Tempered

by Britt Ringel

  His movements stopped completely. He stared, head down at the water faucet. “Okay. So we’re leaving Waytown for a while. We can’t use my aircar. It has nothing close to the range we need to get to another settlement.”

  Standard aircars had reduced range by design. Although the technology existed to increase their reach, extended-range vehicles were strictly regulated. Average citizens were restricted to short-range aircars that limited travel to within a single settlement. Only people in the top echelons of corporations were afforded real freedom.

  Sadler shook his hands and reached for the towel on the counter. “I can’t get Mom involved in this. We’ll need a couple mag-rail tickets.”

  Kat’s heart swelled at his words. More than anything, she wanted him to come with her. She could survive this if he was standing by her side. But it’s not fair to him and it’s too dangerous. “Sadler, you can’t come with me.”

  “Do you want me with you?”

  “Of course.” She’d said the words before she could stop herself.

  “Then I don’t see how you can stop me.” He smiled. “How about this? I’ll use my vacation time. I’ve saved almost two weeks. We can reassess after that.” He dropped the towel and moved around the low counter to stand beside her. His hands found hers. “I won’t abandon you. I love you.”

  “Christ.” The word dripped with contempt. Tabitha thrust her hand at Kat, stabbing the air as she pointed. “She is a criminal. Probably a murderer.”

  “Shut up!” Sadler hollered while taking a threatening step toward Tabitha. He caught himself and fumed in momentary silence before continuing in a softer volume but angrier tone. “Do you know why I broke up with you, Tabby?” His finger jabbed toward the carpet. “Because of this. This. Right here. You can’t see two centimeters past yourself. Kat needs help.”

  Tabitha took her own bold step toward Sadler. She seemed to revel in his aggressive manner. Her grin was rapturous and the tone of her voice anything but submissive. “Baby, we both know Waytown would be better off if people like her didn’t exist.” She slinked closer to him and reached out as her words suddenly oozed sexuality. “And we both know you broke up with me because I drive you wild. Just like I’m doing now.”

  Sadler batted her hand away. “Kat, let me get changed and pack a bag. Can you check the train schedule? There are only two destinations from Waytown: Northport and Coldbarrow.” He walked toward the door but stopped and glanced back. His chin jutted toward Tabitha. “Can you handle her?”

  Kat nodded. “Yeah, but we can’t leave her here and she can’t come with us on the train.” A devilish expression took hold over her. “We could drop her off at the edge of Shantytown and be long gone by the time she makes it back to Waytown.”

  Tabitha gasped. “Don’t do that. They’re animals. They’ll know I’m a citizen and kill me or worse.”

  Sadler snorted and left as Kat pulled up the mag-rail schedule on the counter console. A train would depart for Northport in eighteen hours, far too long a wait. A second was scheduled to leave for Coldbarrow in only four hours. She ordered two tickets under Tabitha Carter and Sadler Wess. “Tabitha, come here. I need your wrist. You’re paying for our ride.”

  Tabitha edged forward. “Seriously, Kat, you can’t strand me in Shantytown. You’d be signing my death warrant if you did.”

  Kat took hold of her right hand and waved her wrist over the reader in the counter’s controls. A confirmation appeared on the screen and the woman’s handheld on the countertop chimed with a duplicate receipt. The transaction was necessary but it was also a record. Kat suddenly felt unsafe in the apartment. Something primal told her she needed to move, and soon. “I don’t want you to get hurt but you’re leaving me little choice. Maybe you should become a whole lot more helpful.”

  “Your friend, Tess, said she wanted me to understand. She said I’d help if I understood. What did she mean by that?”

  Kat released her wrist. “It’s better if you don’t know. It’s safer if you don’t.”

  Tabitha shook her head slightly and sat on the stool. “So, I’m supposed to trust you when you don’t trust me.”

  Well, yes, but she’s right. The stranger thing is that I actually want to tell her. She thinks I’m a nobody. Kat longed to come out of hiding and unshoulder her burdens, throw it all out into the open, consequences be damned. The prospect was too tempting. “The Pelletier’s Society isn’t a Trodden gang, Tabitha.” The words poured from her mouth as if in confession. “It’s a secret entity that performs unspeakable acts for Sunthetic. It commits all the atrocities that you claim don’t exist in your perfect society. I may not have been born with a silver spoon in my mouth or tattooed on my waist but I’m not Trodden. I was a guardian of your immaculate, little utopia, a nameless, CINless Society operative with hands so dirty they make a miner’s look pristine.”

