Connor took a breath and stepped out boldly, standing clear of the vehicle. And he froze in his tracks.
In front of him, a figure in a dark protective suit stood alone. And whoever it was, they’d clearly seen him, because they stood stock still. Connor’s breath caught in his chest, but he raised his right hand in a greeting, his palm open.
Immediately, the dark figure raised its right hand. And then waved.
Connor shook his head. It couldn’t be. It couldn’t be her. But already, the person was walking toward him, slowly at first, then faster, breaking into a jog, arms outstretched. Connor stood still, his heart in his mouth, and then he too was running. “Siobhan!” he cried. And then, in a blur, he collided with his daughter, wrapping her in his arms. Through his visor, he could see Siobhan’s bright eyes brimming with tears. He could see her smile.
“Dad!” she shouted. “It’s really you!”
“Yes!” he said, raising his voice and wishing he could tear off his helmet and talk freely. “I’m here.” He swallowed hard, his mind spinning in an effort to find the right words. “Are you all right?”
“I’m all right, Dad. I’m fine.”
Connor looked at her and knew she was telling the truth. His daughter was safe and unharmed. He’d done it, he’d got her back. But what now? Where would they go from here? He stepped back a little from her embrace, so he could look at her properly. “Siobhan, I’ve been so worried. I’m so glad to see you.” He peered over her shoulder. “Who else is inside? Is Milo in there? Is he okay?”
“Yes, Milo’s there. But he’s…he’s hurt.”
Connor’s face fell. “What happened?”
“Listen, it’s not what you think.” Siobhan hesitated. “We can’t talk properly like this. Come inside the truck. We can talk in there. It’s safe.”
“No, we’ll go back to the rover.”
For a moment, Siobhan didn’t reply, then she shook her head. “Dad, it’s okay. Please come inside. I can’t leave Milo in there.”
“I’ll collect him in a minute,” Connor insisted. “First, I need to get you inside the rover.”
Siobhan took a step back from him. “I can’t explain it out here, Dad. Just come inside for a minute.”
Connor narrowed his eyes. “Siobhan,” he started, but Parry’s voice was suddenly loud on the intercom: “Connor, we can’t see you from here. I’m coming out.”
“Parry, wait for a second,” Connor replied. Then he spoke to Siobhan, keeping his voice as low as he could. “Is someone forcing you to say this? Just raise your hand if you’re under duress.”
“No one’s forcing me to do anything, Dad,” Siobhan said. “But I can’t walk away and leave Milo behind. And there are people in there who you need to meet, people who risked their lives to help me get back here. The very least you can do is speak to them.”
Connor looked into his daughter’s eyes. She was asking him to trust her, to have faith in her. And she was right; she shouldn’t leave a wounded friend behind. She was, perhaps, more like him than he’d ever realized. “How did you get here anyhow?” he asked. “Where are the rest of the vehicles? And how did you persuade them to let you go?”
“It’s a long story,” she replied, “but I’ll tell you everything inside.”
Connor studied her expression for a second, and then he nodded slowly. “All right, Siobhan, we can go inside. You’d better lead the way.”
“Thanks, Dad. It’ll all be fine, you’ll see,” Siobhan said, then she turned back toward the vehicle and started walking. But Connor stood still and said, “Parry, I’m going inside their vehicle. But don’t worry. Siobhan says it’s safe, and I believe her.”
“That makes no sense,” Parry replied. “Stay put, I’m coming out.”
“Parry, I need you to stay in the rover for ten minutes,” Connor said. “Can you do that for me?”
There was a hiss on the intercom as if Parry had just exhaled on the microphone. “All right, Connor. Ten minutes. Then I’m coming out there.”
“Thanks, Parry. I’ll be back in ten, but right now, I’m going with my daughter. I’ve got a lot of catching up to do.” Connor set off, following in his daughter’s footsteps. Whatever happens next, he thought, I’m not going to let her out of my sight. Not until I get her safely home. And when Siobhan turned back and beckoned to him, he hurried to stand by her side.
