The eighteenth line had three glyphs right in the middle, constantly repeating.
“So how do we translate it?” Her voice had a desperate quiver.
“Craig said we have to spill blood on the altar,” Nate said thoughtfully. “The YouTuber talked about using the wand. I think we can use the wand to translate the glyphs, and the translated message will appear in our pop-up.”
His avatar approached the altar, which was gory and dark with the spilled blood of previous players. Some of it was dried out and dark, some was fresh and glistening. A bejeweled dagger lay on the altar, shiny with blood. There was also a long, narrow, slightly knobby wooden wand. It looked like a long, thin spectral finger.
Nate’s avatar picked up the dagger. “I’m really glad this is virtual, because it looks fucking unhygienic,” he said, slashing the blade across his avatar’s wrist.
A spray of virtual blood splattered over the altar. A key on the side of the screen measured the player’s health points and another one in the pop-up had a bar that showed the wand’s charge level. Nate had to stop twice and buy two more big blocks of health points, or his avatar would have zeroed out and croaked.
The thirsty altar sucked up his blood, and the translation wand bar finally rose to the very top. So far, so good.
He had his avatar pick up the wand. He touch it to the glyphs on GeekwadX1000’s line. The translation that appeared in the pop-up was succinct.
sos
Nick entered his own handle in to the Obelisk list, and opened his own dialog box. It had the option to reply to a specific message, so he chose GeekwadX1000 as the recipient, and typed into the box.
r u Josh Roarke
His message appeared on the Obelisk, translated into glyphs, and began its constant horizontal cycle. Many long minutes went by. He wondered if Josh was paying attention, after months of silence and disappointment. If he’d given up hope.
sos disappeared. A new, longer message rolled out onto the Obelisk.
Nate touched the translation wand to the column, and waited for the dialog box to fill. who wants 2 know
yr sister, Nate entered in his own box.
Another long pause, and a new message appeared. do not fuck with me
true thing Nate typed. she is here
if u rnt her then who r u?
a friend Nate typed. helping
Another pause, and Josh wrote, where did i spend my 10th bday
Nate turned to Elisa. “Security question,” he said.
She leaned over. “Shaw’s Crossing,” she said. “Summer camp. I was in the arts program, and Josh did the computer science module. Dad sent enough chocolate ice-cream cake for everyone at the camp to have a piece.”
Nate entered, computer camp shaws xing chlct ice cream cake
The next line came faster jesus lu it took u long enough
yes but we r here now. where r u? u have a router?
bailey ridge. I found a broken router & fixed it w/o them knowing. They let me play with shards bcz they think its sngle plyr
Nate turned to Elisa. “Where’s Bailey Ridge?”
“It’s one of Dad’s properties,” Elisa said. “A place in the mountains near Amity Springs, not far from Mt. Ranier. He used it sometimes when he was skiing.”
Nate typed again. Is Gil there now?
no he is gone. nite b4 last.
tell me about the security, Nate wrote.
hardware beefed way up, Josh wrote. cameras. motion detectors. thermal imaging to 100 yards. usually 6 guys. he took 2 with him. another one left 2day. dont know when Gil will be back. cant tlk more rning out of pts. about 2 die.
“Don’t let him run out of points!” Elisa sounded panicked. “He can’t die!”
“Just in the game,” he said gently. “Relax.”
“Not for him! If we lose him, we lose the connection for who knows how long! He has to earn points without the benefit of a credit card! It could take him weeks!”
“Calm down,” he soothed. “I understand that. I’ll find a solution.”
A couple minutes of research in the game forum did the trick. Armed with fresh knowledge, he bought up ten full blocks of points, and rerouted the magical spell toward GeekwadX1000. Then he went back to the altar, and opened his vein again. Elisa winced as gouts of virtual blood rained down over the altar.
After a tense couple of minutes, Josh’s response rolled out onto the Obelisk and into the dialog box. He translated it with the wand.
holy shit u must have bled out 800 bucks worth of health points tnx dude im good for a while
my pleasure, he replied. passing u to ur sister. have at.
