by Beth Reason
Chapter 5
Bradwin pinched the bridge of his nose and wished it was time to take another pill. His headache simply would not stop, and the driving rain on the roof of the transport for the second day in a row was not helping. He wished for the millionth time that they could have taken the main roads, but knew it would have been far too risky.
"I want to go home!" Violet yelled again, kicking her legs firmly on the seat. She gave up being good the day before when her Mumma stopped answering her questions. She knew Mumma was in the back. Grandfather kept leaning over the seat and talking to her, though Violet couldn't hear what he was saying. And she knew her Mumma wasn't awake because the man driving them around kept telling her grandfather she was still "out".
"Come on, little girl," Jace said from the front seat. "Just shut the yap for five minutes like a good kid and I'll give you another Yum Yum cake."
"I don't want a Yum Yum cake. I want my Da!"
Bradwin sighed heavily. He should have brought Irmara with him. She would know what to do about the obstinate little hellion. "You cannot have your Da, but what you can have is a firm swat on the rump if you do not behave!"
Violet clenched her jaw and looked out the window, watching the rain drops ooze down the glass and wishing she could figure out how to get outside. She wriggled in her seat again, but it had her pinned right around the chest and the tops of her legs. She tried to kick the other man when Grandfather told him to bring her in the house the night before, but he was ready for it and caught her foot and laughed. No one laughed at Violet. No one. She made up her mind to make her own plan and get him back for that. It was exactly what Mumma would do.
Her lip started to quiver and she bit down, hard. She would not cry. Mumma wasn't crying and she would not, either. She just wanted to hear her. Even if she couldn't see her, she would know Mumma was okay if she would just say something. The transport hit another huge bump and then they stopped. There was a loud whirring noise and Violet knew they were stuck again. Good, she thought. Let them be stuck! She hoped the both of them got covered in mud and were shivery and cold all day long!
Bradwin slammed his hand on the seat. "Goddammit! Can't you do anything right?"
Jace bit back the string of curses he desperately wanted to unleash on the old man. He told him a transport would be a moronic thing to use to cross the plains, especially heading southeast. But Mr. B wouldn't even hear of riding horses, and what Mr. B wanted, he got. Jace grabbed the mud-caked shovel from the compartment next to his seat and stepped out into the rain. Securely out of range of Mr. B's hearing, he let his curses fly as he once again shoveled out the big tires that were bogged in the deep sludge.
Digging the large Southland transport out of the mud was a back-breaking task, especially in the pouring rain. As he had with the other stops, Jace attempted to do it by himself, knowing the day would go much better for him if he could manage the task alone. However, it quickly became clear that he was stuck enough to need another set of hands, and he sighed heavily, opened the door, and called for Mr. B's help. Bradwin swore, then shoved his arms back into his wet jacket and left the vehicle, slamming the door behind him.
Violet seized her opportunity. "Mumma, are you awake?" she called. There was no sound but the rain and the sploshing of the mud as the men shoveled outside. Violet tried to turn again in her seat, but couldn't crane her head around enough to see where they were keeping her mother. "Mumma," she said louder. "Mumma, please say something!" There was a groan and Violet let the tears of relief fall. "Mumma, it's me. Violet. Can you hear me?"
Scarab could hear Violet calling her. "I'm coming," she tried to say, but heard her own voice as no more than a mumble. She tried again and again, and still she only moaned.
"We're stuck in mud," Violet said in a hurry. "Grandfather and that smelly man are digging us out. I'm not hurt." Violet frowned, trying to think of anything else she should tell Mumma while the others weren't listening. Mr. McKay was always telling Beddick to notice everything around him and report back with details if he wanted to be a good warrior, and she was determined to try to do the same with her Mumma. "Oh! Grandfather has a bad head ache. And there's lots of dead grass outside."
Scarab heard Violet's voice and tried hard to concentrate. Why was Violet telling her all this? Her grandfather? What did Mordin have to do with anything? She opened her mouth to try speaking again when she heard a door open and Jace barking an order to someone else. Reality crashed down around her as the hazy events of the last couple days gained focus in her foggy mind. She opened her eyes, feeling the rush of nausea at the stab of light. She pressed her lips together tightly and took a deep breath. The door slammed again and it was quiet in the transport. "Violet?" she croaked.
"Mumma!"
"How long have I been asleep?" she asked as well as she could through her dry, cracked lips. Her mouth tasted like old metal and sand and her throat ached.
"All today and last night and most of yesterday."
That would make three days since they were abducted, wouldn't it? She cracked her eyes open again. It was definitely day time, and she could hear the pounding of rain. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"I wanna go home," Violet said, her lip trembling again. She was so relieved to hear Mumma that she was very close to losing it. She clamped on her lip again, hard, and tasted blood.
"I know. But we can't get out of here yet." Scarab waited until the waves of nausea had settled. She could hear Jace and Bradwin sniping at each other outside, along with the sound of something scraping the side of the transport over and over. Did Violet say they were stuck?
"Mumma?"
