Simmo stood outside the door when he exited.
“Gees, you look ridiculous grinning like that,” Simmo said with a grunt.
“You’re just jealous.”
“Maybe, but I still wouldn’t walk around looking like you do right now.”
Ryan laughed, and much to his probable annoyance, Simmo did too.
“Thanks for leading the group tonight so I can go and see her.”
“Any time, buddy.” Simmo patted him on the back. “Let’s go.”
Pacing didn’t help pass the time quick enough. Mackenzie could hardly wait to see him. It had been almost a week and their last meeting was far too short. Tonight’s rendezvous would probably be just as short, but it was better than nothing. She also planned to talk to him about returning with him. She could be very convincing when she wanted to be.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket so she raced out to the living room, grabbed Ryder and dragged him outside. This no BIT stuff was getting more and more annoying and her brother grumbled his similar sentiments.
The moment the gate opened she ran out and searched the darkness. Hot breath against her ear and hands she longed to feel were upon her before her eyes even focused in the dark. Her startled cry turned into a moan as he captured her mouth and kissed her with a passion he’d not shown her before. His lips left hers and she wanted them back, wondering why they had left hers until he murmured to her in the darkness.
“I’ve got about an hour before I have to go back. Is there someone we can go?”
Excitement shot through her like bubbling hot springs, warming her blood and sending her desire through the roof.
“Yes, my house, my room.”
The moment her bedroom door closed, he began removing her clothes with a newfound urgency. He pressed her back against the wall, his mouth seeking hers like a starved animal, his hands a flurry of movement along the contours of her body.
Desire led them to her bed, both ready to fulfil their burning passion. Their love making was quick and satisfying, but they didn’t let the visit be idle and made up for the time they had lost.
“I have to go,” he whispered too soon, caressing her hair. “I’m already late. Simmo will be getting impatient to leave.”
“When will I see you again?” Her voice caught.
It could be weeks before she saw him again. If she did. Anything could happen to him at any time. Mackenzie did not want to think about that. The last time had nearly been too much.
“As soon as I can. There are more GAPs on the streets than before. They're stepping things up. They want to end this as much as we do, just not in the same way.”
“Do you have any idea when they’re coming?”
“No, we haven’t picked up any communication, but after your talk with Cody, I anticipate it won’t be long.”
“I want to come with you.”
“Negative. It’s too dangerous.”
“I’ll stay underground this time, I promise.”
“No, you won’t. I don’t know what will happen. Underground may not be safe. I’m starting to think our best course of action is to go to them and try and overthrow the government. How we would do this is the question.” He paused. “I really have to go, Mackenzie,” he said, kissing her quickly before jumping up to dress. “I’ll call you later.”
“Wait, I’ll see you out.”
“It’s okay. I’ll get Ryder to let me out. It’s easier this way. See ya beautiful.”
And with that he was gone. She felt his absence immediately like a tight fist squeezing her heart. If Cody attacked, this could be the last time she saw him. Every minute was borrowed time.
30
Borrowed Time
The phone ringing woke her the next day and when she saw who it was she smiled with surprise.
“Hey you.”
“Hi, I miss you.”
“Me too.”
A long pause followed. “I’m just checking that you still haven’t got the crazy idea of coming back here in your head.”
“Of course I do.”
“Please don’t.” He paused again and cleared his throat before speaking. “Will it help if I come and see you again tonight?”
Her heart leapt and thudded hard in her chest. Two nights in a row!
“Um, yes!”
“I’ll come alone. I’m taking a risk, but I don’t care. I have to see you again.”
“I can’t wait.”
After hanging up, an excited grin lit her face. Seeing Ryan so soon again was a treat she couldn’t wait for. As she showered and dressed she thought about Cody and what could be done to convince him to leave Ryan and the others alone.
Thinking about this and the fact she hadn’t gone back to work, plus the fact she now had no BIT, she wondered why government officials weren’t knocking on her door, demanding to brand her again and send her back to work. Maybe Cody played a part in this. Perhaps that meant they had some hope. Maybe she could convince Cody to turn, to stop his relentless need to kill the man she loved and the people he fought for, and help them instead. The idea might be crazy, but if she worked on him, maybe she could convince him.
She was being left alone, that had to mean something. Perhaps there was hope after all.
The risks were high travelling to Cherrywood Estate alone, but Ryan was armed and careful. He had to see her. His concern over her wanting to return had his stomach in knots and he needed to ensure she didn’t.
If anything happened to her he would never forgive himself, he wouldn’t be able to endure. Losing her as well as his family would ensure he gave up the fight. There would be nothing left to fight for. Freedom, the same thing he’d been fighting for all these years, would be worth it, but without her his freedom would mean nothing. He had to protect her and keep her away and that was all there was to it. That was the main reason he was going alone.
Things were a little too quiet as he made his way through Artinean. Where were all the GAPs? He hoped this meant he would have an uneventful journey both ways. It could also mean they were planning for attack.
