“Why are you willing to help us, senator’s son?” Johanna asked.
Adam glanced toward Evelyn. “I owe a debt I’d like to pay off.”
“Why should we trust him?” Carlson asked.
Johanna turned her attention to Evelyn, her eyes narrowed. “Do you trust him, Evelyn?”
The air became even thicker and Evelyn could feel their anxious eyes burning into her as they waited for her reply. She glanced around the room and at Adam. If it were two days earlier, her answer would have been a lock. But now, with all that had transpired, her answer was clouded.
She breathed deep then answered with confidence, “Yes. I trust him.”
“What is your plan?”
Carlson rolled his eyes and threw up his hands in frustration. “Are you serious, Johanna? We are going to trust him based on the word of a girl? This is ludicrous.”
Johanna raised her voice. “Enough Carlson!” She lowered it. “You are dismissed.”
Carlson glanced around the room before focusing his burning eyes on Adam. He put a finger in his face.
“If you are lying. I will kill you myself.”
He turned and stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
Johanna took a breath and spoke calmly. “What is your plan?”
“Before I tell you, can you guarantee Evelyn and my protection afterword? The First General doesn’t look kindly on treason.”
“We will do everything in our power. Now what is your plan?”
Adam turned his head to Evelyn. “We are going to turn into the nation’s most wanted persons.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Evelyn was sitting on the edge of a small cot in the sleeping quarters on the verge of trembling. She had been assigned room 113, which was located at the end of a long corridor. The structure that this branch of the SPC used as its headquarters was an abandoned bomb shelter last used during the War. The shelter was nestled against a long bend of the Montana River. It was cool and she could hear the water lapping against the wall outside. The place felt like a dungeon.
However, that fact had nothing to do with her trembling. That honor belonged to the coming dawn. So much was at stake. If they failed, not only would her father and her friends die, but she herself would probably be exposed to the most dire of scientific experiments while Adam would probably be hanged as a traitor. This branch of the SPC would undoubtedly be wiped out and maybe the resistance along with it. Her part in their rescue should be easy but that didn’t stop her from feeling as if the walls were closing in on her.
She popped open the locket her father had given to her and stared at her smiling family in an attempt to relax. It had only been a month since she’d received it but it felt like it had been an eternity. She didn’t recognize the smiling little girl in the picture and if the little girl could speak, she would surely say that it worked both ways. Then there was the beautiful woman, an elegant smile, a graceful shadow standing behind the little girl. Evelyn felt tears welling up as she pondered the actions of her mother. Could you love and hate someone at the same time? Could you blame them but also excuse them? She closed her eyes and tried to picture her mother smiling. All she could see was a glass of wine and the worn down woman, staring blankly out the window from the kitchen table, watching and waiting for them to take her daughter away. The tears came like silver lines down her face.
There was a knock on the door and Johanna poked her head inside. “Can I come in?”
Evelyn wiped her eyes with her sleeve and motioned for her to join her. Johanna took a seat in the cot next to Evelyn. She noticed the locket in her fingers.
“Evelyn, I want you to know that I was wrong to try to keep you from going with us. You have as much to lose as anyone.”
Evelyn nodded.
“And you’ve already lost so much.” She put an arm around Evelyn. “Adam told me what happened to your mother. I’m so sorry, child.”
The tears began to fall again as if she was draining a hole inside her heart. “I…I…just regret so much. How I treated her sometimes and things I said. I want to apologize but I can’t. I want her to know that I love her…”
Johanna pulled Evelyn close to her and softly stroked her hair. “Sometimes mothers do things our children don’t understand and sometimes daughters say things they don’t mean. It’s just a part of growing up. When I told Lana that we were leaving and that she had to say goodbye to you, she cried her eyes out. She screamed at me and threatened to run away.” Tears were welling in Johanna’s eyes now as well. “Though I had my reasons, I hurt her badly and it took a very long time for her to forgive me. Despite all that, I never doubted that she loved me and I’m sure your mom knew that you loved her too.”
Johanna’s words helped and the tears slowly came to an end. She stroked Evelyn’s hair and squeezed her tight as if it was Lana she was comforting.
Evelyn wiped the last tear from her cheek and said with as much courage as she could muster, “We will get them back. Lana, my father, all of them.”
“Child,” Johanna squeezed her again, “I know that you will give it everything you’ve got.”
There was another knock on the door. “Who is it?” Evelyn asked.
Adam cracked the door open and poked his head in. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“It’s alright.” Johanna said as she stood up from the cot. “Just don’t stay up too late, you will need your rest for tomorrow.”
Johanna exited and Adam took her seat next to Evelyn. “Are you alright? You look like you’ve been crying.”
“I’m fine, everything is just so overwhelming. I’m struggling to keep up.”
“I know what you’re saying,” he said. “I feel like there is a rock in my stomach.”
“Nervous?” Evelyn asked.
“Yes. But strangely, I’m excited too. It kind of feels like a new beginning for me.” He put his arms behind his head and leaned back. “For the first time in my life, I will be calling the shots for myself.”
“Is that why you came here?” Evelyn asked. “To tell me that you are excited about tomorrow?”
