Mission 'Don't get killed'

Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

I fear that the girl that got caught is being detained in the same basement as where Zac was kept, though I had hoped that wasn't the case since it's impossible to sneak into that basement. Or not. I managed to sneak out of the building unseen, which was a difficult task on its own, and now I'm standing outside the basement. There are a few very small windows in the walls on streetlevel but I think I can fit through them. If I can get one to open without causing damage I can't hide anywhere, that is. I have to help this person escape, so my father isn't able to look inside her mindscape. If that happens, I have a big problem. With Zac I was lucky, but without a destroyer on my side, I can impossibly make this girl's memories unaccessable. I find that one of the windows has already been broken before and it has been sealed with wood. Maybe I could just get rid of that wood and then I can enter. After some prying with my nails and a knife that I stole from the kitchen, I manage to take the wood away. I'll just have to place it back somehow. Maybe I can just stick the rusty nails back into the holes, that will hold for a while. And it makes it look as if it was easy to get out from the inside, just some punching against the wood and voilà. I crawl through the window and my suspicions are confirmed. It's Karen. She's barely conscious.

'Karen.' I hiss. 'Karen, come on.' She makes some surprised noises, as if she thinks it's weird to see me here. I try to loosen the restraints around her wrists and ankles. They are tied to a chair with ropes, but it's knotted very tightly.

'Zoë?' Karen whispers. 'What are you doing?'

'I'm helping you escape, you dumbass.' I say without looking up.

Karen laughs a bit but it makes her cough very badly. 'I was here to save you, but now you're the one saving me.' She says when she's finally able to talk again.

'Yes, well, you can thank me later.' The knife doesn't help a lot either, since it's rather blunt.

'What happened to you?' Karen asks. 'You seem perfectly able of escaping. And why are you still here? I thought the guys had taken you, Sara and Zac.'

'I told them to leave.' I say while I'm back to using my hands to loosen the ropes.

'But...' Karen suddenly sounds alarmed and wide awake. 'Are you...?' She asks. 'But why are you helping me then?'

'I'm not a traitor, Karen, if that's what you're asking.' I say sharply. 'I'm here because Matt told me to come. I'm helping you not only to save your ass, but also my own.'

'So you're spying?' She sounds as if she's finally figuring things out. 'So that's why Matt...' She doesn't finish her sentence.

'Yes, that's why Matt is not willing to save me. He's waiting for me to come back with what he wants.'

'But Sara and Zac, are they safe?'

'No, they're still here.' I say. 'They're barely concious, your friends couldn't have gotten them out anyway.'

'And you're taking them back then?'

'I will take them back, yes. I'm not going to leave them here.' I tell her. Yes! I managed to untie one of the ropes.

'Where are the others?'

'They got away. I've only heard about one captive and that's you.' I tell her. 'Okay, you have to listen very carefully now, you understand? Once you're out of the building, you need to run east. Don't stop, don't turn around, just run. There are not that many guards on this side of the building but you need to be careful anyway. You have to be quick. Matt's scouters will pick you up somewhere, you'll find them soon enough.'