by C. G. Hatton
“The trial,” the Chief said. “The drug, the virus, whatever it is that LC brought back. Sorensen didn’t make it. Catastrophic organ failure. Medical are still trying to figure out why.”
Sebastian laughed maliciously. ‘Oh, that is precious. The Man’s little experiment goes horribly wrong.’
It was a new twist. Zang might get hold of his life-prolonging wonder elixir and die after all.
NG glanced at Martinez, who was sitting calmly now she had her charge back within reach.
“What about Essien and Hilyer?” he said, needing someone to say it out loud.
The Chief shook his head.
“For Christ’s sake, just tell me.”
“We don’t know yet. Lulu spent two days in agony then dropped into a coma. It doesn’t look good.”
NG narrowed his eyes. “So what happened to Hil?”
It was easy to feel the big man tempering a deep anger that he’d lost his top four field-ops in this disaster. He wanted to throw that at NG, to shout and rage, but he was holding it in check because of what had happened to Devon and because, he was thinking, NG looked pretty messed up himself.
“Nothing,” he said. “No effect. Medical are still running tests. He’s not a hundred percent yet from that gunshot wound but the virus seems to have done nothing.”
“What about LC?”
“He’s been in Medical.”
Since whatever the hell happened in your office, Evelyn was thinking. She was glowering at him like it was all his fault.
NG avoided looking at her. “Is he okay?”
Sebastian was laughing again.
The Chief just nodded slowly, trying to figure out what to report to NG. They were all in the dark over that; LC couldn’t have said anything to anyone about what had happened in his office.
“He refused treatment,” the Chief said eventually. “They’ve kept him in for observation. We reckon the more data we have…” He tailed off again then leaned forward and said bluntly, “NG, we all want to go after Zang. Come with us. We need you.”
NG reached for his cup. “There’s something else I need to do.”
Evelyn said, “What?” without thinking, abruptly, curtly, and got incredulous looks from the other two – that was no way to speak to your boss, never mind NG, even if he had quit.
He drained the tea.
“Go back to the Alsatia,” he said and stood.
As he turned to go, Evelyn sprang up and blocked his way. “No, wait,” she said, still frowning. “NG, what are you going to do?”
He narrowed his eyes and said slowly, “It doesn’t matter. Go back to the guild.”
She shook her head. “No, not without you.”
‘Ah, dissension in the ranks. She dares to question your actions. I told you you’d lost it.’
NG moved to step past her but she grabbed his arm, letting go just as quickly as he glared at her.
She backed off but placed herself firmly in his way. “NG, we’re the Thieves’ Guild. No one messes with us – you told me that. You have the whole guild at your fingertips. Whatever you’re doing, you don’t have to do it alone.”
“Evelyn,” he said calmly despite the tension building inside, “go back to the Alsatia and do your job.”
Her eyes flashed with fury. “No! Don’t leave me out of this, NG. They killed Devon. If you’re going after them, I want in.”
‘Feisty but out of order for a PA, don’t you think?’
It was hard to ignore Sebastian when those insidious whispers were exactly what he was thinking himself. He could feel the blood pounding through his chest, every heartbeat thumping against his ribs.
“The Assassins killed Devon,” he said harshly. “I dealt with them. Now there’s something else I need to do.”
He pushed past her.
“NG, this is not just about you,” she said.
He turned, close up, and said quietly, “It’s not about me at all. None of this is. It’s not about me, or the guild, or LC, or Hil or any of us. Go back to the Alsatia, Evelyn.”
She shook her head. “You can’t order me to do anything. You’re not my boss any more. You quit, remember?”
She wanted to protect him but she could have stuck a knife into his chest and it would have hurt less.
“Go back,” he said. “I won’t have what happened to Devon happen to you, Evie. Go back.”
