The door behind us hissed closed. The green light pulsed. A sucking hydraulic noise sounded, but the other door remained shut. Cogon pushed on it to no avail.
I struggled to pull air into my lungs. No one knew where we were. We could be trapped in here. Light-headed, my insides bloated as if I had eaten too much.
Cog turned, leaning on the door. The panic on his face matched mine. He clamped his hands to the sides of his head as if holding his skull together.
Without a sound, the other Gateway opened. Pure black waited on the other side. A bone killing cold reached us. White spots sparked from the blackness, but it was hard to know if theywere real or not. Black and white spots swirled in my vision. My eyes bulged as if they would burst.
My stomach dropped and spun as if I fell from a tall ladder. I glanced down to see my feet no longer touched the floor, but floated. Cog twisted and his body drifted past the door. He pointed.
The red key burned bright. Red to close. On the edge of unconsciousness, I reached for the button. But Cog was Outside. I needed to help him.
He gestured again, but I didn’t press it.
Cog threw his hammer. It sailed toward me as he somersaulted backwards. Then the darkness claimed me.
CHAPTER 21
I would liketo have said that I went to a better place. However, skin freezing cold air woke me. Dumped onto the floor of the small room, I untangled my legs and stood. My skin stretched and sagged. I wanted to crawl under a heavy layer of blankets to press my body tight. Red fog tinted my vision.
The outer Gateway was closed, but the door to Inside was open. The panel of colored lights glowed brightly and I wanted to smash them into tiny bits. Cog wasn’t with me and I doubted he made it through the door in time.
No way could he survive in that airless, weightless… Void. But I had to try. No reason to live unless I tried. I punched in the first few numbers.
“Stop!” A most unwelcome voice ordered.
I ignored Lieutenant Commander Karla, getting in another two numbers before she stunned me. A wall of energy slammed into my body. My last thought was of Cog.
The next time I woke, my situation hadn’t improved. Rows of black bars, the stench of unwashed bodies, excrement and fear,and the hard metal bunk underneath all clued me in. I was under arrest and incarcerated in the holding cells.
When Commander Vinco arrived with the LC at his heels, I wished I had floated away with Cog.
“Just so you don’t think you’ll be rescued by your scrub friends, we have secured the lower levels,” LC Karla said. Her lips flattened into a pleased smile which didn’t reach her eyes. “Do you want to know how?”
“No.” The truth. The game had ended badly. Cog was gone. Outside didn’t exist. Nothing left that Trella cared for. Ella, on the other hand, planned to keep her mouth shut.
“You’ve been rather busy these last four weeks.” Vinco sounded impressed. “A little scrub like you, causing so much trouble.” He tsked. “Finding the portal and opening it. Of course you paid a price. I’m going to miss my stubborn sturdy friend.” He pulled a knife from his belt. The edge gleamed in the sick yellow light.
My pulse reacted to the threat out of habit, but I remained in my reclined position.
“She had help,” Karla said. “She couldn’t have found the space around the levels, hid Domotor, stole from my office, and stitched the knife wound on her hip by herself. She’s not that smart.”
“You underestimated me. Don’t feel too bad, it’s a common mistake.” I waved my hand in a dismissive gesture.
Vinco crouched down to my eye level. “Youwilltell us where Domotor is and who helped you.”
I couldn’t believe they failed to find Domotor. The game may be over for me, but there were a few others still able to do damage. I repeated my vow to keep my mouth shut.
Vinco straightened. “Key?”
No keypads here. Bored inmates could find the code by trial and error.
He grabbed the ring of keys from Karla. The light jingle sent a vibration of dread up my spine. The snap of the cell door’s lock increased the terror. By the time he stood next to me, my body shook.
A beeping sound emanated from Karla’s belt. She cursed and toggled on her communicator. “What?”
Vinco paused and I hoped she would talk for a long time. But she flipped it shut and flashed me an annoyed frown. “I’m needed elsewhere. Do you need me?” she asked him.
Yes, I thought. Need her.
