She pressed a button on the side of the tool, and its jaws sprang apart with a metallic click, then she tried again, pushing her fingers farther into the compartment to locate the tool correctly before she tried to clamp it into place. The edge of the metal module cover pressed hard against her glove, pinching her fingers, and for a split second, she thought of the damage that might be done to her glove; the fabric fraying, tearing, letting in the particles of grunge which must surely be all over her suit by now. But she pushed the thought aside, closing her eyes and focusing, trying to visualize the position of the module, trying to sense the moment when the tool’s jaws would be in exactly the right position to hold fast. ”Got it!”
Slowly, Cate clamped the extraction tool onto the module, tightening the wheel until it would go no farther, then she adjusted her grip and eased the module free from its socket. When it was clear of its housing, she gently pulled it from the compartment and showed it to Ben.
“Well done,” Ben said. “Is it the same deal as the other side?”
Cate held the module close to her visor. “Looks like it. I’ll have to plug it into my meter to be sure, but I can see some tiny scratches on the base, just like the other one. It can’t be a coincidence. I’ve been thinking about it, and I reckon Mac must’ve attached some kind of clip so he could alter the program. God knows how he figured it out. He must be smarter than he looks.”
Ben grunted. “Maybe. But can you reset it?”
Cate squatted down beside her toolbox and rummaged among its contents until she found her diagnostic multi-meter. She clipped the module into the purpose-built slot, and when she saw the readout, she smiled up at Ben. “It’s exactly the same as the other one,” she said. “It shouldn’t take long to reset it. Not long at all.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
TRUCK TWO
“Milo,” Siobhan whispered in his ear. “Milo, wake up.”
Milo’s eyes flicked open, and he stared wide-eyed into the darkness. He gasped, but before he could cry out, Siobhan lay her finger gently across his lips. “Sh! It’s me, Siobhan. Don’t say anything. Just get up quietly and follow me.”
“What the—”Milo started, but Siobhan pressed her finger harder against his mouth. “I told you not to say anything,” she whispered. “Just get out of bed and follow me.”
Siobhan stood and retreated to the door, listening carefully as Milo climbed out from the unfamiliar bunk. As soon as Milo’s feet hit the floor, she backed out of the room, and Milo followed. Then, when they were both clear the door, Siobhan closed it quietly and gestured toward the main compartment.
“What’s going on, Shiv?” Milo whispered.
“I’ll tell you in the second,” she replied. “First, you’ve got to come with me. We need to go somewhere where no one else can hear us.”
“All right,” Milo said, a hint of excitement in his voice. “Does this mean you’ve forgiven me? Are we cool?”
“Sure.” Siobhan led the way through the dimly lit compartment with Milo trailing behind. When they reached the back wall, Siobhan stopped outside a metal door and rapped on it four times with her knuckles.
“Seriously, Shiv, what’s going on?” Milo asked. “Is this a joke?” He chuckled under his breath, but his laughter ended abruptly when the door opened suddenly. And silhouetted against the light spilling from the open doorway, a man stepped forward; a man holding a bulky rifle in each hand.
“Hello, Milo,” Jim said. “No need to worry.”
Siobhan took hold of Milo’s arm, wrapping her fingers tightly around his bicep. “We need you to stay calm, Milo. Stay calm, stay focused, and listen. Can you do that?”
Milo looked from Siobhan to Jim and back again. “I don’t understand. What the hell are you doing?”
“It’s simple, Milo,” Siobhan said. “We’re going to take control of this truck and turn it around. And when you hear what Jim has to say, you’ll understand the reason why. Tell him, Jim.”
“Siobhan was right,” Jim said. “She did hear gunfire. We fired on some of your people. It was a mistake, and that was bad enough, but then we turned tail and ran. We should have stayed to help.”
“My dad was up on the hill that day, Milo. You know he was there. We saw him, along with some guys from the patrol team. And Jim’s sure they must’ve been hurt.”
Milo let out a low groan. “Oh my God, that’s awful.”
“Yes, it is,” Siobhan replied. “But Jim says there are medical supplies on board—much more than they have at home. If we can just get the truck back to the hill, then we can help. We can help my dad.”
