“I’m sorry,” he said and she looked at him. “I guess we both come from secretive professions and it's been a bit too firmly entrenched in us.”
“I guess you could say that,” Sarah agreed. They were silent a few moments before Sarah went on, “What do we do?” Tyler looked at her and she knew he could tell she didn’t want to hear the same old crap as before about telling the truth and being open and honest.
“I suppose we just have to play it the way we see it,” he said. She was glad of this answer in a way, it made her feel better about him somehow, like he was actually more trustworthy than she thought.
“What does that mean to you?” she asked.
“The same thing it means to you,” he said. He had a point, her job was different to his but they had passed a boundary that made it all the same now. She didn’t have any more right to withhold from him than he did her in this unique case. Again she wondered how the hell she’d gotten herself into such a fraught position and knew at once why.
“We both have the same endgame in getting Spading,” she said, “The only way we can do this is as a team.”
“We’re going to get him,” Tyler said defiantly, in her own current mood she believed him.
Chapter 34
MEGAN DIDN’T LIKE WHAT she saw in Carson Lemond. He’d been here a full two days now and she hadn’t warmed to him. The other side had their claws in him but he didn’t seem close to becoming like one of them yet. Two days was a very short time in the normal world, but in this basement dungeon it was a lifetime. Especially when you were with the same people practically twenty-four hours a day.
What she liked least about him was that Megan didn't think he was being fully honest about his story. Sure, Spalding could have set him up for a murder in the restaurant, but the story Carson had told about why he might have been chosen was nonsense. There was more to it and he wasn’t saying. That made her think it was something bad. Why else wouldn't he share the truth?
“Do you think the journalist was working with, or for Spalding?” Megan asked when they passed again in the hallway. Carson looked at her like this idea had not occurred to him at all up to now.
“Do you think he could have been?” he asked.
“Anyone could have been,” Megan snapped back. “That’s his whale thing, getting other people to do all this dirty work for him.” He looked at her aghast and shook his head,
“No, I don’t think so,” he said. “He left me there and I could have left if I wanted before this guy came and took me.”
“Could you?” Megan asked, “He could have been outside waiting for you all the time in case you tried that.” Carson seemed lost for words, like each thing said to him was more confusing than the last.
“I guess so,” he stammered, “But...” He stared blankly at her and didn’t say anything more, didn’t have anything he could say. Megan curled her lip up in disgust but the look on his face, his crestfallen eyes made her feel bad about this. She felt like one of the girls who used to bully her in high school and it wasn’t a nice feeling.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “This place is hard on everyone. It’s just death all around us, only most of the fools here think by now it’s like a summer camp.” She was so angry with those who believed this was a safe place for them.
“Has anyone ever escaped from here?” he asked her and alarm bells rang out shrilly in Megan’s mind. She looked harshly at him, glowering as hard as she could. He looked taken aback and stumbled over his words,
“I’m sorry,” he said finally. She assumed he got the idea that you didn’t talk about those kinds of things as she walked away from him. His asking was the final nail in the coffin for his chances of being part of their escape bid. If he wasn’t involved with Spalding, he was definitely too stupid to be a valuable member of the team.
At the evening meal, Megan avoided eye contact with Carson and let the others talk to him about the outside world and the murders he was accused of. Ellie noticed this and it came up that night in the bedroom as the rest snored and slept soundly.
It was almost two hours after lights out that night before Megan felt it was safe to shuffle over to Ellie. Sometimes one of them might fall asleep while waiting for this quiet time and tonight was one of those times despite Ellie’s urgent need to talk to Megan.
“Ellie?” Megan whispered, waving a hand at her to cause a draft to her face at the same time. Ellie stirred but did not wake. “Jesus Ellie,” Megan said under her breath. She leaned out a little farther, her hands cold on the floor and then waved her hand again whispering once more. This time Ellie’s eyes did open and she looked at Megan for about ten seconds before she realised she was back awake and this was real. She sat up and then recalled where she was laying back down before leaning over and coming on her hands to meet Megan between their beds.
“Sorry, I must have dozed off. It took so long tonight,” Ellie said.
“Never mind that,” Megan said, "I just wanted to let you know Carson won't be part of our plan.”
“No?”
“No, I spoke to him today. I don’t think he’d be up to it and he’d likely slow us down. We’d get caught before we got to the highway with him in tow.” Ellie nodded as Megan spoke.
“What did he
