by Lara Nance
“Bring some of your chocolate banana brûlée, Gin,” her father said. “I bet Linc would love that.”
“Oh, for sure!” Her mother hurried to the kitchen.
Ria shot a suspicious look at her father. He merely smiled and shrugged. She knew what they were doing. They considered Linc a good person to help protect her, so they wanted to reward him with food. They’d lure him to their side with the pleasures of Tres leche cake and chocolate banana brûlée. Then they’d guilt him into looking after her.
“It’s really good,” Conner said. “Gramma makes it better than anyone.”
Yep, he was in on it, too. Look at those gooey admiring gazes he cast at Linc. He could wrap people around his little finger. Oh, yes. He’d been around enough, dragged from city to city by Lola and dealing with her many boyfriends. That kid was no dummy. He’d have Linc in the palm of his hand in no time.
Her mother returned with two bowls and handed them to her and Linc.
“Wow, this is fantastic,” Linc exclaimed after the first spoonful.
“I think we should get back to the issue of revolution and people dying from cannibalism,” she said, trying to ignore the tongue-gasm from the fabulous dessert. Somebody had to keep this group on track. They had serious issues at hand.
“Of course,” her father said. “I think what’s important is for you two to maintain a facade of cooperation with this new regime. You need to keep working on the parasite, that’s paramount.”
She licked her spoon, savoring the last tiny bite. Good, her father understood.
Linc made a yummy sound. “The problem is that they won’t let us continue our cooperation with the South. This is a problem that has gone international. When a solution is found, it has to be shared. The only way to end this crisis is to wipe the parasite out. Everywhere.”
“Then you have to find a way to bypass the barriers put up by this new political faction. There has to be a way.” Her father leaned forward in his chair. “Is there any hope those loyal to the Triumvirate can rescue them and restore the government?”
“I doubt it,” she said. “They took advantage of the shield isolating the city. They’ve managed to infiltrate the National Security forces that guard Omaha and make them loyal.”
Ria’s wrist-comm beeped and vibrated. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Manson?
“Hello?”
“Ria, are you and Dr. Butler all right?” His gravely voice boomed over the comm.
“Yes. What happened to you? Do you know about the government coup?”
“They learned of the imminent threat just before I arrived to meet with them today. Everything was in an uproar, so they sent me to a secret facility where I could continue research on the parasite, safe from the R.D.”
“Where are you?”
“I can’t tell you over this comm. It could be intercepted. You and Linc have to leave the city. Once you’re outside. Go to Kansas City. I’ll find a way to contact you there.”
“Louis, we can’t leave. The shields are up.”
“Find a way, Ria. I know how resourceful you are. This is important. I think I’ve found a way to defeat this virus, but I need your help. We won’t stop this parasite unless you and Linc escape and join me. This political bullshit is nothing. Find a way out.”
The connection broke, and she sat dumbfounded. Manson wanted her to leave a city taken over by a hostile faction and on lockdown with security shields up? They couldn’t just vanish in thin air and appear somewhere else.
Linc placed his empty bowl on the table. “Do you have any idea how we can leave the city?”
Ria shook her head. “There’s no way out. He’s crazy.”
“You should see Minlo,” Conner said, raking another corn patty through the dip.
She frowned. “What do you mean? Minlo can’t help us.”
“Mom always said Minlo could do anything as long as it involved a computer. He’s hacked into all kinds of sites. He showed me how he changed the credits in his bank account once, and he also got us free lifetime passes to the zoo, the science museum, and the waterpark.”
She shared a look of surprise with Linc. “You know what, Conner? I think you may have a brilliant idea.”
Linc stood and strode to a window facing the street. He parted hanging blinds and peered out. “As I feared, they have guards outside this building. They’re not as trusting as I hoped they’d be.”
“Well, damn. What are we going to do then?” She slapped her hand on her thigh.
“I might be able to help,” her father said.
“Juan…” Her mother sat forward, alarm lighting her face.
He raised a hand. “They have to leave, Gin. If Manson thinks he has a solution, that’s vital.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Ria said. “We can certainly use any ideas you have.” Now to see if her sister’s unconventional boyfriend would help them.
***
Linc ducked under an air-filter conduit in the subbasement of Ria’s parent’s apartment building. Juan motioned him along through a space between two columns of filter frames. If not for the light he held, the darkness would swallow him. Linc hurried to catch up.
“Aww, shit,” Ria hissed.
“What’s wrong?” He looked behind, focusing his portable light on her face.
“I hit my head.” She rubbed her crown, wincing. “Keep going. I’m okay.”
“How much farther?” he asked her father.
“Just ahead.”
He led them through a small room with pipes running at different angles. Metal rungs sunk in the far wall led upward into unfathomable blackness.
“Dad, how do you know about this place?” Ria huffed and climbed over a square structure.
“I used to be in charge of the maintenance here when I first retired. There are passages and sub-basements below most buildings in the city since it was built on the foundations of structures from the past.” He pointed to the embedded steps. “Climb this and you’ll come out in an air duct that leads to the apartments beside ours. It’s the best I can do. At least they won’t be watching that building. From there, you’re on your own. Keep an eye out for drones, and soldiers patrolling the streets. You did turn off your personal tracker, right?”