“That’s a great idea,” Milo said. “But you’ll have to persuade them to help. You can’t try and take this truck by force. It won’t work.”
“Why not?” Siobhan demanded. “There are three of us, and only three other people on this truck. And we’re armed. We have a clear advantage.”
“You must be out of your goddamned minds,” Milo Protested. “The new guy, Alec, you saw him, Shiv. He won’t stand for this.”
“He’ll have to do what we say,” Siobhan replied. “He won’t have a choice.”
“He’ll put up a fight,” Milo said. “Someone will get hurt, I know it.”
Siobhan shook her head. “Not if we do this right. We’ll catch him off-guard. And Jim’s certain Alec won’t be armed.”
“He wasn’t wearing his personal weapon,” Jim put in. “And you’ve got to remember that he came over in a hurry. He probably didn’t bring his weapon with him, but even if he did, we can disarm him then lock him in the decontamination chamber. I can fix it so that there’s no way he can open it from the inside.”
“And we can keep Sue and Thaddeus in the cabin,” Siobhan said. “I don’t think they’ll put up much resistance.”
Milo rubbed the back of his neck. “And what about the other trucks? They’ll try and stop you, won’t they?”
“I doubt it,” Jim said. “All they really care about is finishing the mission on schedule. Chasing after us could be dangerous for them, and it would cost them too much time. They’ll write us off as an acceptable loss. They’ll go ahead and finish the mission with five trucks. That’s the protocol, and they’ll stick to it. I don’t doubt it for a second.”
“This is the craziest damned thing I’ve ever heard,” Milo said.
“But you’ll help us?” Siobhan asked. “We need you, Milo. I need you. I have to go and help my dad. I have to go and see if he’s all right, and I’m relying on you to help me.”
Milo met her gaze, then he broke eye contact and looked at Jim. “You’d better give me a rifle. And you’d better show me how to use it. I don’t want to go into this thing and wind up shooting myself in the foot.”
Siobhan threw her arms around Milo and planted a kiss on his cheek. “I knew you’d come through for me. I knew it.”
“Okay, knock it off,” Jim grumbled. “We’ve got work to do.” He handed a rifle to each of them. “These are primed and ready to fire, but you must keep them in safe mode unless I say otherwise.” He indicated a knob on the side of Milo’s rifle. “Leave that well alone. If you start blasting away in here, you’ll blow a hole in the truck and then we’ll all be in trouble.”
“So what’s the point?” Milo asked. “Alec and the others will know we can’t shoot.”
Siobhan grinned. “They won’t know anything for sure. They’ll think we’re crazy, so they’ll play it safe and do what they’re told.”
“And I have this.” Jim pulled a handgun from a holster on his belt. “This can take a man down, but it’s a lot less powerful than the rifles, and there’s a fair chance I could use it inside without penetrating the truck’s outer skin.”
Milo exhaled noisily. “All right, what’s the plan?”
“I want you to stand guard at the door to the sleeping quarters,” Siobhan said. “If Sue or Thaddeus try to come through the door, show them your rifle and tell them to stay put. They’ll go along with it. All you have to do is look
like you mean business.”
“I guess that leaves you and me to tackle Alec,” Jim said.
Siobhan nodded. “Yes. We’ll march him down to the decontamination chamber. Once he’s out the way, the truck will be ours.” She hesitated. “Are you ready to do this?”
Jim gave her a grim smile. “Oh yes. Never been readier.”
“Let’s do it,” Siobhan said. “Lead the way.”
Jim checked his weapon then set off through the compartment, holding his gun ready in a two-handed grip. Siobhan and Milo followed, and when they reached the crew’s sleeping quarters, Milo took up position by the door. Across the narrow corridor, Jim and Siobhan stood outside the door to Alec’s cabin and exchanged a look, then Siobhan gave him a nod.