CONTROL
Colony B - Book III
PROLOGUE
Truck one
Doctor Lyndsey Teare paced the length of the truck’s main compartment, ignoring the worried glances she was earning from David Brandt, her senior technician. She stopped to read the time from a nearby display panel, but barely five minutes had passed since she’d last checked, and she tutted under her breath. As if sensing her frustration, the floor rattled angrily beneath her feet, perhaps the result of the truck battering against a tree or some other insignificant obstruction. But whatever had stood in the way, it was gone now, crushed beneath the truck’s crackling hover panels. Nothing could be allowed to impede the fleet’s progress.
The floor resumed its habitual thrumming vibration, and Lyndsey crossed the compartment to stand behind David, casting her eyes over the banks of communications equipment that made up his workstation. “Anything?” she asked. “Anything at all?”
David shook his head. “You know how it is. Getting a signal off planet is shaky at the best of times, and our nearest relay is—”
“I know, I know,” Lyndsey snapped. “Spare me the details, for God’s sake.”
David turned his attention back to his workstation. “Just trying to help, that’s all.”
Lyndsey watched David work for a moment, his hands moving rapidly over the control panel. David was good at his job, and he’d always been a loyal member of the crew. He’d done nothing wrong, and he certainly didn’t deserve such harsh treatment. “I’m sorry, David. It’s just…with everything that’s happened, I need the team on Earth to understand what’s going on. And I don’t even know if they got my last message.”
“I’m sorry, Doctor Teare, but I’m already doing everything I can.” He gave her a sympathetic smile. “I think you can safely assume that your messages are getting through, but realistically, if you’re looking for some kind of acknowledgment…” He shrugged. “The last message we had from Earth was years ago, when they extended the mission, and that signal took months to get here.”
“I understand,” Lyndsey said. “I thought it might be different if we flagged it priority one, but I guess I was just kidding myself.” She laid her hand on David’s shoulder. “I’m going back to the cockpit. If anything changes, you know where I am.”
“Sure thing.”
“Thanks, David.” Lyndsey headed toward the front of the truck and let herself into the cockpit. From his place in the co-pilot’s seat, Kyrksen Gall glanced up from the controls, but he didn’t acknowledge her, so she took her seat and strapped herself in. “How are we doing?”
Kyrksen wrinkled his nose in distaste. “There’s no way we can make up for lost time, especially now we’ve lost two drones.”
“I’ll check in with Crissy.” Lyndsey opened a comms channel to truck five and got straight through to Crissy Warren.
“Before you say anything, we’ve almost finished the job,” Crissy began. “We have two drones in the shop and they’re coming together pretty well. We’re short on parts, but my crew is making do with what we have. Just don’t ask us to go any faster—we’re working flat out as it is.”
“That’s great,” Lyndsey said. “Any idea when the drones will be ready to deploy?”
“Hold on.” Lyndsey heard a mumble of conversation, and then Crissy came back on. “We should be ready to begin testing within the next few hours. That’ll take another four hours at least. After that, we can road test them for a while before we run through the final checks. Say eight hours at a pinch and ten for safety.”
“And if we skip the tests?” Lyndsey asked.
>
“Seriously?”
“Yes,” Lyndsey said. “What if we just load them up and send them on their way? After all, it’s not like they’re going to hurt anyone. Worst case scenario, they malfunction and we get them back in for repair. Am I right?”
She heard Crissy clear her throat. “Not really. We’re improvising over here, and if anything isn’t right, the drones could crash and be damaged beyond repair. Or they could blow their hover panels and that would be the end of it. We don’t have the facilities to rebuild a fused hover assembly, and we don’t have a single spare panel in the store. No panel, no drone, simple as that.”
Lyndsey frowned. “Okay, I get it. But couldn’t we shave some time off the tests? I mean, four hours—that’s way too long, isn’t it? We don’t need anything too fancy, they just need to be serviceable.”
Crissy gave a noncommittal grunt. “We could try. But if they break down out there, and we have to stop while we go to get them, it’ll slow down the whole fleet.”
