curving ramp that rose two hundred feet to the surface there were three other security doors.
He had criticised several times Coldbrook’s design, suggesting that there should be at least two independent escape routes to the surface in case of an accident. To begin with, Jonah had reasoned with him – nothing would go wrong, they were cautious when they built it, there was no risk. But after a while he had simply chosento respond with the stark truth: if the core was ever breached, none of them would have to worry about escape.
Vic could open the doors on the vehicle ramp but it would take time. And, of the escape routes he’d considered as he made his way here, it was the most observed and the least likely to be successful.
He had somewhere quicker in mind.
‘So long as they don’t go for complete lockdown,’ he whispered to himself, listening again for more voices, and deciding it must have been his own guilt calling after him. He looked around the garage, checking for movement or the dark blue of a guard’s uniform. He was sure that he was alone, and since the alarm had switched off he’d started to wonder just how serious the situation was. If they had it contained in Control, it wasn’t certain that Jonah would seek to lock down the whole facility, because if he did—
Vic . . . something came through.
‘Shit.’ Vic shook his head and checked his palmtop. The camera view of Control showed no activity now. He switched back to the thumbnail views and saw a flash of movement in one of the accommodation corridors. The image was too small to make out any detail, and by the time he enlarged it whatever had moved was gone. But . . .
Blood on the wall
– and his own ran cold.
He switched programs to the schematics of Coldbrook that he’d stored on the computer. He was responsible for the maintenance and adjustment of the unique core containment and, in turn, the breach generator. But he’d made sure that he knew as much as possible about the rest of the facility. He’d never really believed that something would go so catastrophically wrong, but it was always good to be prepared.
Holly
, he thought, but he tried to blink her away.
Vic shifted the plans on his palmtop screen. Behind the garage lay one of the three main plant rooms serving the facility, this one dedicated to the air-conditioning systems. Every single external access point would be affected by a lockdown, but if he was fast enough now maybe—
From the main door across the garage he heard the click and snap of metal. He dashed between the Hummer and an SUV and watched from there. He should have known what was happening from the first instant, but his mind was fogged by the stark fact of his betrayal. He was running just when Jonah needed him most, and if he dwelled on that for more than a second he felt physically sick. So he did not dwell on it at all. He focused on Lucy and Olivia.
Across the garage a wisp of smoke rose from the huge door’s securing mechanisms as they melted into lockdown. The smell of burning filled the air, and the acridwhiff of hot metal. The clicks and clanks of warping locks echoed through the space. Vic had always thought such a process was overdramatic, and that secured locking of the exits would be enough in any emergency. But his boss had always been keen on his safeguards.
Jonah’s started!
he thought, and he ran for the doors to the air-conditioning room. Once inside he consulted the palmtop again, then dashed for the largest duct that led up through the mountain. There was a maintenance-access point at the base of the duct, sealed with three coded locks. He tapped in the codes and breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the quiet clicks of release.
The metal duct was a little over five feet wide, with a vertical ladder bolted into the inner wall. Vic pulled a head torch from his tool belt and flicked it on, securing it on his forehead before beginning the climb. He went as fast as he could, knowing that
He had criticised several times Coldbrook’s design, suggesting that there should be at least two independent escape routes to the surface in case of an accident. To begin with, Jonah had reasoned with him – nothing would go wrong, they were cautious when they built it, there was no risk. But after a while he had simply chosento respond with the stark truth: if the core was ever breached, none of them would have to worry about escape.
Vic could open the doors on the vehicle ramp but it would take time. And, of the escape routes he’d considered as he made his way here, it was the most observed and the least likely to be successful.
He had somewhere quicker in mind.
‘So long as they don’t go for complete lockdown,’ he whispered to himself, listening again for more voices, and deciding it must have been his own guilt calling after him. He looked around the garage, checking for movement or the dark blue of a guard’s uniform. He was sure that he was alone, and since the alarm had switched off he’d started to wonder just how serious the situation was. If they had it contained in Control, it wasn’t certain that Jonah would seek to lock down the whole facility, because if he did—
Vic . . . something came through.
‘Shit.’ Vic shook his head and checked his palmtop. The camera view of Control showed no activity now. He switched back to the thumbnail views and saw a flash of movement in one of the accommodation corridors. The image was too small to make out any detail, and by the time he enlarged it whatever had moved was gone. But . . .
Blood on the wall
– and his own ran cold.
He switched programs to the schematics of Coldbrook that he’d stored on the computer. He was responsible for the maintenance and adjustment of the unique core containment and, in turn, the breach generator. But he’d made sure that he knew as much as possible about the rest of the facility. He’d never really believed that something would go so catastrophically wrong, but it was always good to be prepared.
Holly
, he thought, but he tried to blink her away.
Vic shifted the plans on his palmtop screen. Behind the garage lay one of the three main plant rooms serving the facility, this one dedicated to the air-conditioning systems. Every single external access point would be affected by a lockdown, but if he was fast enough now maybe—
From the main door across the garage he heard the click and snap of metal. He dashed between the Hummer and an SUV and watched from there. He should have known what was happening from the first instant, but his mind was fogged by the stark fact of his betrayal. He was running just when Jonah needed him most, and if he dwelled on that for more than a second he felt physically sick. So he did not dwell on it at all. He focused on Lucy and Olivia.
Across the garage a wisp of smoke rose from the huge door’s securing mechanisms as they melted into lockdown. The smell of burning filled the air, and the acridwhiff of hot metal. The clicks and clanks of warping locks echoed through the space. Vic had always thought such a process was overdramatic, and that secured locking of the exits would be enough in any emergency. But his boss had always been keen on his safeguards.
Jonah’s started!
he thought, and he ran for the doors to the air-conditioning room. Once inside he consulted the palmtop again, then dashed for the largest duct that led up through the mountain. There was a maintenance-access point at the base of the duct, sealed with three coded locks. He tapped in the codes and breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the quiet clicks of release.
The metal duct was a little over five feet wide, with a vertical ladder bolted into the inner wall. Vic pulled a head torch from his tool belt and flicked it on, securing it on his forehead before beginning the climb. He went as fast as he could, knowing that
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