Chapter 2 - THE PRICE OF A NAMELucie stood with her hand on the door handle, listening to the man she had trusted for eight years order her to abandon the brother she had spent three years trying to find.
Behind the steel door, something heavy scraped across the floor.
Then came silence.
"Move away, Lucie."
Valois's voice was controlled, but his right hand hovered near his holster.
Lucie turned slowly.
"Is he your prisoner?"
"Your brother is a very dangerous man."
"He's an electronics technician."
"He was an electronics technician."
The distinction struck her.
"What did you turn him into?"
Valois looked exhausted.
"Whatever you think is happening here, it's worse."
Lucie reached for the door again.
Valois drew his weapon.
"Don't."
The courtyard had emptied. Only Mara remained, standing between two officers who appeared more interested in Valois than in their prisoner.
Lucie studied his face.
"You taught me never to draw a weapon unless I was prepared to use it."
"I remember."
"Then you'd better decide whether you're prepared to shoot me."
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Mara laughed.
It was a small, bitter sound.
"Look at you, Étienne. Still pretending you have a choice."
Valois turned his head.
"Stay out of this."
"That's what you told me three years ago."
Lucie caught the implication.
"You knew Julien before he disappeared."
Mara nodded.
"He came to me with evidence. He thought I controlled the shipments."
"Didn't you?"
"I controlled the money. I didn't know what was inside the containers."
"What containers?"
Mara looked toward Building D.
"Medical transport containers."
Lucie felt a chill.
"Human beings?"
"Sometimes."
The word hung between them.
Valois lowered his gun slightly.
"Mara, stop talking."
But Mara had spent too many years obeying men who promised protection in exchange for silence.
"No," she said. "She deserves to know."
A gunshot cracked through the courtyard.
Mara stumbled.
For a moment, she seemed surprised.
Then blood spread across her sleeve.
Lucie dropped behind a concrete bench and pulled Mara down with her.
A second bullet struck the pavement.
Valois shouted for cover.
Lucie looked toward the guard tower.
A dark figure disappeared behind the upper windows.
Someone was shooting at them.
And whoever it was had chosen Mara first.
"Can you move?" Lucie asked.
Mara gritted her teeth.
"It's my shoulder."
Lucie pressed her hand against the wound.
"Keep pressure here."
Mara caught her wrist.
"Listen. The medical wing isn't treating prisoners."
"What is it doing?"
"Collecting them."
Another shot struck the bench.
Valois fired toward the tower, forcing the shooter back.
"Get inside!" he shouted.
Lucie dragged Mara toward the service entrance.
The electronic lock was still green.
She pulled the door open.
A narrow corridor stretched into darkness.
On the floor lay a broken pair of glasses.
Lucie recognized them immediately.
Julien had worn the same black frames for years.
She picked them up.
One lens was cracked.
On the inside of the frame, someone had scratched a tiny number.
146.
Mara saw it.
Her face changed.
"Where did you get those?"
"They're Julien's."
Mara shook her head.
"No. That's impossible."
"Why?"
"Because Room 146 was sealed after the first experiment."
Lucie stared at her.
"What experiment?"
Mara leaned against the wall, struggling to remain conscious.
"The one your brother tried to stop."
Before Lucie could ask another question, the corridor lights flickered.
A speaker crackled overhead.
Then a calm female voice filled the hallway.
"Lieutenant Lucie Serrano. Please remain where you are."
Lucie froze.
The voice continued.
"Your brother's survival depends on your cooperation."
Valois entered behind them.
His face was pale.
"Don't answer."
Lucie looked at the ceiling.
"Who are you?"
A pause.
Then the woman replied.
"My name is Dr. Evelyn Voss."
Mara began shaking.
Lucie had never seen her so frightened.
"Who is she?"
Mara whispered, "The woman who decides who gets to leave Building D."
The speaker crackled again.
"Lieutenant Serrano, your brother has been asking for you for three years."
Lucie's eyes filled with tears.
"Then let me see him."
"You will."
"When?"
"When you understand why he is still alive."
A metal door slammed shut behind them.
The corridor lights turned red.
And Dr. Voss delivered a final message.
May you like
"YOUR BROTHER ISN'T OUR PRISONER, LUCIE. HE'S THE REASON THIS FACILITY STILL EXISTS."
End of Chapter 2 — Cliffhanger: Julien is more than a captive, and Room 146 may contain the evidence that explains his true role.
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