The women looked at the two soldiers.

“They were here when I got here,” Lance said.

“Like that?” Sofia said.

He shook his head. “No. Not like that.”

“Oh,” she said, realizing her mistake.

“Did you know soldiers were looking for you?”

“I should have,” she said.

Lance looked at the women. They weren’t fighting him. They seemed relieved he was there. They’d be willing to help.

“I’m here to destroy the bioweapons research being conducted at the institute,” he said.

“All right,” Sofia said.

Lance looked at them. “Will you help?”

“I don’t know how,” Sofia said.

“I can get us in there,” Lance said, “but I need you to show me what’s what. Without you, I won’t know what I’m looking for.”

Sofia looked at Olga and then back at him.

“It will be dangerous,” she said.

Lance nodded.

She thought for a moment. Looked again at Olga. Olga nodded.

“All right,” Sofia said. “I can show you the live samples. And the servers where the research data is backed up.”

Lance nodded. “We’ll need to hurry. There’s not a lot of time.”

“There are some files here I want to destroy first,” Sofia said.

“All right,” Lance said. “But don’t try anything.”

She nodded and got up. Lance and Olga watched as she gathered some papers, a laptop, and two external hard drives.

“Is that everything?” Lance said.

“What about the soldiers?” Sofia said as she stepped over them.

“They won’t be troubling anyone.”

“They’ll think Sofia killed them,” Olga said.

“I’m sorry, ladies,” Lance said, “but that ship has sailed. You’re both fugitives now.”

Olga looked scared but Sofia said, “We were already on the run, Olga.”

Olga nodded. “How do you propose we get inside the institute?” she said. “There will be soldiers everywhere. It’s a military compound.”

“You leave that to me,” Lance said.

Both women were looking at the dead soldiers.

“Why don’t you let me make a phone call first?” Sofia said.

“Who are you calling?”

“One of the scientists inside the compound.”

“Be careful what you say,” Lance said. “They might be listening.”

Sofia went to the landline and dialed a number. She looked surprised when someone actually picked up.

“Vasily,” she said. “Are you all right?”

Lance went over and pressed the speaker button the phone.

Vasily was whispering, afraid of being overheard.

“Sofia, where are you?”

She hesitated. “What’s the situation there?” she said.

“Don’t come here,” he said. “Get as far away as possible. Yevchenko and his men are asking everyone if they know where you are.”

“What did you tell them?”

“I told them you’d gone to the hospital.”

“They’ll think I’m dead.”

“No, they’re going to be conducting a manhunt for you. You need to go into hiding.”

“Hiding? Where?”

“I don’t know.”