Rectify Injustice (The Exceptional S. Beaufont Book 6)

by Sarah Noffke

  She pretended to think about it and looked down at her feet. “No, I don’t. Whose shoes are these?”

  A laugh popped out of his mouth. “How about we put a friendly wager on this. When I find Lassie first, you have to buy me a phone. The newest, shiniest model, all full of magitech.”

  “Hiker doesn’t want the old dragonriders to have electronics,” she argued. He had only allowed Sophia because it didn’t make any difference since she was from the modern world. Telling her she couldn’t use technology in the Castle hadn’t worked either.

  “What Hiker doesn’t know won’t hurt him…or me.”

  “If he does find out, then you’re going to be seriously injured,” Sophia warned. “What do I get when I find the dog first?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t even think it’s worth my breath since it’s never happening, but how about I be nice to you for like a whole week.”

  “How about I have Quiet prevent you from entering the Castle?” Sophia countered.

  Evan scowled at her, knowing full well if she asked the groundskeeper for that he’d do it without question. “Fine, I’ll teach you how to fight since you hold a sword like a girl and scream when you swing it.”

  She rolled her eyes. “That’s a ki-yup, Ax Child. It produces power when paired with an assault. I do hold my sword like a girl since that’s what I am.”

  “I’ll teach you how to fight properly, so you don’t have to scream at your opponent to beat them into submission,” Evan joked.

  “I think I’m good,” Sophia said. “Instead, when you reply to me, for a week, you have to finish your sentence with, ‘Whatever you want; I am your monkey.’”

  He laughed. “That’s a deal I’ll take! Especially since I’m going to win.”

  “Shall we practice?” she asked him. “Evan, would you please pass me the butter?”

  He glared at her. “No.”

  Sophia shook her head. “Actually, you would reply, ‘Why, yes. Whatever you want; I am your monkey.’”

  “That’s not even going to make sense half the time.”

  “Oh, I think it will for most phrases I say to you.” She held up her hand, ticking off fingers as she ran through a list. “Drop dead, Evan. Would you get out of here, Evan? Shush your face, Ax Boy.”

  “That’s fine,” he sang, holding out his hand as he traipsed in the opposite direction. “Let’s pretend we’ve shaken on this.”

  “It’s a bet,” she affirmed, then her mouth fell open.

  Evan was so busy trying to be cool, he didn’t realize he was about to step on a land mine, inches away.

  “Watch out!” Sophia shouted.

  His head jerked down suddenly and he stumbled to the side, overcorrecting for the near-mistake. He halted when he realized he was safe, his chest rising and falling hard.

  Sophia had been holding her breath. She shook her head. “Watch where you’re going, would you?”

  “Whatever you want. I am your monkey,” he joked, winking at her, a flood of relief on his face.

  “All right, go find this dog,” she ordered. “Or rather, watch as I do it.”

  She jiggled the bag of beef jerky again, calling to the dog.

  Evan, who was properly motivated now, began whistling.

  The two carefully progressed toward the center of the exploded warehouse, searching for the super canine or whatever he was.

  See anything from up there? Sophia asked Lunis.

  I see everything from up here, Lunis replied. There are clouds. Over in the distance on that golf course, a guy is picking his nose. His caddy keeps sneaking a sip of the dude’s beer when he’s not looking. Oh, and there’s a squirrel. I’m going to call him Cody.

  Sophia couldn’t help but laugh. No, I was referring to signs of the dog.

  Oh, for sure. I see him right now, Lunis said in her head. You wanted me to let you know when I saw the dog? You should have said so. I thought you wanted me to fly around up here like a kite and look pretty.

  Ha-ha, Sophia replied. Well, if you see something of interest, please let me know.

  The golfer just scratched his butt, Lunis told her.

  With the same hand he picked his nose with? she asked in a serious voice.

  Yes, but I think it’s okay as long as he doesn’t go back to picking his nose with the same hand, Lunis joked.

  Keep an eye out for me, Sophia ordered. I need to know what happens.

