“I’ve heard a little bit about the Coalition,” she admitted. “But I don’t know much.”
He rested his elbow on the back of the couch. “What have you heard?”
She finished off her drink. “Just that your facility was formed by several pre-war governments. You guys have some pretty advanced technology, which I’ve seen for myself. You’ve absorbed some other smaller facilities, but no one has heard much about you for several years now.”
“Interesting. You are better informed than most. Your information is fairly accurate.” Sergei refilled her glass and tapped his against hers before taking another drink. “It was created around same time as your towers. Several governments worked together to build our facility. Only our best and brightest were accepted. We do not tolerate failure or weakness in any form.”
“Survival of the fittest?” That was definitely a concept she understood. It was the basic premise of life as a ruin rat.
He nodded in approval. “Yes. Intelligence, strength, and perseverance are critical to survival. To accept anything less is foolish.”
She might agree to some extent, but it still didn’t explain their presence. “Are you here to try to absorb OmniLab?”
“Hmm,” he murmured and ran his thumb against her arm again. “Not exactly. Our Coalition is dedicated to unifying various facilities around world. Only way to rebuild our world to its former glory is to work under single banner.”
Kayla leaned back, sipped her drink, and considered his words. While it might be an interesting theory, it wasn’t practical. Alec had made it clear that OmniLab would remain independent.
Based on what she’d seen, the Inner Circle and High Council seemed to have a sense of entitlement regarding their position within the towers. Unless the Coalition intended to work under OmniLab’s banner, she didn’t see it happening.
It was more than that though. The energy manipulation utilized by the Inner Circle set them apart from other facilities. Even though the residents of OmniLab were aware there were some differences between them and the Inner Circle, it wasn’t openly discussed and their abilities were cloaked in mystery. Kayla had grown up without realizing energy manipulation was even a possibility. She wondered if Sergei or the Coalition were aware of OmniLab’s hidden talents. If so, that added a whole other layer of concerns.
Kayla bit her lip at the thought. There were too many factors at play, and she didn’t have enough information. Although she was confident Alec and OmniLab would never bow to anyone, they might be open to a possible alliance between the facilities.
He searched her gaze. “Where are your thoughts, Milaya?”
“What about an alliance with OmniLab?”
Sergei chuckled. “Do you think they would consider such a thing? From what we have seen, they do not even trade directly with your friends.”
Kayla frowned and put her glass on the table. She was starting to feel the effects from the alcohol, and while it helped numb the pain in her shoulder, she needed to keep a clear head. She looked up at Sergei again. It was time for some straight answers. “So you map their districts in secret. Why not try talking to OmniLab directly?”
He studied her and asked casually, “What makes you think we have not?”
Her eyes narrowed. Was he serious? “We’re just ruins rats as far as they’re concerned. They would respond to another facility, unless you’re avoiding them for some reason.”
“I would like to propose another toast in your language this time,” Sergei said and refilled her glass before handing it back to her. He gently tapped it with his. “To beautiful woman who knows far more than she pretends.”
Kayla’s eyes widened. “Oh, fucking hell. Are you just toying with me here?”
He simply smiled and finished off his glass. She scowled at him before tossing back her drink. The empty glass hit the table with a clank.
Sergei shrugged. “Perhaps somewhat, Milaya. We have both been trying to get information out of one another since we met. We have both been mildly successful. I am curious whether you will admit why you are interested in our motivations.”
She frowned at him. “Because I think you guys are up to no good. Why are you hiring ruin rats to map the districts when you’ve been running aircraft surveillance through the districts for the past several days?”
He looked surprised by her admission. Good. It’s about time.
“I see. How did you come by this information?”
“It was a little hard to miss. You flew over my damn head the other day.”
He leaned forward. “Yet you believe it was us and not OmniLab. Why?”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, your little circle symbol was a pretty good indicator. I pieced together a couple of images.”
