Dead End

by Jeramy Gates

  Val froze, but it was too late. One of the wires had ripped free of its connection. By some miracle, the device hadn’t exploded. She glanced at Carver, wide-eyed and hardly daring to breathe.

  “Easy,” he said, moving over next to her. He pinched the exposed wire between two fingers, shielding it from grounding against anything inside the case. “Go ahead. Slowly.”

  Val readjusted her grip on the cap. She started to pull. The metal twisted slightly as it began to move. Carver pulled the wire back, moving it in unison with the cap. The blasting cap pulled free. Valkyrie gently placed it on the floor of the casing and then stepped back, giving Carver room to secure the wire in a safe position. A moment later, it was done.

  “There,” he said. “All better.”

  Val licked her lips. “If you say so.”

  “What’s going on?” Matt said. “Is everything okay?”

  “We’re fine,” Val said. “Just eleven more to go.” Just the thought of it made her cringe. The first one had already taken a year off her life.

  “This isn’t that bad,” Carver teased, sensing her anxiety. “I know guys who do this for a living.”

  “I can’t even imagine.”

  They went back to work. Thankfully, Val’s experience had taught them what to avoid. Working slowly and meticulously, they removed the rest of the blasting caps. In ten minutes, they were finished.

  “Mission accomplished,” Val grinned.

  “Not yet,” said Matt. “You need to remove the plastic explosives. They can’t be anywhere near those blasting caps.”

  “Seriously?” She exchanged a glance with Carver. He went to the closet and began searching the dead man’s belongings. A moment later, he triumphantly produced an old canvas pack. He dumped the contents out onto the bed. “Shaving stuff,” he announced. “This guy isn’t nearly as rich as he dresses.”

  Very carefully, they tucked the explosives inside. “Matt, as soon as we leave, call the police.”

  “Why? There’s no danger now.”

  “There’s a dead man in here,” she said.

  “Oh, right.”

  She looked thoughtful. “Matt, is there any way to track the radio signal for those detonators?”

  “You mean to track it back to the trigger? Not without very specialized equipment.”

  “How far away would a radio signal like that work?”

  “A few blocks at most. The surrounding buildings would interfere with the signal, so he’d have to be pretty close.”

  “That makes sense,” said Carver. “He’d want a clear line of sight anyway. He’d want to see it with his own eyes, right?”

  “I suppose he would,” Valkyrie said. “This was supposed to be his big moment.”

  “Then he can’t be far off.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Val said. “It would take hours to search everything inside that radius.”

  “Cheer up,” said Carver. “Take the win. We’ll get him another day.”

  “I suppose.”

  Carver checked the hall to make sure the coast was clear. They hurried to the elevators, and less than a minute later, emerged on the first floor. They could hear the crowd cheering in the conference room down the hall. Val started in that direction and Carver followed her. The double doors were propped open, and they hovered just outside, watching as a woman took the podium.

  “Thank you, Senator Booker, for coming today. Without your efforts in Washington, Blackstar Fusion could not have become the international success it is today.” There was some polite applause, and she went on: “I have another major announcement. I’ve just received word that one of our subsidiaries -Blackstar Pharma- has received expedited approval from the FDA for our new drug Lazlenol. This means that within six months, we’ll be taking this drug public. Thousands of U.S. veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress will now have the opportunity to lead normal, functional lives!”

  The applause rose again, and the speaker thanked everyone. She went on to invite them to enjoy free drinks at the bar. Carver and Val watched as the guests all began to mingle.

  “They have no idea how close they just came to being blown to smithereens,” Carver said under his breath.

  “They’ll find out soon enough,” Val said.

  Carver glanced at her with a twinkle in his eye. “You think they’ll give us credit for saving all these people?”

  “Not a chance. In fact, we probably just both made the terrorist watch list.”

