‘What if they come down here?’ Larisa said; the pearl-white of her eyes widened to shells. ‘Shouldn’t we be ready?’
‘They won’t. They don’t know about the bunker and we have the wave protection. There are some Voltarms if you want one,’ Lucas said, and pointed to one of the Lyocell-covered tunnels, but his attention was focused on the screens.
Chandra’s fingers swiped over the Interface. ‘I’m going to get the drone to capture this,’ he said. ‘It’ll make our special PSA even more compelling. Screen five,’ he said and nodded to the right-hand corner, ‘is where we are; screen nine, at the top left, shows Kau. He’s at the Circle. We just need to hold tight here until they run out of steam…’
But they weren’t running out of steam, they were running towards Kau; the Ghettoites around him backed away. Bile fizzed in Jun’s throat. There was no audio in the Circle from the East Bunker, so she had to torture herself with Kau’s gesticulating arms, and the swarm of Officers bating around him. He seemed to be talking, but Jun had no idea about what.
Something moved in her periphery, and she saw two Officers appear on screen five, edging closer to the rock formations that were directly above them.
‘We’ve got some activity here, boss!’ one of the Officers yelled with a Russian punch. Short and squat, he ran his feet over the earth like he was drawing battle lines. ‘It’s showing multiple band frequencies. Either people are here somewhere, or they’ve just left, and there’s a time-lag.’
‘Well, which is it, Sergeant?’ his superior said with a melodic lilt, heritage Spanish or Italian maybe. Her hair was wound tightly in a bun; her body was stretched and lean.
The squat guy stomped his foot on the ground. And then took a few steps and stomped again, and again. He did that for a minute or so around different spots. He looked into the abyss of black up above him – they must be wearing nocturnal goggles – ‘This tech is new to me, Boss. I’d say lag is… unlikely. They should be here,’ he said and looked around them.
She seemed to ponder this, and her hands swung to her hips like a cowboy. She spoke into a comm device. ‘Guryev, bring me a Ghettoite to coordinate L12, M2.’
Jun looked at Chandra, Batz and Lucas. The UA wasn’t supposed to be able to detect them down here. That’s why they had signal blockers. Unless the UA had developed a new technology?
Lucas pulled back the Westerly tunnel-fabric, which led in the direction of the Province border. ‘We should leave…now! The tunnel can get us out – we need to leave!’ He grappled Voltarms from the floor and handed one to each of them, his hands twitching as he passed them out.
Chandra shook his head. ‘Not yet. We won’t have a screen to see what’s happening, and we’ll have to blow the tunnel. Then we’re really screwed. We only do it as a last resort,’ he said. ‘Wait.’
Batz took hold of Solo and Kodi and hovered by the tunnel mouth. ‘I think we should go.’
‘Wait!’ Chandra’s patience held firm.
A scream cried out, dragged from the depths of someone’s belly. In their distraction, the Officers had brought a Ghettoite onto screen five… It looked like Drusilla, with her hair piled on her head like feathers, and the scar on her face. Jun had first met her the night that the UA took Kodi.
‘Are we missing anything here?’ the boss said, nudging the Immobiliser in Drusilla’s face. ‘We’ve detected human band frequency – aside from ourselves – but look,’ she said and helicoptered her head around, ‘no humans. There’s no one above us,’ she looked up to the onyx sky. ‘But what about down below?’ She pointed to the floor with the Immobiliser.
Lucas flexed his knuckles at Chandra.
‘Wait,’ Chandra whispered.
‘Underneath the ground?’ Drusilla said, her voice steady and assured. ‘That’ll be the burial site.’
The boss grunted. ‘Burial site?’
‘From the ‘48 uprising. When your lot massacred 50 of us, even after we’d surrendered. We weren’t violent in the first place.’
The squat guy shook his head. ‘It would only show recent activity.’
‘Well, perhaps they’ve been turning in their graves, seeing you back here, threatening us.’
The boss brought out a pistol from the back of her pocket. People barely carried guns these days; even the UA. She was serious. ‘We’re only just getting started.’ She thrust it in Drusilla’s neck. ‘Is the girl down there somewhere? Is Li the embarrassment with her?’