Kayla stood to pull out her commlink and show him, but a sudden wave of dizziness washed over her. Sergei shot up from the couch and caught her before she could fall. He wrapped his arm around her waist to steady her. She blinked and looked up at him. The man had fast reflexes.
“You do not need to show me, Milaya. Perhaps you should sit back down. I suspect you are not able to handle your liquor as well as others.”
Crap. She didn’t think she’d had that much to drink. It had a bite, but the smoothness of the liquor had made it seem less potent. “I’m fine. At least, I think I’m fine. That stuff kinda sneaks up on you.”
“Yes, it can,” he agreed and shifted her slightly. With his free hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small metallic object. She recognized the strange emblem from the aircraft.
His fingers hooked under the strap of her tank top and he affixed the small pin to the material. “This is symbol you saw, correct?”
Kayla looked down at the circular design and nodded. Sergei gave her a knowing smile and ran his thumb over the design. “Consider this gift. Circle symbolizes unity. Line marks our path. By wearing this, you will be viewed as friend to our people.”
Her brow furrowed. Did she want to be viewed as a friend? She didn’t trust him or their little group. Still, it couldn’t hurt. It was better than being their enemy. Kayla looked up at him and paused at the intensity in his gray eyes. He slowly ran his fingers along her shoulder and traced her collarbone to the hollow of her throat. His gaze dropped to her mouth, and he murmured, “Ty takaya krasivaya.”
She swallowed. She just wanted information, not to be his next meal, and he looked like he wanted to devour her. “What does that mean?”
Kayla thought she saw a look of regret in his eyes, but it was gone quickly. He nodded toward her injured arm. “An observation. How is your arm feeling?”
“My arm?” She rubbed her shoulder in surprise. It still hurt, but it wasn’t nearly as noticeable. “Oh, wow. A lot better. That vodka works pretty well.”
“Would you like more?”
Before she could reply, Mack and Marshall entered the room. Mack’s eyes narrowed on Sergei’s arm around her, and then he scowled. “What’s going on in here?”
“Hello, Mack,” Sergei said in his accented voice. He lowered his hand but didn’t move away. “Kayla and I are getting to know each other. I do not believe I have met your friend.”
Mack’s gaze shot to Kayla. She shook her head, letting him know everything was fine. He frowned but introduced his companion. Marshall was a thin, wiry individual who frequently paired up with Johnny. He’d come from another scavenging camp less than a year ago, and his eagerness to fit in had a tendency to annoy Kayla. Obviously pleased to be included in the conversation, Marshall rushed to sit down on the couch. “Nice to meet you, Sergei. It’s good to see you back, Kayla. It’s been a lot quieter around here since you took off.”
She snorted and swayed slightly. Without Sergei’s arm around her, the floor wasn’t quite as steady. “Yeah, I think Leo’s blood pressure shot up the minute I walked back in the door.”
Mack’s eyes narrowed on her. “You okay, babe?”
Kayla nodded and sat back down on the couch. “My arm doesn
’t hurt anymore.”
He shot a suspicious glance at Sergei. “You get into the pain meds or something?”
She shook her head and pointed to the half-empty bottle on the table. Mack glanced at it and then asked Sergei, “What is that?”
“I brought vodka with me,” he explained and waved his hand toward the bottle. “Please, help yourself. It helped with her pain.”
Mack picked up Kayla’s empty glass and poured a small amount of vodka into it. He sniffed it and then took a drink. “How much of this did she have?”
“Maybe three glasses,” Sergei answered for her with a shrug.
Kayla leaned back and curled her feet up underneath her. She was feeling pretty warm and comfortable now. “It’s good stuff. It might even be better than the pain meds.”
“Uh huh,” Mack replied and put the glass on the table. “Glad to hear it. We’ve got some bad news though.”
“Oh?” Kayla reached for the glass Mack abandoned. Sergei sat back down next to her and topped it off.
Mack sighed. “Your bike is missing.”
Kayla blinked at him in confusion. “Huh? What are you talking about? We left it by that building.”