“I turned that off a long time ago,” she replied.
“Thanks, Juan. This is a huge help.” Linc shook his hand.
Ria hugged her father and kissed his cheek. “Take care of Mom and Conner.”
“I will, sweetheart.” He returned her kiss. “Take care of yourself.”
Juan waited, shining his light on the steps until they passed the edge of its glow. Linc and Ria continued the climb, finally reaching a ledge.
“I never imagined there was all this space under buildings in the city,” Ria said, atop the ledge and crawling along the narrow space a few feet.
The ledge led to a round tunnel about three feet in diameter. Dirt and dust kicked up as they moved. Whatever this was, it hadn’t been in use in quite a while.
Linc followed, handing her their light. The air here smelled stale and felt warm. Sweat formed on his face and ran down his neck. “Can you see ahead?”
She pointed the light forward. “There’s a square opening about two feet wide I can make out.”
When they reached it and peered past the opening, it looked like another sub-basement similar to the one her father had led them through.
“I can drop to the floor. It’s only a few feet down,” Ria said, passing him the light.
“These places are creepy,” he said when he joined her.
“I agree. Let’s hope there’s nothing down here.”
“I wish you hadn’t said that.”
She snickered. “Are you scared?”
“Just keep moving.” He nudged her back.
He hated the dark. He always had since he was a kid. His brother had made fun of him when he wanted to keep a lamp on in their bedroom at night. This subterranean darkness was his nightmare.
&nb
sp; They stumbled and scraped against old rusty pipes and skeletons of equipment he couldn’t identify. Dirt made both of them sneeze and cough. Anyone would hear them coming. He tried not to think about that.
“There’s a door,” Ria said in a low voice.
“It looks old.” He examined the frame. He tugged on the handle, and it crumbled in his hand. “Great.”
“Maybe we can find something to pry it open.”
They scoured the area, lights pointed at the floor and moved debris with their feet. Ria found a round circle of metal, but it broke when she tried to push it in the gap between the door and the frame.
“I might be able to fit my fingers under the bottom,” she said, kneeling. “Ouch, nope, that’s not going to happen. It’s too tight.”
“This might work.” He found a thin piece of metal about a foot long. It had worn blue paint at one time but now bore mostly brown rust. He jammed it into the edge of the door and used leverage. It creaked and groaned. Finally, it gave way and inched open.
“You did it!” Ria grabbed the edge and pulled as he pushed.
When the gap widened enough for them to pass, he took the light and led. They entered a round culvert likely made of concrete about ten feet wide. More metal steps led up its side.
“Time to climb again,” he said.
Ria headed up, tugging on the rungs to make sure they would hold her weight. At the top, another round tunnel ended in a grate. On the other side, he made out a basement still in use. Of four rows of lights on the ceiling, one cast a dim glow over the space. The area held machines that ran heating and air-conditioning, but no one was there. At least they had a little light. He breathed a sigh of relief.
“I think I can kick it in,” he said, scooting close. He aimed his feet at the grate and gave it a push.
“Almost,” Ria said. “Keep at it.”
After three tries, one side broke loose. He bent it back enough for them to squeeze past. Now they would move through areas in use. They wouldn’t pass unnoticed. If they made it to this tech guy’s place without being caught, Linc would consider them very lucky.
Up a flight of stairs, they entered a storage space with locked wall units where residents could store items they didn’t need in their apartments. Their footsteps echoed in the long hall between the units. Up another flight of stairs, they made it to the first floor.
“Here we go.” Ria took a deep breath and opened a door. She peered around the edge. “All clear. The lobby is empty.”
“I bet everyone is in their apartments with the doors locked,” he said. “Nothing like a revolution to keep people at home.”
She made a derisive snort. “Unlike us crazy folks trying to escape the one city in the DOA that’s safely shielded from invading cannibals.”
“I’m thinking cannibals might be better than this RD group.”
She cut him a ‘you’ve got to be kidding’ look. “At least the RD won’t eat you alive.”
As they left the stairway and headed across the carpeted open area in the center of the lobby, the lift door opened. A young man and woman came out.
“I just think it would be safer if we had it in the apartment with all this upheaval,” the woman was saying.
“All right. All right. It’s at the back of the storage unit,” her companion replied. “We’ll have to dig it out.”
Linc put an arm around Ria’s shoulder and whispered in her ear. “Act natural. Don’t look at them.”
Her body stiffened under his arm, but she kept going. They reached the glass double doors and stood looking out until the couple left the lobby.
“See anybody out there?” she asked.
“No.” He tilted his head to view the sky. “No drones, either. Let’s go. We can head for that storefront across the street half a block up. It has a recessed entryway where we can hide.”
She nodded and pushed open one of the doors. They ran flat out to the shadowy space, and pressed against a wall.
“We made it,” she said, her breath coming fast.
