Free The Ambitious Orphan by Amelia Price Page B

identification. I have something to deal with.” He
stalked off, taking the document and photo with him.
    She sat back,
wondering what he might need to do before she remembered that
Nesterov was somewhere on the site. It was also likely to be what
they were referring to when they had mentioned a package earlier.
Myron hadn't answered, and she didn't need to be a genius to know
it was likely to be because the man had tortured her.
    The last time
she'd spoken to Myron he'd told her to face her fears, and she knew
she wanted to do that here as well. Maybe she'd find it easier to
sleep if she confronted the man who'd been responsible for
abducting her.
    About half an hour
after Myron left, the soldier from the other office appeared again
and handed her an identification tag with her name and picture
on.
    “Wear this when
you're at military facilities and other government buildings.
You've got security clearance level delta.”
    “Is that high?”
she asked.
    “Higher than
mine,” he replied, giving her a brief smile. “Welcome to the
team.”
    She shook his hand
and decided he might be a little more forthcoming with information
than Myron, given the level of clearance she'd just been given.
    “The package you
mentioned earlier. It's Nesterov, isn't it?”
    He nodded and gave
her a piercing look as if he was unsure why she'd been given
access.
    “Good,” she
continued, putting on an air of confidence as alike Myron's as she
could manage. “Can you direct me to the room you have him in, or
have someone escort me there?”
    “Has that been
authorised, ma'am?”
    “Yes. Myron
himself requested I do so. Something about facing my fears.” She
smiled at the soldier.
    “I'll take you
there myself,” he replied, relenting. It wasn't fully the truth,
and she wondered quite how Myron would react, but it was true that
he'd encouraged her to face her fears at all times. Nesterov was a
fear, and she was going to confront it.
    She followed the
rigid soldier as he walked back through most of the hallways that
had led her there, and then took a new turn towards a lift. Once
inside, he paused and motioned towards a slot to swipe cards.
    “It's usual for
the person with the higher authority in an area to scan their
cards, ma'am”
    “Ah, right,” she
said and fed her card through the slot. A moment later a bunch of
numbers lit up on the panel that had been dark. He pressed the
bottommost number while she tried not to grin. Already she was
superior to people who'd been training a long time. Being tied to
Myron definitely carried weight.
    The lift moved
steadily downwards for several minutes, ticking down numbers until
they came to a halt on the bottom floor.
    “This way, ma'am,”
the soldier said and moved past her out into the corridor. The air
smelt damp and musty as she followed out, making her wrinkle her
nose momentarily and think back to the Russian compound. This
facility was nowhere near as bad, but having something so deep
underground always led to a small amount of damp after enough
years.
    It was easy to see
why Nesterov was down on this level. Everything was enclosed in
concrete, and the corridors as well the as the lift entrance were
covered with bulk-head doors that would take a serious explosion or
blow-torch to get through once they were closed.
    Amelia fought back
her shivers and kept her breathing deep and calm as she walked. It
wouldn't be wise to let this soldier see her afraid, or Myron, if
he was around here somewhere.
    They rounded a
corner and finally saw another living person. The agent who had
followed her home from the fitness centre the day before sat at a
small table, playing a game of patience with a worn and grimy
looking pack of cards. He looked up as soon as their footsteps
announced their approach, and she smiled warmly at him.
    “Hello, ma'am.”
His eyes roved over her and settled on the card she still had in
her hand.
    “Well, here you
are, ma'am. I'll leave you in Steven's capable hands,”