Webb allowed a mischievous grin to spread over his face, lightened by Harvey's return of character. “You think we've had fun so far?”
XIII
The hardest part was splitting up from the others and trusting them to do their bit. But he had to. And, though he didn't say as much, when he looked in himself he didn't find any doubt. Hugo would get it done.
Still, it was easy enough to trust him to do his duty, he thought. Not as easy to trust him to not get himself killed in the process. But Webb shook the thought away and carried on down yet another maintenance way, flattening himself against the wall as a couple of technicians wandered past at a junction.
He scrambled up and out of the next exit hatch and took a moment to stare up into the murk and listen to the sound of traffic and machinery permeating the chill air around him. He reassured himself that, one way or another, he wouldn't have to come back to this godforsaken colony again after tonight.
He pushed the tangled feelings aside and started to run. Houston Block reared up ahead, a towering spread of orange and white lights, shuttle platforms and skyway junctions, so huge that no matter his pace he never seemed to get any further towards it. He skidded to a halt in the shadows behind one of the relay blocks, held his breath then pushed a button on his wrist panel. A burst of red and orange reared up above the buildings behind Houston and the ground trembled.
“Back up generator destroyed, Captain,” Webb mumbled into his wrist panel. “How are you two doing?”
“Nearly there,” came Hugo's clipped reply.
Webb fished his night goggles out ready and craned his neck up to look at the megastructure, counting down under his breath. He had just started to panic that something had gone wrong when all the light from the block went in one go and he was plunged into darkness. He let out a sigh of relief, feeling his heart start to pound and pulled on his goggles and set about pulling a tarpaulin off their stolen flyer. The chaos of the suddenly blind skyways filtered down in a series of crashes and beeps as well as the whining of thrusters reversed in a hurry. Closer by there was the screeching of tyres as the groundway entrance choked with confused traffic and then, slowly, shouts started to build in volume.
Webb clambered into the flyer's pilot seat then started to count, fingers tapping on the wheel. “Hurry, Hugo,” he hissed, then heard booted footsteps sound in the darkness nearby. Harvey and Hugo clambered into the flyer, both shouting for him to go.
He gunned the thrusters before Hugo was seated and jerked the stick up. They climbed until they were zooming up parallel with the darkened levels of the block. He dodged amongst the confused skyway traffic and pulled them round a shuttle parked at a blackened platform that rang with panicked shouts, and then he could see the top of the structure approaching. With every breath he felt a suffocating heat build inside him. He clenched his teeth and pulled on the air brake. The flyer jerked and shuddered then smoothed over the edge and levelled over the sprawling roofspace.
“Go,” Hugo barked even before they'd stopped.
Webb felt every pound of his boots meeting the metal roof as though it were from far away. With an effort, he pushed away the heat and sank into the darkness that lurked behind it, feeling it fill and calm him like a vacuum. He found an emergency hatch and knelt beside it to lay charges. He hadn't had the materials or the time to knock up any of his implode charges so he shooed the others back a good distance before hitting the detonator. There was a flash and a creaking bang and a groan and then they ran back.
The silence that surrounded them when they dropped into the pitch-black maintenance way was eerie. He set off at a run, skidded around a corner, not caring what noise his boots made on the grill floor. There was confused shouting and the tinny reply of a comm up ahead. Webb didn't break pace but hurtled round the next corner.
They left the two Splinters bleeding on the floor and forced open the checkpoint they'd been guarding and pelted down the corridor beyond until skidding to a halt at a signal from Webb. He stood staring at the door for a moment, breath heavy in his chest.
“Commander,” Hugo hissed next to him.
Webb shook himself and placed more charges. They backed away as far as they could and Webb pressed the button. The heat and sound blasted them back, but they recovered quickly and ducked through the ruined door and squeezed into the tiny maintenance space beyond. Another door, wooden this time, barred their way but the charges had taken out the hinges and they shouldered it open and staggered into the room beyond.
