“That may not work outside flesh,” Jonas commented.
“It might, given it’s still connected to biomatter.”
He nodded and cautiously moved out into the corridor. I scanned the ceiling but still couldn’t see any sign of either cameras or other security measures. It was all rather puzzling. Even if this section was nothing more than part of the warehouse and the security here was as it had always been, why wouldn’t they have implemented more measures when they’d taken it over as one of their bases of operation?
The doc’s bloody RFID chip opened some doors but not others. The rooms it opened were a variety of storage areas, more medical facilities, and a number of bunk facilities. All of them were currently empty, and the odd feeling of disconnect grew. It was almost as if this area had all but been abandoned, but if that was the case, why did they have one of the warehouse’s main treatment centers up here?
The rooms the chip didn’t open, we ignored. Shooting the scanners would not only keep them in a locked position, but might well raise the sort of interest we were trying to avoid.
The corridor began a long sweep to the left, and Jonas slowed.
“What’s wrong?” I said softly, tension immediately rising.
“There are guards up ahead.”
“How many?”
“Four.” He paused. “But they’re not guarding another elevator foyer. I can’t hear any movement up or down.”
“The elevators might not be in use.”
“Maybe.” He paused and cocked his head to one side. I had no idea what he was listening to—I might have tiger DNA and my senses might be inherently sharper than most, but it still wasn’t up to t
he acuteness of a full shifter’s. “Two guards have just been dispatched to investigate the lack of response from the soldiers we killed.”
“How long have we got?”
“Three minutes, if that, before they get here.”
“That will give us time to get back to that last storeroom.”
“Even hiding will only give us a few extra minutes.” He spun around and headed back up the corridor. “We need to uncover what is being protected up ahead before our dead guards are discovered and the alarm sounds.”
“The lab coats should at least give us a bit of leeway to approach without raising too much—” I stopped. Cat and Bear were racing toward us and they weren’t happy.
What’s wrong? I asked.
We found the labs, Bear said. They're not underground. They're all on this level, behind the security doors at the end of this corridor.
And? I said, when neither of them immediately continued.
And, Cat said, there are children there. Seven of them.
I blinked as the importance of that sank in. It could be nothing more than a coincidence, especially given I'd also found children at the sand base—children who'd been purchased rather than stolen. But if it wasn't....
If it wasn't, then we'd just stumbled upon all the remaining missing children.
Chapter Six
“Is Penny one of them?” Jonas’s question was soft. Urgent.
No, Bear said. Sorry.
Jonas's frustration surged, a sharp rush that briefly spiked through my mind before he got it under control. “It was a forlorn hope at best, and hardly one you need to apologize for, Bear.”
“We will find her, Jonas.” I placed a hand on his arm, offering sympathy even though I suspected he neither wanted nor needed it.
“I know.” His voice was even, but the grimness in his gaze cut through me like ice. “Just as I know she might neither want help nor be capable of fleeing with us.”