He got up, gesturing for Elisa to take his place. “I’ll reload you both after, he said. “You guys talk for a while. I’ll go in the other room and make a phone call.”
“Yeah? Who to?”
“Mace,” he said. “And Jim Wong, for starters.”
“For what?”
“Backup,” he said. “To bust out your little brother.”
Her eyes went big. Her hands were shaking. “You’re just going to go after him?” she asked. “Just like that?”
“Yes,” he said baldly. “Asap. Once we get Josh out of there, you’re free. We can broadcast your video, and put it right to that prick and his perv billionaire buddy, right where it hurts.” He paused. “Or…I could just kill him,” he added, his voice deceptively casual. “That works, too.”
Elisa gave him a wary glance, unsure whether he was kidding. “Sounds problematic. I don’t want you to get into any trouble.”
Nate shrugged. “Let’s focus on Josh for now. He’s a prisoner of war. He needs you. Talk to him, take notes on everything he tells you about what he’s heard and seen. Anything could help us. We need to know about the security, the guards, the camera placement, schedules, shift changes. Pump him as much as you can.”
Elisa glanced back at the obelisk. Just a few glyphs shone on it. She touched the wand, and the message appeared in the dialog box. Lu? u there?
A long, ragged breath shuddered out of her, and she began to type back.
yeah baby I am so sorry I love u so much
dont start pls if I cry theyll wonder wtf is wrong with me. i dont want to draw attention
ok no weepy stuff stay tough she wrote.
totally Josh replied. good to hear yr voice.
omigod yes. Elisa sniffed back tears, and her back shook as she typed.
Nate dug up a pack of tissues for her, and then put some space between them before the hot prickle behind his own eyes could betray him. He went into the bedroom, and dug around for the burner that matched the ones he’d passed out at the wedding reception, and pulled up Mace’s number.
The phone rang four times. The line clicked open. Mace’s deep, sleep-roughened voice came through. “Do you know what time it is right now?”
“Quick update on the Elisa situation,” Nate said. “I need your help tomorrow. To rescue Elisa’s little brother from a raping, murdering, kidnapping, child-trafficking motherfucker.”
“No shit.” Mace grunted as he sat up in bed. “You’ve got my attention.”
Nate laid out the situation, swiftly recounting the conversation Elisa was currently having with her brother in the other room.
“Far-fucking-out,” Mace said when he wound up the tale. “So, we rescue Josh, steal Gil’s leverage, and then pound the living shit out of him? That’s the plan?”
“Right.” Nate was grateful that Mace could be counted on to instantly see reason. “Right now, Clemens and three of his goons are cruising around Shaw’s Crossing looking for Elisa. They know she worked at the diner, so it’s likely that he’ll be looking at all of you guys. Be on the lookout for them.”
“Damn,” Mace murmured. “So Kimball and his merry band just wasn’t enough for us. We needed a little more challenge.”
“Yeah, that was Elisa’s reasoning. That’s why it took her so long to say anything. I’m not bringing Elisa back to Shaw’s Cr
ossing before we finish Clemens. I’ll rent a place here for her to wait for us, around the halfway point between Shaw’s Crossing and this Bailey Ridge, where they’re holding Josh. Someplace defensible.”
“Can it wait at all?” Mace asked. “Our forces are depleted. Eric’s gone, Anton and Fi not up to speed, plus we’re missing the guys who are out covering Eric and Demi at the island.”
“According to Josh, Clemens took half his staff to Shaw’s Crossing,” Nate said. “It’s a real opportunity. I think we should hit them right now. Once we get the kid out, we have all kinds of options. Until then, he’s a knife to Elisa’s throat.”
“Okay,” Mace mused. “Anton and Fi are at the day hospital at Granger Valley tomorrow, getting followed up. I have two men covering them. That leaves me, Jim and Mitch. Not enough, since you’re going to need someone to cover Elisa. Anton and I could get good people in place pretty quickly, but probably not by tomorrow. Which is more crucial? The timing? Or the numbers?”
Nate pondered it for a moment, then made the call. “Timing,” he said. “I say we go tomorrow. I want Jim for the mission, and Mitch to cover Elisa.”
