Xenofreak Nation, Book Three: XIA Read Online Free PDF Page A

there was no such thing as a safe place for a xeno, not now, not ever.
    “All right,” she said. “They’ll probably have to give you pain-killers and you won’t be able to drive. I’ll come with you.”
    “Thank you. I owe you one.”
    Bryn looked back down at Mia’s holophone. She couldn’t call Scott, but he’d sent Mia the xenosurgeon information, so she settled for replying back to that text. It took a while to compose a message that covered the basics of the attack, but that hopefully wouldn’t freak him out too much. By the time she hit ‘send,’ Mia had pulled up in front of a brick apartment building with a long green canopy over the front entrance. Two men in uniform stood waiting as they got out of the car.
    Mia said, “Good morning, Brunson.”
    “Nice to see you again, Miss Padilla,” one of the men replied, eyes skimming over Bryn’s quills with no change in the pleasant expression on his face. “Your parents didn’t mention you were coming.”
    The other uniformed man took Mia’s car keys and the twenty dollar bill she slipped him. Bryn figured he must be the valet, since he got into Mia’s car and drove off. Brunson, who had spotless white gloves and shiny black shoes, had to be the doorman. Outside of holovision, she’d never experienced this kind of service.
    “I wasn’t expected,” Mia said. “Are they home?”
    “I believe Mrs. Padilla is in.”
    “Would you be so kind as to let her know we’re on our way up?”
    “Certainly.” He opened one of the double doors and held it as a blast of warm air swirled out. Neither Bryn nor Mia had stopped to grab a coat when they vacated Scott’s apartment, so the warmth was welcome.
    Inside, a crystal chandelier hung from the center of a high, arched ceiling, its soft light reflecting off the veined marble flooring. As they waited for the elevator, Bryn couldn’t help but compare this ostentatious lobby with the utilitarian one in Scott’s building.
    The Padillas’ suite took up the entire fourth floor. When the elevator doors opened onto the apartment’s luxurious entryway, a plump Asian woman in a brightly patterned silk kimono hurried to greet them, exclaiming, “Mia! What a pleasant surprise.”
    Mrs. Padilla placed her hands lightly on Mia’s shoulders and kissed the air on either side of her head. Then she pulled back and beamed at Bryn. “And you brought a celebrity with you! How marvelous.”

Chapter Six
     
    Between them, Scott and Lo managed to shove the sheet of corrugated metal roofing along the ground until the roughly three-foot diameter hole was revealed. The aluminum sheet was heavier than Scott expected and the process of moving it produced scraping and screeching noises galore.
    “If there’s anyone down there, they know we’re coming,” he said.
    Lo squatted next to the rim and ran her fingers over the broken concrete. “I’m no demolition expert, but does that look like a chisel mark? Like from a jackhammer?”
    “Yep. Someone made this hole because they wanted in.”
    “Why? I thought Fournier’s facility was destroyed and any evidence removed.”
    Scott shrugged. “Why don’t we go ask?”
    She made a face. “After you.”
    He took the flashlight off his belt, switched it on, and straddled the hole to get a better look. There wasn’t much to see, just a packed dirt floor at the bottom, maybe six feet down. Several months ago, he’d walked the entire length of the crudely constructed tunnel, but it had been dark and he and Kareem Williams had been carrying a panda at the time, so he couldn’t say what else might be down there.
    He sat at the edge of the hole with his feet dangling inside. “Cover me.”
    Lo shifted so one knee rested on the ground and drew her weapon. When Scott dropped into the hole, he halfway expected someone to rush him, but nothing happened. He stepped out of the circle of light and shone his flashlight around. No surprises, just support beams and dirt walls. He couldn’t