CHAPTER 117
A terrified scream shrieked through the control room. A shotgun blast cracked the air. Buckshot tore through the computer monitor that Carrie was working at. She dove from the desk as an explosion of sparks sprayed out from the decimated screen. A startled Ms. Murdock fell off the chair she was standing on and crashed to the desk below her.
All eyes went to the source of the scream. The unconscious lab technician had awoken. He was sitting straight up and looking around the room bewildered.
"What the hell is going on? Where am I?" He didn't look to be comprehending much yet. It was as though most of his brain was still in the process of waking up.
Ms. Murdock climbed off the desk. She scowled at him as she massaged her bruising rump. "You're in the control room, and you're not dead yet. By a stroke of luck neither is Ms. Bolton." Joan looked across the room to where the shotgun had fired. Guss was on the floor, cradling his shoulder. His glasses had been knocked from his face and Phill was trying to slide them back on his nose. Dr. Conners was just crouching down to check on him. He carefully pulled at Guss' collar and eyed the shoulder.
"I think it's broken!" Guss cried.
Dr. Conners poked around.
"Ow!"
"Calm down."
"Jesus, it hurts!"
"That's what happens when you don't brace for the recoil."
"He startled me."
Dr. Conners stood. "You're fine. At most your ribs are bruised. You may have a hell of a time breathing, and it's gonna be one damned ugly black and blue, but you'll live."
Ms. Murdock came up beside him and glared at Guss. She reached to the floor and snatched up his firearm. "When I asked you if you could handle this weapon I expected you knew Duck Hunt didn't count." She turned to Phill and grabbed the barrel of his shotgun.
"What the hell?" he protested.
"I expect your credibility lies no better." She forced a pistol into his open hand and walked away. "Don't lie to me again."
"Hey, what about me?" Guss plead from the floor.
"No." Joan didn't even look back around.
Carrie was standing over the smoking remains of her computer. "Well, that's it. We're done. We're screwed. It's dead. The thing is toast."
Ms. Murdock breezed by. "Then there doesn't seem to be anything left keeping us here." She put the chair back on the desk and climbed toward the vent. "If any of you are coming it'll be at my pace. We stay close together. If you loose the group then your troubles are your own."
On the floor Dianna was checking the now conscious lab tech's pupils with a penlight. "What's your name?"
"William… Bill."
"Bill, follow my finger. Just with your eyes. Good. Do you think you can stand?"
Bill nodded. Beneath the scruff on his face he still looked quite confused.
Dianna and Dr. Ellis helped him to his feet. Dianna placed a hand on his back to steady him. "It's a start." She patted his shoulder. "You're probably gonna have to do a whole hell of a lot more."