“No. I came for two reasons and the first is to tell you thanks for sticking up for me back in that interrogation room.”
“All I said is that I trust you.”
He leaned back up and was even with Evelyn once again. “Well that means a lot to me.”
“In that case, you’re welcome I guess.”
Silence fell over the room as it looked like Adam was weighing over something in his mind.
Eventually, Evelyn broke the silence. “What was the second thing you came here for?”
Adam popped out of his stupor. “Huh?”
“You said you came here for two reasons. The first was to say thank you. What was the second?”
“Oh, I remember now.”
“Well, what is it?”
Adam took a breath. “This.” He leaned forward, cupped Evelyn’s chin with his hands and kissed her.
Evelyn didn’t resist. She closed her eyes and soon her fingers were tracing the line of his chin and for a moment the world made sense.
After a few long mesmerizing seconds, Adam pulled away. “I’m sorry Evelyn. Just in case things go bad for me tomorrow, I wanted to make sure I did that at least one time.” He stood up off the cot. “I will see you in the morning.”
Evelyn was still speechless as the door closed behind him. Feeling as if she was levitating off the cot, she closed the locket, tucked it away beneath her shirt and fell back onto her cotton pillow. She stared at the concrete ceiling, replaying the last few moments over and over again. Such feeling, such exhilaration, she felt like another part of herself had been awakened. All the while, there was a quiet voice inside her asking, “What about Rillian?”
Chapter Thirty-Five
Her chained hands were resting between her legs. She sat with her head back against the interior wall of the SS transport van. Her eyes were closed.
&
nbsp; Across from her were three SPC members dressed in SS attire. On the other side of the steel cage that separated the prisoners from the cab was Carlson, who was driving and Adam, who was riding in the passenger seat. It was proving to be the longest ride of Evelyn’s life. She was counting her breaths to pass the time. Aside from the call Adam made to notify his superiors that he was bringing in the prisoner, no one said a word.
The van, the clothes, even the weapons were all standard issue Secret Service items. The SPC had been ‘collecting’ them for years. As they passed through the main garage of the SPC, Johanna and Carlson didn’t bother explaining how they got the transport ships that were sitting on the back of semi-trailers or how they got the vans, and Evelyn didn’t ask. Words were having trouble finding their way out of her mouth that morning.
Carlson watched the road and Adam carefully. He had insisted on leading the operation himself, arguing that they couldn’t risk Johanna and her knowledge of the inner workings of the Coalition falling in the wrong hands. It was a wise notion but Evelyn knew there was another reason. Carlson didn’t trust Adam and should Adam prove his suspicions to be accurate, he was going to be there to keep his promise. But Adam didn’t seem to be too worried about him. Evelyn said goodbye to Johanna and left the holodisc that Rosina had given her with Johanna who’d promised to take care of it.
The van pulled to a stop in front of a large gate that separated two long stretching walls of concrete topped with razor wire. SS guards with guns at their shoulders approached their van. They knocked on the window and Adam rolled his down.
“Captain Phelt.” One of them saluted. “Long time no see. How have you been?”
Adam answered with a smile. “Never better.”
“Is she back there?”
“Take a look for yourself.”
The man went to the back door of the van, pressed his hand against the rear scanner and the door opened. He stepped up into the van. Evelyn kept her eyes closed as planned. The guard lifted Evelyn’s head by her chin.
“So this is the girl who made such waves in the news.”
Adam nodded.
“She is a pretty one.” The guard said with a smirk. “She’s going to love them in there.”
Adam chuckled. “They’re going to love her.”
The guard stepped out and shut the door to the van. It locked automatically. He made a swirling motion above his head and seconds later the gate opened. Carlson pulled the van through and they traveled down a winding path, passing guard towers, two fences and more razor wire. The sun was just breaking, orange and blue, over the soaring stone prison. Evelyn opened her eyes and her heart began to pound at the sight of it. They were so close.
Carlson eased the van to a stop in the main entry way where there was a cadre of guards waiting for them. It was subtle, but Adam’s face grew sober. This was something he couldn’t have been expecting. He climbed out of the van and approached the mass of guards. One of the guards, a muscular man with a black goatee, stepped forward.
He held out a hand, palm forward. “Halt.” The guards accompanying the man circled the van, rifles at their shoulders.
“What is going on, Sargent Rogers?” Adam said to the muscular guard.
“We have strict orders from Commander Farez to book the prisoner ourselves.”
All of those remaining in the van took a collective breath. Getting the SPC into the prison was the most important part of the plan.
Adam glanced around the circle of guards and nodded. “I see. Where is Commander Farez? I would like to speak with him.”
“He isn’t here.”
“What does he want with my prisoner?”
“This is his prison, so what’s it to you?”
“Last I checked, Rogers, this was the U.P.A.’s prison and as a representative of the U.P.A.’s Secret Service, my team and I are booking the prisoner. Do you understand?”
Rogers took a step closer to Adam until he was staring down at him. “I’m sorry, Captain, but Commander Farez has given us strict orders to book the prisoner ourselves.”
