The air was thick, hot, and muggy from the downpour the night before. Everything felt heavy—the stillness around them, the weight of their own unspoken words, and the uncertainty hanging over their heads as they waited for word from Erica. Dove sat crouched on the roof of Starcourt Mall, looking down at the empty loading dock. She could feel the humidity clinging to her skin, making the small beads of sweat that dotted her brow more noticeable. Her mind wasn't on the dock below, though. It was on Dustin—and Steve.
Dustin sat next to Robin, fiddling with his binoculars as he kept one eye on the entrance to the vents. His usual chatter was absent, replaced by quiet, focused movements. It was unlike him to be this silent, and it only made Dove feel more uneasy. After one conversation with Steve, he was completely over their argument. Steve hadn't mentioned it at all, and Dove couldn't help but wonder what he might've said to smooth things over.
Beside her, Steve was leaning against the edge of the roof, eyes scanning the lot below. His sailor uniform was crumpled and a bit grimy, but he still managed to look composed, despite the tension simmering beneath the surface. She glanced at him, her mind tugging at the memory of their argument, how it had unraveled in front of Dustin. Steve had tried to apologize, tried to patch things up, but Dove had shoved him away, her own emotions too raw to deal with.
She wiped her palms on her jeans, feeling the cold sweat of uncertainty prickling at her skin. The binder she'd found earlier in the day still weighed heavily on her mind. She knew she had to tell Steve and Dustin, but between the tension hanging over them and the constant presence of Robin or Erica, she hadn't found the right moment.
Steve's voice broke through her thoughts. "Erica ready yet?" he asked, squinting into the distance, as if he would be able to see her through the walls.
Robin clicked the button on the walkie talkie, not taking her eyes off the dock entrance. "Erica, do you copy?"
"I copy." Erica said back, her voice crackling through the walkie. "I'm finishing my milkshake."
Dove let out a quiet breath, trying to focus on the task at hand. But the words she needed to say—to Steve, to Dustin—were still lodged in her throat. She glanced at Dustin, his focused expression set hard against the backdrop of the night, and wondered what exactly Steve had said to make him cool with everything. He'd seemed so upset just a few hours ago, and now.. now he seemed fine. As if nothing ever happened.
She leaned toward Steve, her voice low so only he could hear. "What did you say to him?"
Steve turned to her, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"
"To Dustin," Dove clarified. "He was so upset with us earlier, and now he's saying everything's fine. What did you say to him?"
Steve glanced at Dustin, then back at Dove. "We just talked. I told him the truth—that we didn't mean to hurt him. That we were just.. trying to figure things out."
Dove searched his face, trying to read between the lines, but Steve's expression was guarded. Whatever he had said, it worked, but Dove couldn't shake the feeling that there was more going on beneath the surface.
Before she could press further, Erica's voice crackled through the walkie talkie, breaking the moment. "Commence Operation Child Endangerment."
Dove's attention snapped back to the mission at hand, though her mind still buzzed with the unspoken tension between her and Steve, and the secret she hadn't yet shared about what she found in the law firm.
"Can we maybe not call it that?" Robin said into the walkie talkie, her voice tinged with irritation. She was crouched near the edge of the roof, watching the empty loading dock below.
"See you on the other side. Nerds." Erica's voice chirped back, full of her usual sass, followed by a small click as the walkie went silent.
The quiet that followed was thick, filled with a tense anticipation that gripped them all. The minutes stretched on, each one dragging, the weight of waiting pressing down on them like a physical thing. No one moved. No one spoke. They just sat there, nerves on edge, staring at the darkness below, waiting for some sign that everything was going according to plan.
Dove's fingers drummed restlessly against her leg, her eyes flicking between Steve, Dustin, Robin, and the loading dock. The world seemed to hold its breath along with them. The night air, sticky and muggy, clung to her skin, making the wait even more unbearable. She swallowed, trying to keep her anxiety in check, but her thoughts kept pulling her back to the binder she found earlier, the one that hinted at something much bigger, something darker than just Russians sneaking around Starcourt.
Her gaze shifted to Steve again. He was staring down at the vent entrance, his jaw set, the tension clear in his body. He hadn't noticed her watching him, too focused on the task at hand. For a brief moment, Dove considered pulling him aside, telling him what she'd discovered. But now wasn't the time. Not yet. The radio crackled to life, breaking through the tension again.
