Mason had barely laid down on his mattress on the floor that night when the sounds of a fight made him sit up.
Shadows danced on the tile wall in the shower. He couldn’t see who it was, but Lonn had gone over there. Surely Lonn could beat any man in a fight, though. That was why no one bothered him. Right?
Mason prayed God would protect Lonn, but he felt like a hypocrite, knowing he was truly afraid for only himself.
Then he heard it, the sound of SimAlarms stunning their victims. The SimAlarms made no real sound, of course, but the sounds of the fight ceased and were followed by soft grunting and some sort of a keen.
Someone on one of the bunks snickered.
Mason looked up to Hobbles. He was lying down on his side, his eyes wide and fixed on the showers. Mason looked back just as the door to their block pushed open and enforcers ran inside. Six of them, all holding stunners in hand.
“Everyone stay in bed or you’ll be stunned,” one of them yelled.
Mason didn’t move. No one did. But someone was still snickering.
Four of the enforcers carried two big men from the showers. One was Strongboy. The other Mason Beckott. They carried them into the hallway, then came back in. Next they carried out Scar and Dash. Four against Lonn? Why? And why had the enforcers waited so long to stun everyone?
Lonn was the last to be carried out. As two enforcers carried him past where Mason sat on the floor, Lonn wrenched free and grabbed hold of the side post on his bunk bed.
“Hit me,” he growled at Mason. “Now, you stupid shell!”
A third enforcer ran inside the room and pried Lonn’s hand off the bunk.
“Attack one of the enforcers, then, boy!” Lonn yelled. “Do something.”
Attack an enforcer? Mason didn’t understand. The enforcers managed to get Lonn out the door before any more clues could be offered.
Why would he tell Mason to attack anyone?
The outer doors closed with a bang. Mason could hear the footsteps of the enforcers in the hallway, retreating from bunk 2C.
That’s when they came for Mason.
Like the shadows of hawks they flew across the room, flew toward his place on the floor, looking to devour him. He understood Lonn too late. If Mason had joined the fight, he would have been stunned and taken to the warden. Now he was alone with evil men and no protector.
Mason slid underneath Lonn’s bunk and grabbed the bedsprings above. Big hands snaked under the bed, grabbed him, pulled.
Save me!
His body slid out from under the bed. He wrapped his arm around one leg of the bed, bent his elbow, and clutched his opposite wrist with each hand.
Still they pulled until the bed slid out from its place and struck the one in the next row over. Someone grabbed Mason’s waist, squeezed and yanked. Mason felt like he might rip in half at his hip bones.
“I got this,” a deep voice said. And suddenly the bed tipped up and his anchor was no more.
They lifted him then, like the enforcers had lifted the others. Only Mason was not going to see the warden. Mason was going to the opposite corner of the room. To Scorpion.
When they got there, they tipped him on his feet so that he was standing in the gap between Scorpion’s and Wicked’s bunks. Scorpion was sitting up in his bed, looking surprised. Wicked had a hold of Mason’s right arm. Mason didn’t know the names of the others. He didn’t recall ever seeing some of them spending time with Scorpion or Wicked, though for the right price in this place, almost anyone could be bought.
“What’s this?” Scorpion asked.
“You wanted him,” Wicked said. “I got him for you.”
“You arranged this?” Scorpion asked. “Even the guards?”
“It took some careful negotiations,” Wicked said, “but I did. I figured if Lonn was gone, we could get him without too much trouble.”
“I’m impressed,” Scorpion said.
The guards were involved? Why? Mason wanted to die. God, take me to heaven. Don’t make me live through this. Please.
“What shall we do with him?” Wicked asked. “We have all night.”
Save me from these wicked men. Have I not tried to serve you? Have I not done my best?
Scorpion pointed. “Take him back.”
“Back where?” Wicked asked.
“To his bed,” Scorpion said. “Take him back.”
“What? Are you crazy?” Wicked’s eyes flashed. “Do you know how many credits it took to pay off everyone?”
