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Leaving Kane kills me, but I have to in order to save him. Staying here and watching him die isn’t an option. I hurry back over to the airstrip in an Uber and meet up with Finn to wait for the others.
“Dash and Fallon will be landing in a minute,” he assures me. “How’s Maddox?”
“Not good,” I say, doing my best to keep it together. And by my best, I mean I’m not crying. But I’m fidgeting like crazy, and I’ve already gone through three suckers, five Jolly Ranchers, and I’m currently chewing enough gum to choke a horse.
“I’ll get you where you need to go,” Finn promises. “I saved Maddox’s ass once before. We can do it again.”
“Thanks, Finn,” I whisper. A tear finally slips down my cheek and Finn steps forward to give me a hug. I can tell he feels a little awkward, but I appreciate the gesture.
“Hey, look. The cavalry’s here.” I’m not sure if the relief in his voice is because he can stop hugging me, or because reinforcements have arrived. But given the circumstances, I won’t fault him for either.
I turn to see a small, private jet landing. Relief and hope surge up inside me when the door opens and Fallon and Dash appear. I’ve always appreciated them, but they’ve never been such a sight for sore eyes. And, yeah, after all the tears today, my eyes are definitely sore. I meet them halfway between the planes as they jog over, beyond happy to see them, and hug them both so hard I may have bruised a few ribs. But I don’t give them time to complain and motion for them to run back over to the Slater plane.
“C’mon,” I say. “We don’t have a minute to spare.”
Fallon sports her usual black leggings, t-shirt and a leather jacket, but Dash has traded his navy blue suit for black cargo pants and a fitted, dark gray t-shirt. I’ve never noticed his muscles before, and dang, he’s definitely been hiding some beneath all those suits he wears.
We buckle up and Finn gives us his spiel, but this time he’s dead serious, eliminating his usual jokes. Another sharp reminder that this isn’t just another mission. Fallon and Dash bombard me with questions the second Finn finishes talking. I do my best to catch them up and explain the situation as the plane takes off and we head toward Sudbury, Ontario, the Nickel Capital of the World. The good news is, it takes less than three hours to reach the remote location, and we need all the time we can get.
I’ve never been so scared in my life and apparently, I’m not doing a very good job of hiding it. Once we’re at cruising altitude, Fallon comes over and perches on the arm of my seat. “Don’t worry,” she tells me. “We’re going to get in there and find the antidote.”
I want to believe her more than anything. “You didn’t see him,” I say, my voice catching. “He’s always so big and strong, but he looked so weak lying there in that bed. I keep remembering what that other patient looked like– the one who died.”
I drop my face in my hands and rub my temples.
“We need to come up with a plan,” Dash says, doing his best to sound business-like. But I know he’s worried, too. He’s lacking his usual amount of confidence, and I can see the shadows in his blue eyes.
“Dr. DeLazzer said there was no way to break into the lab, but there’s always a way,” I say.
“Exactly,” Fallon agrees. “Ryan said the lab sits at the edge of Sudbury, a remote mining town, and intel suggests there may be a way in through the adjacent mine.”
“A ninety percent chance,” Dash says. “So I brought some tools. Just in case.”
“What are our other options?” I ask, knowing Fallon and Dash wouldn’t show up without plans B, C, and probably D as well.
“Wait in the parking lot for an unsuspecting employee, snatch their badge and sneak in.”
Fallon and I exchange glances. Neither plan sounds foolproof, but we’re running out of time and alternatives.
“Let’s get Ryan in on this conversation,” Fallon says, calling him up on the sat phone.
We bring him up to date on what we’re planning and wait as we hear some clicking on a keyboard before he responds.
“I believe there’s a ninety percent chance the entry point directly into the lab from the mine is still accessible. And it would hide the three of you from sight while you entered. But ninety percent isn’t 100 percent,” Ryan says.
His tone makes me nervous and I start picking at my nail polish. Or at least what’s left of it.
“What do you think?” Fallon asks. “Either we chance going through the mine and we all get in undetected. Or we kidnap a scientist, use his badge, and know at least one of us gets into the facility.”
“It’s going to be more difficult than that, baby. This is a BSL-4 lab,” Ryan reminds us.
“English, please,” Fallon says.
“Biosafety level 4. It’s specifically designed to study high-consequence pathogens which have no treatment options. You’re going to run into custom-designed airtight doors, airflow systems and mandatory use of positive pressure suits. Plus, a badge may not be enough to get through the multiple levels of security.”
Dash and Fallon defer to me, but I’m too frazzled to go in on my own. I need their help and support. “I trust your intel, Ryan. I think there’s going to be a way in through the mine. And if Dash needs to blow through it with whatever tools he’s packing then that’s fine with me.”
“Roger that,” Dash says. “I’ll tell Finn to head to the landing strip closer to the mine.”