“Done,” Mace said. “We’ll bring firepower, body armor, infrared goggles and thermal cloaking. Send me coordinates for the staging area, and the extraction point. Jim and I will get right to work.”
“Will do. I’ll message you ASAP.”
Nate went back into the other room, where Elisa was still typing furiously. “Hey,” he said to her gently. “Sorry to interrupt.”
“Huh?” She looked up at him, distracted. Her eyes were streaming with tears.
Nate squeezed her shoulder. “Would you mark for me the exact location of your dad’s ski place? I need to pin down a satellite image.”
“Oh. Yeah, sure.” She squinted down at the tablet, rubbing her eyes. “You take this road south from Amity Springs, head up to Lewis Butte Road, and then you turn right up on Bailey Ridge Road,” she said, tracing the route with her finger on the map. “It’s 1.3 miles after the turn-off, on the north side of the road, and there’s a little cluster of buildings. Right here.” She pointed at it.
Nate marked the spot. “You guys got enough juice to keep talking, or do I need to open another vein?”
“We both have a half a tank,” she said. “I think we’re good for a while.”
“Great. Carry on. Remember to take notes.”
“Yeah.” She sniffed hard, grabbing another tissue. “Absolutely. I’m on it.”
He left her to it, the tapping on the keyboard fading as he went back into the bedroom and sat down to study satellite photos of the site.
He’d memorize every tree, stone and twig before tomorrow.
17
Elisa hadn’t expected to sleep, not after twelve hours of laborious gaming, followed by that long, intense conversation with Josh. But once her brother had been forced by his captors to stop playing, she’d gone down like a ton of bricks and slept for…she checked the digital clock by the bed. Four hours. It was now seven AM.
Nate reached out. “Where are you going?” His voice was groggy.
“I just want to check the Obelisk,” she said. “I want the lines of communication between us open at all times. What if he needs to tell us something?”
“It’s early, babe. They shut him down at 3 AM, and they won’t let him get going again this soon. Like he said, he can’t afford to draw attention to himself. And he told you already that they usually don’t even unlock the door to his room until eleven.”
“Just in case,” she said stubbornly. “I should be watching whenever I can. He said when Gil’s there they make him stop gaming earlier. When Gil is gone, they’re looser with the rules. They let him play until three or four in the morning.”
Nate nodded, rubbing his eyes. “Good to know. Let’s go fire it up.”
She was being irrational, but that point of connection seemed so delicate and improbable to her. Like a spark in danger of going out. She wanted to cradle it, feed it.
Nate was a good sport. He opened up the saved game and promptly got her back onto the Obelisk, which only had thirteen players writing on it at that hour of the day. None of them were GeekwadX1000. She would just have to be patient.
Nate was talking on the phone. “….don’t want to travel far,” he said. “Secluded, but near town, and with excellent internet connection…yeah.” He listened for a while. Elisa could hear a high-pitched voice holding forth on the other line. “I know, but you’ve got the magic touch,” Nate soothed. “You found this hotel, right? And it was perfect….nope, that’s none of your business…yeah, yeah. I promise I’ll send you and Kenny on a nice vacation when it’s all over.” Another burst of yapping. “But it doesn’t have to be large,” he said. “It’s just a parking place for Elisa and her guard. Oh, and could you order some lunch for us? Sandwiches for six, at two PM. Pick something out for us. Okay. Thanks, Gina. Later.”
He caught her watching, but his smile faded as he studied her face. “What?” he asked. “What’s wrong now?”
“You said, ‘a parking place for Elisa,” she said. “You think I’m sitting this out?”
Nate’s eyes hardened. “That’s exactly what you’re doing. I need you plugged into the Obelisk. That’s how you can help us. And I mean, really help us. You can add genuine value, not just tag along putting yourself and us into more danger.”
“I can’t just sit here with a keyboard and let you fight my battles for me!”
“You’re my eyes and ears on the ground,” Nate said. “You’re a crucial element to the mission. I just wish we could spare two guys to cover you and not just one, but I want to hit them now, while their ranks are thinned. Half of Gil’s team is combing Shaw’s Crossing for you, so we’re pushing forward with this tonight.”
