The Shroud of A'Ranka (Brimstone Network Trilogy) Read Online Free PDF Page A

standing up beside his son’s chair.
    “I’m not sure,” Dez replied. “I’ve never heard that one before.”
    “We should probably check it out,” his father said, getting behind the wheelchair and pushing him from the room.
    “Yeah, we probably should,” Dez said in reply, angry that the truth had not been revealed.
    As well as relieved.
    Legs that had once belonged to two separate Brimstone Network agents—long since deceased—propelled Mr. Stitch down the short corridor toward the heavy wooden door at its end.
    The alarm appeared to be coming from inside, and he had no idea what the ruckus was all about.
    None of the multiple parts that made up his surgically sewn together body recalled what was stored behind the door at the end of the corridor, or what the alarm could possibly be the harbinger of, but its incessant tolling demanded that he find out.
    The large man created from the body parts of fallen Brimstone Network agents stopped in front of the door. From the deep pockets of his coat he withdrew a ring of keys and started to search for the one that would fit the weathered wood door.
    One after another, Stitch tried to fit the keys into the lock with little success, and the alarm continued to toll, and seemed to being growing louder. He sighed in exasperation.
    “Hey, Stitch, what’s going on?” a voice he recognized as belonging to Douglas St. Laurent asked.
    He looked away from the lock to see the father pushing his son in a wheelchair down the hall toward him.
    “Think you can shut that off pretty soon?” Desmond asked, sticking his pinkie finger into one of his ear holes. “My brain is gonna start bleeding.”
    “I’m trying,” Stitch growled, continuing to not have any success.
    “Are you sure the key is on that ring?” Douglas asked, coming to stand beside him at the door.
    “These are the only keys I could find,” Stitch answered. “I’m guessing that there’s a bloody good chance that what we’re looking for is on this ring.”
    Douglas didn’t say anything more, crossing his arms across his chest and leaning against the door.
    Dez wheeled over. “Are those the keys from the supply closet?”
    “No,” Stitch barked. “They’re the keys from the drawer beside the cabinet in the workroom.”
    The alarm was most definitely louder, and Stitch felt as though his ears were about to fall from the sides of his head. None of the keys were working.
    “I didn’t know there was another set in the supply closet,” he grumbled.
    “That one and another set,” Dez suddenly said.
    Stitch stopped his work and stared at the heavyset boy.
    “Another set?”
    Dez nodded. “Yeah, I saw another ring in the kitchen pantry the other day when I was looking for some bread.”
    Stitch jammed the next key into the lock. The long piece of metal went into the hole and, for a moment, he thought it was going to turn. Excitedly he gave it a twist, but it refused to move. And then his fingers fumbled, and the entire ring clattered to the floor.
    “Ouch!” Dez said, his face twisted in a wince.
    “Now that just stinks,” Douglas added with a shake of his head.
    Stitch couldn’t stand it anymore. He hauled back his fist and punched at the obstruction, delivering a blow to the area above the uncooperative lock. The wood shattered with the strike, but his fist did not go through. He punched the door again and again, feeling his tension wash away.
    “Remind me never to get you mad,” Dez said.
    “Remind me never to lock any doors,” Douglas added.
    Stitch smirked, pushing on the door as it swung into the room behind it.
    The alarm shrieked even louder as they all entered the room. It was dark, the only light coming from the red and green lights on banks of machinery located against the walls, and from the ghostly representation of the planet Earth that floated in the air above a circular platform, the strange lights located within the platform responsible for the holographic image.
    “What the heck