My Father's House

Chapter 35

Kael steered the old car off the road a few hundred yards before we got to the building. He turned off the engine once we were hidden behind a cluster of shrubs and trees. He proceeded to check the clip in his gun.

"I thought these were your employees?" I asked, growing concerned.

He reached under the seat and pulled out a knife, tucking it under his pant leg. "They were; we'll have to see where they stand now." He unlocked the car and started to stand, but then turned back to me. "I'm not sure who's still stationed here," he said. "I may not have met these blokes or they may not remember me. Either way, there's no guarantee we will get a warm welcome."

I nodded in understanding, feeling leery of what we would find behind the stone walls. We exited the car, keeping low behind the shrubs. I followed Kael's lead, advancing slowly until we were upon the side of the building. The structure was short and squat, a wire fence encircling three sides. Kael indicated for me to follow him to the front entrance, hugging the neighboring tree line. The front gate was wide open, vacant.

"Shouldn't there be some kind of security?" I whispered from behind him.

Kael nodded as his gaze swept the lifeless expanse of the building and grounds. We walked into the compound then without any further attempt at cover. Half expecting alarms to sound when we passed through the gate, I breathed a sigh of relief when silence greeted us.

Still something was not right here. I could see on Kael's face that he thought the same. After turning the safety off his gun, he grasped my wrist to keep me close behind him. We headed for the front, keeping along the wall of building. His strategy was undeniably questionable: entering through the front gate and heading for the front door. But if I had learned nothing else of late, I had learned to trust his instincts in these situations. We reached a massive stainless steel door that appeared impenetrable. Kael flipped the lid of the numeric pad to the side of the door. Without pause, he entered an eight digit code.

The door groaned, but began to slide to the right. Kael led with his gun. He glanced inside, and when no one surfaced he stepped over the threshold with me following behind him. The walls and floor were concrete. The inside was deathly quiet.

Kael whispered close to my ear, "If they're compromised, I know where they'd hide." We walked to the back of the building. Passing by a few side corridors and strange little rooms, perhaps used for storing the shipments, we stopped by another large metal door. Kael entered his code once again. We found ourselves in a panic room.

Besides a few chairs, supplies, and a case of deadly looking weaponry, the room was vacant. Kael headed straight for the case of weapons, making some quick selections and setting them off to the side to take with us. I took the opportunity to inspect the room, observing the bottles of water and canned goods against the wall. A case of medical equipment completed the rations. A few people could stay in here for over a month and probably survive, even if it wasn't ideal.

Movement at the doorway halted my inspection.

"Who are you?" Someone shouted into the room.

Terrified, I turned slowly, afraid my actions would spark violence prematurely. A huge bald guard stood in the doorway with his gun pointed into the room, at Kael specifically. His voice was husky and more than a little hostile. He demanded, "How did you two get in here?"

Kael and I had raised our hands, but the man didn't look the type to take prisoners. Kael took a step forward, but stopped when the man adjusted his aim to the level of Kael's head. He spoke deliberately, "I'm Kael Sullivan. I used the access codes you failed to change from almost ten years ago."