“Absolutely,” Will said and glanced down at his watch. 9:13 a.m.
Dansby High School looked big on the outside, but inside it was essentially one long hallway that extended left and right, with the main entrance in the very center. The classrooms were along the hallways, lockers sprinkled between them. As soon as they stepped into the school, they were greeted by a big glass display filled with pictures of past winning sports teams, trophies, and signed sports memorabilia. A big banner on top of the trophy case declared: “Welcome to Dansby High School. Home of the Fighting Panthers” in big, bold capital letters and three different primary colors.
Everything was covered in a thin layer of dust, and there were cobwebs dangling from the ceiling and corners. But it was the tiled floor that got Will’s attention. It was well-traveled, but not by people wearing shoes.
Bare feet…
He caught Danny’s eyes and nodded at the floor. “They’ve been here. Often. Maybe they’re still here. Eyes forward and ears open. Stay frosty.”
Davies quickly slung his G36 and freed the Remington. He racked a shell into the chamber and thumbed off the safety. Lara reflexively put her palm on her holstered gun as if to make sure it was still there, and her body stiffened noticeably next to him.
“Lara, stay close and try not to get in front of me,” Will said. “Where did Elise say she was staying?”
“In the school basement.”
“Maintenance room would be my guess,” Davies said. “My friends and I used to sneak off for smokes back in the day. That’s usually where you access the basements in small schools like this.”
Will found a map of the school encased in glass on the wall nearby and scanned it. “Maintenance room’s to our right, before the gym. You’re right, basement’s in there, too. Danny, cover our six.”
“I’ll cover Lara’s, but I’d rather not do yours,” Danny said.
“Fair enough,” he said.
Lara rolled her eyes next to them.
Will led them down the hallway toward the gym. Lara followed closely behind while Davies kept pace on his left. Danny trailed in back, watching the long hallway at the other side of the front doors. There were enough skylights along the hallway for there to be no issue with light.
Patches of sunlight and darkness were visible in the classrooms to their left, which they could see through small security windows in the doors. There was something very wrong about the sight of an empty classroom. They moved on, reaching the maintenance room a few minutes later.
Will noted the turn twenty meters farther up the hallway, and a plaque reading Auditorium, with an arrow pointing left. “Danny,” Will said.
Danny swung around until he was standing on the other side of the maintenance door. They switched on the tactical flashlights underneath their shotguns and exchanged a nod.
He looked back. “Davies and Lara, stay out here.”
They nodded.
He took hold of the doorknob and mouthed a count from three. On one, he threw open the door and stepped inside, Danny moving swiftly behind, then quickly shuffled forward until he was beside him. Will swept the left side while Danny swept the right, the bright halo from their flashlights lighting up the darkened room, exposing two circular patches per second. Behind them, sunlight flooded in through the opened door, but there were corners where it couldn’t reach and he quickly scanned them with the flashlight.
The maintenance room was surprisingly big. Even stuffed with the janitor’s supplies, including two large trash bins, there was more than enough space for two men with long, heavy shotguns to move around freely.
Will’s flashlight ran across a door at the back and a plaque marked Basement. He walked over to it. The door was in one piece but showed signs of damage, and there were dark black splotches and pieces of skin, dry to the touch, clinging to the wood exterior. He tried the doorknob, but it didn’t budge.
“Good news, right?” Danny said. “Door’s still locked — that means the bad guys didn’t get in.”
Will nodded. “Good way to look at it.” He glanced back at Lara, looking at him anxiously from the opened doorway. “Lara.”
She hurried inside, passing by Danny, who went out to join Davies.
Will and Lara stood in front of the basement door, Lara looking expectantly at it, then at him. “See if you can get it open,” Will said.
She leaned toward the door, putting one hand on it for support, careful to avoid the fleshy clumps clinging to it. “Hello? Is anyone in there? Elise? Todd? This is Lara. Remember, we talked on the radio yesterday? If you can hear me, we’re here to rescue you, like I promised. But first I need you to open the door.”
She waited for a response.
Will tuned out the rest of the room. He listened intently, trying to pick up any sound coming from the other side of the door.
Nothing.
Lara continued, a little louder now: “Elise? Are you in there? We’re here to help, sweetheart. It’s Lara. Please open the door. I can’t help you if you don’t open the door.”
They waited again, but still no response.
“She said the basement?” Will asked.
Lara nodded. “Yes. I made sure of it. I asked her at least three times last night.”
“And she said she never left?”
“No. Todd wouldn’t let her leave. He seems to be very protective.”
“He must have gotten hurt during one of his supply runs.”
“That’s my guess. Or maybe he’s sick and couldn’t find the right medicine. They’ve been down there for a really long time, in an enclosed space…”
He nodded. “Okay, we’re going to have to do this the hard way, then.”
Will put a hand on her shoulder and led her back. She moved reluctantly as he squared up against the door. It was solid wood, but not metal clad. That wasn’t too bad. He would have preferred one of those cheap, hollow-core doors, but this was the next best thing.
He stood with his legs slightly unbalanced, took a breath, then delivered a swift, quick kick at the door just underneath the doorknob, almost as if he were falling into the brown slab of wood. He heard the loud, satisfying crack! as the wood gave way and broke around the knob, and the door swung inward, revealing pitch blackness on the other side.
Will instantly snapped backward a full foot and lifted the shotgun, the flashlight underneath the barrel razing the darkness in a wide sweep.
There was a concrete floor below metal stairs and what looked like more janitorial supplies in the back of the room. There was a dumpster on one side, next to a pile of boxes. Sleeping beds, clothes, candy wrappers, books, and empty soda cans covered the floor.
Just like every teenager’s bedroom.
There wasn’t any space to really hide, but he illuminated the area underneath the staircase anyway to be sure, then along the dumpster area.
“Can you see her?” Lara asked behind him.
“No.”
Will took a step back, lowered the shotgun, and produced a handful of glow sticks from a pouch. He cracked them, then tossed them into the basement, spreading them in all four directions. Slowly, the darkness gave way to a sea of green.
“I need to go down first, Lara.”
“Okay.”
He tested the first step to make sure it was solid, then scrambled down to the basement floor a second later, sweeping the back of the room with the shotgun. He made a beeline for the dumpster, looking around it, then pried open the lid with the barrel and quickly shot a look inside.
Garbage. Smelly garbage.
But no kids.