Scorpion was watching Mason, expression stoic. “I appreciate what you did tonight, Wicked. And there’s no way you could’ve known it, but I’m in Raven’s debt.”
Wicked’s voice rose an octave. “Since when?”
“You helped me,” Scorpion said to Mason. “And now I’m helping you. This time, you go free. We’re even now. Next time, I’ll owe you nothing.”
Bile squeezed up Mason’s throat, and he swallowed it, trying not to let his fear and horror show. “We’re even,” Mason said, surprised at the sureness of his own voice when he was a pool of quivering fat inside.
“Good.” Scorpion waved his hand at Wicked. “Let him go.”
Wicked practically threw Mason across the room when he released him, which was just fine. Mason forced himself to walk back to his mattress on the floor, like he wasn’t completely terrified. His bunkmates were all staring, and Mason doubted anyone had ever gotten away from Scorpion like that.
He lowered himself to the floor and pulled the blanket over his body.
Hobbles whispered and it barely reached Mason’s ears. “How did you do that?”
But Mason couldn’t answer. He was too busy thanking God through his tears.
CHAPTER
25
Ciddah, just say it plainly. What do you want me to do?” The woman had come to Levi yet again, this time ranting about Shaylinn’s labor like it was his fault. He didn’t like feeling attacked.
“I need to get her out of here,” Ciddah said.
“Not happening.” He knew it sounded mean, but he couldn’t risk moving her.
“Then take me to a pharmacy where I can get her what she needs to save her babies.”
Levi fought back a sigh. “I can’t take you to a pharmacy.”
“If it was Jemma in there, you’d do it,” Ciddah said.
Low blow. Levi sat back on the couch. Was he being coldhearted? What would Jemma say? “Ruston said his wife has things under control.”
“Yes, but for how long? If those babies come this early, they’ll die.”
“What do we need to help them live? Meds?” Maybe the Owl could break into a pharmacy and get whatever meds were needed.
“Meds might keep the babies from being born early. But if they’re born early, I’ll need an incubator.”
“Like for baby chicks?”
“I don’t know what that means,” Ciddah said. “An incubator is a bed for a premature infant. It’s enclosed and the temperature is regulated. It also monitors the baby’s heartbeat and internal temperature. It filter’s the air and protects the baby from infection.”
O-kay. “Where would I find one?”
“Various places. Certainly in the MC. And in the nursery. And I suppose they must build them somewhere,” Ciddah said.
If Ruston could find invisibility suits, he should be able to dig up an incubator bed. “I’ll get one as soon as I can.”
“Get two if you can, since Shaylinn is having twins.”
Determined woman. Levi didn’t understand how Mason could put up with her. “Two. I’ll try to get two.”
“Thank you, Levi.” And Ciddah left.
There were twice as many men than usual at Thursday’s rebel meeting, all of the newcomers Kindred. Levi wondered if they’d come because he was related to Seth McShane or because of Shay’s letters. Maybe both.
Maybe neither.
“Operation Lynchpin won’t work without the Lowlands, which we now know is where everyone goes when they’re li
berated,” Levi said. “So the question is, how do we communicate with them?”
“Can’t someone sneak in? Rappel down the wall or something?” Nash suggested.
“If they did it at night, it should work,” Jordan said.
“No, they’ve got motion detectors on the walls,” Omar said. “Maybe if we shot out the transformer like you did before. But we’d still have to get onto the Lowlands side of the wall, and it’s not easy.”
“What’s it like down there, Omar?” Levi asked. “Can one of us blend in? Or does it have to be you?”
His little brother sighed. “It would be faster if it was me, but I’ve gone missing down there, so they’re probably looking for me. One of you might not be noticed during the daytime, but you could wander into trouble trying to get to Lonn.”
“It shouldn’t be Omar,” Nash said. “Shaylinn needs him.”
Levi gritted his teeth. Nell, of all people, had filled him in on the fact that Nash and Omar both liked Shaylinn. Levi didn’t have time for that kind of drama right now. “It’s best for Omar to go back because he knows what he’s doing.”
“But how will we know if he gets the message to Lonn?” Ruston asked.
