Sarah was tapping her keyboard, spinning the 3D image on her screen. “I’ll need about an hour,” she said.
“Make it fifty minutes,” Dinnie suggested. She pointed at the screen with her left hand, drawing Sarah’s attention to the image. “Is this the part that’s problematic with the configuration?” As she spoke, her fingers brushed Sarah’s cardigan, dropping her brother’s chip into the pocket. Sarah did not notice, and continued to play along, with an easy torrent of techno-babble. For a wild moment, Dinnie wished she could stay near and be transported out of Sun’s hold with Sarah. She could see the chip safely into rebel hands and help them stop the attack.
But she saw her mother, bringing a gift from brother to sister, hopeful that her children might at last be getting along. If Dinnie disappeared, Albert Feldman would be on her mother’s doorstep in no time, adding interrogation and torture to a lifetime of suffering. He would no doubt trace Dinnie’s connection to Billy, as well. There would be no peace for either of them.
No, she had to stay and see the thing through on this end. When Sarah reached the end of her explanation, Dinnie stood, her manner once again distant. “Thank you, Miss Andrews. I’ll be back a few minutes before two, to escort you to the meeting. Get done what you can. I’m sure Mr. Feldman understands your time constraints.”
She held Sarah’s gaze for a moment, trying to say everything in a glance, that could not be said at all. Then she left, her steps on the tile ringing in her ears.
~~~
Bent over with pain, Moira entered the first building she came to and found the loo. She spent a minute catching water to drink from the faucet in her cupped hands. Wiping her mouth, she stared in the mirror, shocked at her appearance. No wonder people she passed were looking at her strangely. Her cap hung precariously to the side of her head, and her hair sprang from it in all directions. Her face was white and drawn, but her eyes glittered, as if she had a fever. Her lips were pale, shading toward blue. She closed her eyes, lifting her hands to flatten her hair, then straighten the cap. Better. Not worse anyway.
She stood straighter, but gave it up as pain ripped through her. Fine. She’d crawl to the Lanyon Building if she had to. She walked without attention to her surroundings, her vision restricted to the sidewalk in front of her, and the foot she placed there with each step forward. Time went away, but somewhere, her mind kept track of distance and location. Finally, she turned a corner and after several more steps along the wall of a great building, she came to a bench. Glancing up, she met the gaze of a young woman in a blue raincoat who stood near the building’s front door. Moira broke the contact, turned, and sank onto the bench.
A few seconds later, she heard the clatter of boot heels behind her, and the blue raincoat sank onto the bench next to her. “Are you Andy’s friend?” the woman asked.
Desperate fear stole Moira’s voice, and she didn’t dare look up, but she forced her head to nod. Please be Karen Jones.
“I’m Karen,” the woman said. “Andy says you need medical help. My car is just there. Can you make it?”
Moira looked across the lawn, toward the street, where several cars resided along the curb. She nodded again. “Slowly,” she said. Croaked, actually. She seemed to have forgotten how to talk.
“I’ll help you.” Karen placed a hand around Moira’s waist. “Take whatever time you need.”
Moira gripped the offered arm, and pushed herself up, allowing no more than a grunt to escape her. “No time,” she said. “Security ...”
The arm on her waist tightened. “How far back?”
“I don’t know. Lost them downtown.”
“We’ll go, then.” Karen’s arm pushed her forward, and Moira’s feet obeyed. Once again, she narrowed her vision to each footstep, letting Karen guide her.
~~~
Sam added the last bit of code into CERBO, and glanced at the clock. Ten before two. It was now or never. He noted the dot that represented Sarah. Good, she was not moving. Easier to pick her up. He felt Andy step next to him, holding onto his Pad. He shifted his gaze to the younger man, who nodded once. Holding his breath, Sam pressed the final button and watched Sarah’s dot disappear. A moment later, an alarm pierced through the building. Sarah’s guard must have been watching her. Angry at that thought, Sam picked up CERBO, met Andy’s eyes, and pressed the button again.
