The Dead Girl's Dance

Chapter Thirty-six

We do?
Morgue tunnels.
What?
Trust me.
I do, butmorgue tunnels?
Yeah, Shane said. They were sealed off in the mid-fifties, but we opened up one end. Its not on the maps. Nobodys watching it.
Then whos in here with you?
Couple of Dads guys, Shane said.
Thats it? She was horrified. You know there are about a hundred angry people outside, right? And they have guns?
Behind them, the battering at the doors strengthened. The desks blocking access grated across the floor, one torturous inch at a time. She could see daylight spilling inside.
Wed better move, Shane said. Come on.
Claire let him tow her along, and looked back over her shoulder to see the desks shuddering under the impact of bodies. They slid across the tile with another groan, and one of them cracked in half, drawers spilling out in a noisy clatter.
Shane waved to a big guy in black leather as they passed, and the three of them ran down the second-floor hallway. It was dark, filthy, and scary, but not as scary as the sounds coming from the lobby behind them. Shane had a flashlight, and he switched it on to pick out obstacles in the wayfallen IV stands, an abandoned, dust-covered wheelchair, a gurney tipped over on its side. Faster, she gasped, because she heard a final crash from the lobby.
They were inside.
Claire didnt think more than half the vampires had made it successfully across the sun-drenched parking lot, but those whod been strong enough were inside now, and it was nice and dark for them. No contest.
Shane knew where he was going. He turned right at a corner, then left, yanked up a fire exit door, and pushed Claire inside. Up! he said. Two flights, then go left!
There were things on the stairs; Claire couldnt see them very well, even in the glow of Shanes flashlight, but they smelled dead, sickly rotten. She tried not to breathe, avoided the sticky puddles of driedwhatever that was, she couldnt think of it as bloodand kept running up the steps. First landing, then another set of stairs, these clear except for some broken bottles she vaulted over.
She yanked the fire door two flights up, and nearly dislocated her shoulder.
It was blocked.
Shane!
He pushed her out of the way, grabbed the handle, and pulled. Shit! He kicked it furiously, looked blank for a second, then turned to the next flight of stairs. One more! Go!
The fifth-floor door was open, and Claire darted through it into the dark.
Her foot caught on something, and she toppled forward, hit the floor, and rolled. Shanes flashlight bounced a ball of light toward her, lighting up scarred linoleum tile, stacks of leaning boxes
and a skeleton. Claire yelped and scrambled back from it, then realized that it was one of those medical teaching skeletons, scattered out on the floor from where shed tripped over it.
Shane grabbed her by the arm, hauled her up, and pulled her along. Claire looked over her shoulder. She couldnt see the biker guy, the one whod been following them. Where had he
She heard a scream.
Oh.
Shane hurried her down the long hall, then turned left and pulled Claire after him. There was another set of fire stairs. He opened the door, and they raced down one flight.
This exit was open. Shane pulled her out into another long, dark hallway and moved fast, counting doorways under his breath.
He stopped in front of number thirteen.
Inside, he said, and kicked it open. Metal gave with a shriek, and the door flew back to slam against tile. Something broke with a clatter like dropped plates.
Claire felt a chill take hold, because she had walked into what looked like a morgue. Stainless steel trays, stainless steel lockers on the wall, some gaping open to reveal sliding trays.
Yes, she was pretty sure it was the morgue. And pretty sure it was going to feature prominently in her nightmares from now on, provided she ever got to sleep again.
This way, Shane said, and pulled open what looked like a laundry chute. Claire.
Oh, hell, no! Because if she hated tight spaces, there couldnt be anything much worse than this. She had no idea how long it was, but it was small, it was dark, and had he said something about morgue tunnels? Was this a body chute? Maybe there was a corpse still stuck in it! Oh God
There were noises coming from outsidethe mob, coming fast.
Sorry, no time, Shane said, and picked her up and dumped her into the chute feetfirst.
She tried not to scream. She thought she might have actually succeeded as she slid helplessly through the dark down a cold, metal tunnel meant only for the dead.