The Hot Zone (A Rainshadow Novel Book 3) Page 2

  The second discovery she had made was that the experiments Blankenship was conducting had something to do with her talent. She had no idea what had been done to her but she was sure she still had her ability to open and close the paranormal gates of the Underworld. Unfortunately her ability to work the energy gates was of no obvious use when it came to escaping the lab.

  Lyle growled, impatient with her failure to get with the program.

  “I would like to come with you,” she whispered. “But I can’t fit through the bars of this cell.”

  She had been contemplating that problem since she had awakened. The first obstacle was the lock on the cell door. It was an old-fashioned padlock. A key was required to open it.

  Buzzkill and Hulk had keys.

  Even if she succeeded in escaping the cell and getting past the two bulked-up assistants, she would still face the challenge of getting out of the tunnels. Without tuned amber she would never find her way back to the surface.

  There was plenty of amber embedded in the lab apparatus but it was all tuned to operate the simple instruments that were designed to function in the heavy psi atmosphere—not for navigation.

  Lyle rumbled softly again. She could feel his small frame vibrating with a sense of urgency.

  “We need a distraction,” she said. “I’ve got a sort of plan but it’s one of those ideas that had better work the first time because I’ll only get one shot at it.”

  If she failed, Blankenship would overwhelm her with his ghastly dreamstate drugs.

  “Here goes nothing, Lyle.”

  He blinked and sleeked out, his tatty fur plastering against his little body. He opened his second set of eyes, the ones he used for hunting. They burned molten amber. He vaulted up onto her shoulder.

  “Right,” she said. “Let’s do this.”

  She took a deep breath, rezzed the little flicker, and touched the small spark to the edge of the pillow.

  That was when she found out what Blankenship had done to her para-senses.

  With a terrifying whoosh of energy, the tiny flicker spark literally exploded into a firestorm, engulfing the cot in seconds.

  “Crap,” she whispered. She stared at the raging fire, too stunned to comprehend for a few seconds.

  Smoke was not a problem in the heavy psi environment. It dissipated quickly in the atmosphere, but the fire she had inadvertently started was something else again.

  In her panic she intuitively rezzed her senses to the max.

  And discovered to her amazement that she could control the flames.

  “Impossible,” she gasped.

  But she was doing it. Frantically she reached out with her talent, struggling to control the currents of the fire. It took a moment or two but in the end she realized it was not all that different from working gate energy. She beat the wall of flames down until only the bed was burning.

  Fascinated, she concentrated harder and generated more energy. The tide of flames surged and ebbed at her command.

  Satisfied she had the fire under control, she opened her mouth and screamed.

  There was no need to fake genuine fear. She was committed now.

  Lyle growled. The claws of his small paws sank through the fabric of her shirt. He could have escaped the cell but he made it clear he wasn’t leaving without her.

  Two figures appeared in the doorway of the lab. Sedona screamed louder, flattening herself against one wall of the cell as if trying to avoid the flames.

  “Shit,” Hulk said. “The crazy bitch is awake. She set a fire. How in green hell did she do that?”

  Buzzkill started forward, dragging a key out of one pocket. “We’ll figure that part out later. Right now we’ve got to get her out of there. Blankenship will be pissed if he loses his precious research subject.”

  “Yeah, well, he’s not the only one who will have a reason to be pissed. In case you haven’t been paying attention, we need that little witch.”

  “Don’t you think I know that?” Buzzkill said. “I told you the woman was going to be trouble. She gives me the creeps the way she looks at us with those weird eyes.”

  “What the hell is that thing on her shoulder?” Hulk said. “Don’t tell me she’s got a rat.”

  “I think it’s a dust bunny,” Buzz said.

  Sedona screamed again.

  “Shut up, already,” Buzzkill growled.

  He stabbed the key into the lock and swung the door wide.

  “Come on,” he snapped. “Get out of there.” He glanced back at Hulk. “Be ready to grab her. Give her a shot of the sedative to keep her quiet while we put out this fire.”

  “It’ll be a pleasure,” Hulk said. He reached into the pocket of his leather vest for a small syringe case.

  Lyle growled. Sedona clutched the flicker very tightly in one hand and fled from the cell.

  Buzzkill did not try to stop her. He left that job to Hulk, who was already moving to intercept her. One big fist reached out to close around her arm.

  The instant he made physical contact with her she rezzed her new talent, clicked the flicker again, and set fire to his shirt.

  Hulk yelled. The expression on his face was a mix of astonishment and panic. He released her and staggered back, batting wildly at the flames that were leaping from his shirtsleeve.

  “What in green hell?” Buzzkill paused in the act of trying to beat out the flames and turned to stare at Hulk.

  “The bitch set my shirt on fire.” Hulk clawed at his vest and T-shirt, ripping the clothes off his massive chest and shoulders. “It’s the heavy doses of the formula that Blankenship has been giving her. If she wasn’t crazy before he started his experiments, she sure is now.”

  “Stop her.” Buzzkill charged out of the cell. “Pull a ghost. Hurry, man. She’s getting away.”

  Sedona ran for the door. Lyle clung to her shoulder and urged her on with small hissing noises.