He touched her arm and gave her no choice. She looked at him, dismayed and trying to work up an argument but eventually she nodded. He watched her walk away, fists clenching and unclenching as she tried to work off her anger, at him, at Devon, at Farro who had always been a bastard to work for. She was trying to backtrack in her mind, figure out what she should have done, when, that would have meant that Devon would still be alive, trying not to care if NG went off and got himself killed. But she did. The guild was done. Without NG it was nothing and she didn’t want to go back.
It wasn’t true and he shut it out, turning back to the table, desperately needing a drink. Martinez was standing behind him, her dark eyes alight with a burning desire for him to try it on with her too.
“Angel,” he said, warning.
She cut him off, voice quiet and intense. “NG, don’t even go there. Shit happens, right? Well, I’m about sick of shit happening to the people I care about and I care about you, whether you like it or not. I’m coming with you. Wherever you need to go and whatever you need to do.”
She folded her arms defiantly.
NG considered her carefully. She stared back, thinking that he was being reckless again, thinking it had been too close, too much to have taken on the Assassins by himself and too dangerous to go anywhere alone, especially now.
“I can’t do what I have to do with an army at my back,” he said.
“So we go in light,” Martinez said. “But I’m coming with you.” Her stare dropped to the red line that was all that was left of the Assassins’ attempt to cut his throat. “It’s my job to take care of that neck of yours.”
“I don’t need help,” NG said, knowing he was being a shit but saying it anyway. “From anyone. Angel, go back to the Alsatia.”
She shook her head slowly, balancing her weight carefully.
The Chief was watching them both, unmoving. He didn’t believe that NG had quit. Not seriously. His mind wasn’t wide open exactly but NG could just about read him. He just wanted NG to go back with them, business as usual.
NG turned to stare at the big man. “Not going to happen,” he said.
The Chief frowned.
“I’m asking you,” NG said, struggling to keep his tone diplomatic with them both, “to take Evelyn back to the Alsatia. Keep her alive. If I don’t come back, she’ll be the closest thing to a head of operations you’ll have. Your first priority is to keep her alive.”
The Chief wasn’t happy. “Where are you going?”
NG turned away.
Martinez stepped in front of him. “You don’t want me,” she said, “you’re going to have to shoot me to stop me coming with you.”
‘That would be one way to get rid of her.’
“You’ll be in my way,” he said coldly.
“NG, you don’t have any say in this,” she said, just as cold, “you’re not the one that hired me.”
She left that hanging. The Man had sent her after him.
He scowled and brushed past her, using that opportunity as his arm touched her arm to make contact. Not fair but he always got his way. It was just for a brief moment but that was all it took for him to hit up against a barrier that almost sent him reeling.
Martinez wasn’t even aware that he’d tried anything.
Sebastian laughed viciously from deep within. ‘Oh, it gets better. You didn’t think yours was the only mind the Man screwed around with, did you?’
He didn’t stop. Neither of them objected or followed. He felt like a petulant child. Two of Arturo’s men dropped into step beside him, escorting him back to his room, shutting the door and standing guard
. And it suddenly felt like that was more to keep him confined than to keep intruders at bay.
He’d never felt so trapped and so alone.
It was ridiculously early when he was summoned to the courtyard. He shook off the nightmares and painful yearning to be with Devon, to feel the touch of her warm skin against his, to see again that glint of affection in those amazing eyes, and he dressed slowly, feeling a pulling ache in every muscle and joint.
Arturo stood as he was escorted out, and gestured him to sit.
No smile. No tea.
The old man looked tired, as if he hadn’t slept. He slid a data board across the black and white tiled table. “This came for you last night.”
NG took it, moving on automatic. It was encrypted, the message clear as soon as he unscrambled his head to read it. Zang was rallying support, Winterside, gathering the corporations and gearing up their militia forces to clear out the rogue mining colonies and pirate bases in the Between. He must have heard the rumours about LC being out there. And half the galaxy’s bounty hunters descending on Tortuga would have lit up his radar like a meteor shower. Zang might have vanished but he obviously hadn’t given up the chase.
NG took a deep breath and looked up. “United Metals?”
