn’t a good place,” Persephone gave her friend a solemn smile.
Marci was nodding. “You’re right, it isn’t, not for a great many people here. But it’s been good-better for me. Mr. Shelanon treated me like I was his own daughter- told me I reminded him of her. Saffron.”
