Hangman's Army: Lake Of Sins, #3

by L. S. O'Dea

  “When did this happen? How many were taken? How many are dead?” asked Jackson.

  “No, no. Not Sue. The other one. Young. Lives with Sarah. Not my Sarah. She was kind. Very—”

  “Reese?” His gut twisted. Reese was just a kid. She was supposed to be safe with Little Sarah.

  “Yes, that’s the one. They got her now. Not good. Not good for that Guard.” Birdie shook his head and a feather drifted down, floating on the air.

  “What happened, Birdie?” asked Trinity. “I thought Reese was living with Hugh’s sister.”

  “She was. Safe and sound, until Hugh’s escape,” said Birdie.

  His knees almost buckled. It was his fault. Again. “Tell me everything.”

  Birdie shifted as he stared at Hugh. “Sorry, Hugh. Terrible, terrible thing.” His voice quieted as he continued, “After your escape the Supreme Almighty sent Guards to Sarah’s house and took Reese. Sarah argued.” His chirpy voice cracked. “Your mother would’ve been proud. Sarah fought for the young Guard, but it did no good. Pointless. Reese was taken.”

  “I’m sorry, Hugh,” said Jackson. “Sarah and her family were in the visiting room, waiting to see you. That gave them a solid alibi, but Reese...I didn’t think. Several months ago, the Council ruled that only the family of those harmed and your immediate family were allowed entrance to see you. That left Reese home alone. I screwed up.”

  “Not your fault.” It was his. Everyone he cared about suffered because of him. “Jason was going to punish someone for my escape.”

  “Where did they take her?” asked Trinity.

  She was right. Just because the authorities took Reese into custody didn’t mean that he and the others couldn’t free her.

  “Bad place. Bad, bad place. Shelters are not good. Not sheltering at all.” Birdie shivered for effect.

  He didn’t have time for the Avion’s nonsense. He opened his mouth but Trinity grabbed his arm, squeezing slightly and shaking her head.

  “Yes, the shelters are all bad, but which one did they take her to?” Her voice was calm and soothing.

  She was patient like his...like Sarah had been. That worked with the flighty Avion whereas his brusqueness did not.

  “Oh. Of course, of course.” Birdie tipped his head. “Not sure why you need the location. A shelter is a shelter. Those who go in seldom come out alive.”

  She squeezed his arm again, stopping his words. He really was going to climb that tree and wring Birdie’s neck if the Avion didn’t give him an answer soon.

  “We might be able to help her,” said Trinity.

  “No. No. Impossible,” chirped Birdie. “You are not thinking—”

  “Which shelter?” He yanked his arm away from her grasp. He’d had enough of these games. Reese could be dying right now. She was definitely scared and alone.

  “Hrmph.” Birdie puffed up his feathers. “No pleasantries. Still grumpy. Maybe, you should figure it out yourself.” He spread his wings, getting ready for flight.

  “Wait. Please.” He was begging the Avion. He’d reached a new low.

  Birdie tucked his wings back by his side. “You will owe me a favor, Hi...Hugh. Another favor.”

  “Fine. Whatever you want.”

  Birdie smiled, his tongue wagging in his beak. “Whatever I want, hmm. Perhaps Hugh can give Birdie a forest filled with trees that always have fruit and nuts.”

  “I’m not a magician, Birdie.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Which shelter? Tell me that and I’ll do whatever you ask.” He was doomed. The Avion was going to ask for something that he wouldn’t be able to deliver and then he’d never hear the end of it.

  “Midtown Shelter,” said Birdie.

  Jackson inhaled sharply. “No one gets adopted from there.”

  “They’d never allow her to be adopted anyway.” He began to pace. “We have to move fast.” He stopped and looked at Jackson and then Trinity. They both averted their eyes. “We can’t leave her there to die.” Rage flowed through him. He’d turn himself in before he let her suffer because of him.

  “We can’t,” said Jackson. “A different shelter, maybe, but not that one. It’s too far into the city, surrounded by areas run by Almightys.” His face was grim. “She might already be dead. They kill them fast at that shelter.”

