Alvin Drummond,If you read my last update again you'll see who was in the lobby with you. [b]John Lake[/b] and [b]Gretchen[/b] ran off to the north, but everyone else mentioned in the lobby was still in the room with you.
In the lobby- Megan stuck her head out of the door to the security office. "Is everything all right?" she asked. "What's happening?"
"Another killer?" said Stephanie to Dr. SIngh, looking upset. "Well, at least there's someone here to do something about it. We need people to maintain order too so that we can do our work in peace."
"Come on, let's get upstairs," said Adam. He led her, Chester, Michiko, and Elijah north, leaving Dr. Singh in the lobby with Jerry, Alvin, and Murray.
In the north hall, ground floor- Adam, Stephanie, and their group walked slowly down the hall. Ahead of them, John Lake and Gretchen raced for the stairwell door. Ann and Miles burst through the door and into the stairwell, also drawing their guns.
In the north stairwell, upper floor- John Lee reached the upstairs landing when he heard the female agent call out from below and realized that his ruse had not worked. The stairs continued upwards, presumably to the roof. A door also led south into a hallway. A metal fire door led north, apparently to a fire escape.
In the lobby- Megan returned to the security office.
Alvin, Murray, and Dr. Singh returned to the east hall, leaving Jerry Law alone in the lobby.
In the north hall, ground floor- John Lake and Gretchen Ehrlich ran into the stairwell. Adam, Stephanie, Chester, Michiko, and Elijah followed at a more sedate pace.
In the north stairwell, ground floor- Rashad rushed upstairs after John Lee, but the desperate youth was not slowing down to allow him to catch up. Ann O'Neill and Miles Graham were close behind him.
John Lake and Gretchen burst into the stairwell in time to see the others running upstairs. The other group filtered in shortly afterwards.
On the north fire escape, upper floor- John Lee pushed open the fire exit. No alarm sounded, as there was no power. He found himself on a metal landing about ten feet above the ground. The ladder that could be used to reach the ground was raised, but he could easily lower it and get down. There were also metal stairs on the outside of the building leading up to the roof. He heard the footsteps of his pursuers reach the landing on the stairwell just inside. Below him, an ancient school bus rested in the parking lot, but he did not see any people at first. Then Donald Woodridge stepped out of the bus and called up to him: "What's going on in there?"
In the lobby- Jerry Law remained in the lobby, outside the security office.
"Jerry, you still out there?" called Megan from inside the security office.
In the east hall, ground floor- Alvin, Murray, and Dr. Singh entered the cafeteria.
OOC,[b]Alvin[/b], [b]Murray[/b], and [b]Dr. Singh[/b] are moving to the thread linked below. Please stop reading the current thread at this point, and do not read posts in the new thread above the one in the link. Everyone else remains in the current thread.
In the north stairwell, ground floor- John Lake and Gretchen Ehrlich rushed upstairs. Adam, Stephanie, Chester, Michiko, and Elijah walked some distance behind them.
In the north stairwell, upper floor- Rashad pushed open the fire exit and hurried out onto the fire escape. Ann O'Neill and Miles Graham were right behind him.
On the north fire escape, upper floor- John Lee hesitated on the landing. Rashad Sadiq shoved open the door and joined him out there. The two FBI agents followed only seconds later, their guns drawn.
"Hold it right there!" shouted Ann O'Neill.
Donald lifted his hands, unsure of who they're speaking to. "Is there something wrong?"
Rashad Sadiq,[b]Rashad[/b] saw [b]Rachel Cohen[/b] sitting inside the bus. He also noticed several other people behind the bus, peering around the corner at the scene on the fire escape.
Jerry Law/Megan Petrovich/Kyle Rogers,[b]Jerry[/b] entered the office, where [b]Megan[/b] sat behind the desk and [b]Kyle[/b] was still locked in his cell. "Oh, good," said [b]Megan[/b], standing. "I was hoping to talk to you. Do you think you can relieve me on guard duty, or find someone else who can? I'm not really equipped for this. Maybe if I had a gun..."
"Yeah, like he could do a better job," muttered [b]Kyle[/b]. "He was in here when those thugs nearly beat me to death."
"I have one other question. How well do you know [b]Tariq al-Tikriti[/b]?"
In the north stairwell, upper floor- Stephanie and Adam led Michiko and the others through the door and into the hall.
John Lake and Gretchen Ehrlich stepped out onto the fire escape.
In the north hall, upper floor- Adam led the group down the hall towards the science lab. "We'll be there soon," he said.
On the north fire escape, upper floor-
"Nothing is 'going on,'" called Rachel from below up to Rashad.
Ann O'Neill kept the fire escape door propped open with her foot. "Spare us your paranoia," she said to John Lee. "Turn around and put your arms behind your back so my partner can cuff you. Then we're going back inside."
"Everything's fine now!" Miles Graham called down to the people in the parking lot.
John Lake and Gretchen Ehrlich emerged from the stairwell. The fire escape was getting pretty crowded now.
Rashad raised his voice: "Why are you arresting him? What did he do?"
Jerry Law/Megan Petrovich/Kyle Rogers,"Well, that's certainly true," said [b]Megan[/b] to [b]Jerry[/b], "but I overheard him speaking with his two friends in Arabic. I couldn't quite make out what they were saying, but it sounded suspicious. I have pretty good instincts about this sort of thing. Just keep your eyes open, I guess. Are you going to be staying in the office for now? I'd like a chance to get out for a bit."
In the north hall, upper floor-
"We're going to build a second EMP device," Stephanie told Michiko. "That way we can leave one in Omaha to keep the city safe and take the other on the bus, so people can stay safe while on the move." The group rounded the corner to the left.
In the northeast hall, upper floor-
"The science lab is right through that door," Adam Donnelly told the rest of the science group, pointing at the door ahead and to the right. "We won't have much daylight left, but the windows will let in moonlight and we can light some burners to help us see once it starts getting dark."
On the north fire escape, upper floor- Donald shot a glance to Rachel, then back to what's going on. "What's he talking about?" Donald inquired. "And why are you detaining him? Has he done something that warrants this?"
"I'm not 'detaining' anyone," said Rachel, apparently thinking that Donald was talking to her. "Rashad, are you in trouble?"
"Yes, what is this about?" asked Gretchen Ehrlich.
"We're not detaining Rashad, ma'am," said Ann O'Neill. She pointed at John Lee. "We're detaining this man for questioning in a homicide in Cheyenne with national security implications. He was spotted removing evidence and fleeing the scene." She glared at Lee. "Now put your hands behind your back. I'm not going to tell you again."
Donald looked at John Lee from below. "Is this true, John?" the janitor asked.