"Of course he's safe," Wared protested. "I was just at the hospital not long ago. That place is locked down."

"Yes, to protect from intruders. He's not safe from internal threats."

Shea nodded.

"I don't believe it. He's an elder now."

"That won't protect him now, not when Henrin has the memory card."

"I don't get it," Wared said and sighed.

Shea held Wared's gaze for several seconds. "I can't tell you the details, ok? I can tell you this. The Departure Protocol isn't what you think it is. If the truth came out right now, in the wrong manner, it could destroy our society.'t have much of a choice, do we? If my suspicions are correct, Tarun will be dead before long."

"Dead?" Wared jumped to his feet. "He can't die. Not now, not after everything he's gone through."

"He'd be dead anyway," Shea muttered and walked over to the window.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Forget it. I know this. If we don't get him out of there, he's as good as history."

"Are you out of your mind? There's no way to get him out of that hospital. I just told you it's locked down."

"Then we have to do it the hard way," she said and held up her gun.

"You are out of your mind."

"Do you have any other suggestions? I assume you want him to live, right?"

"Of course I do. I don't understand why you do."

Shea looked at Wared and then looked down. "There's more at play here than just what I want. Our society is at stake, Wared," she said and made a sweeping gesture around the living room. "All of this is in jeopardy."

Wared sighed . He looked at Shea. The concern he saw in her eye seemed genuine. Although she wouldn't say it, he felt certain she had a history with Tarun, that he meant more to her than she let on. Of course he wanted Tarun to live, he just wasn't sure whether he trusted her or not.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Simple. Tarun will tell you himself. We just need to get to him."

"Fine. I'll play along. But, we'll do it my way. Let's call him," Wared said and crossed his arms.

"You want to call him? Do you really think they'll allow him to receive any kind of communication from the outside now?"

"There's only one way to find out, right?" Ward returned to the terminal in his bedroom with Shea close behind. He dialed Tarun's personal device and waited for the connection to be established. A ragged looking Tarun appeared on screen, concern evident in his face.

"Wared? Is that you?"

"It is. Listen, there's not a lot of time. I have—"

"Wared, I can't hear you, nor see you. Hello?"

Wared looked at Shea, then back at the screen. "It's me, uncle. It's Wared. Can you hear me?"

The image of Tarun disappeared, replaced by that of the wall or the ceiling. They heard voices in the background and protests from Tarun. Then the connection went dark.

"What just happened?"

"They cut the connection. Isn't that obvious?"

Wared tried reconnecting the call but it was refused.

"See what I mean? We have to get him out of there," Shea said and stood up.

He stared at the screen for a moment. "It're righ t. He would never just hang up on me.

Shea nodded. "Come on then."

Wared followed her to the front door. She opened it partially and looked through the crack in the door. "Ok, we can't go that way," she said.

"Why not?"

"Protectorate officers are stationed on the street outside."

"So what? They could just be taking a break."

"When was the last time you saw them take a break outside a random house? Come," she said and walked over to the window. "See that car over there?" she said and pointed. "And that one in the other direction? Both of those have Protectorate operatives in them. They're watching your apartment."

"What for?"

Shea shrugged. "How am I supposed to know? I just know that sneaking past them won't be easy. Wait here. Let me check the back."

Wared remained in the living room as he kept an eye on the cars outside. Would Henrin leave them there just to make a point?

Shea returned moments later, a grim look on her face. "The back alleys are being watched as well. We're trapped."

"Maybe not," Wared said and walked into this bedroom and sat down in front of his terminal. "My car isn't the best but it does have a programmable autopilot. I can tell it where to go remotely and it'll go there."

Shea's face lit up. "Like a diversion."

"Exactly. Hopefully, our watchers will see it leave, assume it's me and follow."

"That may work," Shea said and nodded. "Then we can sneak out and go to the hospital."

"Exactly." Ward tapped away at the controls and pulled up a map on the screen. He picked a location on the other side of the city as the destination for the car and engaged the autopilot.

"Let's see if they leave," he said, got up and walked over to the window.'t be obvious to those below them that they were watching. Within thirty seconds, Wared's car passed on the street below. As predicted, the two cars they had seen both followed within a few seconds of each other, careful to keep their distance.

"You were right," Wared said.

"Of course I was. I've seen them enough that I know how to spot them. Come one, let's get out of here."

Shea led them out the back door, through several back alleys. They emerged on the street several blocks from Wared's apartment. Shea's car was parked in front of apartment building.

