Night Betrayed Part 28

"Where's Theo? And Lou?" Elliott said.

An empty feeling churned in her belly. I wish I knew. I wish I knew. "They went on a trip a few days ago. I'm not sure when they'll be back. But Vonnie would probably love to feed you something. You're welcome to stay here a bit." "They went on a trip a few days ago. I'm not sure when they'll be back. But Vonnie would probably love to feed you something. You're welcome to stay here a bit."

"Right," grunted Frank, sliding into the conversation for the first time. "I've got some holes in the G.o.dd.a.m.n roof that needs mending. You two'd be better climbing up there than a d.a.m.n old man like me."

"I'm going in," Theo said to Lou. "You stay here and warn me if anyone comes."

The sun had set and the last bit of light lingered in the overgrowth behind them. The bounty hunters had left hours ago and the twins had spent the last few hours systematically taking down the security system: breaking lights, redirecting cameras, checking out how the locking system worked.

"f.u.c.k that," Lou replied. And walked through the door they'd just opened in the Black Gate of Mordor, post-Change style.

Having no choice, Theo followed him through to the interior.

His first impression was that the inside reminded him of a high-security prison. The wall enclosed a large expanse of grounds, empty of foliage and the overgrowth that was so prevalent elsewhere. In the center was a curious structure that looked like a ma.s.sive pool with gla.s.s walls. A sort of aquarium type of thing with transparent sides that rose twenty feet high and had a heavy roof.

In front of it was a small building, spare and windowless, not much larger than a garage. A single Humvee was parked in front of it and there were few lights on the exterior. There was a sense of desertion about the place.

"What the h.e.l.l is that?" Lou muttered, looking up at the giant aquarium as Theo came up behind him.

The light was faulty, but they could make out the gentle slosh of water near the top of the enclosed tank. And as they drew closer, Theo recognized shadows floating inside the water. Dozens, perhaps hundreds of large shadows suspended, unmoving, packed into the pool.

They'd hacked into the security system by cutting into an external wire and integrating their computer into the network. Then they'd reset the interior cameras to show old footage of the grounds, the video looping over and over-which gave them the freedom to move about outside. The windowless building added to their boldness, as well as the single Humvee. There couldn't be that many people in there; and based on the simplicity of the security system, Theo didn't have any great fear of other barriers.

"Let's take a look," Theo said, moving closer to the tank, eyes focused on the walls rearing above him.

But just then, they heard a noise and ducked into the shadows-the only shadow, which was from the tank itself. As they watched, a door opened at the rear of the garagelike building and a man came out.

"I'm guessing that's Ballard," Theo whispered. "But don't quote me on it."

They watched as he approached the tank, and for the first time Theo noticed a door at the ground. No, that wasn't a door. It was an elevator.

Ballard went into the elevator and it rose alongside the tank to the very top. He came out and stood on a platform near the roof and knelt to look down into the water. Using a long pole to stir up the shadows as large as he was, the man spent a long time looking down into the tank.

"Should we go inside?" Lou whispered, gesturing to the building, which could very well be empty at this time.

Theo nodded, but he was still watching Ballard, who'd stood and was moving toward the wall of his catwalk. He remained there, looking out over the tank. A low rumbling sound broke the silence-and as Theo watched, a large cranelike arm appeared, rising over the top of the tank.

Something inside him began to feel very uncomfortable as he saw the arm plunge into the water as Ballard, who seemed to be controlling it from the side, waited. The crane went into the tank, not unlike those claw games from fifty years ago, where you tried to pull a stuffed animal out and drop it into a chute.

And that was exactly what happened. The mechanized arm dove, grasped one of the shadowy figures, and pulled it up and out of the substance, which wasn't water because it oozed and plopped off in globs. Theo went cold as he at last saw what it carried. Then the crane dropped its burden into a hole in the corner of the tank. A chute.

"Holy f.u.c.king s.h.i.+t," Lou said, before Theo could catch his breath and a.s.similate what he'd seen. "Was that a body body?"

