“I told you not to trust him,” another voice countered, irritated. “He has no loyalty to us.”
I snorted softly. “Case has no loyalty to anyone. Should’ve figured that out long before this, dummy.”
“He’ll bring her.” I straightened. This particular voice was strong and regulated.
It had to be Tandor, or at the very least, someone in charge.
A strange noise erupted, which I quickly realized was made by propellers. A craft was landing in the area. Shouting sounded before the fans died down. I heard a door open and close. “No sign of them,” a male voice declared, along with loud, crunching footsteps. He must be closest to the mic chip.
“What about readings from other crafts in the area?” the strong voice in charge asked.
“I told you she wouldn’t come.” Lockland!
“Shut the fuck up.” There was the sound of a fist striking flesh, followed by, “Ooof.”
Dammit.
“We’ll give them five more minutes,” the leader said. “Then we depart.”
“Then what?” a voice asked in an irritated whine, this one distinctly female. “You said she has the key we need. How are we going to get it?”
The key? What key?
“We’ll find a way to get it, one way or another.”
“What are we going to do with this lot, then?” another male voice asked.
I was listening hard, leaning forward, my head cocked in their direction, wishing I could see what was taking place.
“We toss them over the side. If she doesn’t come now, they’re no good to us anymore,” the voice I was coming to know as Tandor stated with harsh cruelty.
“If she gets away, she’ll go to ground and we won’t be able to find her,” a new male voice said. By my count, there were at least six talking, likely more loitering around. “The outskirt told us he wasn’t able to inject her with the tracker we gave him, and their inner network is tricky, as we’ve already seen.” So Case had lied to them about the tracker, feeding them only what he wanted them to know.
It didn’t make his treachery any less infuriating.
“We got what we needed with the last of the Babble,” Tandor said. “We know where she lives. We can, and will, track her down. She’ll have to come up for air sometime. We can wait her out.”
His cocky and self-assured attitude pissed me off. He thought he had the upper hand. And no, he couldn’t wait me out, because he wasn’t going to have to.
It was time to move.
I slid my packs onto the ground as quietly as I could, unzipping them, taking out the hydro-bombs, and untying the launcher.
First things first.
I filled my Gem with nano-carbon cubes. This would be my primary weapon when I arrived at the clearing. Then I emptied my pockets of nonessentials and refilled them with egg-sized mini-bombs, leaving the larger, fist-sized bombs for the front two pockets.
Once I was ready, I moved forward, low to the ground, launcher in hand, leaving my packs behind, dodging between tree trunks. I had to get a good look at what was going on before I sent any bombs flying. I didn’t want to put my friends in jeopardy.
Another craft flew into the area.
I couldn’t quite see it, but judging by the loudness in my earpiece, it was just up ahead. I had to wait until they turned the props off to hear what they were saying.
“No sign of her or the other craft,” a new voice announced.
Creeping ever closer, I veered to the right. In the distance, I could finally spot a craft through the battered tree trunks, the voices getting clearer with every step I took closer to the mic.
“She’s not coming,” the female voice said. “If she did something to my brother—”
“Shut up, Carmen. Your piece of shit brother was never going to help us anyway,” a male voice with a hint of a lisp said. “We never should’ve trusted him. After you killed Frankie, he wrote you off.”
“Frankie had it coming,” Carmen whined.
“Nice thing to say,” another voice grunted. “He was your kid.”
“You don’t know anything—”
Tandor cut her off. “Toss these two over the side, and this one.” I heard a shallow squeak. Daze?
I had a clear shot at the craft. It was a good place as any to start. The only thing I wasn’t sure of was how close everyone was to it. I craned my neck, arching my back to get a better vantage point.
Then I saw them.
Bender and Lockland were kneeling at the very edge of the cliff, blindfolded, their hands tied behind their backs. Someone was walking toward them.
Time to act.
