Ballistic: Icarus Series, Book Two (27 page)

“News flash. I don’t work for you,” I said narrowing my eyes at her. “Oh, and you’re welcome.”

“Fair enough.” Tessa laughed and shook her head. “And thanks.”

“
Daaamn
.” Falisha whistled. “Check out Shrek, over here. Dude’s ginormous. He must have been a roider
before he turned.”

Falisha crouched down next to the monstrosity, her eyes wide in awe. She leaned hard into his brawny shoulder and pushed him from his side onto his back. She pulled my knife from his gut, wiped the blade onto the monster’s gray coveralls, and flipped it closed as she strode back across the room.

“Here you go, Sarge.” Falisha dropped the bloody dagger into my palm.

“Sarge, huh?” Tessa’s brow arched. “Looks like you outrank me, honey.”

“In that case, I order you to get us the hell out of here,” I said rolling my eyes at her.

“Sir, yes sir,” she saluted with a wry grin.

Tessa clicked on her flashlight and walked past me toward a second hatch on the opposite side of the room. She cranked it open. Her shotgun, now bludgeoned beyond recognition, was dripping blood down her back as she went. A mass of blond hair and shredded flesh dangled from the useless trigger like a trophy taken from a crime scene.

My legs shook beneath me, and another wave of nausea rolled through my body. Zander slid his hand around my waist and held me steady while I got my bearings. Ty and Jake followed Tessa with Ballard’s arms over their shoulders. His head lolled back and forth, and his feet didn’t seem to be getting the right signals.

“Go,” I shot Eli a look.

He scowled back at me, but for once, he didn’t argue. He nudged Christa ahead of him and sauntered off into the shadows, muttering under his breath about bad choices and self-preservation. Falisha grabbed Ballard’s sidearm from the floor, slid it into the front pouch of her backpack, and flung her bag back over her shoulder. She nodded at me and hooked her elbow through Riley’s. My best friend’s voice caught in her throat as she stared down at the small creature that had gone after Bella.

“She was just a little girl.” Riley croaked. Her eyes filled with tears.

“
Was
,” Falisha said softly leading her away from the child’s body and into the darkness of the tunnel.

Chapter 23

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Ballard’s soft moans and the muffled sounds of our feet shuffling across the concrete echoed softly within the walls of the tunnel until it became little more than white noise. The rhythmic repetition somehow comforted me as we made our way into the darkened tunnel.

There was no guarantee that the scritters wouldn’t find a way in. With any luck, the collection of metal hatches and the never-ending tunnels that separated us would at least slow them down. Besides, thanks to Zander’s latest agonizing adaptation, we now had our very own early warning system.

“What is this place?” Jake grunted, stumbling awkwardly under Ballard’s half-conscious weight.

Ty slid his arm around the guard’s waist, lightening some of the burden from Jake’s shoulders. Though Jake hadn’t noticed the maneuver, his gait immediately became less encumbered. Ty kept his head down, but the smile that spread across his face when Jake heaved a sigh of relief was unmistakable.

“This is mechanical bridge A. It’s one of three maintenance tunnels that span the subterranean mid-line of the airport.” Tessa shone her light in a slow arc from dusty floor to the rounded ceiling and back. “This particular passage was decommissioned in the late 90’s after the last round of renovations was done. Actually, until a few days ago, we didn’t even know it existed. Ballard, there, actually stumbled upon the hatch on his first supply run. It was plated over and hidden behind a huge stack of crates he was trying to bust open down in the sub-basement.”

“Looks like his dumb luck saved our lives,” Ty said, hefting Ballard’s slumped form higher onto his hip. “We got ya, buddy. Hang in there.”

“Hold up. How is that even possible?” Jake asked. “You work in security. How could you not know about this?”

“It’s standard protocol,” Tessa shrugged and kept walking. “When a transport passage is decommissioned, any and all evidence of it is redacted from the system records.”

“To what end?” Eli asked honing his flashlight beam on the center of her back.

