“Not good.”
Tack backed a step from the monitor, seemed on the point of bolting. But to where? They were already in the missile shaft above us. We were trapped.
“How?” I croaked, nervously squeezing my ear. “How’d they find this place?” I thought back to those footprints in the snow weeks ago, outside in the gravel lot. The ones I’d learned weren’t from Min or Tack.
Tack shook his head in short, rapid jerks. “Doesn’t matter how. They’re here.”
“Okay.” Min’s forehead scrunched, her fingers flexing as if she could squeeze an answer from her palms. “We have to get out of here. But we can’t go up, and they can come down. So . . . we need another way out.”
“You know one?” My eyes leapt to Tack, suddenly hopeful. He’d been down here longer than us, reading the hidden binders. Maybe he’d discovered a bolt-hole.
But he just shrugged helplessly. “Don’t look at me. And that’s our plan? We run?”
“We don’t have a choice.” Min’s hands curled into fists, her mouth a grim line as she watched Ethan and his team huddle on the catwalk. They’d given up on the cage, but Ethan was pointing at the ladder. “We’re outnumbered two to one, and I’m sure they’re armed. But there has to be a back door, right? Everyone builds a second exit. The people running Project Nemesis wouldn’t have risked getting trapped from above.”
Like we are now. I didn’t say it. Her logic was sinking in.
“The supplies,” I blurted, my pulse spiking as an idea took hold. “There are literally thousands of crates in the alcoves above our heads. All that material couldn’t have been shipped through town. I don’t care how good these Nemesis guys were, nobody could’ve moved that much freight through Fire Lake without people noticing.”
Tack began nodding, one foot tapping the carpet like mad. “You’re right. And don’t forget about building this wonder bunker in the first place.” He blinked, then his eyes widened. “Jesus, they must’ve bottled up the valley on purpose, with the only bridge on one side, and a secret route they controlled at the other end. It’s the only answer that makes sense!”
A flicker onscreen caught my eye. I swallowed, pointed. Ethan and Toby had begun to climb down the ladder, followed a few seconds later by the Nolan twins and Derrick Morris. Sarah remained on the catwalk with her arms crossed.
“The gang’s all here.” Tack’s hand shot to the desk, snagging a mouse. He fiddled with the commands and managed to zoom in. All five boys had rifles strapped to their backs.
I swallowed a string of curses. My rifle was stashed outside in the bushes, where Min had crawled from the ditch. All I had down here was my Beretta, and it was locked inside a drawer in the control room.
“Five descending, one topside.” Min cleared her throat, nervously pawing her hair behind her ears. “They’re all heavily armed, and we only have Noah’s pistol. We’ve got twenty minutes, tops.”
Tack shot to his feet. “I bet there are guns up there somewhere. There could be a freaking tank for all we know. We could race up in the lift, grab some firepower, and—”
“From where?” Min interrupted. “We don’t know how the alcoves are organized. Ethan and his team might be closer to weapons than we are. And what if the ammunition is stored separately, or the guns are disassembled?”
Tack opened his mouth to argue, but Min rolled right over him. “Too many variables, plus we’d still be outnumbered. No. We have to escape, not start a firefight.”
“She’s right.” I turned and jogged from the room, through the heavy wooden doors, not stopping until I passed through the bookcase and reached the control room. I unlocked the drawer and removed my pistol. Took a calming breath. Weapon in hand, I felt more in control. Then I hustled back to the security room.
They cut off whispering as I reentered. I could feel them both watching, and my cheeks burned. Did they really think so little of me?
Why wouldn’t they?
Then Tack grabbed his forehead, blue eyes rounding in panic. “Oh fuck, Min, you’re already down four lives.” His voice rose to a squeak. “You can’t take another reset.”
My breath caught. In a blink, everything changed.
How had I forgotten? I’d been annoyed Ethan and those jerks were about to take control of the silo, but not devastated or anything. I’d knock out as many of them as I could, then gather my team and take it back. I was better at fighting than they were. I could have anything I wanted.
But Min.
She couldn’t die again. She wouldn’t come back.
The thought drove an icy spike into my chest. I shied from how it made me feel, like a dangerous animal loose in my brain. I thought I’d put all that stuff away. Min was an enemy, not a friend, and certainly not anything more. I’d named her my nemesis, for God’s sake.