A large bedroom showed up in the dull green of the night vision. Shelves and shelves of hard-copy books lined the walls and there was a huge wall display mounted over a dark fireplace. Webb took all this in in a second and went toward the door when he was frozen to the spot by the sound of a stifled sob. He turned and saw a small figure hunched in the corner, arms clutched over his head, shaking. The heat inside Webb blazed white and for a moment he was blinded, choked with anger, fighting back memories threatening to swamp him. Another sob came from the boy. Webb made himself move over to him.
“Hey,” he said, holding out a hand. “Hey, buddy. It's okay. We're not gonna hurt you.”
“What’s a child doing in his bedroom?” Harvey asked but no one answered. The silence that followed was thick.
The boy didn't move until Webb tried to take a hold of his wrist. Then he flung himself away and shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Vince,” he screamed. “In here! Vince!”
Webb swore and grabbed after the boy but Hugo was already there, seizing the boy and clamping a hand over his mouth. He bucked and struggled and kept screaming Marlowe’s name against Hugo's glove.
All the lights came on. All three of them swore and pulled off their goggles, blinking. Alarms began blaring and there was more noise from deeper in the building. The boy had gone quiet and Webb looked over and saw he was slumped in Hugo's arms, eyes closed, wetness on his cheeks.
“He's okay,” Hugo growled at the look on his face. “He fainted. Quick, Harvey. Take him.”
“What?”
“Take him and get him out of here.”
“You can't go on without me,” Harvey said.
“We've got no choice,” Hugo said, heaving the slight body up in his arms and passing him to Harvey. “Take the flyer. Get him to the nearest youth unit.”
Harvey shook her head, muttering under her breath, threw one unreadable look at Webb then left the way they'd come with the boy in her arms.
“Move,” Hugo said. “Now.”
Webb nodded, drew his gun then moved to the bedroom door. He took a moment to press his ear against it. There were footsteps coming their way.
“Stand back,” he hissed at Hugo then flattened himself against the wall beside the door just as it came crashing open. The men that had entered didn't have time to take in that they weren't alone before Hugo and Webb had taken them down. Peering back out the door he saw the corridor beyond was clear.
“This can't be it,” Hugo said, eyeing the bodies on the floor.
“It won't be,” Webb replied. “Come on.”
They jogged down the corridor. There was a thick white carpet under their feet that muffled the sound of their boots. When they reached the end they took a moment to breathe and then peered around the corner.
A huge space opened up in front of them, a display at one end that took up an entire wall. A long plexiglass table dominated the centre of the room, scattered with hastily abandoned hand-panels, papers and comm units. There were at least twenty Splinters milling about it, all dressed in black and all with automatic rifles. Marlowe stood at the end of the table, his face still but his eyes blazing. Webb felt his stomach flip inside him. The man stood tall and calm as he issued orders to his men over the blaring alarms.
Webb and Hugo both pulled back around the corner when Marlowe's glance slid in their direction. Hugo was grinding his teeth and glaring at the opposite wall. Then, after a pause, he holstered his gun and pulled a grenade out of his
utility belt.
“I like your thinking,” Webb said.
“This all ends tonight, Commander,” Hugo said. “One way or another.”
“Yes, sir.”
Hugo searched his face for a moment longer but Webb kept his expression blank. Then the captain pulled the pin and hurled the grenade round the corner. Webb braced himself but the blast still made him stagger. He didn't give himself time to think but ran out, firing blindly into the smoke and flames. They flung themselves behind the remains of the table and continued firing. More cries confirmed that they'd taken down another couple of Splinters but then the air around them was exploding with shots.
As the smoke from the grenade began to clear, he could see that all that was left of the ceiling and walls was a scorched and flaming mess. A number of mangled bodies were strewn about. At least a dozen Splinters had taken up position behind a downed section of wall and from the shouts that filtered through over the sound of the gunfire more were on their way.
“I have one charge left, Captain,” Webb shouted.
“Do it.”
