"I think I have an idea where our mutual friend is heading towards," The woman thought out loud to them as they all made their way deeper into the facility.
Sneering to herself, Abigail didn't even both looking back at the woman. "I'm guessing you're not going to tell us what this mysterious place is?"
Chuckling at Abigail's snipe, the woman said, "Now what would be the fun in telling you where we're likely heading towards? Timothy has taken so much effort into creating this mysterious experience, and I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate my involvement in ruining the surprise."
Hearing the woman's cheerful tone grated in Abigail's ears, knowing the woman found this entire experience humorous. Abigail also felt the woman's confidence to be offputting, as if what existed inside of this concrete prison would give her an advantage over them.
If there was one thing to be learned inside of this world was the ever-shifting alliance people made with one another. Echoes of footsteps several levels below them was a reminder.
As the footsteps stopped, Abigail hastened her steps, worried she would lose track of Timothy. Rounding the corner of the stairs, she caught sight of a door shutting.
"Anxious?" The woman teased when the rest of the group reached where Abigail was waiting.
Not wanting to be baited, she refused to answer.
Casually walking down the steps and reaching the door, the woman easily opened it. She looked at Abigail with an expression of "You, guys, don't appreciate me." With a Cheshire Cat grin.
Rushing through the opened door, Abigail jumped when Timothy was leaning against the wall, next to the security door.
"You're not going to be able to rely on her for the rest of the way," Timothy looked at Abigail with a sad expression on his face.
She didn't know what to think, looking at Timothy and back at the woman who merely nodded her head.
"What is going on, Timothy?" Abigail finally dared to ask. Though she was worried about the answer, being in the dark was worse for her. "She said the two of you have a connection to this place. What does she mean?"
Hearing the desperation in Abigail's voice, Timothy sighed. "I'm not ready to share that with you, yet. Katya and I do share a connection." He glanced in the direction of the woman. "Though Katya, likely, played up our connection and her dealings with PentaSoft. I'm guessing she made it sound as if she worked for PentaSoft?"
Upon seeing Abigail and the rest of the group look at her, she made a hurt expression, as if not believing Timothy could be so callous about them. "I'm hurt you would distance yourself from me and what we've shared." She placed a hand on her chest as if his words wounded her.
Seeing Timothy's reaction, Katya's demeanor changed again, like mist fading beneath the rising sun. There was a coldness revealed in her eyes, a far change from the scared woman in the forest and the cheerful woman from earlier.
Abigail didn't know what to think, seeing how easily the woman was able to switch personalities. It made anyone wonder which version you were getting when interacting with her.
"I was wondering whether you had given me as much access as you claimed that morning," Katya slowly smiled. "When did you suspect?"
Timothy shook his head. "I didn't suspect you, but my father never trusted me enough to allow me to give anyone full access. It wasn't until security contacted me about unusual activity inside of the company that night when I realized I made a mistake. My father was right in not allowing me to give anyone full access to the company." He paused as he faced the woman and stared deeply at her.
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"If you're wondering whether I had anything to do with those bodies, I didn't," Katya said. "As I was making my way in the company, I got the feeling something wasn't right and made my escape."
Hearing the two of them talk to one another, Abigail had a thought cross her mind. "Why were you in the forest? And who were those people you were carrying?"
Grimacing at a memory, Katya said, "A lot of stuff happened from the morning I saw Timothy to when I met your group. I didn't run away soon enough, getting caught up in the exciting events inside PentaSoft. I had to maneuver my way slowly while not getting caught by those things. The two people were scientists who were still alive and breathing. I used them as a cover, in case I ran into trouble outside."
"I'm guessing you were shocked?" Timothy asked.
Groaning and tilting her head back, Katya responded, "You have no idea. I had my hands full staying out of sight and when I get out...," She lifted both hands. "The world turned into a nightmare." Snorting from a thought, Katya said, "I should be grateful for the few survivors who made it out with me. Them answering those creatures let me know how terrifying those creatures in the forest are."
"I was wondering how you knew about them." Timothy casually remarked.
A horrific feeling dawned on Abigail as she thought of something. Looking at Katya, she asked, "You said you were hiding from those creatures inside of this place. Did everything happening right now, come from this place?!"
"No," Timothy answered. "This facility isn't connected with the type of research necessary to cause the changes we saw out there." He paused, "This place was working on something which will help us get out of here and someplace safe."
"I figured you had that in mind when you went all solo," Katya teased. "Judging by what happened, I'm assuming this place was successful? The intelligence I was able to gather didn't verify a stable hole."
Seeing the expectant eyes on their faces, Timothy answered, "Not only were we successful, but we also discovered more than we expected. Judging by how this place looked, I can only conclude that one of them wasn't properly secured."
Abigail felt like her mind was going to explode, listening to them chat about events feeling over her head.
"What are you, guys, talking about?" Liam asked, not able to handle the secrecy. Michelle, next to him, also looked confused and wanting an explanation.
Shaking his head, Timothy said, "This facility had several projects it was working on, a couple of them major breakthroughs designed to propel us ahead of our competitors." Seeing the expected looks, he shook his head. "I only know about this one, due to my father."
"Playing up the dramatics, huh?" Katya remarked to Timothy.
"Hey. I barely understood this myself, so don't blame me for taking a little time to figure out how to describe it." Timothy fired back at Katya.
Rolling her eyes, Katya looked at everyone and said, "We're heading to where they keep the wormholes. It's the way we're going to get out of this mess we're in. We may even be able to escape from this dumpster fire of a world."