  They wandered back through the lobby and stepped out into the cool evening. The sun had set, and heavy storm clouds pressed down on the city. They turned left toward the arch, just as a dozen cops came around the corner. With them came a handful of federal agents in suits. Castillo was among them. The couple froze, but it was already too late. They had been seen.

  “Hey!” Castillo shouted, reaching for his sidearm.

  Carver stepped in front of Valkyrie. He shoved the pack into her arms and shouted, “Go! I’ll hold them off.”

  Val hesitated. Carver gave her a push and she stumbled back, shifting her weight onto her cane. The pack was heavy in her hand and for a split second, she didn’t know what to do with it. Carver turned to punch the nearest cop in the face. Val found herself flying through the lobby, back down the hall towards the event.

  Behind her, sounds of shouting and grunting filled the air. There was a crash, followed by breaking glass, and she wondered if it was Carver who’d gone through the doors, or someone else. He didn’t seem the type to go down easy.

  “Matt!” Val said between breaths. “Matt, are you there?” Guests turned to stare as she raced past them. Jolts of pain rattled her spine.

  “I’m with you,” Matt said. “There’s a side exit up ahead.”

  “I have to dump this bag, Matt.”

  “Take the hallway to the left. Go past the gift shop and take a right. That’s your exit. Just outside the door, there’s a cluster of bushes. The plastic should be safe enough there, for now.”

  Val followed his directions. She burst through the door and found herself on a narrow veranda filled with picnic tables. The air smelled of roses and the ocean, and a cold breeze tousled her hair. She heard voices off to her right. Looking in that direction, saw a handful of cops making their way around the building. They were trying to cut off her escape, but they were struggling to get through the shrubbery in the darkness. She leaned over the handrail and dropped the bag of explosives under the stairs.

  “Done,” she said.

  “Go north, around the hotel. That should take you back to Atlantic Avenue.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea. This place is crawling with cops.”

  Matt fidgeted with his keyboard. “Go down the stairs, straight ahead. Take the Harborwalk north. I’ll keep looking for another way out of there.”

  Val followed his instructions. At the bottom of the stairs, she headed north along the cobblestone walkway, weaving through the thin crowds of tourists. She could hear the cops up the slope behind her, shouting at each other as they searched the hotel grounds. She heard the distant wail of a siren on the other side of the building. It wouldn’t be long until they extended their search.

  Valkyrie moved at a quick pace, swinging her cane back and forth as she slid between the pedestrians. She threw a glance back over her shoulder and saw a few blue uniforms moving through the crowd behind her. She couldn’t tell if they had spotted her or not. All she could do was keep moving.

  Up ahead, she saw a couple at the edge of the walkway. They were young and attractive and in love, holding hands as they gazed out across the harbor. She followed their gazes, and saw a shimmering skyline reflected in the choppy waters. Some distance out, near the mouth of the bay, she saw the shape of a small fishing boat rocking on the waves.

  Valkyrie froze. Carver’s words from earlier went ringing through her head: “He’d want a clear line of sight…” and then Matt’s: “He couldn’t be far off. A few blocks at most.”


  Her heart caught in her throat. Why hadn’t she thought of this before? The Collector didn’t need to be in the city to set off the bombs. He could do it from right there on the bay!

  “Matt?” she said. Silence. The call must have dropped, she realized. She turned, throwing a glance back at the hotel. The cops had their flashlights out now, and they were checking the faces of the pedestrians on the Harborwalk. The crowd had thinned, and they were moving fast in her direction. Suddenly, she knew what she had to do.

  Valkyrie spotted a pier up ahead, and she hurried in that direction. There were a number of boats lined up: small fishing boats and sailboats, a rowboat, and even a jet ski. Val shuddered at the thought of trying to make her escape on that tiny thing. The thought of the cold, dark water lapping at her ankles, the sea rising and falling like liquid mountains-

  She found herself standing next a sporty runabout. The sport boat had a sleek wooden hull and a big outboard that looked like it was designed for racing. The key wasn’t in the ignition, but she could see the glimmer of metal dangling by a string attached to the control panel. The owner must have had a habit of losing his key, and decided it was best to leave it with the boat, but hanging out of sight. In theory, it wasn’t a bad solution. In the daylight, she’d never have seen it.