  Tabitha’s jaw dropped and her hand found her waist but she seemed to let Kat’s comment go. “You’re delusional. You’re seriously sick.”

  “Not even close.” She faced Tabitha and squared her shoulders to the truth. “But I was a killer. You were right about that. But I’m also not just human. I’m something more.” Kat’s eyes tumbled to the countertop. “Or less. They beat it into us that the things that made us different also made us less human.”

  Tabitha snorted a burst of laughter.

  Kat raised her eyes to meet Tabitha’s. “And if you repeat any of what I’ve said, the Society will find out you know about its existence and send someone like me to kill you, to preserve your perfect world without you in it. Sunthetic wants its secrets to remain secret. That’s why the Society is after me now.”

  “And Sadler believes this bullshit?”

  “Yes, he does.”

  Tabitha crossed her arms. “Show me something. Prove you’re better, that you’re more.”

  “I could,” Kat said matter-of-factly. “Easily. I could rip that stool you’re sitting on from existence and toss you on your ass but Tess warned me not to use my abilities or risk being found.”

  “How convenient.”

  “It doesn’t matter anyway,” Kat proclaimed. “All that matters is, do you want to spend the afternoon walking through the worst parts of Shantytown?”

  Blood drained from Tabitha’s face. “No. I know what Trodden do to citizens. They hate all of us.”

  “Then here’s my offer. You are coming with me to Shantytown. We’re going to hide for a few hours with someone who will help. Now, I can either leave you with her and she can watch over you until Sadler and I have left town or, so help me God, I will fly you to the outskirts and you can take your chances.”

  Tabitha opened her mouth to speak but Kat cut her off. She glared at the woman and spoke with a grim finality. “And, if you implicate my friend Maggie and call corp-sec down on her as my accomplice, I swear I will make it my mission in life to find and kill not only you but your family. If you hurt Maggie, you kill not only yourself but also your sister. Do you understand me?”

  Tabitha pressed her lips together and nodded, eyes wide at the naked threat.

  Kat grabbed Tabitha’s hair and pulled hard until their faces were centimeters apart. The action felt natural, had come shockingly easy to her. Far too effortlessly. She pushed her disgust aside and pressed forward for Maggie’s sake. “Do you believe me?”

  Tabitha swallowed audibly. “Yes. I believe you, Kat.”

  Kat relinquished her grip. “Then let’s work together and both survive the day.”

  Chapter 18

  An hour later, the rain had slowed to a drizzle but thick clouds persisted overhead. Kat looked out the passenger window at a stormy palette of blue and grey as far as her eyes could see. Far to the west, the shades darkened and lightning streaked from the clouds to the desert ground. Waytown would see a second round of thunderstorms tonight.

  As the town slipped underneath her, she was tempted to ask Sadler to keep flying. Fly out of Waytown, out of Shantytown and into the mounta
ins. Fly away from the trouble brewing despite knowing that they’d never reach Coldbarrow in his aircar. They wouldn’t even come close.

  Focusing on Tabitha’s handheld, she tapped commands to recall its earlier communication with Tess’ FLAT. Her thumbs flew over the small screen as she composed a message stating that she had abandoned Tabitha’s apartment. Before she could finish, the device chirped loudly in her hands. The incoming call was from Tess. Kat quickly accepted the request.

  “I need to speak to Cat!” The woman sounded desperate.

  “I’m here.”

  “Get out of the apartment!” Tess blurted. “Bowen’s coming for you right now. And don’t go back to the mine.”

  “We’re already out.”

  “Thank God. Bowen has taken over the operation to find you. When you and Tabitha went missing at the mine, he took off with a group of agents for her apartment. He’d take down the entire building if it meant killing you. Where are you now?”

  Kat hesitated. Is this a ploy? She closed her eyes and thought of Tess. Vague feelings floated in the periphery of her consciousness. She was nice to me at the Society, one of the very few. And there’s something else, but I can’t place it. I’m going to have to trust someone. “We’re on our way to the Beggar’s Market in Shantytown. I have a friend there. Where are you, Tess?”