Adam took a step forward and glared up into Roger’s eyes. “Are you seriously trying to pull rank on me, you asshole? Do you know the hell this mission has put me through? Do you know what this mission has cost me? And do you know who assigned this mission to my team?”
Rogers didn’t answer vocally. The expression on his face answered for him.
Adam continued, “I answer to the First General and I’d hate to have to mention in my report that some thug guard messed it all up.”
Rogers’ thick neck bulged as he exhaled an angry breath. He stepped aside and motioned to his men. “Let them through.”
Everyone in the van let out a collective sigh of relief. Adam immediately turned from Rogers and headed to the back of the van. He opened the door and waved his arm.
“Get her out and march her inside.”
Adam’s “team” pulled Evelyn out of the van and escorted her through the mass of guards and their scowling Sargent.
Carlson was the last to climb out of the van. He tossed the keys to one of the guards. “Why don’t you be a doll and pull that around back for us.”
The guard looked at Sargent Rogers who reluctantly nodded.
All of them seemed to breathe easier as the thick metal doors closed behind them. Adam paused and spoke over his shoulder, “Follow my lead.”
Follow him they did. With shaky knees and anxious sweat they followed Adam through long white corridors, passed more guards, curious eyes peeking out from six inches of thick glass and the specter of thin hollow faces belonging to those who’d been there too long.
Evelyn kept her eyes down as instructed. But she could still hear some of them as they passed. They hooted and howled and pounded the walls with their firsts. “Fresh meat! Fresh meat! Fresh meat!” Their shrill voices caused Evelyn to shudder.
They kept walking until they came to a quiet corridor. Adam raised his hand and everyone froze in place. He pointed to a monitor on the wall and whispered, “Look, do you recognize them?”
Evelyn looked up at the monitor and her heart leapt. She saw familiar faces. Lana and her father. Everett and Selina. Clive too. But one was missing. Where’s Rillian?
“I’m going to unlock the doors.” Adam said as he pointed down the corridor. “Some of them may need your help to walk. We’ll only have a few minutes.” He walked over to a control panel and typed something. A door in front of them slid open. “Go!”
All of them rushed through the doorway, except Evelyn and Adam. Evelyn slowly turned around. “You coming?”
The anguish in his eyes answered her question. He stepped backward. “I’m sorry, Evelyn.” He placed his palm on a nearby scanner and thick polycarbonate walls descended rapidly from the ceiling closing off the small corridor from both ends.
They were trapped.
It all was a setup.
The world seemed to slow on the Earth’s axis and Evelyn watched as Carlson turned around and aimed his gun at Adam in an attempt to keep his promise.
“You son of a bitch!” He fired three shots but the bullets just crumpled against the glass.
Adam dropped his eyes as a white gas filtered in from vents on the ceiling. The soldiers collapsed first, then Carlson. Evelyn was the only one standing. In a split second, the past few days passed before her eyes to the melody of her heart breaking.
“Adam…”
She felt her throat tightening up like gassy hands were ripping the breath out of her lungs. “Adam.” She said louder.
His head was bent low. Her strength vanishing, she dropped to her knees.
“Adam!”
She slammed her fists against the glass and it cracked. She tried again but managed to only place her right palm against the glass. She tried with all her might to scream, but her words were just a whisper.
“Adam…”
He pressed the palm of his hand against the glass opposite hers but didn’t say a word. He lifted
his eyes and gave her one last look before walking away. A heavy shadow fell over her and she collapsed to the ground with his name on her lips. As he’d turned and walked away, she thought she saw a tear.
Chapter Thirty-Six
As Adam waited outside his godfather’s office in the First General’s Mansion, he rubbed his weary eyes. They felt like they were on fire. He hadn’t slept but a few hours and when he did sleep he was haunted by dreams of his own. He’d done his duty to his country, to the First General, but now he felt empty inside, a hollow man, just another SS uniform, sitting on a plush leather bench.
Adam tried to think of anything else, but all he could see was her face and her heart breaking across it. He closed his eyes in shame.
A moment later the door to Thatcher’s office opened and a group of senators filed out, smelling of cigar smoke. As they passed Adam, they shared their compliments on a job well done and he accepted their words with polite gestures. When the senators disappeared down the long hallway, two of Thatcher’s bodyguards were holding open the doors to his office.
“The First General is ready to see you now.” One of them said in their typical robotic way.
Adam stood to his feet and entered the office. Thatcher was sitting at his large mahogany desk, viewing something on the monitor built inside it. A blunt smoldering cigar sat in a glass ashtray.
Adam saluted and after a few seconds, Thatcher glanced up and said, “At ease.”
Adam dropped his salute and stood at attention. His eyes narrowed on the monitor centered on Thatcher’s desk, before Thatcher noticed Adam peeking at the monitor and turned it off with a wave of his hand.
Thatcher gestured to his bodyguards. “Leave us.”
They did as ordered and as the door shut behind them, Thatcher leaned back and folded his enormous hands across his lap.
“Adam, do you know why you are here?”
Adam shook his head. “No, sir.”
Ill-Fated (Ill-Fated Series Book 1) Page 28