Tempting Evil (Riley Jenson Guardian 3)

Advantage me.

I stepped close - so close that any wolf or shifter would have smelled my scent - and lashed out with a bare heel, hitting the first man hard in the crotch. He went down with a wheeze of pain. The second man swung around, his expression a mix of surprise and wariness. I dropped low, sweeping again with my leg, knocking the second man off his feet. I grabbed the gun off the first man, flipped it around, and whacked the butt across the second guard's face. His head snapped back, and he was out to it before his head hit the ground. The first man quickly followed his partner into oblivion with just a little help of gun butt. I took the clips out of the guns and threw them both deep into the trees, but the guns I left after patting both men down to ensure they didn't have any more clips on them.

After rubbing my temples in a vague attempt to ease the ache, I made my way back to the fire exits. Quinn soon joined me. The bastard wasn't even breathing heavily. But then, I'd had a few more fights than him over the last few hours, and had lost my breakfast as well. Was it any wonder I felt weak and shaky?

Though I had a sneaking suspicion the cause for the shakes was more the lurking certainty that something was wrong. That the shit was about to hit, and everything we'd achieved so far was about to go down the toilet.

I took a deep breath to calm down my nerves. I had a job to do, and I'd better start concentrating on that rather than worrying over future problems and uncertainties.

It seemed to take forever to find the hidden exit for sublevels, though I suppose in reality it was only a minute or two. It had been concealed in the remains of a tree that looked to have burned in the bushfires that had raged across these mountains years ago, though the blackened bark was in fact well-concealed concrete rather than once-living wood. Finding the actual entrance was tricky. The tree looked whole, and it was only on close inspection that the outline of a doorway could be seen. The catch was little more than a dent on one edge. On opening that, we discovered another door, this one made of steel and accompanied by the same sort of key-coders that guard the various secure areas in and around the house.

"I'm told the backup generators power these security doors, enabling them all to function normally." And if they didn't, we'd truly be up that well-known creek.

"That makes sense."

He gave me the notebook, and I punched in the code from the book while he carefully pressed the stolen thumb against the print scanner.

The red light above the keypad flicked to green. Quinn grasped the door handle and pulled it open. The air that rushed out was old and stale smelling, suggesting this tunnel hadn't been used in a long, long time. As did the thick dust that sat on the metal stairs leading down into a red-hued darkness.

Though how dust got into a sealed area, I had no idea.

"Emergency lighting is on inside," he commented.

I bent to study the tunnel. The unease was growing, and though I wasn't entirely sure why, part of me wished it would just go away. I didn't need another reason to be afraid right now.

"Do you think they have movement sensors in there?"

"Probably, though I doubt they would be one of the emergency systems running right now. Were the cameras running in security?"

"No."

"I would think the cameras and sensors are supported by the same source, so we are probably safe for the moment."

Given Starr didn't think like normal people, that statement wasn't as logical as it sounded. "We've got to get moving - we've probably only got eight minutes or so before the power is up and running again."

"I'll go first."

I nodded. He climbed down, his steps making little noise but stirring the dust into a sluggish cloud. When he reached the concrete floor, he motioned me to follow then disappeared into the red-shrouded darkness.

"Sensors in the walls, and cameras in the ceiling." He pointed them out as I joined him.

"So if we aren't out by the time the power is on, they will be all over us like a rash."

"Yes. Let's move."

We ran down the tunnel, our footsteps an echo that rode the air easily. If there were guards ahead, they'd hear us coming.

"I cannot hear the beat of another heart beyond yours," Quinn said.

"There are things in this world that don't have heartbeats."

"Like the chameleons. Like the Fravardin."

"Yeah. But there's no Fravardin here, other than the one helping Dia." Which was strange, really. If Misha had the Fravardin at his beck and call, why wouldn't Starr have gotten his warped little hands on them? Misha had been Starr's creature to order around - up to a point, anyway.

Another metal door loomed into view. We slowed. This one looked bigger, stronger.

"Containment door," Quinn said, running his hand over the metal. "We have them in my labs. They have a high exposure rating and durability."