Kam stared out the windshield. "Did I say something wrong?"
Taylor felt for Kam. Paul and he had come to some kind of truce or even ground at the airport, but it looked like Paul still had some work to do before he was willing to joke with Kam. Taylor said a prayer for her friend that his heart would be softened. She didn't know what the future held, but she didn't want to have to choose between her friend and her fiancé.
"Paul will come around." She hoped.
Kam and Taylor walked into the living room as Max looked up from his computer. "You're here. Come, come. Alexei and I have an idea." Max rubbed his hands together. Taylor looked at Kam. She wasn't sure if Max's antics were a good thing or something she should treat with caution.
Before she could think about it further, Max laid out the plan of how they were going to "break Ian out of jail" during a transport from Hiland Mountain to the Spring Creek prison in Seward.
"Davin will then escort Ian to Spring Creek and put him into solitary so that no prisoners have contact with him until after we are done," Max finished.
"And every prisoner on the transport will see Ian being broken out by you." Alexei pointed at Kam.
Kam was nodding his head, but Taylor did not like this plan. "What if Ian gets away from Kam? What if he kills him?"
"Ian will probably try to kill me, but not before we get away from the bus," Kam said as if it wasn't a big deal.
"No. I don't want to take that kind of chance with your life. There has to be another way."
Kam wove his fingers in hers and pulled her closer to him. "We have to make it look real enough that Dasha will meet with us." Taylor knew he was right, but that didn't mean she had to like the idea.
"If it makes you feel better." Alexei walked over to a crate he had brought with him and pulled out a small gun with a scope on it. "You can be the one to shoot Ian with this."
Family dynamics were hard to navigate, but sometimes she couldn't understand why Alexei was willing to help them. "You want me to shoot Ian, your son, with that?"
"This doesn't shoot bullets, just tranquilizers." Alexei placed the gun in her hands. "He'll have a headache in the morning, buthe won't be harmed." Alexei sighed. "I'm not sure where I went wrong with him," he looked over at Nalani standing next to Paul, "but he needs to pay for what he did."
A high pitch sound pierced the air and Amelia stomped back into the room. "You need to get in the safe room."
Kam started walking towards the bookshelf that Ted had indicated when they first arrived, but Amelia's command stopped him. "Negative. The one under the coffee table. That one is only big enough for two adults."
Who were these people?Taylor had so many questions for Amelia and Ted, but she'd have to wait to ask them when the threat was neutralized.
Kam pushed the coffee table to the side and Max pulled the carpet back revealing a rectangle cut into the floor. Amelia hoisted the door open with a handle that appeared only after pushing down on a certain spot, indicating that they should all go down the stairs.
"Quickly. I'll put the carpet and table back on top of the door. This door will seal so the light in the room can't be seen up above. There are provisions and medical supplies in the bags. If I'm not back in 30 minutes, find the latch and take the tunnel to the garage. The keys are in the glove box of the SUV."
"I'll go with you." Kam was taking off his sling. There was no way that Taylor was going to be separated from Kam.
"No. I need you with them." Amelia tossed him a duffle bag. "I want these back. Stay vigilant. Stay alive."
Amelia shoved Kam towards the steps and started shutting the door. Taylor held out her hand for the bag as Kam came down the rest of the stairs. They all stood in a small room that lit up as they walked further into it. Along one wall, there was a counter with three bags laid out on them. The rest of the room held some folding chairs and a table. The concrete walls added to the cold that seemed to permeate the air.
They were safe for now, but the questions still remained. What tripped the alarm? Was Dasha or Katarina on to them? Why did Amelia and Ted have not one, but two safe rooms?
Kam stalkedover to the bags on the counter. Access the situation. Make a plan. Peering in the bags, each held a med kit, protein bars, MREs, and water for a few days. He'd survived with less.
Kam began to run his hands over the wall looking for a latch or door that Amelia told him about. He needed to be able to get them all out of here if the time ran out.
"Good idea." Taylor joined Kam going the opposite direction around the room. If there wasn't an active threat and there weren't others in the room right now, he'd give into his temptation to take Taylor into his arms and let his desires be very clear. She was capable and smart, but more than that, she trusted him even after everything she'd been through.
Kam refocused his mind on the task at hand. There would be time later to show Taylor how much he loved her. "I found something," Taylor called over her shoulder. The creak of hinges echoed in the small room. The smell and chill of dampness wafted into the room.
"Looks like you found the tunnel." Kam ducked his head to peer into the dark void. A light flickered on, which triggered a long string of lights to do the same. "We've got our exfil, if we need it."
Kam closed the latch part of the way to keep the cold from seeping more into the space, but leaving it open enough for a quick get away. A scrapping overhead had them all turningtowards the door. Cool metal pressed against his arm, and Kam instinctively took the gun from Paul.
"The three of you each take a jump bag and stay here by the hatch. Be ready to run," Kam instructed Alexei, Max, and Nalani.