  “They want me, not her. They won’t kill her, not right away.” Unless they were using her to send a message to him. No, he couldn’t think like that.

  “Word in the trees was that she was alive this morning,” said Birdie.

  “Then, it’s a trap,” said Jackson.

  He looked from one to the other. No one would help him. It was written on their faces. His hands trembled. Conguise and Jason had won. He’d never get the revenge he’d wanted, dreamt of because no one else was going to suffer because of him. He nodded, his throat too tight for words, and headed for his tent.

  “Hugh, I’m sorry,” said Jackson. “If there were some way I’d help. You know I would.”

  He turned back toward them. “I know. Thanks...for everything.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Jackson walked over to him. “You’re not thinking about”—his eyes widened and he shook his head—“you’re an idiot.”

  “I can’t leave her. I won’t.” He couldn’t handle any more deaths on his conscience.

  “You’re not throwing your freedom, your life away. I gave up everything to save you.” Jackson almost spat.

  He stepped forward until he and the Guard were nose-to-nose. “Don’t blame me for ruining your relationship with Kim. You did that because you’re a coward.”

  A low rumble sounded in Jackson’s chest.

  “Stop it, both of you.” Trinity squeezed between them, shoving until Hugh stumbled back a step. She faced Jackson. “Hugh mentioned that we’re moving the camp. Why don’t you start doing that and I’ll babysit him.” She pointed at Hugh.

  “He can’t. He’s escorting me to the other camp.” He couldn’t afford to have Trinity following him around. He needed to sneak away and head back to the city and leaving with Jackson would give him that opportunity.

  “Not now, I’m not. I know you and the first time I look away you’ll sneak off and get yourself killed.”

  “You promised to take me to see Sue and Laddie.” He couldn’t give in too easily, but this would work better. He wouldn’t have to travel in the opposite direction while waiting to escape.

  “And I will, as soon as you calm down. Tomorrow or the next day.” Jackson turned to leave, glancing at Trinity. “Don’t let him do anything stupid.”

  “I don’t need a babysitter.” He walked into his tent and dropped onto a chair. “I’m not a prisoner and I’m not a child.” He had to figure out how to ditch Trinity, rescue Reese and not get captured. No matter what Jackson thought, he wasn’t stupid or suicidal. Plus, he didn’t trust Jason to set Reese free once he surrendered. His absence might be the only thing keeping the little Guard alive.

  Trinity sat across from him, her golden eyes studying him as if he were a bug.

  “Go away. I don’t need you here.”

  She raised a brow, but continued to watch him. He shifted in his seat. She had the damn House Servant stare. It was unnerving how long they could go without blinking.

  “Do you have a bag packed?” she asked.

  “If you recall, I don’t have much, but I’m ready to leave whenever Jackson gives the command.” Moving the camp was perfect. He’d be able to slip away in the chaos. He was pretty sure that he could make his way back to the city. Once there, he’d need to find some help, but one step at a time.

  “Where’s the one Kim gave you?”

  “Over there.” He picked up the almost empty bottle of whiskey and his stomach roiled. It’d be a while before he’d drink again. “It’s still packed. This was the only thing that I took out besides the clothes I’m wearing.”

  “We don’t need that.” She went to his cot and started digging through the sack, tossing items onto the
bed.

  “What are you doing?”

  “We’ll need to travel light. Fast and light. Where’s the cloak I gave you?”

  He nodded toward a pile of dirty clothes on the floor. She shot him a disgusted look.

  “I haven’t had time to wash it yet and I didn’t want it near anything else.”

  “It’s better this way.” She wrinkled her nose as she stuffed it into the bag and then handed the sack to him. “Come on.” She stopped at the door, turning back toward him. “Or don’t you want to save Reese?”

  “Why are you doing this?” He strode over to her. “If this is a trick—”

  “What? What would you do?”

  “Turning you over my knee comes to mind.”

  She laughed, her teeth gleaming white in the darkness of the tent. “I’d like to see you try.”