Jim turned the handle slowly and opened Alec’s door, stepping inside smoothly while Siobhan stayed in the open doorway. She gripped her bulky rifle tightly. The weapon’s plastic grips were already slippery beneath her sweaty palms, and her heart raced, her blood pounding in her ears. She strained her eyes to see into the dark room, half expecting Alec to leap toward her, but there was no sign of movement, and by the dim glow seeping in through the open door, she could make out the curve in the crumpled blanket that showed where Alec was lying. In the stillness, Siobhan could hear Alec breathing gently, and a sharp pang of guilt stabbed at her stomach. Could she really go through with this? Alec was innocent and vulnerable; he didn’t deserve this.
And then Jim switched on the light. “Time to wake up, Alec.”
Alec sat up, cursing under his breath, but then he saw the gun, and his eyes went wide. “What the hell, Clennan?” He started to swing his feet to the floor, but Jim raised his gun, pointing it squarely at Alec’s chest.
“Take it easy,” Jim said. “Stand up slowly.”
Alec rose to his feet smoothly and stepped toward Jim, staring him down. Jim’s nerve seemed to falter and he backed away, but when he reached the door, Siobhan pointed her rifle at Alec and sighted along the barrel. “Don’t be a jerk, Alec,” she said, her voice cracking with emotion. “I might be nervous, but I can’t miss from here.”
Alec stood still and looked Siobhan in the eye. “Listen to me, I don’t know what nonsense Jim has been filling your head with, but you need to put that gun down right now before you cause some real damage and we all get contaminated.”
“Jim isn’t the one calling the shots here,” Siobhan replied, and she managed to make her voice steady. “I’m taking control of this truck, and we’re going back to my home so we can put right the wrongs done by you and your people.”
“She’s telling the truth, Alec,” Jim put in. “It wasn’t right the way we left those poor bastards, and we’re going back to fix it.”
“You picked a fine time to grow a conscience,” Alec said. “The shooting was your fault in the first place.”
Siobhan glared at Jim. “What? What the hell is he talking about?”
“Don’t listen to him,” Jim said. “He’s just trying to stir up trouble. It was his idea to send everyone out fully armed, not mine. It was an accident waiting to happen. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“You fired the first shot,” Alec stated, and he took a small step forward. “That’s a simple fact.”
“I didn’t hit anybody,” Jim said from between clenched teeth. “I saw a weapon and fired a warning shot, that’s all.” He adjusted his grip on his gun. “Now, get moving, Alec. You’re going to walk slowly down to the back of the truck, then you’re going to stay quietly out of the way until we get Siobhan and Milo back home so we can tend to their wounded.”
Alec nodded slowly as if weighing up Jim’s suggestion. “All right. I guess you’re planning to lock me in the decontamination chamber. That’s fine, but sooner or later this thing is going to be over, and then you and I are going to have a reckoning, Jim. Remember that.”
“Stop talking and get moving,” Jim said. He backed out of the room, and Siobhan stepped aside to give him space.
Alec strode from his cabin and turned smartly to walk down the short length of narrow corridor, but he stopped short when he saw Milo standing guard. “You shouldn’t have let her drag you into this,” he said. “It won’t end well.”
Milo said nothing, but he cast his gaze downward as if Alec’s words had hit home.
“Keep moving,” Siobhan snapped.
But Alec turned to face her. “Why don’t you give me a suit and let me go? Thaddeus and Sue too.”
“Why? So you can grab a truck and come after us?” Jim sneered.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Alec replied. “I just want to keep my people safe. It’s called loyalty, Jim. Do you remember what that means?”
“We don’t have time for a discussion,” Siobhan said. “We’ve made our plans and we’re sticking to them, so turn around and walk, Alec. I don’t want to hurt you, but I’m running out of patience, and Jim will shoot you if he has to.”
“He hasn’t got the guts,” Alec stated.
Jim glared at him, holding his weapon steady. “Try me.”
For a second, Alec and Jim locked eyes, then Alec turned and marched through the main compartment, forcing Jim and Siobhan to hurry along behind him. When Alec reached the decontamination chamber, he pulled the door open himself and stepped inside, slamming it shut behind him. Jim went straight to the control panel and tapped in a sequence of commands. A loud, metallic clunk came from the door, and Jim heaved a sigh of relief. “It’s done.”
