Holes in the Ground (35 page)

Breakfast was as over-the-top as everything else in the Spiral and Andy’s stomach had been overwhelmed by the selection offered by the cafeteria buffet on level 3. Through the strange anomaly only possible at breakfast buffets, he had somehow ended up with a bowl of muesli, a plate of eggs, several rashers of bacon, and a banana. It was a strange selection, but he wasted no time in digging into it all.

Sun had opted for a lighter breakfast of an apple and two slices of toast.

Both of them had slept well; the bed in their suite being even softer than the one they had been given in the Coronado the night before. Now that a new day had begun, they were both ready to get to work.

“I can’t believe how different this place is to Samhain,” said Sun. “They have fresh fruit.”

Andy nodded. Samhain had fed its staff from two large freezers, with fresh deliveries being sparse. “I guess things have changed,” he said, wolfing down a rasher of perfectly-cooked bacon. “Now the government hides its secrets in plain sight. They probably bring supplies in here every day and just gag any attempt to bring attention to it. The Press may as well have their pay checks signed directly by the US treasury these days.”

Sun bit off a corner of toast. “Forever the cynic. This place is pretty grandiose, though. It must have cost billions. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Andy shovelled in a mouthful of eggs and swallowed. “Let’s just hope they spent it wisely.”

Jerry came over with a plateful of sausages and a tall glass of orange juice. The leather jacket was gone, but the stripy, blue and white soccer shirt remained. He took a seat at their table and noticed Sun appraising his large stack of pork-links. He shrugged. “I’m cutting out carbs,” he said, before tucking in like a starving caveman.

Andy chuckled. So did Sun.

After devouring several of the dozen sausages, Jerry wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and sipped his juice. Then he pulled a face. “These sausages are well-tiny. The ones in England are big and fat, much nicer.”

Andy frowned. “Sorry, I’ll be sure to pass along your complaint to our tourist board.”

“Are you missing home, Jerry?” Sun asked.

He looked down at the remaining sausages on his plate and shrugged his shoulders. “I suppose. I always wanted to come to America, and it’s great and all…”

“But there’s no place like home.”

“Yeah, I suppose so. I just feel like I’m never going to see it again.”

Andy put down his knife and fork and laced his fingers together in front of him, elbows on the table. “Is it true that you’re wanted by the police back in the UK?”

Jerry’s gaze snapped upwards and made eye-contact with Andy. “You know about that?”

Andy nodded. “Want to tell us about it?”

“Not really. I robbed some money from some tosser who had it coming. Enough said.”

“But look at all the trouble you’re in,” said Sun. “Aren’t your parents worried about you?”

Jerry sneered and picked up his fork. He started shovelling more sausages into his mouth and swallowing them down in loud gulps. When he was done he let out a long sigh. “I don’t have any parents. My mom died last year of lung cancer and my dad…my dad is the ‘tosser’ I stole from.”

Andy raised his eyebrows. “Wow, really?”

“I’m sorry about your mother,” said Sun. “You must really miss her.”

Jerry nodded, his eyes glistening. “She was the only person that ever really cared about me—well,
her
and my best friend, Ben. But now he won’t even talk to me after what I did.”

“Why not? What did you do?” asked Andy.

“Never mind. I don’t want to get into it. What are you guys up to today?”

Sun smiled, seemingly content not to push the subject. “We’re heading back down to level 10,” she said. “Did you want to tag along?”

Andy shot Sun an irritated stare, but she ignored it.

What is she doing? Last thing we need is this kid shadowing us while we work. He’ll just get in the way.

Jerry’s face lit up. “Yeah, I would really like to. The muppets-in-black won’t let me go anywhere on my own. It would be really cool to have something to do.”

Andy cleared his throat to gain the floor. “What we’re doing is going to be very dangerous, Jerry. You need-”

“I won’t be any trouble,” Jerry spluttered. “I’ll do whatever you tell me to. Just let me come. You said I could help.” He stared at Andy for what seemed like ages and then said, “Please, man. I need this.”

Andy sighed. “Okay, fine, but don’t get in the way. Kane won’t mess around. Give him reason and he’ll make life very hard for you. Probably even shoot you.”

Jerry said nothing. He just smiled and nodded.

