Just under an hour, the ventilation shaft became twice as wide, signaling I’d passed from the main building to the newer system of Deep Echo. I was finally able to push up onto my hands and knees to crawl. My muscles were screaming, inching along for that long so restricted, but my adrenaline pressed me onward.

Every ten feet or so I would pass over vents. Some rooms were empty, some contained scenarios I’d have to cover my mouth to keep from crying out. Things I would pretend didn’t exist long after I’d seen them with my own eyes. I kept crawling, tears running down my cheeks, wondering what they’d done to Zeke while I waited for the right time to rescue him.

Even in the middle of the night, the screams and moans from the vents surrounded me, filtering up through the vents in front of and behind me. Suddenly, the shaft took a 45-degree dive down, and I couldn’t see the bottom.

This wasn’t in the schematics.

I tried to use my fingertips and sneakers to slow my fall, but I gained momentum and ended up rolling at the bottom to help muffle some of the noise. When I looked up, the numbered vent I was looking for was right in front of me. My adrenaline spiked again as I pulled out the screwdriver and went to work.

Once the device made its tell-tale click, I crawled from the vent. The commons area was dark and empty; trying too hard to look homey but smelled like a deep cave inside a mountain.

Soundless, I crept past the cafeteria, then took a left, half thrilled that I had gotten that far, half expecting for the lights to come on and to get caught at any second.

The sign said Sub1-C.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four…

Thirteenth door on the left.

I reached out my shaking hand and twisted the knob, pushing. It was unlocked, so I snuck in and closed the door behind me. A few moments passed while I waited for my eyes to adjust to the dark, and then I could hear Zeke whispering just a few feet away.

“You won’t be able to see. There’s no light for your eyes to pull from. Is that you?”

I breathed out, feeling my chest and throat tighten. I fished for a small pen in my cargo pocket then clicked the button. “It’s me, babe. We don’t have much time.”

I shined the tiny pinpoint beam on him, seeing he was still lying in bed. I kneeled next to him. “Can you move?”

“My last treatment was today, so I’m not feeling so good. But they said that last time too. It usually just lasts an hour or two then I feel better.”