I set the rocket launcher down and scooped two of the eggs out of my pockets. I stood and tossed them, one after the other, as far as I could toward the parked craft. Couldn’t risk shooting off the bigger bomb with the launcher at the moment, as the blast might toss my friends over the side of the cliff. I was glad I’d sighted their location before I decided on what to use.
By the time the explosions hit, I was already running.
The intensity of the bombs came through my earpiece, and I cursed. I hadn’t remembered to take the damn thing out. With one hand, I fisted another egg, and with the other, I ripped out the earpiece and tossed it away.
Up ahead was chaos. Everyone was running.
Shouts of alarm sounded in every direction, many of Tandor’s followers drawing their weapons and aiming them back at the craft, like I’d intended.
“You have to find me first, motherfuckers,” I muttered as I tossed another egg and then another, arcing them as far away from me as I could as I raced forward, veering toward the gorge.
I gathered a handful of nano-carbon cubes and unholstered my Gem, bursting into the clearing, my gun trained on the one I was certain was Tandor, who was uncomfortably close to Bender. My other hand swung, letting the cubes fly, tossing them as hard as I could at the ground in front of the folks who had turned their attention toward me.
They went off in a series of short blasts around those who were closest.
If I stopped my momentum, it was all over. There were too many, and I needed to keep the chaos going.
My hand found another egg, and just as my fingers encircled it, I went down on my thigh at a hard run, sliding toward my friends as I yelled, “One meter forward and to your left.”
Bender lunged immediately, jamming his shoulder to the left. I watched in satisfaction as Tandor stumbled.
I came to a stop in front of Lockland, spinning at the last moment, squeezing the trigger of my gun into the crowd. I made the most of it, slicing the white-hot laser in front of me with a wave of my arm, hitting five at once, while instructing Lockland, “No room behind!”
Lockland rolled forward, bringing his arms up under him as he went, ripping his blindfold off as he stood. I jumped up and placed an egg in his tethered hands.
Before Lockland could toss it, or I could get off another blast, a commanding voice yelled, “Stop, or he dies.” The words cut through the chaos as efficiently as a diamond blade through stone.
My hands were still extended, my gun trained on the new group that had amassed in front of us. Tandor had to have at least forty men here, fifteen to twenty of whom were already down.
I angled my head toward the voice, not lowering my hand, fiercely hoping that Bender had gotten free and Tandor was down, not the other way around.
That wasn’t the case. Not even a little bit.
Bender’s blindfold was off, but he hadn’t managed to gain the upper hand. In fact, the barrel of Tandor’s large gun was crammed into his neck. It was a wicked-looking laser gun, twice as big as my Gem. But that wasn’t the only thing that could kill him. Bender knelt, facing me, his legs precariously hanging over the cliff’s edge. One slight movement and Tandor could send him tumbling to his death.
“Now that I have your attention, let’s talk.” Tandor’s cadence was easy, but I spotted a small tic strumming at his jawline. It was the only thing bely
ing his smooth, unflustered projection. He was rattled. Good. I didn’t know what I’d expected, but he was a fairly ordinary-looking guy with a bland face, thin frame, and no defining features. He looked like the kind of guy who holed up in his residence and hoarded his resources, refusing to help others.
In other words, a meek asshole.
There was a flicker of movement behind Tandor. I squinted as Daze stepped out from his shadow, stumbling as he went. It was clear that Daze hadn’t chosen to reveal himself willingly, as Tandor had a firm grip around his neck.
The kid looked ragged.
Bruises and dried blood covered his face and hands, the only things visible at the moment. Judging by his wincing, his body was battered as well. His face was streaked with lines of smeared dirt, tracking from his eyes down to his chin. It was puzzling to me why they’d hurt him. Hadn’t he done as they asked? Case said that he’d been caught stealing. So what? Everybody stole around here to survive.
After giving Daze a once-over, my eyes traced to the man who held him, the grasp obviously painful from the look on the kid’s face. Tandor was waiting for my reply. “I’m just warning you, I’m not in a very chatty mood,” I said.