  Val threw a glance over her shoulder as she uncoiled the rope from the tie-down. “Val, can you hear me?” Matt said through the com. He sounded worried.

  “I’m here,” she said in a whisper. “The call dropped.”

  “Did you get away?”

  “Still working on it.”

  Valkyrie shoved the boat away from the dock and stepped aboard. She dropped into the bench seat, laying her cane next to her. She bent over to retrieve the key, and her back knotted up. A painful moan escaped her lips.

  “What was that?” Matt said.

  Val squeezed her eyes shut and forced herself to reach a little farther. She groaned as she caught the string. She gave it a yank, pulling it free. “It’s all right,” she said, holding up the key. “I got it.”

  “You got what?”

  She jammed the key into the ignition switch. The engine rolled over a couple times, and backfired loudly. Val winced.

  “What was that?” Matt shrieked.

  “The boat. It won’t start!”

  “What boat?”

  Down the Harborwalk, she could hear the cops shouting. Already, they were running in her direction. She twisted the key again, and the engine turned over. Again, it failed to start. Valkyrie heard the click-clack of hard soles on the dock coming up behind her.

  “Did you prime it?” Matt said.

  “How do I do that?”

  “I don’t know… look for a button!”

  “There’s no button.”

  This time when she turned the key, the engine fired. It came to life with a low rolling rumble, like a hot rod idling at a stop light. She revved the throttle into reverse. The runabout leapt back into the passage. The second tie-down that she had neglected to notice ripped out of the pier with a loud crack of splintering wood. Val spun the wheel, bringing the bow about. She slammed the throttle into the drive position and pushed it forward. The boat roared into the bay. The shouts of the police faded into the darkness behind her.

  The bow rose and fell as Valkyrie sped through the harbor. It crashed violently into the breakers, sending up great salty sprays and shaking her body painfully. The cold wind howled around her, sweeping her hair back and tying it into knots. Her fingers ached with cold, and her eyes watered. These minor discomforts were nothing compared to the ache in her spine. Valkyrie clenched her teeth, and in a rare moment of weakness, found herself wishing she had her pills.

  Val eased back on the throttle and swept her gaze across the pier behind her. She saw flashlights waving in the darkness, small vessels bobbing before the city lights. She had lost her pursuers. For now, she was safe. She turned, scanning the harbor. The fishing boat she had seen hovering in the distance was gone now. It must have moved out into the ocean. Val decided to follow its example. Gliding out of the bay and into the open ocean, the breakers gave way to smooth swells. The harsh ride became much more comfortable. Val settled back in the seat, willing the muscles along her spine to relax.

  The sound of the wind and the waves filled her ears. Val caught a glimpse of the fishing boat a quarter mile out to sea. She glanced back toward the harbor. The lights of the hotel against the backdrop of the city looked like a sheet of glistening diamonds in the darkness. She put a hand over her ear, trying to block out the noise.

  “Matt, can you hear me?”

  “-krie! Where did you… worried-”

  She frowned, remembering Matt’s warning that the com would only work as long as she had a cell signal. “Matt, I don’t know if you can hear me. I’ve just realized something. There’s a boat out here… It has a perfect line of sight to the hotel… Matt?”

  There was no response. Val pulled out her phone to check the signal, and found that it had entirely vanished. Zero bars. She drew her gaze back to the boat rising and falling in the distance. It seemed a long way out. It wasn’t, but it seemed that way. The boat she’d stolen wasn’t made for weather like this. It hadn’t been designed for heavy swells on the ocean at night. Maybe she should go back. The cops would be waiting for her, but it would be easy enough to evade them. She could put in just about anywhere, even on some remote beach. The hike back to civilization wouldn’t be any fun, but she’d survive.

