Honor shot a final glare at Clarice, before striding out of the room ahead of the guards. She kept her hands in front of her, as she discreetly raised her wrist comms device, opened a link to Kade, and typed a single word with a shaking finger.
Help.
Chapter 3
Kade tossed and turned in his bed. His internal body clock told him night was fading, despite not being able to see the outside world.
He had a single room close to his workstation. It sometimes got uncomfortably hot when the heat from the mainframe seeped through the wall, but Kade was used to the warmth. He’d spent six months working in Australia, once, and had enjoyed the blistering summer sun, and the way his nose peeled when he didn’t put on enough sunscreen. He missed the warmth of the sun’s rays on his skin.
Rolling out of bed and tossing the sheets aside, he pulled on workout sweats and a white tank top. His sleep had been disturbed by nightmares of Heath being locked inside the Damascus Corp. building. They were mixed with the distressing sound of Honor’s cries, as she was dragged to some secret location and interrogated for some unknown crime.
Kade hadn’t had a chance to speak to Heath since the raid on the vault. He hoped the finds Heath had obtained had been worth getting himself almost killed.
He didn’t mind risking getting arrested, because he broke through computer security systems on an almost-daily basis, but he hated it when his brothers put themselves at risk. Especially when it felt like they were making such slow progress toward getting what they needed to return dragons to the world. They had a few other squads who went on retrieval and recon missions, but training them was slow going, and there had been several fatalities. There were so few of them left who still believed in the dragons that they couldn’t risk lives unnecessarily.
Sliding out of his room, he padded barefoot along the familiar, cold, gray corridor. Just like everybody else, his mind had been manipulated when the State had taken over. Kade had been one of Heath’s first test subjects in jolting the real memories back and removing their powerful hypnotic suggestions. He’d nearly bitten through his tongue during the procedure, and hadn’t been able to talk for a week, but he’d been grateful for that. Discovering that your real memories had been hijacked, and you were under the influence of a mysterious power, was a shock to the system. It had taken him a while to adjust to this new life. A life as a wanted man and an enemy of the State.
Kade rolled his shoulders as he entered the workout room. He was happy to be here with his brothers and got satisfaction out of helping disable the tyranny of the State. But sometimes it felt like it wasn’t enough. It felt as if the myth of the dragons was just that, and the mysterious creatures would never return. That this would be as good as it was ever going to get.
He did a few warmup punches on the bag hanging from the ceiling before going through his mixed-martial-arts circuit. His time in the Army had served him well and given him the skills to defend himself. Those skills had proven useful when he’d been pulled up by the State and accused of working against them. He’d had to fight his way through six armed guards to get away. If it wasn’t for his training, he’d be dead, or maybe given a mind wipe so severe he couldn’t remember his own name.
The strength of his punches and kicks increased and sweat ran down his back.
His thoughts turned to Honor and the strange message she’d sent him. What was she thinking, getting in touch and risking drawing the attention of the State to her? When they’d worked together, he’d thought she had a dangerous streak. They’d gone out drinking one night, and she’d matched him shot for shot, as they’d argued about chaos theory, her passionate debate making people give them a wide berth, as she’d vigorously waved her hands around.
He shook his head. There was no place for a woman in his life. And not one like Honor. His knuckles ached, and so he slowed his punching, and focused on kicks for the next few rounds.
Kade had enough to do to keep him busy. Whatever Honor was playing at, she’d have to do it on her own.
Having worked out his frustration on the punchbag, Kade headed to the showers, finding the water tepid but refreshing. He showered quickly, ignoring the hardness between his legs as his thoughts kept filtering back to Honor.
He wrapped a towel around his waist, grabbed his sweaty clothes, and headed to his workstation. The place would be deserted at this hour; the systems running on autopilot until the first shift began.
Slumping into his seat, Kade scraped his damp hair back off his face. It was down to his shoulders now, and he kept meaning to get it cut, but couldn’t be bothered. He didn’t care about fashion trends. So long as he was clean that was good enough. He turned on a newscast, keeping the sound muted, and tapped a button on his keyboard, sending the screen flashing into life. He quickly typed in his password.
Kade checked the analysis he’d been running on a data chip Annie had stolen from a State prison during a recent mission. The information was encoded, but some of the data had been corrupted, or was missing. Without it, the maps the chip showed were useless. Whatever this information was, it would be no help to them until he had the missing data.
His breath caught in his throat. He leaned forward, his interest blaring as he minimized the screen. There was another flashing envelope. And it was from Honor.
His finger hovered over the delete button. Why contact him again? What was going on in her life that she’d take such a risk?
Kade couldn’t ignore it. He clicked the message open. His eyes widened at the single word in front of him. Help.
Pulling his chair closer to the screen, Kade opened a secure communications link with Hive Two. It was one of two outposts used by the bunkers to get intel from remote areas. There were three squad members stationed in each, all experts in undercover reconnaissance, and near-geniuses, when it came to gathering information and scanning for threats.
“This had better be an end-of-the-world-type problem,” came the croaky, sleep-filled voice of Holden Blackwell.
“It’s Kade. I need you to grab information about someone.”
