by SF Benson
“Then, forget it.” He strokes my chin with his thumb. “Neither of us are saints. You’re alive. It’s all that matters to me.”
I let out a huge breath and hug him. “Oh, how I’ve missed you.”
Zared’s arms tighten around me. “My life was empty without you.”
The tension in my body subsides. The storm clouds part, and I see the sun again. I cup his face and profess, “I never want to be away from you again. I can’t live without you.”
“Same here, babe.” He kisses me.
We are seconds away from a full make-out session when Zared breaks off the kiss. His brow wrinkles. “Babe, Asher and Ko have been upstairs for a long time.”
“Maybe they’re giving us space?” I smile.
“No.” His head tilts. I don’t need to read his mind. “Something’s up.”
I slide off his lap and pick up the gun. He goes upstairs while I check the bathroom downstairs. Nobody’s in there, so I rush after Zared.
I skid to a halt in the hallway. Asher and Ko sit on a bed. A guy with dark red hair and facial stubble holds a gun on them. Zared stands frozen in the doorway.
Red notices Zared and me. He waves us inside the room. “Come, join the party. Everyone’s invited.”
Enough with people telling me what to do. I have to get help. I pray the fool isn’t trigger happy as I backpedal toward the stairs. The guy yells something I don’t catch as I barrel for the front door. I open it and run into the driver, I assume, of the sports car.
He grabs my arm, stopping me in my tracks. “Where’s Asher?”
I gasp for air. “Upstairs. Some guy has a gun on them.”
“Shit. Did he have red hair?”
I yank my arm out of his grasp. “Yeah. You know him?”
“Accident of birth. We’ve…”
Pop! It comes from inside the house.
We flinch. The stranger sprints for the front door with me on his heels. We climb the stairs and find Red strutting around the bedroom, brandishing his gun. Flecks of drywall land on his shoulders. The stray slug took out a piece of the ceiling. Asher has an arm around Ko. Zared stands near the bed.
“A warning shot, folks. Next time I won’t be so nice,” Red sneers.
“There won’t be a next time, Griffin,” the guy from the Mustang says.
Griffin’s eyes bug out. “Hot damn, long time no see, cuz.”
“Keep calm and turn in traitors.”
—A communiqué from the Bureau of Homeland Protection
Zared
Griffin looks around the room. He rolls his neck and shoulders but doesn’t lower his weapon. “I’m guessing Sergeant Jones hasn’t filled you all in.”
Mark steps into the room and drawls, “Give it a rest, Griffin. No one wants to hear ancient history.”
The ticking time bomb exclaims, “I say you’re wrong. Did you know that the good sergeant used to hang out with us as kids? He and Mark were regular juvenile delinquents.”
Asher grimaces as all eyes rest on him.
Griffin laughs gruffly. “Surely, you didn’t forget, Asher? Oh, wait, maybe you fried a few brain cells. Staying high and drunk all the time makes it hard to remember things.”
“That’s enough,” Asher snarls. He clenches his fists.
I never asked Ash to divulge his past. It wasn’t necessary. Frankly, this isn’t the time to dredge up ancient history. I start formulating a plan.
Griffin thrusts out his chest. “Sorry, dude. Thought you told your friends, but I digress. My cousin and I were like best friends, brothers. We did all sorts of stupid shit together, including joining Riza. Then Gena entered the picture. I made the mistake of telling Mark I loved her. He made it his mission to steal her from me.”
Mark edges toward his cousin, and Griffin cocks his gun. “That isn’t how it happened. Gena came to me after the fight. You scared the girl. I was comforting her.”
Mark should have his gun on him, but I doubt he’d shoot his cousin. Asher and I are strapped. I know Tru is, too.
“With your lips on her?” Griffin yells.
“Man…” Mark rakes his hand through his hair. “Who ended up with her? You. I wasn’t interested in her that way.”
Is Mark afraid to take on his cousin?
“Bullshit!” Griffin gestures toward Mark with the gun. “Tell our friends what happened the night I proposed to her.”
