Chapter Fifty-Five Faith

The vehicle windows were darkened, and it was difficult to make anything out as they moved through the streets. Faith tried to estimate how long she'd been held in the warehouse but she was so tired that time no longer had any meaning.

When the comcar pulled up at a building, she braced herself. Wherever they were, it felt like a final destination. Despite the other guards Danforth had brought with them in a second comcar, the chancellor had very little support. The attempt to retrieve Sanders' research seemed like a desperate move.

Faith had a faint sense of satisfaction that the chancellor's luck had finally run out.

If only her own would change.

No one knew where she was. Now that the women of the city had seen Danforth for who she was, the Resistance would have a million demands on their time. With the support of the Bellator women, they could finally rise up; finally free the city from its oppressor. And while Madeleine would be looking for Danforth, what were the chances of her being found quickly enough to prevent Faith from being dosed with fatal levels of the metraxilone?

The door beside her burst open. Hammond grasped her arm and hauled her into the cool night air.

They were standing outside a large, modern-looking building. A sense of dread weighed on Faith as she recognised it. BellaLab Corp. The lab where Danforth's reign of terror had originated. Its windows were darkened, the street quiet. No riots here, no Bellator women marching. No one who could help her.

Danforth turned to Hammond as the four guards exited the second comcar. "We don't want any unexpected interruptions."

"Understood." Hammond turned to the guards. "Surround the building. Keep a close watch. Report anything suspicious to me immediately."

As one, they nodded. Two of them disappeared around the side of the building. The others stationed themselves on either side of the entrance, facing the street.

Satisfied, Danforth gestured to Susie, who headed for the building's main entrance. Hammond hurried Faith in the same direction. At the door, the medic fumbled in her pocket for something, eventually pulling out a keycard. When she held it to the keypad at the side of the automatic doors, they swished open with barely a sound.

Susie stood back to let Danforth enter. The medic's head was down, and she was visibly shaking. She had barely spoken a word since they had left the warehouse. She was no Sanders, of that Faith was certain. And she was definitely the weak link in Danforth's little group. Faith had tricked her once. Perhaps she could do it again.

But as Hammond pushed her inside, the automatic doors swished closed behind them. A complex locking-system clicked into place. Faith's heart sank. Getting out of here would not be easy.

The lobby which awaited them was sleek and high-tech. Not at all like the loading bay out back, which Faith remembered from her failed mission with Evelyn. Its high ceiling soared above their heads and large screens dominated the space. They were dark, but Faith could imagine them playing sophisticated adverts promoting the company's products during business hours.

Money was clearly no object for the company. The few pieces of furniture scattered around the lobby were arty and expensive. Large terracotta planters around the edges were filled with exotic-looking trees and ferns.

An empty reception desk took pride of place at the rear of the space. Sleek and sophisticated, its metal surface gleamed in the moonlight shining through the glass of the front windows. Enormous silver letters proclaiming BellaLab Corp were emblazoned on the wall above it.

Faith froze. For a moment, she thought she saw movement reflected in the shiny surface of the lettering.

"Welcome to BellaLab Corp." An automated voice boomed out of nowhere, making Faith jump. "The home of the future!"

"Move it!" Hammond snapped, tugging on her arm.

She picked up the pace, not wanting to aggravate her captors. When she glanced back at the reception desk, all was still.

It made sense that the chancellor had employed Sanders at her own company. Danforth's devastation at the lead doctor's death indicated that she had clearly been the lifeblood behind the fertility experiment. Without her, all the chancellor's hopes of reinventing the procreation process were shattered.

Unless Danforth could retrieve her research notes. As a hunted woman it was a desperate move, but one she was clearly bent on making.

They reached a bank of lifts on the back wall of the lobby. Danforth punched the button.

"Which floor?" she asked Susie. "Sanders moved offices recently, didn't she?"

"Y-yes." Susie managed. "She's still on ten though."

Hammond glanced back at the two guards at the front entrance. She leaned close to Danforth.

"Are we expecting…?"

Faith strained, but only caught the first few words of the sentence. Danforth shook her head.

"…together… the research…"

Both women were keeping their voices deliberately quiet.

Faith gave up trying to make out what they were saying. Instead, her thoughts turned to the syringe in her pocket. How could she use it best? She had no real idea what effect it would have. And she only had one. She had to save it until she was left alone with one other person. The problem was, Danforth seemed intent on keeping them all together.

Gloomily, she glanced back at the reception desk. From this angle, she could almost see behind it. As the women around her continued discussing their plan, a movement caught her eye. She frowned, leaning further to her right so she had a better view.

Her heart stopped. There was a person, or persons, hiding behind it. She was almost certain. And if they were hiding from Danforth, they were not on the chancellor's side. Which meant that they were probably on hers.

"What are you going to do when you find Sanders' notes?" She spoke as loudly as she dared. "You think you can do this without her? I mean, now that she's dead?" The other women spun to face her. Swallowing hard, she forced herself to continue, hoping her questions would help the interlopers. "I mean, do you even have the facilities here to hook me up to the drugs again?"

Danforth took the bait, shooting her a disdainful look. "We have state-of-the-art testing facilities here. Sanders has a private lab on the eighth floor. Tucked out of the way at the back of the building. It will suit our purpose very nicely. Don't worry," she turned back to the lifts, dismissing Faith, "Susie will soon have you on a steady stream of femgazipane again. And this time, we'll follow through with the second drug. There's still enough of it left for a single subject."

A shrill ding echoed through the lobby, making Faith jump. Danforth was first in the lift, a nervous-looking Susie shuffling in beside her. As Hammond frog-marched Faith through the doors, she hoped the conversation would prove useful to whoever was hiding in the lobby.

As the lift doors slid shut, Faith crossed her fingers.