Behold Darkness by L C Champlin

Author:L C Champlin [Champlin, L C]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wulfram Cross Enterprises LLC
Published: 2017-10-15T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 58

Down and Out

And We Run – Within Temptation

Easing the door open, Albin scanned the hall. He turned left and trotted down the strip. Other than the pad of three sets of shoes, silence reigned. How could twenty meters stretch to two hundred?

At the first left, he skidded to a halt and glanced around the corner, then proceeded toward the service lift.

They should exit the building in less than a minute. Once out, he could rendezvous with Mr. Serebus and complete the escape. Caution, stealth, and the weapons from the cache in the bathroom would see them safely to the Armory. Then the military could dispatch a team to the Doorway Pharmaceuticals complex.

Halting at the corner, he leaned around to find the way clear. The door on the right opened with Birk’s keycard to reveal a loading area. At its heart hulked the industrial lift’s cage of steel mesh and Plexiglas. Stretching four meters long and wide, it could accommodate factory-scale equipment and bulk orders. Boxes and crates lined the walls in the dim lighting. Hand trucks stood at the ready, left in their places when the workers departed.

Albin moved to the lift gate’s control panel. While the building designers had seen fit to attach the security system to the backup power, they considered the lift extraneous. In case of fire, everyone knew to take the stairs. They obviously failed to conceive of terrorists taking over the building and stairs during a power outage, and civilians needing an alternate escape route.

The gate opened with a manual lever, but the drop to the first floor measured four meters. Dropping the backpack on the floor, Albin produced the cords. The cables carried ground as well as power lines, making them strong enough to carry a human. He began tying knots in the cords at intervals.

“We can just dangle and drop,” Birk observed as Albin tied the line around the mesh’s support.

Albin gave the cord an experimental tug; it held. “The counter-terrorism squad may find it useful.”

After recovering the pack, he lay on his stomach, edged out as far as he could, and surveyed the chamber below. A door slammed in the distance on the ground level. Friend or foe?

Switching directions, he held the cable and slid backward over the edge. He landed in a crouch. Birk and Behrmann thudded down beside him.

Polished concrete floors and bare walls stretched into the murk. Windowless, the loading bay possessed garage and service doors. Like the loading area above, cargo rose in stacks along the walls.

“What are you waiting for?” Birk whispered, halfway to the exit.

“Go if you wish.” Albin shot him a glare before crossing to the door on the opposite wall, which led to the building proper.

“Will Mr. Serebus meet us here?” Behrmann murmured as she joined Albin at the door. Given her proximity to him, she had no comprehension of personal space.

“Keep silent,” he breathed, a futile order, then opened the door a centimeter. Edging out into the twilight, he tried to ignore his shadow and her mobile’s camera.

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