Ill-Fated (Ill-Fated Series Book 1)

by S. C. McMurray

  “Wait!” Evelyn said. “I need my bag.” She was thinking of Rosina’s son’s holodisc and the promise she made to Rosina.

  “Just leave it.”

  Evelyn threw herself onto the car and climbed into the back. “I can’t. I made a promise.” She grabbed the bag and tossed it over her shoulder.

  Adam, limping a bit, took hold of Evelyn’s arm and urged her to follow him. They hurried away from the smoldering and broken car. The buzz of drones filled the woods behind them. They pumped their arms and legs and sloshed their way through the brush. They came to a thin but rushing creek and Adam stumbled and fell into it. Evelyn picked him up and lifted him to his feet.

  “We need to keep moving.” She implored.

  A drone appeared on their right. It fired at them so they made an abrupt left turn. Evelyn was leading the way now. She felt fast, despite the mud. But Adam, he was breathing heavily. His seeping wound was taking a toll on him. He stumbled and fell again. Evelyn dropped to a knee beside him. His face was pale and each breath he took was cut short by pain.

  “Come on, Adam. They’re closing in.”

  “Leave me, Evelyn.” He said with a whimper. “You can outrun them.”

  “No.”

  He shoved her away weakly. “Just go.”

  “I’m not leaving you, Adam.” She reached down and pulled him to his feet. “I’ll carry you if I have to.”

  She began to pick him up but he shoved her away and in doing so pressed his left hand on the pocket containing the power cell from the officer’s car.

  “What’s in your pocket?”

  “That power cell. Why?”

  His pale face lit up with an idea. “We can use it. We may have a chance.”

  Evelyn reached into her pocket and pulled out the power cell. Adam reached over with his right arm and pressed his fingers against the cuff of the invisible tether and it fell from his wrist into his hand.

  Evelyn was dismayed. “You could have taken that off at any moment?”

  “Yes, but we’ll talk about that later.” He held out his hand, palm open. “Give me the power cell.”

  Evelyn placed it in his palm and watched as he wrapped the cuff of the invisible tether around it, then tightened the cuff.

  “What are you doing?” Evelyn asked as she glanced over her shoulder.

  “Improvising.” He handed the power cell and cuff back to Evelyn. “When I say so, I want you to throw that power cell as high in the air as you can. Do you understand?”

  Evelyn nodded.

  The buzzing sounds of drones filled the air. Adam grabbed Evelyn and stumbled onward. “We need to find a better spot.”

  The two of them moved cumbersomely through the trees, the drones nipping at their heels, until they came to a small clearing. Adam dropped to his knees unable to move any further. The cluster of drones encircled them like a pack of wolves who had successfully run down their pray. Their eyes were on them with beams of yellow light arresting them from all directions. The light was hungry and eager.

  Adam slipped the bag off his shoulders and tossed it into the air. The clearing transformed a sparkling white color as the drones lit it up in unison.

  “Now!” Adam yelled.

  Evelyn reared back and launched the power cell into the air. In a split second the twenty feet radius was broken and the invisible tether was activated. There was a clap of thunder as a surge of electricity charged through the power cell causing it to explode into a shower of blue light. The resulting electromagnetic pulse caused the drones to drop from the sky like dead flies.

  Evelyn smiled as they fell to the ground around them. “It worked.”

  Adam, who seemed to have the life draining right out of him, didn’t revel in their temporary victory. “We need to get out of here,” He grimaced as he forced himself to his feet. “There isn’t much time.”

  The two of them managed to make it to the other side of the woods and an empty industrial road. The rain had finally stopped, but as soon as they stepped into the sunshine, Adam collapsed to the pavement. Evelyn immediately dropped down beside him. He closed his eyes. His breathing slowed. She grabbed him by the shoulders.

  “Adam! Stay awake!” She shook him. “Stay-”

  Her words were cut short. There was a stinging sensation in her neck. She immediately felt weak, like her strength was draining from her. She slowly reached to her neck to where it was stinging. She touched something with her fingertips. She pulled on it. She felt wobbly like she was going to fall down at any second. She looked down at her hand. Sitting in her palm was a small dart.

