Page 16 of Knight Moves

He grinned. “I’m not a kid.”

She put her hands on her hips, gave him a little frown. I think she wasn’t used to having to work so hard to charm anyone. “And that’s not an answer.”

“That’s because the answer is classified, Miss Chang.” He pointed in front of him. “Here we are. Welcome to your new home.”

Home was a giant, white concrete bunker with small windows. It looked like it could withstand a tornado. It seemed out of place next to the colonial-style masterpieces of the regular UTOP campus. Jonas led us to the front door, entered a code on a keypad, and pressed his thumb to a biometric reader.

“The front and back door codes and the Wi-Fi password are all in the welcome packets in your rooms. You’ll be fingerprinted and processed tomorrow.”

That sounded more like jail than spy school, but what did I know?

There was beep, and the front door popped open. We followed him inside and down a loud, echoing corridor. It seemed as empty here as the other buildings had. We went up a flight of stairs and down another corridor before coming to a spot in the hallway where it forked off in two directions. Jonas pointed to the left.

“Mr. Harris, room number seven is yours. The password on the door is 7777. Once your roommates arrive, the password can be changed at your leisure, although I suggest doing so as soon as possible. If you think you can find your way by yourself, I’ll escort the ladies to their room.”

Wally straightened. “Of course I can find my way. See you later.” He strode off down the hallway without another look back.

Jonas led Frankie and me down the right corridor, stopping at room four. “Ladies, this is where the official tour ends. The temporary password on your door is 4444. Don’t change it until all of your roommates arrive, and then make sure everyone knows the password. You’re free to roam around the building and outside as long as you stay on the KIT campus. There’s a map in your welcome packet so you don’t get lost. The packet also has information on where the laundry room, gym, library, gaming areas, and cafeteria are located. I trust you’ll be fine, as long as you remember the restrictions on where you’re allowed and not allowed to go.”

“Thank you so much, Jonas,” said Frankie, shaking his hand like he hadn’t just been trying to kill us a half hour earlier. “I hope to see you around.”

He shook his head with a smile. “You won’t.”

He disappeared down the hallway. Shaking my head, I tapped out 4444 on the keypad. The little light on the keypad turned green, and the door popped open. Frankie and I entered into a seating area with a couch, two worn armchairs, and a coffee table that looked as if it had seen better days. Two small side tables held some ugly lamps. That was it for the common room area.

To the right was another door. When we went inside, we saw two military-style bunk beds, four desks, and two tall dressers. Our suitcases and my laptop bag were already at the foot of one of the bunk beds. There were stacks of sheets, blankets, towels, and a pillow on the beds. Across from us, the lower bunk bed had already been taken and someone had made the bed. A dark-blue suitcase had been pushed against the wall, and a laptop, printer, and small lamp were set up on one of the desks.

I wasn’t thrilled to discover I’d have to share a room with Frankie and two other people I didn’t know, but I swallowed my reservations. Time to deal. I wasn’t going to fail again.

“Someone’s already here,” Frankie said in a hushed voice. She walked over to the closet and held out a hand. “There are clothes in the closet. They’re nice.”

“Well, we’ve got one roommate, at least,” I said. The upper bunk still looked empty, and the sheets and towels hadn’t been touched.

“I call lower bunk,” Frankie said, sitting down on the bed. “You’re nimbler than I am. You take the top.”

I didn’t care one way or the other, so I didn’t argue. Instead, I stood on Frankie’s bunk so I could reach my towels. “I wonder where the bathroom is.”

Frankie hopped up. “I bet it’s in here,” she said, disappearing into an adjacent room.

I followed her into a stark white bathroom with two sinks and a large mirror that stretched across the wall. Two shower stalls with blindingly white tiles and a separate toilet section completed the area.

“Wow. This place could really use a decorator,” Frankie observed.

“It’s functional,” I said, putting my towels on one of the unoccupied bars. “At this point, that’s all that matters.” I left the bathroom and picked up my cell. “I’ve got to text my mom.”

“Me, too,” said Frankie. “My family will be anxious to hear how I’m doing.”

After I texted, I picked up one of the welcome packets on my desk. I shook out the papers and sorted through them. “Want to look around? I’ve got a campus map.”

“Let’s unpack first. I want to be organized.”

“Okay, as long as you can finish before lunch. I’m starving.” I sorted through the papers until I found a schedule. “Looks like lunch today is at noon sharp in the cafeteria.”

“That gives us forty minutes.”

I finished well before Frankie, and that was after I’d made both of our beds and hooked up my laptop and printer to the Wi-Fi, adding extra peripherals like a Wi-Fi enhancer.

Frankie was still unpacking her clothes and shoes.

---