As they drove through the city, Wared found himself glancing at Shea as she navigated through the traffic. Partially, he found himself in disbelief at everything she had said, partially he was fascinated. In part, he was also scared. If what she said was right and Tarun was in danger, it seemed clear that Henrin's behavior had been a warning of some sort. He had the power to make changes at a whim to whom his daughter would bond with and just march into his apartment and confiscate whatever he wanted. Henrin was not a man to be crossed. But, it also made him wonder what he had to hide. If Henrin felt that the information Tarun had encountered was so dangerous that he was willing to go to these lengths to contain the spread, was there a kernel of truth there? Once again, Wared wished he had taken more time to try to read the contents of the memory card.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Shea continue to be a mysterious character. Her refusal to tell him how she knew Tarun and not revealing the secrets of the memory card was frustrating to him. Despite this, as he let her guide him through the streets, he felt that he could trust her, at least to a degree. What she had said so far seemed accurate. Time would tell whether the rest of her predictions turned out to be true.

"Here we are," she said as she pulled into a parking spot across the street from the hospital.

Wared noticed that the crowds had not diminished since his visit and the security seemed tighter than previously. Guards were posted with regular intervals.

"Now what?" Wared said and pointed towards the guards. "It's more heavily guarded than before."

Shea looked across the street. "I'll be right back," she said and stepped out of the car. Before Wared had a chance to react, she had disappeared.

He sighed and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he stared out the window. The crowd was chanting and singing songs, some even held up homemade signs celebrating Tarun's name and elevation. Overhead, dark clouds roll in as he waits, the distant curtains of rain approaching by the minute.

A few minutes later, Shea slips back into the car just as rain starts to fall.

"Phew, just in time, huh?" she said and turned up the heat.

"Where have you been?" Wared said, trying his best to sound annoyed.

"Recon. There's a convoy idling at the rear of the hospital. I think they're moving Tarun."

"Why would they do that? It's not like he isn't safe in the hospital?"

"Maybe they want him to be less safe."

"But from what? If the Protectorate is out to get him, what difference does it make whether they move him or not?"

Shea shrugged. "I don't know everything. I can only tell you what I saw. Get ready, we need to follow them."

Wared shook his head and waited. The rain increased in intensity as the minutes ticked by. By the time the convoy pulled out onto the street ten minutes later, the trickle of rain had changed to a full on downpour.

"Go, go, go," Shea shouted and grabbed Wared's arm as he pulled out into traffic. "Don't lose sight of them."

"I've got it, I've got it," he mumbled and concentrated to see the cars up ahead through the rain as he pulled out in traffic.

The convoy drove through the city at a rapid rate. Wared struggled to keep up, on occasion forced to make dangerous overtakes just to keep up.

"This looks familiar," he said as the convoy pulled into a parking garage and disappeared.

"It's Tarun's apartment building," Shea said and nodded. "They're taking him home."

"Why would they do that?"

Shea shrugged and pointed towards a side street. "Park over there. I bet the parking garage will be crawling with security.

Wared shut down the engine. They waited in the car as they watched the apartment building trough the rear window. The hum of the engine had been replaced by the patter of the rain, occasionally interrupted by a flash of lightning.

"There," Shea said and pointed towards the main doors into the building. "See those guards that just appeared."

Wared nodded. "Two of them."

"They'll have two at each entrance and others hidden in strategic spots around the building."

"How do you know all this?"

"Somehow, we need to get in there," Shea said and ignored the question. "We have to warn him."

"But how? If they have guards at all the entrances, how do we get in? Besides, they'll have guards by his apartment too, won't they?"

Shea shook her head. "No. They guard the stairs and the elevator but they leave the floors alone to create a pretense of normalcy."

"So it's hopeless."

"Of course not. Follow me," Shea said and exited the car.

Wared, unprepared for the sudden movement, scrambled out his door and almost didn't see her round the corner across from Tarun's building. He followed at a pace he hoped wouldn't be noticed by the guards across the street. Just as he turned the corner, he spotted her enter the building across the street. She waited in the lobby for him as he ran through the doors.

"Maybe wait for me next time," Wared said as he ran his fingers through his soaked hair. "And give me a warning before you run off like that. It's a miracle I didn't lose you."

Shea looked at Wared for a moment, smirked and then gestured for him to follow her. "This way."

"Where are we going now? Why are we in this building?"

"We need to talk to your brother," she said as she pressed the elevator call button.

The elevator arrived with a ding and the doors slid open. Shea stepped in without hesitation and pulled Wared with her. "That's exactly where we are going. Just trust me, ok?"

Wared shook his head as Shea hit the button for the basement. For once, he was starting to doubt her. If Tarun was in the building across the street, what purpose could there possibly be to go down into the basement of the building across the street?

They exited the elevator into a dark corridor, lit by dirty flourescent lights in both directions. On occasion, one would flicker. There was a pungent odor in the air that he couldn't quite place.

"It stinks down here," he said and covered his face with his hands. "What is that?"

"This way," Shea said and nodded towards a door at the end of the hallway, barely visible on their right. The light strip was out just before it, hiding the door's existence in the shadows. As they approached it, Wared spotted the combination lock above the handle.