Min waved as if to swat away the concern, but I saw how her fingers trembled. “We just need to find a way out. And lock down this complex. And the Phase Two records room.”
“I’ll put everything back how it was,” Tack said, already hustling out into the hallway. “But if I found it,” he called back, “they will too. Eventually.”
I glanced at the screen. Ethan and the others had stopped at the first level of alcoves and were poking around, jabbering excitedly to one another. My stomach curdled in knots. They’d control everything for the time being, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
A dark thought formed in my head. Radical. But necessary?
“We should look for the back door,” Min said, breaking my train of thought. She was watching me intently, eyes sparkling with hidden depths. What was it about a crisis that made her even more beautiful?
“Okay,” I said with false enthusiasm. “If you were a secret bolt-hole, where would you be?”
Surprisingly, Min had an answer. “The computer chamber. It’s the heart of this place.”
“Our home,” I said, then caught Min’s flinch in the corner of my eye. But it was true. We were lines of code living inside the MegaCom, which was hidden beyond the control room by a curtain of solid steel. Everything else was an elaborate lie. It’s so hard to keep anything straight.
Tack came racing back in. “I straightened the shelves and killed all the lights on the control level. The shaft lights won’t shut off, though, which sucks. I’d have loved to make those bastards climb down in the dark. All that’s left is to push the bookcase back into place and they won’t have a clue what’s back here. But we have to decide how to play this. Are we going out, or locking in?”
“Min thinks the way out is through the MegaCom room,” I said. “Care to weigh in?”
Tack grimaced. “It’s possible, I guess, but in case you didn’t notice, there’s an impenetrable metal wall standing in the way. How are we supposed to get inside?”
“What about the other doors back here?” I asked, moving out into the hall. A quick check of the office suite came up empty. Tack and I ran back through the living quarters, but struck out there as well. “The doors in the lab wing were locked. See any keys in the control room?”
Tack shook his head. “I rifled all the workstations when I first got inside. There was nothing. Come on, we’re running out of time.” We sprinted back to join Min, who was tracking Ethan’s progress.
“Any luck?” she asked. But the answer was plain on my face.
“They’re coming straight down now, no more stops.” Min looked at me, her expression unreadable. “We have to make decisions.”
“I don’t think we can hide,” Tack said, anxiously cracking his knuckles. “Ethan has to suspect we’re here—it’s the only reason he’d bring a platoon. But you can’t risk a fight.”
I went cold all over, my insides quivering as I tried to think.
“It’s okay,” Min said, swallowing as she dry-washed her hands. “I’ll surrender. They can lock me back up until you two break me out.”
Tack shook his head adamantly, seemed horrified by the idea. “What if they just come in blasting? Ethan’s never been a thoughtful type. Plus, if they find the records room—which they will—they’ll learn the scoring system. And if they find the lab, they’ll know your exact status!” His voice had risen to a shout. Tack was breathing hard, beads of sweat dotting above his lips. “Then Ethan will know he can put you out of the game for good, and don’t think he won’t do it. He could shoot you in a cell and we’d have no way to stop him. You couldn’t even suicide your way free.”
I glanced away. Tack was right. Min was in real trouble.
Min. Out of the Program.
Was that something I wanted? Was that something I could handle?
No.
I ejected the magazine from my pistol, checked the ammunition, then slapped it back into place with a reassuring click. Then I racked the slide and thumbed off the safety. I could deal with this. I was a match for anyone.
“I’ll wait for them at the bottom of the shaft.” My voice was as flat as the prairie. “They might suspect you guys are here, but they don’t know about me. With a bit of luck, I might take out all five before they realize what’s happening.”
“Bad plan,” Tack snapped. “They’ll get you and me, then finish Min off out of anger.”
I didn’t miss that Tack had inserted himself into the fight. He was right that the odds were stacked against an ambush, but he also didn’t understand. They had no idea what I could do these days. I could practically see in the dark.
“Let me try.” I met Min’s gaze dead-on. “I’ve got this. I can keep you safe.”
Beside me, Tack tensed. Then his eyes widened slightly, a hand rising to cover his mouth. He nodded to himself. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but he seemed to have come to some decision.
“Fine,” Tack said. “We try to jump those guys in the shaft.”
I nodded eagerly. I could do this. I was stronger than they could imagine. Tack could tag along if he wanted, but I didn’t need him. But then he kept talking, and his plan made zero sense.