The walkie crackled to life, snapping Dove out of her thoughts.
"All right, nerds. I'm there," Erica's voice came through, smug and confident.
It was as if everyone exhaled at once. Dustin immediately lifted the binoculars to his eyes, scanning the loading dock below.
"Do you see anything?" Robin asked into the walkie, leaning forward expectantly.
"Yeah, I see those boring boxes you're so excited about," Erica replied.
"Any guards?" Robin pressed, her voice still tense.
"Negative," Erica answered.
"Booby traps?" Robin threw in.
"If I could see them, they'd be pretty shit traps, wouldn't they?" Erica shot back.
Robin rolled her eyes, muttering a sarcastic, "Thank you for that."
The minutes stretched on in silence, thick with anticipation, until suddenly, the doors to the locked room swung open. Erica strutted out, hands on her hips, triumphant. "Free ice cream. For. Life."
Dove exchanged a glance with the others before they rushed down from the roof, the thrill of the moment pushing them forward.
When they arrived, Erica still stood confidently by the door, her attitude unwavering. Dove took in her surroundings carefully as they moved further into the room. The room inside was cold, an eerie chill settling over the space. The walls were lined with identical, plain boxes, only differentiated by the logos on the sides—Kaufman Shoes and Imperial Panda. The only light came from fluorescent bulbs hanging above, casting long shadows on the concrete floor.
Steve wasted no time. He walked straight to one of the boxes and set it on the nearest table, running a hand along the top before turning to Dove. Their eyes met, and without exchanging a word, Dove reached into her pocket and pulled out a box cutter. She handed it to Steve, their hands brushing for a moment, a silent exchange that didn't need words.
Steve expertly sliced through the tape, ripping the box open with a grunt. Inside, a smaller metal box gleamed under the dim lights, the handle atop it beckoning to them.
For a moment, no one moved. Steve glanced at Dove, his hesitation clear. He reached for the handle, twisting it slowly. A sharp hiss echoed through the room as the pressurized seal broke, the air around them growing even colder.
All five of them leaned in, their breaths held as Steve pulled the lid off. Inside, a dense fog of dry ice slowly cleared, revealing the bizarre contents: four more metallic handles, each one neatly nestled inside the box, their metallic surfaces slick with condensation.
"That's definitely not Chinese food," Steve muttered, eyes narrowing.
He reached out as if to grab one of the handles but hesitated, his hand hovering just above it. "Uh, maybe you guys should, you know, stand back," he suggested, glancing at the others.
Erica and Robin quickly heeded his advice, stepping back, though Erica remained perched casually on one of the boxes, watching with sharp, curious eyes.
Dustin and Dove didn't move.
"You're kidding, right?" Dove asked, crossing her arms in defiance.
"Step back," Steve said, a little more forcefully this time.
"No," Dustin countered, his voice firm. Steve tried to push him back, placing a hand on his chest, but Dustin shoved him off, eyes wide with conviction. "No! If you die, I die." His face was set, more serious than Dove had ever seen him.
Dove she stepped forward, pushing past both of them. "Nobody is dying," she said, taking matters into her own hands. Without a second thought, she reached out, grabbing one of the icy handles. The others barely had time to react before she twisted the handle and pulled.
The contents were heavier than she'd expected, but Dove managed to lift the metallic cylinder. Inside, a thick, green liquid sloshed ominously. It gave off a faint glow, the light reflecting eerily off the surface.
Steve leaned in closer, his breath fogging in the cold air. "What the hell?" he whispered, staring at the strange green liquid swirling inside the metal cylinder Dove had pulled from the box.
"What is that?" Robin asked, taking a tentative step forward, her eyes wide with both fascination and fear.
Before anyone could answer, the floor beneath them rumbled, vibrating like a distant earthquake. The entire room seemed to tremble on its foundation, the shelves rattling.
"Was that just me, or did the room move?" Dustin asked, glancing upward at the ceiling as though the sky itself might fall.
"Booby traps," Erica whispered, her voice betraying a flicker of genuine nervousness. Another tremor rocked the room, stronger this time, causing everyone to look between each other, their faces mirroring growing concern.
"You know what?" Robin said, surging forward with sudden urgency. She snatched the metal cylinder from Dove's hands. "Let's just grab this and go." She unzipped Erica's backpack and shoved the container inside while Steve and Dove scrambled to reseal the box.