  “Bowen sent every operative out to look for you. He left my agents at the mine in case you came back and ordered me to fly around town to try to sense your presence. I’m supposed to report to him in less than an hour but I’m not going back. I’m a nervous wreck and scared to death and if I get anywhere close to Em, she’ll sense my deception. I don’t know what Tears and Teki are doing. I didn’t get a chance to talk to them.”

  Tabitha leaned forward from the back seat. “If you people are corporate secret agents, why do you have thug-sounding nicknames?”

  “You told her about us?” Tess asked over the handheld. “Good. Does she understand now?”

  “She doesn’t believe it,” Kat answered. She twisted in her seat toward Tabitha. “The nicknames come from the subdermal wafers they embed into us.” Her voice turned acerbic. “We get branded like cattle.”

  “Really? Let me see yours.”

  Kat reached to her right side but stopped. “I don’t have it anymore. I scraped it out before I escaped.”

  “Oh, how convenient.”

  “But that does beg a question,” Sadler interrupted. “What do these new people do? Bowen sounds like a regular name, but Tears and Teki? What are their abilities?”

  A damned good question. Get in the game, Kat. Considering their wafers probably start with “T-E” they might be telepaths but Tess said there were only three left: Em, Teg and Tess.

  “Who was that?” Tess asked.

  “Another friend.” Kat smiled at Sadler. “The one who believes in me most. Tess, come to the Beggar’s Market and you can meet him. I’ll send you directions.” She revised her aborted text message.

  “My name is Sadler, Tess. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Thank you for getting Cat to safety.”

  “I’m more than happy to help her. She’s very special to me.”

  A chirp sounded through Tabitha’s handheld. “Shit,” Tess cursed. “It’s Bowen. I have to go. I’ll meet you at the Beggar’s Market.”

  “Tess,” Sadler called out quickly. “Before you go, what are these new people’s abilities?”

  “Biokinetic. Cryokinetic. Telekinetic. If you see any of them, run.” The call disconnected.

  Sadler turned toward Kat and scowled. “That’s a lot of ‘kinetics.’ That can’t be good.”

  Kinetics, Kat thought. Energy and motion. Psi-positives who work with physical effects. “Yeah. Lolz and Tess are, were, information gatherers but now that the Society is sure I’m here, they’re sending their heavy lifters in.” Eastpoint came into view. “You’re going to have to land in Shantytown,” she said. “I obviously can’t walk through the gate.”

  “I wouldn’t trust Tabby to keep quiet anyway,” Sadler replied. He pushed the controls forward and began a descent. “Where’s the safest place to land?”

  Kat pointed at the main road beyond the gate. “On the Strip, where there’s the most foot traffic.”

  Minutes later, they were safely on the ground. Pedestrians were sparse in the light rain. Once outside of the vehicle, Kat could hear the distant rumble of thunder from the west. She reached inside the aircar and guided Tabitha from the cramped back seat. “Welcome to Shantytown, Miss Citizen.”

  Tabitha winced at the announcement and looked around nervously. She took a step closer to Kat and whispered, “Please don’t draw more attention to me than I’m already getting. I can feel their eyes on me.”

  Kat surveyed the main street. The few people braving the weather largely ignored them.

  Sadler pulled his bag from the trunk. He, too, shot anxious glances up and down the Strip. “Lead the way, Kat.”

  She shook her head. “You’ll have to leave that. The guards won’t let you in the Beggar’s Market carrying all those clothes. They’ll think you were trying to sell them.”

  Sadler dropped the bag back into the compartment and locked the vehicle. “How do vendors bring in goods then?”

  “They buy permits,” she explained. “Smuggling goods into the market is a serious offense.” She looked to the east. The short walk to the Beggar’s Market was down the comparatively safe and empty road. Her bunkhouse was equally close but in the opposite direction, back toward Eastpoint. “Sadler, we have to split up.”

  “What?” Sadler and Tabitha exclaimed together.