"We'll never get through there," he said.

"Watch me," she said over her shoulder with a smile, then proceeded to enter what Wared estimated to be at least a ten digit code. A small green light lit up immediately above the keypad and the door unlocked with a click. She pulled the handle and the metal door opened without a sound on well-oiled hinges. A cool breeze greeted them as the door swung open. Shea stepped right through the door and motioned for Wared to follow. He looked around, then followed.

"What is this place?" he said as Shea closed the door behind them. Lit with naked, dirty light bulbs attached to the center of the ceiling at regular Intervals, there was enough light to see where you were going but not much more.

"Maintenance tunnels," she said and set off in one direction.

"I've never seen these before," he said as he followed, careful to avoid the puddles.

"That's because most people never go down here. They have no reason to. Not to mention, these tunnels are strictly off limits for those outside the Protectorate."

"How do you know the code to the door then? Did you steal it? Are you part of the Protectorate?"

Shea stopped in front of another door, then looked at Wared. "Does it make a difference how I got the code?"

Wared shrugged. "Not really. I was just curious."

Shea looked at him for a few moments longer than he felt comfortable with, then nodded. "Very well. In that case, the door in front of me leads into the basement of Tarun's building," she said and reached for the handle.

Wared jumped forward and put his hand on hers. "Wait," he said, their faces just inches from each other. "Aren't there going to be guards?" He felt a shiver down his spine as they locked eyes in silence for a few seconds. Then Shea released the handle and took a step back.

"Of course, but not in the basement. These tunnels are restricted access so they won't expect anyone coming into the building that way."

What do we do after we go inside? You said yourself they will be guarding the stairwells and elevators."

"With one exception. The service elevators are not accessible from the outside. If someone walks into the building, they would have to come down here first to be able to get into one, or be on one of the floors already. That wouldn't be possible so they don't guard them."

"How do you know all this stuff?"

Shea once again ignored his question. "We'll use the service elevator to get to Tarun's floor undetected."

"And then what? Just waltz up to Tarun's door and knock like any other visit?"

Shea smiled. "You don't believe me?"

"It just seems too simple," Wared said and cross his arms. 't say was the he didn't fully trust her. The further along the went, the less he felt he knew her. He was very aware that she was not answering his questions. Why didn't she? Was she hiding something she didn't want him to know or did she not know? It put him on edge. At the same time, Tarun's safety was the most important thing. He could overlook these omissions if it meant Tarun could be saved.

"Are we ready then?" Shea said and put her hand on the handle again. Without waiting for Wared's response, she opened the door and stepped out into a basement corridor. Wared followed closely behind. Shea held up her finger to her lips as she shut the door behind them. They waited a few minutes, just listening.

Once Shea was satisfied there was no movement near them, she gestured to Wared to follow. They followed a corridor that looked identical to the one in the building across the street. It was as if the builders had used the exact same materials and fixtures. A barely audible echo followed their footsteps.

Shea lead them into another room where the door to the service elevator was clearly visible on the far wall. The right side was lined with refrigerators and freezers while the wall on the left contained shelving with a variety of products stocked neatly all the way to the ceiling. Half a dozen service robots were stationed by the elevator, three on each side.

Shea walked over to the robot closest to the service elevator and snapped open a small hood on its top. She disconnected a wire and pulled out a small circuit board and held it triumphantly in the air.

"What's that?" Wared said.

"It's the control chip that runs the elevator. Without it, the elevator won't operate. Come one, I don't know how much time we have."

She tapped a button on the wall and the elevator door slid open. As she hunched over and walked into the elevator, Wared realize that the elevator wasn't intended for adult people. It was intended for the robots and whatever items they might carry. As Shea knelt on the floor, he squeezed in next to her.

"Now what?" he said, his face once again only inches from hers.

"Press the button for Tarun's floor," she said with a nod towards the control panel.

Because of the cramped space, the ride up to Tarun's floor seemed to take forever. By the time the door to the elevator opened, one of Wared's legs were cramping. He hobbled out and stretched the leg out with a groan.

"You ok there?" Shea teased with a smile.

Wared let out a grunt and nodded. "I'm fine."

As Shea had said, there were no guards on the floor. Everything was quiet. They waited a few minutes for good measure before they walked up to Tarun's door. Shea was about to knock on the door, but Wared grabbed her hand in his.

"It'll be better if I do it," he said. Shea nodded and stepped back.

It was only took a few seconds after Wared knocked for Tarun the open the door. When he saw Wared,

"Wared? What are you doing here?"

Shea, who had waited next to the door and just out of sight, stepped up next to Wared. When Tarun saw her, the color of his face drained and his eyes widened. He stumbled backwards and fell onto the floor, scurrying backwards into the apartment. As his back hit a wall, he stopped and pointed towards Shea, his finger shaking.

"What is she doing here? What do you want?"

~~~