“To prevent it from being used as an infiltration point by outside forces,” Tessa shot him a look over her shoulder then turned her attention back to Jake. “When they built the new Bridge A, back in ninety-two, this one was completely scrubbed from every map, blueprint, and security document in the federal database. Essentially, this particular tunnel was erased from existence a full decade before I was assigned here. Even if I had thought to look for a retired maintenance tunnel, there would have been no record of it anywhere.”

“Hey, lady,” Christa said running to catch up to Tessa. “How are you rent-a-cops supposed to keep the terrorists out if you don’t know all the super-secret spy passageways?”

“First of all, I am not a
rent-a-cop
,” Tessa scowled down at her, the scar on her cheek twisting into a warped frown that swallowed half of her face. “I am a DHS Aviation Security Specialist.”

“
You
are Homeland Security?” Jake’s voice cracked. He cleared his throat and forced his voice lower. “What is a DHS agent doing in a nothing of an airport like Rockford International? That doesn’t make sense.”

“For real,” Falisha said, eying Tessa with scrutiny. “This place isn’t exactly a hotbed for terrorist activity. New York or L.A. I could understand, or even Chicago, but Rockford? Why would the government make you come here?”

“They didn’t, I volunteered,” Tessa shrugged averting her gaze. “It was the only way I was going to—you know what? Never mind. I don’t have to explain myself to you.”

Tessa shook her head and stalked off down the tunnel. The others’ questions had struck a nerve, and she immediately shut down. For the next few minutes, no one spoke above a whisper. Tessa kept at least ten yards between herself and the rest of us.

When we reached the next release valve gearbox, Tessa stopped short. She turned to us, a hand held up indicating we should do the same. We gathered in a clump in the middle of the tunnel and waited with baited breath.

“What’s going on?” Riley whispered, hooking her arm through mine. “Why are we stopping?”

“I dunno, Ry,” I said softly.

“I want to get out of this stupid tunnel,” Riley said. Her breath came in short, tight bursts as she looked around nervously.

Tessa put a finger to her lips and shook her head. She reached into the front of her shirt and pulled out her whistle. She tapped the toe of her boot against a large ducting tube that ran the length of the floor. Then put the whistle to her lips and blew two short chirps into a large metal grate. The high-pitched twittering echoed down the tube in both directions before fading into the distant shadows.

A couple of seconds later, three dull thumps echoed back through the duct followed by two sharp chirps. The sweet sound of a birdcall seemed eerily out of place as it reverberated about in the dark and lifeless underground passage.

“We’re good,” Tessa nodded spinning on her heel.

Zander held me close to his side as we walked, but neither of us spoke. I could feel his eyes drifting over me as we trudged forward. His worry emanated from him like a wave of magnetic energy. He pulled me closer as we descended into the long, dark tunnel. The shadows eased the pressure that had been building behind my eyes, and his touch helped dull the pain in my torso. My head, however, was pulsing with every frantic beat of my heart. After a few minutes of aimless wandering, my thoughts slowly began to drift to my father.

He had been quiet for so long that I had started to grieve for him all over again. But he was still with me. I had heard his voice, urging me to fight—telling me to keep going. It didn’t matter if he was a figment of my addled brain, knowing he was close by meant everything.

“Dad.” I breathed.

“Hey, stay with me,” Zander said his hand brushing my jawline.

“I’m here,” I said softly, shaking the fog from my head.

“I see a light,” Riley squeezed my arm tight and craned to see past the bodies ahead of us. “Liv, there’s literally a light at the end of the tunnel. Oh, thank God.”

Her grip on my arm loosened and her breathing began to slow. A few hundred yards later, we came upon a small lantern hanging from a hook on one of the pipes in the ceiling. Tessa batted it with her fingertips as she sauntered past it. The lantern swung creating menacing shadows that danced and flitted around us.

“This is your captain speaking.” Tessa’s voice echoed back down the tunnel with mock cheerfulness. “We are now beginning our final descent. Please place your seat backs and tray tables in the upright and locked positions. The weather here in Hell is a balmy one hundred and twenty-two degrees, with an earth-shattering storm looming overhead.”

“You have no idea,” Jake groaned under his breath.

Tessa tapped the butt of her flashlight three times on a pipe at the right side of the tunnel and smiled back at the rest of us. A moment later, the corridor filled with the grinding sound of metal on metal and a soft white glow. I lowered my gaze and shielded my eyes from the light that poured in around us.

