"Listen to me-" Sabrina whispered urgently. "I saw them, they're wi-"
That was all Max could hear. He started pushing past her. "What? Where? Why are we standing here-"
Sabrina just managed to grab hold of his shirt and tug him backwards. "No!" she snapped at him. "No, you aren't listening!"
The look on his face was as bewildered as it was frightened. "What are you talking about? You mean we aren't going after them?"
Sabrina's eyes darted toward the direction her friends had disappeared and she groaned her frustration. They didn't have time for this. Kelly and Jill didn't have time for this. "I'm going after them." She explained, leaning in close to him. "You need to find Kris and then come find me. We have to split up." She took a moment to point out the door Irene had led the girls through. "See that door? They just went through there. I'll follow them. You get Kris and then come after us, but you have to stay quiet. I don't know what's gonna happen."
Max looked pained. "You…you need my help-"
"Kris might need your help more." Sabrina said quickly, shaking her head. If that was true, she was sending Max into trouble right after her. There wasn't time to think it through any more. "Besides, I've got the gun." She pushed him backwards and began backtracking towards the door. "Go, hurry! Find Kris. Meet me through that door. Go, go, go!"
There appeared to be more arguing left in him, but to his credit, Max kept it himself. He looked torn, but finally turned and began jogging back towards where they had been hiding. Sabrina waited until Max had disappeared down the darkened hallway, before picking up speed and bolting across the lobby.
The double doors loomed in front of her and she pushed right through them, finding herself in the hallway she'd been in not even an hour ago with Max and Kris. There was a stairwell at the end of the hall, she remembered, and she had a good feeling that was where they had headed.
Sabrina made her way toward the door, trying hard to ignore the bad feeling in her gut. Had splitting up been a foolish decision? Had she just sent Max, unarmed and inexperienced, into danger? Would she be able to help her friends alone and in the dark?
She hurried down the hall, stopping only when she reached the stairwell doors. There was only a moment of hesitation before she pushed her way through them.
There wasn't time to second guess herself, Sabrina decided. Her friends needed her help.
Kelly felt the gun barrel bump into her back and decided that neither she nor Jill had any choice but to take the doctor up on his offer of hospitality. With Jill right beside her, the two women stepped toward the chairs the doctor had brought and quietly sank into them. Irene whisked in right after them. Kelly could hear her bustling about behind them before, after a few moments, she reappeared. She snatched Kelly's right and then left wrist and wrenched both arms behind the back of her chair.
The feel of a thin cord wrapping tightly around her wrists made Kelly's heart sink. Not only would this be very painful on her already throbbing right hand, it would also complicate any escape attempt she could possibly come up with. But, before Irene could tie her hands, the doctor cleared his throat.
"That won't be necessary, Irina." He said pleasantly.
Irene stopped. "Doctor?" she replied, confusion in her voice. "Do you think it wise to-"
"Do you think myself incapable of handling two girls?"
The room was silent for a moment. The doctor had spoken and though he had neither yelled nor used an ugly tone, the sound of his voice had both Kelly and Jill flinching in their seats.
It appeared to have a similar effect on Irene as well because, after a brief pause, the older woman unwound the cord and Kelly found her hands free again. It wouldn't do to breathe a sigh of relief, so she simply folded her hands in her lap and remained quiet.
"As you say, Doctor." Irene answered submissively. She put away whatever she'd planned to use to restrain the two women and then shuffled forward to lean against the side of the doctor's desk
"Did you find anyone else?" He asked her coolly.
Irene shook her head. "They were alone, Doctor."
"Alone?" The doctor enjoyed a chuckle. "No, Irina, they are not alone." He swept one hand in the direction of their two prisoners. "Look at them, Irina, could they have possibly come alone?"
The question had Irene squirming like a school child put on the spot. "I…no, I suppose not."
The doctor smiled a patronizing smile. "I suppose not. I'll have Gunther check outside for more guests."
"Yes, Doctor." Irene replied quietly. Embarrassed, she leaned back against the doctor's desk and calmly folded her hands in front of her. Her compliance failed to make up for her earlier behavior though, because the old man cleared his throat again.
"That will be all, Irina." He said firmly. "I am sure there are other, more pressing matters to attend to."