  She heard screeching tires and a black van pulled up beside them. She heard voices like faraway echoes, blurry figures hurried out. They slipped a covering over Adam’s face and dragged him to the van. She tried to fight back but she couldn’t stand. She was sinking, as if the pavement had melted into quicksand. One of the figures approached and bent down beside her. The figure spoke but Evelyn couldn’t understand. The figure made a signal and a cloth was pulled over her face from behind. There was darkness, then there was nothing but quiet.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  The water was calm. She felt warmth, the sting of the sun upon her skin. She was listening to the melody of the birds and the crickets warming up for their evening performance. She was waiting. He was beside her. He was nervous again. He took a deep breath and spoke. “Sara, I didn’t bring you here just to watch the sunset. I have something I want to ask you.”

  Evelyn opened her eyes and saw wet concrete. She heard the solitary dripping of water from a nearby corner, felt the thick damp air blanketing her skin. There was a pair of boots. They moved. She raised her head. They belonged to a black man with a curly graying beard sitting in a chair across from her. He spoke.

  “Evelyn, I have something I want to ask you.”

  “Where’s Adam? Is he alright?”

  “The young man we found you with?”

  “Yes.”

  “We’ll talk about him later.”

  She tried to move her arms but they were bound behind her. “If you’ve hurt him...”

  “Calm down, Evelyn.”

  “How do you know my name?”

  “The entire nation knows your name now.”

  “Where is my friend?”

  “Friend?” The man leaned back in his seat with a curious look. “We were under the impression that he was your hostage.”

  “He was,” she answered. “Where is he?”

  “Why are you so concerned with him?”

  She hesitated. Was it just necessity or something else? Friendship or something more? She sighed and answered finally. “He was hurt badly and I need him alive.”

  “What do you plan on doing?”

  “I’m not telling you anything else until you tell me who you are and where you have my friend.”

  A door to the room opened suddenly and a woman walked in. Evelyn recognized her immediately but she still did a double take. “Ms. Vue?”

  It was Lana’s mother.

  “Damn it, Carlson.” Lana’s mother said to the man. “You were supposed to get me as soon as she woke up.”

  “I’m sorry, Johanna, but she just woke up.”

  Johanna sighed with annoyance. “Carlson, will you excuse us please. I would like to talk to Evelyn in private.”

  He nodded and stomped out of the room. Lana’s mother took a seat in the chair across from Evelyn. Lana’s mother, Johanna Vue, shared a striking resemblance to her daughter. The same dark hair and round face, just slightly taller and aged. She looked different than the last time Evelyn had seen her nearly seven months ago. She was thinner and weary with dark circles marking the bottom of her eye sockets.

  “Ms. Vue –”

  “—Call me Johanna, alright Evelyn.”

  “Yes, Johanna.” Evelyn took a breath and asked, “What is going on?”

  “I was hoping you could tell me.”

  “Are you the ones who kidnapped us?”

&
nbsp; Johanna was bouncing her knee. She was anxious about something. She nodded. “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “We wanted to get to you before they did.” She answered. “And when one of our informants in this Satrapy’s security station said that you were spotted in the outskirts of the city, we had to act.”

  “So you kidnapped us?”

  “I’m sorry about that, Evelyn, but we can’t take chances with our location being compromised.”

  “What do you plan on doing to me?”

  She flashed Evelyn a strange look. “Nothing to you, Evelyn.”

  Evelyn dropped her head in thought. “You wanted Adam, didn’t you?”

  “We need him.”

  Hope bloomed inside Evelyn. “Then he’s alive.”

  “Yes. We addressed his wounds but he is still resting from the tranquilizer. I’m surprised you’re awake already.”

  Evelyn wasn’t. But she wasn’t worried about herself at the moment. “What do you want with Adam?” She asked.

  Johanna crossed her legs. “We…I…need to know if Lana is still alive.”

