by Tracy Lawson
He sat up and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because I hate complicated. Can’t handle it.”
“You might come to hate it, in time.”
“If you really, really want something, you don’t give up until you get it. I know what I want. It’s time for you to make up your mind.”
“Madalyn says the Link is the key to safety and security, but she’s wrong. This is the safest place in the world for me.” She touched her lips to his. “Right here.”
“You’re serious?”
“Yes.”
He trailed his fingers down her side, following the curve of her waist, and let his hand come to rest on her hipbone. The light on her Link pulsed faster, in time with her heartbeat, and he studied it for a moment before he spoke. “You ever play Hot, Warm, Cold when you were a kid?”
That wasn’t what she’d been expecting him to say. “Umm, yeah?”
“Well, I was thinking.” He laced his fingers through hers and turned her wrist over. “Your Link will tell me if I’m getting warmer”—he kissed the hollow at the base of her throat—“or not.” He gently closed his teeth over the tip of her nose.
She giggled. “Interesting twist on a childhood classic. Tell me more.”
“First of all, no laughing.” He shook a warning finger at her, and she pressed her lips together until her smile nearly disappeared. “It ruins the game if you don’t take it seriously.”
“I’m taking it seriously. I promise.” The smile threatened to break through again and she bit her lower lip.
“That’s better.” Under the covers, he trailed his fingers in an undulating line across her stomach. “Hmm. Warm? Cold?” He wiggled his eyebrows and she burst out laughing. He reached for her left wrist and touched his lips to her skin just above the flashing light. “Lie back and close your eyes.”
Her hair fanned out on the pillow, and her eyes fluttered closed. Her lips parted in anticipation.
Chapter 25
4:45 PM
Quadrant DC-001
Madalyn stripped off a silk sheath dress and added it to the growing pile of discards on her bedroom floor. Her ensemble had to be businesslike for the State of the Union address and festive enough for a surprise birthday party given in her honor—without signaling that she’d known about the party in advance. A navy fit-and-flare with soutache flowers on the bodice was under consideration when her phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID and hastened to answer it.
“Madam Director? I have a surprise for you.” The tone of Atari’s voice jump-started her heart. “It’s something, I mean someone, you want.”
Hardly daring to hope, she whispered into the phone, “Is it … do you know where she is?”
“You said no questions asked, remember?”
“Yes, only how did you find her without the Link?”
“Ah-ah-ah!”
She broke into a grin. This was going to be her best birthday ever. “Where is she? When can you deliver her?”
“First we need to discuss my compensation.”
“We said one million.”
“I believe it was five.”
“Oh. That’s right. So it was.”
“I’ll need it wired to an offshore account. Not here, obviously. As soon as I see the funds have arrived, she’ll be delivered to you within the hour. That should leave plenty of time for you to trot her out before the State of the Union address. Are you ready to write down the account number?”
5:02 PM
President Wright read aloud to Garrick and Senator Renald from the notes for his final State of the Union address. “The Office of Civilian Safety and Defense has proven itself to be a nonfunctioning and corrupt institution, and yet has suffered no negative consequences when it fails to achieve its purpose. It must be abolished to clear the way for a better system to emerge.” He paused. “This could backfire and throw people into an even worse panic.”
Garrick spoke up. “There are a great many people who cling to their belief that the OCSD programs help keep them safe, even when they’re presented with evidence to the contrary. The people who’ve blindly followed Madalyn and Stratford don’t realize how out of touch and out of control she is.”
Senator Renald nodded. “Her supporters in Congress have proved over and over that they see no reason to break from the status quo. Maybe they’ll change their minds when they witness this evening’s entertainment firsthand. Garrick, are you ready to press charges against Madalyn?”
He nodded. “We have Madalyn’s fingerprints on the vial of poison. The security camera footage doesn’t actually show her switching the vials, but it does capture her reaction when Lowell collapsed. We’ll depose Trina Jacobs and enter her statement into the record as soon as possible.”
He glanced at his watch. “Speaking of Trina, I’m supposed to meet her and give her an escort inside. I downgraded security at the Capitol so she’s less likely to be noticed. Don’t want an overzealous guard getting trigger-happy. See you soon.”
Renald stood. “You’re doing the right thing, sir.” He followed Garrick out of the Oval Office, leaving President Wright feeling as though he was mustering his troops for battle. The speech was a call to revolt against the OCSD, an agency he’d helped to attain its present height of power.
Throughout the nation’s history, every president had surrounded him or herself with trusted advisors. Though people tended to either praise or malign the president as an individual, being president was a team effort.
He’d made the mistake of entrusting too much power to Lowell Stratford and putting his faith in the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense. He wished he’d made a different choice when he’d been new on the job and desperate to quell the people’s fears. Stratford’s overreach had not eliminated terrorist attacks. On the contrary, the OCSD’s recent track record included two recent bombings, the murder of a high-ranking state official, unprecedented civil unrest, and the breakdown of government programs that had been established with the intent of helping the people.