All I needed was a distraction to get him to step away from the two of them.
A single distraction would be enough.
“Drop your weapon,” Tandor instructed. When I didn’t move to comply, he pressed the barrel of his gun deeper into Bender’s neck, causing Bender’s body to teeter backward. “It’s not going to take me much to finish him off. Do as I say. And you”—he nodded toward Lockland—“get down on your knees.”
Reluctantly, I squatted, placing my gun on the ground in front of me as Lockland knelt. He hadn’t told Lockland to get rid of the bomb in his hand, so I assumed he hadn’t seen me give it to him. That would come in handy. I hoped sooner rather than later. “It’s down,” I said. “Tell me what you want.”
A malicious grin full of ugly teeth spread over Tandor’s face, like getting me to comply had been ridiculously easy. I ignored him. Instead, I raked my gaze over the area, searching for the advantage. I knew what to look for, and I was confident I’d find it.
Plus, Tandor had no idea what I had in my pockets, and his jaw was doing that tic thing.
“I want the key,” he demanded. “If you hand it to me right now, I’ll let you and your friends go.”
What fucking key? That was what I wanted to say.
And bullshit. He would kill us all where we stood as soon as he got this mysterious prize.
I had to play this right, even though belligerently sticking up both my middle fingers and telling him to fuck off sounded really good right now. “I don’t have your key,” I said, my voice even. “Now that that’s settled, feel free to let me and my friends go.” My voice ended on pissy.
Apparently, belligerent was part of my molecular chemistry.
“You lied.” His tone was like ice as he turned his attention on Daze, backhanding the kid so hard he fell to the ground. Daze’s palms scraped the rocks, and a new line of blood opened up on his forehead.
“Hey—” I was angry, and my voice echoed it. I made a move forward without realizing it.
Tandor leaned into Bender once again, and I stopped instantly.
Another shit-eating grin spread over Tandor’s face. He was enjoying this immensely. Shelling out pain to others. It’s what he lived for. “Tell her what you did.” Tandor addressed Daze, who was still on all fours.
The kid didn’t lift his gaze, his head so low I had trouble hearing him. “I stole something. Then I gave it to you.”
He was talking about the quantum drive.
The key was the drive. Why in the hell didn’t he just call it a drive?
I played dumb. “No, you didn’t,” I answered, my voice firm. “I would’ve remembered a key. Maybe you dropped it over the gorge accidentally?”
“He’s not talking about something shaped like a key.” Tandor was creeping toward furious, a vein pulsing like it was running for its life on his forehead. “He took something from me, something extremely valuable, and I want it back.”
“Hm,” I hedged. “You’re not talking about the quantum drive, are you? Because I thought that was just a ploy to get me to go after the pico so you could kill me, then get on with your nefarious plans to take over the government. I must not have all the facts straight.” I was one step away from crossing my arms, but then Daze lifted his head.
The kid was scared, his expression hollow, his eyes wild.
At that moment, Tandor lifted a boot and planted it firmly in Daze’s stomach. It took every inch of control I had not to react. The urchin grunted and rolled, wrapping his skinny arms tightly around his middle, tears leaking down his face, his lungs gasping for air.
My fingers curled into fists. If I let on that I cared about this kid, Tandor would gain more leverage.
“Tell her!” Tandor roared, his focus firmly on Daze.
I was forced to amend my first impression of this monster. Outwardly, he came off as a mundane asshole. But Tandor wasn’t a guy who holed up in his residence and hoarded his goods. This guy was the worst sort of human being. One who took greedy pleasure in the pain of others. Got off on it. The scum of the earth.
A small croak issued from Daze’s throat. “I was supposed to tell you about the pico…and get you to go to Port Station.” His voice was barely audible. I leaned forward. “But I stole the quantum drive on my own. It wasn’t part of the deal.”
I blew out a long breath, my eyes tracking to the dark, swirling clouds above.