  You got it, Lunis told her.

  Amused by her companions on this mission, Sophia found herself laughing just as something streaked out from behind a pile of rubble. When she turned to look at it straight on, she didn’t see anything. She could have sworn a second before she’d seen a dog…or something that resembled a dog.

  Studying the pile of debris, Sophia recognized a mini-refrigerator and a microwave, as well as an assortment of other kitchen tools. This must have been the area of the warehouse hangar where the kitchen was located. She remembered that space from when she and Mahkah had searched the place while undercover.

  Carefully negotiating around the rubble, Sophia kept her eyes trained on the electronics where she could have sworn she’d seen the dog.

  “Hey, look at what I found!” Evan called to her from several yards away. He picked up a small handheld gaming device. “Do you think this is magitech?”

  Sophia shook her head. “No, it’s a Nintendo Switch, and it’s fried to hell.”

  Evan looked it over and shrugged before tossing it over his shoulder. A small explosion sent dirt and junk into the air, raining ash down on them.

  Sophia shielded her face and head with her arms before deciding it was safe to relax. Pulling her hands away, she shook her head at Evan. “Dude, can you be more careful? Land mine zone, remember?”

  “Land mine zone, remember,” he said, mocking her.

  She was about to make another remark when something caught her attention. Spinning around, Sophia didn’t see anything. There was no sign of the elusive dog. However, the mini refrigerator was gone.

  Scratching her head, she observed, “That’s weird.”

  “Are you looking in a mirror?” Evan asked with a laugh. “That’s your face, and it’s super weird-looking.”

  Not in the mood to banter with him, she shook her head. “There was a mini-refrigerator there a second ago. Now it’s gone. I could have sworn I saw something sprint by.”

  “Let me ask you a question.” Evan began picking up a long panel to check underneath it. “How much whisky have you had this morning?”

  “Unlike like the rest of the Dragon Elite, I don’t start drinking first thing in the morning,” Sophia answered, turning in place to survey the area. As she rotated, something streaked past her back.

  Again she spun, her mouth pinched. Sitting beside a pile of charred junk was something Sophia didn’t remember seeing before—a large red toolbox. The reason it stood out, much like how she remembered the mini-refrigerator, was that it was unscathed by the fire that happened at Medford Research. Which didn’t make sense because everything else was burned and battered.

  Carefully, Sophia approached the toolbox, her chin tilted to the side. She reached for the latch on the pristinely red box. It didn’t budge when she tried to open it.

  “What the hell?” she said, gritting her teeth together and pulling harder.

  “Call me crazy, but I don’t think the dog is in there, missy,” Evan teased.

  She stood, looking down at the strange toolbox. “I get that, but something isn’t right about this. It wasn’t here a moment ago and looks like it hasn’t been touched by the fire.”

  “That’s fascinating,” he answered, sounding bored. He picked up another panel and peered underneath it. “Meanwhile, some of us are actually looking for the dog.”

  She made a profane gesture at him, giving him a seething expression.

  “Now that’s not very ladylike, is it?” He pointed at the ground next to her. “What toolbox are you talking about?”

  So
phia glanced down, surprised to find the red toolbox had disappeared. “Okay, that’s just weird.”

  She turned, searching for an object that was out of place again. Behind her, she heard a scurrying noise. Quickly Sophia spun in that direction, noticing a metal chair that had definitely not been there moments prior.

  “Okay, I think I’ve got you figured out.” She grabbed a piece of beef jerky and tossed it in the direction of the metal chair. Staying still, Sophia watched the chair, deciding she was going to wait it out. She wasn’t sure her assumption was correct, but she reasoned the dog could shapeshift. She just had to get it to take its regular form. That must be how it moved.

  Feeling like she was having a staring contest, she kept her eyes trained on the metal chair. Meanwhile, Evan was making a ton of racket, looking under different pieces of debris. Sophia reasoned he was probably safe since it was unlikely Trin Currante had stuck land mines under the wreckage. It was more likely they littered the path, where they could catch trespassers.