"Yes," Theo whispered, staring at the tank. "My G.o.d, it's all people in there!"

"There could be a thousand bodies in there. Are they dead?"

"I can't tell," Theo replied, trying to unfreeze his brain. He had an awful, deep-down feeling that he knew what was going on here. His stomach tightened into a horrible knot. I hope they're dead. I hope they're dead. But he'd seen the jerky wave of an arm as the body was moved, and he was afraid his hope was in vain. But he'd seen the jerky wave of an arm as the body was moved, and he was afraid his hope was in vain.

The crane was moving again, and as they watched in stunned silence, it plucked another body from the translucent muck and dropped it down the chute. And another. And another.

"That's ten," Lou said unnecessarily as the crane at last returned to its original position.

"Let's go," Theo said, grabbing his brother's slender arm and tugging him toward the building. "Before he comes back down."

Skirting the bottom of the tank, they moved silently over to the back of the building. Theo eyed the top of the elevator shaft to see when Ballard was starting his return trip. When the elevator started down, he dashed from the tank to the building's door, knowing that the angle of Ballard's descent would hide their flight.

The door opened easily, and he ducked inside, Lou on his heels.

They found themselves in a large, sterile room, lit with bright white lights. A single door loomed on the opposite wall, but other than that, the room was open and spa.r.s.e. Nowhere to hide Nowhere to hide was his first thought as Theo closed the door. was his first thought as Theo closed the door.

Operating tables with open restraints lined the s.p.a.ce and Theo found himself growing more numb by the minute. Smaller tables, just as cold and metallic, stood near one of the walls. They were lined with large hypodermic-style needles and a dish containing a substance that looked like clear jelly. Next to it was a padded tray that held tiny orange gems.

They were just bigger than coa.r.s.e-ground salt-tiny crystals that glittered in the bright lights.

"Theo," Lou whispered from across the room, drawing his attention.

He went over and saw what had put the hushed horror in his brother's voice. A long four-foot-walled channel ran along the edge of the room and through the wall. Inside it floated human bodies.

"Good G.o.d," he said.

Lou was just about to reach into the gelatinous substance when Theo s.n.a.t.c.hed his hand back.

"We don't know what that is. Better not f.u.c.king touch it," Theo told him, staring down at the bodies.

They were clothed in what appeared to be normal attire. Hair floated like seaweed around them, the hems of their s.h.i.+rts drifted. From what Theo could see, the skin of the victims was pale, not necessarily gray. Only one of the three who'd come through the opening in the wall faced upward, and her-it was definitely a woman-eyes were open.

As Theo looked down at her, she blinked and her mouth moved.

"Holy G.o.d," he whispered, realizing she was looking at him looking at him. "She's alive."

Just then, the sound of a clank alerted them to Ballard's return. With one mind, Theo and Lou dashed across the room toward the other door. Like the other, the door opened easily-there seemed to be no cause for extra security once inside the main walls-and Theo slipped through, dragging the slower Lou with him.

They barely had time to look around the new s.p.a.ce and determine there was no immediate threat, then close the door, before the opposite one opened.

Now they were in a short corridor lined with three doors-one at the opposite end, and one on each side of the hall. No need to speak; they read each other's minds and each of them approached a door on one side of the hall, first listening and then cracking it open in an effort to find a place to hide in case Ballard came through.

"h.e.l.l, Theo, get over here," Lou hissed as Theo peered around the door he'd chosen. It appeared to be a bedroom with a small kitchenette; obviously Ballard's living quarters.

Aware of the noise of human movement coming from the operating room, Theo closed the bedroom door and joined Lou on the other side of the hall. His brother shoved him through and followed him in.

"Holy s.h.i.+t," Theo breathed staring at the man-sized tubes that hung on the wall. There were a dozen of them, and they looked like ma.s.sive test tubes. Inside three of them were bodies, suspended in a bluish-tinged liquid.

He recognized two of them: Wayne and Buddy.

"What the h.e.l.l are we going to do now?" Lou asked, approaching one of the tubes.