He released his held breath as cold air and the buildings of the university appeared around him. He heard Andy’s startled exclamation, but forgot about it as a cannonball barreled into him, wrapping her arms around his neck and yelling in his ear.
“You did it! You got us out!”
He caught Sarah around her waist, holding her fast against him, so he could kiss her thoroughly. He applied himself to that until he felt a heavy hand on his shoulder.
“Belay that, okay?” Andy said and Sarah leaped away in alarm, her hands coming up in fists.
Sam grabbed one clenched hand. “Sarah, this is Andy Green. He’s helping us.” With a quick glance around him, Sam noticed they were next to the Administration building near the quad. Thankfully, there were no other people around. He glanced at Andy, whose pale face indicated shock.
Andy pointed a shaking finger to his right, his eyes on Sam. “You’re going to tell me, in detail, how you do that, as soon as we have a chance. But we’re not safe yet, and we’ve got just a few minutes to meet Karen.”
“Wait.” Sam kept hold of Sarah’s hand, but he spoke to Andy. “I appreciate your help, but I can’t just blindly follow you around. Who is Karen and where are we going?”
Andy’s lips tightened and he half turned away, one foot out in the direction he wanted to go. “The rebels are the only people who can keep you safe,” he said. “Karen is meeting a friend of mine at two o’clock, in front of Lanyon. She can get us to safety, but she’s not expecting us, so she won’t wait.” He started walking, and yelled over his shoulder, “I’ll explain what I can on the way, but we need to move.”
Sam hesitated, but Sarah flipped around, picked up her computer from its resting place on a wall, and with a jerk of her head to Andy’s back, indicated that she expected Sam to follow. If he had a good reason not to, he’d best let her know.
He could think of no good reason beyond his own fear, so he went with her, catching up to Andy. He held CERBO in front of him as he trotted with them, glad that it blocked some of the wind. Too bad they couldn’t have brought their coats.
“This place is a mess,” Sarah said, glancing around at the broken walls, cracked sidewalks, and unkempt lawn, without losing her stride. “What the feck happened to it?”
Andy shrugged. “Storms. Bombs. Fires. General fighting and a lack of maintenance.”
Sarah’s lips twitched, but she didn’t say anything. Sam was dismayed. Their probes had not shown them this much detail. As they rushed around a corner, he heard Sarah gasp, and for a brief moment, his step faltered. Across the street, the medicine building was a pile of rubble, guarded by walls on two sides. He wondered if the few people he saw walking around were indicative of a nearly non-existent study body.
Andy pointed. “There they are.” His stopped walking, staring hard. “Moira ...” He began to run towards two women walking across the grass. One had an arm around the other, as if she were hurt. Sam exchanged a troubled glance with Sarah and they trotted after Andy.
The women stopped, their expressions alarmed. They weren’t expecting Andy, so Sam understood their confusion. He saw two men on the other side of the quad, and some internal warning buzzed through him. He yelled just as both men raised their arms to point weapons at Andy and the women. Two electric bolts passed so close, Sam heard the sizzle. Andy grabbed the injured girl, swung her up in his arms, and made a wild run toward a blue car. The other woman kept up with him, while the two men ran toward them. Sam and Sarah raced for the car, clutching their equipment to their chests.
One of the men shouted at them. Sam thought he heard something about “security action,” and pu
t speed to his feet. Whatever else happened, he was pretty sure he didn’t want to be detained by this world’s version of the garda.
Andy threw the girl into the back of the car, as the woman slid into the driver’s seat. Sam saw the car lurch but Andy stood by the door, waving his arm in wild swings to urge Sam and Sarah to hurry. Sam shoved Sarah ahead of him into the car, and he shot in on top of her. The girl screamed. Had she been shot? But he couldn’t think because then Andy was on top of him, and the car jerked away, throwing all of them against the front seat.
“Fecking Christ!” That was Sarah, who forced her way to the top of the pile, then dove into the front seat as the car took a corner on two wheels. She didn’t say anything else though, since the driver was providing an even more colorful stream of invective as she glared at the road, shifted, and turned the wheel in great circles. Sam didn’t dare look out the window.