“We truly hope you have enjoyed your trip. On behalf of airport security and the last vestiges of the human race, we would like to thank you for choosing apocalypse airlines.” Tessa spun on us, her arms wide as she stepped out of the tunnel. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Carousel F.”

Chapter 24

Stained

“Close it up,” Tessa said to the man standing next to the hatch. “Did that idiot, Doyle, already make it back?”

“Came through about ten minutes ago,” he said, his dark eyes fixed on Zander’s blackened hand as we passed by. “Thought you were going on a med run, Tessa. What’s with the strays?”

“Easy, Mason. They saved our asses back there against a herd of lurkers. They’re cool,” Tessa said, patting him gently on the shoulder. “Now, where’s my boy?”

“Tee-tee!” A lilting, bubbly giggle bounced through the dimly lit room. “Tee-tee back.”

“Caleb, wait,” the dark haired man hissed, stepping in front of Zander and me.

Tiny, bare feet padded quickly against slick vinyl tiles. The pattering echoed around us like fingertips on a base drum. A toddler with a full head of mousy-brown ringlets appeared out of nowhere. He wrapped his tiny arms around Tessa’s legs, planted his little feet onto her boots, and smiled over at me. Tessa picked him up and held him close to her chest.

“Pwitty,” he said pointing in my direction. The boy couldn’t have been more than three years old, but there was an odd sort of wisdom in his bright green eyes; an old soul my mom would have said. “Bwoo. Bwoo wike mommy.”

“That’s right, buddy. She has blue eyes, just like your mommy.” Tessa’s voice hitched. She hugged Caleb tightly, then set him gently on the floor and nodded at the dark-haired man. “Bolt it for me, please, Mason.”

“Got it,” Mason nodded. He eyed us cautiously and held his hand out in front of him. “Come here, Weeman.”

“Puppy!” Caleb squealed rushing toward us. “Puppy, puppy!”

“Caleb, no!” Mason lunged toward the child, but the boy was too fast.

He ducked beneath his father’s arms and made a beeline straight for Bella. The poor dog barely had time to brace for impact before Caleb launched himself at her. Bella yelped, and the two of them toppled to the ground in a tangle of curls and fur. The boy raked frantically at her face and neck, shoving his hands in her mouth and tugging on her ears. Bella flopped awkwardly beneath him trying to right herself. Caleb shrieked, and Mason was there in the blink of an eye, a small handgun pointed straight at Bella.

“Don’t,” Tessa stepped in front of him, her hand wrapped around the barrel of his gun.

Bella lay on the ground, her legs splayed out around her like a tripod. Caleb was straddling her like a pony at a petting zoo, his little fingers grasping the scruff of her neck tightly. He dove forward, buried his face in her fur, and flopped over next to her. He pinned her one front paw against the hard floor. Bella didn’t panic. She simply nudged the boy with her nose until he rolled off her foot. She rose to her feet and stood over him her mouth open wide.

Mason shoved Tessa out of the way, but it was too late. Bella’s mouth was already on the child. She smothered him with slobbery dog kisses.

“My puppy,” Caleb giggled. He hugged Bella around her neck while she continued to lap at his cheeks.

Mason’s face collapsed in relief, and he lowered the weapon, quickly stowing it in the back of his belt. He raked his hands through his dark hair and released a shaky breath. He watched his son and my three-legged friend roll around for a few more seconds and then rubbed his eyes with the kind of exasperation only a parent can truly understand.

“Come on, Caleb,” Mason said, carefully peeling his son away from Bella. “How about you let the puppy rest for a bit and come and help daddy, okay? I’ll even let you hold the screw gun, this time.”

“I skwoo, Daddy. I skwoo!” Caleb shouted, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Yes, Caleb,” Mason smiled down at him. The tightness in his features softened when the boy wrapped his fingers around his pinky. “You can put in
one
screw, deal?”

“Fwee,” Caleb crossed his arms over his chest and stuck out his chin.

“One,” Mason said firmly.

“Four,” Caleb countered.

“Fine,” his father sighed, as he toted him away. “Two screws, but that’s it.”