“All of them. Who would have thought it – Angmar Rodan backing Zang Tsu Po. That bastard Ostraban must be beyond himself.”
“I have to find Gallagher and his ship,” he said, feeling cold.
“If that’s what you need to do, then you must get there before Zang. And none of this nonsense about going alone. Take Luka.”
It wasn’t a direct order. Arturo wasn’t in a position to give him orders.
‘You quit. Why do you seem so insistent on forgetting that? No one can order you to do anything.’
It was merely a suggestion but it was one that made too much sense to argue against.
Arturo put his hand on the board. “Use him.”
To smoke out Gallagher and blaze a trail that Zang couldn’t fail to follow like a shark after blood.
It was ruthless in the way the Man could be ruthless.
Arturo leaned forward. “Use the guild, Nikolai. You have given enough. Now let us help you. Take Angel. We want to help you. She needs to help you. Let her.”
It wasn’t easy to hear.
“And take a squad of assault troops with you. The Assassins have broadcast an open bounty on you. They’ve declared that they will match the half a billion to anyone who delivers up your head, my boy. Don’t go anywhere alone. Trust no one. And watch your back. Now more than ever.”
NG stared at Arturo. If the parcel of biometrics on him had originated from the guild, it could have come from right here. He couldn’t tell. The old man’s mind was cloudy, almost shielded.
Sebastian laughed. ‘You’re just burned out, Nikolai. His mind and his intentions are as clear as day. This old fool is right when he says trust no one. No – one. Why are you having such trouble understanding that concept?’
“No one messes with the Thieves’ Guild?” Arturo said, a faint smile creasing his face finally. “No one gets to quit either. Ever. You, more than anyone, should know that. This is your fight, Nikolai, and it is only beginning.”
Chapter 24
She took another sip. She wasn’t drinking heavily. She never did. “The freighter? He decided to go after the freighter?” she said. “I must ask, what was it that so piqued your curiosity about that ship and its captain?”
“Elliott,” the Man said. “More than just the name. There is far more to him than Luka or Nikolai encountered.”
“Now, I’m curious.”
“He is one of the Seven.”
Another surprise for her. “You’re sure?”
“Sure enough,” he said. “The signs are there. We thought him dead. We should be grateful that he isn’t. That he is in the centre of this drama does not surprise me. He has assisted our people greatly in all this and I am sure we will need him even more when the time comes.”
“Assuming he chooses our side over theirs.”
•
It was strange to walk back onto the Alsatia. The atmosphere was muted, constrained, taut as a wire and quiet.
No one looked him in the eye as he walked between the Chief and Evelyn, Martinez a step ahead and two of the Watch close behind. It felt like he was under arrest. And for the first time, he didn’t try to put on an act, didn’t bother to draw energy from anywhere to perk up and play the charade.
They took him straight to the hospitality suite, showed him inside and shut the door behind him without following. Even Martinez stayed outside. It was as secure as they could get him on board the cruiser and from the look of it, total black out conditions.
LC was already sitting at the table, looking strung out and emanating an undisguised hostility, uncharacteristic but not surprising. He was tumbling a lockpick through his fingers. He spoke without looking up. “If Hil says he’s fine and he wants to go on this tab, he isn’t and don’t let him. You want me to go, I will, but don’t let anyone else get suckered in. This sucks enough as it is.”
No wonder Mendhel had always been exhausted.
LC stopped spinning the tiny device and looked across. “I miss him.”
They all did. And the pang that hit NG in the chest at the thought of Devon was like a shard of stabbing ice.
LC frowned, picking up on the emotion but not wanting to read anything, not wanting to go anywhere near NG’s mind at risk of encountering Sebastian again.
Sebastian laughed. ‘The child is right to be afraid. I’m not going to play so nice next time. And you should be figuring out how you can escape from here, not sitting placidly while any one of these people could be planning to stick a knife in your back.’
LC was still watching him, listening in, thinking vaguely that if he counted Sebastian he’d used up seven of his nine lives they all joked about.
