Red, White, and the Blues

by Walker, Rysa

  The screen behind him now displays the bodies of the two observers Saul killed. “Our observers know there is risk involved,” Campbell says, “but the rewards are substantial enough to make it worthwhile. The jackpot this season topped all previous records. However, the fact that Team Hyena refused to put their observers in the field meant that they offered up no hostages, limiting our ability to retaliate within the rules of The Game. Again, we were tolerant, willing to let the match play to its inevitable conclusion. Even if they won, we had the advantage in style points.” His mouth tightens. “And then they went too far.”

  Now the screen shows what looks like a subway terminal. Morgen the Younger is pointing a weapon toward a bench where a redheaded woman is talking to an elderly man. I realize that it’s Einstein before I recognize Madi in her costume. Morgen raises his weapon toward them, and Madi executes an impressive tackle, pulling Einstein off the bench and onto the platform. I expect to see Morgen advance on them and fire again, but then he crumples to the floor. A police officer moves in quickly, reaches down, and yanks Morgen’s key. When the officer looks up, I see that it’s Saul.

  The audience gasps as Morgen’s body vanishes and the image freezes on Saul’s face.

  “This is the man who should be before the tribunal today,” Morgen the Elder says. “He was not a member of Team Hyena, and yet he operated as one. I make a solemn promise to you that he will eventually be brought to justice, as will the three other individuals not currently in our custody. For now, however, I ask you to serve as jury for his accomplices on Team Hyena.”

  There’s a slight whirring sound from the SimMaster as the camera zooms in first on Lorena, then on Yun Hee. “Are you crazy?” RJ yells. “She’s an infant.”

  “How could a baby be guilty of anything?” I say.

  Morgen sighs dramatically. “A valid point, I suppose. What say you, jury members? Is the child innocent, or shall the sins of the parents be visited upon her?”

  The needle on the meter flirts with Guilty briefly, then settles on Innocent.

  “And what of the child’s parents? They played only supporting roles in the murders of our team. Are we a merciful people?”

  Two meters pop onto the images of Lorena and RJ. The needles hesitate longer in the red zones than with Yun Hee, but eventually they tip over to Innocent, as well.

  Now the camera settles on Alex, who glares at the screen defiantly. “And now we come to the—” Both the audio and video go out midsentence.

  “What happened?” Alisa says.

  As if on cue, the virtual assistant comes on over the intercom. “Apologies for the interruption. A surge has disabled the power in this room. My attempts to reset have failed. A manual override is required at the power terminal in the laundry room.”

  “Morgen is going to eviscerate us. Do you have any idea how many people are watching? You!” Alisa points at Alex. “Find an outlet that works.”

  Alex heads over to the computer area and crawls around under the tables, testing the outlets. Finally, he says, “Jarvis, are there any functional outlets in here?”

  “No. As I said previously, a surge has disabled the power in this room. My attempts to reset have failed. A manual override is required at the power terminal in the laundry room.”

  “Someone go reset the damn thing,” Other-Saul says. “Take one of them with you.”

  Esther glares at him but grabs me by the arm and drags me toward the door.

  “Why me?” I ask as we enter the hallway. “I don’t live here. I’m not even sure where the laundry room is.”

  “Better figure it out fast,” she says. “Your jury is going to be a lot less merciful if they’re kept waiting.”

  “Jarvis,” I say. “Where is the laundry room?”

  The virtual assistant says that it’s on the main floor and directs us to take a right and then another right at the bottom of the stairs. We follow the directions and step inside the laundry. I look around for a power terminal, unsure what that even is or what it would look like in this era. I’m about to ask Jarvis when I hear a loud thwack and a moan from Esther. She whirls around and fires the little gun, leaving a hole in the wall about six inches from Saul’s knees as she slumps to the ground.

  “Grab her weapon, carry this, and follow me.” He tosses me the rifle. There’s a tiny smear of blood on the stock. “She looks as strong as her counterpart back at CHRONOS, which means I’m going to need both hands to subdue her if she comes to.” He leans outside the door and says, “I need my gun back. Do you have rope? Or sturdy tape? Personally, I’d prefer to wrap them up with the red ribbon I used on their observers, but I’m all out.”

