“Amazing,” Madam Director said to herself, sitting behind her desk, viewing the feed from various surveillance cameras within The Institute on her computer monitor. She usually kept that feature running at all times, and the images would rotate among the countless cameras around the building.
“Absolutely amazing.”
She had been making a few handwritten notes when some movement on the screen caught her eye. Three people were moving quickly down a hall. They’d exited the laundry room, and were now slipping into a supply room.
She played back the last few seconds from one of the cameras, then froze the image at a point where the faces were clearer.
Two men and one woman.
One of the men, and the woman, looked familiar to her.
She magnified the image. And that was when she said, “Amazing.”
The Conroys were alive.
Quickly, Madam Director brought up settings for the security system and locked the supply room door, overriding all other clearances.
“I’ll deal with you later,” she said aloud. There were other matters to address first. She pressed a button on her desk and said, “Send in Timothy.”
Seconds later, the door opened and the six-year-old boy entered.
“Yes, Madam Director?” he said.
She stood up and smiled. “I have a very special job for you.”
Madam Director, Timothy and Daggert stood by the holding cell door.
“Let me explain the situation to you,” Madam Director said to the boy. “There is a dog in that room. She looks ordinary, but there’s a chance she’s a dog with very special abilities. We don’t know for sure.”
Timothy nodded. “Okay.”
Daggert said, “I don’t like this.”
Madam Director looked at him sharply. “When I want your opinion, Daggert, I shall ask for it. Now, Timothy, we can’t employ our usual methods to determine if this dog is special. X-rays, that kind of thing, can’t be used. But with your very sensitive hearing, I believe that as you get closer to the dog, you will be able to hear any mechanisms that might be built into her. And if you do, you can tell me about them.”
“This sounds easy,” Timothy said eagerly.
“Okay then.”
“Will you be coming in with me?” the boy asked her.
“Uh, no,” Madam Director said. “Daggert and I are going to stay out here in the hall.”
Timothy frowned. “Will the prisoners in there hurt me?”
He knew there were three people in the room, in addition to the dog.
“Of course not,” Madam Director. “Why would they hurt you? You’re just a little boy!”
He nodded confidently.
“I’m ready,” he said.
She turned and looked at Daggert. “The door, please?”
For several seconds, Daggert did not move. Then, slowly, he reached up and touched the pad to open the door.
It slid back into the wall.
Inside, Jeff, Harry, Emily and Pepper were clustered in the far corner. They eyed Timothy warily.
“He’s one of them,” Jeff whispered to the others.
“Yeah, we’ve met,” Emily said.
Timothy smiled. “Hi, everyone.” He trained his eyes on the dog. “Hey there, Pepper. How ya doin’?”
The door slid shut behind him.
“You need to be careful!” Emily warned. “You get much closer and something really bad could happen!”
On the other side of the door, Daggert, fists clenched, said to Madam Director, “Call him back.”
“I think,” she said, “for our own safety, we should move away from this door. Just in case.”
She started moving quickly down the hall, but Daggert hung back.
If Timothy can hear just about anything, Daggert thought, maybe he will hear this.
“Timothy,” he whispered at the door, “it’s Daggert. Don’t go near the dog. You could get killed. It could blow up.”
Thirty feet up the hall, Madam Director stopped and turned. “Come on!”
“If you can hear this,” he continued to whisper, “stop and back away. Come back out. Timothy…there’s something you need to know. I did some checking and—”
“What are you saying?” Madam Director shouted. “What are you telling him?”
Daggert ignored her. “I did some checking and…it turns out you’re my son. Timothy, are you hearing this? What The Institute did to you, it’s not right. I can turn you back into what you were. I can hook you up, make a few adjustments—”
“Stop talking!” Madam Director said.
“Come back, Timothy. I swear it’s true. I’m your dad.”
Daggert decided he couldn’t stand there with the door closed one more second. He slapped his hand on the button and the door slid open.
Timothy stood right there, looking up at him.
“Seriously?” he said.
Madam Director was running back. “Daggert! Daggert!”
Daggert scooped Timothy into his arms and shouted at her, “You knew! How could you? How could you do this to my son?”
The cell door was still open.
Inside, Harry whispered, “I think we may have an opportunity here.”
Outside, Madam Director blurted, “I don’t owe you an explanation.”
Daggert shot back, “And I don’t owe you my loyalty.”
He charged past Madam Director, knocking her in the shoulder hard when she attempted to block his way. She stumbled back, hit the wall and slid to the floor. As Daggert fled down the hallway with Timothy slung over his shoulder, she screamed after him, “Stop! You’ll never—”
She was cut off mid-threat by Jeff.
As he and Harry and Emily and Pepper charged out of the cell and into the hallway, it was Jeff who noticed the security card hanging on an elastic strap around Madam Director’s neck. He knew that if they were to have any hope of moving through The Institute, he’d need it.
He reached down, grabbed the card and pulled as hard as he could. The strap gave way.
“Hey!” Madam Director shrieked.
At the far end of the hall, Daggert opened a door and, a second later, disappeared with Timothy. The three escapees and Pepper were through the same door once Jeff had inserted the card to open it.
Madam Director struggled to her feet, one of her shoes’ three-inch heels breaking off in the process. Lopsided, she kicked off both shoes and ran for the door, but once there, she had no way to open it.
She banged on it with both fists. “Open this door!” she screamed. “Open this door or I’ll kill you all!”