Madalyn Davies did not have her predecessor’s commanding presence. Why Stratford had insisted she be the one to succeed him, he’d never understand. She had no experience to prepare her to guide the nation out of peril; instead, she’d made matters worse. When it was over, he hoped he and the rest of the country would be out from under Madalyn Davies’s manicured thumb.
5:15 PM
Quadrant DC-005
Tommy startled awake and sat up. “What was that?”
Careen stirred beside him.
The doorknob rattled, and someone pounded on the door. His adrenaline surged, and when Atari’s voice rang out, it did nothing to set him at ease. “Intruders! Man the battle stations!”
“What battle stations?” Careen threw back the covers and grabbed her jeans off the floor.
“No idea. We never did battle station drills.” He was already half dressed and balancing on one foot as he pulled on his boot. “Where’s my gun?” He pushed a chair over to the closet so he could retrieve the magazine and bullets from the top shelf. As he jumped down, she tossed him the empty gun and pulled on her sweater.
The magazine clicked into place, and the spare bullets rattled as he poured them into his pocket. “Ready?”
“No, but let’s go.”
He unlocked the door and they hugged the wall as they crept toward the lobby. He heard the elevator bell chime and the door slide open, and he held the gun poised as he chanced a look around the corner. Then he laughed aloud. “Mom?” He stuck the gun in his waistband, and he and Careen ran across the lobby to meet her.
Lara’s smile warmed him like the sun, and she gathered them both into a fierce embrace. Tears welled up in his eyes for a moment, and beside him he felt Careen draw a shuddering breath. When his mom released them, she kept a hand on Careen’s arm. “I couldn’t believe you were all right until I saw for myself.” She hugged Careen again.
Careen swiped at the tears that trailed down her cheek. “I am now. I missed you so much
.”
Lara squeezed her shoulder, her gaze a mix of appraisal and empathy. Then she turned a stern gaze on Tommy. “You, on the other hand—sneaking away from the bunker and following your father to the capital was dangerous and unnecessary.” Then she winked to show she wasn’t really angry. “You couldn’t let the grownups handle things, could you?”
He shrugged. “How else am I going to learn the family business?”
Only then did he notice Tom, Eduardo, and Jaycee had followed Lara into the lobby.
Careen brushed past him and threw her arms around the mailman’s neck, and he spun her around. “Carina! Como estás?”
“Much better now, Eduardo.”
Tommy’s gaze took in all of them. “Boy, are we glad to see you guys.” He winked back at his mom. “It’ll be nice to have some backup.”
Atari skulked in the doorway of Command Central. “More Baileys? Fantastic. To what do we owe the unexpected honor?”
Tommy caught his father’s eye and shot a pointed glance in Atari’s direction. Then they spoke at the same time. “We need to talk.”
5:25 PM
Jaycee had hesitated beside the elevator while Lara spoke to first Careen and then Tommy. They were all smiling, and Careen wiped away a happy tear. She should have been happy, but she felt pushed aside and forgotten. She’d never had enough of a chance to make Tommy notice her, just as surely as Wes had never had a real opportunity to woo Careen.
Careen had hugged Lara and Eduardo first, but now she hurried to throw her arms around Jaycee. The younger girl kept her left arm at her side to avoid giving away her secret.
“I missed you!” Careen said.
“I missed you too.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Your sweater’s on inside out.”
Careen glanced down and her cheeks colored. “Do you think anyone else noticed?”
“Uh, yeah.” Jaycee pulled her a few steps away from the group. “Can we talk alone? There’s something I have to—”
“I know where you got that.”
Jaycee started guiltily. “What?”
Careen touched the vial necklace. “This was mine, but you can have it if you like it. I don’t want it any longer.”
“Careen, are you ready?” Tommy held the stairwell door open.
Jaycee followed at Careen’s heels. “I’m coming too!”
Lara gave a quick shake of the head and addressed Jaycee like she was talking to a little kid. “Not right now, sweetheart. Look at all the games in there! Why don’t you go check out the arcade, and we’ll be done talking before you know it.”
Careen glanced over her shoulder and made a sympathetic face. She whispered back, “Let us talk with Tom and Lara first, and then I’ll find you, all right?”
Jaycee tried to conceal her hurt at being left out. I’m not a baby. If they knew what had happened, they’d see fit to include me.
She felt a little better when Tom blocked Atari from following them into the stairwell. “I’m sure you understand. We need to discuss some private family business. I’ll want a status update from you shortly.” Tommy’s presence at his father’s elbow gave additional weight to Tom’s words.
He bowed. “As you wish.”
Jaycee watched the strange-looking man turn away, his face angry, as Tom closed the door. A moment later, he put his hand on the door as if to follow, looked at his watch, and then changed his mind. He paced in front of the door as she took a quick look inside the arcade so she could say she had if Lara asked her. She regarded Atari from the doorway and tried to keep her voice casual. “Is it true that you invented the Link?”
When he startled before he turned toward her, she realized he’d forgotten she was there. He showed all of his teeth when he smiled. “Why, yes, sort of.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“You already did.”
Should she share her secret? This might be her only chance to get help. “How do I”—she pulled up her sleeve—“get this thing off me?”
