No, Connor decided. Cessair was no obstacle. The obstacle was Rick with his dogs. The obstacle was finding the switch to open the tank doors.
Connor padded to the door, his heart thumping. He pushed down on the handle. There was a click. The sound he’d mistaken for the door locking when Ben left was just the internal mechanism of the door as it opened and closed. Connor pushed it open, his heart racing. Slowly, he leaned out, looking both ways down the hall before stepping out.
He retraced the way he’d come, finding the stairs that had brought him down. He paused before going up. There had to be a way to open up the top of the tank. There was no other way for them to get Adonis in otherwise, but he hadn’t seen any mechanisms for opening it above deck. And the tank stretched underneath the top deck, going below into the lower layers of the ship.
Connor slipped the scalpel out of his sleeve and into his hand. He turned away from the steps leading up and went down. The stairs swayed beneath his feet, rocking like they’d hit choppy waters. Not that choppy waters made much difference in a ship this size.
The metal grating pricked at Connor’s bare feet as he advanced down the stairs. The walls groaned, and he could hear the engines humming in the distance. As the steps levelled off and he advanced in the tank’s direction, he heard voices. He reached an open door and crouched down as he stepped into a large, open room.
The tank was ahead. Adonis’s tail was visible, though his torso disappeared above deck. The large room he entered was at least two stories tall, and it ran on long, though the width was restricted by the ship’s hull. By the glass, Connor saw Ben.
Connor darted forward, crouching behind a desk. Equipment filled the room, all of it high-tech and gleaming. Connor scoured the equipment, looking for anything that resembled a control station. There were so many different instruments it was impossible to tell.
Connor crept along the desks until he was in the corner of the room, and anyone coming in wouldn’t immediately spot him. He paused, watching Adonis frantically throw his tail against the glass. Bolts jumped, and the glass bent in a way it hadn’t before. Connor stared, and then he took notice of Ben’s pacing—as frantic as Adonis’s movements.
“It’s going to give,” Ben said in agitation. It took Connor a second to realise he was talking into a radio. “Yes, Irealisethat, but he’s stronger than the female was and I’m telling you, it’s going to give. The bolts are shaking, and as soon as the glass loses the supporting beams, it—it’s cracking.”
“You go, Adonis,” Connor whispered, relieved. If Adonis could break out himself, all Connor needed to do was make sure he got out above ground. The force of the water gushing out alone would be enough to carry him into the ocean.
“Okay. I’ll get the tranquillisers,” Ben said. He whirled on his heels and jogged toward the door Connor had come in. Connor watched where he’d gone and, after a second, followed. He crept up the stairs after him and saw him enter the med bay. Connor sprinted down the hall. He glimpsed Ben at the shelves before he slammed the door closed and yanked the deadbolt into place.
“CONNOR!”
He still had the radio with him, which meant Connor didn’t have long before someone came to let him out. Connor raced back to the stairs. As he reached them, the door leading to the deck creaked open. He darted down the stairs and hid around the first bend. He held his breath, listening as someone came running down the steps. Connor glimpsed Arthur’s back as he ran down the hall. He waited a moment to see if anyone else was coming after him before running, taking the steps two at a time.
He opened the door to find rain sleeting out of the sky and the wind howling. It struck Connor, momentarily blinding him and pushing him back a step. The ship rocked to the side, and ocean spray fell across the deck as a wave broke across the long side of the vessel. The floodlights that had been illuminating the ship and their surroundings earlier now only made a small dent in the sleeting rain.
The fierce bluster of wind died, and Connor stumbled outside, pushing the door shut behind him. He slid the deadbolt into place. He set his back to the door and swept his gaze across the deck. It was far from calm up here. Across the deck, the two guards grappled on the ground, and Austin was ineffectually trying to get the dogs off them. Connor took one step toward them before movement higher up caught his attention. Inside an observatory, Cessair watched the fight, sipping from a glass of wine.
Connor only spared Austin a glance before making for the stairs.
Adonis spotted him. He slammed himself into the glass as Connor skidded past him, his mouth wide as he cried out.
“I’m getting you out, I promise.” Connor only touched the glass for a brief second before he continued on. He hauled himself up the steep steps to the observatory and readied his scalpel as he burst in.
Cessair yelped in surprise, head snapping toward Connor. He dropped his glass of wine, backing up, only making it a step before Connor had him by the collar and pressed the scalpel against his neck. In his haste, the tip cut a jagged scratch into Cessair’s throat. “Move, and I’ll slice your jugular wide open.”
Fear danced in Cessair’s eyes. He swallowed thickly and raised his hands to the side. “Let’s come to an agreement, shall we? There’s no need for any violence.”
Connor gazed at the control panel underneath the window. “How do I open the cage?” He demanded.
“Oh, the cage, I don’t—”
Connor shoved the scalpel tip against his throat, widening that cut. “Tell me, or I’ll slice you open and figure it out myself.”
Cessair whimpered. “There.” He pointed to the panel nearest the door Connor had come in. A separate podium had two arrows on it. One pointing up that saidopennext to it, and one pointing down, that saidclosed. Connor stared, barely able to keep himself from laughing. Or sneering. He wasn’t sure which one he wanted to do more.
“You’re dumb as shit,” Connor hissed. He hauled Cessair, stumbling over his feet, to the door at the back of the observatory. He opened it, finding a neat little bathroom. He pushed Cessair in and closed the door, blocking the handle with a chair. How Austin was scared of this guy was beyond Connor. He was the type that Austin could run circles around at school. All bluster and hot air.
Connor rushed to the panel, wasting not even a second before hitting the button. There was a mechanical hiss, and the metal beams on top of the tank retracted. Connor watched, relief going through him. Adonis noticed immediately and swam to the top.
“NO!”
Connor fell back as Austin surged in through the doorway. He slapped theclosebutton down. He stood above Connor, his chest heaving, water running down his silver hair with shining eyes glinting out between the wet strands. He’d never looked less human.
Connor got to his feet. “Move.” He lunged for the buttons. Outside, he could see the top closing as quickly as it had opened.
“No!” Austin shoved against him, desperate. “If they don’t have him, they’ll come after us. We need to go, just us,now.”