‘You can jab my neck with however many guns you like. It won’t change the fact there’s only bones and dead hair underneath. And maybe rats.’
‘Then where are they?’ the boss said.
Drusilla laughed. ‘There’s a hierarchy here too,’ she said, they were almost eye to eye. ‘I don’t know where Kodi is… they don’t tell the likes of me. Li’s around here somewhere. Why don’t you harass him?’
Jun’s heart pounded in her chest. She looked to screen nine, Kau was still talking to the mob.
The boss stood there for a moment. Jun imagined her battling her hardened instinct that something was going on, but she relaxed her pistol. ‘Clear out!’ she shouted, in Drusilla’s face. ‘Someone find me Li.’
The squat guy beat his feet on the ground again, maybe hoping something would spring underneath. The rest of the Officers filed out like herded sheep and appeared in screen nine, where Kau was still talking to other Officers from their party. The chaos parted to let the boss through to Kau.
‘And you’re sure you can’t get audio?’ Jun pleaded, she needed to hear what was being said.
But Chandra wasn’t listening; his mind was elsewhere. ‘We need a plan b,’ he said solemnly. ‘We can’t risk you staying here till Monday evening. We need to get you out of here, now.’
Lucas bound over to Kodi, and his knuckle-popping hands swamped her shoulders.
‘Can’t you see anything?’ he shook her like a rag doll. ‘What are we putting ourselves on the line for, if you couldn’t see this!’ His voice seemed to claw at the walls, pulling dirt and debris with every word.
‘You’re hurting her!’ Jun cried.
Batz and Chandra pulled Lucas from Kodi. Jun’s arms wrapped around her in protection.
Chandra tried to speak to Lucas like soothing an angsty child. He gently held Lucas’ shoulders, but Lucas pushed him away with a violent shove.
‘Get off me!’ Lucas said, before turning his back on him.
Chandra’s face crushed.
Jun’s mind turned to Kau. She dragged herself to the Interface, but he was nowhere to be seen on any of the screens.
Where had he gone, and what on Earth would happen now?
CHAPTER 37
Saturday 20th May 2062
1 hour to hand over Kodi
The Officers descended on him like bloodhounds. Given half a chance, their fangs would pierce his flesh and pull his body to pieces. Kau stood firm. He could throw them off the scent if he was confident and managed the situation.
As soon as Kau hit the Circle, the Ghettoites scattered. He didn’t blame them. He’d magnified this mess; Anton clearly didn’t trust him to bring back Kodi and he was right about not to. Kau should still have had a few hours to play with, but instead, the shorts-and-shirts were baying for blood, but he was determined to leave them wanting.
‘What are you doing here?’ he lambasted, he needed to think, and fast.
One of the Officers stepped forward. He was older than the others, and a good twenty years on Kau. His knuckles whitened as he clenched his Immobiliser. ‘We had orders to get the girl and bring you back with us.’
Kau recognised him from the first abduction of Kodi, when he had been at The Ends with Celeste. He’d also accompanied Kau to deliver the news of Kodi’s bogus virus to Chandra and the Ghettoites, and probably been involved with the Ghetto-raid after his mother had broken Kodi out. He undoubtedly knew the Ghetto better than Kau and would be experienced enough to know that all was not as it seemed. Despite the raids,
despite tearing the mob-homes inside out, they still hadn’t found their quarry.
‘You know as well as I do, they don’t actually keep her here. Fuck knows where…’ Kau bluffed. Kodi couldn’t stay at the Ghetto until Monday, if all of them managed to make it that far. It was only a matter of time, surely, before the bunkers and tunnels were discovered if they hadn’t been already. But it would be impossible to travel to the N.E.E before then; there were no other safe means to get there, other than the TP. Though they’d all agreed that releasing the PSA on Monday morning delivered maximum impact, they couldn’t afford to wait that long; they needed to act now. But he needed the UA to leave, now.
‘I don’t know that at all, Li.’ Kau’s name expelled from the Officer’s mouth with contempt. ‘You’re a bullshitter,’ he inched closer to Kau and squared to his face, ‘just like your father.’ He spat on the ground. ‘It’ll give me great pleasure to drag you back so you can get what’s coming to you.’