The kid had hedged his bets. And it’d saved his life.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
I met Tandor’s stare with a mirthful look of my own. It had the desired effect. Tandor’s face, exposed by his open, visor-less helmet, turned a ruddy red and became pinched and full of tics. “You think this is funny?” He punctuated his words with the barrel of his gun against Bender’s neck, causing my friend’s body to sway with each ram.
“Yes and no,” I said evenly. He seemed confused, his gaze darting around. So, I explained. “The kid had already stolen from you once, which got him into this mess in the first place. Because of that, you were able to coerce him into helping you lure me in. But he was smart enough to know he was going to die once this whole game was over. So he took the quantum drive to protect his interests. Seems pretty brilliant to me.” This time, I did cross my arms. “Because of that, you were forced to keep him alive until you recovered me and your precious drive.” My eyes met Daze’s, making sure he understood the stakes. “And now that you have me, he dies.”
The kid bowed his head as his body shook.
“What does that have to do with anything?” Tandor bellowed. “The bastard stole from me. He gave you something of mine, and I want it back. Give it to me, or all your friends die.”
I sighed. “Everyone’s going to die anyway. Do you really think we’re all that naive? You came here to kill me and my friends because you don’t want us interfering with your plans. In fact, you would’ve killed them on sight, except Daze kept us all alive by giving me the quantum drive.” I knew Bender and Lockland were listening carefully to everything I said. “Whatever’s on there must be pretty important. I’m assuming it’s not just child-slavery records. Does it contain illegal sex stuff? That’s always embarrassing.”
Tandor thrummed with anger, his hands shook, making the gun wobble on Bender’s neck. “What’s on there is too sophisticated for your brain to comprehend.” He made a move to grab on to Bender.
“Stop!” My voice was shrill, the threat clear. “If you kill any of my friends, including the boy, you will never get the quantum drive back. Ever. So if it’s as important as you say it is, I suggest you back the fuck off.”
Tandor froze. This man was used to getting what he wanted, that much was abundantly clear. He seemed to recover a little, another smug smile forming on his lips. “We’ll kill you all and find it anyway.”
/> “You can try,” I agreed. “But the city is big and dirty with lots of nooks and crannies. Did Daze tell you I’m a salvager? You probably knew that already. Your drive could be literally anywhere, and when I say anywhere, you might want to start by combing the entire dead forest and look behind every tree on your way back into town.”
“I’ll inject you with Babble.”
“You ran out.” His face showed his surprise before he could mask it with a furious expression. “I mic’d you earlier.” I shrugged. “Such an easy thing to do, and it garners such great results.” As I talked, I constantly evaluated the situation, continuing to search for that one small opening that was going to turn this thing around. “Here’s what we’re going to do. You’re going to let me and my friends go free, and after we’re all safely tucked in, I’ll arrange a place for you to pick up the quantum drive.” It was an empty option. We both knew that one of us wasn’t getting out alive. Either Tandor and his men killed us, or we killed them. But stalling was never in vain. What I needed was time. “Then we all get what we want,” I finished pleasantly.
Cold fury blazed off him. This man had a gigantic problem with control. I guess that’s why he was a zealot and not a techie. “That isn’t going to happen.”
Next to him, Daze struggled to stand. Blood dripped down his face as his thin voice rang out, “I can deliver it. I know where it is.”
No, no, no, kid. That’s not how this is supposed to go.
“No, you don’t,” I challenged. “I moved it—”
Tandor interrupted me, scenting weakness. He stared at Daze with the kind of greed only a man who was confident of his own power could achieve. “Where is it?”
“I’m not telling you until you let them go.” Daze had the audacity to cross his arms and jut out his chin.
Not even a second of time elapsed before Tandor’s arm swung out, knocking the kid to the ground so hard his head bounced off the rocks like it was made of elastomer. “Tell me right now, or I kill the girl,” he demanded, moving to stand over him. “You already lied. You told me you didn’t know where it was!” So Daze had led him down a slippery path of half-truths. “I will not stand for another one of your made-up stories.”
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