"That should do it," Purdue said as the screen displayed a "Verification Pending" message. "Fortunately they are using screens not dissimilar to my tablet. I believe I know whose work this is… If I'm correct I must congratulate her — and thank her for not blocking the access code. We will know in a moment whether she did or not. The system is set up to request three forms of identification. Fingerprints are the first. Easy enough to avoid by rendering them unreadable, but the second form is the iris scan, and the third is DNA, neither of which can be fudged without a little forethought. I have authorization to access most areas of the camp, but no doubt they will be alert to the possibility of my attempting to release Nina. Ah!"
The message on the screen changed, replaced by the words "Access Granted." The door slid open, but this time only three of them passed through. Kai stopped in the doorway and wedged his foot against the sliding panel, jamming the door open.
The corridor that lay in front of them was lined with the same material as the circular room. With a few swift taps, Purdue was able to call up a map labeled "Solitary Reflection Units," which showed that there were four small rooms concealed behind the walls. Three were empty, but one contained a moving shape — a thermal image picked out in red, green, and yellow. Purdue tapped the figure and a panel opened up displaying her height and weight, the temperature within the cell, the time of her last meal, and the time at which she was next due to be offered water.
"Can you reprogram that?" Sam asked, pointing to the water timer. "Someone's meant to bring water in five minutes."
Purdue shook his head. "I could, but not without more time. We will have to do our best to get her out before anyone arrives." He stared intently at the screen, his fingers swooping and pecking as he tried a variety of override codes that might open the cell doors. Sam held his breath and counted the seconds as they passed.
Just as the cell door swung open, they heard Kai at the other end of the corridor. Someone had entered the circular room, and now he was speaking to them loudly enough for the rest of the group to hear. It was as much warning as they could have.
Sam made for the door to Nina's cell, but Purdue held him back. "Wait," he said. "We need to do this the right way, or we will trigger all sorts of alarms." He led Sam and Julia Rose to the cell door and stood outside. "Nina!" he called. "We are here to free you, but you must do exactly as I say. Come to the door, but do not step out."
Nina, looking small and fragile, did as she was told. It took some effort. Every cell in her body was screaming at her to run, to get herself on the other side of the door and not stop until she had open sky above her head.
Purdue reached out and took her hand. Her fingers closed gratefully around his. A yell came from the circular room as Kai prevented the acolytes from entering by the only means left to him. As the sound of the fight reached them, Purdue hauled Nina out of the cell… and threw Julia Rose in to take her place.
Chapter Twenty-Four
"What the hell, Dave?" Nina yelled, as Purdue dragged her along the corridor toward the circular room. "You can't just—"
"It's you or her, Nina," Purdue said, with alarming composure. "They have no reason to be concerned about her. You, on the other hand… "
He trailed off, distracted for a moment by the sight of Kai battling the two acolytes. Despite their slight stature they were both strong, and they moved with the speed and grace of snakes. They circled and struck, circled and struck, landing simultaneous blows that were paired to inflict maximum pain in both kidneys, the solar plexus and sternum, the windpipe, and the back of the knees. Grunting in pain, Kai lunged at one then the other until he caught one, the young male.
The female acolyte leaped onto his back, clawing at his face, but it did nothing to loosen his grip on the male. He twisted the young man's arm in two different directions, resulting in a sickening crack and a gut-wrenching scream.
Recklessly, Purdue slammed his hand against the door panel. There was no time for disguising his prints or any other trickery. He snatched his glasses from his nose and stared at the panel, willing it to scan his retinas faster, and then replaced them as he opened his mouth for the cheek swab. The sample stick protruded from the wall on a tiny extendable arm, jabbing quickly at his mouth.
They spilled into the challenge corridor, dashed along it and up the stairs to the connection tent. It was still empty and the campsite was quiet as the sun reached its highest and hottest point, driving everyone to seek shelter. Carefully, the trio crept across the sand. Where the hell are we going to go? Sam wondered. He wanted to ask, but Purdue seemed to have a plan, so he followed.
It did not take him long to work out their destination. Sam had not yet explored the tall rock formation where Nina and Purdue had sheltered just a few nights before, but it was the only visible structure that might provide them with shade and concealment. He wiped the freely flowing sweat from his face as they plodded through the sand. The spiky, scrubby bushes grabbed at his legs and tore long, thin lines into them. Beside him, Nina stumbled. Sam and Purdue both grabbed her arms and propped her up, ushering her toward the shade.
"Henley?"
Half-hidden in the shade of the rocks, the girl raised her head to reveal a sulky, hurt face. "Yeah? What are you people doing here? This is my place."
"Just looking to get out of the sun, Henley," said Sam. "Are you ok?"
She gave a one-shouldered shrug. "I guess. This place sucks, is all. And you know what, you can tell my mom and dad. I don't care how much they love all this stuff. It's bullshit. I want to go home."
"Christ, you and me both," Nina sighed, collapsing beside her. "I wish I'd never come here." She turned her face toward the sky. It was too hot, even in the shade, and there was not even the slightest breeze to disturb the arid air. Nevertheless, it was the sweetest sensation she could imagine. Above her were miles of open sky, with not a wall in sight.
Despite wearing the lightest clothes he owned, a thin cotton T-shirt and pale beige shorts, Sam felt like he was melting. Beads of sweat trickled down the back of his neck, sticking his hair to his skin. The mental image of his waterskin, resting on top of his backpack back in the teepee, taunted him.
"Does anyone have any water?" Nina asked, as if reading his mind. "They gave me some when I was in the cell, but it had all that weird herbal stuff in it, so I left it alone."
"Good call," said Henley. "Mom says it's fine, but I think it's some kind of drug. She says it can't be drugs because it's just a plant. I told her that weed is just a plant too — I mean, she'd freak if she saw me with a joint but she's fine with me drinking that shit? So stupid. Besides, I don't think she ever saw some of the other shit they put in there." Her brow furrowed as she realized what else Nina had said. "Why were you in the cells?"
Sam and Nina exchanged a glance, noting that Henley did not seem even slightly surprised by the existence of the cells.
"I got on the wrong side of Cody," said Nina. "Although I don't think that's all there was to it. I think — no, Dave." She shook off the hand that Purdue laid on her arm. "I don't care if she runs to Jefferson. Or Sara. Or Cody. If any one of them tries to put me back in those cells, I'll claw their fucking eyes out this time."
"I'm not running to anybody," Henley said, twisting a lock of her dark blonde hair nervously between her fingers. "I don't trust anybody here."
Neither do I, Sam thought, trying hard not to watch Purdue suspiciously out of the corner of his eye. What is your game, Dave Purdue? First you seem to be in with these people, then you're not, then you throw Julia Rose in the cell, and now we're following you and hoping that you've got a plan to get us out of here. I don't trust you an inch, yet for some reason I keep following your lead.