  She was only a few steps from the arched doorway of the lab when a ball of hot green psi-fire coalesced in front of her, blocking her path. She slammed to a halt, nearly dislodging Lyle. He recovered his balance and snarled at the violent energy ghost that Hulk had generated.

  The technical name for the dangerous ball of psi was UDEM—Unstable Dissonance Energy Manifestation. There was nothing of a supernatural nature about ghosts. They were composed of specific frequencies of Alien psi that those with a special talent could work.

  Pulling unstable dissonance energy out of the invisible currents of psi that flowed throughout the Underworld was, in Sedona’s opinion, the only thing Guild men were really good at. There was no doubt but that Hulk was a very powerful hunter. The seething ghost in front of her was the largest she had ever seen. The currents pouring off of it lifted her hair and raised goose bumps on her arms. A cold sensation shivered through her. A ghost this large could be deadly.

  “Got her,” Hulk said. He started toward Sedona, rage burning in his eyes. “You’re going to pay for that little fire trick.”

  “Be careful,” Buzzkill warned. “She already set fire to you once. She’s a gatekeeper. Everyone knows they’re weird to begin with. No telling what she is now that Blankenship’s been using the drugs and radiation on her. Knock her out with the ghost.”

  Hulk halted, clearly torn. But in the end self-preservation won out over damaged pride and anger.

  “Yeah,” he said. “The ghost will work just fine.”

  The ball of green energy started to drift toward Sedona. In another moment it would come close enough to burn her senses. She had some natural immunity because of her gatekeeping talent, but no one could withstand the full onslaught of a powerful ghost. The best she could hope for was that the unstable energy manifestation would merely render her unconscious. The worst-case scenario was that it would kill her.

  No, she thought, death wasn’t the worst possib
ility. She had already sustained one bad psi-burn in the Underworld. Another severe burn might send her into a permanent dreamstate. She would spend the rest of her life here in Blankenship’s lab or some low-rent para-psych ward. No question about it—death would be a better outcome.

  “This could go real bad,” Sedona said to Lyle. “Better run while you still can. Go on. Shoo. Get out of here.”

  She tried to pluck him off her shoulder and send him toward the door. But Lyle just growled and dug in his claws.

  “Okay,” she said. Her pulse pounded in her veins. “Looks like we’re a team. Neither of us leaves the other one behind, right?”

  Lyle rumbled.

  “Unlike some Guild bosses I could mention,” she added.

  The green ghost was drifting closer now, forcing Sedona to edge backward until she came up hard against an unyielding block of green quartz.

  Buzzkill and Hulk stood still, breathing hard, and waited for the green ghost to come into contact with Sedona’s aura.

  “Better not let it kill her,” Buzzkill said. “Remember, we need her.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Hulk said.

  But Sedona could see the feverish excitement in his eyes and hear it in his voice. He was at the edge of his control. That was never a good thing but it was always really bad when it happened with a ghost hunter. A Guild man who couldn’t control his talent was liable to do a lot of damage, especially down in the Underworld where there was so much energy.

  She took a deep breath, rezzed the flicker, and simultaneously pulled hard on her senses.

  Flames exploded in the atmosphere between her and the ghost. She fought to control the stormy currents of fire. This time it was easier. She had more control. Power swept through her. The flames obeyed her every command.

  A heady sensation threatened to overwhelm her. She was strong—stronger than she had ever been in her entire life.

  She marveled at her own creation. She’d possessed plenty of talent before that last job in the Underworld, but she’d never been able to do anything like this.

  “Wow, Lyle. Very high-rez, huh?”

  Lyle chortled and bounced a little on her shoulder.

  “What’s she doing?” Buzzkill whispered hoarsely.

  “Shit.” Hulk was clearly stunned. “She’s some kind of fire talent now. Everyone knows they’re psycho. I told you, she’s a total whackjob.”

  “A whackjob with nothing left to lose,” Sedona warned. A terrible excitement was flaring inside her. “Watch and learn, gentlemen. Watch and learn.”

  The firestorm she had created was in the direct path of the oncoming energy ghost. At any second the two would collide.

  “Oh, man, this is not good,” Buzzkill said. “I can feel the energy levels rising in here. There’s going to be an explosion. Stop her, damn it.”

  “I can’t stop her,” Hulk said. There was a panicky tightness in his voice. “That’s the biggest ghost I can pull. If you think you can do something, be my guest.”

  “We’ve got to get out of here.” Buzzkill sprinted toward the door. “This place is going to blow.”

  “What about the woman? You said yourself, we can’t lose her.”

  “There’s nothing more we can do,” Buzzkill yelled. He did not pause on his charge toward the door. “Blankenship can find himself another research subject. Stay here if you want. I’m leaving.”

  Sedona concluded that nothing left to lose had become her personal motto. She pulled more power. The firestorm surged.

  “You stupid, crazy bitch,” Hulk shouted. “You’re going to die if you don’t shut down that storm.”

  Sedona laughed.

  “Those damn experiments turned you into a real freak,” Hulk gasped.