“We drove out there and it was gone. I don’t know who picked it up. I suspect it was probably Carl. There were some tracks that led back in the direction of his camp.”
“That dirty, rotten, thieving bastard!” She sat up straight. “I bet he had a secondary tracking device on my bike. Crap. I got rid of one before I left, but he must have had a backup on there. He’s too damn sneaky.”
Sergei glanced back and forth between them. “You speak of OmniLab trader?”
Mack nodded. “Yeah. If Carl’s got her bike, we can get it back. It’s just going to be a pain in the ass.”
“I can’t believe he jacked my bike,” Kayla muttered.
“I can,” Mack said and ran his hand through his short hair. He leaned back on the couch. “We’ll figure it out. You’re not going to be driving anywhere for a few days anyway with that arm.”
Sergei turned to look at her. “You know this trader well?”
“She worked in his camp for the past month,” Marshall volunteered. “Before that, he was chasing her ass like you wouldn’t believe. He tracked her for months.”
“Shut up, Marshall,” Kayla said in irritation.
Mack shot Marshall a warning look. The newer scavenger shrugged. “What’s the big deal? Everyone knows Carl’s been after her since we moved here.”
“I see,” Sergei said thoughtfully. “Is it common to work in trader camps?”
“Hell no,” Marshall replied. “Kayla pissed off another trader named Ramiro. She stole this crazy-rare artifact from him, and he put a price on her head. Carl let her hide out in his camp since it was his fault Ramiro found her again. But she killed the bastard Ramiro sent after her. I heard she cut his throat—”
“Marshall!” Mack growled angrily.
Kayla slammed her glass down and shot to her feet. The room swayed, but she ignored it. “That’s it, Marshall. If you were any brighter, you’d be in the damned visible spectrum. I warned you last time that if you started talking about my personal life again, I was going to kick your ass. Get your ass up out of that chair so I can knock it back down.”
Marshall realized he had gone too far and swallowed nervously. Mack stood and held up his hands. “Whoa there, kitten. Calm down. He won’t say another word or he’ll have to deal with me too. Isn’t that right, Marshall?”
“S-sorry, Kayla,” Marshall stammered.
“Don’t you dare tell me to calm down,” she shouted and clenched her fist. She gestured to Sergei. “We hardly know anything about this guy and Marshall’s telling him shit left and right. No one in this camp will breathe a word around a trader, but if a foreigner or anyone else walks into the room, he doesn’t know how to shut the fuck up. If Marshall wants to say something, he can talk about his own damn life. Leave mine out of it.”
“He’s done, darlin’,” Mack said gently. “As warranted as it may be, you’re not in any condition to kick his ass right now.” He turned to look at Marshall and jerked his head. “Marshall, go take a walk. Now.”
Marshall nodded and quickly left the room. Mack turned back at Kayla. “He was out of line. I’ll lay it out for him later. We good now?”
“I can take care of him myself,” she muttered and sat back down with a huff.
Sergei watched the exchange with interest. He was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “You handle yourself well.”
“You have no idea,” Mack agreed without taking his eyes off Kayla. “Sorry about that, Sergei. That boy needs to learn to keep his mouth shut though. We don’t take too kindly to people talking when they shouldn’t.”
He nodded. “I understand. Our culture is similar.”
Kayla picked up her glass and took a sip. “No kidding. I’ve been trying to get you to talk since we sat down.”
Sergei chuckled. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. It has been most enlightening.”
Mack leaned against the wall. “Sergei, if you’re going to be here for a while, Tharin and Johnny are going to have most of the district map finished today. Thanks to Kayla’s modifications on your equipment, it’s going much faster than we expected.”
“Excellent,” Sergei said and pulled out his commlink. He studied it for a moment and then stood. “Something has come up. We will return later. Contact me when information is complete and I will have equipment delivered, as agreed.”
Kayla’s eyes widened. “You’re leaving?”
“Yes,” he said abruptly. “I enjoyed speaking with you, Kayla. I look forward to seeing you again very soon.”