Both girls had the pleasure of seeing Irene's face fall. "Doctor? I-"
"I said that will be all, Irina." The doctor repeated. He smiled an impatient smile and that was all Irene needed. She straightened and smoothed out the front of her uniform, making sure to avoid eye contact from Kelly and Jill.
"As you say, Doctor." She said pleasantly. There was a strange look on her face as she passed Kelly and Jill. The door opened and then clicked shut silently and she was gone.
The doctor nodded his approval and then strolled around his desk and took a seat in the slatted wooden chair behind it. He took a moment to make himself comfortable in his chair and rooted around his desk drawer, humming cheerfully to himself, just as casually as if the two women sitting in front of him were applying for a bank loan. Finally, he looked back up, a half smile on his face and tossed something white at them, first to Kelly and then to Jill.
Kelly flinched, but it was only a white hand towel laying in her lap. To wipe the blood off of her face, she supposed. Still, it made her angry and she flung it back at him.
The towel splatted against the doctor's shoulder and, undeterred, he simply folded it and set it back down on the desk. "Now then-" he started pleasantly. "-where were we, ladies?"
Kelly glanced at Jill, sitting beside her. Jill was having noticeable trouble keeping her head up, her blue eyes were glazed, but she was with it enough to catch Kelly's eye and send her a puzzled look. Where were they? Certainly, that was a question he needed to answer.
Their stony silence had the doctor smiling again. He leaned forward and folded his hands neatly on the surface of his desk. His hands were very smooth and delicate looking for an old man, Kelly noticed, no liver spots, no hair, no scratches or scars, very neat looking with well-manicured nails and a simple gold wedding band on his left hand.
"Nevermind, then." The doctor continued, breaking Kelly's reverie. "So, you're the girls that Gunther brought last night. I will admit I was surprised to hear that. Most girls come here themselves."
Jill hadn't used her towel either. It was lying across her knee. She'd been looking at it suspiciously when she'd heard the doctor's comment. She shot Kelly another look and could no longer maintain her silence. "Who would come here by choice?" she asked. Her voice was weaker than it had been, a bit slurred, but the heat in her tone was unmistakable.
This seemed to amuse the doctor. He chuckled to himself and cleared this throat again. "Who? More than you think. Most of them are in a…shall we say, a delicate condition? Gunther spreads the word that he knows of a place where their condition can be...reversed, and-" He smiled Anna's smile again. "-well, here they come."
The revelation was a disturbing one. They hadn't been the first. Far from it by the looks of things.
"They don't come to you then. You trick them." Kelly said quietly.
The doctor looked thoughtful. "At first, I suppose. But we're doing greater things here at Divinity. We're doing God's work and now you'll get to be a part of it."
Jill scoffed. "You know the war ended thirty years ago, don't you?"
Now the doctor laughed and that too reminded them of Anna.
"The war-" he said, waving one manicured hand dismissively. "Politics. Just politics. It was the science that was important to me, the chance to improve mankind for the greater good, the way God intended man to be."
"Trapped in a hospital?" Jill replied sarcastically. She laughed, turning to Kelly, as she did. "You go to church more than I do. Did that room look like God's plan to you?"
If that upset the doctor, the old man was too cool to show it. "I cannot simply create like our Father can create." He said, his tone still pleasant. "I am but a simple scientist. I can only improve through trial and error. Those girls, those children…" Another elegant, dismissive wave. "-a necessity for the greater good. They will be remembered as martyrs, like Perpetua and Felicity before them. We will remember them with love and be grateful for their gift."
Jill was still looking curiously at her and Kelly realized she was trying to tell her something that had nothing to do with what the doctor was saying.
Before Kelly could figure out what it was, Jill turned her attention back to the doctor. "I bet their families remember them too." She muttered at him. "You're sick."
With that, she jerked her head back and spat as hard as she could. Blood and spit sprayed the doctor's face, flecking his glasses, but again, he kept his cool.
"Jill, Jill, Jill." The doctor chuckled, as if dealing with a toddler's tantrum. Predictably, he took a moment to wipe his spectacles on his shirt and again Jill turned to Kelly. Her blue eyes were urgent as she jerked her head quickly towards something on the desk. Finally, Kelly understood.
The coffee cup.
Jill may have been hurt, but she'd seen what Kelly hadn't. Fanning out from inside the cups white porcelain walls were several writing utensils and nestled amongst them was something much more useful. A letter opener. By the time Kelly noticed it, Jill had turned away.
