The Awakening
Page 65
“Andwhatifit opensthedoor? ”Percysnorted.
“Enough,”Jasonhissed.HeturnedtoEve,whoshrugged.
“It’syourcall.Thankstoourbellhopfriend,I’msuretheyknowwe’rehere
regardless.”
Jasonstaredatthescanner,practicallyscowlingwithdisdain,andreluctantly
pressed his palm against the screen. The device emitted a soft hum, and he quicklypulledhishandaway.Ablackenedhandprintremainedonthepanel,
thenfadeduntiltherewasnothingleftbutagreenlight.
Jasonletoutanaggravatedsigh.“Nowwhat?”
“FOURTEENBODIESRAPIDLYAPPROACHING,” JJwarned,causingeach
ofthemtojumpatthesameexactmoment.
“It’sanalarm,”Sanchocried.“Wetriggeredanalarm!”
“Wherearetheycomingfrom?”Eveasked.
“BEHINDYOU!”
Together,theyraisedtheirweapons—EveandPercytheirfirearms,Jason
hisaxe,andSanchohisDirtierSanchez—andturnedtofacewhoever,or whatever,hadsuddenlyjoinedtheminthecorridor.
“Jesus Christ!” Evegasped.Shefoundherselfstaringdownthebarrelofa rifle, and as their sensors intensified and lit up the tunnel, she realized there wereactuallyfourteenriflesintotal,allofthempointedherway,eachonein
thehandsofapatrolman.
Asinglepatrolmaninthefront,theapparentleaderofthegroup,snarledat
her.“YOUAREUNDERARREST!”heshouted.
“What?” Sanchosnapped,hismouthgapingopen.
“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do may be used againstyouinacourtoflaw—”
“Oh, HELLno,”Percygroused.
“Youhavetherighttoconsultanattorney—”
“Areyou seriousrightnow?”Percyrolledhiseyes.“We’reinan alien lair.
Youdorealizethat,right?”
“Ignorethem,Percy,”Eveordered,grippingherguneventighter.“They’re
notpatrolmen.They’reInterlopers.”
“Oh.”Percyglancedoverthesoldiersandflashedasmuggrin.“Yousneaky
littleshitshadmegoin’forasecondthere.”
“Interlopers?”Theleadpatrolmanfaltered.“We’renotInterlopers.”
“They’re lying,”Evespat.
“Seriously,” JJscoffedinEve’sear.“I’veneverheardofapatrolman reading
offMirandarights,andIwatchaTONofCrimeHV.”
Thepatrolmanclenchedhisjaw.“We’retakingyouintocustody.Youneedto
loweryourweapons—”
“Like hellweare,”Jasonbarked.
“Sir,youneedtodropyourweapon rightnow—”
“Youdoitfirst!”Sanchocried,tryinghisbesttoappearintimidating.
“Thisisn’tanegotiation.”
“Itisnow,”Evecountered.“We’reinalairfilledwithaliens—aliensthatcan
disguisethemselvesas humans.Ifyouwantustolowerourweapons,youhave toproveyou’rehumanfirst.”
Themansneered.“Andhowthehellarewesupposedtodothat?”
Jasonnoddedattheman’ssleeve.“Cutopenyourarm.”
“Excuseme?”
“Youheardme.”
“Look,we’renotplayingthisgamewithyou—”
“Cutyourgoddamnarm.”
“Sir?”Apatrolmanfromthebackofthegroupinterruptedthe
confrontation,noddinginEve’sdirection.“She’sgotsomethinginherbelt.”
Theleader’seyesdartedtowardEve,notingthetorqtuckedneatlyinsideher
waistband.Hegrimaced.
“Thataweapon?”
“It’snoneofyourbusiness.”
“Handitover.”
“Abso lutelynot.”
“Look,Isayweshoot’em,”Percyinterjected.“They’reInterlopers,plain
andsimple.”Hecockedhisgun.“Let’sjustgetthejobdoneandmoveon—”
Suddenly,allfourteenpatrolmenpointedtheirriflesatPercy.
“DONOTMOVE!”theleadershouted.“DROPYOURWEAPON!NOW!”
“Whatifweloweredourweaponsatthesametime?”Sanchosuggested,
glancingbackandforthbetweenthepatrolmenandPercy.
Percylaughed.“Soundslikeabrilliantly stupididea,Sanch.”
“That’llwork,”thepatrolmansaid.
