Brett Battles - Sick

He stared at her for a moment, then said, “The second you get in my way, you’re out.”

They found Mike standing halfway down the hallway, in front of an open door.

“Inside,” he said.

They crossed the threshold into what turned out to be a large bathroom.

Ash looked at Mike, confused. “We’re in here because…?”

“You’ve been allowed to come to the Bluff only because Matt trusts you. He thinks you might be able to help us someday. If that trust is misplaced, and you try to betray us, you won’t last very long. I’m not threatening you, I’m just telling you. So before we go any further, I need to know if he’s wrong about you.”

Ash took a moment, then said, “Matt and the rest of you saved my life. And you’ve all been very generous in helping me try to find my children. I have no intention of ever telling anyone about him or his ranch or even your little house here. But if you do try to block me from getting my kids, all bets are off.”

“Good. Then there’s no misunderstanding between us,” Mike said.

He stepped over to a closet with accordion-style doors and opened them. Inside, there was nothing earth-shattering or unusual, just a washer and dryer and a stack of towels. Mike reached behind the washer and touched something. There was a subtle click . Then, with a simple, one-handed push, the dryer moved to the side, and a section of the wall behind it slid open. Mike motioned for Ash and Chloe to pass through.

The space beyond was dark and not particularly large. As soon as Mike joined them, the wall slid shut. The moment it was fully closed, a light came on, and the small room they were in began moving downward.

An elevator.

There might have been more than a little bit of crazy in these people, but they were certainly well funded, Ash thought.

The car continued downward for much longer than he’d expected. When it finally came to a stop, the door opened onto a brightly lit room. There were two men standing just inside, both armed.

“Please step out of the elevator and raise your arms to shoulder height,” one of the men said, demonstrating what he wanted them to do.

Ash was surprised to see that he and Chloe weren’t the only ones who needed to follow the instructions. Mike, too, had his arms out, as he let one of the men first use a metal detecting wand on him, then pat him down.

When they were all through, the man who’d spoken originally said, “Follow me.”

The door on the other side of the room buzzed and he pushed it open. They then entered a long, wide corridor that was as brightly lit as the space they’d just left. About twenty feet from the door was a see-through wall of either glass or Plexi, dividing the area in two. There was a very elaborate-looking security door inset on the right-hand side of the wall.

Prior to this divider, there was a room off to the side that also had a clear wall along the front. Inside, Ash could see at least five more men. Two were standing right at the wall, looking out. Like the guys who’d been waiting outside the elevator, they were armed. The other three were sitting at desks looking at screens, their faces lit by their computers.

The guide led Ash, Chloe, and Mike over to this wall, then said, “Adam Cooper and Chloe White cleared for entrance.”

“Cleared for entrance,” one of the men inside repeated, his voice coming out of a speaker somewhere nearby.

The elaborate security door on the large divider began to hum as locks disengaged. Finally, there was a slight sucking sound before it swung open toward them.

“Through here,” the guide said, leading them to the other side.

There were twenty doors in the back half of the corridor, ten on each side, paired in twos. Down the center of the space were three more armed men, walking back and forth as if they were protecting something.

“What is this place?” Ash asked Mike.

“I’m sorry,” the guide said. “No talking here, please.”

Frustrated, Ash fell silent as they continued down the hallway.

The pair of doors their guide finally stopped in front of was the second to last on the left side. He opened an eye-level panel on the left door, looked through it, then closed it again. He gave Mike a nod, then opened the door on the right.

This time it was Mike who took the lead, with their guide staying outside.

As if the whole facility wasn’t odd already, this new room was even stranger. The first part was a narrow passageway that took a jog to the right, then turned back to the left before opening into a wide space with five comfortable chairs sitting side by side. The chairs were facing the wall on the left, which seemed to be made of opaque, black glass.

“Take a seat,” Mike said.

“Where is she?” Ash asked.

“You’ll see her in a moment.” He gestured at the chairs. “You should take the one in the center.”

Once they were seated, Chloe to his right, and Mike to his left, Ash said, “So what now?”

“Now we talk to Olivia. But I want to warn you first, don’t buy everything she tells you. Are you ready?”

“I’m ready.” Though ready was probably not the right word. He had no idea from which direction she was going to enter. And where would she sit? Down at one of the ends? How could he talk to her there?

Mike pushed a button on his armrest.

A voice came out of a speaker. “Station one.”

“This is Mike. We’re ready.”

“Copy that, Mike.”

Suddenly, it was as if the wall in front of them melted away. The opaque black was gone, replaced by clear glass, a window into another room.

Not just a room, Ash realized. A cell.

There was a bed in the back and a sink on the wall next to a toilet. Hanging from the ceiling in the corner, enclosed by a wire cage, was a television that was currently off. But the most striking thing in the room was the woman sitting on a plastic stool just a few feet on the other side of the wall, facing them.

Her blonde hair was short, maybe no longer than half an inch. She had an angular face with high cheekbones and eyes that seemed to smirk. She’d barely moved since the wall became transparent, staring at it, a smile resting on her lips.

“Can she see us?” Ash whispered.

The woman suddenly laughed. “Yes. I can see you. Hear you, too.”

“This is Olivia,” Mike said. “Olivia, we have some guests who need to ask you a few questions.”

“So I’ve been told.” Her gaze shifted to Chloe. “You look kind of familiar. We’ve met before, haven’t we?”

Chloe said nothing.

The woman shrugged, then turned her attention to Ash. “You’re one ugly son of a bitch, aren’t you? Someone throw you in front of a train?”

Ash ignored her comment. “I’m looking for a location, and I’m told you might know where it is.”

“Hold on. You know my name. I don’t know yours.”

He paused for a second, then said, “Ash.”

“As in cigarette?”

“Do you know the location of something called NB7?”

Her eyes widened a fraction of an inch, as if he’d actually surprised her. “What are you? One of their hunters?” she asked, nodding toward Mike. “Out to bag you a big-name baddie, is that it?” She smiled, then leaned forward, her elbows resting on her knees. “Have you ever considered for a moment that maybe you guys are the black hats?”

“I don’t care about sides,” Ash said. “I'm just trying to find…some people who are important to me. I’ve been told they’ve been taken to NB7. I just need to know where it is.”

“Look, honey. You might as well stop what you’re doing right now. If they’ve been taken to NB7, then they’re probably already dead. Time to move on.”