  But that boat… What was it doing out here, alone? It wasn’t a real fishing boat. Not a commercial one, anyway. It was too small for that. And who would be out here at this time of day, with a storm brewing? It was all too suspicious.

  Val made up her mind. She revved the throttle a little, bringing the boat about, and set a course for the distant vessel. She wasn’t going to do anything right away: she’d just sneak up on it for a quick look. After all, what were the odds that it would really be the Collector? She was probably just being paranoid…

  Chapter 20

  Castillo looked Carver up and down as he entered the interrogation room. Carver sat at the table, hands cuffed in front of him, his missing eye closed in a permanent wink due to the scarring on his lid and brow. His white button-front shirt was stained with blood, and rolled up to his elbows. The torn-up suit coat dangled from the back of his chair. The tie had gone missing.

  Carver had a dangerous look about him, like a grizzly who’d lost his fear of humans. It wasn’t just that he looked dangerous, he was dangerous. Castillo’s swollen jaw was testament to that, not to mention the half-dozen injured cops down the hall. Funny thing was that Castillo had a feeling Carver had gone easy on them.

  “You lose this?” Castillo said as he tossed the veteran’s eye patch onto the table. Carver mumbled a thanks as he fumbled to get it back on his head. Castillo dropped into the steel chair across the table, staring at him. “Chief Murphy says you’re not going to talk. It really doesn’t matter, we’ve got you for assault, resisting arrest… oh, and we found your bombs.”

  Carver grinned, his cheek pressing the eye patch up over his eyebrow. “Do tell.”

  Castillo leaned back in the chair, sizing up his opponent. “Okay, play it like that. Sooner or later, we’re gonna find the missing explosives, then we’ll tack on a terrorism charge. How’s that sound?”

  Carver’s grim smile morphed into a sneer. “Why are you talking to me? It sounds like you’ve got plenty to put me away.”

  “I think you know why,” Castillo said, leaning closer. “What happened to your partners? I know there was at least one person there with you.”

  Carver gave a little shrug. “I don’t know what you mean. I was just walking down the sidewalk, and those cops jumped me.”

  Castillo flipped open his file. He pulled out a photograph and placed it on the table between them. “Maybe this will jog your memory.”

  It was a security photo of Valkyrie and Carver in the hotel. Castillo pulle
d out several others, and showed them to Carver. “I also have witnesses who put you and this woman at the scene -what was her name?”

  Carver shrugged. “You tell me.”

  “Uh-huh. I don’t know what your connection is to this woman, but you should know, she’s in a lot of trouble.”

  “What kind of trouble?”

  “Oh, there’s a whole laundry list of charges. The one that should matter to you is terrorism.”

  Carver laughed. “I don’t know who that lady is, but she doesn’t look much like a terrorist.”

  “Her name’s Valkyrie, but you already know that. Besides this attempted bombing, Valkyrie Smith is also wanted in connection with more than a dozen murders. I’m talking about the assassinations of some very important people. Any of that ring a bell for you?”

  Carver’s smiled faded, but he looked unconcerned. Castillo was beginning to think it was time for a different approach. There was a knock at the door, and a cop stuck his head in. “Sorry, the senator wants to see you.”

  Castillo gathered his photos back into his file. “This isn’t over,” he said as he rose from his seat.

  “Don’t take too long,” said Carver. “I need to take a leak.”

  Castillo clenched his jaw as he left the room. He found the senator waiting in the adjoining observation room, behind the one-way glass through which she had witnessed the interrogation. “Senator Booker,” he said with a nod. “I know it doesn’t seem like much, but I am making progress. I urge you to be patient-”

  “Let him go,” she said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

  Castillo’s eyebrows knotted up. “What?”

  “Let him go. Put a tail on him. This man isn’t who we’re worried about, but with any luck he’ll lead us to her.”