“Okay,” said Sun. “Looks like our new research team is ready to go. Let’s head downstairs.”

They left the cafeteria and headed down to level 10 via the large elevator. As they walked, they met General Kane in the corridor. He was standing outside one of the cells and glaring at whatever was inside. At one point he even stabbed his finger against the glass and raised his voice.

What’s he up to?

Kane saw them coming and stood to attention. “Ah, Mr and Mrs Dennison. Good to see you up and about so early. Shows a good work ethic. And Mr Preston, am I to understand that you will be accompanying them?”

“If that’s okay,” said Jerry. “I promise not to get in the way.”

“Just remember what I said and behave yourself. Anything you do, I will hold the Dennison’s accountable for. Bear that in mind.”

Jerry looked down at his shoes.

Andy glanced inside the nearby cell—cell number 5. It belonged to the werewolf creature. The animal seemed to be glaring intently at Kane, letting out a guttural snarl.

“What were you doing when we got here?” Andy asked Kane. “Is there anything we should know about the creature in this cell?”

Kane turned and glared into the cell again. He prodded his finger at the glass and the werewolf snarled louder. “Me and Fido here have a history. When I first started at the Spiral I made the mistake of going inside his enclosure to take some samples.” He rolled up his left shirt cuff to reveal a gnarled streak of scar-tissue from his elbow to his wrist. “Not a mistake I ever made again.”

“Is that thing really a werewolf?” Sun asked.

“The closest thing there is, I suppose. He’s the last of his kind, so it won’t be long until werewolves really are a just a figment of people’s imagination.”

Jerry moved up closer against the glass. He looked inside at the snarling beast. “He’s the last one?”

“Yes. There used to be more, but they grow old and die eventually. This one just turned eighty last month. Another thirty, forty years and he’ll be dead and buried.”

“That’s horrible,” said Jerry. “Why haven’t you bred them?”

“We don’t breed the creatures on level 10. They are too dangerous. They deserve to be exterminated. If I had my way, this thing would have been put down like the dog it is right after he attacked me.” Kane moved up closer to the glass and knelt down so that his eyes were level with the creature’s. “You hear that, Fido? Once you’re gone, your whole entire race will be finished. No more mongrels like you.”

The beast growled.

Andy cleared his throat. “Is there somewhere we can find you, General?”

Kane straightened up and adjusted his shirt. “My office is on level 2 but you can find me just about anywhere.” He reached into his pocket and brought out two navy blue disks. They looked like a pair of rubber bath plugs. “Take these,” he said. “They will allow you limited access to the LED control panels. Just press them to the thumb scanners. If you need me, just access the intercom function on any of the screens.”

Andy and Sun took the rubber disks and pocketed them.

Jerry flapped his arms. “What, no love for the J-man?”

“Son, you shouldn’t have even seen what you have seen. Just consider yourself lucky to be a spectator.”

“I prefer the term ‘watcher’,” Jerry said. “Has a nice ring to it. Jeremy Preston is…
The Watcher.
”

“Call yourself whatever you wish, Mr Preston. Just make sure that you remain under Mr and Mrs Dennison’s supervision. Or you will be Jeremy Preston…
in trouble.
”

Jerry rolled his eyes. “That was lame.”

“We’ll keep an eye on him,” said Sun quickly.

Kane sighed irritably. “Yes, see that you do.” With that he marched away double-time.

Andy looked into the cell. The werewolf had stopped snarling and had padded away towards the back of the cell. There was a bundle of blankets and what looked like some rubber chew toys there.

“Dude was a bit of a dick to Wolfie,” said Jerry. “Not surprised he chomped on that old fart. Don’t blame him for being grouchy when they lock him up like Hannibal lector and tell him that his whole race is about to become extinct. That shit was cold.”

Sun nodded. “I agree it was a little uncomfortable to watch.”

Andy shrugged his shoulders. “The guy’s been here eighteen-years. Who knows what these animals have been responsible for in that time. Maybe everything kept here really is evil. We only just got here, so how informed can we really be?”

Sun scoffed. “Evil? What like that family of tiny imps upstairs? I would be surprised if they were any more evil or dangerous than a fox or badger. They’re not evil, they’re just animals. Animals that the church once decided it didn’t like the look of and shoved underground. Wouldn’t be the first time the Catholic Church buried something.”

