A sound from the back of the room made Josie turn. There were three doors, and beside each was a large viewing window. Two of the windows were completely dark; the third was lit from within. Through the window, slumped forward in a metal chair, she saw Nick.
Josie wasted no time. She sprinted down the length of Mr. Byrne’s lab-slash-office and yanked at the door. She hadn’t expected to find it unlocked, but the door whipped open.
Nick’s face was scratched and bruised. His right eye was already half-closed with heavy swelling, and his lower lip was cut in two places. Blood stained his shirt, but when his head snapped up as the door opened, Josie saw that his face was defiant and angry. As soon as he saw Josie, a look of fear washed over him.
“Josie,” he said. “Get out of here. It’s a trap. It was Mr. Byrne all along.”
A lump rose in Josie’s throat. He’d been beaten and tortured, all because she insisted they trust Mr. Byrne. She ran to him, caressing his cheek, then ducked behind him to try and untie the ropes that bound him to the chair.
“I’m so sorry,” she said, struggling with the knots.
“Leave me,” he said. “Just get out of here. He’s got Nox in the other rooms. He likes to watch through the windows while they torture and kill people.”
“Almost got it.”
“He can’t catch you here, Josie. He can’t. I couldn’t bear it.”
With a final tug, Josie loosened the ropes and Nick tipped forward in his chair. She grabbed him around his waist and held him back, keeping him from falling on his face. He was so weak. Whatever Mr. Byrne had done to him, it was all Josie’s fault.
Nick sat there panting for a moment, then caught his breath. “I’m okay.” He pushed himself into a standing position, and grabbed Josie’s hand. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
They stepped out of the cell and froze.
Mr. Byrne stood in the doorway, blocking their only exit. He held Nick’s gun in his hand, pointed right at them.
FIFTY-THREE
6:37 A.M.
MR. BYRNE’S ENTIRE DEMEANOR HAD CHANGED, and Josie wondered how she had ever seen kindness in that face. The soft eyes and sad smile had been replaced by a steely glare and lips pressed firmly together in a determined line. There was a gauntness about his cheeks, sunken and sallow; yet far from appearing tired or drained, he had an uplifted energy about him, as if the death and destruction he’d put into motion in the last twenty-four hours actually invigorated him.
The silence of the room was oppressive as Mr. Byrne stood before them, coolly assessing the situation. The hum of the overhead lights seemed louder now, more intense. Everything was heightened around her. Even the sound of Josie’s own breathing sounded like it was amplified through a loudspeaker.
“It was a nice try,” Mr. Byrne said at last. “Using my daughter as a decoy. For a moment, I almost thought she was you.”
Josie tried to sound brave. “Where is she? What have you done with her?”
Mr. Byrne clicked his tongue. “I’ll deal with her later.” He nodded at Nick. “And your brother. Right now it’s your turn.”
Nick stepped to his right, attempting to shield Josie from the gun pointed at her. For a moment, Josie almost laughed. It hadn’t been that long ago that Nick had been the one holding her at gunpoint with that exact same weapon.
“What do you want?” Nick said. He reached behind his back and grasped Josie’s hand firmly.
Mr. Byrne smiled without a hint of mirth. “That’s funny.”
Nick squeezed Josie’s hand. “We’re just trying to get Josie home. That’s all.”
“Of course you are.” His words dripped with sarcasm. “You’re not trying to smuggle the vial out of here at all, right?”
Nick squared his shoulders, as if preparing for a blow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you don’t.” Mr. Byrne reached his free hand to the wall and pressed a button. Above the exterior windows, a blackout curtain slowly descended. “I can just shoot you both and rifle through your bodies later. Or let the Nox have at you like I did with your friend and her father.” There was a cold-bloodedness in his voice that made Josie’s skin crawl. “Her death was anything but quick and painless.”
Josie started, but Nick tightened his grip on her hand. If Mr. Byrne was going to shoot her, she at least wanted to get a running start and maybe get one decent swipe at his face before the life drained out of her body. That would almost be worth it.
A shriek from the windows behind them made Josie and Nick turn. In the darkness of the other two cells, she could just see a swirling of movement, a chaos of wings and bodies nebulous in the shadowy night.
“My army,” Mr. Byrne said with a nod toward the window. “I’ve promised them fresh meat.”
Nick sucked in a breath. “You communicate with them?”