“Can’t I do ground control from the car?” she asked. “That way I can at least be there when you come out with him.”
“No,” he said, his voice hard. “You don’t have training, and there’s no time to teach you. I need you on that keyboard, safe, so I can focus. And if you were thinking straight, you’d know that I’m right.”
She bit her lip and looked away. “Fine. I’ll cover the Obelisk. But don’t waste a man guarding me. I can stay alone. Josh needs you. And Gil has no way of finding out where I am.”
“Nope,” Nate said. “It’s all set up. You and Mitch stay here. We need to move as soon as Gina sends the address. You’ve got a few minutes before breakfast if you want to grab a shower.”
There was no reasoning with the man, so she gave up trying. Elisa showered quickly, and pulled some items out of yesterday’s shopping bags more or less at random. She ended up wearing black fleece-lined leggings and a long, fuzzy crimson sweater that hung halfway down her thighs, and cute, shiny black combat boots.
Nate gave her an approving glance when she came out, and walked over to her, stroking his hands down over her shoulders, petting the silky fuzz of her sweater. “Excellent. I love that color on you,” he said. “Like the blouse you wore at the wedding. And your winter coat. That deep red color. It makes your skin glow.”
“Wow,” she said, self-conscious. “You certainly have been paying attention.”
“You have no idea,” he said.
Suddenly, they were kissing again. She was so emotionally primed by that crazy night, his lightest touch set her on fire.
The kiss directed itself toward the bed, and soon she was stretched out with Nate sprawled on top of her. His heat and weight felt so good. She wound her legs around him, squeezing him closer—and a knock on the door struck them motionless.
“Room service!”
“Aw, fuck.” Nate blew out a sigh. He rolled off her and got up, seizing his pistol and tucking it smoothly into his jeans as he went toward the door.
Elisa smoothed her hair back and tried to calm her heart down. She had to get a grip. They had a job to do, harrowing for her, and incredibly dangerous for Josh, and Nate. Mace and Jim Wong, too
, incidentally. All of whom were heroically putting themselves in the line of fire without the slightest hesitation.
And damn it. No more fucking tears allowed. No. She’d blubbered most of the long conversation with Josh. She was exhausted from crying. Her abs hurt from sobbing. Her eyes were sore and reddened.
“Breakfast,” Nate called out.
Elisa had ceased to be astonished at the quantity of food Nate ordered. In the end, it seemed that very little of it went to waste, though she couldn’t imagine where he put it. The man had no fat on his taut, sinewy body. He must have the metabolism of a blast furnace.
She tucked in a respectable quantity of food herself, considering how anxious she felt, and they worked on discussing the night before until Gina called Nate back. Nate stared into space thoughtfully as he listened to his assistant on the phone.
“Sounds fine,” he said. “We don’t need a gym or a pool, but they won’t get in our way. As long as we have a good visual of the surrounding area in every direction and solid internet connection, we’re good. Yes…two o’clock for lunch delivery. Yes. I know. You are magnificent, Gina. I bow before your vast cosmic power. Yeah, you bet. Two weeks in Hawaii for you and Kenny, minimum.” His eyes shifted to Elisa, smiling. “Yes, she is…yeah, I look forward to having you meet her, too.”
Nate closed the call. “We pick up the key from a rental agency in Bellamy. He’s expecting us before noon, so we need to get moving.” He tapped a message into his phone. “I sent Mace and Jim the address. And I’ve already checked us out of this hotel. Gotta pack those consoles up, babe.”
“Let me just leave Josh a quick message before you break it down,” she said quickly. “So he doesn’t think I abandoned him.”
“I bet that would never even cross his mind,” Nate told her. “No one lucky enough to have you for a sister would think that for one second.”
“That’s sweet. But he’s been through so much. I want him to have something from me the second he logs on.” She sat down and typed into the dialog box.
we have 2 change our location. incommunicado for an hour or so. will check back in asap. love u. stay strong.
Heedless: The Hellbound Brotherhood Book Four Page 15