  I’m about to ask who he’s talking to, but then I hear Madi’s voice. “Duct tape. Should be on the shelves to your right.”

  She steps inside the laundry room and begins scanning the shelves. Jack is right behind her. At least, I’m pretty sure it’s Jack. He’s about the same height and build as the guy I saw running through the lobby with her in Memphis.

  “Okay,” Saul says. “Once we’re in the library, I’ll handle my ugly twin.” He nods to Jack. “You’re on Alisa. If things go well, the door may take out their observer, but if not, Katherine and Madi are on him.” He looks at me. “Has your physicist friend isolated their signal yet?”

  “I don’t know,” I say. “I gave him the information, and bought him as much time as we could under the guise of setting up the new console, but . . .”

  Saul smiles grimly. “Well, if he hasn’t, this is likely to be a very temporary eviction.” He looks down at the time on his key again and then hoists Esther over one shoulder. “We need to go now.”

  “Can you jump in carrying her?”

  “No,” Saul tells me. “That’s why I gave you the gun, so you could cover me. Let’s go!”

  “Do you want an audio diversion?” Madi asks. She’s now holding a thick roll of gray tape, and I hand her the weapon Esther was carrying.

  “Yes!” Saul is already headed down the hallway as he speaks, moving at a fast clip.

  Madi and Jack follow. “Jarvis,” Madi says, “announce on the main intercom that you’re working on restoring power, then blast my swim mix into the library at maximum volume.”

  “Yes, mistress.”

  “The timeline did change, right?” I ask when I catch up with Madi. Loud, pounding music fills the house, and she has to raise her voice to respond.

  “It flipped.” She glances pointedly at Saul, now at the base of the curved staircase, and leans toward me. “But the July 4th bomb went off inside the British Pavilion. Clio tried to change it. I had better luck, fortunately. Saul may be helping us now, but . . .”

  “I know. We can’t trust him.”

  Saul is already halfway up the stairs, with Jack close behind. Clearly, they’re opting for speed over stealth, and if not for the pounding music—and now, the crying baby—I’m pretty sure everyone in the library would hear us coming. Saul pauses when he reaches the top and is about to kick the library door, but Jack motions for him to stand back. It’s the sort of thing Saul would usually contest, because with the exception of Tate Poulsen, he’s never willing to admit that anyone is stronger. Maybe the fact that he’s carrying a woman who is at least two-thirds his own size allows his ego to stand down.

  Jack levels a sidekick at the door. Judging from the thud and the resistance on the other side, it does hit the observer. Jack kicks the door again, and Saul steps forward with Esther’s body as a shield in front of him, pointing the pistol at Other-Saul. I aim the rifle to the left just as Clio blinks in on the far side of the library. Saul jerks his weapon toward her.

  “She’s with us!” I yell over the noise, as Madi tells Jarvis to cut the music.

  Other-Saul takes advantage of the diversion to lunge forward. Saul fires his weapon, and his slightly altered twin drops to the ground, cursing and clutching his calf. “That’s for assuming you could touch me the other day, you arrogant fuck,” Saul hisses. Then
he adds in a louder voice, “Someone take his gun.”

  Tyson is already there by the time Saul gets the words out. He takes the weapon, points it at Other-Saul, and tells him to empty out his pockets. Which is a good thing, because there’s another small weapon like the one Esther was carrying in his front pocket.

  Saul drops Esther, who is beginning to stir, onto the carpet and says, “Alisa, we can give you a going-away present, too, if you’d like, or you can be a good girl and come sit over here with Ess so we can wrap you up to send back to your papa. Your call.”

  Alisa glares at him but does as she’s told. I grab her wrists and start to bind them behind her back, and then realize they need to be in front. Lorena and the baby have left the room, which was a smart call on Lorena’s part. Thea is pacing back and forth in front of the couch, still mumbling to herself, and Alex is already at the computer, typing frantically. Everyone else is focused on the four remaining members of Team Viper. Within a minute or so, they’re arranged in a circle in the middle of the library, backs to each other, hands and feet bound.