“You’ve got this tech guy’s address programed in? Conner gave it to you, right?”
“Yes. I went there once before, but I can’t remember exactly where it is.” She pressed a command on her wristband. “This says we have to travel three blocks west and two blocks north. He has a sign over the door that says Orbit Computer Repairs.”
“We’ll take it in stages.”
As they started to leave the sheltering store front, a military vehicle whizzed past. They ducked into the shadow. A drone buzzed over like a fat, lazy bee. After a last glance up and down the street, he said, “Now.”
They ran to another awning-covered entrance. The progress was slow, but they managed to avoid patrols and overhead surveillance. They encountered other people scurrying along the sides of buildings in the same manner. So, everyone wasn’t sitting at home waiting. Hopefully they made it to a shelter before the RD soldiers caught them.
“There.” He pointed, spotting the sign for Orbit Computer Repairs hung over a small establishment barely wider than its door. Sandwiched between two larger shops, it almost went unnoticed.
“He lives in the basement, Conner said.”
“Let’s hope he lets us in.” Their night would go from bad to worse if he refused and they had to make their way back to Ria’s parents. They might not be so lucky on the return trip.
“I’m not leaving until he does.” She pressed her lips together in a firm line.
Chapter Eighteen
“What the hell? Are you trying to wake up the neighborhood?” Minlo’s pale face scowled at them through the crack in the door. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re under martial law. I don’t need attention from those goons.”
“Min, come on. It’s me, Annaria. Lola’s sister.”
“I know who you are.” His gaze slid to Linc. “Who’s he?”
“A fellow scientist helping me work on the parasite project. You know about that, right?”
“Yeah, it was on the news.” His scowl didn’t lessen.
She glanced over her shoulder to the night shrouded street, nerves on edge. “We need help. Can you let us in?”
“Why should I? I don’t want any of your trouble. I got enough of my own.” He made to close the door.
She jammed her fingers in the opening, hoping he wouldn’t slam them. “Min, these people who took over the government, we found out tonight that they set off the bomb in the plaza. They’re the ones who killed Lola.”
His scowl quivered. After a second, his face crumpled. He allowed the gap to widen and stepped back so they could enter. He slammed the door behind them and hit the lock pad. Without speaking, he turned and headed to the back of his dimly lit store. Not much of a place, it had a counter with shelves behind it stacked with a dozen computer accessories. Two cheap molded chairs sat on one side of the room, and a wall rack of chargers and cases occupied the other wall.
She and Linc exchanged a puzzled glance and she shrugged. She’d always questioned if this was his real business. He used to take Lola out to dinner a lot, and bought expensive presents for Conner. He wasn’t hurting for credits. He did actually fix her computer once when it stopped connecting to SatNet, but this didn’t look like a booming business place.
Min kept walking and took a flight of stairs to the basement, a completely different world from the shoddy storefront above. Beautiful, artistic furniture joined thick colorful carpets, and a variety of art covered the walls - everything from painted masks to intense abstract paintings. This explosion of tastes surely appealed to Lola. In fact, Ria identified one of her sister’s watercolors there. It depicted a lovely scene of Main Park in spring with lots of pastel flowers and a robin’s egg blue sky. She must have been happy when she painted it.
“Have a seat,” he mumbled with a vague wave to a bright red sofa piled with tapestry and animal print covered pillows.
Linc pushed a couple pillows aside and sat, making a place for her as well.
Lola’s death must have hit him hard. This demeanor opposed his former happy-go-lucky outlook, always joking and laughing. He flopped into a chair shaped like a hand, his lanky legs sprawling and his gaze focused on the floor.
“The people who took over the government call themselves Radical Democracy,” Linc said. “They’re responsible for the attack on the Triumvirate member as well as the bomb that went off in the Plaza. They want to insure the North and South never unite.”
Min shaded his eyes with one hand. “They murdered Lola.”
“Yes, they did,” Ria said. “And we need to get away from them. They won’t allow us to collaborate anymore, and they plan to keep the cure from the South if we find it.”
“That’s mondo depressing news. So what are you going to do?” Min lowered his hand and met her gaze.
“My boss, Dr. Manson, is the lead on this project. We can’t solve it without him. Apparently, the Triumvirate learned of the impending attack just before it happened and sent him away so he could complete his research at a secret facility.” She nodded to Linc. “Dr. Butler and I need to find him. He called us tonight and wants us to go to Kansas City, but we don’t know how to escape the security and shields.”
Minlo cut his eyes away then back. “What do you think I can do about that?”
She twisted her fingers together, trying to stay calm. Frustration and the need for haste made her want to shake the guy, but she understood he mourned Lola and his subsequent inertia. He’d loved her sister, and she had to give him that.
“Conner thought you might be able to help us. He said you’re a computer genius.”
A slight smile lifted one side of Min’s lips. “Conner, he’s a great kid. I miss him.”
“He misses you, too. If you visit him, it would help both of you deal with my sister’s death.” She lowered her voice to a soothing level. “He said you can hack into programs or something. We’re desperate for anything you can do.”