Virals(67)

For the moment we needed a hiding place.

Ben nudged me and pointed to a supply closet. We ducked inside and peeked out through the tiny window.

One minute passed. Five. Ten. I started to sweat. Of course.

Finally, Hoke pushed through the doors and waddled to the elevator. So predictable. An incurable chain smoker, the Dragon slipped out at ten past every hour. Two cigs, plus a call to her trucker boyfriend. We'd have at least fifteen minutes.

Funny. The Dragon's routine was known to everyone at LIRI but her boss.

As the elevator clicked shut, we dashed into the suite and entered Karsten's office.

Countdown. Twelve minutes.

"Where do we start?" Ben whispered.

"Look for files, records, anything with a roster of projects."

The office was positively Spartan. Corner bookcase, stacked with reference materials. Desk. File cabinet. Hat stand.

Karsten clearly stored most of his papers elsewhere. But we couldn't gain access to the secret lab. We had to find something in here. And fast.

I sat at Karsten's desk and started with the computer. When I right-clicked the mouse, a password screen filled the monitor. Of course.

I tried the file cabinet. Found it locked.

"Ten minutes left," Ben warned.

I rifled the desk drawers. Three contained office supplies. Pens. Post-its. A three-hole punch. Another held power cords and computer cables.

Across the room, Ben was working the bookcase.

"Nothing so far," he said. "Eight minutes."

"We need the file cabinet key," I said. "His papers must be in there."

Ben spread his hands, a this is doomed look on his face.

Ignoring him, I inventoried Karsten's desktop. Monitor. Mouse. Printer. Metal cup filled with pens and paperclips. Small clock.

Chimpanzee skull.

Huh?

I lifted and rotated the skull. Heard a rattle. I tilted Mr. Chimp, then shook him from side to side. A small key dropped from the hole at the cranial base.

"Booyah!"

I set down the skull, inserted and turned the key in the lock. The cylinder popped and the drawer opened.

Ben dropped to a knee beside me. Together we flipped through files as quickly as possible.

"Six minutes." Ben's voice was beyond tense.

I checked folder after folder.

Equipment. Expenses. Employee evaluations.

"Hello!" Ben held a file labeled Active Projects--LIRI. Inside was a spreadsheet, its latest entry dated this week.

I speed-read the contents. Lab Six had its own column. Within that section was printed: Closed--out of service. The closure stretched back to mid-February.

"I knew it," I whispered. "Karsten's project isn't registered. The University doesn't know about the parvo experiment."

What was Karsten's game?

Ben opened the bottom drawer. The files it contained were unlabeled. We tore through them, ears alert for signs of the Dragon.

"Three minutes," Ben hissed. "We need to bail."

"What's this?" I held a folder containing bank deposit slips. The name on the account was Dr. Marcus E. Karsten.

"Wow. This one's for fifty thousand dollars!" I flipped through the stack. Dozens. Each for the same amount. "Every check is from the same company, Candela Pharmaceuticals."

"Look." Ben lifted the bottom slip. "The first deposit took place six months ago."

"The checks are made out to Karsten, not to the University," I said. "They must tie in somehow."

The outer door opened, clicked shut. The Dragon's humming drifted from just outside Kartsten's door.

I stuffed a slip into my pocket, then, moving as quietly as possible, locked the cabinet and slipped the key back into the skull.

Ben and I snuck to the door and peered out.

Hoke's desk was directly between us and the outer doors. She sat behind it, unwrapping a box of Godiva chocolates.

We were trapped.

We couldn't wait an hour. Karsten would return. Catch us. Call the cops. My pulse raced at the prospect.

Suddenly I felt heat. The sensation of falling through a long dark tunnel.

SNAP.

Bolts of light flashed in my brain.

I heard Hoke's fingers thundering through candy papers. I smelled chocolate, walnuts, and caramel. Sweaty polyester. Chantilly cologne.

My eyes focused to laser points. I saw lacy dust particles riding the air. Mites clinging to the wooden desk. Tiny grooves embedded in the chimp's skull.

Ben was beside me, flexing and un-flexing his hands. Our eyes met. His irises gleamed gold. Like mine.

Suddenly, I knew what to do. Ben nodded, right there with me.

I cracked the door. Crouched.

Ben coiled at my back, ready.

Finally, Hoke bent and reached for something beneath her desk.

Like desert wind, we shot from Karsten's office. Blew past the Dragon. Slipped soundlessly into the hall.

Out.

Free.





Puzzled by the sensation of moving air, Hoke glanced toward the suite's entrance. The double doors were slowly drifting shut.

Odd.

The Dragon lumbered to her feet and stuck her head out into the corridor.

Empty.

Shrugging, she returned to her desk and resumed the serious business of snacking.