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III
At half past seven, a full four hours after the Magyar had concluded
that MA was dead and had consigned her body to rape and experimentation, Spencer
and Toynbee stood at the door to the lab, while Toynbee fumbled with the key.
They had found the belt in a storeroom next to the torture chamber and had taken
it without asking anyone's permission. They planned to disassemble it and find
out its secrets.
"The Magyar won't like this," Toynbee whispered, as Spencer slipped the
belt from under his lab coat.
"The Magyar need never know," Spencer replied. "Besides, if we find
something useful, he'll probably give us a bonus."
They entered the lab like schoolboys up to a bit of mischief. MA's body
lay peacefully in the middle of the floor.
"Well, which should we take apart first - the belt or her?" Spencer
asked jauntily. This adventure had boosted his spirits.
"I'm not sure," said Toynbee. "I guess the belt can wait. She can't -
unless we freeze her."
Spencer looked down at MA. "Here's another idea," he said. "This belt
protected Ms. Americana when she was alive. What would it do now that she's
dead?"
"Dangerous, Spencer. Very dangerous."
"Why? You're a scientist. You know the dead do not rise."
Toynbee remained doubtful. "If you're convinced the belt cannot revive
her, why put it on her? What's the point?"
"The point, Dr. Toynbee, is to see if the belt protects her body even in
death. To see whether or not it will allow us to - in the words of the
incomparable Corgi - 'rip her open.'"
"Yes. Yes, I see. A very different matter," said Toynbee. "So you don't
think she'll . . . ."
"Be restored to life and come after us like the unkillable villain in a
slasher movie? Of course not."
"Well, then, perhaps we should give it a try. If the belt blocks us from
doing our work, we can always take it off."
"And disassemble it - and her," added Spencer triumphantly. It was the
first time he had ever taken control of an experiment in the four years he had
worked for Toynbee. He felt elated and powerful.
They lifted MA back onto the examining table and laid her face down.
Then Spencer raised her midsection while Toynbee slipped the belt under her.
"There doesn't seem to be a conventional buckle," the older man muttered. He
held the two ends of the belt a few inches apart, just above the small of her
back.
"You're right," said Spencer. "Well, it probably works by magnetism.
When the two ends get close enough, they lock into place . . . . like this." He
reached over and pulled Toynbee's hands together.
There was a sudden snap, and the belt was all in one piece, as if it had
never left its owner's body.
"Well," said Spencer, "that takes care of that." He sounded nonchalant,
but inside he was nervous.
Toynbee was nervous, too. "So, what do we do now, my young Dr.
Frankenstein?"
"We test its protective powers." Spencer opened a drawer and took out a
surgical knife with a gleaming, five-and-a-half-inch blade. He held it just
above her left buttock, then pushed. The blade indented her flesh but didn't
enter it. He pushed harder. Still no incision. He raised the knife and brought
it down with all his strength.
Still, no broken skin. Not a drop of blood.
"Mein Gott," said Toynbee.
MA's body jerked. It was a small movement, but both men saw it.
"Mein Gott," Toynbee repeated.
Now MA began shaking violently.
"Get the belt off of her," Spencer yelled. Toynbee reached for the belt,
but his hands ran into a jolt of electricity that sent him reeling backwards.
Spencer slashed desperately at MA with the knife. The blade broke off,
and he found himself holding only the stainless steel handle.
MA's tremors had pushed her to the edge of the table. Suddenly she fell
off and landed with a thud on the floor.
They looked down at her. Her eyes were open, and she looked up.
Without a word of consultation, the scientists bolted for the door.
Spencer was quicker and got through first. Toynbee was only a half second
behind, but when he stepped through the doorway, he staggered and clutched his
chest. His last coherent thought consisted of a single word: thrombosis.
He fell dead even as MA was rising unsteadily to her feet. She had no
idea where she was. She remembered nothing since the Magyar had showed her a
silvery wand in the torture chamber.
She stepped over Toynbee's body and looked around the hallway. There was
an elevator door few feet from her. Further down the hall was an illuminated
exit sign.
Must be a stairway, she thought. Safer than the elevator. They'll
probably come by elevator.
She ran to the exit, opened the door carefully and looked into the
stairwell. There was a single flight of stairs going up, probably to the roof.
She looked down. It appeared she was on the top floor of a three or four-story
building. A door opened below and she heard excited voices.
Going down was out of the question. She raced up the stairs and came to
a metal trap door. She tried the handle. It was locked. She closed her eyes,
mustered all her strength and pushed up as hard as she could. Her feet slipped
and she bounced back down the stairs to the landing where she had started.
"I hear her," someone yelled below. "She's trying to get out on the
roof."
There was a loud bang, and a bullet ricocheted off a railing just inches
from her.
The lab. Maybe there was a window or a fire escape. Two more shots rang
out. A bullet grazed her belt and veered off into the darkness.
She rolled into the hallway, jumped up and headed for the lab. Another
shot rang out, and the slug hit her in the middle of the back. It knocked the
breath out of her, and she fell to her hands and knees.
When she tried to get back up, Mastiff clubbed her with the butt of an
AR-15. She sank back to the floor.
"Looks like Toynbee bought the farm," said Wolfhound, breathing heavily
after rushing up the stairs.
"Just as well," said Mastiff. "Boss would've killed him. I can't wait to
see what he does to this slut." She slipped her boot under MA's belly and
flipped her over.
"She ain't that good-looking," said Wolfhound. "You think she's
good-looking?"
"I think she's the most beautiful woman I ever saw," answered Mastiff.
"And I hate her fucking guts."
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