“Because I’ll be listening.” Zane tapped the place where his ear once was.
“I thought SimTalk doesn’t work in the Lowlands,” Levi said.
“It doesn’t. But from what I can see, that’s because there are no terminals down there to provide a signal to his implant. So I’m going to send him with a cube.”
“Which is?” Levi asked.
“A portable terminal.”
“I don’t like that,” Ruston said. “What if people start tapping old friends and telling them they’re alive and slaving away in the Lowlands before we can make our move?”
“I don’t think that will happen,” Zane said. “People think there’s no SimTalk down there, right? So why would they even try to use it?”
“It’s a risk,” Omar said. “I tried it several times, once when I was juiced and just not thinking straight. So that could happen. Plus, any newcomer would try to tap someone.”
“It would be great to send the Owl down there right at launch time,” Zane said. “I could use the block to hack the Lowlands ColorCast and send in our message — tell people that their SimTalk implants are working again. So just as we reveal the truth to people in the Highlands and Midlands, people in the Lowlands can start making taps and verifying what we’ve said. Total anarchy.”
Silence filled the room, but it seemed to Levi that everyone liked that idea. “Let’s do that. So how else could we get confirmation that Omar arrived safely?”
“Ask them to verify the next night by sending a light signal,” Jordan said.
That made sense. “But what if they don’t like our plan? Or what if they don’t want to do it? And maybe they have a good reason for us not to do it yet but have no way of telling us. We need to be able to communicate consistently.”
“Did you try your SimTalk really close to the Lowlands-Midlands wall?” Zane asked Omar.
“No,” Omar said, “but I think Lonn said they have lead inside the walls to keep them from working.”
“Okay,” Zane said, “so when you get there, have them send someone back with their answer in Mason’s balloon.”
“The balloon is gone,” Omar said. “Blew outside the walls.”
“Have him build another one,” Jordan said.
“It took him months to build the first,” Omar said, “and besides, they have those new neck SimTags.”
“I could send a lead collar with our first message,” Zane said. “We keep the ghoulie tags in lead boxes. A lead collar might be enough to keep him from being seen. I’d just have to make one.”
“You can’t surround the tag though,” Nash said. “Not like you do with a ghoulie tag box. You’d only be going around the neck. The signal would still have access through his head and feet.”
“Okay, so we’ll think on this some more,” Levi said. “Hopefully we’ll come up with a decent solution.”
Most of the men left then, and Levi and the smaller team went over the plan to rescue Jemma. The day had almost arrived, and Levi didn’t want to make any errors.
When Levi felt confident that everything was set, he looked down at his agenda and saw the last remaining item: Shaylinn. “We have a problem with Shaylinn. Ciddah is worried that the babies are going to come any day and she doesn’t have an incubator to put them in. She says without one, they probably won’t survive. Zane? Incubators?”
“Shouldn’t be too hard to find. They’re big, though. On wheels, most of them, from what I’ve seen on the cameras. But we could take it to the dumpsters and bring it down that way.”
“I’d like to help,” Nash said.
“No, I’ve got this,” Omar said.
“I’ve got this,” Jordan said.
“Great,” Levi said. “If you three are going to argue over Shaylinn, then you three get the job.”
“Can I make a suggestion?” Zane asked.
“Always,” Levi said.
“Send Nash and Beshup to get the incubator at the same time you and Jordan go after Jemma. While Omar the Owl distracts enforcers in another part of the city.”
“I don’t know,” Levi said. “I don’t want to complicate the Jemma rescue.”
“It won’t,” Zane said. “Dusten can drive for you instead of Nash. It’s a simple switch. And the Owl’s distraction should keep the enforcers away from you.”
Maybe it was a good idea. Anything to help Jemma’s rescue go smoother. “Okay,” Levi said. “Do it.”
The new Prestige building sat halfway down Anthracite Drive. From the Highlands, the harem car would pass through the wall to the Midlands at the Gothic Gate. Levi and Zane both figured the harem driver would take Gothic down to Winterset, then circle back to Anthracite. But there was a chance they’d weave their way through the old town area, taking Gothic to Belleview to Cinnamon Mountain and then come up Anthracite from the other direction.
