But where was Seph?
“Let me go in. I’ll see if I can find her.” Sable said. “I need a distraction.”
“You got it. Move fast.”
I snuck around the side, through the shadows. Rain was still pounding the ground hard. I focussed on a tree that overhung one of the police vans. I flicked my fingers.
The tree exploded in a bolt of lightning.
I watched the Soldiers dive for cover, assuming the storm had lashed out. Beside me, Sable vanished. I crept through the woods towards the secret tunnel entrance. Maybe I could find a way inside.
The entrance was hidden under the overgrown grass. I found it with ease. As I climbed through the narrow tunnel, I heard the light clang of the metal grate hit stone.
If any soldiers noticed they didn’t react.
As I descended the interior ladder, water streamed down in a steady drip to the ground below. These tunnels were prone to flooding, so I had to be careful.
I waded through the ankle-deep water in the dark, until I heard a noise.
I paused.
It sounded like a scuffle. I pulled my gun.
I moved through the darkness.
Then I heard it. Something hit the ground with a sharp metallic clink.
I crouched and picked it up.
A small metal vial. Shiny. Empty.
Then a growl.
I knew that growl.
Two bodies were hunched on the ground ahead of me. Dave and Felix — long-time supporters of Equinox.
Dave was already dead. I could see that instantly. He was too still.
Warm, dark fluid bled into the water around my boots.
And something was happening to Felix.
His skin rippled beneath his clothes, shifting like something alive was moving under it. Felix was a big man, his skin black as pitch, but when he rose it was like watching a shadow swell with grotesque power.
“Felix?” I said quietly.
He turned slowly.
For a moment his eyes focused on me — like he recognised me.
Then his hands clawed at his clothes as if he needed to tear free of them. Blood streamed from his eyes. Black veins twisted across his face.
Feral.
I stepped back. He stood between me and the tunnel ahead.
If I used my power, someone would hear.