  “She is alive. They’re holding her at Forsythe Prison along with my dad and others.”

  Johanna uncrossed her legs and leaned forward. “How do you know?”

  “Adam told me. That’s where we were heading.”

  Johana stood to her feet and marched to the door. She knocked on it until another woman opened it.

  “What do you need, Johanna?” The woman asked.

  “Tell Carlson to wake the boy up. Tell him to drag his ass out of bed if he has to. We are running out of time.”

  The woman nodded and disappeared into the shadows beyond the opened door. Johanna shut the door hard and began to pace the floor.

  “Johanna,” Evelyn said, “what are you running out of time for?”

  “To rescue Lana.” She sat down and began to bounce her knee again. “Every member of the Coalition is implanted with a kill device. It’s injected under the skin and can be activated remotely. When a member of the SPC is captured, the device is activated in order to prevent information from falling into the wrong hands.”

  Evelyn’s heart sank at the thought of her friends’ demise. Her eyes began to water. “You said we still have time?”

  “We do, just not much.” She responded. “I convinced the Coalition Leadership to give us 12 days to rescue them.” She paused, when she finally spoke, her voice quivered. “We’re on day eleven.”

  Evelyn felt a burning desire to do something, to do anything. “I can help you. I’ve learned a lot about myself in the past week. I can do things. I can’t really explain it but if you let me come with you, I will be useful.”

  “This is an operation for soldiers, Evelyn.”

  “I thought the SPC was nonviolent.”

  Johanna glanced down at a sidearm she had holstered around her belt. “We are violent when we need to be.”

  “I may not be a soldier,” Evelyn strained against the bonds holding her wrist together until they snapped and Johanna watched in disbelief as Evelyn stood to her feet, “but you can use me.”

  Johanna stared blankly at Evelyn as if she didn’t recognize her daughter’s longtime best friend.

  Evelyn took a step toward her. “It’s not just Lana in that prison.” The faces of her father, Clive, Everett, Selena and Rillian came to mind. “The only family I have left is there too.”

  Before Johanna could respond, Carlson opened the door and poked his head inside. “The boy is awake and waiting for you.”

  “Is he bound?”

  “Yes, Ma’am.”

  Johanna glanced at Evelyn then back to Carlson. “Make sure they are good and tight.”

  He nodded and left. Johanna opened the door and motioned for Evelyn to follow. “Come, Evelyn.”

  Evelyn followed Johanna down a dark, narrow corridor. Everything looked and felt damp and the air was thicker than in the room she had just left. She felt like she should be swimming and not walking. Eventually they came to a small room where Carlson was waiting by the door.

  “Your prisoner, awaits.” He said with a wry smile.

  He opened the door and Johanna walked in. Evelyn tried to follow but Carlson blocked her path with his arm. “Not you. You’re with me.”

  Evelyn stepped back and Carlson shut the door. He crossed the small corridor to another door, he opened it and gestured for Evelyn to go inside. She stepped into the room. There were monitors lining the walls and a few SPC members swiveling between the screens.

  “Where are we?” Evelyn asked.

  Carlson pressed a fingers to his lips then said, “Sit.”

  Evelyn took a seat in one of the empty chairs. Carlson whispered something to one of the other SPC members, who went to work pulling up a hologram of the room where Adam was being kept.

  He was bound to a metal chair and he was awake. He was bare chested but most of his skin was covered in bandages. Evelyn couldn’t see his face because his head was hanging down.

  Johanna appeared in the hologram, she paced from one side of the room to the other and back to where Adam was sitting. “Soldier,” she said with an intensity Evelyn had never witnessed from her, “what is your name?”

  Adam lifted his head, Evelyn was glad to see that some of his color had returned. “You know my name.”

  “Who were you traveling with?”

  “You know who I was traveling with. Why must you ask questions for answers you already have?”

  “You seem to know a lot.”

  “I know you are SPC and I know you need me.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because I’m alive. The question is, how bad do you need me?”

  Johanna didn’t answer.