Andy pushed past him, lifting the girl from where she’d fallen on the floor. She was unconscious, and Andy’s face twisted in panic. Was she his sister? Sam wondered. Or sweetheart?
Sam braced his legs against the front seat and the door. He held onto Andy’s shoulders, holding him still whenever the car lurched, doing his best to help Andy keep the girl from further injury.
Did they not have seatbelts in this world?
After another wild turn, the car stopped so fast, that Sam lost his grip and joined Andy and the girl halfway on the floor. He caught a glimpse of Sarah heading toward the windscreen, arms out in a useless attempt to stop herself. As he began the process of disentangling himself, he was grateful to hear a belligerent tone to Sarah’s cursing. More mad than hurt, at least. He reached forward to grip her shoulders. “All right, love?”
The driver opened her door and jumped out, yelling, “Andy, get her into the truck.” Sam lost track of her as he helped Andy lift the girl out. Sarah dipped into the back seat for their computers and CERBO. Andy was already running ahead, where a windowless van waited with its motor running. They were in an alley, amid broken furniture and boxes, surrounded by dark buildings. This wasn’t any part of Belfast Sam recognized.
Andy disappeared into the van, but before Sam and Sarah got there, the driver of their rescue car stepped back into sight. Spreading her feet to maintain balance, she raised both arms and very professionally pointed a serious-looking bullet gun directly at them. They stopped short, tripping a bit as they fought to stay upright and not drop their equipment.
“What the hell?” Sam stepped in front of Sarah. “We’re the good guys.”
“Are ye now?” The woman said. She jerked her chin toward the van. “Him, I know, even if he’s not supposed to be here. But you, I know nothing about. That means this is as far as you go.”
“What the hell are you doing, Karen?” Andy, voice high with startled shock, appeared in the doorway of the van. “They’re with me. I promise, Ned’s gonna want them.”
That wasn’t exactly reassuring, but if it kept them from getting shot, Sam could live with it. He remembered his earlier impression of the men who were chasing them. No, he did not want to be in their clutches. Which meant they’d have to take their chances with this “Ned.”
“Dammit, Andy.” Karen didn’t lower the gun, or look away from Sam and Sarah. “You’re not part of this. You can’t just show up and start making demands.”
“When you see what these people have, you’ll realize I can do exactly that,” Andy said. “Karen, Moira’s still unconscious. We need to get her help. And we’re not safe here.”
It would take a hard person to ignore the fear in Andy’s voice, and evidently Karen was not a hard person. Her scowl might have killed them, but she put the gun away and motioned them into the van, slamming the doors harder than was needed. Once inside, Sam noticed the shadow of a fellow in the driver’s seat. A moment later, Karen jumped in on the passenger side, and the van drove off, well within the speed limit.
The back of the van was equipped with benches down each side. Sam and Sarah sat with shoulders touching, across from Andy, who still held the girl in his arms. Sam could feel the anger buzzing through Sarah.
Sam addressed Andy with his voice low. “I never agreed to be used as a pawn in your political games. You have no right to make promises on our behalf.”
Andy shook his head. “It wasn’t me. The rebels already knew about the neutrinos. Hell, I knew about them back in March. Moira and I were working on it, but it was obvious that Sun had suppressed the information. They just hired me two days ago, and yesterday was the first time I found out about your probes. I didn’t find out about you until this morning.”
“Who are the rebels?” Sarah asked the question through clenched teeth. “And what are they rebelling against?”
“Laws that let the powerful hold innocent people captive without due process, for one thing,” Andy said. “Martial law, army conscription, universal tracking ... Want me to go on?”
Sarah leaned her head against the wall behind her, and shook her head as she stared at the ceiling. “What a miserable world,” she whispered.
“It’s happened before,” Sam said, as if reminding them both. “We have the same history up until 1906. There are plenty of examples.” Sarah squeezed his fingers, and when he glanced at her, she nodded towards Andy.
He was holding the girl close, watching her face as his fingers rested against her carotid artery. Sam held his breath until Andy moved his hand, stroking the girl’s hair in a comforting gesture. “You’ll be okay,” he whispered. “We’re almost safe.”
