“There’s a ramp at the end of the hall. But it won’t do any good, I’m afraid.”
“Why not?”
“Well, really, Dory.” Radu looked at me impatiently. “If it were that easy, I’d have simply managed things myself, wouldn’t I?”
“I dun
no. Might have messed up your manicure,” Ray muttered.
Radu ignored him.
“What’s wrong with the portal?” I asked, dragging the fire extinguishers off the wall. And blessing the vamp paranoia about fire, because they were huge.
“There’s nothing wrong with it. I just don’t know the password.”
I stopped, halfway to the door. “What?”
“Shit,” Ray said violently.
“What password?” I demanded.
“Well, for the shield, of course,” Radu told me.
“Stop saying that. There’s no ‘of course’ when I don’t know shit about this place! And what shield?”
“The one designed to keep anyone from using the portal to gain unauthorized entry, of—” He broke off at my look. “Well, didn’t you expect the Senate to have something? Considering how many enemies—”
“I expected you to know how to turn it off!”
“Well, I would, if I usually worked here. But I don’t and the passwords are changed on a weekly basis. And, of course, I always have escorts—”
“Stop saying that!”
“Well, I’m sorry—”
“Save the apologies,” I snarled. “You have to remember!”
“Well, I can’t—”
“You have to! You were there when they said it!”
“Dory. One has staff so that one does not have to remember.”
“Goddamn it, Radu, that’s not good enough!”
“Well, just shoot me then!”
“I don’t have any bullets!”
Only that wasn’t actually true, I realized a second later. I had bullets; I had a whole box of them for a .44 Magnum. I just didn’t have the Magnum.
But I did have the .410.
I grabbed it and pulled out the box of ammo, shoving loose bullets into my coat pockets and one into the autoloader of the gun. And yes, it fit. But that wasn’t necessarily good news.
The problem was that Magnum bullets pack a whale of a punch, and not just on whatever they hit. They also put tremendous pressure on the barrel of the gun firing them. Including more than was recommended for a .410.
Like, far more.