Parador (Juggernaut #2)

Forty Two

The vehicle's navigation didn't let Malachi down and he glided the cruiser up to the front of Conway's headquarters. Surprisingly, the entire building was lit as brightly as if it were still day. As if the empty office were expecting him. The idea made Malachi uneasy.

Not that stealing a car and breaking into an office should have anything to do with that, he thought.

Walking in through the front doors seemed like a bad idea. There would undoubtedly be some security in place, even at this hour. Buildings like this never really slept. Maybe there was a side or back door he could use to gain entry.

Malachi drove forward and turned at the corner of the office block. In front of him was a sign for underground parking. Perfect, so long as he could get in.

The garage door was sealed. Malachi had hoped to find only a barrier blocking his way, something he could walk around, or under, while leaving the cruiser outside. He pulled closer, studying the console on the wall which had been positioned for a driver to operate. There was a button labelled 'press for assistance'. That was no good for someone trying to get in unnoticed. A sensor panel next to it was labelled 'Access Card'. He pulled the card from the centre console and waved it at the sensor panel. It beeped softly, lit green, and the garage door slid open to admit him.

* * * * *

When the agents stepped through the doorway, Tila saw another door open, and out stepped Ellie and Jayce. Jayce hurried Ellie to the far end of the hall with one hand. In his other he held Tila's staff. Ellie couldn't resist one last look behind her to make sure the agents weren't following, and her eyes met Tila's.

'Tila?' she said, slowing down. Jayce turned and saw her too. Tila shook her head and gestured frantically for them to be quiet, but it was too late. The agents had heard them. They emerged from the room, weapons drawn, covering the left and right of the hallway. The female agent saw Ellie and Jayce and opened fire.

Tila took the last three steps as one.

'Run!' she yelled. She heard the familiar click-hiss of a needler discharging, and ducked. A tiny white needle appeared in the wooden handrail of the staircase by her hand. Tila quickly pulled a painting from the wall to shield herself and ran the agent down. He fired twice more, burying needles in the thick canvas. Tila charged forward, smashed the painting over his head and knocked him to the floor. He dropped his needler.

The female agent, alerted by the violence behind her correctly assessed that Tila was the greater threat and changed targets. She turned away from Ellie and Jayce and opened fire.

The first shot went wide. Tila dived forward as the needler fired again and buried another tiny dart into the wall.

The agent fired again. Tila rolled sideways. Her hand found the dropped weapon. She squeezed the trigger and fired wildly in the direction of the agent. She hit nothing but still forced the agent to duck and back away for fear of being hit.

Tila took the moment. She jumped up, pumped the trigger without aiming until the weapon clicked empty. She ran past the agent and dived into the library.

A volley of click-hiss-taps followed her as the agent recovered. She dropped to one knee and emptied her needler into the library door as it slammed shut.

Immediately, the agent spun back to where Ellie and Jayce had been, but they had vanished.

She holstered her empty weapon and helped her partner to his feet. He pulled his head from the canvas and tossed the painting to the floor. A torn, yet still enigmatic, smile watched him turn away.

'Thanks for the help.'

'She's quick,' he offered as an excuse. He nodded at the library door. 'She in there?'

'Uh-huh. The other two got away. Call it in. Then we'll take this one.'

'Does she still have my weapon?'

'She's empty and unarmed.' The agent took out a short black stick. She snapped her wrist and it telescoped out. 'And alone.'

He grinned and snapped out his own stick. Both hummed with power.

'Beautiful.'