Percy’seyesshottowardthepatrolman. “What?”
“Youloweryourweapons,andwe’lllowerours,”themanexplained,still
holdingtighttohisrifle.“Thenyouwillinglyhandyourselvesovertous.”
Percyletoutapatronizingchuckle.“Great!Sowecaneitherbearrestedor
dissected.Whataperfectwaytoendtheday.”
“Youhavenochoice.You’reoutnumbered.Ifyoudon’tloweryour
weapons,we willbeforcedtofire.”HepointedhisgunatPercy’sforehead.
“Startingwith you.”
“Why me?”
“MaybeIjust don’t likeyou.”
“Fine,”Eveinterjected,anxiously.“We’lllowerourweapons.”
“Eve! Whatthe hell?”
“It’sokay,Percy,”Evesaid.“Noone’sshootinganyone.”Sheturnedtothe
patrolman.“Doyouhearme?Youwill not shoothim.”
“Solongaseveryonecooperates,Ithinkwe’llallbejustfine.”
Thefoursomeeyedoneanother—itwasadecisionnoneofthemwantedto
make, and yet there were no other obvious alternatives. The lead patrolman, thoughstillsternandformidable,seemedtorelaxtheslightestbit.
“Onthecountofthree,”hebegan,andashecounted,Eve,hercomrades,and
thefourteenpatrolmengraduallyloweredtheirweapons.“One…two…”
Agunshotreverberatedthroughthecrampedspace,echoingacrosstheclay
walls. Eve flinched and looked to her side at the slender stream of smoke oozingfromthebarrelofPercy’sshotgun.Hehadloweredhisweapon,justas
hewastold,butithadsomehowfounditselfpointedatthepatrolman’sboot—
thebootthatwasnowseepingwithyellowpus.
“See?He’stotallyanalien!”Percycried,pleasedwithhisowndisobedience.
“Andyouguysweregoingtosurrender.Iswear,you’dbelostwithoutme.”
Inaninstant,thepatrolmenburstintoindividualcloudsofcreamyskin,
exposingtheirtrueInterloperforms.Theyquicklyshooktheremainingtissue
fromtheirbodiesandsnarledatthefoursomebeforelungingforwardin
unison.Percysmirked,unimpressedbythedisplay,andfiredaroundof
diamondbulletsatthepack,injuringtwoandkillingmore,includingthe
formerleadsoldier.
ThetwowoundedInterloperswereonlyvaguelyvisibleinthedarkness—
onehadagushingcavityinhisneck,whiletheother’seyewasreducedtoa
crater of pus. With a glare, the first creature shot toward the ceiling, gliding abovethefoursome,wherehisbodysuddenlylurchedfromsidetoside,
spewinggobsofbloodacrossthefloor.Sanchohadpointedeveryfirearmof
theDirtierSanchezatthealien,inundatinghimwithbulletsuntilhislimpbody
plummetedtotheground.
Eveheardagruntbehindher;adecapitatedalienfloppedbesideJason’sfeet,
andJasonglareddownatthecreaturewithamixtureofprideandhate.
Secondslater,anotherInterloperwasflyingtowardher,andshequickly
swerved to her side, dodging the creature at the last possible instant. With a glower, she lifted her hands, ca
tching the alien with her melt, and then thrust himintothetunnelwall.Thecreaturetoppledtothegroundandthentotteredto
hisfeet,andasheattemptedtoregainhisbalance,Evefiredasinglebulletinto thebackofhisskull.
Silence.Evestareddownthetunnel,whichfadedfromlightgreento
darkness only a few feet in front of her. Sancho approached her side, his foreheadwrinkledwithconfusion.
“Arewedone?”heasked.“Seemedalmosttooeasy.”
Evestaredatthegroundandcountedsixaliencorpses.Onlysix.Hadn’t
therebeenfourteenpatrolmen?Againshegazeddownthetunnel,butstillshe
sawnothingbutblackness.
Hesitantly, Eve lifted her wrist and pointed her heat sensor at the corridor, trying her best to illuminate the space. Jason joined her, as did Percy and Sancho,brighteningthetunnelwiththeirglowingredlights,andyettheysaw
nothingbutalongstretchofdirt.Itwasimpossible—eightInterloperscouldn’t
havejustdisappeared.EveleanedintowardSanchoandwhisperedintohisear.
“Yourturn.”