  “I’m not kidding.” He grabbed her arm. He was in no mood to be teased. Reese’s life was at stake.

  “Neither am I. If you want my help, and you’ll need it, then we should leave while Jackson is preoccupied.” She slipped from his grasp and walked toward her tent.

  He caught up with her. “Why are you helping me?”

  “I’m not doing this for you.”

  “For Reese? You don’t even know her.”

  She snorted and entered her tent, holding the flap for him. “No. Not for Reese either.” She grabbed her backpack and then dropped to her knees by her bed. She pulled out another backpack and tossed it to him. “Here. Put your stuff in this. You can’t carry a sack through the forest. You’ll need your hands free.” She reached under the cot and retrieved a box, digging inside of it. She handed him a small knife. “Keep this in your backpack. You never know when you’ll need a backup.” She stood. “I’m going to help you free Reese and you’re going to help us win this war.”

  “I thought you wanted me to make the serum?” He was going to do that no matter what she wanted. No one was safe with serum-less Trackers roaming the woods.

  “I do and you’ll do that too.”

  “I can’t lead your army”—he almost snorted at the word, a hundred Guards, Servants, Grunts and Producers did not make an army—“and make the serum in the lab. Like I told Birdie, I’m not a magician.”

  She walked over to him. “You will lead us until your lab is ready and then you’ll make the serum, but that’s all. Your studies, your reports will wait until this war is over. As soon as you have the serum, you’ll come back and fight with us again.” She poked him in the chest. “Understand?”

  “What if I don’t agree?” He should lie and promise her whatever she wanted but he couldn’t. If nothing else, he still had his honor and his word meant something.

  She shrugged. “Then Reese stays where she is.”

  “She’s innocent in all this.”

  “So were my brothers and sisters but no one helped them.” She slipped her backpack over her shoulders and stepped outside.

  He followed her into the forest. He hadn’t verbally agreed to her arrangement but they both knew he had no choice.

  “That’s not the same thing.” But it was and the denial sat heavy on his tongue—bitter and poisonous. Producers had been being slaughtered for years. He’d participated in those deaths, not by killing but by purchasing the product.

  “No, it’s worse. Reese is innocent but the reason for her death is vengeance. For the Producers, it’s a way of life. Nothing big. It’s just something that happens to them all eventually.” She stopped and faced him. “You do you realize that they’re still killing Producers and eating them. It won’t stop until we win this war.”

  It was dark in the forest but her eyes captured a ray of sunlight and glowed green. She was gorgeous in her fury and righteousness.

  “I’m glad you don’t hide your teeth anymore.” The comment was completely out of place and he regretted the words, but he couldn’t take them back. A soft puff of surprise escaped her lips. He was close enough to feel the warmth. He took a step back.

  “Remember, follow me exactly. It’s getting lighter so it’ll be easier as we go.” She started walking again. “You should stop hiding too.”

  “I don’t know what you mean.” He stared at her feet, trying to walk quietly.

  “You swear that you’re nothing like your father—”

  “He’s not my father, remember?”

  “Okay, the man who raised you.” She glanced over her shoulder. “From what Dad says, he spent a lot of time with you.”

  “It wasn’t good father-son time, trust me.” No, it’d been father-berate-son time.

  “Still, some of him had to rub off on you.”

  “It didn’t. I won’t let it.” That was his fear. The fact that he wasn’t sure who his parents were didn’t silence the whispers of doubt that haunted him. He’d never be like General Hugh Truent, never.

  “Being like him doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”

  “You have no idea what the man was like. What he did.” He wasn’t getting into this with her.

  “I didn’t want to be a predator, but I’m half House Servant. It’s in my blood, but I don’t kill, unless I have to. I don’t eat meat unless I have to. Accept the strengths and lose the weaknesses.”

  “I don’t recall a lecture as part of our deal.” He didn’t need life lessons from a child.

  She turned to face him. “So you agree to make the serum and lead our troops?”

  “Yes.” He almost had to pry his mouth open to get the word out. “I’ll lead your army until my lab is ready.”

