“Yes, it is,” North said.

Matt turned back to Sierra. “That’s it. I don’t remember anything else after that until I woke up out here.”

CHAPTER 13

Sierra opened the door of the SUV and jumped up behind the wheel. North got in on the passenger’s side. They buckled their seat belts while they watched Matt drive away from the construction site.

Time was running out, Sierra thought. They had to keep moving. But North was about to collapse from exhaustion. She did not mention that fact, however. She was pretty sure he would deny it.

“What’s next?” she said instead.

“I’ll call Victor.” North pulled out a cell phone. “Bring him up to date. Then we need to go back to the Vault and see if we can get a lead on the man who met with Harper tonight.”

“Okay. The security people at the Vault should be able to tell us a few things.” Sierra glanced at the metal box that North was holding in both hands. “Do you think that artifact is still dangerous?”

“No, not in its current state. There’s a crystal inside. I don’t know what kind. There’s still plenty of energy in it, but it’s not focused or channeled. It feels like a battery that needs to be recharged or an engine that requires fuel.”

She caught her breath. “Do you know how to recharge it?”

“Maybe. I’ve got a crystal back home that I might be able to use to get this device up and running. But now isn’t the time for experiments. We need to keep moving here in Seattle. Let’s head for the Vault.”

“Right.”

Sierra put the SUV in gear and pulled away from the curb. She drove to the alley entrance of the Vault and handed the keys to Brick.

“We won’t be staying long,” she said. “Just need to ask security about one of the customers who came here tonight.”

“Take your time,” Brick said.

He opened the rear door of the club. Sierra led the way inside. North followed.

—

Fifteen minutes later they were back in the SUV.

“That was a waste of time,” she said, firing up the engine.

“Not entirely,” North said. “We learned a few things about the guy with the briefcase.”

“Just that he claimed to be a collector who was trying to arrange for a delivery,” Sierra said.

“We also learned that he’s new in town, or at least new at the Vault,” North pointed out. “And we got a name and an address. Raymond Waddell from Portland, Oregon.”

“Twenty bucks says the name and the address are fake.”

“I’m sure you’re right, but it’s something to give to Victor and Lucas. Guys who go to the trouble of paying for fake IDs usually use them more than once. Lucas will run Waddell through the Foundation database. We may get lucky.”

“All right.”

“You and I need to keep moving,” North said.

Sierra decided she’d had enough.

“What you need,” she said evenly, “is sleep.”