They could just be being slack. Some nights were busier than others when it came to GAPs in the city. If there was something going down, a delivery or something else they needed to control, then matters were different. Maybe this was a down night for them.
After his uneventful trip, he rang Mackenzie and while he waited for her to come out, he did a triple check to see if they were safe. As far as he could see in each direction, through the glow of the street lights, he found no threat.
“Hey, sexy,” she said in his ear, startling him.
Spinning around to face her, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly before his rampaging desire took over and he devoured her mouth. His passion was heightened by her absence at the compound. All thoughts of being found or caught were forgotten when his lips touched hers.
His exploration of her body was cut short by a stern voice and the arming of a weapon.
“What do we have here?”
“Looks like these two couldn’t wait until they got inside,” replied another.
His tone indicated to Ryan he would find a smirk when he turned to face them. His only thought was getting Mackenzie to safety. Fortunately, Ryder had left the gate open for them, so he would be able to get her inside.
Playing it cool, Ryan waited.
“Hold out your hand, citizen,” the first one said to Ryan.
“I’m afraid you’ll be wasting your time. I have no BIT.”
If they didn’t have their full attention before, they had it now.
“My name is Ryan Taylor. I’m a captain for the renegades. The girl is an innocent citizen I found out here, she doesn’t know me. I jumped her.”
“Ryan,” she whispered behind him. “What are you doing?”
Ignoring her, Ryan continued, “Take me, but leave her. I’m sure General Edwards would be happy to hear you caught me.”
The two men glanced at each other puzzled
, either by his easy surrender or by their sheer luck of finding Ryan. He hoped it was the latter for Mackenzie’s sake, so they would let her go. If they worked out why he was surrendering so easily, they may not believe his story.
“Is this true, miss, did this man attack you?”
Silence followed before she let out a small gasp. She would be digesting the situation and would understand exactly what he was doing. He pleaded with his eyes for her to save herself.
If they realised she didn’t have a BIT either, they would take her too. Once Cody knew she was on the compound he would probably let her go, but Ryan didn’t want to take that chance. He also knew what GAPs were capable of. They could very well tie him up and make him watch as they took turns with her. It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened.
“Yes, it’s true, I was returning home from the store and he jumped me.”
Her voice wavered and he knew if looked at her again he would see the anguish of what she’d just done in her eyes. The last time he’d been at the GAP compound he’d nearly died.
“Drop all your weapons in front of you,” one of the troops said.
Ryan did as asked.
“Let’s go,” he said, coming forward to laser cuff him. “Go inside now, miss.”
With a heavy heart he watched her watching him with despair, before she walked through the gate into the estate. His gut told him this could be the last time he saw her.
Cody wouldn’t let him go again.
31
Family Ties
With her stomach in knots, Mackenzie ran into the house calling out for Ryder.
“What’s up? Where’s Ryan?”
“GAPs took him. I have to go to see Cody.”
“I’m coming with you,” he said, grabbing his jacket.
“No, you’re not. I don’t want you involved in all of this.”
“I’m not a kid, Mac, I’m nineteen. Please, I want to help. Things need to change.”
“Okay but you have to stay with me and follow my lead.”
With a hand gesture, he indicated she go first.
On the way Mackenzie filled Ryder in on everything that had been happening since Ryan saved her from Blade. He’d asked questions when she first came home, but she had kept her answers vague to protect him. However, as he said, he wasn’t a kid anymore and he could help with Cody.
As they approached the barracks a trooper stepped out of the booth.
“We’re here to see our brother Cody,” Mackenzie told the guard.
“No problem.” He returned to his booth and opened the laser gate.
They made their way to Cody’s office with haste. Time was not on their side. She prayed they weren’t too late. They had been right behind the GAPs that took Ryan, so hopefully there had been no time for them to do anything to him.
The doors to Cody’s office were open. Without hesitation Mackenzie strode in to find her brother staring out the window. He didn’t turn or address them. The only thing he said was ‘door close’.
“Where is he?” Mackenzie asked as she approached Cody.
Without turning he answered, “In a cell.”
“You have to let him go.”
“I don’t have to do anything, Mackenzie.”
“Look at me.”
With a sigh, he spun around. All she could see in his eyes was sympathy. Why was he looking at her that way? What had they done? Was he being beaten again as they spoke?
“What are you doing to him?”
“Nothing. He’s in a cell, alone. I put him there because I didn’t know what to do. I let him go once and was reprimanded for it. I can’t let him go again.”
“Please, Cody.”
“It’s not up to me anymore. Things are changing. I’m changing. I don’t know what to think anymore. All I know is Taylor deserves to die for killing out father.”
“It wasn’t him.”
“So he says.”
“I believe him. It’s true.”
“It doesn’t matter. These people are nuisances that need to be controlled or killed. They are the reason things are so bad.”