Feeling oddly voyeuristic, Sam looked away, returning Sarah’s squeeze. He’d save his questions for Ned.
Chapter 29
Pandemonium engulfed Dinnie’s lab. First the neutrino alarm had gone off, drawing everyone’s attention to the detector, but before any of them could move, another alarm, this one a floor or two away, shrieked over the first one. Seconds later, another alarm, closer to their lab, joined the first two. Dinnie didn’t have to act startled. The alarms scared her witless, and her reaction was no more or less real than anyone else’s. She raced out of her office, pointing at the detector alarm and yelling, “Turn that off!” as she ran past it. Someone silenced it, while two of her team stared at the detector, at least trying to do their job. The others stared at each other in uncertain fear. Part of the problem was that no one was sure what the other alarms were for. A fire or hazard alarm was a deep buzz at one-second intervals, along with flashing exit lights. This alarm was a nonstop ringing bell, first one, then the other. They sounded the same note, but came from different directions, as if each alarm was focused on a particular area. The first came from above them, the second seemed to come from the south wing. Where the labs are. Before Dinnie could speak, they all heard the ominous click of doors locking.
“What the hell?” That came from Dinnie’s secretary Cass, who ran to the door, jerking at its handle. When it didn’t budge, she kicked the door, then slapped her hand against it. Dinnie reached her, grabbing her hand before it hit a second time.
“Take it easy, Cass.” Dinnie tried to sound reassuring.
“We’re locked in!” Cass’ eyes were wild as she gripped Dinnie’s shoulders with both hands. “They’re going to keep us here. They won’t let us go home, and I’ve got kids to take care of. What will happen to them?”
Dinnie looked around in frustration and saw her data technician Mike, approaching at a quick trot.
“Mike, take her,” she said through clenched teeth. Cass’s fingernails were digging into her arms. “I’ve got to make some calls and find out what’s happening.”
Mike put an arm around Cass, pulling her away from Dinnie. Holding Cass firmly to his side, he turned to Dinnie. “Wait,” he said. “You need to know that just before the first alarm, we had a sharp peak in neutrinos. Right here.”
Dinnie stared at him, then glanced around the room. “Here?” She hardly got the word out.
“Not this room,” Mike said. “But this building. I
t was almost simultaneous with the first alarm.”
“Get her settled.” Dinnie pointed to Cass’s desk. “Then get on the detector. Check Labs 4D and 3B. I want to know if the neutrinos originated in one of those.”
She turned to her office, but turned back before moving. “Mike.”
“Yeah?”
“Find out where they went.”
~~~
Feldman cased Lab 3B in quick steps, his eyes darting everywhere, not missing anything. There just wasn’t anything to see. O’Brien stood at attention, staring straight ahead, with his lips squeezed tight, as if to keep any more words from falling out. O’Brien’s supervisor was at the guard station, running the room’s security video of the event. Feldman had already seen it once. The fact that it corroborated O’Brien’s rambling story only made him madder.
“Th-th-they were both standing at Altair’s station,” the guard had stammered. “Just talking, sir. They were just talking, not loud, but not whispering either. Then the alarm went off, and I came right around to tell ‘em to back off and put their hands on their heads. But before I could say anything, Altair just picked up his computer and they both vanished.” He shook his head and ran a hand over his buzz cut. “Just vanished,” he repeated.
Feldman stared at Altair’s work station, then turned to Green’s. “Did Mr. Green have his Pad?” he asked.
O’Brien’s eyes darted to his supervisor, and the security feed. “I believe he did, sir.”
“Mr. Feldman.” The supervisor glanced up from the screen. “Dr. Warner is calling you sir. It’s marked urgent.”
Feldman tapped his Pad to put her on the speaker. “Where are you, doctor?”
“In my office, sir,” Her voice was crisp and professional, with no hint of fear. Good. Feldman liked that in an underling. “Sir, you should know that we picked up two spikes in neutrinos, just before the alarms went off. We’ve traced the bridges. They have a different signature than the interdimensional one. These are local.”
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