She straightened her shoulders and said, “I overheard two construction workers talking when I slipped past the intersecting hallway. Afternoon classes have been cancelled, and we have a construction company, a window replacement company, and a plumbing company on site to fix the damage we helped cause. The damage to the building is widespread, though little was structural, except the crack in the wall from whoever set off the earthquake. They had to call in a structural engineer for that and he won’t be here until dark. That means things will be off kilter all afternoon, and the employees are already taking advantage of an extra day off from the inmates to play video games and gossip.” Sandra grinned unexpectedly, and it was a mischievous expression Marvin had never seen on her face. “Playtime won’t last. Not once they figure out Mable unlocked the doors.”
Mable said, “Good work, Sandra. That information helps a lot.”
Sandra beamed and nodded her head emphatically.
“We also have some big honcho from the IT company on his way here from somewhere,” Mable added. “We have two hours before he gets here.”
“Then what?” Marvin asked.
“And then he’ll spot the patch codes and all hell will break lose,” his ladylove said. “We have to be back here by then.”
“Right.” He kissed Mable’s forehead and saw a flash of pain cross Sandra’s face before she lifted her head and firmed her lips. She was technically a widow without a dead spouse. Had to suck. Maybe doing something constructive like saving Dani would help her. “We’ll get into Building Z,” he said, “find a place to park Mable, and then we’ll hunt down Dani.”
“Got it,” Mable said. “The employee dining room on the first floor would be perfect. There’s an access panel I can use in the corner, to the left of the door. I’ll be hiding in plain sight, working on my laptop, while y’all hunt Dani and the others. When do we go?”
He peeked out the utility room door into the basement. No one was around, so he held open the door and said, “Now’s as good a time as any.” They scurried out, through the garage and into the employee parking lot. Then they took the same walkway near the parking lot that the real employees always took from their cars to Z. No one stopped them.
The next test was whether the ID nametags he had stolen in the first week they were here, and that Mable had rigged, would work the locking system at the employee door. Before they got to the school, Mable had entered the team into The Sevens’ personnel system as traveling nurses working on six-month contracts and so far, no one had noticed or cancelled them. As long as no one asked them anything medical they should be fine.Shoulddidn’t count for much in war.
Marvin led the way to the employee door. Mable went first, pulling out her ID badge on its retractable string, and running the card’s ID strip through the security slot. The door opened and they all slipped in.
The door locked securely behind them. Marvin wished it hadn’t sounded so fucking final.
Mable
As the door closed,Mable pointed straight ahead. “According to the original floor plans on file with the county codes office, the dining room is straight ahead. When I’m plugged in, y’all take the first right to the emergency fire stairs to which ever room, or rooms, I find.”
“Fucking stairs,” Marvin grumbled.
“If you had gotten your knees replaced when the ortho told you to, you wouldn’t be having trouble with stairs now,” Mable said, leading the way. Marvin grumbled some more, but Mable was right. She was always right about men. And computer code.
As if they belonged there, the three walked to the dining room, found it nearly empty, and claimed a table near the access panel in the corner.
Sandra said, “I’ll get us some coffee.”
“Remember our cover story,” Mable said. “And keep her busy until I get plugged in.”
Sandra
Sandra had never outright liedwell, but fudging the truth was easier. She got two coffees and a tea—disgusting teabag—in foam cups, and paid for them. The cashier, a perky but suspicious dark-skinned woman said, “I haven’t seen you three before.”
“And I hope you never see us again,” Sandra said, sounding grouchy. She glanced at the woman’s nametag, “Shaniqua. I’m Sandra. They sent us over here to finish out our shifts. There was so much damage to our unit,” she nodded in the general direction of the main building, “when the students went nuts, we had to vacate our area so it can be inspected.”
The young woman’s eyes brightened, and she leaned in. That turned her back to the access panel and Mable jumped up to open the small metal door. In the confidential tone used by all excellent gossips, Shaniqua said, “I heard things exploded in the parking lot, the kitchen caught on fire, and the windows busted.”
“All true.”
Shaniqua’s eyes lit up just like a churchwoman hearing prime gossip.
Sandra lowered her voice. “Giiiirl, I kid you not. Two cars were melted to slag. A dozen others were damaged. The Sevens’ insurance is good for it, but what a pain for the car owners, you know?” Sandra added blueberry muffins to the coffees and the tea. Mable was still working. “Plus,” Sandra said, “a plumbing pipe busted and some of the dorms don’t have water or power, so the place is now in lockdown. Or it was until the automatic doors opened and some of the residents got lose …”
“Da-yam. What started it?”
“That cheap excuse for lemon cream pie they served. Some old woman got mad and started inciting to riot.” Sandra stopped, remembering the scene in the dining room. “I never thought I’d see anything like it. Pottery bustin’, plastic stuff turned into dirt, the safety windows cracked, some fires started, the students were screaming and attacking ...” She brought her attention back to the cashier and handed her a twenty. “It was kinda scary.”
Mable sat back down and gave her a thumbs up.
“I bet,” Shaniqua said, making change. “The old folk we get over here are brain-dead so we don’t have to worry about them attacking us. Safer, you know?”
