“That’s a nice shady spot for a nap.”
Andrew froze at the sound of Lewis Hound’s voice, his blood running ice-cold.
“Do you have a minute?” Hound pressed. “It’s time the two of us had a chat.”
Andrew grabbed the footboard on the side of the rover and pulled himself out. Hound was peering down on him with a cold smile, his head blocking the ice-blue glare of the sun, silhouetting him with an angelic light.
Dragging himself up, Andrew came nose-to-nose with the alien android, the socket wrench clenched in a white-knuckled fist. “I don’t have anything to say to you,” he growled.
“No?” Hound’s eyebrows drifted up and his smile grew predatory. “Well, I have plenty to say to you. You can listen. I know what you did the night before last.”
Andrew crossed his arms and heaved his shoulders in a shrug. “Yeah? So?”
Hound’s intense blue eyes widened. “Are you sure you want to take that tone with me? I could snap you like a twig, right here, right now, and no one in this camp would do a thing to stop me. The reverend would probably throw a party.”
Andrew shook his head. “Funny. That’s not how I remember the last time we met.”
“You got lucky.”
“Maybe I’m just a lucky guy.”
“Maybe you are. But what happens when your luck runs out?” Hound tapped his chin dimple and tilted his head to one side, looking up to the heavens for inspiration. “I suppose I could stuff your head and mount it on my wall. Or maybe I’ll freeze you in cryo for all eternity.”
“Is that what I saw down there?” Andrew prompted. “Those aliens in cryo were your enemies? Where are they from?”
“I’ll ask the questions here, Miller, and there’s really only one left to ask. Are you going to stop?”
Andrew snorted. “Stop what?”
“Stop fighting me.”
Andrew smirked at that. “You’re not even in charge anymore. Mary is, remember?”
Hound’s eyes glittered. “Not for long. You need to ask yourself what happens next. How will you react when I end this and she’s rotting in the ground?”
Andrew pretended to consider that. “I dunno. Make it happen and let’s see.”
“You need to trust me, Andrew.”
“Tell you what. You level with all of us about everything”—Andrew gestured vaguely to the sun and sky, meaning to indicate the planet they were on—“and we’ll take it from there.”
“What do you want to know?”
“The truth. And while we’re at it, you can tell us how many people you killed so you could keep us in the dark. People need to see what you are. Where we are. And why.”
“And if I don’t want to reveal all of that?” Hound challenged.
Andrew shrugged. “Those are my terms.”
“What makes you think you can dictate terms to me? I’d be setting a bad precedent if I gave into your demands. It would be easier for me to put you in the ground with Morris.”
“You can try.”
“I won’t just try, Andrew.” Hound took a step closer to him and slowly raised an arm, reaching for his throat.
Andrew eyed his hand until it drew near, and then he grabbed it in both of his to force it away. But he should have known better. Hound was a lot stronger than he looked. He grabbed Andrew by the neck and lifted him two feet straight off the ground. Andrew felt his windpipe closing and the vertebrae in his neck popping. His vision quickly narrowed to a hazy tunnel. He heard a muffled shout from Kendra, but he couldn’t turn his head to see where she was. He tried to curse Hound and spit on him, but all that escaped his lips was a strangled gasp and a trickle of drool.
Hound laughed. “Not so tough after all, are you, Miller?” And then he released his grip, and Andrew fell to the grass. A white-hot spike of pain shot straight up his spine. He doubled over, gasping for air and massaging his bruised throat.
Hound regarded him with a smirk. “I’m a patient man, Andrew. I’ll give you some time to think about your answer. And consider Val, while you’re at it. You wouldn’t want to leave her an orphan on an alien world, would you? Good chat.”
With that, he turned and left, whistling as he went.
Andrew glared after him. He caught a horrified expression from Kendra. She was frozen mid-run to reach him from her work in the fields. He waved her off with a smile that never made it to his eyes. It was pure bluster, and he knew it. This time Hound really had shaken him. Between the oxygen deprivation and the realization of how close he’d come to getting himself killed, he was just a hair’s breadth from vomiting his guts out in the grass.
