The Broken

this sort of delay."

  Roland removed a small sack from the side pocket of his pack and gently untied the string at the top. "You're doing it again, Max. Stop allowing your anger to control you. They're here already. You and I both know it. Let's just pray they haven't found the kid yet."

  "He's not just a kid," Link protested. "His name is?"

  Before he could finish, Max's hand covered his mouth. "Shhh. Not yet." He motioned Link to watch what Roland was doing.

  The room around them grew brighter, as if the lights had suddenly shifted from sixty to three hundred-watt bulbs. But it wasn't the lights overhead that had changed. The extra wattage had come from Roland's bag. Soon his entire arm was bathed in it.

  Roland pinched a few white granules together, held them close to his lips and whispered. The tiny granules burst from his hand in an explosion of shimmering powder and swirled through the air. Within seconds the dust spread in every direction, multiplying until the entire room appeared to be soaked in diamond dust. For a brief instant, Link saw a blinding light. It flashed twice. Then the dust was gone, vanished as if it had never been released.

  Max removed his hand from Link's mouth. "I know his name, you moron. I just didn't want them to know it. You may think that you can just waltz in there and point that camera at your friend, but it isn't going to be that simple. They will try to stop you."

  Link looked around. Who was he talking about? The room was empty. "Who?" Link said. "We're the only ones here."

  "So they'd like us to think," Max said as he pointed to a large oak framed mirror hanging on the wall. "But you can never be too careful. They're sneaky little bastards."

  Link eyed the mirror warily but saw only a reflection of the room. "I don't understand," he said. "Is it a two-way mirror?" But Link realized the answer as soon as the question left his lips. Skias could inhabit mirrors. He had learned that lesson the hard way. Without thinking, he rubbed his head where he'd been struck by the medicine cabinet. "Are they here?" he asked.

  "They're in the building. I can tell you that," Roland said. "They aren't here in the waiting room, but it won't take them long. Once they sense your presence, they'll be swarming this place like flies on a fresh turd."

  "What was that dust?" Link asked. "What did it do?"

  "Simple answer, for now, it will make sure we're alone."

  "But how does it?"

  "No time for explanations, Link." Roland said. "First, we need to find where they're keeping your friend. Then we need to figure out a way to get there."

  "What about the stairs?" Link said. "There has to be a set of stairs in case one of the elevators breaks down or there's a fire."

  Tom shook his head. "No good. The stairs are behind the security station between the elevators."

  "I say we just take down the guards," Max grumbled. "Be a lot more fun than sitting here on our butts, waiting for the Stenden dust to wear off."

  "I counted five guards," Link said. "How are we supposed to take on that many armed security guards?"

  Max eyed Link contemptuously then suddenly vanished. He reappeared at the opposite end of the waiting room and waved. He held up three fingers. Then two. The instant he folded down the last finger, he reappeared directly in front of Link, holding a gleaming blade to his throat.

  "But...How?"

  "Knock it off, Max. You know that if you try that in the lobby, they'll know we're here. If Raythuse is already with them, everything we've worked for all these years will have been for nothing."

  From the corner of his eye, Link saw the younger of the two receptionists walk into the women's restroom. Addressing the whole group, he whispered, "I think I've got an idea." He stood up and walked toward the restrooms. Roland rose to his feet as well, but Link looked back and said, "Wait here. I know what I'm doing."

  "Get back here, boy!" Max demanded through gritted teeth.

  In truth, Link had no idea what he was doing. All he knew was that he had just experienced an unexpected moment of clarity. He felt convinced that he was supposed to get a drink of water from the fountain and that he needed to do this by himself. Whether or not testing this hunch was worth getting sliced open by Max was debatable, but he had to try.

  Roland reluctantly eased back into his seat. Max's scowl looked a bit more dubious. But despite his earlier threats, he did not even scold Link for his refusal to follow orders.

  Nevertheless, the two continued to monitor Link's every move, ready to pounce at the slightest hint of danger.

  The water fountain was located in a small alcove that separated the men's restroom from the women's. Link bent over the spigot and pressed the smooth metal button with his thumb, greedily slurping down a refreshing stream of water. The relief was instantaneous and invigorating. He hadn't realized how parched he was. Something warm and energizing began to bubble up inside of him, something he hadn't felt in a long time: hope.