  “I want to talk to Evelyn. I know she is here.”

  Johanna crossed her arms but her lips didn’t budge.

  “I don’t care what you do to me. I won’t help you in any way unless you let me speak to Evelyn, in person.”

  Johanna paced across the room again. She was thinking, Evelyn could see her weighing her options in her mind as if a literal scale sat in the room with them. Johanna stopped abruptly and looked straight into the camera.

  “Bring her in.”

  Carlson placed his enormous hand on Evelyn’s shoulder. “You heard her. Let’s go.”

  Evelyn stood and Carlson ushered her across the corridor to where Adam was being kept. Adam perked up when he saw her.

  “No bonds?” He asked.

  “They tried, but I broke out of them.”

  He smiled. “That’s my girl.”

  Evelyn felt her face warming with blush but she suppressed it. Why did he have that effect on her?

  “Can we speak in private?” Adam asked.

  Johanna thought about it for a moment then nodded. She and Carlson filed out of the room. As soon as the door latched shut behind them, Evelyn spoke.

  “You know they will still be able to hear us?”

  “Yeah, I know. I just don’t like them hovering so close.” He straightened himself in his seat. “Do you know these people?”

  “Yes. The woman you just spoke with is Lana’s mother.”

  “That explains why she needs my help so badly. Probably why I’m still alive.”

  “They wouldn’t have hurt you, Lana’s mother wouldn’t have hurt you.”

  “I don’t know about that.” He glanced around the room. “I’ve got the sense that they’re getting impatient. Desperate even and desperate people do desperate things.”

  Evelyn couldn’t argue with his reasoning. The air was thick with more than just moisture. They were planning something. She could feel it and it was something big. The resistance had become very personal for Johanna and in the brief time Evelyn had spent with her, she’d heard the urgency in her voice and seen the desperation in her eyes.

  Adam continued, “We need to know what they are planning and if that involves us.”

  “I don’t think they want
my help.”

  “If they are planning what I think they are, they could use you.” He paused. “Even still, they probably won’t be successful.”

  “What do you think they’re planning?”

  “They plan on fighting back.” He glanced around the room. “This operation is bigger than what our intelligence believes and if they do fight back they’ll lose. Do you understand, Evelyn?”

  She nodded slowly.

  “We can’t let them make that mistake.” He spoke louder and Evelyn realized that this conversation wasn’t just for her but it was for them as well. “I can get them into Forsythe Prison without a full-scale assault.”

  The door to the room swung open and Johanna, Carlson and three other SPC members filed in around them. All but Johanna were brandishing weapons. Evelyn stood by Adam’s side, eyeing the weapons. Johanna stepped into the middle of the semicircle that had formed around Evelyn and Adam.

  “You can get us into that Prison?” she asked Adam.

  Adam nodded enthusiastically. “Yes.”

  Carlson rolled his eyes. “Don’t believe him. He is the son of a senator, he is party scum.”

  Johanna seemingly ignored Carlson. “What do you have in mind?”

  “I will take you inside. We will free the prisoners and make a quick escape all before the security of the prison are aware of it.”

  Carlson took a step forward and placed a paw on Johanna’s shoulder. “Look at me Johanna. We can’t trust him. Now that we know where they are keeping Lana and the others, we should go with the original plan.”

  “And attack the Prison?” Adam interrupted. “Johanna, listen to me.” Adam was grave. “If you value the lives of everyone here, if you value the life of your daughter, you will not launch an attack on Forsythe. Right now, First General Thatcher sees you as just a nuisance. He is more concerned with the threats that exists beyond our borders. But if you attack that prison, if you kill a single guard, he will see the attack as an act of war and he will respond in kind. Even if your attack succeeds and you manage to save your friends, you, your daughter, and the rest of you will be hunted down like wild animals.”

  Carlson spoke up. “We are already being hunted down like animals.”

  “I assure you, that you are not. But if you attack that prison, The First General will create a propaganda machine so powerful that a nationwide manhunt will occur. If you think we have little freedom now in this nation…”