  Kat pointed east. “The market is just down this street and to the left. You can’t miss it. Just get in line, do what the guards ask and walk in. Then, follow the main thoroughfare north. After the first big intersection, turn into the cul-de-sac on the left. Maggie’s clinic is a tin shack with a big service window at the end of the street. If you walk past a water well, you’ve missed the cul-de-sac. You can ask for directions in the market if you really get lost. Everyone knows Doc Reynolds.”

  “Kat…”

  “You and Tabitha will be fine,” she assured him. “Can you do this for me?”

  “Where are you going?”

  Kat bit the inside of her lip. Her next move felt like a bad idea but it had to be done. “Back to my tenement. The Jamisons are there and we need them. If the Society finds us, those guns are our only chance.” She rechecked the street to the west. It was mostly deserted. “I’ll be ten minutes behind you.”

  Sadler caught her wrist and pulled her tight. He gave her a quick kiss. “Be careful.”

  “You too and keep an eye on Tabitha. You know we can’t trust her.” Kat began to trot up the street.

  At her accelerated pace, the drizzle matted her hair and soaked her clothes. Despite the day’s deluge, Shantytown smelled dank and foul instead of fresh and clean. When the bunkhouse came into view, she slowed to a walk and checked behind her. Sadler and Tabitha were out of sight. The few people down the street looked like simple vagrants. She approached the tenement with a watchful eye. Two beggars huddled near its front. The covered stoop had offered them poor shelter from the elements. Like the slum itself, they remained filthy despite their thorough soaking.

  Her eyes flittered to the brown puddles pooling everywhere. Rat’s water reservoir would be full tonight. The random thought broke her concentration. There will never be a time in my life when I don’t remember living in that alley. Rat’s torn corpse burned again into her mind. The things that happened there. Her execution of Peecho’s agents and the intoxicating, supreme power she’d felt during her confrontation with the Tory Boys washed over her. The things I did there. The memories burned brightly, as if they had happened today. Kat shook her head clear. The front of the tenement appeared safe, almost inviting.

  She stepped across the street, avoiding patches of muddy water. Fishing the keys from around her neck, she inserted one int
o the lock and twisted the doorknob as quietly as possible. The hallway inside was clear. It was dead quiet. Kat glided down the corridor and looked through a window in the door to the main office where Gretchen worked. The locked door prevented entry but the room seemed empty and undisturbed. Is the whole building abandoned? She resisted a peculiar urge to call out.

  Ahead, a pair of Trodden burst from the cafeteria, laughing. Kat nearly bounced off the ceiling in surprise. She placed a hand over her chest, trying to ease the staccato beat of her heart, and smiled at her nerves. The duo pushed past Kat with unconcerned nods. She watched them leave the building and step into the rain. It was picking up again. Thunder rolled louder and closer as she inhaled deeply. Calm down. She blew the breath out slowly before walking toward the bunkroom archway with a more natural stride.

  She passed the cafeteria and noted the single worker inside, wiping down tables. She entered the bunkroom carefully, pausing at the threshold to search for danger. Half a dozen Trodden occupied the large space but none seemed the least concerned with her presence. Most were resting or asleep in their cots, hiding in the dry warmth of their covers from the weather outside. Near the bathroom, a pair spoke in hushed tones but looked harmless. Kat moved quickly to her bed and knelt to unlock her trunk. Near the archway, she heard Trodden rising from their cots. She was reaching into the trunk when she heard a voice and froze. Chills shot down her back and turned her blood to ice.

  “I didn’t think you’d come back here, Pre-Cat.”

  The voice near the exit emanated from a short woman barely into her twenties. Her pixie-cut hair was dyed various shades of brown and black with severe, red highlights framing a rather square face. The same shade of red painted her lips underneath an upturned nose. Crisscrossed silver rings pierced the left side of her lower lip. A black, leather collar encircled her neck, topping a leather jacket that seemed too heavy for a desert climate. A pair of grey-suited agents in dark overcoats flanked her. Both pointed oversized pistols at Kat.

  She recognized the weapons as Consmythe-40 machine pistols. The self-lubricating, fully automatic polymer handguns were instantly familiar. “Fantastic Plastic” ran through her mind, her nickname for the weapon. The two Trodden near the bathroom had stopped talking, transfixed by the spectacle blocking the only exit.