Page 15 of The Knight
“Yes, except there’s no planned practice alarm for today.” She glanced over at the boxes of carefully collated material stacked at the side of her lab.No way in hell am I leaving them.
Fox made his way to the door. “So. This is probably just a false alarm?”
Freya secured the latches on her laptop. “The power plant features a specialized fire system that will isolate the fire wherever it’s located. Air flow will be reduced to those areas and the fire will be starved. We don’t need to evacuate.”
“We should move.” Fox frowned. “SOP says we treat every alarm as real.”
Freya pulled the case close and gestured at her stacked boxes. “I’m not leaving my archives. It might be a trick to get everyone out of the building.”Not after I came so close to losing it all before.
Abe exhaled a hissing breath. “You and the laptop are the priority. Everything else is expendable. Clear?”
She gave a curt nod but didn’t move.It was going to take a lot more than a faulty alarm to get her to move.
“Abe. I’ll do a quick sweep. You stay here with the package. Maintain comms.” Fox tapped his ear and exited the lab.
Package.Indignation sparked in her blood.“Did he just call me a pack?—”
Abruptly, the alarm cut out, the orange warning light above their heads dying.
Her ears were still ringing.
Freya tipped her head at the now silent alarm. “See. False alarm.”
Ignoring her, Abe yanked the lab door open, the line of his impressive shoulders locked like a rod of steel.
Leaning back, she could see past him. Fox was at the far end of the corridor. For such a big man, he moved surprisingly fast. He flashed a hand signal at Abe before vanishing around the corner and the hallway stretched empty in his wake.
“What did that signal mean?”
Abe turned to face her, the door closing behind him. “He’s conducting recon. Fox will check for anything suspicious.”
“Okay. Look?—”
He swung back and studied the door. “Only your team has permissions and yet intruders accessed the lab yesterday?”
She dropped her gaze to his hand resting on his hip, close to the weapon he carried. “Permissions were all changed yesterday. It’s secure.” Words did not come easily under his intimidating gaze.
He blinked, and something crossed his eyes. A decision made. “Let’s get you out of here.”
“Why—” Freya looked up, her words dying in her throat.What the hell is the noise in the ceiling?
“Ventilation system.” His voice was a soft mutter as his fingers clamped around her upper arm, vice-like and urgent. “Freya?—”
A deafening crack split the air, and the ceiling erupted in a choking cloud of gray and white. Debris hit her exposed skin as chunks of plaster and splintered wood rained down around her.
Abe snagged her waist, pulling her down and twisting mid-air to shield her from the deadly hail. They hit the floor hard, the impact driving the air from her lungs in a painful whoosh and dislodging the laptop from her grip.
No.
Panic pinched her throat as she struggled to breathe, her ears ringing with a high-pitched whine that vibrated through her skull.
My laptop.
She extended her arms, desperately searching for it, but her fingertips brushed only empty air and rough debris.
Abe pulled her closer, cupping the back of her head protectively. He pulled her against him, pressing her face against his chest. Seconds ticked by as she waited for the assault to ease. It felt like hours before the barrage lessened, fading to the faint patter of smaller fragments and swirling dust.
I have to get my laptop.