Hound was right. He had a choice to make. Yield now—
Or run for his life.
* * *
Kendra
“He’s not going to let it go.” Carrie stared toward Hound as he stalked away from Andrew.
Kendra thought she could see the smug grin on Lewis’ face even from her position in the center of the newest crops. She started for Andrew’s position, but he shook his head, dismissing her concern. He rubbed his neck, and it was obvious the interaction with Hound had been a critical one.
From Andrew’s posture, she could almost hear the grinding of his teeth and him muttering under his breath. They didn’t have long before they needed to leave, and after hearing Andrew’s story about shooting another version of their billionaire in his lair, and now seeing Hound attack him in the open, time was even more precious.
Part of Kendra had expected Hound to just kill her closest ally, and she was surprised he’d let Andrew off with a warning.
“I know what you’re thinking,” Carrie said, pretending to be going over something on a tablet.
“What’s that?”
“You’re wrong, though. Hound won’t kill Andrew. The camp is in a precarious situation. Lewis will end Morris’ reign soon, and…”
“And he already suggested I side with him, but that Andrew wouldn’t be there on the other end of the regime change,” Kendra told Carrie, angry that her sister continued to act like she was on Team Hound. “You saw what he did!”
“Don’t take it out on me. I agree that he’s a bad man, but I don’t see another alternative.” Carrie met her gaze, and Kendra’s frown softened. Carrie was so tired. The bags under her eyes kept growing, her skin as pallid as ever, even after weeks in the bright blue sun.
“There’s one option,” Kendra whispered, but Carrie didn’t seem to hear her.
“I’ll catch you later,” her sister said, walking away, her attention fixed on the tablet again.
“Goodbye.” The connection she’d begun to have with Carrie was slowly disintegrating, and Kendra hoped they could salvage it one day. Her hands still shook from watching Hound attack Andrew.
Today was different, and even though it was muggy out, the clouds were growing thick, the promise of rain in the air. As she had this thought, Keller ceased watering, gawking at the sky. He set the hose down, walking toward them.
He didn’t break his stare at the darkening clouds. “Gonna rain.”
“Thanks, Detective. What gave it away?” Kendra asked, with a little more bite than intended. He shot her a frown, and she eased up. “Sorry. I’m a little tense.”
“Anything I can do?” Keller asked.
Andrew wasn’t sold on working with Eric, but they needed someone else strong and capable on their team, so there was no choice. “There might be. We need to go, but Andrew won’t leave without Valeria.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen her around. These Saints need someone to smack them down a peg.” Keller slapped a fist into his palm. “What do you need?”
“I’ve tried talking to him about it, but he refused to hear me. Tony and Roland have a plan in place to save Val, and I believe they can do it. I also told them to lean on you for support if they need it. I hope that wasn’t too presumptuous?”
Keller grinned, his skinny face far more friendly for it. “Hell, no. Nothing would bring me more joy than bringing M
orris to her knees. I’ll tell Andrew that I won’t let anything happen to his girl.”
“Thank you. I know you’re not the best of friends.” Kendra laughed, and noticed a guard waving and shouting at them.
“Get to work, you two. This isn’t tea time at the Ritz!” Arthur shouted.
“Tea time…” Keller seemed perplexed, and let his hands fall to his sides. “Anyway. Is today the day?”
Kendra nodded, glancing at the looming storm clouds. “I hope so.”
“Then good luck. I’ll be here to watch over things, and I will have your back when you return. Just bring us good news, okay?” Keller started off, and Kendra fought the urge to trail after him.
She crouched to the ground, plucking dead leaves off the growing tomato plants, and tried not to make it obvious she was staring at Andrew as Keller headed for the rover he was working on. Please talk some sense into him, she thought.
