“Then unlock the door, or we break it down and you are reported for being uncooperative."
—The guards want into the basement, Alexis. What do I do?—
—Feign ignorance if they find the girl. I’m trying to get out of here, but Communis is still being searched…tell Max to make another diversion—
—MAX! The guards are going to find the kid…I don’t know what you can do, but we need to distract them—
—On it—
I do an extremely slow job of unlocking the door; first by dropping the key, then by breaking down and crying with ‘nerves’.
Gods, we need a miracle.
“What’s the problem, remedial?” When I’m threatened with a stun gun, I know I can’t delay any longer.
“Sorry,” I say, pushing the door open. “I’m such an emotional klutz.”
The soldier shoves past me, his boots thumping down heavily on the wooden stair treads. Taking a deep breath, I quietly follow.
If he finds the kid, I’m going to have to do something drastic.
Not sure what, but hopefully the Lumina will have an idea.
My bedroom door gets torn open.
From where I’m positioned at the bottom of the steps, I see the man toss my bed then grunt. He storms out and marches toward the shower. As he pulls the plastic curtain, hooks go flying.
Thanks, dude.
Finally, he starts going around the basement room perimeter. When his hand reaches for the corrugated metal sheet that hides the tunnel, my breath hitches. I’m ready to launch myself at his back, to claw at his eyes—anything to stop him—when his radio crackles.
“Disturbance in west gardens. All units respond.”
My stomach flips. Thank Gods.
The man swivels on his heel, spotting me for the first time. “Back in line,” he barks, pushing past me then speaking into his own mic. “All clear in the basement.”
Feeling like I’ve just aged several decades, I rejoin Willow to stand meekly with the rest of Defectivum.
We watch in silence as the guards withdraw. The lead Peacekeeper pauses to remind Bilderblast of the curfew. “Don’t let anyone leave. Any breaches will be on your head.”
The little professor puffs out his chest. “Enough, young man. You’ve cleared this house, any further rudeness is entirely uncalled for.”
Whoa, the balls on him!
Bilderblast stares at the guard not backing down, until the big man grunts a ‘whatever’ and heads out to join the rest of his unit.
All of us duds breathe a sigh of communal relief.
“Alright, kids,” the Defectivum head says, clapping his hands, “excitement over. Try to keep calm and carry on, as they say. I know you’ve missed dinner, so I’ll arrange to have food sent over from the kitchens. Pizza, I think. We can all eat our emotions.”
As the rest of the students shuffle off looking shell-shocked, I grab Willow’s arm, and we bolt for the basement stairs, stumbling in our haste.
That poor little thing must be terrified.
Stepping around a mess of broken mugs and spilled hot chocolate, we race to where she’s hidden.
“It’s just us,” I call softly, putting my hands on the metal and beginning to drag it aside.