His cousin hangs his head. These two have a serious history, and I have no interest in witnessing the play by play.
“Griffin, we don’t have time to rehash all this,” I state. “What do you want from us?”
This shit is ridiculous. Why hasn’t someone rushed him? The only innocent in the room is Ko.
He rubs his neck. “The card, man. I need the damned SIM card.”
“Back to that again.” I rest my hand on my waistband. “Sorry, can’t turn it over to you.”
A booming voice comes from the hallway. “Son, ya going ‘bout it all wrong.”
Leon has a gun aimed at Tru’s head. He shoves her into the room, and she collides with Mark.
“People tend to talk when ya give ‘em proper incentive,” he says. “First off, Zared, drop ya weapon. I know how much ya love this girl. Ya wouldn’t want anything to happen to her.”
“Leon, let her go,” I demand, cocking my gun. Hell, I’m a sharp shooter. I can take him out and never come close to Tru. “ She doesn’t have the card.”
The less-than-jolly St. Nick readies his gun. “Don’t be stupid. Put the gun down.”
Tru locks eyes with me. “Do what he asks, Zared.”
I draw in a deep, harsh breath. I engage the safety and place the gun on the floor.
Leon pushes Tru toward me and retrieves my weapon. “Now, let’s talk about who has the card.”
We need a plan, but when pressed, any old lie will do.
“I had the card,” I blurt out.
Leon props a foot up on a chair and places an elbow on his knee. “Where is it now?”
“With Gliese.”
Griffin snaps like he suddenly remembers her. “Where’s my sister?”
Tru squeezes my hand. “She’s still at North Woods. When I escaped, they were interrogating her.”
It doesn’t matter if she speaks the truth. My girl is undeniably smart. Tru doesn’t consider herself Cogent, but she sure thinks like one when pressured.
Griffin curls his arms over his head, clutching the gun. “Leon, we’ve got to rescue her. Man, they’ll…”
Leon stands there, breathing slow and steady. He taps the gun against his plump leg. “Ya right, son. We’re all going after Gliese. Ya take the girls in their pickup. The fellas are with me.”
I’m in the driver’s seat with Asher next to me. Leon’s got a gun aimed at the back of my head.
“Is this really necessary?” I ask Leon.
The big man shifts in his seat. “If it weren’t for Gliese, none of this would be necessary. We had the card. All of this could have been avoided.”
“I should have walked away as soon as I got the card,” I mumble.
Leon clears his throat and says, “Zared, ya got it all wrong. Ya shouldn’t have had the card in the first place. Ya people just complicated our lives.”
“Aren’t you a fine one to talk.” I steer around a pothole. “Holding us hostage and insisting my girl go back to the people who held her captive. You’re complicating my life.”
“Once I get the card, complications over,” he says.
“Yeah, right.” I haven’t forgotten the conversation I overheard.
Mark speaks up, “Uncle Leon, tell me what’s so important about the card.”
“The formula for the vaccine’s on it,” Leon remarks. “With it, I can re-engineer it and develop a cure.”
Asher interjects, “It’s more than that. The New Order may have switched the formulation by now.”
“Well, the card is a key,” Leon says.
“A key to what?” I ask.
Leon announces, “The greatest experiment the New Order’s conducting.”
“What’s that?” Mark asks.
“Human Engineering,” the Jolly Elf replies.
“Operation Restore,” Asher mumbles. “Clones.”
Shit. I assumed my father only did the research. I should have listened to Tru. We had all the proof we needed. I didn’t want to believe the worst about the man.
Leon says, “Yes. With the card we can locate the clones and shut down the project.”
We’ve gone from hostages to conspirators. And I still haven’t figured a way out of my lie.
“Have you taken the Pledge? War is chaos. Freedom is American. Education is strength. Support the New Order’s science initiative.”
—A message from the Educators for a Brighter Republic
Tru
Griffin waves the gun at Ko. “You’re driving.”
She shrinks back, clutching her arm. “I can’t.”