  “When the serum is done you’ll return to lead us again.” It wasn’t a question.

  He nodded. He could run his tests while figuring out how to make the serum. Not exactly what she wanted, but he wouldn’t be breaking his word, the sentiment behind it perhaps, but not his word.

  She studied him for a long moment, suspicion in her gaze. Finally, she held out her hand. “Deal.”

  CHAPTER 29: TRINITY

  TRINITY MOVED THROUGH THE forest as silent as a soft breeze. Hugh tromped behind her, shaking the earth. When he stepped in a pile of dead leaves she spun around.

  “Can’t you at least try and be quiet? You’re louder than ten Producers.”

  “Ten? Great, I’m getting worse.” He held up his hands, a look of exasperation on his face. “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.”

  “You’re stomping,” she whispered harshly.

  “I’m not trying to.”

  A slight rustle in the brush made her turn back toward the camp. She stared into the shadowy forest, trying to make out who was following them.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Hush.” If it were Jackson or her dad, they were in trouble. If she were alone, she’d make a run for it, but with him bumbling after her, whoever was following would overtake them in a heartbeat. A slight scraping on a tree drew her gaze. A small, black shadow perched on a branch. “Go away,” she called out as loud as she dared. They were still too close to the camp to holler.

  “Who’s out there?” His eyes were wide, trying to capture the little bit of sunlight that broke through the foliage.

  “You can’t come with me. Not this time. It’s not safe,” she said, but the little Servant didn’t move.

  “I see eyes shining,” he said. “Who’s following us? We can’t go back.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” She started walking again. “It’s Say.” She spoke louder. “He needs to go back to camp. He’s going to cause trouble for me if he follows.” She glanced behind her. Say was on the ground, trailing after them. She sighed.

  “Did he leave?” He looked over his shoulder.

  “No. Ignore him. He might go away.”

  “Who is he? Is he a Servant? His eyes looked like Servant eyes, but with you I never know. You have some strange friends.”

  “You’re the strangest.”

  “There’s no way that I’m stranger than that River-Man.” He stumbled over a tree root, bumping into her shou
lder.

  “Pay attention to where you’re going,” she snapped. “You’re loud enough when you focus.”

  “Sorry. I...I don’t like being followed, that’s all.”

  “You get used to it.” She shot a glare over her shoulder, but Say ignored her and continued to stay close but too far for her to catch. “He’s just a young Servant. I met him at Ray’s. He showed up there one day. A lot of strays do, but they’re not usually as little as him.” She hated yelling at Say. He didn’t seem to have anyone except her, but now, she was going to have to watch out for him and Hugh.

  “Why is he following us?”

  “He’s following me.” Say had been in the forest earlier that morning when she’d been training Hugh, but there was no reason to bring up Hugh’s failure at noticing the Servant. She’d lost her temper enough around the Almighty. It hadn’t been that long ago when Gaar had been training her. The forest was hard and pointing out every little failure was Gaar’s training method, not hers. She’d been tougher on Hugh than any of the others she’d trained and it was probably because she was mad at him for refusing to help with the war, but that was settled now. She could go back to being a patient instructor.

  “Why is he following you?” He glanced back again.

  “I gave him some food the first day I met him. I also stopped a couple of Ray’s boys from picking on him. Ever since then, he’s been my shadow.”

  “He’s always following you?”

  “No. He’s around a lot but sometimes he disappears for days and before you ask, I have no idea where he goes.” As annoying as Say was, she worried when she hadn’t seen him for a while.

  Hugh moved closer and whispered in her ear, “Can we lose him?”

  “Back up.” She elbowed him in the gut. “I could ditch him but not with you.”

  “Yeah. Right. I keep forgetting what a burden I am.” He slowed a bit, putting more space between them.

  She’d done it again—said something mean to him. She should apologize but it was true. Say was fast. She’d never lose the Servant with Hugh trailing after her. Still, she’d overreacted. “It’s not safe to be too close. We should be close enough to help, but not hinder.”