"Are they still alive?" Theo asked, walking up to the one holding Wayne and saw that at the top of the tube was a little pipe that extended into the liquid.

Wayne's eyes were open, and his face and hands moved sluggishly as he seemed to notice Theo. Terror blazed in his eyes and he jerked once in the small s.p.a.ce, like a fish trying to escape a net. "G.o.d, they're alive."

"What do you think is in the tube? They seem to be able to breathe whatever it is," Lou was saying. Now he was moving a stool over to climb up and look into the top of the container.

"I don't know. How're we going to get them out of there?"

Lou shook his head. "We could break the tubes, but with what? And whatever that stuff is could be toxic or dangerous, spilling all over the floor."

"We've got to-"

Theo snapped his mouth shut and they stilled. Another sound had caught their attention, coming closer. The slam of a door. The ringing of footsteps, drawing near.

Again, they thought as one, each darting behind an empty tube in the shadowiest corner. Wedged between the tube and the wall, Theo looked over at his brother. For being seventy-eight years old, the guy was moving as well as he was. But that didn't mean he could keep it up.

Which was why Theo wasn't going to do anything reckless. Lou's safety was of paramount importance. They had to get out of there without being seen.

So he watched through the tube, his vision warped by the blue liquid, as Ballard entered the room. This was the first time he'd seen the man close enough to observe the details of his face. The man wore a white lab coat in the biggest cliche ever, and he had dark, white-streaked hair. Approximately fifty years old, he looked vaguely familiar to Theo. Ballard walked up to Wayne's bottle and looked in, tapping the gla.s.s as if to measure the man's response.

"Good for you," he said, speaking to him, then going over to Buddy, whose movements were more lethargic than his redheaded companion. "You're looking a little upset there, sir, but we'll soon remedy that," Ballard said with a little chuckle. And then he s.h.i.+fted to the third and final tube. "Very well," he said to himself-or the room at large-as he turned away.

Theo held his breath, hoping that Ballard wouldn't look closely enough at the other tubes that he must know were empty to notice him and Lou. The man walked over to the wall where he paused at a panel of b.u.t.tons on a low counter. Click, click, click Click, click, click ... He pushed three of them. ... He pushed three of them.

And then, as bubbles began to rise in the three occupied tubes, he turned and walked out of the room. Whistling the Jeopardy Jeopardy song. song.

Theo waited until the door shut behind him before emerging from his hiding place, then he dashed over to Wayne. The bubbles were coming fast and thick and Wayne's eyes had widened, his mouth open in a silent scream.

The liquid in the tubes churned and swirled angrily and Theo ran over to the panel ... but before he could determine which b.u.t.tons to push, a loud swoosh swoosh-like the sound of a toilet flush-filled the room.

He spun just in time to see Wayne disappear down in a vortex of bubbles, and then another swoos.h.!.+ swoos.h.!.+ And then a third one. And then a third one.

"Holy s.h.i.+t," he moaned, running to the tubes as Buddy and the other person dropped through the bottom and were sucked into the ether.

"What do you want to bet they're on their way to that big tank," Lou said, standing next to him.

"f.u.c.k," Theo groaned softly, slapping his hand against the tube in defeat. He tried to look down into it, but there was nothing to see.

"We've got to do something about Ballard," Lou said, pulling his brother away. "I don't know what he's going to do in that operating room, but we've got to stop him."

"He's making f.u.c.king gangas gangas," Theo said, putting into words what he'd suspected from the very beginning, when he saw the bodies suspended in the pool. "The guy is a zombie Frankenstein."

"Did you recognize him?" Lou asked as they started toward the door.

Theo stopped. "What? Ballard, you mean?"

Lou nodded. "Yeah. You didn't recognize him?"

"No."

"Lester Ballard," Lou said, his hand on the doork.n.o.b.

"Holy f.u.c.king c.r.a.p," he said for about the tenth time that day. "Dr. Lester Ballard?"

"Yep. He's got to be wearing a crystal under that white lab coat, because he looks the same as he did fifty years ago. I recognized him from the picture on the cover of Time Time magazine." magazine."