“Someone who’s got you in a lethal headlock and is about to end your life?” Holden’s fuzzy image appeared in front of Kade. He was rubbing his eyes and covering his mouth as he yawned. He had several days of pale stubble on his chin and his hair was a mess of blond curls.
“What happened to you?”
“Nothing’s happened to me,” said Holden. “I was asleep.”
“Thought the hives were active all day and night?” Kade grinned at Holden.
“Everyone’s allowed a five-minute catnap,” grumbled Holden. He scrubbed his hands through his hair twice. “Plus, I had company last night. The woman was a hellcat. I think I may have pulled something in my groin.”
“Spare me the details.” Kade ignored a slight stab of envy.
Holden grinned at him. “The pain was worth it. What do you need?”
Kade took a deep breath. “I’ve had two messages from someone in trouble. Her name’s Honor Davenport.”
“What’s her connection to us?” Holden’s eyes sharpened.
“Nothing direct,” said Kade. “She contacted me to say trouble is coming.”
“Trouble for us?”
“She wasn’t clear.” Kade shifted in his seat. “She works at Intergen, in their genetics section.”
“This is personal?”
“I wouldn’t say that. But I know her. Guess you could say we’re friends.”
“She cute?”
“I never noticed,” lied Kade. He thought Honor looked hot whatever she wore, whether it was one of her trademark pencil skirts, or slacks covered with a lab coat. She pulled off every style and didn’t notice the effect she had on men when she looked at them over the top of her glasses.
“Whoa! Hold on now. I’m getting pictures of Miss Davenport. She’s smoking hot. You sure you’re not trying to get a booty call?”
“It’s not like that,” growled Kade. “She could be in tro
uble.”
“You planning on rescuing her?”
Kade heard Holden tapping on his keyboard and scanning data streams as he joked with him. Despite his banter, Holden was ruthlessly effective, and would find the information Kade needed. The hives had supercomputers, designs Kade had hacked and copied for their own use. Holden would be accessing multiple data streams in hundredths of a second.
“Only if she needs it,” said Kade. “But Honor can hold her own. She wouldn’t get in touch if she had any other option.”
“Especially not with you being a wanted criminal,” said Holden. “Crack any good codes lately?”
“Enough to double the bounty on my head.”
“I’m tempted to turn you in, myself,” said Holden. “The hive is looking worn out. Extra credits would buy me a warm, soft bed and all the toys I need.”
“You’d sell me out for a soft mattress and a gaming console?” The hives would never be places of luxury or comfort. Just like the bunker Kade lived in, they used them because they were safe and out of the reach of the State. The rest of the population carried on, oblivious of what was going on beneath their feet.
“I’d sell you out for a bottle of great whiskey and a new pair of boots.”
“Once we bring back the dragons, I’ll get you a room in the State palace,” said Kade. “You can have your pick.”
“I don’t know,” said Holden. “I kind of like being underground.”
Kade nodded. The last year had been the weirdest of his life, but the memories of his apartment and job were fading. He’d never get that life back, and even if he could, he wasn’t sure he wanted it.
“Okay. Here’s what I’ve got,” said Holden. “As you said, Honor’s an employee of Intergen. Two promotions in the last year. Looks like a model employee. No warrants or anything suspicious tapped to her name in the militia system. Although she has an old file from when she was a teenager. She was an activist.”
“Doing what?”
“Protests and marches,” said Holden. “Girl looks cute with red-streaked hair.”
Worry swirled through Kade’s stomach. “What about her last known location?”
The sound of keys tapping filled the silence. “Got a lock on her mobile comm. She’s at Intergen.”
Kade checked the time. “Why would she be there at this hour?”
“Working overtime to get a bonus?”
“Or being held and unable to leave.” Kade tugged on his bottom lip. “What about her last project? What has she been working on?”
“The woman’s prolific,” said Holden. “Turns in at least one paper a month on her research. She can’t have a love life, if she spends her time on this amount of work.”
Kade grimaced; he was the same. Married to the job. That’s all he cared about, just like Honor.
“This is interesting,” said Holden. “The last two papers she submitted mentioned abnormal genetics.”
Kade stilled in his seat. “Did Honor mention dragons?” She was smarter than that. If she raised the theory of dragons being anything more than myth, she’d be dead.
“Only got the summaries here,” said Holden. “It’s weird, the papers have been redacted. Can’t get access to them. All I’ve got is a summary showing she was researching a dozen subjects who showed abnormal DNA. She summarized that further tests would be required and suggested the possibility of alien DNA.”
Kade scrubbed his chin. Was it possible Honor hadn’t been affected by the mind wipe? Could she possibly believe in dragons? What if she was trying to expose the information through her studies? If she was, it was both stupid and brave. The State wouldn’t allow her to continue research that threatened their order.
“Ooo... I’ve got more information here,” said Holden, his grin turning impish. “Looks like Honor’s been looking for love.”
Kade’s brow furrowed. “What’s she been doing?”
“Online dating. And she’s got great pictures online. A couple of real sexy ones.”
Kade gritted his teeth. “Anything else not related to her love life?”