“There’s no way he can get out?” Siobhan asked. “Nothing you haven’t thought of?”
“It’s foolproof,” Jim replied. “It has to be that way, to stop anyone coming in who might be contaminated.”
“Okay, then I guess it’s time to go and pacify our other passengers,” Siobhan said. “Do you think they’ll do what they’re told? Will it be safe to leave them in the cabin?”
“I’ll talk to them. Leave it with me.”
“Good.” Siobhan hesitated. “But don’t take too long. I want you to get this truck moving.”
Jim frowned. “I don’t know. It’s still very dark. We wouldn’t usually risk it.”
“All the more reason to set off right away. They won’t be expecting it, and they’ll definitely be reluctant to chase after us.”
Jim chewed his bottom lip. “What if we waited a few hours until first light?”
“We don’t have time, and too many things could go wrong if we stay put. We need to get out of here now.” She looked Jim in the eye. “You can fly this thing, can’t you?”
“Yes. Yes, of course. But there’s a risk…”
“What?”
“Sometimes the instruments don’t show the terrain properly. It’s some sort of electromagnetic interference. There could be a ridge or an outcrop of rocks right in front of us, and we wouldn’t see them until it was too late.”
“You must have lights or something,” Siobhan said.
“Yes, but that’s not the point. This is a truck, not a hoverboard. Once we get up to speed, the momentum is enormous. We can’t just swerve around every obstacle we come across.”
Siobhan clenched her jaw and stared at Jim. “And you’re telling me this now?”
“It’s not my fault. You didn’t tell me you were planning to set off in the middle of the night.”
Siobhan growled under her breath. “We have to get going right now, Jim. It’s the only option. You’ll just have to try and pick out the safest route and then go for it.”
“I don’t like it. I really think we should wait. If we go now, we’ll have to move too slowly. They might decide to chase us after all.”
“Whatever happens, we’ll have a head start,” Siobhan said. “And they’ll be worried about the dark too, won’t they?”
“Even more so. They won’t want to risk losing another truck.”
“And they’ll be confused,” Siobhan said. “By the time they get their act together, we’ll be gone.”
“I guess th
at’s true,” Jim admitted. “They’ll try and call us before they do anything. That’ll hold them up even more.”
“Right, so the sooner we move out, the better,” Siobhan said. “Leave Sue and Thaddeus to me, you head into the cockpit and start the engines. Get the truck underway as soon as you can. I’ll join you in a minute, okay?”
“All right,” Jim said. “But it’ll only take me a second to start her up, then I could use an extra pair of eyes in the cockpit. You’d better be ready to help out.”
“That’s fine. I’ll be right there.” She laid her hand on his arm. “I didn’t mean what I said before, Jim. I know you can fly this truck. You told me, remember? You said that you did most of the flying while Kyrksen took the credit.”
Jim nodded. “That is true.”
“I’ll bet you can fly just as well as the other pilots, or even better.”
“Well, Alec’s had more experience than me, but…”
“Exactly,” Siobhan said. “You put him out the picture.”
“Okay, okay. You don’t have to soft-soap me anymore.” Jim holstered his weapon and turned on his heel, then he headed for the cockpit.
“And Jim,” Siobhan called after him, “whatever happens, just keep moving. Don’t stop, not for anything.”
Jim acknowledged her with a raised hand, then he disappeared into the corridor’s shadowy mouth, and Siobhan heard the cockpit door open and close.
For a moment, Siobhan stood still, deep in thought. Her throat was dry and her chest was tight, but she forced herself to take a deep breath and let it out slowly. She looked down at the rifle in her hands and shook her head. She’d started something; she’d set a chain of events in motion. And whatever happened next, it would be down to her. Her decisions. Her actions. Could she face that? Could she accept the blame if things went wrong?
I’ll have to, she told herself. It’s too late to back down now. What was it that Dad used to say? She smiled sadly and whispered, “Step up to the plate and keep swinging.” It was a phrase her father had used often, and the memory gave her strength. I’ll do it for you, Dad, she thought. And from somewhere beneath her feet, a dull roar rumbled and grew louder as the truck’s engines sprang to life.
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