“But the gun stays with Min,” Tack insisted, the line of his jaw firming as he spoke. “She has to have a way to defend herself. That’s nonnegotiable. We’ll just have to disarm a couple of them, or find weapons in the alcoves somewhere.”
I blinked. Five on two was bad enough. But unarmed? We’d get slaughtered.
Min was about to protest, but Tack would not be swayed. “If we fail, maybe they’ll think you’re not down here. You could hide, then sneak past them later.” He crossed his arms, setting his feet like two boulders. “We get popped and it’s a bummer. You get hit and . . . I don’t even want to think about it. This is how it has to be. It’s the only way I’ll agree.”
I opened my mouth, then closed it. Looked at Min. Her chin trembled, gray eyes wide as she chewed her bottom lip. In that moment my heart melted. I realized I wanted her to have the gun, too.
I shoved my Beretta into her hands. “Careful—a round is chambered.”
Min seemed on the verge of handing it back, but Tack reached out and stopped her. He took a deep, relieved breath, wrapping Min’s fingers around the gun so it hung loosely in the air between them. “Remember how to use this?” he asked softly.
Min nodded, lines digging across her forehead. I could tell she was still conflicted.
Tack lifted the gun so that she held it with both hands. “Look for me at the meeting place when it’s over.”
Min’s face crumpled. “Tack, I don’t want you to get shot again. We can lock ourselves in here. They won’t be able to reach us.”
He gave a wan smile, sliding his hands around hers. “Too risky. This is the only way.”
In a flash, I understood. But it was too late.
Tack squeezed Min’s trigger finger. A thunderous bang echoed in the room.
Tack collapsed, eyes already glazing. Min screamed and dropped the gun. He hit the floor and didn’t move. Then, mercifully, his body faded from sight.
“Clever son of a bitch,” I whispered, pulling on my neck. Min’s gaze slashed up to impale me, horrified. Shock had dulled her wits.
“You’re safe now,” I explained. “Tack gave a life to pull you from the brink.”
Understanding dawned in her eyes, followed by anger. “He didn’t have to—”
“He did,” I said curtly, growing heated myself. “Wake up and take the gift. Tack just did a very brave thing. Now, no matter what, you’ll live to fight another day. And he’ll be out there waiting for us.”
Min wiped tears from her face, eyes drilling me. “Us?”
I flinched. Looked away.
Was that what I wanted? Had everything changed so quickly?
Red lights flashed inside the room. Someone had reached the bottom level.
I scooped up the gun and shoved it back into her hands. Suddenly, I felt a thousand feet tall. If Tack could play hero, then so could I. I wouldn’t hide. I’d go out and meet them. Beat them. “Lock the blast door, Min. We can’t risk Ethan and Sarah finding what’s back here, which means one of us should stay just in case. I’ll take care of this.”
I fired out of the room without looking back.
A shout at my back, followed by a string of curses. I ignored them, headed for the doors. Then a bullet whizzed by my ear and thunked into the wood, stopping me short. I glanced back over my shoulder. Min was standing in the hall, Beretta in hand, her face tied up in knots.
We locked eyes. Her gaze smoldered, cheeks still wet with tears. I was reasonably sure she’d missed me on purpose, but not 100 percent.
“I don’t like being told what to do. Or getting left behind twice.”
I smiled, then turned and pushed out of the suite.
Her footsteps followed as I stepped through the blast door. I grabbed the thick metal portal and swung it. For a moment Min was silhouetted in a nimbus of soft light, then the door slammed shut with a heavy clank. I pressed buttons at random until a red warning light appeared on the keypad. Then I heard the heavy locking wheel spin and knew Min had thrown the deadbolt on the other side. She was safely sealed away.
Quickly now.
I stepped out into the control room and shoved the bookcase back into place. Tack had killed the lights, but I could see by the faint glow of electronics. Satisfied the lab complex was secret once more, I trotted to the entrance and peered out. Light footfalls sounded in the darkened corridor—an attempt at stealth, but I heard. Then someone stumbled, hissing a muffled curse, and I had a target.
I pulled a hunting knife from beneath my sleeve. Almost chuckled at Tack’s naiveté. Slipping into the black, I felt so alive, I was bursting with it. I almost pitied whoever was in this darkness with me.
Ahead was a deeper shadow creeping closer along the wall.
My lips formed a snarl.
I lunged forward, arm and knife as one, and reveled in a scream of pain.