Kelly ripped her eyes away from it and hoped her poker face was hiding her excitement. Jill may have spotted the potential weapon, but she was smart enough to know that she couldn't be the one to use it. Jill had been too weak to launch an attack before they'd arrived and now, after being knocked unconscious and then slapped around by Anna, she could barely keep her head up. No, even though she wasn't much better and would have to do it left handed, it was up to herself, Kelly knew.
Now all she needed was an opportunity.
"We don't want to be part of your plan." Jill continued her distraction. "We don't want anything to do with you."
The doctor perched his glasses back on his nose and smiled. "Maybe not now. But, you'll see. We're a family here at Divinity. And soon you'll be too."
Kelly scowled at him. "You'll have to kill me first."
The doctor laughed. "Kill you? No, no, dear." His wooden chair squeaked as he calmly rose and stepped toward them. He stopped at Jill's side and smiled before suddenly lunging forward and, in the first display of violence they'd seen, drew back his hand and knocked Jill's head to the side with a brutal, loud slap.
It caught both of them off guard. Jill cried out and would have fallen out of her chair, had Kelly not grabbed hold of her arm and hauled her back into her seat.
"You bastard." Kelly growled at him, still holding Jill upright.
The doctor smiled again and settled himself back into his chair. "No, my dear. Again, you misunderstand."
Kelly glared murderously at him. "Misunderstand? What-?" she spat sarcastically.
As if she'd asked for clarification, the doctor chuckled thoughtfully. "Yes, allow me to explain. You see, Kelly, one's misbehavior is a reflection of failure on the part of the family. Step out of line and the entire family will have to be punished for you." He gestured towards Jill, just now recovering from the blow to the face. "Starting with her. Do I make myself clear?"
"Some family." Jill muttered back. She pushed Kelly away and sat upright, glaring defiantly at the doctor as she did.
The doctor ignored her. "You see, I have big plans for you. For both of you." He smiled his pleasant smile and leaned forward again.
"You'll take your place in our family soon enough."
Every footstep inside the concrete stairwell seemed to echo like a bass drum in Sabrina's ears.
She stopped again, clutching the cold metal railing with slippery hands, both to catch her breath and to listen for any activity on the second floor. So far nothing and it was still unclear at the moment whether that was a good or bad thing.
Sabrina could feel cold sweat trickling down her face. She ignored it and then slowly and carefully ascended the remaining steps. The second floor was just beyond this set of double doors. In keeping with the style of the rest of the building, these double doors also had two vertical windows that Sabrina was able to use to her benefit.
She peeked inside. This hallway seemed to be better lit than the one she'd come from. There was a definite light source coming from the end of the hall that she could just barely make out from where she stood. If Kelly and Jill were up here, that's where they'd be.
"Oh man-" She whispered, steeling herself. It was probably too much to ask for to have Max and Kris suddenly show up alive and safe behind her to help, but still, she permitted herself one longing glance down the dark stairwell.
A few moments worth of darkness and silence told her that they weren't coming.
Alone, she quietly pushed the door open and closed it behind her without a sound. It was cooler on the second floor, but that was of little comfort. She pulled Kris's gun out in front of her, wishing again that it was her own, and carefully started towards the light at the end of the hall.
Halfway down, she froze.
Was it her imagination or had she heard a door close?
She waited a bit longer, Kris's gun in front of her, until the soft rustling coming from down the hall confirmed her guess. The rustling grew steadily louder.
Footsteps?
Not especially eager to relinquish the element of surprise, Sabrina quickly backtracked down the hallway, back toward the stairwell, flung open a door and ducked down inside. If it was Kelly or Jill, she could quietly motion them to her.
If it was Irene Stone…
Well…
She waited for what seemed like hours until a figure finally emerged from the end of the hall. The lighting wasn't particularly good, but from the stocky build and clicking heels, it had to be Irene Stone.
Sabrina clutched the gun to her and waited. The old woman had a gun too. There was no reason to give her a chance to use it and even less of a reason to give away her position to anyone else who might be lurking nearby. If she could take her by surprise and disarm her maybe this could be done quickly and neatly. Her heartbeat quickened. Everything would hang on what happened when that woman reached her.
Irene Stone's footfalls grew louder, echoing in the empty hallway.