Ryder grunted next to her. She’d forgotten he was there for a moment. With her brother standing beside her, she felt brave. Brave enough to stand up against their brother.
“You were the sweetest brother. What happened to you?”
“The war happened. Sewer rats happened. Dad was killed. That’s what happened.”
“You can help change things. We can revolt and get the army on our side. We can bring the government and your revered man Sinclair down.”
This time Cody grunted. Men of many words were her brothers.
“And how do you propose to do that?” he asked after several moments had passed.
“Any soldiers that doubt the cause? Any who may be interested in jumping sides? You have to find other soldiers to join you in a fight against them.”
His laughter boomed out of him. “Are you crazy? What do they put in the water down there?” He continued to bellow.
Anger caused tears to burn her eyes. A lump in her throat husked her words. “You aren’t the man I grew up with.”
“And what man did you grow up with?”
“A kind brother, who stood up for his sister when bullies teased her. The brother who copped a black eye because a guy looked at me the wrong way and you took him on. The brother who wouldn’t call other humans sewer rats. A man who would never condone horrendous things under his watch. I want that man back.”
A single tear slid from her eye. Would he ever remember who he was?
“We can do this, Cody. The people I’ve been with are good people trying to survive. They are fighting for freedom. We must do this. Make life better again, the way it used to be.”
“You’re living in a fantasy.”
“I would rather live in fantasy than follow Sinclair and his corrupt councillors, and their brain-washed troops, and ideas.”
“Carefully, Mac, I’m one of those troops.”
“Exactly. That’s why you can help. Infiltrate from the inside. You owe me. You owe Ryan.”
“I don’t owe him anything.”
His eyes grew dark and stormy, but there was still something underneath. A brother who wanted to be there for his family’s wellbeing maybe? A brother who loved them … but then she remembered how Ryan came back the last time.
“What you did to him was atrocious. He came to you to talk and you had the living crap beaten out of him. He nearly died! I love him and I want to be a part of the new world. I want to be free! We’re the ones who are going to do it and have the balls to carry this through. Do you have the balls, Cody?”
Cody’s face turned puce and his eyes almost black. She was getting to him.
“We're talking about overthrowing Sinclair. Do you know how many troops there are? Do you really think you can fight against them? You wouldn’t even get to Sinclair and his government.”
“Pity you killed all the people you caught or who have volunteered, like at the rally.”
“Who told you that we kill them?”
Her answer was to raise one eyebrow.
“They aren’t all dead.”
“What?”
Ryder grunted again.
“Until recently I thought they were dead but I’ve been informed that we keep them underground, ironically,” Cody said. “They are criminals. There have been a few tried for treason and executed to set an example, but the majority are alive. I suspect that the powers that be above me will want to make Ryan one of the few.”
“You can’t let that happen, you can’t let him die.”
“He's a criminal, he’s breaking the law.”
“So was dad.”
“Don't you dare say anything against him.”
Cody face had softened during the conversation, but now he went back to the angry GAP that he was. It was going to take some convincing, but she wouldn’t give up. With the renegades alive, the compound, the gangs and maybe even GAP
s wanting to defer, they could have the numbers. Enough anyway to overthrow a group of men who hid behind their guards.
“What the soldiers did under dad’s command, and then yours …” Mackenzie stopped and shook her head. “It’s despicable. Yes, many gang members are criminals, but they aren’t associated with the renegades at the compound. Ryan saved me from one of those gangs. He stopped them from raping me! The only thing we do wrong at the compound is steal stuff to stay alive. We don’t fight back. Our weapons are old. You are the ultimate soldiers. But not all renegades are criminals and not all criminals are renegades. You need to see what our lives have become. You have to understand it was a better life for me under the ground. That is really sad, that I could be happier underground, but I was. All of it was because I love, and most of all, believe in Ryan, like I used to believe in you. Is that brother still there?”
“Yes.” His expression showed his honesty and his determination to make it right.
Mackenzie had no doubt now that he would make it right again.
“Cody, the reason I’ve been dragging my feet about joining the army or government was because I hoped things would change, that you would change your mind. We can do this together,” Ryder piped in.
There was conviction to his words. Conviction she’d never heard her little brother use.
“So you have numerous captives who would be ready to overthrow the government, along with the rest of our camp? If we bring the gangs in too, maybe it will be enough,” Mackenzie surmised.
“The governing council meets on Thursday mornings, which gives you five days to round up who you can,” Cody stated.
“That should be enough time. Ryan will come with me when I speak with the gangs. I’m hoping my charm will convince them.” She offered a wry smile. “So, Cody, you really mean this? You’re going to help us and go through with this. Are we more important than the government and their propaganda?”
“Yes. I’m with you one hundred percent. I have been struggling with many things for a while now. Ever since I had Ryan here I have been questioning why we keep doing this. Why do we have to conform because one man and his minions want to control the city? We can do this. I can do this.”
Renegades Page 17