Page 144 of Storm Warning

Violet said, “Andre, do you know anything about biometric locks?”

“Some. I’ll need Riley’s help to get the job done.”

“You got it,” Iona said. “Just get down here fast.”

“Copy that.”

Seth eased to the end of the short entrance hall and signaled that the coast was clear for the moment. The team left the hall and followed Seth and Noah across the lobby to the stairwell. After a quick check inside, Noah motioned for the rest of them to enter.

Andre plunged into the dimly lit interior and, followed by his teammates, descended two flights of stairs and approached a door marked ‘Authorized Personnel Only.’

Noah checked the doorknob, looked over his shoulder at Andre, and shook his head.

Andre crouched beside Noah and examined the lock. A locked door wasn’t a surprise. What did surprise him, however, was that the lock required a key to open. Why didn’t Garcia and Mendoza upgrade the lock to one that used a biometric scanner like the lab? This door led to the lab area. It should have more protection than this.

He pulled out his lockpicks and went to work. Seconds later, the lock’s tumblers fell into place and the knob turned easily under his hand.

Andre scowled. This lock was a joke. A kid with a credit card and a hairpin could open it. With dangerous contents inside the lab, every access door should be at least biometric with more than one authorization to get inside.

Noah opened the door and peered inside. After a moment, he signaled the others to wait.

Although eager to reunite with Riley, Andre pressed his back to the wall beside the door and waited. Ticking off his commanding officer and the second in command wasn’t in the cards today.

Soon, Seth’s voice came through their earpieces. “At the end of the hall, turn right. The lab is lit up like a Christmas tree. You can’t miss it. Artemis is in the right wing.”

Andre frowned. No one in the lab saw Artemis, Seth, and Noah? What kind of setup did they have? He glanced at Elias, Grant, and Brent, eyebrow raised. The men shrugged.

He opened the door wide enough to slip inside the dark hall, his teammates a step behind him. Weapon at the ready, Andrewalked about fifty feet with silent steps and paused near the end of the hall in the deepest shadows.

Andre stepped into another dimly lit corridor, turned to the right, and made his way to the center of the basement. The closer he walked to the lab, the more he noted the lights burning bright in a large room. Man, Seth wasn’t kidding about the place being lit up. He’d hate to pay the electric bill for this place.

At the end of the hall, another corridor circled the lab. The lighting in that corridor was faint, which was good for the operatives but bad for the lab personnel. Stacks of boxes cluttered the corridor.

Riley’s voice came through the comm device. “Andre, look to your right.”

When he did, he saw Riley and her teammates along with Seth and Noah. After a signal from Seth, he and the others joined the rest of the Fortress operatives. Wearing the Fortress uniform of black t-shirt, black fatigue cargo pants, and black tactical boots made the operatives nearly impossible to see in the darkness. The group sheltered behind boxes stacked five deep in the center of the hallway.

Andre crouched beside Riley, squeezed her hand a moment, then focused on Seth.

Echo’s leader looked at him. “Andre, the biometric lock is on the back entrance ten feet behind us. There’s another entrance with a biometric lock in front of the elevator. You’ll only have two shots at getting through the lock. If you don’t get it right on the second try, an alarm will go off, and we’ll be hip deep in enemy combatants.”

His eyebrows soared. “I knew that, but where did you learn about biometric locks?”

Seth smiled. “Zane. Where else?”

Andre turned. “Riley, do you have your laptop handy?”

“I have Zane’s minicomputer prototype. Why?”

“I’ll need your help with the lock. Can Zane’s creation handle the job?”

“Of course.” Riley slid her pack from her back and pulled out a slender laptop the size of a notepad to show Andre, then returned the computer to its case. “I’m ready.”

Seth, still crouched by the corner of the boxes, peered into the lab for a moment, then signaled Andre and Riley to go.

They approached the back door in a crouch. Andre studied the lock for a few seconds, then pulled a black gadget from his pocket. The device didn’t look like much, but it worked like a dream.

“What is that?” Riley whispered.