He scowls and turns his attention to me. “I guess it’s you, then. Get in the driver’s seat and follow them.”
I don’t like driving. Never have. But Ko’s acting strangely. She’s safer in the backseat. I reposition my weapon in my waistband, hoping to keep its location a secret from the neurotic holding a gun on me. The landscape blurs as I speed after Leon.
“Slow down,” Griffin warns.
I consider, for a moment, which is worse—the authorities pulling us over or landing in a ditch. As long as I can walk away, the accident wouldn’t be so bad. But what about Ko? I let my foot up off the accelerator.
“Griffin, you got a plan?” I ask with a note of firmness in my voice. Someone has to take charge here. It shouldn’t be a lunatic or a constrained cadet. “The compound’s well-protected. No one goes in unnoticed.”
“No shit,” he growls. Griffin makes me nervous waving the gun around. “I don’t need you telling me what to do.”
“I think you do. Remember, I’m the one who just escaped,” I say sharply, but I don’t care. I’ve spent countless days in confinement, done unspeakable things, and he thinks he’s in control. No fucking way.
“I’ve been there,” he says quietly. “Can you stop talking?”
Sorry buddy. That’s not going to happen until you put that gun away.
Casually I say, “I had a brief conversation with Gliese.”
He glances over at me. The harsh tone fades away. “Was she okay?”
“Yeah. Your sister’s smart and strong. You trained her well,” I say, attempting to stroke his ego.
He rubs his forehead with the gun’s butt. “I’ve always told her that if the authorities haul her in, don’t tell them shit. Just name, AR ID number. Nothing else.”
“Smart move on your part,” I acknowledge.
“Yeah, but they will use every trick in the book on her. She doesn’t deserve it.”
“No, she doesn’t. No one does.” It’s obvious the man requires coddling. In a consoling voice, I add, “You’d do anything to protect her. You’re a good brother.”
He leans against the door.. “I’ve taken care of her ever since she got that damned vaccine. She wouldn’t have made it without me.”
“Because you’re an intelligent man. It’s what we need to rescue Gliese.” He bobs his head up and down. “And smart men come up with real plans.”
Griffin rolls his neck and exhales loudly. “You’re right.”
“Being right doesn’t concern me. We’re in this thing together. Destroying the vaccine is the goal. Hell, I’m next in line for inoculation.” I stare at him. “Let’s help each other.”
“Fine.” He sits back in the seat and puts the gun in the door pocket. “What are you thinking?”
I just one-upped your ass.
We reach the turnoff for North Woods, and I’m still scrambling for a plan. “You’ve been to North Woods. Know a back way into the facility?”
He smiles. “Of course, I do.”
“Get me inside the compound,” I demand. “I know someone who can help us.”
I park alongside a chain link fence with barbed wire over the top. The Kris Kringle imitation plods from the truck and up to the window.
“Leon, do you have a bolt cutter?” Griffin’s voice is steady. The neurotic returns to his bottle.
The oversized elf holds up the tool.
“Can I trust you two to stay put?” Griffin asks, the gun back in his hand.
I nod, keeping my face impassive. No sudden moves. Continue to play the game.
“Yes. If you take the key fob with you”—I press it into his palm—“we won’t go anywhere.”
He snatches the item from my hand and stares at me.
I speak to him as if I’m talking to a toddler. “Griffin, if I call my contact, she’ll get your sister for us.”
He wrinkles his brow and asks dully, “You trying to pull something?”
“No. We need help getting to Gliese without alerting the guards.” I take out my phone. “You can listen in.”
He waves the gun in my direction. “Make the call.”
I scroll through the phone, find Taa’s direct line, and call. She picks up on the first ring. “It’s Tru. I’m outside the compound. We came back for Gliese.”
Griffin nods, exits the vehicle, and joins Leon at the fence.
“Taa,” I hiss. “I need your help. Two men named Griffin and Leon are holding us hostage.”
“Did you say Leon?” she asks, her voice tinged with apprehension.
Tension stirs through my body. “Yes. Why?”
Silence.
