Lupi 06 - Blood Magic

doors.
    Yes. There were openings. He could get out.
    Relief shuddered through him. His wolf calmed, willing to let the man handle this now that he knew he wasn't trapped. Rule dropped to one knee, felt for and found an opening.
    Both above and below, the doors opening on those floors had sprung open, while the interior doors to their cage hadn't. In many newer systems - such as the one in Rule's apartment building - during a power outage the elevator was delivered on battery power to the first floor, where the door automatically opened. That hadn't happened, yet the doors on at least two floors had opened. And there should be emergency lighting, just as the girl had said.
    In other words, the tech was fucked up. "Magic surge?" he murmured. Or something more intentional. Somehow the sorcerer had disabled the hospital tech.
    And it was not illusion. Rule refused to believe any crafted simulation could be so detailed, even to the direction of the nonexistent smoke.
    If all this was real, did that mean the killer was stupid, or that he was unable to disguise himself for some reason?
    The attack on Cullen had been quiet, focused, perfectly executed. Not the work of a stupid man. He'd go with the idea the sorcerer's illusions weren't serving him today.
    "What?"
    "Nothing. We can get out," he told the girl, rising and finding his companion by guess in the dark. He gripped her arms reassuringly. "We've stopped between floors, but the door's open on the floor below, so we can get to it." First floor or second? He didn't think they'd reached the basement, but couldn't be sure.
    "There's smoke. I smell smoke."
    "It's coming down the elevator shaft. The fire is above us." How far up? On the fourth floor? "It's an awkward drop when you can't see what you're doing. I'll go first so I can direct and catch you."
    "Okay. Okay. Let's get out. I need to help with the patients. They'll need help getting all the patients out."
    "Good." Her sudden bravery in the midst of deep fear surprised him into kissing the top of her head. "Good for you. You'll do fine. Sit down now. I'm going to swing down, then I'll catch you."
    Without further words, he dropped to the floor, swung his legs off and out, and landed lightly.
    "I'm right here," he said, taking in what he could with a quick glance. It wasn't fully dark after all. The smoke had obscured the small amount of light available from the long, narrow window above the nurses' station.
    Second floor. He was on the second floor. Nurses and others bustled, called out, but in an orderly way. "I'm reaching up for you - yes, there you are," he said as he found one sneaker-clad foot. "Shove off and let me catch you."
    With a little gulp, she did. He caught her easily, setting her on her feet. "You're on the second floor," he said. "Can you see? The stairs are at either end of this hall. I have to go."
    "Wait," she cried as he turned, crouching to get a little spring. "You're not going back in there? You can't!"
    "My friends are on the fourth floor. I need to be sure they're okay."
    "But you can't!"
    He did, leaping so he could seize the bottom of the elevator cage. He pulled himself up, stood, and felt for the gap he'd found earlier. The angle was awkward, but it wasn't hard to pull himself up.
    Third floor. Here the smoke was thick enough that he saw little. It was hot. He didn't see fire, but in the smoke and darkness, he might not, unless it was close. The voices here were more frantic. Someone still called for Maria. He heard coughing. He hesitated, torn - he could help, he could get people out - but his wolf had to get to the fourth floor.
    He felt for the top of the elevator. The space was narrow, but he could fit. Quickly he hoisted himself, slithering to the roof of the elevator.
    Darkness and smoke. His eyes burned. But the smoke seemed a bit thinner when he stood. Quickly he pulled off his shoes and socks, then seized the cables that held the elevator. He began climbing.
    He went up fast, despite the grease that made the cables slippery. He'd climbed greased rope before. Cables were different, but not enough to slow him much.
    Rule had decided on this course as soon as he knew the elevator's position. The stairs would be mobbed with people going down. He had to go up. This was the fastest way... or it should have been. When he reached the level of the fourth floor he realized he'd included an assumption in his plan. One that hadn't panned out.
    The doors here hadn't behaved the way the