The Star Thief (Star Thief Chronicles #1)(42)
Author: Jamie Grey

Her hand trembled as she ran a finger over the lifeless form’s skull. She found the control pad and turned on the diagnostics. “They haven’t been programed with an AI yet, but they’re primed and ready to go. Finn, they’re equipped with weapons. State-of-the-art weapons.”

Finn stared down into the box. “So this facility is building robot soldiers? But the Treaty of Thermesium…”

“When has that stopped anyone?” Renna shook her head. “Look at my implant. And the Empyreans are still selling programmable AIs on the black market for personal use. It’s a matter of affordability. If you’re rich enough, you can buy anything.”

She moved to the next crate and unscrewed the top. This one was full of robot parts, arms and legs and heads jumbled together. A pair of lifeless eyes made her shudder, though she’d much prefer that to the cold glow of an activated mech.

“What do we do now?” Finn scanned the warehouse space.

“There has to be something else here. It doesn’t make sense. Why would they build an impregnable facility to build robot parts?” Renna headed through the stacks of crates toward the other end of the building. She didn’t bother masking her steps or waiting to see if Finn followed. If someone else was here, she would have heard them by now.

She passed through a large arch and into another wide room. The facility seemed to be divided into sections: storage, assembly, prototypes. In this room, the crates were gone, replaced by machinery and conveyor belts holding mech parts in various states of completion.

At the end of the assembly line, she spotted a faint glow in the floor. “Finn, over here.”

A perfect glowing square appeared in the dark material. It was the size of one of the crates, and if she didn’t know better, she would have dismissed it as a stain. “It’s some sort of hatch. This facility has a lower level.”

She crouched over the space and ran a finger along the seam. The cement was slightly raised, like the two pieces didn’t quite fit back together after being cut. “There doesn’t seem to be any way to get it open from here. I think it’s an access panel.”

“And that means there’s bound to be a door somewhere around here.” Finn spun slowly on his heels, while Renna paced back and forth trying various commands to get her implant to upload building plans or updated heat signatures. Anything that might give her a sense of what was going on here. “Dammit. Nothing’s working.”

The weight of Finn’s gaze made her shoulders hunch, and she forced herself to stay calm. This is what Dallas had hired her to do. If she couldn’t do the job, they had no reason to hold up their end of the bargain.

Finally, she stopped and turned to the captain. “There’s got to be another way down. Search the south side of this room and keep your eyes open. The doorway will be hidden like this one.” She headed to the north side of the room and started in the corner, raking her gaze over every inch of the wall. She just needed another seam. Or a keypad. Or something.

Renna’s whole body still thrummed with the electricity that ran through the facility. Her heart raced like she’d consumed too many energy drinks, but her senses felt dulled. This place was dangerous, and the sooner they got out, the better.

“Renna, over here.” Finn’s voice carried across the warehouse. She was at his side in seconds. “There’s a control pad here, and it doesn’t seem hooked into any of the machinery.” He gestured at the nearby conveyor belt. “I can’t figure out what it does.”

“Then let’s find out.” Renna jacked in her device and ran the program again. It hummed and vibrated in her hand as it worked, and she’d almost given up hope when the code finally broke and the light turned green.

But still nothing happened.

Renna chewed her lip and studied the keypad more closely. It had unlocked…something. But what? Finn stared at it, too, as if their combined brainpower could figure it out.

She felt jumpy, her body on alert, as if an ambush could happen at any possible minute. She was so distracted it was probably only a matter of time before that actually happened.

Pull it together, Renna.

She closed her eyes and forced a familiar sense of calm back into her center. Breathe in. Breathe out.

When she opened her eyes, she ignored Finn’s curious expression and focused on the keypad. She let her fingers drift over the numbers.

Ever so faintly, some of the metal pads caught at her fingertips. The ones used most often. Renna made another pass. This model used a clockwise entry order for the security code. She let her fingers tell her which pads to press, until she’d made a complete circle on the device.

There was a whirring noise as one of the machines started up. The conveyor jerked and screamed into motion, and the wall beside them slid back to reveal a long, dark corridor.

Finn’s eyebrows shot up as he glanced from the now-apparent door to Renna and back again. “Dallas might have been right about you.”

“Why, Captain, that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” She flashed him a smile as she moved into the corridor. Lights on the ceiling flickered to life, illuminating a metal ladder at the far end. “Looks like we found our way in.”

Finn nodded. “Good job. Stay alert. If there’s anyone here, they’re bound to have heard us by now.” He started down the ladder, his broad shoulders disappearing into the darkness before Renna followed.

Finn’s boots clanked against each rung as they descended. She counted each step as a way to pass time, and after forty rungs, Renna’s legs were burning. Weak helolights glowed every twenty rungs or so, but the watery light made the climb even worse. Her breath hitched, but she forced herself to stay calm. The image of being trapped beneath tons of earth was not helping.

“Finally,” Finn muttered. Renna heard his feet hit the cement with a thud, and in the dim light, Renna felt more than saw him step away from the ladder.

Three more rungs and then she stood on solid ground again, too, arms wrapped around her waist so he wouldn’t see her trembling. “I hope we find another way out of here. I’d rather not have to do that climb going up.”

Finn nodded. “I’m with you there.” He pulled his gun out, and Renna did the same.

They were in another narrow corridor, colored pipes running along the walls. The lights flickered on as they walked, obviously motion sensitive. She guessed they were heading south through the complex.