The door at the end of the corridor opened and Dr Chandelling hurried through it. He waved a hand at them excitedly as he jogged towards them. “Ah, you’re all here. Wonderful. Eager to get started, I’ll bet.”

Sun waved back. “Hello, doctor.”

“Please, call me Lesly. Do you have your access fobs yet?”

Andy pulled the blue rubber disk from his pocket and examined it. “If you mean this thing, then, yeah, the General just gave them to us.”

“Right before he started tormenting Wolfie,” said Jerry. “I think that guy is more of a cat person.”

Dr Chandelling frowned, then glanced inside the cell. “Yes, General Kane has a somewhat troubled relationship with our resident lycanthrope. Working in the Spiral can place a strain on the strongest of men, but that’s a discussion for another day. Were you still intending to speak with the Irishman first, before the batling?”

Andy nodded. “We’re heading there now. He’s still in the cell at the end of the corridor?”

“He certainly is. Come on, I’ll take you folks over.”

They headed down the corridor towards the door where Dr Chandelling had entered. Inside the final cell, cell 18, the Irishman, Lucas, stood up against the glass, almost like he was expecting them.”

“Hello, Clarice,” he said as they approached. “I’ve been expecting you.”

“Very cute,” said Andy. “Does all of this amuse you? You like being locked up?”

Lucas smiled. “Who says I’m locked up?”

Andy folded his arms. “You can leave any time you want?”

Lucas nodded. “I could be anywhere on Earth. I chose to be here.”

“Why?” asked Andy. “Why are you here?”

Lucas grinned ear to ear. “I’m here to see you, Andrew.”

Kane sat down in his office and poured himself a whiskey. He always enjoyed having guests at the Spiral, it broke up the monotony of seeing the same old faces day in day out. But usually the guests were members of Deus Manus from other facilities.

Kane could not deny that he was concerned by the presence of the English boy. Not only was he a foreign national, but he was unreliable and of no use to anyone. They couldn’t induct him into the Order (the usual way of dealing with anybody unfortunate enough to stumble upon things they shouldn’t have) or trust him in any way. If push came to shove, Rimmer’s security detail would have to deal with the boy. It was too much of a risk to ever let Jeremy Preston leave.

The employees at the Spiral were allowed to leave freely outside of their shift hours and during vacations, but they were sworn to secrecy and were usually given some grand fiction to give their families about why they worked away from home. It was really up to them what cover they used when leaving the base, so long as it stood up and was never questioned.

Kane had not left the facility once in many years.

His work had long ago consumed him. The world outside had moved on and modernised to a point that he no longer recognised it. The last time he had ventured outside he had visited his niece in Anaheim. It had been horrible.

People had changed. Everyone from children to grandparents now walked around with chirping phones attached to their heads. Computers had invaded the home of every family and nobody spoke to one another anymore. Even the roads had gone bad; clogged up with insane drivers honking their horns and barging in front of one another. No. No, thank you. Kane no longer wanted to be a part of
that
world. He was meant for higher things, positions of quiet honour. He was meant to be right where he was, in the Spiral, doing God’s work.

Opus Dei.

Kane grabbed the phone on his desk and dialled an outside line. The call went through to his counterpart at the Tallahassee facility.

“Kane, good to hear from you, old friend. How are things your end?”

“Good to hear you, too, Robson. Things are just fine over here. I have a couple of outsiders I’m having to accommodate for a few days, but you know me, nothing I can’t handle.”

“What about your unexpected guest? The Irish guy. Any news?”

“No. There’s nothing to report. He’s as chatty and harmless as the day he appeared in his cell, but hasn’t caused any problems. Obviously he’s here for a reason, but it’s still unclear at this point. The Irishman is not why I’m calling though. I wanted to check in with you about the faustling—or the ‘batling’ as my people have now taken to calling it. Not the one we have here; the one you have at your site.”

“It’s still here. Level 10. Safe and sound.”

Kane slouched back in his chair, switched the phone from one side to the other. “You hear from Tulsa and Vancouver?”

“Yeah. They still have their faustlings safe and secure, too. I hear that England’s got one now as well.”