  He glanced over his shoulder at her, giving her a pursed expression. “Okay, well, you’re definitely losing the bet if you’re just going to stand there and stare blindly ahead.”

  “I’m not just staring,” she said, although she realized that wasn’t quite true. “I have a plan.”

  “Yeah, me too,” Evan replied. “It’s called ‘find the freaking dog.’ You should try playing it.”

  “Whatever,” she stated, keeping her focus on the metal chair. “Get ready to start calling yourself a monkey.”

  He shook his head, reaching for a large cover hanging out of a bunch of larger equipment. “Whatever. Get ready to buy me a—”

  A scream like that of a schoolgirl falling off the jungle gym ripped out of Evan’s mouth.

  Sophia’s gaze shot in his direction as he continued to scream and staggered backward blindly.

  “SNAKE!” he yelled, nearly tripping over his feet.

  She was going to race over when she spied a land mine a foot behind him. He was about to step right on it.

  “Watch out!” Sophia yelled, but it was too late. He was already in motion, inches away from landing on the mine.

  Something blurred in her vision. Whatever it was moved so fast, Sophia could hardly make out what it was as it dove at Evan and sent him back the other direction—away from the land mine.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  The lucky one, Evan, heaved ragged breaths as a massive dog stood on top of him, looking down into his brown eyes.

  Frozen, Evan stared up at the strange animal, who, much like Trin Currante, was more metal than flesh and bone. The dog resembled a German shepherd, but one of its eyes was surrounded by metal and glowed blue. There was a stainless-steel panel on the side of its body. Its tail was metal with hundreds of shreds of spiral aluminum on it that resembled hair.

  To Sophia’s relief, the dog’s tail was wagging as it regarded Evan with its tongue hanging out of its mouth.

  “That dog just saved your life,” Sophia said when she’d caught her breath, momentarily speechless from witnessing the series of events.

  “Do you think he did so because he didn’t want his dinner blown up?” Evan asked from the corner of his mouth.

  Sophia laughed at this, carefully approaching and watching out for the land mine Evan had nearly stepped on.

  “I don’t think he wants to eat you,” she observed. Squatting when she was close to the animal, she asked, “Hey, buddy. Did you get left behind? Are you okay?”

  Sophia wasn’t sure what she expected, maybe for the animal to speak to her through a voice box or something. It definitely had skills apart from being incredibly intelligent. Looking over her shoulder, she confirmed her suspicion. The metal chair was gone.

  Incredibly impressed, Sophia glanced back at the cyborg dog. “You can shapeshift. That’s very cool.”

  Blinking at her with curiosity, the canine stepped off Evan before taking a seat on the ground next to him.

  Unhurried, Evan pushed up to a sitting position and studied the curious animal. “Shapeshift? Like Ainsley?”

  Sophia nodded. “Although I get the impression this guy can only turn into metal objects.”

  Evan craned his neck to study a metal collar around the dog’s neck. “Its name is NO10JO.”

  Wanting to check that out for herself, Sophia approached, careful to not spook the animal. Now that it was out of hiding, it seemed excited to be around them, good-naturedly panting.

  Sophia saw what Evan was talking about. Next to a barcode were letters and numbers that spelled out: NO10JO. “That’s not its name. That’s its barcode. I’m betting subjects were given reference numbers.”

  Tentatively, Evan reached out, watching the dog’s reaction. When it looked up, its brown and blue eye was brimming with excitement about the possibility of being touched.

  Evan grinned before laying his hand on the dog’s head. “I don’t know, I like the name for him. NO10JO, thanks for saving my life. You’re a good dog.”

  The dog nuzzled into the attention, lapping it up. It was quite the affectionate scene, Sophia thought, smiling at the pair.

  “That’s fine,” she said. “We can call it whatever it wants.” Turning her attention to NO10JO, she smiled. “Do you want to come to a really cool place with us?”

  The dog stood up and started wagging its tail. The answer seemed to be a resounding “yes.”

  “Do you think we can take him into the Gullington?” Evan asked.

