Fallon nodded. "So you locked it down."
"Figured if the government wasn't going to take responsibility for protecting people from whatever was down there, we would have to do the job," Vera concluded. "And that's what we've done for the past twenty-two years."
"Good plan," Fallon said. "Heavy paranormal radiation can have unpredictable effects. And if there are more of Mrs. Bridewell's nasty little toys in the shelter, we're dealing with some very dangerous weapons." He studied the heavy lock on the steel hatch. "I take it you have the key to this thing?"
"Sure." Henry reached deep into the pocket of his overalls and removed a large key. "I keep it with me all the time."
"I'll go down," Fallon said, "assuming I can get past the energy winds." He looked at Isabella. "If anything goes wrong, make sure this hatch gets closed and locked again immediately. Then call Zack Jones. You have the number."
"I think I should go down with you," Isabella said.
He said the first thing that came into his head. "No."
"You're not being logical here, Fallon," she said calmly. "You don't know what you're going to find in the shelter. You might need backup like I did yesterday, remember?"
"Not the sort of thing I'm likely to forget."
"I'm good at finding things," she insisted. "And there is something down there that needs to be found."
Fallon gave it about three seconds' worth of thought, but he only needed a fraction of one second to reach the bottom line. She was right. Her talent might prove useful. He pulled a card out of his pocket and handed it to Henry.
"I'll go first and check the place out. When I give the all clear, Isabella will follow me. Anything goes wrong, seal the shelter again and call that number. Do it real fast."
Henry studied the card. "Who am I calling?"
"Zack Jones. Master of the Arcane Society. My agency's biggest client. Don't worry, Zack will take charge. He always does. It's a damned irritating habit."
13
Isabella stood with Walker and Vera. They watched Fallon and Henry open the shelter. The lock gave easily enough, but the men had to use a couple of crowbars to pry up the hatch.
"Don't know what they made this thing out of," Henry said. "Some kind of high-tech steel. But given time, anything will corrode in this climate."
The lid rose ponderously with a grinding squeak and a dull groan. Energy leaked out. Isabella felt the hair on the nape of her neck stir. Icy shivers of awareness slithered across her senses in warning.
The steel hatch rose higher. A storm of paranormal wind roared out of the dark opening. It was unlike anything Isabella had ever experienced. She felt as if she were standing in the teeth of a hurricane, but nothing around her was affected by the strange gale. The grass did not bend beneath the force of the howling energy. No leaves rustled. Her hair and clothes did not flutter.
But her senses responded with an all-consuming awareness. Adrenaline splashed through her veins. An intoxicating excitement rose within her. She was suddenly jacked. She looked at Fallon and knew by the heat in his eyes that he was experiencing a similar reaction to the heavy radiation.
"Shit." Henry dropped the crowbar and staggered back. "See what I mean?"
"Yes," Fallon said. He aimed a flashlight into the opening and got the intense, thoughtful expression Isabella was coming to know well. "Lot of energy down there, all right. Must have been one hell of an explosion. The nexus currents in the area would have intensified the effects."
Vera edged farther away. The dogs hung back, heads lowered. Poppy growled. Walker stayed where he was, but his agitation increased visibly. He rocked madly on his heels and wrapped his arms around himself.
"Alien weapons," Walker said. "The Queen g-guards them."
Isabella braced herself and struggled to focus her talent. When she went into her zone, she saw heavy waves of psi fog crashing out of the shelter hatch.
"Lasher and Rachel must have been fairly strong talents of some kind," she said quietly to Fallon. "That's why they were able to go down there."
"Probably explains why Lasher chose the Cove to found his community of Seekers in the first place," Fallon said. "Consciously or unconsciously, he sensed the nexus currents here and was drawn to them."
He stirred the darkness with the beam of his flashlight. Isabella saw a ladder leading down into the shadows. The light glinted on the corner of a rusted metal lab bench. Shards of broken glass glittered in the depths. There was also a scattering of yellowed papers and what looked like a couple of notebooks.
"They pulled out in a hurry," she said. "No telling what they left down there."
"The Queen," Walker muttered. "Watch out for the Q-queen."
"I will," Fallon promised.
He disappeared over the edge and descended into the shadows. It occurred to Isabella, not for the first time, that for a big man Fallon Jones moved with an easy, masculine grace that conveyed an impression of both power and control.
"Ladder's in good shape," he called up a short time later. "And the energy level down here isn't any stronger than it is at the opening of the hatch. Come on down, Isabella."
She stuck her flashlight into the pocket of her jacket, stepped over the edge, found her footing on the ladder and descended cautiously. It was like going down into an invisible whirlpool. The energy whipped and flashed around her.
When her foot touched the bottom rung of the ladder, Fallon's strong hand closed around her arm.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yes, but I have to say I've never experienced anything like this. Any sign of Walker's Queen?"
"Not yet."
"That's royalty for you. Always the last to arrive." She took out her flashlight and switched it on. "Of course it would help if we knew exactly what he was talking about."
"Whatever it was, Walker took it seriously, so we will, too," Fallon said. "Watch your step--there's a lot of broken glass in here."
She crouched and picked up one of the larger shards. "Very thick glass, too."
Fallon took it from her and held it up to the beam of his flashlight. "Looks like the kind they use in banks. Bullet-resistant. Exactly the type of glass that researchers familiar with laws of para-physics would use to deal with the energy generated by Bridewell's curiosities. The best way to disrupt psi that is infused in glass is with a glass barrier."