Shecouldalmostfeeltheexcitementpulsingthroughhim.Aninstantlater,two
streamsoffireroaredinfrontofthem,illuminatingthelong,empty
tunnel.Suddenly,Evenoticedsomething:adropletthatsplatteredonthefloor.
Twodrops.Herbodybecamecold;shegazedupattheceilingandsawan
Interloper, his claws burrowed into the clay surface, his eye-socket dripping blood.
Thenshesawsevenmore,allhangingfromtheceiling.
Withonequickswoop,theInterlopersdovefromtheceilingandzoomed
through the tunnel. Eve instantly melted an alien off course and slammed his bodyagainstthemetaldoor,whileSanchoangledhisfirearms,obliterating
twoseparatecreatureswithasurgeofbullets.Jasonsethissightsonhisown
target, harnessed his gift, and flung the alien into another Interloper standing justafewyardsaway;togetherthetwoalienscrashedtothefloorinaheapof
broken bones. Jason glanced around the tunnel and caught sight of Eve, his eyessuddenlywidewithterror.
“EVE,BEHINDYOU!”
Therewasnotimetoact.TheInterloperpouncedontopofEve,knocking
her to the ground and pinning her against the dirt. She groaned, squirming beneath the creature and frantically eyeing her surroundings. She spotted one
of the patrolmen’s rifles lying only a few yards away and reached for the weapon,herfingersbarelygrazingthegrip.TheInterloperdippedhisface
closer to her, dragging his nostrils along her skin, and just as he bared his fangs,Evegrabbedtherifleandshovedthebarrelstraightthroughthe
creature’sopenmouth.Withagrimace,shepulledthetriggerandblewoutthe
back of his throat, sending hunks of flesh spilling in every direction, and the deadInterlopercollapsedontopofher.
Jasonduckedlowtotheground,dodginganotherInterloperthatflew
overhead.Thecreaturedippedthroughthetunnelinachaoticmanner,
disappearingintothedarkness,thenreemergingagainwithhistalonsslashing
atJason’sthroat.Withasurgeofanger,Jasonwhippedhisaxeatthecreature,
slicing off his wing and sending him crashing to the floor. The Interloper roared, flapping his one remaining wing in a fit of rage, and just as he scrambledtohisfeet,helurchedforwardanddroppedface-firsttotheground.
Percystoodbehindhim,hisshotgunsmoking,andhesmiledatthebloodyhole
inthebackofthecreature’shead.
Butbeforehecouldrevelinthemoment,Percytoppledtohisknees,forced
downbyaheavyblowfromthelastsurvivingInterloper.Thecreatureflipped
Percyontohisback,glaringathimwithhisoneremainingeye—theotherhad
beenreducedtoahollowpitofdischarge.Thecreaturegrinned,admiringhis
targetforjustamoment,butitwasamomenttoolong—Jasonslammedthe
butt of a fallen rifle into the alien’s face, knocking him to the ground with a thud. Jason pounced on the Interloper, and again he thrust the rifle into his skull, this time blinding his one good eye. Without relenting, he beat the creature’sfaceuntilitwasamessofbatteredfleshandblood,andwithonelast
surgeofstrength,hepoundedtheriflethroughthealien’smouth,shatteringhis teethandsmashinghislifesource.
Jasonbackedawayfromthecorpse,joiningSanchoandPercyinthecenter
ofthetunnel.Theycountedthebodies—fourteenthistime—andtogether,they
breathedasighofrelief.
“Thatwasmessy,”Jasonmumbled.
Aslightrustlinginthecornersentallthreeboysturning,theirweaponsraised.
Evewasonthefloor,pushingaheftyaliencarcassoffofherbody.She
lookedupatthethreesomeandglowered.
“I’mfine,bytheway…”
“Jesus,sorryEve,”Jasonsaid,rushingtohersideandhelpinghertoherfeet.
SanchoglancedatPercy.“Ican’tbelieveyoushotthatpatrolmaninthe
foot!”
Percyshrugged.“What?Hewasanalien.Whocares?”
“Whatifhewashuman?”
“He wasn’thuman.”
“Butwhatifhewas?”
“Noone’severdiedfromagunshotwoundtothefoot.”
“I’msure someonehas.”
“Name oneperson.”
“Guys,we’reinanalienlair,remember?”Eveinterrupted,shootinga
criticalglareatthetwosome.“Keepyourvoiceslow.”