* * *
Andrew
Andrew barely had time to pick himself up off the ground before he spotted Eric Keller walking over from the fields. A scowl creased his lips as he watched Keller approach. He wasn’t in the mood to talk with anyone right now, much less the man who used to be Hound’s second-in-command.
“Miller,” Keller said as he drew near. “Are you okay? We saw—”
Andrew waved him off. “I’m fine.” But his voice came out as a rasping croak. He grimaced at the pain talking elicited from his bruised windpipe. “I need to get to work,” he added.
Keller stopped within a few feet of him, glanced at Kendra, and spent a second looking around, as if expecting to find one of the Saints somewhere nearby, eavesdropping.
“Did you hear me?” Andrew gritted out.
“I heard you,” Eric whispered, his gaze snapping back to Andrew’s. “Listen. You need to go. If you think what Hound did was for show, think again. The next time he comes at you, he won’t bother to talk to you, and you won’t see it coming. Take it from someone who worked with him for over a decade.” Keller slowly shook his head. “You need to leave tonight.”
A peal of thunder rolled ominously, and the sun winked out as dark clouds stole across it. Andrew watched them sliding over the blue sky like blackout blinds. “I’m not leaving without Val,” he whispered.
“Tony and Roland are working on it.”
“Yeah, so they say.”
“I’ll watch her for you, Miller.”
“You?” Andrew’s eyes hardened as he stared at the skinny man with dark, deep-set eyes and a perfectly-trimmed black beard. His hair was longer than it used to be, making him look somehow even crazier and more dangerous than he used to.
“Trust me,” Keller added.
Andrew barked a laugh. “Trust you? What’s Val to you?” he asked, taking a quick step toward the shorter man and forcing him to lean away as his face came within inches of Keller’s. “She’s my daughter. To you she’s just some teenage brat. Maybe you’ll watch out for her, maybe you won’t. But when push comes to shove, you wouldn’t trade your life for hers. But I would.” He nodded once, decisively.
“So would Tony,” Keller added.
“That’s a laugh. That kid would pass out before he ever pulled the trigger to kill anyone. Or he’d hesitate himself to death.”
Keller shifted his stance. “I understand your dilemma. She’s your daughter. She’s all you have. But you can’t help Val right now. There’s nothing you can do for her that won’t also get you killed. And then who’s going to be there to look out for her?”
Andrew opened his mouth for a hasty retort, then shut it again as Keller’s words struck home.
“I know what I’m talking about,” Keller said. “I had a family once. A wife, a son.” He nodded once, his dark eyes gleaming with a suspicious sheen of moisture.
Andrew blinked, taken aback. “What happened?”
“A car accident. Drunk driver.” Keller’s cheek twitched. “He got off with a slap on the wrist. They couldn’t prove he was drunk at the time, but he was. He had a history of DUIs. I found him and dealt with it myself. I’d have wound up in prison if it weren’t for Hound.”
Andrew nodded slowly, a missing puzzle piece slotting into place. He’d always pegged this man for a killer. Now he knew why. “So what? How’s that story supposed to make me feel better about you watching Val?”
“You and I aren’t so dissimilar, Miller. We’re two sides of the same coin.”
Andrew snorted. “Yeah, you’re the ass and I’m the head.”
Keller didn’t skip a beat. “You should feel good about me watching Val, because I know to what lengths revenge can drive a man, and you and I are both vengeful men. If I fail to protect your girl, you’ll kill me. You should feel good about me watching her, because my life’s also on the line.”
Andrew found himself relenting. Keller was right. Andrew might kill him if Keller let harm come to his daughter. And if there was one thing Keller could be trusted to do, it was to look out for himself.
Another clap of thunder punctuated that thought, and both of them studied the dark, towering thunderheads. The first drops of rain fell cold and light on Andrew’s sweaty face.
“Okay,” he said, nodding slowly.
“Don’t waste any more time,” Keller suggested. “Kendra’s ready to go tonight.”
“Hey! Get inside!” a distant voice called. Andrew saw one of the Saints come running. It was the redhead, Arthur. “We’re wrapping it up for the day. We don’t need you two picked off by tigerwolves!”
