Page 78 of Hollow State

Scout sat up taller. "I might beat Coulter."

"Never gonna happen," Coulter said as he adjusted his pack. "Let's go through this one last time."

Wynn shifted toward the side door.

Neve killed the van’s interior light, and darkness folded around them. “Split at the main building,” Neve said. “Zadie, Wynn, Scout to Gideon's office first. Coulter and I take the data center. No improvising unless we're forced to.”

Wynn leaned forward and stared at the complex through the windshield. Hyperion’s main tower sat in front of the other buildings with sharp angles and reflective glass. The data center was right next to it with a service lane that ran between the two buildings. Gideon had mentioned the area had cameras and was often manned with a guard overnight.

"You're clear," Gideon said. "Mission is a go."

"Let's move." Coulter and Neve both jumped from the front seat and a couple of seconds later, the back of the van opened.

Cold, damp air rushed inside carrying the smell of pine and rain. Wynn stepped out and when her foot hit the ground, she braced for pain in her thigh.

It didn't happen.

"Time’s wasting," Gideon said.

Zadie burst from the van adjusting her oversized backpack like it weighed nothing.

"Crossing toward data center," Neve said as she and Coulter darted toward the building.

Wynn followed Zadie and Scout toward the main building.

“Camera above you is on a twelve-second loop. Coulter, you and Neve have already cleared it,” Gideon said. “Ladies, you have eight seconds to hit the wall by the side door.”

Wynn was pleasantly surprised by how fast she moved. Even more surprised by how little she sucked wind.

"We're here." She flattened her back against the wall between Scout and Zadie.

"Opening the door," Gideon said. But for two seconds, nothing happened.

Wynn wanted to check her pulse. She wanted Darwin to whisper her vitals in her ear, so she knew how she was doing. What her teammates' biometrics were registering. Instead, she did her best to focus on everything but the medic part of this mission.

"Door's unlocked," Gideon said.

Scout pulled it open. Zadie slipped inside, and Wynn followed. They'd studied the inside of this building for the last forty-eight hours. Gideon and Darwin had gone over every inch of it. She knew exactly where she was and what she was looking for, but that didn't make it any less disorienting. No matter how many times they went over the blueprints and discussed how they'd get in and which staircases and corridors they'd take, the corporate gray walls still looked different in real life than she'd pictured during mission planning.

An elevator chimed. Scout lifted one fist.

Everyone stopped.

A male voice echoed through the hall. Then a second one.

Wynn eased Zadie backward with two fingers against her sleeve and tucked her into the shallow recess beside the utility closet. Scout melted behind a cart. Wynn stayed in the open just long enough to see a reflection in the polished floor.

Two guards at the cross-corridor had turned in their direction.

Wynn held her breath as the guards passed. One laughed as the other finished a not-so-funny joke. At least, they didn't seem to be on the lookout for anything, or anyone.

Scout raised her hand with five fingers extended. Slowly, she lowered each finger, counting down, until only one remained. She pointed that one toward the hallway as she stepped back. "Let's move," she whispered.

They slipped down the corridor like shadows. Wynn's boots made no sound against the polished tile, and she realized the microdose wasn’t just killing the pain, it was fine-tuning her motor control as well as sensory perception. Each flicker of the fluorescent lights, every vibration of the distant HVAC system registered with absolute clarity.

Zadie set the pace as she glided toward the metal fire door of Stairwell B. Scout caught the handle, easing it open just enough to let them soundlessly slip through.

"We're at the service door to the Data Center," Neve said.