Webb ducked back behind the table, wincing as plaster and glass rained down on him. He pulled out the last charge, activated the timer, then hurled it towards the Splinters.
This blast was smaller but still shook the room. There was the groaning of protesting metal and the floor heaved and tilted. He flung himself flat on the carpet and tried to dig his fingers in. The table slid with them and a series of crashes and screams before the floor stopped tilting.
Webb got back to his knees to peer round their barricade. Half the room had caved into the level below. The section of wall and the Splinters behind it had gone and all was smoke and shouts and noise.
Gunfire broke out again as new arrivals took up position across the room. The remains of their table bucked and splintered. Webb cursed and ducked down to reload then noticed a tall, suited figure slipping away in the confusion.
“He's getting away,” Webb shouted, firing and managing to take out one of the men covering Marlowe’s escape. The second one got up and ran after Marlowe. “Hugo, cover me.”
He didn't give the captain time to protest but came up shooting. He sprinted through the smoke and leapt over the tear in the floor. He landed, staggering, tore round the corner and pelted down the corridor after Marlowe. Bullets flew in the air all around him.
He turned another corner in time to see the tall man and his Splinter guard keying open a heavy door. Webb increased his speed and got there just as the door of the panic room was sliding shut. He skidded the last few feet, shoving his boot in the gap. The heavy door cracked on his foot and he grunted in pain but shot out the control panel and shouldered it open.
He staggered inside the small room, bringing up his gun, but was knocked to the ground from behind. He scrambled up onto his hands and knees but the Splinter kicked him onto his back, bearing him down into the floor. The world span back into place just as the man on top of him leant his whole weight onto the rifle pressed over his neck. Webb coughed and choked, trying to hold off the weight, his vision blurring and blood pounding in his ears. Just before it all went grey, he caught sight of Marlowe, watching with his arms folded and a soft smile on his face, and a surge went through him.
With an effort that had his shoulders screaming, he heaved the Splinter off and delivered a kick to his head whilst the big man was still trying to regain his balance. There was a crack of bone and he went down like a sack of parts. Webb scrambled for his gun but Marlowe lunged, grabbed hold of his collar and slammed him against the wall. The breath was knocked from him and his head span. He tried to fight it, but the strength of the broader and taller man brought the memory screaming back and it swamped the fire inside him. Feeling the fight go from him, Marlowe tightened his grip on his throat, lifting until his heels left the floor.
“I know you, don't I?” Marlowe said, face so close Webb could smell the cigars and rum on his breath. “I wasn't sure before… but now I've seen you from this angle -” he leaned in closer, choke-hold tightening and leaning his full weight into Webb's body. “- yes, I remember.” There was a horrible moment when a smile that was all teeth and eyes that were grey as iron filled his entire vision. “You've grown.”
Heat flared from somewhere desperate and Webb gathered it to him, snarled and shoved. Marlowe staggered and Webb stuck out, landing a blow that cracked into his jaw. Marlowe spat and struck back but Webb managed to duck and land a kick on the older man's kneecap. He swore and bent away but then threw himself forward.
Webb ducked again and went for a blow to the ribs but Marlowe had recovered and dodged. Webb's momentum carried him too far and Marlowe grabbed his arm and twisted it up behind him, forcing him to his knees. He cursed and struggled but Marlowe got a grip of his hair and pulled his head back so he was looking right up into the cut-glass gaze.
“Seriously though, kid. The black cross? Really?” he said, leering down at him. “What, did I not pay you enough? I'm normally generous with the ones good enough to remember.”
Webb snarled, got his legs under him and pushed up. His head connected with the Splinter's nose with a satisfying crunch. There was bubbling and cursing and Webb knocked him to the ground with another kick. He was on him in a moment, heaving him up by a fistful of his suit and raining blows on his face. The other man tried to bring up his hands but Webb just pounded through them.
Eventually he stopped for breath. Marlowe lay limp in his grip. Then, through the blood and the matted hair, Marlowe smiled.
