Voices (Whisper Trilogy Book 3) (7 page)

“You do realize I’m a police officer?” Petrov said, watching as two more security guards appeared from one of the rooms behind the counter.

“Do you have an arrest warrant or any other official paperwork?”

Petrov smiled. She was good. Very good, and sharp to boot. “No, I don’t. I just need to speak to Mr. Fisher about a case I’ve been working on. I understand he now has control of the location and I need access to it.”

“As I said, there’s nobody of that name here.”

“Come on, lady, we both know that’s not true. I traced him here. I know this is where he works.”

“If you don’t leave, I’ll have to have security escort you from the premises.”

“Look, this is important. If you can just get him down here—”

“I’m sorry. I can’t help you.”

Petrov considered arguing, maybe even putting on a little pressure. He decided against it, however, because he was sure it wouldn’t work. Government run buildings like this one didn’t seem to take too kindly to any form of interference from regular law enforcement.

“Fine,” he said as the security guards approached from behind the counter. “I’m going.”

The receptionist gave him a cold smile as he turned and headed back the way he came. He paused and returned to the counter.

“Do me a favor. If he happens to show up here by chance, give him my card and ask him to call me.”

He placed his card on the counter.

“Like I said, he doesn’t work here. I’ve checked the system.”

“If you happen to check again and find him, just make sure my card gets to him. Tell him it’s about what’s under the house. He’ll know what I’m talking about.”

He waited to see if she would pick up the card, or at least acknowledge him. Neither happened, she just greeted him with the same cold look of indifference. Petrov turned and left the building, determined more than ever to meet up with the mysterious James Fisher and find out what he had to do with what was happening at Hope House.

CHAPTER 9

Dubbed by its operators as ‘The Rat’, The GT16 was the culmination of more than three years of top level military research. Resembling a small radio-controlled car, the prototype unit was equipped with an array of cutting-edge equipment. Everything from temperature sensors to high resolution night vision cameras with real-time video recording made the unit a useful tool in the field. It sat at the foot of the subcellar as its operator made final checks to the unit’s controls. Soldiers flitted around the area, unsure what to do or why they were even there.

“Hey, Linus, is that toy car of yours ready or what?” one of them said, nudging his friend.

“This ‘toy’ costs more than your house, Hopkins,” Linus fired back over his shoulder as he remotely adjusted the focus of the unit’s camera.

“I don’t know why the hell they’re putting that thing down there. Surely it would be easier for a few of us to go and check it out.”

“It could be unstable. That tunnel looks to go right under the river. You don’t want to be stuck down there if the roof collapses.”

“I don’t want to be down here at all. This place is weird,” Hopkins said, glancing around the foyer.

“Shut up man, we’re not supposed to talk about it. They already canned General Kimmel.”

“There’s nobody here but us right now. Besides, Kimmel will be fine. He’ll be back behind his desk in no time.”

“This is a pretty fucked-up situation, I’ll give you that,” Linus said as he activated and deactivated the night vision camera of the GT16, watching as the image on screen went from black to grey then back again. Satisfied, he switched on the powerful lights on the front of the unit, illuminating the dirt tunnel ahead.

“You don’t say. Have you heard that shit in the trees at night?”

Linus turned slightly, staring at Hopkins, expecting to see him grinning. Instead, he saw a tense and frightened man, pale face and blue eyes darting into the shadows and back. “What about the trees?”

“There’s something out there. You can hear it. Crying. Screaming. I don’t know what it is, man, but I don’t like it.”

Linus considered it for a moment, then turned back to the controls. “Probably just your imagination. I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You haven’t been stuck out here.”

“Well, I’m here now. The quicker you shut up and let me get on with this, the quicker we can all get out of here.”

“Don’t let me stop you.”

“I have to wait,” Linus said.

“For who?”

“For me,” Fisher said as he walked into the hotel. He stood at Linus’s shoulder, watching the screens. “Is it ready?”

“Yes. It’s good to go.”

“Alright, let’s see what we have. Whenever you’re ready, pilot.”

Linus licked his lips and pulled his seat closer to the desk. “Video feed is live and recording in real time. Temperature sensors are online. Ambient temp is at a steady four degrees. Proceeding into the tunnel.”

Linus picked up the unit’s control, which looked like a more elaborate version of a child’s toy remote. With twin thumb operated joysticks taking care of direction and speed respectively, the controller also had an LED display showing temperature and other telemetry. Linus teased the joysticks, the image on screen shuddering as the vehicle moved down the tunnel.

“Go steady, pilot. I want to get a good look at everything beyond the chamber room.”

“Got it,” Linus mumbled as the unit rolled slowly toward the doorway, its lights banishing the shadows. The GT16 entered the chamber where Petrov had discovered the altar with the human-animal hybrid. This had been removed soon after discovery by Fisher’s men, yet no further investigation had taken place. Linus piloted the unit across the room, then brought it to a stop. He leaned over to his computer console and input a command. The image on screen moved as the camera turret on top of the vehicle extended and swiveled, giving a panorama of the room.

“Which door do you want me to go through?” Linus asked.

“The one straight ahead,” Fisher said. “The others are closed rooms.”

“What’s in them?”

“None of your business. Just do as I say.”

“Yes, sir.”

The turret descended back into position, and Linus continued on, into the dark.

“Pretty steep downward gradient here,” he said over his shoulder.

“Is it going to be an issue?” Fisher said.

“No, I’m just keeping you informed. We’re having a few issues with the exterior lights though. See how they’re flickering?”

“Can we go on?”

“Absolutely. Worst case, we can switch over to the night vision. It’s not a problem.”

“Good. Just go easy. We don’t know what’s down there, but if it does go under the river like we suspect, there could be water, not to mention general instability.”

“Depending on the water level, it could be a problem. This unit can only go so deep.”