"The guy who used stem cells to cure MS in ten different people. Sonofad.a.m.nedb.i.t.c.h." Another member of the Cult of Atlantis. Which meant that he was going to be an extra pain in the a.s.s to kill, because the only way to do it was to cut out the immortalizing crystal that kept an Elite alive.

"Let's go," Theo said grimly, noting that the rifle Lou had been carrying wasn't going to do s.h.i.+t for them against Ballard. "Let's get out of here and figure out what to do."

Lou shook his head, looking at him through his square gla.s.ses. "No way, Theo. I know what you're thinking-you're not going to take any risks with your old grandpa here. Well, that's bulls.h.i.+t. The longer we delay, the more damage this quack is going to do."

"Don't be stupid," Theo began, but Lou's arm shot out and shoved him in the chest, slamming him into the wall before he realized what had happened.

"If you don't make a plan with me right now, I'm going to walk out of here and walk my a.s.s plain as day into that room and do what needs to be done. I'm tired of being relegated to the computers and the safe room. If anyone is going to risk their life, it should be me-I'm practically in the grave myself."

"Jesus, Lou-" Theo began, shoving his brother's hand away.

"I'm going." Lou started to open the door.

"Actually, I was going to say," Theo began, catching the door but resisting the urge to slam it shut, "that might not be a bad idea, much as I hate it. You walk in there, honestly, he's not going to find you much of a threat. Maybe you can distract him and I'll come in through the outside door behind him. I'm guessing I can get there through that door." He gestured to the one at the end of the hall.

Lou's face relaxed. "I like it. I'll do my best to get him talking and keep him facing away from the door. You come in behind and we'll go from there."

"But you have to do something to make him think you're alone. Otherwise-"

"Christ, Theo, do you think I've lost my brains with my ripped muscles? I've got it," Lou said. "Get going. Give me ten minutes."

Theo hesitated, then nodded. "All right. It's your funeral, bro," he said lightly, even though his stomach was still in knots. "Ten minutes, and I'm in. And by the way," he added as he started toward the door, "what ripped muscles?"

Adrenaline spiked through Lou as he approached the door to the operating room. He had the rifle Theo had taken from the bounty hunters' truck slung over his shoulder, and little else to protect himself-except his wits.

He decided on the bold approach; and after giving Theo a few minutes to get outside, Lou opened the door and walked into the operating room.

Ballard didn't seem to notice him at first because he was using a pulley and sling to drag the woman in the channel out of the goop. She hung there for a moment, her legs and arms moving sluggishly at first, and then with greater agitation as the slick matter fell from her skin.

"Now, now," Ballard told her. "You're going to be just fine. Take it easy, my dear. Take it easy." He s.h.i.+fted the pulley and maneuvered the woman over to one of the tables. Dropping her onto it, he moved quickly and attached one of her legs before he slid the sling from her body.

"Tell me," he said conversationally, "would you like to know how long you've been under suspension? That state of ... being in limbo."

She didn't seem to have enough strength to fight him, and Lou watched in horrified fascination as Ballard restricted her other leg and torso on the long table.

"How long I've ..." she said.

"According to my records," Ballard replied, his back still to Lou, "you've been suspended-my term, you know-since June fifteenth, two thousand ten. That's more than fifty years. Can you believe it? And not one gray hair." He gave a gentle laugh. "If only you didn't have to swim in that horrible gel."

"What?" the woman gasped. "What are you talking about?" She started coughing, hard, and Ballard looked up from where he was affixing her wrist, concern on his face.

"Oh dear, already?" He made a facetious tsking tsking sound. "That was quick. Well, we'd best work quickly. I don't fancy having to dig another of your companions out tonight." sound. "That was quick. Well, we'd best work quickly. I don't fancy having to dig another of your companions out tonight."

The woman managed to get her coughing spell under control, and she asked, "What are you-" Her voice broke and she started coughing again, racking and arching under her restraints as she tried to catch her breath.