Food had been stored here recently.
There were water barrels, beds made from cardboard, and several crude maps pinned to the walls. A large arrow pointed toward the rooftop access.
Below it someone had written:
THE FRUIT IS REAL.
Below that:
DO NOT TRUST ANYONE.
Yan Cijin stared at the words.
"That is useful advice."
Bai Li looked at the maps.
"There are at least three routes to the roof."
"And?"
"Two are blocked."
"How do you know?"
"The people who made these maps marked them."
Yan Cijin pointed at the third route.
"That one?"
"Still open."
"Then we take it."
Bai Li nodded.
A sound came from the next room.
A human voice.
Both women immediately stopped.
"Did you hear that?" Yan Cijin whispered.
"Yes."
They moved closer.
The voice came again.
"Please."
There was fear in it.
Bai Li opened the door.
A man was trapped beneath a collapsed shelf.
He was bleeding badly.
A woman knelt beside him, trying to lift the metal.
