In the pre-dawn, the hallway was deserted as they made their way to the elevator.When the doors slid open to the underground parking garage, a black SUV with tinted windows waited near the exit, engine running.
“Huh, I was expecting something more…chunky,” Bryn said.
“The glass and body shell are armored,” Gunnar said.“Were you picturing a tank?”
Two members of the GCR’s security team stood beside the vehicle, nodding in recognition as they approached.
“All quiet still, sir,” one reported to Gunnar.“No suspicious activity.”
“Good.We’ll take it from here.”
Gunnar slid into the driver’s seat, Bryn taking shotgun while Giles settled in the back.
“Food?”Bryn asked hopefully as they pulled out of the garage.
Gunnar pointed to a paper bag on the console between them.“Breakfast sandwiches, from the smell.And there’s coffee in the cup holders.”
“You’re a saint.”Bryn grabbed the coffee first, the cup’s warmth seeping into his cold fingers.
“Security guys always know where to get their hands on decent food and coffee.It’s on the qualification requirements for the job.”
“I appreciate their expertise.”
As they navigated through empty streets, the city still mostly asleep, Bryn couldn’t shake a growing sense of unease.Whatever they found at this site would change things.The evidence on Mira’s drive, combined with his reads at the clinic, painted a picture of corruption and cruelty that went deeper than they’d imagined.
“You’re quiet,” Gunnar observed, glancing over.
Bryn took another sip of coffee.“Just thinking.”
“About?”
“About what Russo’s planning.”
“We’ll find out one way or another,” Giles said from the back seat.
Bryn delved in the bag of food.“You want anything?”he asked Giles.
“Coffee is fine for me.”
“Gunnar?”
“I ate already.”
Bryn grabbed a still-warm sandwich.“Oh, yum.”
“Heathen.”
“Can it, Giles.A sausage patty, egg and cheese…food of the gods, and these hash browns are gourmet.”
Gunnar’s cell rang and he answered through the car’s speaker system.“Ericson here.”
“It’s Warden.There’s been a development.”Warden’s calm, controlled voice filled the vehicle.“Boston PD did a preliminary reconnaissance.The site is active.They’ve detected thermal signatures indicating at least two dozen people inside.”
“At this hour?”Bryn leaned forward.“That’s not normal shift work.”
“Exactly.”
“We’re fifteen minutes out,” Gunnar replied.