“Got a final data stream uploading.” Holden let out a low whistle and his grin faded. “This isn’t good. It’s live data feed from Intergen. They’ve filed an article saying Honor’s been removed from the company for selling private data to a rival business.”
Kade jumped to his feet, his chair crashing backwards. “She’d never do that.”
“That’s what they’re claiming,” said Holden. “Must have just happened. The article came out five minutes ago.”
“Intergen set her up.” He knew how that felt, like a stab in the gut with a blunt knife. “They’ll ruin her. She’ll get sent to a State prison.”
Holden stared at Kade. “What you going to do?”
“Get her out.”
HONOR STILLED HER SHAKING hands and took a deep breath. The chair she sat in was cold plastic, and the only door to the room was locked. Shock coiled around her spine at having been accused of selling company secrets. Clarice hated her, and now she’d set her up, but Honor couldn’t figure out why. Her work was outstanding and had won Intergen lucrative contracts. Why ruin that because their personalities didn’t gel?
Honor looked at the camera trained on her and grimaced. Clarice was gunning for the death penalty. The idea made her feel sick. State law was harsh and inflexible. You made one mistake, and you were punished severely. It was one way in which the State held the population under such strong control. Everyone kept their heads down and stayed in line, or they were punished. Honor knew of several people who’d disappeared from the company without warning, and she’d never been able to figure out what happened to them. Maybe something like this. Shoved in a secure room, framed because they got on the wrong side of their boss, and shipped off to some hellhole of a prison to be worked to death, thanks to a corrupt judge.
She shuddered and tapped her fingers on the desk. There had to be a way out of this, it had to be a mistake.
The door lock clicked open, and a tall, thin man wearing wraparound sunglasses and a black suit entered. He was followed by another man in an identical suit, this one broader in the shoulders, with a gun on his hip.
Honor swallowed the nerves creeping up her throat. “Where’s Clarice? I need to speak to her. There’s been an error.”
The thin man took the seat opposite Honor, keeping his shades on. “Clarice is unavailable.”
“Perhaps I can go home and come back tomorrow and we can get this sorted out.” Honor made to stand, but the man gestured her to remain seated.
His mouth quirked up at one corner. “The only place you’ll be going is detention.”
“But I haven’t done anything.” Honor shot a worried look at the man guarding the door.
The thin man rested his hands flat on the table in front of him. “Tell me about your research into dragons.”
Honor’s mouth fell open, and she snapped it shut. “This is about my research?”
“In two separate papers, you mention alien DNA and dragons.”
Honor’s breath hitched in her chest. “The dragon comments were throwaway. You know how some people have this odd obsession with them.”
The thin man’s dark eyebrows rose above his sunglasses. “Do they?”
Honor moistened her lips with her tongue. “I was only serious about the alien DNA. There’s something in that research that’s not making sense. The test subjects had incredible abilities to heal. It was as if they weren’t human and had supercharged immune systems.”
“You think they have dragon DNA?” The man adjusted his sunglasses and then crossed his arms over his chest.
“No, of course not! But I am fascinated by the way their abilities corresponded to the myths surrounding dragons. Their rapid healing abilities, for example. I didn’t suggest dragons were ever alive. That’s impossible. But these humans show abilities that could benefit us all.”
“Why talk about dragons, if you don’t believe in them?”
“I, well, I mean... I’m not sure.” For a second, Honor’s mind blanked, and a vivid image of a green-and-gold dragon hovering over the city of London filled her thoughts. She shook her head and focused her attention on the thin man. “They’re not real. I can take out any comments about dragons from my research.”
“That has already happened.”
Honor blinked. “It has?”
“No point in publishing lies for the public to read.”
“My work is excellent. I don’t lie. Ignore the dragon comments and focus on the unusual DNA. There’s been research for decades about life coming from other planets. Microbial life is most likely and could have huge possibilities for humanity. If I can do additional tests on the subjects, find out more about them, we might make inroads into curing a host of illnesses. It would be incredible.”
“You won’t be doing any work for Intergen. And you won’t do any more work in the genetics field.”
Honor’s heart stuttered. “I don’t see what I’ve done wrong.”
“You attempted to spread dangerous propaganda to the public,” said the thin man. “That is not tolerated.”
“No one even reads these research papers,” said Honor. “I’m amazed Clarice even did. I’ve sent her half a dozen reports over the last three months and she hasn’t commented on any of them. I put in some throwaway comment about dragons and aliens and suddenly she’s all over me. It makes little sense.”
The thin man sighed. “There’s no point in denying your knowledge. And when we couple your spurious research with your activities working for rival companies, well, you are no longer considered an asset.”
Anxiety pulsed through Honor. “These accusations are false. I love my work here. Well, I did until I got accused of betraying the company and ended up being held against my will.”
“We have set a trial for tomorrow.” The thin man pushed his chair back and stood.
“Wait! You’re bringing this in front of a jury? This can’t be right.” Honor had seen the State version of a hearing, they showed them on the public broadcast channel most evenings. Everybody who went before the State jury was convicted.
Kade (sci-fi romance - The Ember Quest Book 2) Page 3