“Unless we split up,” Lyndsey said, and Kyrksen gave her a sharp look. “Only one truck would need to stop,” Lyndsey went on. “The rest of the fleet could go ahead at reduced speed.”
“Oh,” Crissy replied. “That’s not the protocol.”
“I know.” Lyndsey sat back in her chair. “I think the time for protocol is over. If you ask me, the rules went out the window a while back. From now on we need to use our wits. Because this isn’t over, I’m sure of it.”
“Right,” Crissy said, and despite the intercom’s habitual whisper of white noise, the uncertainty in her voice was crystal clear.
“Do your best,” Lyndsey said, then she shut the channel down and turned her stony gaze on Kyrksen. “What?”
“Nothing,” Kyrksen muttered, taking a sudden interest in a display panel. “I just wondered about your cryptic remark, that’s all. What did you mean by this isn’t over?”
“You know exactly what I mean,” she stated. “We have unfinished business.”
“You want to try and retrieve the truck?” Kyrksen asked, his voice laced with skepticism. “I thought you’d decided to let it go. We’re already way behind on our schedule, so you said—”
“I know what I said,” Lyndsey interrupted. “But this isn’t about the goddamned mission anymore. This is about getting Alec and the crew back, and the truck too. And then we’ll see what’s to be done with that damned girl and her little boyfriend. And Clennan too. I swear to God, I could just about kill that son of a bitch.”
Kyrksen said nothing for a moment, then: “Would you like to discuss the possibilities? I might have some suggestions that could prove useful.”
Lyndsey glared at him. “I haven’t forgotten your part in this, Kyrksen. You took a definite interest in that settlement, then you picked up those kids without my orders. Plus, it was your co-pilot who stole the damned truck. So your grubby fingerprints are all over this mess, Kyrksen. But if you want a chance to redeem yourself, you can figure out a way to put things right.”
“And if we have to delay our mission for a while? Are you okay with that? Because you know what the company’s like. They won’t find out for a while, but when they do…”
“Screw the company,” Lyndsey said. “And screw the goddamned mission, for the time being anyway. I’m not letting my fleet get ripped apart by a couple of kids and a dumb co-pilot. So yes, Kyrksen, I want your help. You’re a devious son of a bitch and I don’t trust you for a minute, but you want your paycheck and you want your rank back, and I’m the only one who can do that for you. So you’ll get me what I want, yes?”
Kyrksen stared at her for a long second, the silence between them growing thick with mutual loathing, but then a sly smile spread across his lips. “Oh yes, Doctor Teare. I’m sure I can help. And I’ll do whatever’s necessary. You can count on it.”
CHAPTER 1
The Hill
Mac stood outside Lee’s house for a moment, looking around to see if he was being observed. It wasn’t important whether anyone saw him at this stage, and it would be easy enough to come up with a cover story, but even so, he was wary of stirring up too much interest in his activities.
Satisfied that no one was watching, he knocked on the door and waited with a serene expression on his face. After all, it was still early morning, and there was a good chance that the household wasn’t fully awake after all the recent upsets. That was fine. I can be patient as the day is long, Mac told himself. God knows I’ve managed it until now. He cocked an ear and detected the thuds of someone bumbling down the stairs inside. Finally. He took a deep breath and plastered a smile across his face, trying very hard to push his nagging headache to one side. He shouldn’t have started on that new batch of beer the night before; either it hadn’t been quite ready, or the fermentation had gone bad again. But these days he had a thirst that just didn’t know when to quit. “A day off the booze,” he mumbled to himself. “Do me good.” He ran a hand through his tangled hair. Perhaps it was just as well that he wouldn’t have much time for drinking over the coming days. He had too much to do, and he’d need a clear head.
Something rattled inside the house, then the door opened a crack and Lee squinted out at him, a suspicious glint in his eye. Mac made his smile wider, but Lee’s gaze slid from side to side as if he was expecting someone else.
“Only me,” Mac announced. “How are you this morning?”
