Part 102 (1/2)

xvi ”I don't like this,” Florian said, crouched close to Catlin, where the bus and the hill made a little cover a curve away from the gla.s.s main doors. His hands were cold, exposed to the air: he protected the left one under his arm and watched the data-flow on the hand-held monitor in his right.

”It's a case of What's he got,” Catlin said, tucked down tight, chest against arms against knees.

”Seely isn't sera's kind of problem,” Florian said.

Catlin looked at him, quick and hard. ”Sniper or something bigger up there. You want those doors?”

”Grenade will handle that. They're doing final prep in there now, I'm sure of it, now sera's left the airport. This whole thing is a set.”

”Go, then,” Catlin said. ”You time it. There's got to be a trigger in that hall.”

Florian took a breath, flexed a stiffened hand and an injured shoulder. ”Photocell, likely. Floor and body-height, with an interrupt, electric detonator, best guess-I'm first in on this one.”

The shockwave shook the bus; and Ari was already ducking when Marco grabbed her and pulled them both down, but she fought to get a look as the bus made the turn.

Smoke billowed up from the area of the Administration Wing front doors. She could see the other bus parked on the slope. The black-uniformed group there was in sudden motion, running uphill.

Her driver stopped.

Marco pulled her flat and threw himself over her.

As the air shook and clods peppered the windows.

Florian picked himself up, wiped his eyes and staggered to his feet as someone helped him, he was not sure who, but it was from behind and it was friendly if it got him up again.

He saw Catlin ahead of him in the dim hall, saw her arm a grenade and wait, the thing live in her hand-because somebody like Seely could give it back to you.

She threw it, but a black blur came out that door.

Florian snapped his pistol up and fired; and the grenade blew the whole doorway to rum. Catlin had fired too. She took another shot, point-blank, to be sure.

Florian leaned against the wall and caught his breath. The net was saying that the teams from Green Barracks had gotten into Security-up the lift shafts from the tunnel system: easy job, till they got to the traps and the defenses.

The whole hall was filled with bluish smoke. The fire alarms had gone off long since.

Catlin walked back to him, swinging her rifle to cover the hall beyond, while he kept a watch over her blind-side. ”One more,” she said.

He nodded.