  Saul glances at the time and mutters a curse. “Start the simulation again.”

  Alex tells Jarvis to resume power to the SimMaster. It takes about thirty seconds for the system to come online, and then we hear the rustle of audience noise. As soon as Morgen’s face comes into view, Saul says, “Do you want your people back, Campbell? Just to be clear, your younger spare-parts factory was killed because he was breaking the rules. He was about to shoot an active member of Team . . . What are we called again?”

  “Hyena,” I say. He rolls his eyes, and I add, “We didn’t choose the name.”

  “An active member of Team Hyena,” Saul says. “We didn’t target players until you did. And I’m sure you have at least one more clone in reserve, so don’t act like a grieving father.” There’s a sharp intake of breath from the audience, followed by loud booing. Did they not know he had a clone?

  Morgen’s expression is apoplectic. When he doesn’t respond, Saul says, “Fine. If you don’t want them back there in 27V, I’d be happy to dispose of them here.”

  Campbell’s eyes narrow when he mentions the number, and then he says, “Send them home.”

  “We will be blocking further incursions from your corner of the multiverse,” Saul tells him. “So this is the last I’ll be seeing you. You lost, old man. As usual.”

  The transmission ends before Saul finishes the sentence, and he turns to our prisoners. “You heard the man. Go home to Daddy.”

  All four struggle to get their keys situated. It takes Esther three tries, probably due to the head injury. She’s starting to look a little panicked, and with good reason, given that Saul is pointing his weapon at her, very obviously impatient.

  “I’m trying!” she says. “Tell that old woman to stop pacing back and forth. It’s hard to focus on the display with her in my field of vision.”

  Thea, who has indeed been pacing back and forth near Alex, stops. But she seems unable to relax, and her hand continues clutching at the object in her pocket. She looks like she’s ready to bolt, and Saul takes a few steps in her direction.

  Esther is apparently telling the truth about the movement being distracting, because she manages to blink out on the next try. As soon as she vanishes, Saul snakes out an arm and pulls Thea to his chest, pressing his weapon into her side. “I’m going to take my leave now. I would have let you folks muddle through this on your own, but I just couldn’t stomach the idea of Campbell and his minions screwing up my timeline and getting away scot-free.”

  It hits me then that this isn’t just Madi’s grandmother that he’s threatening. In some sense, Thea is my daughter. Saul’s daughter, too. She’s five decades older than I am, and several clones away from a child that I might have carried, but she is my flesh and blood.

  “Let her go,” I say.

  “Sorry, but no. She was actually quite useful in making sure we had this base of operations, so I’d prefer not to hurt her, but I obviously will if I have to. I just need to get somewhere I can blink out without weapons in my face.”

  “But I’m coming with you, Saul! You don’t need a hostage.”

  He cocks his head to the side. “You were never going to meet me in Miami, love. I could tell you were lying at the Fair. I’m not going back there anyway. I have other plans. Rich, I’m sure you’ll take good care of our girl here, and equally sure you’ll never satisfy her. And that reminds me. I have a little parting gift for you, Kathy.”

  Saul reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small vial of viscous fluid, which he places on the shelf near the door. “Just in case you decide you want to go through with this whole Mother-of-Prudence gig. Although . . .” His eyes drop down to my abdomen and he grins. “The die may already be cast, thanks to our reunion the other night.”

  ∞34∞

  MADI

  BETHESDA, MARYLAND

  NOVEMBER 20, 2136

  Saul tells us to give him to the count of one hundred. Thea doesn’t look frightened as he drags her through the door with him. In fact, there’s a tiny smile on her face, which has me wondering whether this was part of the plan. Saul said she’d been useful. Was this all arranged in advance?

  No. I don’t believe that. And either way, we have to stop him.