“I’m all right,” Lee said, then he stood a little taller. “Listen, Mac, what are you doing here? What do you want?”
“I’ve come to see how you are, my friend,” Mac replied cheerfully. “I hope all is well in your household despite young Emma’s adventures out on the hill the other night?”
Lee threw open the door and stepped forward quickly. In the daylight, his face was pale and haggard, his hair sticking up in all directions, and his eyes were red-rimmed and bloodshot. “What do you think?” he demanded. “How would you feel if your daughter had gone missing?”
“Well, I haven’t been blessed with children myself, but I’m sure it was a trying experience for all of you. Very trying.”
Lee bared his teeth. “Trying! I’ll tell you about trying. I was out with the search party for hours. Hours!”
“Like any good father,” Mac said. “You put your family first. We can all see that.”
“We? Who’s we?”
Mac held out his arms. “Why, the whole settlement of course. Everyone knows a dutiful father when they see one. I’ve heard it mentioned many times since that unfortunate night.”
Lee exhaled loudly and his shoulders slumped. He shook his head slowly. “Talk is all well and good, but it won’t get us anywhere.”
“Perhaps,” Mac began, but Lee carried on as though Mac hadn’t spoken.
“Emma, she…she won’t listen to a word I say. She’s so headstrong. She doesn’t see the risks.”
Mac nodded thoughtfully. “Youngsters can be hard work. I’m sure you do your best.”
“Tell me about it. It’s all we can do. We keep trying, and maybe we’ll get there in the end.” He gave Mac a tired smile. “Right, well if that’s what you came to say, thank you very much, but I’m tired. No one’s getting much sleep in this house anymore, and I hardly know which way is up. I’ll see you around.” He stepped back and swung the door shut, but Mac moved fast, grabbing hold of the door’s edge and stopping it from closing.
“There’s just one more thing,” Mac said, “if you don’t mind.”
Lee’s careworn smile vanished. He stared at Mac’s hand, then he looked Mac up and down, his eyes twitching nervously, his face growing paler by the second.
“You see,” Mac went on, “I’ve been wondering—who do you blame for all this upset, all this disruption?”
“Blame? Emma, of course. Who else? She’s eighteen and old enough to know what she’s doing. She ought to be a responsible adult, but try telling her that, and good luck because God knows she won’t listen to me or her mother.”
“A spirited young woman, your daughter, that’s for sure. But even she could be led astray.”
Lee let out a bark of humorless laughter. “Are you kidding? No one can tell her anything. She already knows it all.”
“That’s interesting,” Mac said. “So it was her idea to go down to the wall was it?”
The last remnants of color drained from Lee’s face. “What? Now hang on a second. No one said anything about the wall. They were just out for a walk on the hillside. I mean, obviously they shouldn’t have been out there alone after dark, but—”
“Didn’t you know?” Mac interrupted. He lowered his eyebrows and tilted his head, then he heaved a theatrical sigh. “Oh dear. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this—I hate to be the bearer of bad news—but…” He pursed his lips as if unable to go on.
“What?”
“No. It will do no good to tell you now.”
“Goddammit! I’ll be the judge of that!” Lee snapped, his eyes blazing. “If you know something about Emma’s part in all this, you have to tell me. I’m her father for God’s sake.”
Mac let go of the door and looked down for a moment, then he met Lee’s gaze. “On the night your daughter went walkabout, I have it on good authority that they were headed down to the wall. One of the men who found them was a friend of mine, and he told me himself.”
“I don’t…I don’t believe it. That can’t be right.”
“I’m afraid there’s no doubt about it. The council has been trying to keep this quiet, but when the search party found young Emma and her friends, they were headed down to the wall. No suits, no helmets, no gear. Nothing.”
“She wouldn’t do that,” Lee spluttered. “She knows the rules. She wouldn’t go anywhere near the wall.”
“And yet, she did.” Mac paused to let his words sink in. “Maybe we should talk about this inside.” He stepped close to Lee, almost toe to toe, and waited.
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