NG took a deep breath. He didn’t know what to say. Sorry I almost killed you didn’t seem to cut it.
“I’m not Sebastian,” he said finally. “He’s told me that before – I just never listened.”
LC sat quietly, staring at the table again. “I thought I was going insane when I started hearing voices in my head,” he said suddenly. “It still freaks me out sometimes.”
“I never knew any different. When I was a kid, I was freaked out when I realised that no one else could do it.”
“Your eyes changed colour, did you know that?” LC said.
It was a simple question but it felt like someone had caught hold of that spike of ice and twisted. “No.” Breathing was hard, a stir of the darkness deep inside. He shut it down.
“They went blue. Who else knows?” LC had felt that hate and he was thinking he had a right to know what he was dealing with. It was a fair point.
“No one.”
LC frowned, casting a glance at the door and thinking about Evelyn standing there.
Damn, this was hard. It felt like his soul was lying there wide open.
“She’s seen the effects. Martinez too,” he admitted. “They don’t know about Sebastian. LC, I didn’t know about Sebastian.”
“Does the Man know?” LC asked bluntly, not caring if he was being insubordinate. This changed everything, as if everything hadn’t already been spun on its head.
NG paused before he said, “Yeah.”
“So what do we do now?”
What could he do?
‘You can live in fear.’
Not going to happen.
“I can control it,” he said, to himself as much as LC.
Sebastian laughed silently, locked away inside but still stirring.
LC didn’t look convinced.
The door opened. Hilyer, looking pale but calm so he was still on the painkillers. It wasn’t clear whether he was relieved or disappointed that the virus had done nothing. He sat and leaned forward intently. “If LC’s trying to tell you not to take me,” he said, “screw him. I’m fine.”
NG opened his mouth to reply to them both but closed it as he sensed more people approaching.
The door opened again. Evelyn was followed by the Chief, Science and Media, Quinn a few steps behind and Martinez at the rear, closing the door behind her and staying there as if she was on guard duty as the others took their seats at the table.
NG had always chaired these meetings but now everyone looked to Evelyn. The guild might not be letting him quit but he had no clear idea of where he stood any more.
She was sitting ramrod straight and glanced at him before looking to Science. “Go ahead,” she said.
Science frowned then pushed across a board. “Someone has been hacking into your personal files,” he said.
He didn’t care.
“Tell me honestly,” NG sent back to Hil privately, “are you fit to run a tab?” He took the board without looking at it.
Science was peering at him intently. “Someone, presumably the same, has been using your codes. That should be impossible,” he said. “Legal are trying to figure out who could have gained access.” He paused and looked awkwardly at Evelyn.
“Devon left a command structure in place,” she said. “Do you want to take a look?”
NG shook his head. That was the last thing he wanted to do.
“Okay, well it’s in hand but we have to assume that there is still a threat here on board the Alsatia.” She pursed her lips. “But you’re not staying anyway, are you?”
Hil sent back, “Honestly?” He was trying to keep his thoughts neutral but from his body language he was seriously considering lying.
“Hil,” NG sent, “I don’t care whether you stay or go, I’d just rather know that you’re there than find out later that you’ve gone awol and stolen Skye to chase after us.”
Evelyn said again, “Are you?”
“No,” he replied bluntly.
She wasn’t happy and looked to the Chief to take up the reins.
The big man leaned forward. “We’ve followed up the intel on Tortuga. It’s clean and our people from the inside report that Zang has identified the freighter El Pato Loco as a primary link to LC. The bounties on these two still stand but he is also mobilising his own resources to find them. He’s that desperate. If you want Gallagher, you have a race to get to him before Zang does. We’ve closed down all non-essential guild activity and recalled all field operations. We can shift the Alsatia to the Between but we can’t take her in to T72. You know that. As much as it feels like we’ve been blown wide open, the Alsatia’s cover is still too sound to risk. We’ll get close enough that we can send reinforcements if necessary.”