  She thought about it and shrugged. “Well, isn’t it true that anyone who works for the Dragon Elite can enter through the Barrier?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, as long as they pledge loyalty to us.”

  Sophia combed her hand over her chin. “I think we’re going to need some time to work out how he’s going to communicate Trin Currante’s location.”

  Evan continued to pet the dog. “Hey, NO10JO, will you help us find that mean old cyborg who left you behind? We need to in order to save the world.”

  The animal barked, excitement in its tone.

  Evan’s grin widened. “I think that was another ‘yes.’”

  “Okay, well, then let’s head to safety and portal home,” she suggested, leading the way through the path, careful to avoid land mines.

  Evan and NO10JO followed, striding next to each other.

  Sophia allowed triumph to fill her chest as she realized they were that much closer to finding Trin Currante.

  Chapter Forty-Six

  “I knew you were trouble from the beginning, or at least I should have and ignored the voices in my head,” Ainsley spat when they strode into the Castle with NO10JO.

  As Sophia had thought, the dog was able to cross the Barrier into the Gullington. That proved to her the animal was loyal to them. Maybe it was because it had been abandoned by accident or otherwise, or because NO10JO sensed Evan and Sophia were good and it wanted to help them. For whatever reason, it officially worked for the Dragon Elite now.

  The three froze in the entryway as Ainsley stomped down the stairs. “S. Beaufont, I expect stupidity from Evan, but you?”

  “Hey, now!” Evan argued, sounding offended. “Did you just say you hear voices in your head?”

  “Yes,” Ainsley answered at once before pointing at NO10JO. “You brought a dog into the Castle. Is that thing tracking dirt onto my clean floors?”

  Sophia glanced at the animal’s dusty paws. It had been at the burned-down warehouse for a while and was filthy. “Sorry, Ains. I’ll clean this up for you, and we’ll give the dog a bath right away.”

  “So, those voices…” Evan went on, obviously curious about this revelation. “What do they tell you?”

  Ainsley shot him an angry look. “To kill you in your sleep.” She narrowed her eyes at the dog. “You don’t belong in here and are going to have to leave.”

  NO10JO let out a whimper before shifting into a large printer. It looked out of place in the rustic old Castle.

  If the fact the cy
borg dog could shapeshift surprised Ainsley, she didn’t show it. In response, she shapeshifted into a German shepherd without nuts and wires in its body. “The only dog around here is me,” the housekeeper said, speaking in her animal form.

  “Okay.” Evan elbowed Sophia in the side. “You heard her. Our Ainsley called herself a dog.”

  The shapeshifter took her normal form, anger heavy on her face. “The voices are telling me to kill you now.”

  Evan shook his head, taking a step backward. “You shouldn’t listen to them. Tell the voices to be quiet.”

  “Ains,” Sophia cut in, “NO10JO is here to help us. I promise it won’t be any trouble for you. We’ll clean up after it and everything.”

  Ainsley sighed dramatically. “It’s another mouth for me to feed, though, and I’m already busy thinking of ways to make Hiker’s life a living hell. When am I supposed to find time to polish this dog?”

  Sophia blinked rapidly as NO10JO shifted back to its usual form. “Um, we’ll polish the dog. Or whatever it is we need to do for it. It’s really good and I think you’ll like it if you give it a chance.”

  In response, Ainsley spun and stomped back up the stairs. “We’re taking this matter up with the worst person in the world.”

  Evan gave Sophia a commiserating expression before they followed the housekeeper. “You have to give her credit. She might hate the man, but she respects his authority.”

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Bad blood obviously existed between Hiker and Ainsley, but when she trudged into his office, madder than hell, concern was evident in his voice.

  “What is it?” Sophia heard him ask as she approached his office. “What’s got you upset?” Because the man had no tact, he added, “This time.”

  “That’s the problem,” Ainsley declared when the three entered Hiker’s office. She was casting an accusatory finger at NO10JO.

  Hiker shot to his feet, shock written on his face. “What’s that?”