Chapter 16 #2
Iannis was silent for a long moment. “If we can take over the compound, I will see to them personally, and heal them if possible. I can only hope that we manage to do so before Lord Logar arrives. He will be here soon, and when he arrives—”
“We’re going to destroy the compound,” I snapped. “Yes, yes, I know.”
“When you locate Noria, you can have Rylan ask her about the test subjects,” Elnos suggested. “You might be able to free some of them.”
“What do you think?” I asked Rylan after I relayed that information. “Do you think it’s possible?”
“The subjects will definitely be separated according to what they’re being used for,” Rylan said.
“Judging by the different symbols stitched onto the breasts of the lab coats of these scientists, there are a variety of experiments going on. They won’t want to jeopardize their results by mixing up their different test groups.
It’s possible we might be able to save some. ”
“Can we get a move on and find Noria, then?” I demanded. “What if Annia is one of the prisoners being experimented on? She could be dying right now!”
“I don’t know that they would use her,” Rylan said, though he sounded troubled. “She’s human, so likely would not fit the criteria for whatever their experiments are. It’s more likely they’re just questioning her.”
“You mean torturing her,” I said flatly.
“I was trying to be optimistic.”
I sighed, saying nothing more as Rylan finished his rounds with unhurried steps.
Annia could already be dead for all I knew.
But I couldn’t operate as if she were. I had to have faith that, at the very least, Noria would have done something to ensure Annia wasn’t executed.
They might not have been on the best of terms when they last parted, but they were still sisters. Family. Blood.
Like Rylan is your blood.
“Okay, I think if Noria is going to be anywhere, it’s over here,” Rylan said as he turned down another corridor, past the mess hall.
This section of the compound was a little less clinical, with a length of blue carpeting running the length of the floor, and softer lights set into the ceiling as compared to the harsh white lights in the other sections that left no room for shadowed corners. “This is where the staff sleeps.”
“So how the hell do we find her then?” I asked. “Do we just start knocking on doors?”
“Well, we can bypass this section completely, because these are the male dormitories,” Rylan said as we passed through one hall. “And this one too. But this one….” He stopped and sniffed, then let out a deep sigh. “This one is all women.”
I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or roll my eyes at that. I wished the scry-eye allowed me to smell the scents Rylan was picking up on, because then I could just track Noria to her room. But it wasn’t built for shifters, and such a feature would be useless to humans.
Rylan walked up to the first door on the left and knocked. A woman with short blonde hair dressed in a white nightgown answered, her eyes heavy with sleep.
“Oh. Hello, Captain Witley,” she said, clutching at the doorframe as she regarded Rylan. “What is it?”
“Sorry to bother you,” Rylan said, sounding apologetic and a little embarrassed. “I was looking for Miss Melcott, regarding a security issue I need to discuss with her. Do you know which room she’s in?”
“Oh, that little redhead?” The blonde wrinkled her nose, then pointed down the hall. “She’s three doors down, on the left-hand side.”
“Thank you. Have a good night.”
“Anybody who’s awake is going to be listening now,” I told Rylan as he headed for the door in question.
“I know, but it’s not like you had a better idea.”
Rylan knocked on the door, then waited. My stomach sank a little when nobody answered—if Noria wasn’t here, then what were we going to do?
Was she working late in one of the labs?
If so, which one, and was there any way to get in?
Tonight was our only chance—Rylan wouldn’t be able to stay here past morning.
“I’ll try again,” Rylan said just as I was about to ask him to. He knocked on the door. This time, we heard a muffled groan.
“Miss Melcott, it’s Captain Witley,” Rylan called through the door, keeping his voice as low as he could while remaining audible through the doorway. “I need to speak with you.”
A rustling sound ensued, followed by footsteps, and then Noria yanked the door open.
“What do you want?” she growled at Rylan.
She stood there, arms crossed over her chest, looking far too thin in the cotton nightgown she wore.
Her red hair was a disaster, the mass of curls flying every which way, and her skin was too pale, making the bags beneath her eyes and the freckles smattered across her cheeks stand out like beacons.
“Noria!” I cried aloud, wanting to reach out and squeeze her tight against my chest. But then I remembered I wasn’t there, that I was sitting on a log out in the woods.
“You’ve found her?” Elnos exclaimed, hope in his voice.
Rylan darted into the room, pushing Noria back, and clamped a hand around her mouth before she could scream. She struggled mightily against him, flailing her arms and legs out as he closed and locked the door behind him.
“Stop it,” Rylan hissed as he dragged her away from the door.
“I’m not here to hurt you. I’m trying to get you out!
” He shoved her away from him, and she stumbled backward onto the twin bed in what looked to be a very sparse bedroom.
There was a single nightstand, and a small dresser for clothing, but other than that, there was nothing to occupy the windowless chamber.
“If you shout, somebody’s going to come looking! ”
“Why the hell would the captain of the night watch come to help me escape?” Noria sniped. Her voice wobbled ever so slightly, but her dark eyes blazed with defiance, and she gripped the bedspread beneath her hard enough that her knuckles whitened.
“Because I’m not the captain of the night watch,” Rylan said, keeping his voice low. “My name is Rylan Baine. My cousin Sunaya asked me to get you out.”
Hope flashed in Noria’s eyes for a split second before she narrowed them. “How do I know you’re telling the truth?” she asked. “You could be making this all up. It’s no secret that I was friends with Sunaya.”
Rylan popped the top button of his uniform open and pulled out the necklace from beneath his collar. “Recognize this?” he asked, swinging the pendant back and forth.
Noria’s dark eyes widened. “That’s my scry-eye!” Scrambling off the bed, she snatched up the pendant and held it up to the light. “This is the very same prototype Elnos and I were working on,” she murmured, examining it critically.
“Yeah, he’s here too, along with Sunaya, Lord Iannis, and a wolf shifter named Fenris,” Rylan said. “We came to get you and Annia out before this place is leveled.”
“Before the place is leveled?” Noria echoed, the last bit of color draining from her face. “What the hell are you talking about?”