Pleasure was transient, but glory, or the promise of it, was what kept them at Anton’s heel. That and his threats of their crucifiction. Returning without Kodi was a fate worse than death, but if they did, Kau would be dragged back as the culprit. But what if he managed to shift the blame on to them? Spin that it was their fault instead? It was the only shot Kau had, and it was a long one. They wanted Kodi badly enough, that a distraction and the promise to deliver her, might scrape him through.
‘You’ve completely de-stabilised my strategy!’ Kau pushed the Officer back.
The Officer responded by brandishing a Voltarm with a snarl.
Kau ignored the weapon. To make this convincing, he couldn’t show any signs of fear or weakness. ‘You’re an idiot!’ Kau screamed and pushed him again. ‘You’ve just fucked up the last chance I had of getting her back. Blundering back here like the mindless thugs that you are. If you only engaged your tiny little brains…’ the Officer swung a fist, but Kau had known what was coming and ducked. In fact, he’d been counting on it.
‘They’ll never hand her over now!’ he said through gritted teeth. ‘It requires diplomacy, and I was this close,’ he pinched his hands together and thrust them in the Officer’s face, ‘to getting her back, and now you’ve fucked it up for all of us. How are we supposed to go to Anton now?’
No one said a word; the Officer’s mind clogged with doubt, Kau could tell. Kau wasn’t their boss, but he wasn’t one of them, and could he be trusted?
‘Hold on, hold on, I’m getting a call,’ Kau said. ‘Yes, hello?’ He imagined that he was talking to Chandra or Lucas. ‘What kind of symptoms?’ he said, his voice calm, but he made that he looked rattled.
‘Is she stable?’ Though Larisa confirmed there was no latent virus, if he made out that Kodi was ill, it could cause enough panic to buy him time; they’d be worried enough about keeping her alive to swing the pendulum of power back to him. Anton wouldn’t dare tarnish his silver bullet. He needed to keep Anton away long enough so they could escape, and his mother could release the recording.
‘I-I-I’ll need to check with my superiors. In releasing the virus, they’re only fulfilling the promise they made to you. There’s been no indication of co-operation from your part. Can we take this as confirmation that you’re willing to co-operate?’
The Officer was dumbfounded, like an old gun dog who lost his scent; he looked to his colleagues, but they were much too panic-rippled to pay attention.
‘Hello? Hello?’ he waited a few moments before pretending to hang up the call.
There was commotion up ahead; the swarm of Officers in front of him began to part.
‘I can’t believe you didn’t wait for me,’ Kau said, dripping his words with disdain. ‘Why did you release the virus early?’
The last few remaining Officers stood to one side, and a woman bound up, eying him like he was vomit sliding down her leg. Kau took her for the leader. If the other Officer was a gun dog, she was a Doberman.
‘You could have warned me, at least! We need to make it look like we’re in control, not knee-jerking by storming in here, releasing the virus early…’
He knew by the twitch of her eyebrow, she was concerned, but wouldn’t let it show. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she said, her tone was like a boot to his face. ‘No virus has been released.’
‘Then why has she lost colour, why are her sheets sodden in sweat?’
The boss’ face didn’t falter. Kau took it as an opportunity to pounce.
‘I need to speak to Anton. I suggest you clear out and leave me to clean up your mess,’ he shouted.
The Doberman looked at him with interest. ‘I receive my orders from Anton, not you.’
So far, not bad. He couldn’t give in now, but the worst was yet to come. Kau could lie with the best of them, but Anton was something else. He’d likely be in his office at home, feet up and on his fourth whisky, maybe more. The call connected and, as predicted, the blotched cheeks and the whisky-gruff voice told Kau everything he needed to know.
‘I can’t believe you went early,’ Kau said urgently. ‘When did you release the virus? I know I was close to the wire, but I almost had her.’ Anton’s alcohol haze would play in his favour.
Anton’s lips moved as if repeating what Kau had said. His face showed that he hadn’t made sense of it yet.
Kau went for the jugular. ‘She’s stable, but apparently in no condition to be moved. What have you done?’
Anton stammered and stuttered, trying to suggest the Officers bring Kodi to the lab for them to look at her. When Kau’s words about Kodi being unmovable had finally filtered through, Anton suggested they send the lab team to her instead.