  I take out my CHRONOS key and pull up the stable point downstairs in the living room. Panning left, I see Saul and Thea on the landing. It looks for a moment as if he’s going to pull out the key right there in the hallway, but he apparently decides to get a bit farther from the library and nudges Thea to head downstairs. I keep scrolling forward until I see him stop at the bottom of the stairs and lower the weapon in order to use his key.

  I debate watching a bit longer, but I know I’m going in, and I know from experience how confusing it is to do what you’ve already watched yourself do through the key. It’s not as bad as a double memory or spinning off a splinter, but there’s still a bit of a feedback loop. So I stop and catch Tyson’s eye. “Downstairs stable point. The one I transferred to your key in Memphis. One minute back.”

  He gives me a quick nod. I squeeze Jack’s hand, then I set the location, roll back one minute, and jump. When I land in the living room, I hear Esther upstairs telling Saul that she’s trying to blink out, but Thea’s pacing is distracting her.

  I move out of the stable point. Tyson arrives. Clio is right behind him. Rich and Katherine pop in a few seconds later. I’m glad to see the others, but I’m not entirely sure whether Katherine is going to be an asset or a liability. Would she actually be able to kill Saul?

  “Jack tried to come,” Clio whispers. “I think he’s out of jump juice.”

  I nod. “I’m taking the spot behind the couch. Find a place to take cover. I scanned forward, and Saul will lower the weapon when he pulls up the stable point, just after they reach the bottom of the stairs at 9:42:09. That’s when we make our move.”

  Tyson says, “Anyone who gets a clear shot that doesn’t endanger Thea, take it.”

  Katherine and Rich head for the kitchen. Clio and Tyson hurry toward the hallway to the left of the library staircase. I duck behind the sofa, which I selected because I know Saul’s back will be to me at least briefly from this vantage point, and then I check the time. Twenty-three seconds. I clutch the gun and take deep breaths until I hear the door opening at the top of the stairs.

  The door closes. There’s the brief pause that I saw through the key, and then footsteps on the stairs. “I meant what I said,” Saul tells Thea. “I’m not planning to hurt you unless you fight me.”

  “Why would I fight you?” Thea asks as they continue down the steps. She sounds calm. In fact, her tone reminds me of a few days back, when she said she was going upstairs to the attic to meditate.

  I watch through the key as Saul relaxes his hold on Thea at 21:42:08. She takes a few steps away as he pulls out his CHRONOS key. One second later, I rise from behind the couch, and the others step out as well, weapons drawn. Bu
t Saul is already crumpling to the ground.

  Thea stands a few feet away from him. Her hand is in her pocket, or rather in what used to be a pocket. Now it’s just a frame of melted fibers that surrounds her hand, which is wrapped around her bronze cuff with the glowing amber stone. I don’t see a weapon, though. Did she drop it?

  “That was for Gizmo,” Thea says. “For Gizmo and for the Sisters.”

  I have no idea what she’s talking about. Judging from the expressions on the others’ faces, I’m not the only one. Thea marches forward, grabbing for the key in Saul’s hand.

  Katherine yells out, “No!”

  Before I realize why, Saul raises his weapon and fires. The beam catches Thea in the stomach. She stumbles back, and I catch her just before she falls.

  Katherine gets to Saul first and stomps his wrist to the floor. He looks up and smiles at her. “’Twas on a May Day of the far . . . old year . . .”

  His eyes close and his body goes still. The room is now silent, aside from Thea’s labored breaths.

  Clio reaches down for his key, but Katherine pushes her hand away. “Wait.”

  She gives Katherine a look that clearly conveys disgust.

  “I’m not acting out of sentimentality,” Katherine says. “Just wait!”

  Beyond Katherine, I see Jack coming down the stairs. And then I realize why Katherine wanted to wait. There’s no wrist under her foot now. No gun. No hand. No Saul.

  “How did you know?” Clio asks as she stares at the empty spot on the carpet.

  “Mostly a hunch,” Katherine says. “He kept looking at the time. Plus, he has a penchant for spinning off splinters. And Saul loves himself far too much to be so cavalier with his own safety. If we’d pulled his key, we wouldn’t have known for sure. Is Thea . . .”