Dustin, already in front of the control panel, started pressing buttons in a panic. "Which one do I press, Erica?" he asked, his voice pitched with nervous energy.
"Just press the damn button, nerd!" Erica snapped, though her usual confidence was edged with a subtle note of panic.
"Which button?! I'm pressing the button, okay?" Dustin shot back, his fingers hovering anxiously over the panel.
Erica, clearly exasperated, rolled her eyes. "Press 'open door'!"
"I am pressing 'open door'!" Dustin yelled, frantically mashing the button. But nothing happened.
Steve strode over, pushing Dustin out of the way. "Just let me do it," he grumbled, but before his finger hit the button, a loud, ominous hum reverberated through the room. The doors remained firmly shut.
The sound of heavy machinery whirred to life, and a metallic panel slid down, covering the entrance completely. The group stood frozen, the hum intensifying as the room shook again, this time with enough force to knock Dove off balance. She stumbled, her hand reaching out for the table to steady herself, but it was too late. The ground beneath them seemed to drop, sending her crashing to the floor.
The lights above flickered wildly as the room began to plummet. The sensation of free-falling sent a wave of nausea through Dove's stomach as the walls blurred around her. She scrambled on all fours, crawling beneath the table as everyone screamed around her. The shelves rattled violently as everything not bolted down shook with terrifying force.
"Shit! Shit!" Dustin screeched, frantically slamming every button on the panel, his voice climbing in pitch.
Steve backed himself into the corner. "We're going down!" He yelled.
"Yeah, no shit, Harrington!" Robin shouted, gripping onto a nearby shelf, her knuckles white with fear.
"Why aren't these buttons working?!" Dustin wailed, panic rising in his voice as he punched the controls repeatedly.
Erica rushed forward, shoving him with a huff. "Press the button!"
"What do you think I'm doing?!" Dustin yelled, his voice breaking as his hands slammed into the panel, fingers jamming every button in a desperate attempt to stop the freefall.
Dove, still crouched under the table, gritted her teeth, forcing herself to stand despite the room spinning around her. "Press the button!" she yelled, her voice barely rising above the chaotic noise of their surroundings.
Dustin screamed as he slammed his palm against the buttons one last time, just as the room jolted violently to a stop. The sudden halt sent them all sprawling. Dove was thrown backward, her head colliding with the cold concrete floor. A sharp, searing pain shot through her skull, her ears ringing from the impact.
"My groin," Steve groaned from the corner, his voice tight with pain. "It fell on my groin."
Dove blinked, her vision swimming as she looked over to see Steve pinned beneath a large box. Dustin, still dazed, stumbled over, his movements sluggish as he struggled to lift the box off Steve.
"Dustin! Get this off me!" Steve barked, his voice strained. Dustin finally managed to lift the box just enough to drag it aside with a loud bang, freeing Steve from his corner.
"Is everyone okay?" Robin asked, her voice shaky as she pushed herself up from the floor, her hand rubbing her bruised elbow.
"Yeah, I'm great," Steve snapped, his frustration bubbling to the surface. He staggered to his feet, still wincing in pain. "now that I know that Russians can't design elevators!" Steve rushed over to the control panel, pushing the buttons once more.
Robin, still breathless, shot him a look. "I think we've clearly established that those buttons don't work."
"They're buttons." Steve said spinning around. "They have to do something!"
"Yeah, if we had a keycard," Robin said, walking over to inspect the panel. "It's an electronic lock, same as the loading dock door. If we don't have a keycard it won't operate, meaning-"
"We're stuck in here," Dustin said, finishing Robin's sentence.
Dove groaned, rubbing the back of her head. "Awesome," she muttered, her voice laced with frustration as she stared up at the dim, flickering lights.
Erica stood off to the side, arms crossed. "Just so you nerds are aware," she started, her voice eerily calm. "I'msupposedto be spending the night at Tina's, and Tina always covers for me. But if I'm not home for Uncle Jack's party tomorrow, and my mom finds out you four are responsible, she's gonna hunt you down, one by one, and slit your throats."
"I don't care about Tina!" Steve yelled, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Or Uncle Jack's party! Your mom's not gonna be able to find us if we're dead in a Russian elevator!"
"Would you two shut up?!" Dove snapped, finally getting to her feet and steadying herself. "I already told you, nobody is dying."