‘We need to play it carefully; once they get over the shock and realise that they needed our help, then let’s send the lab team. We still don’t know where they’re hiding her. I’ll give you the signal when I get it in writing that they’ll comply.
‘In the meantime, speak to the lab,’ Kau said, as earnestly as he could muster. ‘Get them to prepare the antidote.’
When he’d hung up on Anton, perhaps the final time he would speak to his old boss, Kau could tell that Anton was shaken. Good. He should be.
He reiterated to the Doberman what she’d heard herself; she gave a loose promise to contact Anton for follow-up orders. Kau thanked his lucky stars; he’d hustled the noose from around his neck just in the nick of time; at least for now.
Now, there was only one thing for it; to go back to the bunkers and dodge the other nooses that were waiting.
* * *
The GluSuture from removing his chips was warm and tacky on his face, and it brought a fleeting moment of relief. It reminded him of when he was younger, when he’d played with his friends, and they’d been rough and ganged up on him. He often came home with a split lip, a cut knee, or a gouge in his head. Antiseptic and GluSuture was the usual arsenal of his mother’s artillery, but he’d need more than GluSuture now.
The East Bunker and tunnels were the quietest he’d seen. Between himself, Chandra and Larisa, they’d barely said five words since the others had gone to pack their lives away. It was like waiting for the wind to sweep you up and change direction, and who could say where you would blow to?
After he’d returned and they all updated one another with what happened, they agreed it was only a matter of time before the UA discovered the bunkers and tunnels. His diversionary tactic had, fingers crossed, bought them a couple of hours, but they couldn’t sit around waiting to be smoked out. In case the UA raided in between now and Monday evening, Kodi, Batz, Solo and he planned to go through one of the tunnels, to the emergency exit which took them further west of the Ghetto. There was a bunker they could take shelter in; coincidentally, it was located near The Ends. If the UA discovered the West and East bunkers and tunnels here, all the Ghetto needed to do was press a button, and the tunnel walls would blow, closing them off, guaranteeing that they wouldn’t be discovered. That meant Eli would have to pick them up from T
he Ends bunker instead, and then take them on to the TP. That was the worst-case scenario; it was riskier too. If the UA never came, then come Monday, they would return to the Ghetto, and it was business as usual with Eli.
They had also agreed to accelerate the PSA and go live at 20.00 this evening – in two hour’s time – instead of Monday morning. It would be an added distraction to help their getaway, and it was too risky to sit on everything. After they’d agreed on their new plans, the bunker had quickly descended into chaos; everything was rushed, nothing could happen soon enough. But as everyone left to prepare themselves, just as quickly, the chaos transmuted into a deadly calm.
Chandra was where Chandra operated best; at the Interface, surveying the state of the nation, preparing to hack into the PSAs. He would send them any updates, and if worst came to the worst, he would explode the tunnels.
‘Are you ready?’ Larisa asked him.
Was Kau ready? Not nearly enough. Now, it was crunch time. Would he really go through with it and let his mother live in the BioDome? Let her be the UA’s public enemy number one? It had been his idea, and her excuses were wide off the mark. He wasn’t the person she thought he was. He couldn’t lead others into this next generation – Antarctica, or wherever it might be. Not by himself. He couldn’t handle that kind of responsibility. People would expect him to have all the answers as they expected from Chandra, but all he had were doubts.
‘I’ll be ready when Lucas arrives,’ Kau said non-committedly. It wasn’t a complete lie, he was waiting for him. As the UA would likely still be monitoring the comings and goings of the Ghetto, he and Lucas had planned to swap clothes, and Lucas would don a cap and sunglasses to set up the BioDome for his mother. Admittedly, it wasn’t much of a disguise, but if there were any Officers still lingering, they would expect to see Kau in the car, so that’s what they would give them.
Lucas, his proxy, would drive to the UA workshop with his mother and Larisa in the trunk, and pick up the BioDome and transport it to the Province Governance Alliance offices. Lucas would take Larisa back, and then return to the Ghetto. Thanks to the Intuimoto’s Interface, he would send Kau’s car back home. Lucas would program it to combust after the PSA went live, to destroy any evidence.
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