Take the vent.

Jen slid away from the boxes and started working her fingernails into the vent cover. The top center of the cover pulled away from the wall about half an inch, but the corners weren’t budging.

I don’t even know how this thing is attached, she realized.

She moved her hands over to a corner of the vent, checking around the boxes and making sure the teens were still engaged in their conversation.

“Trust me, stick around long enough and someone else will have a good week, Kacey will have to take a few closing shifts. It’s happened before.”

“For just a week, though? It shouldn’t work like that.”

“Come up with a better plan, bounce it off the box.”

Jen was able to get her fingernails around the upper left corner of the vent cover. Pulling lightly, she continued to increase pressure until she saw the corner moving. Suddenly it gave way, pulling out with a quiet ‘thunk’. The cover shifted enough that she could see a small plastic clip, and realized there must be one in each corner. A quick peek out again to make sure the noise hadn’t given her away- no one looking her way- and she moved to the bottom left corner.

Eavesdropping while she worked, she heard the one teenager continue griping while the other two tried to explain things to him. Another clip let loose and Jen worked on gripping the right side of the cover. With this much wiggle room, the last two clips popped free easier than the first two. She picked up the cover and set it up against the boxes, careful to make sure it wouldn’t slide down and rattle on the ground.

She slid away from the vent and pivoted on her hip until she was lying flat on the ground.

This is going to be tricky, she thought, sliding into a vent without letting my legs show around the side of these boxes. She started sliding forward, her arms heading into the vent, her fingertips pressing against the slide and helping to pull her in.

As her head entered the vent she realized it was several degrees colder in here, and the whole vent was covered in fine gray dust. If it was ever cleaned, it had clearly been a while since anyone bothered. Up ahead she could barely make out an intersection with the vent running left and right. She kept sliding in, soon her breasts and nipples skimming across the sheet metal She got in up to her hips, feeling bent at a 90 degree angle while she tried to prevent being seen by the teens. Adapting a process of inching herself in, Jen started to work deeper and deeper into the vent.

When she felt the wall hard against her knees, she knew she’d gone as far as she could manage without moving her legs away from the wall. Her hips and butt lightly touched the metal surrounding her. She moved her hands ahead and found a little purchase for her fingers at a seam in the metal. As quickly and carefully as she could manage she let her legs swing away from the wall and pulled herself in. Soon she felt the cool metal underneath her bare feet.

She took a second to listen. Over the quiet echoes of random, tinny pops and tings coming from the vent ahead of her, she didn’t hear any sign that the teens had seen anything. From this position she couldn’t make out much of any sound behind her, and had to trust that she’d made it without being detected.

Bit by bit Jen worked her way forward, her fingers and toes pressing against the metal and pushing her ahead inches at a time. Reaching the junction, she squirmed her way into the tunnel heading left, towards the side of the mall where Eve was waiting for her.

Jen’s eyes began to adjust to the dark and she was able to see slightly better. Up ahead she saw a wall of metal. She slid forward another foot and was able to make out that the vent traveled upwards.

Of course, ceiling vents into the stores, she thought.

She continued working her way through the small, narrow tunnel, eventually reaching the branch up. Working her way into the turn, she was finally able to stand up. At her full height the tunnel still reached over top of her. She stretched her arms upwards and was only barely able to feel the end of the vent- not enough to grip onto. Thinking out her moves, Jen leaned against the back wall and pressed her feet into the metal ahead of her. Pushing her hands into the sides of the vent, she was able to start working her way up.

Placing her foot against the metal she was met with a loud “thunk”. She sound reverberated as she froze in place, realizing that the sheet metal was only suspended and not supported by anything. It was bulging and contracting with the pressure she pushed against it now. She wasn’t sure what had prevented this before on the lower level- presumably the ground- but now she would have to be even more careful with her movements.

Working her way up, she started to feel her leg and arm muscles tire. She had to place her feet and hands carefully and sometimes slowly to avoid making as much noise. Some shifting of the metal was unavoidable, but she felt that if she could not make as much sound then she might avoid people thinking there was something in the vents.

With time and effort Jen finally worked her way up the tunnel. She pulled herself into the next shaft and began making progress going forward again. She passed by a tunnel leading to the right, knowing that would take her off track. She wanted to go straight for as long and as far as she possibly could.

Several feet further along she spotted something unusual in the venting ahead. She kept moving, eventually realizing it was a shaft going downwards. Eventually she reached it and peered over the edge. She expected to be able to see more sheet metal below, where the vent started running close to the ground again but she was greeted only with darkness.

It’s so dark I don’t know if this goes to the floor or even further down, she thought. Maybe to the basement? Do malls even have basements?

She carefully took in the dilemma ahead of her. The tunnel continued onwards past this branch down, but the gap was over two feet wide, maybe close to three. Jen instinctively felt it would be possible to get across this without falling, but she was far from certain.

It’s either trying to cross this, or I go backwards to the vent that was branching to the right. That would take me off course but I wouldn’t have to risk falling…