Basement B3

Part 1

28th March 2001

     It was just after nine in the evening as the two men burst through the exit door of the building and ran through the staff carpark. One of them kept looking over his shoulder as if he thought they were being followed. They jumped into a blue sedan, backed out of the parking space and sped to the exit gate where they screeched to a stop at the security checkpoint.

As they handed their identification badges to the security guard he gave them a puzzled look.
"Is everything all right, Dr Walker, Dr Bolton? You seem to be in a hurry."

The man at the wheel kept looking straight ahead and answered in a tense voice, "Yes, everything's fine. But it's late, we just want to get home."

"Of course," replied the guard, "Good night gentlemen." He pushed a button which opened the solid steel security gate. The gate had barely slid open to a sufficient width when the driver gunned the engine, the car accelerated through the gap and sped off into the night.

The guard watched them go, then snatched up the phone and entered a number.

The car slowed briefly to turn from the road into the Silver Star Research Facility onto a rural road which was the back way into town. Soon the car's speedometer was nudging one hundred kilometres per hour with the tires squealing as they rounded a series of curves.

"Slow down Dan, you'll kill us!" exclaimed the man in the passenger seat.

"I can't! We've got to put as much distance as we can between us and that place fast! The driver snapped with a note of hysteria creeping into his voice.

"Just keep control of the car. Do you think we've got away?"

"I don't know, I don't know. Oh hell!"

"What is it?"

"Behind us!"

The man in the passenger seat turned and looked out the back window. There was only darkness. "I don't see anything," he said turning back around to see a sharp bend in the road just ahead.
"Slow down Dan!" he yelled.

But Dan didn't seem to hear him. His hands were frozen to the wheel and his foot slammed onto the brake pedal far too late.
The car hurtled off the curve, tore through a fence and slammed into a tree. The headlights went out, and as the dust slowly cleared there was only darkness and silence.

******

21st July 2017

The two women paid for their coffees and sat down at a corner table in the staff cafeteria.

"It's so good to have you back, Tracy," the short brunette said as she stirred her coffee, "It's hard to believe it's been twelve months. I so missed our morning coffees and chats. How is little Gracie?"

"Full of life and always getting into mischief," the taller woman with long dark hair replied, "I can't believe how much energy a one year old child can have."

"So I hear you are just working mornings now?"

"Yep, we have a baby sitter from 8am to 2pm, and when Gracie starts school I'll be able to work longer hours. So Angie, how are things in the medical unit?"

Before Angie could answer a slim young woman with shoulder length brown hair came up to the table. "Can I join you?" she asked with a smile.