  After he had taken a few more sips of water, the young woman emerged from the bathroom. She froze the second she saw him, apparently recognizing him from earlier. She smiled then glanced over her shoulder toward the reception area. Instead of leaving the doorway of the ladies' room as Link had expected, she took a slow step back and motioned for Link to follow.

  Max and Roland sprang to their feet, but Link calmly signaled for them to wait. To his amazement, both men obeyed his request, though they clearly looked unhappy about it.

  Once inside the bathroom, the woman moved her foot and allowed the door to swing shut. Under a bank of fluorescent lighting, Link got a better look at her. She was every bit as beautiful as he had first believed her to be.

  It was partly because of his conviction that he was deeply ensconced in some ridiculous dream that he managed not to immediately become a blubbering idiot in her presence. Of all the unlikely things that had befallen him during the past week, this moment struck him as the most unbelievable. A beautiful girl, probably eight years his senior, had just instructed him to follow her into the ladies' room. It was then, buried somewhere deep inside his subconscious, that he realized something. The other thought that was keeping him functional was the morbid realization that if this was really happening, the only reason she would have pulled him into the bathroom was to kill him without any witnesses.

  She didn't seem like a Broken; she was gorgeous. Could dead people be pretty? Link tensed as the woman reached into her front pocket and withdrew four laminated identification cards. She handed them to Link. "These are for you," she said, "but you need to hurry. Your friend is on the thirteenth floor in room 1317B. Peggy, the other woman behind the counter with me, has a fifteen-minute break. She's not the type to be late. If she returns before you're upstairs, you'll be waiting in the reception area until morning. Maureen and I will be manning the registration desk when you come by. She knows nothing about this, so just act casual. Claude, the floor manager for thirteen, is off duty for now, but I'm pretty sure he's working a double shift tonight. Either way he won't be back for at least twenty-five minutes. That should give you plenty of time."

  He had actually been right about Panch's room. Link couldn't believe his good fortune. "Why are you helping us?" he asked.

  "Truthfully, I have no idea. I mean...I could get fired, and I don't even know you. I just had a feeling that I should help you. And sometimes you just have to have faith that you'll know what to do when the time comes for you to do it. Besides, I think you're kind of cute." She flashed him a mind-numbing smile.

  Yup, that sealed it. He had to be dreaming. Just then the bathroom door smacked him in the back of the head. From behind the door, he heard Max's familiar voice. "What's taking you so long?"

  Initially concerned by the intrusion, the receptionist quickly recovered when she recognized the old man trying to gain entry. She said to Link, "I'm going to return to the desk now. Follow me in two minutes. Remember what I said. Act casual, like you belong."

  She smiled again and opened the door the rest of the way. "Good luck with whatever it is you need
to accomplish," she said. Then she vanished down the hall, leaving Link to deal with Max.

  Tenderly massaging the back of his scalp, Link held up the ID cards and handed three of them to Max.

  Two minutes later, the small group headed toward the atrium with their new passes. Max drew close to Link and whispered, "You ever defy me again, I'll kill you myself." Then he patted Link on the back.

  Uncertain whether to take Max's words as a compliment or a threat, Link nodded and continued walking.

  52

  A Score to Settle

  The inside of the elevator was lined floor to ceiling with mirrors. The effect was disorienting as competing images of Link, Tom, Roland, and Max overlapped each other at staggered intervals. Link raised his hand and watched the countless number of Link look-alikes do the same.

  "Stop fooling around and press the button," Max growled.

  "Hey, watch this," Link said. "I learned a little trick online. It lets you go to any floor without stopping." Link pressed the button for the thirteenth floor and the button to close the door at the same time. The solid steel doors slid shut. Link grinned. At last he knew something that the others didn't. All that time he'd spent surfing the net had actually paid off.

  "This had better work," Max said.

  "Trust me," Link said. "It hasn't failed me yet. Look." He indicated the progressing numbers. "We're already to the sixth floor without a stop. I told you I knew