“Taa, you still there?”
“Yes,” she answers. “Is Zared with you?”
Sorrow threatens to close my throat. I manage to choke out, “I’ll try to prepare him.”
“I don’t—” Taa protests.
“He needs to know you’re alive. Especially now,” I blurt.
“Why now?”
“He should tell you himself,” I say meekly. “We’re behind the compound off 94. They’re cutting through a fence. You need to meet us with Gliese.”
Taa tells me, “Good thing the guards cut power to the fence.”
No one informed us of an electrified fence. “What’s happened?”
She sighs. “Soldiers are searching the perimeter. The power will be back on shortly.”
What the hell? My mind immediately goes to my replica. “Is Shara all right?”
“I’ll fill you in later,” she mutters before disconnecting the call.
A sense of dread rolls through the pit of my stomach. Things have escalated from bad to worse, and I’m afraid Shara is in the mix.
Ko glances at the truck’s floor. She folds her arms over her stomach. “Who was on the phone?”
“My contact.”
She twists in her seat and looks at me, contempt coloring her face. “I thought I heard you say Taa, as in Taa Aoki.”
The girl who likes to criticize my every wrong move is back. Thank God!
I let my head fall back. “Yes, you heard right. Zared’s mom is alive. She’s the one who helped me escape. Can I fill you in later?”
“Sure.” Ko glances out the window. “Do you have a plan?”
“Not a great one,” I admit. “I need to talk to Zared before his mom shows up.”
“What do you need me to do?” She rubs her arm and winces.
Katsuo Aoki… It’s wrong to speak ill of the dead, but I do not appreciate what he did to my friend.
I rest my hand on her arm. “Hey, nobody gets shot this time. Understand?”
Ko nods.
“Taa Aoki is going to help us get Gliese out of here. I need a few minutes alone with Zared. I have to prepare him. Just follow my lead.”
We exit the vehicle. Everyone is gathered near a sizable hole in the fence.
“Griffin, I reached my contact,” I call out. “She’s getting Gliese.”
“Good,” he says over his shoulder. “Let’s get a move on us.”
“Wait,” I say. “I need a minute with Zared.”
The fat elf scowls. “We don’t have time. Let’s go.”
Didn’t I ask nicely?
I have no desire to shoot anyone else, but Santa’s helper is pushing my button. It surprises everyone, even me, how fast I whip out the gun and aim it at his head.
“I said, I need a moment alone with my boyfriend,” I snap. “Don’t make me ask again.”
Just as quickly, Griffin points his gun at my head. “Put the gun down, little girl.”
“Not until I get a few minutes with Zared.”
Zared holds his hands out. “Tru, put it away before someone gets hurt. Griffin, can we get a minute?”
The neurotic cocks his weapon. “Someone needs to teach her a lesson.”
My heart’s in my throat. What if this fool shoots me just for the hell of it? “If anything happens to me, my contact will kill Gliese. I promise you.”
Griffin cuts his eyes toward Zared.
Leon yells, “Both of you, put your guns down. Zared, you get five minutes.”
Slowly, we put our weapons down. As soon as mine is lowered Leon takes it.
I walk toward Zared, pulling him to the side.
A smile dangles on the corner of his sexy lips. “In my absence, someone became a badass.”
“Humph, stay locked up long enough, and fear takes a back seat.”
Zared holds out his hand and I take it. “What’s up?”
“It’s about my contact.” I glance around avoiding eye contact.. “She’s meeting us.”
He strokes a finger against my cheek. “She?”
I bite my lip and take a deep breath. “Remember your theory concerning your mother’s death?”
“Yeah. I still don’t believe the Virus killed her.”
“Well, you were on to something. She learned a slew of info, but it didn’t kill her.” I look up and catch a flicker of hate in his eyes.
“The New Order killed her,” he spits out.
“No, Z.” I shuffle my feet. “There’s no easy way to say this. Your mother faked her death.”
Zared drops my hand and staggers backward. His mouth falls open as he shakes his head. “Not possible.”