A Secret Service [NOW PUBLISHED]

Chapter 40 - "Let's go find Link."

A tingling feeling tugged at her the longer the time stretched on and no Link appeared. As less and less students walked into classrooms, she rose from her slouched position. A full minute passed, of completely empty hallways, before she looked at Donovan. A frown was touching the spot between his eyebrows.

The speakers crackled again.

"Students stay in your classrooms until further notice," Principal Withers said. "Any remaining students return to your homerooms immediately."

Donovan ignored the order and pulled out his phone. The frown deepened, as he studied the screen. He then looked at Carter.

"There's no signal," he said.

The niggling feeling took stronger hold of Carter. Both of them were already moving, before they even voiced their thoughts.

"Let's go find Link," she said.

Neither of them talked, their thoughts fully focused on their task. As they moved, they kept their eyes peeled for any sign of Link or inclinations of anything off. There was a low hum of voices that filled the hallways and spilled from open doors.

An unsettling feeling at the unknown creeped around Carter. The world around her seemed to take on a different hue, as if with the closed shutters had darkened everything somehow. Something inside her was telling her there was something wrong, though what, she didn't know. The feeling grew in intensity as the hum began to die down to a low murmur. Their speed steadily increased.

They were hurrying down a set of stairs when Carter began to feel it.

At first she thought the odd feeling was brought on by her building concern. But then her thoughts started to blur and meld into each other. She reached out and gripped the railing. The stairs before her went hazy for a second before coming back into focus. She looked to Donovan and saw him stumble into a wall.

He turned to look at her, his face tight with confusion. Carter clenched the metal bar, forcing herself to shake off the feeling.

It didn't leave.

When Donovan took a step forward and staggered again, something caught Carter's eye. A small grate at the base of the wall. Around it the light was distorted.

That was all it took for one thought to snap Carter out of her daze. Covering her nose with her hand, she stumbled down the stairs towards Donovan. He saw her and the same thoughts crossed his mind. He instantly covered his mouth.

Not bothering to speak, Carter took his hand.

He didn't resist and followed her. His hand was warm in hers as she guided him down the stairs and along a hallway. The cloud in her brain grew, taking over and dampening her thoughts. Through the fog, she held on to one piece of information with a relentless stubbornness.

Beyond open doorways, they could see figures slumping against desks, heavy eyelids sagging closed. Carter felt her body succumbing to the same poison. The same lethargy and eventual unconscious that could lead to Link's harm.

With that thought spurring her on, she guided Donovan to a janitor's closet. Inside, she tried to force aside a metal shelving, the wheels rusty from nonuse. Donovan realized what she was doing and assisted, their limbs weak from the knock out gas.

The wheels shrieked in their grooves. Behind it was a blank, gray wall. Carter moved to the edge, looking for the imperfection. Only a slight dip in the smooth surface gave away the wall's secret. She banged a fist on it and a small, square door popped open revealing a key pad.

She looked to Donovan. He hurried forward and keyed in the right numbers. The wall slid back. Beyond it was a set of narrow stairs. She darted in and looked back for Donovan. He stepped in behind her and hit a button at the top of the stairs. The door shut, locking them into the tight space.