The smell was unbearable, sharp and acrid, the stench of decay overwhelming. But there were no heat signatures, no sign that anyone was even left on the planet.
“So…what’s the plan?” Viktis asked, finally breaking the uncomfortable silence between them. “I can’t imagine Samil is going to let us walk in the front door.”
“Then we use the back door. You forget, I knew this place like the back of my hand when I was a kid.”
Renna rounded the corner and stumbled to a stop, staring at the front of what had once been her home. It didn’t look much like the same rundown building she’d expected. Instead, it shone like a shiny new toy in the midst of the half-eaten structures around it. Smooth metallic walls stretched two stories high, completely windowless. The only entry was a high-tech security door with a glowing blue lock.
Viktis whistled. “Impressive. Must be some sort of new metal to withstand this chemical onslaught.”
“It is. She developed it on Banos Prime. Maybe specifically for this. I don’t know.” Renna pulled herself together and gestured to an alley halfway down the block. “Let’s head that way. I don’t fancy trying to hack that lock.” She led him away from the building and around the corner. “If she hasn’t changed it, there should be a small ventilation duct we can use to get inside.”
The back of the warehouse was built of the same dark material, but the door here was less high-tech, merely made of wood, with a standard lock. She and Viktis crouched behind another building, and Renna studied the facade, searching for the small vent she remembered. It had been a long time since she’d used that escape route. Samil might have even sealed it when she updated the building.
She finally spotted a darker dimple near the bottom of the building. “There!”
Viktis’s shook his head. “You want me to fit through that?”
“What? Feeling claustrophobic already?” But she studied at it with misgiving, too. It was a hell of a lot smaller than she remembered.
She ordered her implant to do a quick scan of the facility for a vent schematic or another way in, but static just whispered in her ears. Nothing. Something was blocking the signal.
“Damn,” she said, shaking her head. “I had this problem back on Banos Prime when Finn and I tried to break into the facility there. It’s made from some new material that won’t let comms in or out. I can’t tell if the vent goes where it used to.”
“Lucky us.” Viktis squinted at the grate. “You get to go first then.”
Renna smirked at him. “You just want to look at my ass.”
“Absolutely.”
But now that she studied him, Renna wasn’t sure he’d fit. It might be a tight squeeze getting those broad shoulders into the hole. “How about this? I use the vent to sneak inside and let you in the door here.” She pointed at the heavily locked wooden slab.
Viktis put up a hand. “No heroics, Renna. As soon as you get inside you let me in. We’re doing this together. Promise?”
She kept her face expressionless. He knew her far too well. Damn him for guessing that she’d seriously considered leaving him behind to protect him from Samil. “Using my code against me, Viktis?”
“I’m using any advantage I can get with you, love. Promise?”
She sighed. “Promise. See you in a few.”
Renna sprinted across the alley and ducked against the building as she used her nanospanner to quickly unscrew the grate cover. She waved cheerfully at Viktis before sliding head first into the dark space. Her elbow slammed against the side of the vent, the vibration echoing through the space. She waited, breath frozen in her throat as she listened for signs of discovery. But when everything remained silent, she slid forward, deeper into the building.
“Schematics,” she ordered, but her implant stayed offline. Renna frowned. It was strange how quickly she was getting used to having that extra resource and how helpless she felt when it didn’t work. Even if it might take over her whole body, it certainly had its uses.
Good thing it looked like Samil had left the air filtration system alone. If she remembered correctly, there was a junction just ahead.
Renna’s knees slid against the slick metal bottom, and she pushed herself along a few more meters. And there it was. The darkness yawned on either side of her. To the left was the exterior door and Viktis. To the right, the interior and, if her hunch was correct, Samil.
If she took that path, she could end all of this. She had the element of surprise, and Samil wouldn’t be expecting an attack from inside her own walls. The thought of watching the woman die for all the lives she’d already taken sent a sick sort of joy through Renna. Retribution was a bitch, and Renna was more than happy to be the one to deliver it. Easy decision, then.
She slid toward the right-hand vent but paused, glancing back in the other direction. If she did this, if she went after Samil and failed, they were all lost. And Viktis would never forgive her for breaking her promise.
It was so tempting to do this alone, to not have to worry about anyone else. But after what had happened back on Tartarus, Renna knew Samil was a slippery bitch. She’d need all the help she could get to stop her. Working with Viktis was the smart thing to do. And smart was the only thing that would get her through this.
Slowly, Renna pushed herself backward until she could take the left-hand turn. She counted three sections of vent before she found a grate that opened into what seemed to be an empty room. Renna craned her neck, searching the space for any sign of life, but only silence greeted her.
Shit. With her implant not working, she had no idea if she’d drop down into a room full of guards or set off an alarm.
Silently, she pulled out her nanospanner and unscrewed two of the vent screws. Curling her fingers into the grate, she lowered it, letting it hang open.
This was it. Her heartbeat hammered in her ears as she waited for a reaction, but after a few long seconds of silence, she leaned through the hole to survey the room.
A worn desk, a bank of dead monitors, and an old wooden chair facing the door were the only things there. Didn’t look like it had been used in weeks. Renna slid feet first from the hole and landed softly on the ground in a crouch, casting a quick look about the space to make sure she hadn’t missed anything. Her racing pulse slowed when everything stayed nice and quiet. Just how she liked it.
In three steps, she’d crossed the room and switched off the door alarm.
“Get your ass in here, Viktis, I don’t have all day,” she said, throwing open the door with a grin.