Page 23 of Peak’s Code

"No, I’m betting that it hasn't been for a while now. They have probably been using it to spy on the Grave Prowlers.”

He slowly backed them both against the wall. "If that's active⁠—”

"They know we're here." She finished the thought.

"Unless—” Peak frowned.

"Unless what?" she asked.

"Unless the sensor isn't theirs,” he said.

She stepped forward carefully. "Give me the flashlight." He hesitated but then handed it over. Maeve swept the beam across the ceiling. Half-hidden beneath decades of dirt, she found a tiny black plastic unit that looked like a control panel of some type. Whatever it was, it looked old.

She smiled. "It isn't modern."

Peak looked relieved. "How do you know?"

She pointed up carefully. "It predates wireless networks."

"What does that mean?” he asked.

"It isn't transmitting anywhere or to anyone.” She pulled a small screwdriver from the inside of her boot.

Peak raised an eyebrow. "You carry tools in your boot?"

"I carry lots of things,” she admitted. Within seconds, she had the cover removed. The tiny green circuit board inside looked ancient, and she laughed.

"What’s so funny?" he asked.

"This thing's probably twenty-five years old,” she said. "It belongs to whoever built the tunnel."

Peak relaxed slightly. "Can you disable it?"

"I already did,” she said, snapping one tiny wire. The clicking stopped, and the tunnel fell silent again.

Peak stared at her. "So, how many tools do you carry around in your boot?"

"I told you,” she said. "I carry lots of things. You never know when you’ll need them.” He smiled at her. It wasn’t the almost-smile she'd seen before, but a real one. It transformed his entire face, making him look younger and less burdened.

"You enjoy this, don’t you?” he asked.

She blinked. "What exactly are we talking about here?"

"You like solving puzzles,” he said.

She looked down at the tiny circuit board. "I used to."

"What changed?" he asked.

Her smile disappeared. "They took my sister."

Peak nodded slowly. "I figured that was it."

"No." She carefully replaced the sensor housing exactly as she'd found it. "They didn't just take my sister. "They took—” She searched for the right word. “A part of me, too." Peak didn't argue, because he seemed to know exactly what she meant.

They rounded another bend, and the tunnel suddenly opened into a large underground chamber. Old wooden crates lined one wall, and rusted shelves filled another. At the far end stood a massive steel door, unlike everything else underground, because the door looked new—very new.

Maeve stopped walking. "So much for being abandoned." Peak slowly approached it and looked over the electronic keypad, and her pulse quickened.