FiveThe only sound which echoed along the corridor was that of my footsteps, the guard leaving me at the entrance. Above and to the side were arrayed whole banks of monitors, all of them filled with the same image – me, walking nervously along the gleaming white, clinically clean pathway to God alone knew where.
Reaching the end, the corridor split into two directions, a red beam pointing its way along the correct path. I took my time, keeping my breathing controlled and easy, aware that sensors would pick up any change in my heartbeat patterns, and soon I came to a blank, gunmetal door. I waited until it slowly opened to reveal the Protector's private apartment.
It was huge, a vast space with vaulted ceiling and oak panelled walls, its grandeur befitting the Protector's position in the