  He gave up trying to control the ball of hot energy that he had generated. As soon as he stopped channeling his talent, the ghost fizzled and winked out of existence.

  Sedona sent the leaping flames of her firestorm toward Hulk. But he was already on the run, pounding toward the doorway. He followed Buzzkill out into the glowing green hall and was gone.

  Sedona waited a moment or two, savoring the exhilaration that had ignited her blood. She could have stood there for a long time, admiring the storm she had created. But Lyle chortled and reality slammed back.

  Reluctantly, she lowered her senses. The firestorm dissipated. An eerie silence descended on the lab.

  “Okay, that was a real rush,” she said softly.

  Lyle chortled. He was once again fully fluffed but all four eyes were still open.

  She opened her hand and stared at the shiny flicker. A shiver of dread replaced the fading euphoria.

  “What did Blankenship do to me?” she whispered.

  Lyle muttered, displaying some impatience.

  “Right.” Sedona steadied herself. “I can worry about the details later. Time to vacate the premises.”

  She crossed the room to the storage chest that held the few things she’d had on her when she was kidnapped. She found her pack. There wasn’t much inside it, just the usual emergency essentials that she always carried when she went down below into the tunnels on a job. There was also a cell phone but she knew it would not work until she got aboveground.

  Two items were missing.

  “They took my locator and my backup tuned amber,” she said to Lyle. “Bastards.”

  She looked at Lyle.

  “I’ll bet you know the way to the surface, don’t you?”

  Lyle gave no indication that he understood the question but it was obvious that he was eager to leave. He bounced some more on her shoulder and made encouraging noises.

  “Okay, buddy, I’m depending on you. Anything is better than hanging around here waiting for Dr. Blankenship and his pals to come back.”

  She slipped the strap of the pack over one shoulder and started toward the doorway.

  The sight of the glass-and-steel strongbox sitting on a workbench stopped her. She shuddered, nightmarish memories slithering and coiling through her mind.

  “Hang on,” she said. “Something I want to do before we leave.”

  She went down an aisle formed by two long, steel lab benches to the strongbox. For a moment she studied the container, wondering if there was any way to destroy it and the contents. The thick glass glinted malevolently in the paranormal light. The steel was heavy gauge. The whole thing probably weighed nearly a hundred pounds.

  There was a lock on the strongbox, but, like the lock on the cell door, it was a simple, old-fashioned padlock. She could not open it without a key. Not that she wanted to even touch the contents, let alone steal them. But she did not want Blankenship using the serum on some other hapless research subject. The crystal seemed to be important to the drug-making process.

  There was no way to destroy the box or the strange gem inside. She did not have the time or the upper-body strength required to carry the container away from the lab and conceal it somewhere in the catacombs. The only option she had was to lock the strongbox so tightly that no one else could ever unlock it.

  Setting a small gate lock on the box was easy enough. Setting one that no other gatekeeper could unlock took some concentration but the job was done in a matter of minutes. When she was finished there was a fine, eerie radiance around the strongbox. Anyone who touched it would get a scorching psi-burn. Anyone foolish enough to try to open her lock would trigger an explosion that would likely prove fatal to whoever was in the vicinity. With luck such an explosion would be strong enough to destroy the jewel.

  “Done,” she announced to Lyle. “Now we can leave. I’ll lock the door on the way out.”

  She was halfway back down the aisle of lab benches when a gleaming steel test tube holder caught her eye. There were six glass tubes filled with the serum set in the holder.

  Another wave of anger washed through her. She rea
ched out and swept the metal holder to the floor. The glass test tubes shattered, spilling the contents across the green quartz.

  She was about to move on when she noticed a small plate bolted to the test tube rack. She paused and took a closer look at the lettering. PROPERTY OF AMBER CREST HOSPITAL.

  She glanced at the other instruments on the bench. The little amber burner and the microscope bore the same label.

  There was no time to dwell on the implications. She kept moving.

  Outside in the gently illuminated hallway she paused again to rez her senses. In an instant, hot energy blazed in the vaulted doorway. She created a gate and then wove an intricate lock into the oscillating currents.

  When she was satisfied that no other gatekeeper could unlock the gate, she stepped back and studied her surroundings.

  She was in a vast green quartz rotunda that must have been at least three stories high. A dozen arched doorways opened off the circular chamber, all of them glowing with psi.

  “Okay, Lyle, it’s up to you now. Take me back to the surface, pal. If you don’t, I’m going to die trying to find my way out.”

  Lyle chortled, unconcerned, and peeled the wrapper off the energy bar he had acquired along the way.

  Tentatively she started toward one of the tunnels. Lyle didn’t stop munching but he made a rumbling sound that she took for disapproval. She changed direction and went toward another arched doorway. Lyle took another bite and rumbled again.

  Then, evidently concluding she was no good at navigation, he finished the energy bar and bounded down to the floor. He trotted off toward a third hallway.

  Sedona followed him into the maze. Nothing left to lose.

  Ten steps later she glanced back over her shoulder. She could no longer see the rotunda. She was well and truly lost.

  She followed Lyle through the sense-dazzling catacombs, questions circling endlessly in her mind.