He came closer, his eyes suddenly bright with interest. “Now why would you want to do that?” He reached toward her wrist with a trembling hand, and she pulled away.
“Because I’m Resistance, that’s why! It was the only thing my daddy told me not to do when I left home. Now I’ve gone and ruined everything. You’ve gotta take it off.”
“No can do, Little Red.”
She bristled at both the denial and the nickname, and he threw up his hands in defense.
“Hey! Not my fault. I built the device for the OCSD, but your dad put me up to it in the first place.” He leaned forward, a conspiratorial gleam in his eye. “But I can tell you something. The Link will go live unless someone gets rid of the OCSD once and for all.” Then he glanced at his watch and shrugged as if to dismiss her. “Make yourself at home. I’m busy.” He went back into the room with the computers and shut the door.
So am I. She had no interest in the kitchen or the video games, so she headed down another hallway. She opened a door to a room with a rumpled, unmade bed. I’m glad I’m not the maid around here. At the end of the hall was a room full of clothes, wigs, and makeup. She considered a pair of coveralls lying on a chair and held them up against her front. But I could be a janitor. She folded them and zipped them up inside her coat. An OCSD ID badge and a set of car keys she found lying on the table went into her pocket.
Back to the lobby and down a flight of stairs, she emerged in a workout room. There was nothing there she could use. But in the basement, she found what she’d been looking for. She loaded up a duffel bag and searched in vain for a door that led to the underground parking garage.
She dashed back up to the lobby, hoping the meeting wasn’t over yet, and breathed a sigh of relief. No one was around. She tiptoed across the room and pushed the elevator button but nothing happened. In her whole life, she’d only ridden in a handful of elevators. Maybe there was a trick to it? Her heart pounded as she tapped on the door of the computer room and opened it a few inches. “Umm … excuse me?”
“Done with the tour already?” Atari didn’t turn around.
“Yes, sir.”
“Did you go up to the solarium on the roof?”
“No.”
“You should check it out. There’s a great view of the capital.”
“Okay, I will. Only, their meeting’s taking forever, and I forgot something in the car. How do I get back down to the garage? The stairs don’t go there, and the elevator doesn’t work.”
He spun around in his chair. “You need the key.” He crossed the lobby and used a key that hung on a long chain around his neck. “Pull out the stopper on this button to hold the door open so you can come back up. See? The alarm will sound, but I’ll know it’s just you.” He headed back across the lobby. “You really should check out the solarium.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you.”
She shouldered the duffel bag as the doors slid closed.
Chapter 26
6:00 PM
En route to Quadrant DC-001
Trina took over the driving about thirty miles outside the capital. Mitch hadn’t let Seamus out of his sight, even to relieve himself, and now when they came out of a clump of bushes near the side of the road, he shoved him into the middle of the truck’s bench seat before he got in on the passenger side. As Trina pulled out onto the highway, Mitch regarded the rolling hills with interest.
“Lot of American blood’s been spilled in this part of the country. Manassas, Virginia. They don’t call it that anymore though.”
Cheery. Trina changed the subject. “It’ll be strange to go back to my apartment after months away, but I’m looking forward to a hot shower and wearing some of my own clothes.”
Mitch tapped the dashboard clock. “We haven’t got a lot of time for primping.”
“I know that, but I have to blend in at the State of the Union. I can’t show up in your sweatshirt and these ratty pants. I wonder what Atari has me wearing in the video.”
�
�Won’t matter. Madalyn’s the only one who’s going to see it. She won’t notice if your clothes aren’t the same.”
Trina laughed. “Only a man would say that. If anyone will notice, it will be Madalyn. How are we going to meet up afterward?”
He didn’t answer.
“What? Aren’t you going?” Still he was silent. He’s going to throw me under the bus. No way was she going to let that happen. She kept her voice casual. “After all your hard work you don’t want to be there for the payoff?”
Mitch snorted. “Hell, no. I wouldn’t be caught dead there. I’ll stay in contact with Kevin and watch the action from your place.” He pointed a thumb at Seamus. “I’ve got to keep an eye on him so he doesn’t spread the alarm.”
Trina nodded and said no more. When they arrived at her apartment complex, she found the spare key on top of the doorframe where she’d hidden it months before.
Mitch hurried her and Seamus inside. “Nice place.”
She looked around as though she was seeing it for the first time. It was a nice place. She’d been pleased to rent it when she’d started work at the OCSD, and it was just the way she’d left it back in October. She’d had no idea she wouldn’t be returning home, but her mother had always insisted the breakfast dishes be washed and put away before the family left for the day, and now Trina was glad she had kept up the practice.
She motioned toward the television. “The electricity’s on, so I assume the automatic withdrawals for all my utilities have continued in my absence. You can turn on PeopleCam. I’m ready for a long, hot shower.”
Mitch picked up the remote. “Don’t be too long. I’m calling the car service and telling them to be here in half an hour.”
She headed into the master suite and stealthily turned the lock, showered, and dressed as fast as she could. After going without makeup for three months, even a touch seemed to make a drastic difference in her appearance.