Chapter 12 - The Inside Man
Dr. Harrison’s professional demeanor vanished instantly, replaced by a cold, calculating expression that bore no resemblance to the compassionate physician who had treated Maya’s wounds. He slowly lowered the medical chart, letting it drop to the floor with a soft thud.
"You really should have just stayed unconscious, Maya," Dr. Harrison said smoothly, his voice dropping its warm bedside cadence entirely. "It would have saved everyone a tremendous amount of paperwork."
Lucas’s hand tightened around his hidden weapon, his eyes locked onto the doctor's every micro-movement. "Step back, Harrison. You're finished. Federal agents already have Ethan and Claire in custody. Your name was on the wire transfers Lucas flagged this morning."
Dr. Harrison chuckled softly, shaking his head as he took a slow step backward toward the open doorway. "Ethan is an amateur who let his ego cloud his judgment, and Claire was simply a distraction. But this hospital? This foundation was built on endowments I personally secured. Do you honestly believe a few federal agents can dismantle a network that's been operating for a decade?"
Before Lucas could draw his weapon, Dr. Harrison reached behind his back, pulled out a small electronic key fob, and pressed a heavy red button.
Bzzzt.
Every door in the entire hospital ward slammed shut with a heavy metallic thud, automatically locking from the outside. The emergency lockdown protocol had been triggered, sealing them inside the wing like a vault.
"Lucas!" Maya shouted, pointing toward the door as Dr. Harrison slipped backward into the hallway just as the heavy steel fire door dropped from the ceiling, separating them completely.
Lucas lunged forward, slamming his fists against the thick steel barrier, but it didn't budge an inch. He turned back around, his face pale with sudden, urgent realization. He pulled out the burner phone, frantically pressing buttons, but the screen flashed a solid red error code: No Signal.
"He jammed the local frequency," Lucas muttered, cursing under his breath as he hurried back to Maya’s bedside. "We're completely cut off. No phones, no alarms, no exits."
Maya stared at the sealed steel door, her chest tightening. The physical pain from the car crash flared anew, but she forced the agony down, channeling it into pure, unadulterated resolve. She looked up at her brother, her mind working at lightning speed.
"He's not just trying to escape, Lucas," Maya said urgently, grabbing her brother's arm. "Look at the air vents."
Lucas followed her gaze upward. A faint, sweet-smelling vapor was beginning to hiss softly from the overhead ventilation grille, drifting downward in thin, curling wisps toward the floor.
"Gas," Lucas cursed, pulling his jacket collar up over his nose and mouth. "He's flooding the wing."
"We need to get out of here, now," Maya said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed despite the searing pain in her ribs.
Lucas rushed to the window, smashing the remaining jagged edges of glass away with the butt of his flashlight and peering down. The fire escape was there, but it ended in a sheer fifteen-foot drop to the concrete alleyway below, because Dr. Harrison had remotely retracted the lower ladder section from the central security desk.
"Can you climb?" Lucas asked, turning back to Maya with desperate urgency in his eyes.
Maya stood up, swaying slightly on her feet as the sweet smell of the gas grew stronger, filling the room with a heavy, soporific haze. She looked at the open window, then back at the locked steel door, knowing full well that waiting meant certain death.
"I survived the crash," Maya said, her voice steady and fierce as she gripped the windowsill. "I'm not dying here."
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Before she could climb through the opening, the heavy steel door behind them began to groan and buckle under the immense pressure of something being forced against it from the outside.
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