There was no way of knowing which way they’d go. But that didn’t really matter. Zane said there was no way for him to control the door locks on the car, so they had to wait for Jemma to get out before grabbing her.
So Levi was waiting in the parking lot of the Prestige. Once he heard from Zane that the car was almost there, he and Jordan would get out and walk into the lobby so they could exit just before Jemma entered. And the moment Dusten saw them, he’d drive past and pick them up on his way out of the parking lot. Two blocks away, he’d drop them in an alley and continue on.
“Her car just passed through the gate,” Zane said. “It’s staying on Gothic.”
“They’re coming from Gothic,” Levi said.
“Won’t be long now.” Dusten tapped his fingers on the dash.
Levi was nervous. The last two months had been agony, waiting for this day, ignoring the new threats that Renzor’s people kept leaving in theater nine. Levi had wanted to trade Ciddah so badly. It was foolish, he knew. He couldn’t trust that Renzor would give him Jemma. It would be a trap. Better to do things their way than kowtow to any demands from City Hall.
“How far along is Jemma?” Jordan asked. “Pregnancy wise?”
“I don’t know.” Levi didn’t even want to think about the fact that these people had made his wife pregnant.
“I’m just wondering if she’ll have trouble in the tunnels,” Jordan said.
Levi would help her. “You helped Naomi through the tunnels when she was almost due. Jemma’s not that far.”
“Right,” Jordan said. “That’s right.”
“They’re on Winterset now,” Zane said in Levi’s ear.
Agony. Levi just wanted it over and Jemma back in his arms. “Where’s Omar?” Levi asked Zane.
“Wreaking havoc on Villa Bonita. Enforcer 10 just got their first complaint from a resident. Shouldn’t be long before they send someone to check it out. The car is on Anthracite now. Bette
r head inside.”
Levi and Jordan got out and walked across the lot. The night was chilly, the asphalt icy underfoot. Levi’s breath clouded out through his lips. His gaze flickered between the lobby doors and the driveway to the theater, watching each set of headlights, wondering if they belonged to the harem car.
They reached the building and went inside, where warm air greeted them. The lobby was packed with people in fancy clothes, eager to celebrate the opening of yet another place to party. Levi hated them all. These people valued nothing that he did: family, hard work, honesty, sacrifice. These people did what they wanted for their own sakes, to please themselves, and their greed and selfishness showed with every flake of their skin. No amount of paint or fancy fabric could hide the truth. These people were reaping what they’d sown, and Levi wanted no part of it for him or his people.
“The car is stopping,” Zane said. “Doors opening. I see Luella Flynn and Finley Gray. They’re coming inside. I don’t see Jemma.”
Levi’s stomach flipped. “What do you mean?”
“The car is driving off to park,” Zane said. “No Jemma.”
No! She had to be there. “Why not?”
“Levi, how should I know?” Zane said. “I’m sorry, peer.”
Sorry? Levi started toward the entrance. The automatic doors opened just as Luella and her partner started inside.
Levi stopped directly in her path. “Where is she?”
“Where is who?” Luella had green glitter on her eyelids and cheeks. She blinked, looked him up and down. “Do I know you, trig?”
“Jemma was supposed to be with you,” he said.
“Queen Jemma, yes. I’m sorry, valentine. She was going to come, but she isn’t feeling well today. Maybe next time.” She patted his arm as she walked around him, waving to the crowd that had formed.
Next time? What next time?
Jordan tugged on his arm. “Levi, we need to go.”
Levi let Jordan drag him out to the lot where Dusten picked them up. As they rode back to Zane’s house in frustrated silence, all Levi could think was What if there isn’t a next time?
CHAPTER
26
Omar loved everything about his costume: the fit, the texture, the stretch, his paint job, the mask, the way the spray cans and stunner in his holster belt jangled as he ran, and especially the way the cape soared behind him like wings.
Rebels Page 27