Bertram nodded and extended his arm. "Right this way. “
They came down a wide hallway, passing by the armed guards outside the heavy steel doors. A side room had a bank of monitors, each showing the rooms from different angles. A guard sat nearby, keeping a steady eye on the monitors. The three teens were exactly as Bertram had last seen them, strapped to their chairs, immobile.
Margolin leaned in to see the monitors, studying each of them closely. Bartolli's eyes scanned the monitors as well, though not from as close a vantage point.
Pointing at the image of the boy, Margolin asked, "Is this the one that changed his shape? “
"It wasn't exactly his shape," Bertram said. "It was more his face. It was like Mission: Impossible, except it didn't involve tearing off a rubber mask. It was as though his features just melted and reshaped themselves. Damnedest thing I ever saw. “
"Did either of the girls change their faces or display any unusual abilities?" Bartolli asked, his voice raspy. It was the first thing he'd said since entering the facility.
Bertram shook his head. "No, they were pretty well debilitated by the gas the police used. “
"They're about to be even more debilitated," Margolin said. "Colonel, please remove your men from this corridor. “
The guard in the monitor room looked at Bertram, and the colonel nodded. The man left. Bertram stepped into the corridor. "All right, men, please exit the corridor. Take a lunch break. “
After his men had left, the agents of Margolin's who had been waiting in the corridors swiftly moved into position. Canisters were dumped through a resealing chute. Bertram looked back at the monitors and saw them drop into the detention rooms. A barely visible vapor rose out of the canisters.
At first, the teens struggled against their bonds, and tried to hold their breath, knowing they were being gassed again. But after a few minutes, all three were unconscious.
Bartolli stepped out of the room and barked an order to the agents. Bertram watched as they donned gas masks and entered the rooms, unlocking the bonds that his man had put on the detainees and replacing them with cuffs and restraints of their own.
With Bartolli out of the room and headed down toward the detention chambers, Bertram finally saw his chance to speak to his old friend in private. "So, Matt, do you mind telling me what all this is about? “
Margolin regarded him for a moment, his expression unreadable. He took a deep breath and exhaled. "I'm afraid I can't tell you, Matt. “
"Come on," Bertram said. "I did catch these kids for you. And it's not like I'm bad at keeping secrets related to special operations." He knew that Margolin could not have missed his veiled reference to their missions back in the Nam.
Margolin looked at him pointedly. "No. This one's strictly need-to-know. And any further inquiry or investigation into this… would not be looked upon favorably “
He turned to exit the room, then turned back around in the doorway. "Thanks for your help, Grant. And, in advance, for your discretion. We'll take it from here. “
As Margolin walked away, Bertram stared at him. He couldn't be sure, but he felt as if his old friend had just threatened him.
Whoever or whatever these kids are, something very nasty is going down here.
Maria unscrewed the top of the vial she wore on a chain around her neck. The scent of the eucalyptus oil immediately wafted into the air, and she inhaled it deeply. It calmed her, especially in times of high stress.
"Fine, I'll just wait out here then," Michael said grumpily. He was sitting in the VW's drivers seat.
"Oh, sometimes you're such a baby," Maria said, exasperated. "You don't even want us to do this at all. Why do you want to go in, now? “
Michael made a face. "Who said I did? “
Maria gritted her teeth and growled. Before she said anything she would regret, she turned her back and moved over to join the others.
"Okay, so have I said recently how thrown-together this plan is?" Maria asked quietly as the group, minus Michael, walked away from the van and made its way toward the hospital entrance. The others ignored her.
"We don't know this place," Max said, his voice hushed. "I'm going to need as many distractions as I can get if I'm going to have enough time to find the patients we're looking for. “
"Hold on a second," Isabel said, and the group stopped. "One more thing before Liz goes in." She reached forward and put her hands to either side of Liz's head. A slight glow spread out from her palms, and Liz's raven-colored hair changed to a light blond.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," Maria said. "Blond? Let's play into the stereotypes. “
"Hey, whatever helps the actress get into character," Isabel said. "I can change it back later. “
"Yeah, thanks," Liz said, her tone a little grumpy.
As they neared the entrance, Max split off to one side, heading around the building toward a secured side door they had spotted. Isabel and Kyle squatted in the shadows, behind a bench.
Maria took a deep breath, then looked at Liz. "Ready, girlfriend? “
"Yeth, thertainly," Liz said in a singsong lisping voice.
"Oh, Lord, please don't do Cindy Brady," Maria said as the sliding doors opened in front of them.
The two girls moved across the lobby, where two women and a male nurse were working behind a semicircular desk. As they approached, one of the women took a set of clipboards and a tray and exited through a side opening in the counter. She didn't acknowledge their presence, but instead hurried over to an elevator and punched the call button.
"Can I help you?" the male nurse asked.
Liz put on her best smile and flipped her hair back with a toss of her head. "Hi," she said. "We were wondering how those poor people who were in that big car accident were doing? That girl and that other girl? Or lady or whatever? “
The nurse frowned slightly. "They're both currently in critical condition, but we're hoping for the best. Do you know them? “
"Yeah, um, okay, like we think we know the one girl," Maria said, putting on her best airhead voice. "The picture they showed on the news looked like this girl that's in our trigastronomy class, and we, like, thought maybe she'd want some good wishes from her classmates, you know? “
The man looked befuddled. "You must mean Shania Cameron. But you do realize that it's two-thirty in the morning and… “
"Yeah, that's it. Shania! Liz said, turning to Maria and slapping her on the hand. "1 told you." She turned back to the nurse. "She thought it was Monique. But I told her it was Shania. Like that singer, you know? “
Maria saw the female nurse roll her eyes and turn away, intent on her work… or trying hard to appear to be. "Okay, Gabrielle, I get it. You're smarter than me. Whatever." Maria looked back toward the male nurse. "So how's the other lady? She was, like, driving, when they had that big accident. “
"Mrs. Dobbs is in critical condition, like 1 said," the nurse replied. "But visiting hours are… “
"Is your job hard?' Liz asked, her voice raised slightly. She moved away from Maria, down the counter, toward the female nurse. "Me and Tamara have talked about, like what we want to do when we get old, you know, like you! We thought nursing might be fun. 'Cause we like to help people and stuff. “
The female nurse glared up at her, one eyebrow cocked. "First, I’m only twenty-six, which is not 'old.' Second, and no offense intended, but I'm not sure nursing is the right profession for you, miss. “