He bent down and kissed her cheek before quickly walking out of the room. Mack watched him go with a frown. “Surprised he ran out of here like that. You were working the guy pretty hard, huh?”
“I tried,” she said with a sigh and refilled her glass.
He raised an eyebrow. “Babe, I think you might have reached your limit with that stuff.”
“Nah, I’m good.”
“Uh huh,” he replied and walked over to her. Mack plucked the drink out of her hand and her eyes widened as he finished it off. He picked up the bottle off the table and carried it, along with the empty glass, to the other side of the room.
“If you can manage to pick up the glass without falling on your ass, you can have it. Otherwise, you’re switching to hydrating packs.”
Viewing it as a challenge, Kayla carefully stood and started walking toward him. She only managed a few feet before she bumped into the table and stumbled. Mack grabbed her before she could fall. With a laugh, she teased, “You saved me again, Mack.”
“You’re pretty blitzed, babe,” Mack said with a chuckle. He scooped her up and planted her back on the couch. “I’ll grab you a hydrating pack.”
She grinned at him. “I guess that works.”
Mack headed out into the hallway, and she took the opportunity to stretch out on the couch. She enjoyed the warm, fuzzy feeling from the liquor. Her coordination might be a little faulty, but the liquor had definitely smoothed away the rough edges of pain. It was just too bad Sergei hadn’t stuck around a bit longer. Closing her eyes, Kayla relaxed and let her thoughts drift until she heard shouting and a crash a few minutes later.
Alarmed, her eyes flew open, and she pushed herself off the couch, half-walking and half-stumbling toward the front of the camp where the noises came from.
Her eyes widened in surprise once she got to the entrance and saw Carl and Mack fighting one another in the front hall while Veridian and Brant were trying to separate them. Fluffy managed to break free of the towers. Go figure.
Mack grabbed Carl and shoved him into the wall. Carl hit the wall with a thud and pushed Mack back away from him. Carl took a swing at him, and Kayla winced as she heard his fist connect with Mack’s jaw.
She stared at them for a minute, her earlier euphoria fading away. As the intensi
ty of their fight focused her thoughts, Kayla tried to figure out how to stop them before they killed each other.
“Leo!” she yelled at the top of her lungs. A few moments later, Leo came running down the hall followed by Marshall. The camp leader quickly assessed the situation and let out an ear-piercing whistle.
The men paused briefly. “Enough! Knock it off!”
Carl’s jacket was ripped, and he was bleeding from the side of his mouth. Marshall and Veridian each grabbed one of Mack’s arms and held him back from attacking Carl again. Mack’s shirt was torn, and it appeared as though Carl had done an equal amount of damage.
Mack glared at Carl. “You fucking trader bastard! Where the hell do you get off screwing with her?”
Veridian shook his head and continued to wrench his arm back, holding him in place. “Mack, you don’t know the whole story. Carl came here to talk to her.”
“He’ll have to go through me if he wants to get anywhere near her,” Mack threatened and finally managed to jerk away from Marshall and Veridian. “And what the hell are you doing bringing a fucking trader into our camp anyway?”
Veridian flinched at the accusation but didn’t reply. Carl was about to answer until he spotted Kayla standing behind Leo. She bit her lip as he took a step toward her.
“Kayla, you can’t run away like this. Give me a chance to explain.”
She took a shaky step backward and stumbled. Forgetting her injury, she tried to use her arms to brace herself. She landed on her backside and cried out as pain shot through her arm and shoulder again.
Mack swore and leapt to her side. Carl started to move toward her, but Mack snapped, “Back off, Trader. You’re not getting near her.” When Carl froze, Mack turned back to Kayla and softened his gaze. “I told you to stay on the couch. What the hell were you doing?”
“Sorry,” she managed, blinking back tears and clutching her arm. The numbing effects of the vodka had disappeared, and the throbbing pain was back with a vengeance.
“Shit,” he muttered and scooped her into his arms. “Don’t apologize. It freaks me out. Marshall, go grab the pain meds.”
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