“Alright, let’s just take it as it comes, we don’t know anything yet.”

They carried on, the tension palpable. The images on screen rolled by steadily. Beyond the door, the change in elevation was immediately apparent. The walls were rough, and had been cut with less care than the rooms. The unit went deeper, the flickering of the spotlights increasing.

“Temperature is down half a degree,” Linus reported.

“Can’t you do anything about those lights?” Fisher snapped.

“I can switch over to night vision. Should be more stable.”

“Do it.”

Linus flicked the switch, transforming the on-screen image into greenish-grey hues. The GT16 ambled on, delving deeper into the tunnel. Water dripped from the ceiling, and at intermittent sections of the tunnel, wooden supports had been erected.

“Temp down to three degrees,” Linus said, then paused.

“What is it?” Fisher asked.

Linus didn’t answer. He picked up a pair of headphones and put them on, simultaneously accessing the computer’s audio recording log.

“What is it, dammit?”

“I thought I heard something.”

“Like what?”

“I… uh, I’m not sure,” Linus muttered, his frown deepening as he replayed a particular section of the recording. “I suppose it’s nothing.”

Fisher glanced around the foyer, wishing there were less shadows outside of the cone of light they stood in. “Can that audio feed be broadcast into the room for us all to hear?”

Linus didn’t answer. He was still staring at the audio waveform on screen as he replayed the same section over and over.

“I said—”

“Yes, it can,” Linus cut in, taking off the headphones. He blinked, looked over his shoulder at Fisher, then back at the controls. He appeared different. Disorientated somehow. For a moment, he just sat there, staring at the screen.

“Well, go on then, let’s hear it.”

Fisher’s command appeared to do the trick, snapping Linus out of his stupor. “Sorry,” he muttered, and manipulated the controls. The hotel foyer filled with the hiss of static. Linus adjusted the audio levels, then picked up the controls for the GT16 and continued on into the tunnel, rough dirt walls and slick roots giving way to a man-made wooden frame built around the perimeter of the passageway. Water dripped in clockwork rhythm as Linus brought the rover to a halt.

“We’re about to pass under the river,” Linus said, checking the GPS positioning. Fisher leaned over his shoulder and looked at the map.

“Of course, this all makes sense now. There’s a raised sandbank just under the surface of the water. It was used to cross it before the bridge was erected. This tunnel must be the cause of it.”

“What do you think is down there?” Linus asked, looking at Fisher.

“That’s what we’re here to find out. Proceed when ready.”

Linus complied, making the transition from dirt to wood easily. The image on screen flickered and distorted, causing Linus to double-check the telemetry.

“Problem?” Fisher asked.

“No, I don’t think so. Could just be water landing on the sensors. Temp has dropped two full degrees. It’s just above freezing down there.”

The unit moved on, leaving the wooden frame behind. The path started to curve as the ground fell away in an even steeper gradient.

“How far under the surface are we?” Fisher asked.

“We’re under the forest now, so readings are difficult to take accurately. We were only a few feet below the surface when we passed the river sandbank. Now, it could be twenty-five, maybe thirty feet.”

“Hey, did you see that?”

Fisher and Linus turned to Hopkins, who was staring at the screen.

“What?” Fisher snapped.

“Something moved down there.”

Everyone stared at the screen, the shades of grey showing no movement.

“Shall I move on?” Linus asked.

“Proceed,” Fisher replied, forcing himself to relax and stay focused on the task at hand.

The unit rumbled on, and this time they all saw it, a flicker of something, a shadow almost as dark as the tunnel, moving just on the edge of the cameras range.

“There’s definitely something down there,” Linus said, his throat dry, the words almost scratching as they came out.

“Impossible. Nobody’s down there. It’s been sealed up for years and guarded around the clock ever since it was discovered.”

“Are you telling me you didn’t see what I did? Something moved.”

“I saw it too,” Hopkins said.

“Nobody asked you for your opinion, Private.”

“What do you want me to do?” Linus asked.

“Proceed as planned. Move on.”

Linus complied, the night vision cameras melting away the dark as the unit rolled deeper. This time, a form, opaque yet not quite as dark as its surroundings, flitted across the screen. There was no doubt that it was humanoid as the thing turned and retreated out of the visible range of the cameras. As if to emphasize its existence, the sound of footsteps accompanied it.

Fisher wanted a drink, and even though he had been more than three years sober, he would have given anything for a good shot of whisky to help clear his head. “Move on,” he said, wiping the sweat from his brow despite the chill.

The GT16 went even deeper, following the tunnel. Other sounds began to filter through as the unit relayed them to the control room. Subtle sounds which were hard to pick out from the static and the hum of the vehicle’s forward motion. The low pained moan of a woman. Unintelligible whispers, some pleading, many offering more sinister sound bites, appeared seemingly at will; some from the hidden depths of the tunnel, others close enough to the microphones to distort as they exploded into the hotel foyer. All three men, Fisher, Linus and Hopkins, were transfixed in morbid fascination. Fisher gritted his teeth, eyes wide. He was struggling to find that balance between fight or flight. Linus was faring little better. The steady hands with which he had operated the unit were shaking. His entire body felt numb as he watched events unfold. Least surprised of all was Hopkins. He had seen it before. He’d experienced this and worse since he’d been stationed at the hotel with General Kimmel, and watched with a resigned sense of foreboding. Terror for him had given way to a strong desire to leave the Hope House site and its secrets behind for good.

The unit traveled deeper. As it did, the shape of the tunnel changed. Gone was the carved, deliberately cut shape which had come previously. Now the way ahead was filled with giant roots from the denizens of the forest above. Still the GT16 went on, and still those shadows on the edge of their vision appeared and disappeared. The screen shuddered and filled with distortion before returning to normal.