Heart racing now, Sabrina ducked down, hoping the old woman would enter the stairwell. The footsteps grew louder and, though she'd been expecting it, Sabrina still jumped when the stairwell door's handle thudded and the door began to open. She pressed herself against the wall behind it and held her breath.
Sweet smelling perfume wafted up to her as the old woman passed her, so close, only the door separating them. Groaning, the old woman laid one hand on the railing and took her first step down the stairs. Her ankles popped as she did, and the old woman muttered something to herself.
Quiet as a shadow, Sabrina stole up behind her while she was off balance. Irene must have heard her at the last instant, but by then there was nothing she could do.
Before Irene could turn around, Sabrina pushed the barrel of the gun up to the back of the old woman's head and snatched her shoulder with the other.
"I want to see both of your hands." She demanded in a harsh whisper. "Now."
To her surprise, Irene chuckled softly to herself. Still, both of her hands slowly reached toward the ceiling. "Another guest? Oh my."
Sabrina gritted her teeth. The old woman may have had a kind face, but there was nothing kind or sweet about her. Just hearing her voice made Sabrina's skin crawl.
"Shutup." Sabrina snapped. She reached around Irene with her free hand, patting along the front of her nurse's uniform until her hand bumped over the lump in her pocket. Digging into Irene's pocket produced a gun. Jill's gun. She didn't even need to see it to be sure.
Sabrina slipped the weapon into the back of her pants and gave Irene a rough shake. "Take a step back. Nice and slow." She gave the woman's sleeve a tug and, making sure to stay behind her, managed to steer Irene off of the steps and back around to face the stairwell door. Too bad they'd already used the handcuffs on Gunther. "Where are my friends?"
Irene laughed again. "What friends, dear? I'm sure I don't know wh-"
"I'm sure you're full of shit." Sabrina snapped, digging the gun into Irene's scalp. "You're going to take me to them."
"Oh, dear." Irene chuckled.
Her attitude had Sabrina unnerved, but she chose not to show it. "Let's go. Move"
Irene didn't budge. "Let me see you, dear, maybe we have a place for you." She said sweetly.
Sabrina had no intention of doing that. "I got a place for you, lady. Now, go. Open the door."
Humming sweetly to herself, Irene did as she was told and pushed open the door. As Irene stepped through, Sabrina saw the old woman's hand slide over from the door's handle to the door itself and realized, a split second too late, what she was going to do.
Irene flung the door backwards at her and Sabrina had just enough time to throw up an elbow to keep from being hit in the face with it.
It bounced off of her arm and then the old woman lunged at her, sending all her bulk against Sabrina's thin frame.
Sabrina managed to keep her feet underneath her for only a moment before Irene's weight was too much. The two women went sprawling backwards towards the edge of the stairs. Sabrina cried out as her back slammed against the floor. There was a loud clatter, something bouncing down the steps and skidding into the wall below them and she knew she'd just lost Jill's gun.
She swore loudly. Irene was on top of her, hitting, slapping, and snatching at her arm to disarm her.
"You little whore! I'll kill you!" Irene snarled. Her grandmotherly face was pulled into a frightening snarl. Her graying hair was mussed and there was murder in her eyes.
She went for Sabrina's gun again and this time the detective was able to get her free hand up against the older woman's throat. The two women brawled, trading blows, scratches, desperate for control of the only weapon within reach.
Sabrina jammed a thumb into Irene's eye and the older woman pulled back just enough for her to scramble out from underneath her. She drew back and swung the pistol hard at the older woman's face. It connected, but, frustratingly, wasn't enough to stop her. Irene attacked again, trying to push her down the flight of stairs, Sabrina realized. There was no other choice.
Her fist tightened on the gun handle but the old woman was too close. With all her weight behind her, Sabrina threw her shoulder forward to knock Irene back enough to get off a shot.
She succeeded, but only partially.
As Irene fell back, her strong fingers locked on Sabrina's wrist once more. Both women rolled to the side, Irene's fingers now around the handle of the gun, fighting for control and, to Sabrina's horror, gaining.
She had only a fleeting realization that they were about to go over the stairs before it happened. Both of their hands locked on the gun, the two fighting women tumbled down half of the concrete staircase before finally, a finger slipped through the trigger guard.
A gunshot exploded in the empty hallway, echoing long after both women were lying motionless at the foot of the stairs.