On the surface, the entire notion of Pandora surviving was ludicrous but Locke had seen things from Hiroshi that defied explanation. He believed in Craig’s theories, which meant that Locke did, too.
After casting another glance at her watch, Locke stood up and gestured for Craig to do the same. “It’s time. Get as far away from the exterior wall as possible.”
Craig did as she directed but his next question was lost in the cacophony of sounds that suddenly rendered all conversation pointless. Alarms began to blare throughout the prison, followed quickly by gunfire.
Locke was obviously expecting all of this, Craig realized. She was staring at the sole window in the room. Through the bars, she saw a large hook and rope drop down, just outside. Moving quickly over, she reached through and grabbed hold of it, attaching it to one of the bars.
“Where is that coming from?” Craig shouted. Before Locke replied, he received his answer. Through all of the alarms and gunfire, he heard the telltale sounds of an autogyro.
“Don’t get too close,” Locke cautioned, leaning close so she could speak directly into the doctor’s ear.
The rope grew taut and as Craig’s eyes widened, cracks began to appear in the wall around the bars. The entire wall came tumbling back, tumbling down into the abyss. The hook and its trailing line were cut from above, seconds before a second one was thrown down, close enough for Locke to grab hold. She pulled Craig close and tied the rope securely around his waist. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she gave a pull on the cord and indicated that Craig should hold on tight.
Up above, silhouetted against the sun, was the autogyro, a strange sort of wingless aeroplane with rotating blades that gave it both propulsion and the ability to hover in midair.
Craig gave a startled cry as he was lifted into the air, dangling below the autogyro. He looked back at the prison, seeing inmates running around, guns in hand, exchanging gunfire with the guards.
“We did this for you. We’ve been sneaking in weapons and setting up explosives for nearly a month.” Locke said, her lips brushing his ear. “All because Hiroshi believes in your research.”
“But… what does he want?!” Craig asked, his heart hammering in his chest. He was afraid of heights and didn’t want it to show, though it was obvious to Locke that he was terrified.
“I told you. He’s going to become the first Emperor in the history of the United States. And you’re going to help him do that, but first we’re going to have to find a way to introduce you to Pandora.”
THE SOVEREIGN MUSEUM of Natural History was a sprawling structure. It stood in the heart of the downtown area and was comprised of twelve interconnected buildings. The Museum housed well over a million specimens, only a relative few of which were on active display. With a scientific staff of over a hundred, the Museum funded nearly four dozen scientific expeditions each year, sending explorers out all over the globe. The Museum was divided up into numerous displays but the most popular was the ever-present Start of Sovereign Hall, where the origins of the city were examined. To access this, visitors had to stride through the huge entranceway, where they could stare up at a full-size model of a Blue Whale which hung from the ceiling.
Charity barely glanced at the model, which was built from papier-mâché, iron and basswood. She wasn’t here for sightseeing and even if she had been, it wasn’t the sort of display that would have impressed her. Instead, she found herself drawn to a set of ancient weapons mounted on the wall. Something about the blades called out to her and she wished she could reach out and touch them. She wondered if it was simply the fact that she utilized such killing devices on a daily basis that made her appreciate these or if it was something more, something that called out to her on an even more primal level. These weapons all belonged to a woman, she thought, despite there being no evidence to support that idea. All of them… to the same woman.
Smartly attired in a figure-hugging black dress and heels, Charity looked like a pretty young socialite. It was so far from the truth that she felt a bit silly. Her half-sister, Samantha, had grown up with a life of privilege while Charity had scraped by on the mean streets of Sovereign, engaging in petty theft and deceit to ensure she had enough food to eat. It hadn’t been pretty but she managed to eke out an existence.
Besides, that was all in the past now, though she was still working the sin off the ledger.
“Miss Grace?”
Charity turned to see Kelly Emerson striding towards her. Though many in the city thought of Kelly Emerson as merely “the curator’s daughter,” she was in fact much more. A graduate of Sovereign University, Kelly held doctorates in archaeology and anthropology. Standing nearly six feet tall and possessed of flowing red hair, she looked like a modern Amazon, with enough curves to unsettle even the most ardent of playboys. Her glittering green eyes and full lips had made her one of Sovereign City’s most sought after figures.
All of that, however, would not have made her a fixture of the city’s gossip columns. It was her on-again, off-again romance with Lazarus Gray that kept tongues wagging.
Kelly looked like she was ready for a day in the jungle rather than the museum. She wore a white blouse, jodhpurs and black leather boots that reached to her calf.
Obviously noticing that Charity was looking at her garb, Kelly smiled and explained, “I apologize for my appearance. I literally just got in this morning from Cairo. I haven’t even had the chance to unpack yet.”
“Then I really appreciate you meeting me like this. If you’d prefer, I can come back later.”
“Nonsense.” Kelly waved away the very thought. “Besides, we have some mutual friends.”
“Lazarus?”
“Well, yes, but I was actually speaking of Samantha.”
“We’re not close.”
“So I’ve gathered. But that might change, right?”
Charity shifted her weight from foot to foot, thinking about how to best answer that. “Given that her employer doesn’t approve of me or my methods, I’m not sure that my sister’s going to be inviting me over for brunch.”
“She’s her own woman. I think you might be surprised.” Kelly gestured towards an office down the hall. “I’m sure you didn’t come here to have me poke around in your life. Why don’t we go someplace where I can take a look at those runes?”
CHARITY WATCHED KELLY at work, marveling at the way the woman did her job. Immediately after taking a look at the slip of paper, Kelly had gone to one of the massive bookshelves in her office and pulled out three leather-bound tomes. She laid these out on her desk and hurriedly flipped the pages in each until she had found what she was looking for. She then set out translating the runes, writing down the words on a pad of paper.
“Do you get any flak about being a woman?” Charity asked. “The only other females I’ve seen around this place are fetching coffee and looking pretty.”
Kelly answered without glancing up from her task. “I’ve gotten my share of coffee for my father and his friends, and I like to think I look quite pretty.”
“You know what I mean.”
Kelly paused and sat back in her chair. With a nod, she said, “Yes, all the time. Even after all the accomplishments I’ve had and the tens of thousands of dollars in relics I’ve personally added to the collection, I still have men who — every day — ask if they can speak to my father instead of me. By all rights, I should be the obvious choice to succeed him as Curator but I honestly thought that it would ever happen. It’s not my father’s fault, mind you, but the museum board is comprised entirely of old men and they’d rather look at my legs than listen to me give a presentation.”