“You son of a bitch,” Webb hissed, pulling out his knife and pushing it hard enough against Marlowe's throat to split the skin. “This ends. It all ends. Tonight.”
“Oh no,” the man croaked, dribbling blood. “Oh no, my little gutter-shit.” He coughed before it warped into a sickening laugh. “Kill me, if you've got the guts. I dare you. But if I'm in there -” He tapped Webb in the centre of his forehead. “- I'm there to stay, pretty one.” The mess of his face shifted as the grin widened.
Webb hauled Marlowe up into a sitting position and leaned in to hiss in his ear. “I'm gonna hunt you down in hell just so I can kill you again. And again. And again.”
Blackness rose in a wave and closed over his head. All he felt was an ache in his knuckles from the tightness of his grip on Marlowe's suit and the knife. He was distantly aware of the thick stickiness that coated his face and clothes and the hot, coppery taste in his mouth. Then there was a voice nearby calling his name.
“Webb,” Hugo repeated. “What the...?”
Webb blinked and wiped a sleeve over his face to clear the blood out of his eyes and mouth. Hugo stood in the door with a face like stone. Webb shook himself and got up, re-sheathing his knife and dropping Marlowe's body to the floor. His limbs felt like they were made of iron. He closed his eyes for a precious second and waited to feel something, but nothing came.
“What's going on?” he mumbled as he became aware of the cacophony filtering down the corridor.
“The Enforcers have arrived,” Hugo said. “Looks like his connections weren't enough to protect him from them finding out about his involvement with the Splinters. But we need to move. Now.”
“Go,” Webb said, pulling out the spray paint. “I'll catch up.” Hugo didn't move though as Webb turned his back and sprayed a cross on the wall that reached from ceiling to floor. Underneath he scrawled God has found thee lacking. He threw the can at Marlowe's body, spat on it and shoved past Hugo into the corridor.
“Reinforcements came from this way,” Hugo said, jogging away from the chaos of the conference room. “There must be another way out.”
Webb followed, forcing his body to obey though it felt like he was wading against over-tuned gravity. They ducked and turned until Hugo managed to find a hatch back into the maintenance ways. Alarms blared and they had to shoot their way through several checkpoints that the alarm system had locked down. The few people they encountered were all maintenance personnel who threw them
selves out of the way or ran in the opposite direction when they saw them coming.
They burst out of the maintenance ways onto a retail level. The square in front of the closed-up businesses was virtually deserted apart from a few confused people blinking up at the flashing lights and alarms. They jumped out the way as Webb and Hugo came pounding over the square. When they skidded into a parking pool they ducked low to avoid being seen by a troop of Lunar 1 Enforcers shooing civilians towards the express lifts. They ran, stooped double, behind a row of flyers and broke into the first one that looked fast.
The Enforcers were so engrossed in getting the civilians off the level that they didn't notice Webb and Hugo until the engines fired and the flyer rose from its berth. Shouts and a few shots rang out but they were out of the building and pulling the flyer off the skyway before anyone had a chance to understand what was happening.
Webb managed to piece together enough rationale to steer the flyer on a non-direct route back to the workshop, where they dumped it a couple of streets over and ran the rest of the way. By the time they were heaving open the rusted door and staggering inside, Webb's urge to vomit was winning the war against his desire to lie down and pass out.
He ignored Harvey who rushed forward to them as they came in and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other until he reached a foreman's office in the corner. He pulled the door shut behind him then leant against the wall in the dark, breathing in the smell of dust and old metal. His control snapped like string and he sank to the floor, pressed his forehead onto the ground, covered his head with his arms and lost himself in the blackness.
ɵ
Hugo watched the water in the basin darken as he scrubbed off the boot black. He couldn't deny the rising feeling of relief that washed through him at the thought of never having to smell the stuff again.
“We're done then?”
Hugo blinked at Harvey through the dripping ends of his hair. “Yes. We're done. Did you get that kid somewhere safe?”
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