Together,thegroupturnedandstaredatthelockedmetaldooraheadof
them.Jasonfurrowedhisbrowasheglancedbackandforthbetweenthepalm
scannerandthedeadbodiesashortdistancebehindhim.Then,withanairof
self-assurance, he sauntered over to the heap, kicked at the limp bodies, and swunghisaxedownontooneofthecorpse’sarms,severingitattheelbow.He
pluckedthearmfromthepileandapproachedtheplasmapaneloncemore,
flatteningthetalonsagainstitssurface.
Asofthumresonatedthroughthespace,andthedooropenedbeforethem.
Jasonturnedtohiscomrades,cockinghisheadatthedetachedarmstillinhis
grasp.
“I’mkeepingthis,”hesaid.
Withoutanotherword,heventuredthroughtheopeneddoorway,casually
holdingtheseveredarmathisside.
EvefollowedJasonthroughthedoorway,immediatelystoppingathisside
and staring out at their new surroundings. They had entered a massive room, oneeasilythelengthofafootballfield,withaloftyceilingthatloomedstories abovethem.TheentirespacewasbrightlylitwiththesameglowingorbsEve
had seen in the crematorium, and while she welcomed the visibility, the sight beforeherpuzzledher:thefloorwascoveredinlong,silverracks,eachone
packedwithrowsandrowsofclothing.
“Isthis—”Evestammered.“Isthisa closet?”
“God,mymomwouldhaveafielddayinhere,”Percyjoked.
Theycontinuedthroughthespace,weavingaroundracksasifnavigating
theirwaythroughamaze.Everanherfingersalongthesilverbarsassheeyed
thealiendisguises—forthat’sundoubtedlywhatthesewere.Thereweresuits,
t-shirts,andgowns,allorganizedintosetsoflikeensembles.Inthedistancesat a row of military fatigues—she thought of the faux patrolme
n they had just encounteredandshuddered—andinanothersectionshespottedscrubsfrom
themedicalwardandprofessorialsweatervests.
Shestoppedinfrontofsinglerackthatlookedoutofplace,astheclothingit
heldwasscantyatbest.Jasonandtheothersjoinedherandgazedatthelineof
skimpyclothes:latexbikinitops,denimshorts,neonthongs.Besidethegarb
hung streams of colorful ribbons—the same ribbons that were passed out as favorsattheMeltdown.
“Iguessitonlymakessense,”Evesaid,endingtheuncomfortablehush.
“Thisplace isrightacrossfromtheMeltdown.”
“Doyouthinktheytookpeoplefromtheclub?”Sanchoasked.
“Of coursetheydid,”Percysaid.“We’relookingattheevidencerighthere.
I’msureyou’vegotbitsofdeadclubhoppersalloveryourclothesrightnow.”
Sanchofrowned.“ThenwhywouldtheyevenbotherwithBillington?”
“Becauseofthelist,”Eveanswered,herjawtightlyclenched.“Becauseof
me.”
Evequicklyabandonedtherack,unabletolookatitanylonger.Shehurried
through the lavish closet, steering through the infinite lines of clothing until shefoundherselfinathicketofpolishedshoes,trousers,andties,allperfectly incompliancewiththeBillingtondresscode.Sheslowedherpaceandeyedthe
racksmoreclosely:pastelshirtdresses,crisp,patternedblouses,andstructured blazersineverysizeandstylewerewaitingtobeworn.Evewishedthatatleast
oneensemblewasrecognizable,thatshehadseenitbeforeoncampus .
Andthen,herwishwasgranted—awhitecollaredshirthadbeencarelessly
tossedatopasinglerack,andherfingerstrembledassheslidherhandsacross
thelarge,pinkstainonitsfront.
“Youguys,” JJinterrupted,confirmingEve’sfears, “you’renotalone.”
EvereleasedtheshirtandglancedatJason,Sancho,andPercy,whohadeach
frozenbehindher.
“Howmany?”
“Six.”
Evesighed.“That’smanageable.”
“Wait,” JJsaid. “Ten.No,twelve.Seventeen.”
“DearGod,”Jasonmumbled.
“Twenty-four.”
“Areyouserious?”Percychimedin.
Sanchoanxiouslyeyedtheroom.“Idon’tseeany…”
“Thirty-one,” JJ continued. “Thirty-eight. Guys, they just keep coming.” Her voicebegantowaver. “I—Ican’tevencountthemall.Theyjustkeepcoming.”