“All right!” Andrew shouted. “We’ll be up in a minute.”
Keller clutched his arm. “It’s now or never, Miller. Use the storm.”
THIRTEEN
Roland
“How the hell did you figure this out?” Tony asked Roland, watching over his shoulder as he used the tablet.
“Man, I was doing stuff ten times as hard when I was still in diapers. Computers have always been easy for me,” Roland told him, moving to the next construction drone’s instructions. So far he’d set up five of the rolling machines to attack the Saints’ home, and there were another ten to go.
The machines weren’t much different than the ones from back home. They each resembled excavators, backhoes, bulldozers, and anything else needed to level the land and prepare the space. Then there were the drones: the robotic machines that erected girders, poured concrete, and created intricate framing systems. The humans had done most of the finishes, but the entire project had taken far less time with the high-tech gadgets. Now Roland was going to use the same tools against the Saints to create a distraction.
He kept programming them, grateful he’d slipped the tablet into his pants on the night of the coup. They’d been stupid not to search everyone, but nothing the Saints did ever seemed overly intelligent. He wondered how early on Morris had found the drug, because she’d managed some early adopters into her cult. But those were probably the most scared, the loneliest of the thousand colonists.
And once people noticed the gathering group, they would have assumed the company would be good for their mental health amidst all the chaos. Roland hated how the reverend had sought out the weak and then used the drug to corrupt the others, spreading her hate. It had to end.
Tony was at the door to the water treatment plant, keeping watch for Eve or one of the other guards that always seemed to be around. “Where are we with Morris?” Roland asked.
Tony let the door close, and he whispered when he finally spoke. “She’s messed up. She’s making everyone drink from some golden cup, calling it the Chalice of Unity. There’s a tank of water, and she’s giving it to people in her Communion Courtyard.”
Roland fumed. Maybe he could have the drones attack this water tank. He grinned as he continued his work, but glanced up when Tony reopened the door, sending a cool breeze into the building.
“Rollie, I think we have a problem,” Tony told him.
“What is it?”
“The clouds. Storm’s coming.”
Roland sauntered over to the exit, peering up to the sky. It was abnormally dark for this hour before dusk. “Damn it. This might put a wrench into things.” He considered taking the masks in the packs of supplies they’d stashed in the treatment plant, but he refrained. Kendra and Andrew were going to need that equipment, especially if it was raining outside. It had been a long time since they’d dealt with the hallucinogens: not since the reverend’s takeover.
“I don’t think we have time. We should return to camp. Hide out so they don’t think it was us,” Tony suggested, and Roland nodded.
The drones were supposed to activate in two hours to create the diversion, but that would be too late if it started to rain. They’d be under lockdown already. “Is it raining?”
Tony jutted his arm out the door, and after a few tense seconds he answered, “It is. Starting hard now.”
Roland tapped the final instructions to his construction fleet and climbed onto the desk, hiding the tablet above a ceiling panel. He brushed his hands off and followed Tony out the door. No sign of any guards. That was good.
“We have ten minutes before all hell breaks loose. We need to tell Andy and Kendra there’s been a change of plans.” Roland ran, the rain pouring down on them. The ground was dry, so he hoped that would delay the inevitable mist that always accompanied the storms. Maybe Andrew had come to his senses about leaving camp. Roland would do it, but he thought his skills were more beneficial to the group here. No one suspected him of being a threat, other than the company he kept.
Tony’s long hair was plastered over his face, and Roland ran a hand over his, wiping the water from his eyes. They came to the edge of camp, and people were rushing toward Eden One, the guards yelling and motioning for everyone to take cover.
The clouds were angry, blacker than anything Roland had seen before. It reminded him of their last day on Earth. He half-expected to see ash falling from the sky, and smell sulfur in the air. They had approximately five minutes until the construction fleet attacked the residence, and that meant he had to find his allies.
Final Days: Escape Page 9