FBI agents were going through and securing different files from the laboratory. Wade and Monty were reviewing the files in Bradford Jr.’s office at the lab.
“This data indicates there are hundreds of S.I.B.s in the population,” Agent Anderson stated.
“The records indicate they are located all over the United States,” Monty added.
“This is what we need,” Wade glanced at documents from a file cabinet labeled Identity. “The data have each specimen listed according to dates. It looks like each three generations of S.I.B.s, beginning with single alpha identifiers. For example,” he pointed. “The first generation shows the year and a corresponding initial. Next to it there is a series of numbers. I think this set of numbers represents who the egg and sperm were taken from.”
The men glanced at each other. “I would have been Specimen M from the first generation,” Monty summarized.
“Right,” Wade nodded. “Dane was from the first generation as well. He has a single D next to his name.”
Ross flipped through the document until he found his name. “I was from the second generation. I’m listed as Specimen RR.”
“Look for Drake,” Monty suggested. “He is not in book one.”
Ross flipped backwards. “He’s not in book two.”
“It seems right he should be in book three,” Wade search through the Ds. “Here he is, Specimen DDD. He is from the third generation.”
“Makes sense,” Ross stated, “What do we do with this information?”
“We use it to locate your siblings,” Wade stated.
“The FBI isn’t going to let you take these books,” Monty frowned. “All of this is evidence. As well as all those women and children they are loading up in vans. This place is going to be ground zero for them for a while.”
Wade looked around. There were years of information that had to be sorted through.
“I need a quiet place.” Wade glanced around. “There are agents crawling all over.”
“Not in here,” Ross walked to the far corner of Bradford Jr.’s office, then placed his hand on the wall. As before, the wall slid open. “Bradford III’s office is inside.”
Wade grabbed the three big binders. “See if you can buy me a little time to go through these. Close this up behind me.”
Wade looked around the office and wondered why none of the agents had come into the room to search. He had to figure that out later. Right now, he had to capture every page in the binders. He dropped them on the floor and began flipping through each page. His mind capturing every written word.
Each binder had pages of test information for every letter of the alphabet, from A through Z. At some point, he had to sort through the information he was capturing. But for now, it was imperative to secure the documentation.
Wade was in the w’s of the last book when he heard a beep. He looked up, scanned the room, then went back to capturing the information. Moments later, he heard a ticking sound. He stood, studying every corner of the room. Listening intently, he followed the sound to the desk. He walked behind it, then looked at the computer. There was a clock. It was counting down from four minutes and fifteen seconds.
“A countdown …” Wade thought for a minute. Then he heard a voice say, “Get out.”
Wade grabbed the last book and quickly scanned through the remaining pages. He had to get the last of the information, then warn the others. When he turned the last page, he jumped up and ran to the wall. He touched it. It did not open.
“What the …” He touched another area. Nothing happened. “Think, damnit, think.” He pulled out his cell phone to call Monty.
There were no bars. “Damnit, no service.” He looked around. “There has to be a door.” Wade looked through the walls. He could see people moving around in the office he had come from. He followed the wall to the corner, then ran his hand along the connecting wall. In the middle of that wall, he felt air. He stepped back, then willed the door to open. It did, and to his surprise, it led to the outside of the building. He pulled out his cellphone and dialed Monty.
Monty answered.
“Get out of the building,” he yelled. “I think it’s about to explode.”
“What?” Monty exclaimed.
“Go to the room Ross opened for me,” Wade said, then ran back inside the building.
Monty and Ross came through the entrance from Bradford’s office. Wade pointed them to the computer with the clock on it. It was now down to two minutes and fifty-six seconds.
They ran back into the other office. Wade tripped over the books he was reading. Something told him to take them with him. So he did. Agent Anderson ran in to see what they were talking about. Wade put the binders in the agent’s hands as he looked at the computer. Trying to balance the binders, he pulled out his phone. “Possible explosion in two minutes. Clear the building. Now!”
Monty called Dane. “How many women and children are left?”
“All the children are out. We have ten women left. Why?” Dane replied.
“Get them out of the building, now,” Monty ordered. “We think it’s going to explode in two minutes. Where is Drake?”
“He just took a group of children through the tunnel.” Dane replied. “There is only one agent and me. We can’t get all these women out in two minutes. And I don’t know how far Drake is.”
“You start coming this way with the women,” Monty yelled into the phone. “We can get to Drake quicker this way.”
Ross placed his hand on the wall that led to the dormitories.
“I’ll warn Joe and McConnell,” Agent Anderson said. “You get to your brother and those kids.”
Wade, Monty and Ross ran down the stairs, then burst through the doors. They met Drake and an agent coming through the tunnel with about ten kids.
“Pick them up,” Wade yelled. “The building is about to explode.” Each of the men grabbed two children, then ran up the stairs through the corridor and out of the building.
Monty, Wade and Ross put the kids on the ground, then ran back into the building to help Dane with the women.
Anderson stopped them. “There isn’t enough time.”
Drake ran by them, pushing Anderson to the side. “That’s my brother in there,” he said then ran back into the building.
Wade, Monty and Ross did the same.
They met up with Dane, the agent and the women halfway through when the explosion rumbled the ground as they were running.
They grabbed the women by the hand and started running back towards the stairs.
“Be careful, these are pregnant women,” Dane yelled.
“They are going to be dead pregnant women if they don’t run,” Drake exclaimed.
Wade looked back over his shoulder. He could see the heat from flames blasting through different corridors directly towards them.
“He’s not blowing up the building. He’s destroying the tunnels.”
“Wade, come on,” Monty called out.
“Here, take her,” Wade put the woman he was carrying down. “I’ll stop the flames.”
“What?” Ross yelled. “No! Wade, come on.”
“You will never make it if I don’t slow it down.” Wade yelled back. “Get her and go.”
Ross grabbed the woman’s hand, but hesitated.
Wade put out both hands as he saw the flames merging at the fork of the tunnels. Once the flames hit the straightaway, with no twist or turns, it would be difficult to stop it.
“Go!” Wade stood with both hands up literally pausing the fire to allow them time to get through the corridor.
Ross raced up the stairs and down the corridor, dragging two women with him.
The flames literally stopped. Wade was amazed but did not have time to take in what he was doing. If he wanted to survive this, he had to get the hell out of Dodge. He looked back to judge the number of steps he had to climb to get to the corridor. “Shit, ten steps.”
He eased back to the steps and noticed the flames eased forward. Hell, he was going to have to make a run for it.
He took the first step backwards, then lowered his hands and ran like hell. The flames rushed up the stairs behind him. When he reached the corridors, he felt a kick in butt. That kick propelled him up and out of the front door just as the flame consumed the corridors.
Wade landed on the grassy area in front of the building.
Monty, Ross, Dane and Drake ran up, grabbed his arms and pulled him away from the building.
Agent Anderson, Lil Joe and Sheriff McConnell looked down at him.
He did not have the strength to get up. All Wade could do was shake his head. “That’s a crazy son of a bitch.”
“Yes, he is,” Agent Anderson stated. “But don’t you worry. We are going to catch him.”
“How?” Wade hissed. “He destroyed the tunnels.”
“Believe it or not, there is a specialist who can help us search those tunnels.”
“The tunnels are gone. Chambers is gone. Did you save the binders? Where are the binders?” Wade yelled out, too weak to stand or even breathe. He was drained to a point of exhaustion. “The binders,” he insisted. “I need the binders.”
“They are right here,” Monty placed one on his chest. “You saved them.” He smiled.
Wade felt the weight of the binder on his chest. He placed a hand on it, holding it close. Then he smiled up at his big brother and closed his eyes.