Page 75 of Sergi
He considered her as she expertly removed the screws and then the vent cover. “Did you tell me you were sent here to find the lab?”
“Yeah. A four-member team sent by The Wolf.”
“And you were darted.”
“Yep. Do you want me to go first or just follow?” She folded the knife and handed it back to him. She gave him a mischievous grin. “You do remember the way back, right?”
He returned her smile without answering and leaped onto the counter. “Are you claustrophobic?”
“No.”
He studied her face which was now serious. “The shaft is easy enough to traverse, but we’ll have to go down a level. You’ll need to be able to control your downward movement.”
“No problem. Let’s go.” When he continued to study her, she clucked her tongue. “Today, vampire. This wasn’t my first mission.” Her voice lowered. “No matter how it turned out.”
He didn’t have a response to that, but he understood the emotions boiling in her. Had any of her team survived? He shook it off and pulled himself into the vent then moved forward to wait. Once Alex was inside, he led her back to the shaft, where he positioned himself to move downward. He lowered himself to leave her just enough room to fit in above him. He wanted to stay close in case she fell.
He shouldn’t have bothered and was impressed by how quickly she’d positioned herself to use her legs and back to control her downward movement. She’d either trained for these conditions, or her missions were more creative than he would have expected. What other types of missions were shifters sent on? He’d have to ask Remus once they were back. And he had no doubt they’d survive—they’d come too far.
The move into the second level shaft went smooth and soon they were back to where he started. The vent was still open, and as was expected, there was a welcoming party waiting for them.
“Call out before you drop down.” Sergi didn’t recognize the voice. “And know that we’ll start shooting if you drop anything other than yourself.”
“It’s Sergi. I have Alex, Shifter S-473, with me.”
“Is that so? How do we know that?”
“While I admit, the vampire has a nice ass, I’d just as soon get the hell out of here.”
There were several snickers and then, “Come on down. Slowly.”
Sergi moved beyond the vent so Alex could go first. She didn’t question it and was quick to jump down. Once she was out, he backed up.
She had that mischievous spark in her gaze as she stared up at him. “Come on. It’s safe.”
When he dropped to the floor, he quickly looked around at the ten shifters. Half were in their wolf form, while the others held various weapons. A male with an automatic pointed it to the floor and held his hand out to Sergi.
“Thank you for bringing her back.”
“Where’s Cadfael and Carlos?”
The shifter looked grim. “They’re holding off an incursion at the staircase near the elevator.”
“I don’t know if anyone will realize we used the vents before help arrives. I wasn’t able to salvage the covers.”
The shifter nodded. “Our concern is that they might stop airflow to the lower levels.”
“It’s a possibility. I need to leave so I can call for an infiltration team, but I want to see Cadfael first.”
“Jason will take you.” He nodded to one of the wolves.
The wolf trotted to the door and waited.
He and Alex ran behind the wolf, who didn’t slow as he traversed the corridors until they came to a blockade where a dozen shifters waited.
Cadfael, now dressed, turned on their approach. His shoulders relaxed, and his expression brightened when he spotted Alex. “Thank the heavens.” The two embraced.
“I assume you’re Cadfael,” Alex said as she brushed at her eye.