"I'm here," she said, her arms longing to hold her daughter. No, she corrected. She wanted to kill Jace and Bradwin first, and then hold her daughter. She needed to make a plan. "Did they say where we are?"
"No. But there's grass everywhere," Violet told her mother again.
Plains. Good. That meant they were traveling in the open. "Have they said anything about people following us?"
"No."
"Have they said where we're going?"
"Grandfather keeps saying we're going home, but I know it's not really home."
Scarab heard the vehemence in her daughter's voice and was proud. "No, it's not. But you have to pretend. Do you remember what the wraiths do to lure people into their homes before they eat them?"
Violet swallowed hard. Those were the scariest stories her Mumma told her, and Da would roll his eyes and say "Scarab," in his best warning voice whenever she would start. Now, Violet was very glad her Mumma told her those tales. "They pretend to be people."
"Yes," said Scarab firmly. "And you have to pretend, too. You have to pretend and be like them, okay? You and me, we'll be wraiths."
Violet nodded with resolve. She liked the sound of that! She was about to promise her Mumma she'd be the best wraith ever when she saw her grandfather coming toward the door. "They're coming!"
"Play along," Scarab said quickly before the door opened to Bradwin's huffing and swearing.
"I can't do a damn thing about the weather, and bitching at me won't make this trip any better," said Jace as he slammed his own door and put the vehicle in gear. They spun and lurched and finally got up and out of the tracks. Jace glared at Mr. B in the rear view. "I didn't order this weather or this trip and I'm about fed up with taking the blame for both!"
Bradwin wriggled out of his soggy coat and threw it to the floor. "You are reducing your payment with every word, young man. I implore you to think of your bottom line before you speak to me in such a tone again!"
It wasn't about the money, Scarab thought. She knew with Jace it was deeper than that, and she wondered if he'd start fighting back. She could plan for an angry Jace. However, Tenet's father was still a largely unknown entity, and she hoped to have more time with them to formulate a plan. She hoped Jace didn't push it too hard, not yet. She needed to determine a few things first, like where they were. Then she could work
on the old man, finding his weaknesses, how to get to him. And then she'd be able to plan an escape.
Jace clenched his jaw. It would be so easy to take out rotten old cur, and he had no doubts he could secure a passage on one of the cargo transports they now used to cross the Great Equatorial Desert without Bradwin's connections. He could off the bastard, take out the kid, and get the woman. But he had pride. No matter what else people thought of him, he took a great deal of pride in his work, in doing the job he was hired to do. He had a near perfect record that struck fear into the hearts of most major governments, and he lived for the terror his name alone could bring to their faces. He could kill them, and then he'd have to run and hide. Then he'd have to scurry off like a dog with his tail between his legs. When all was said and done, he didn't plan on being the one who had to live the rest of his life in the shadows and looking over his shoulder.
So Jace said nothing. He clenched his jaw until it ached and drove along the route the old bastard chose in the vehicle the ill-prepared moron selected on a mission that was doomed to fail from the beginning. He would do his job exactly as he was hired to do and then his reputation would stay intact. He glanced down at Scarab's monitors and felt his lips tug up in a smile. She was awake and her heart patterns had returned to normal. Suddenly, his day was starting to look up.
"Well, looks like the little desert bug isn't ready to give up on us yet," he said with amusement in his voice.
Bradwin was wiping his glasses off on his shirt. So the hunter was awake again. "You see, Violet?" he said, looking at the little girl. "I told you your mother was fine."
Fine? Scarab almost laughed out loud. Her arm was killing, her head still throbbed, and she couldn't move a muscle in the electromagnetic cuffs. Yeah. She was fine. She wished she could move, get a look outside. Violet said they were in grass, but what kind? How far did it go? There were so many things a five year old wouldn't think to notice. She needed to at least get a peek. A thought struck, and she hoped Violet would catch on. "I'm here, baby," she called to Violet, stressing the last word.
Da called her "baby". Mumma never did. Violet didn't know whether she should worry or if her Mumma was trying to send her a message, like when they were pretending to hunt. "Are you okay, Mumma?" she asked, trying to figure out if that's what she should do.
"Yes, sweetie," Scarab called, hoping Violet would follow along. "I just have to pee, though." When Violet giggled, Scarab squeezed her eyes shut. No, it's not funny! It's your cue, she said in her head. "It's been forever since I peed, honey."
Violet's eyes went wide. Oh! "I gotta pee, too." She crossed her ankles and started squirming. Scarab was very proud of her girl. "Grandfather, I gotta pee!"
Jace smirked. He had to admire Scarab's guts, even if she was dumb enough to think he wouldn't catch on. "Oh no you don't," he said, gunning the transport and moving faster. "Nice try, but we're not stopping."
Violet frowned and wriggled harder. "Come on, Grandfather. I'm going to pee right in my pants!"
Bradwin looked at the girl. She really was looking in a bad way, and it had been awhile since they stopped so she could have a break. He certainly didn't want to clean her up. "Maybe we should pull over."
"We just got back under way!" Jace sputtered. "If I stop now, we'll bog again."
"My back teeth are floating!" Violet wailed.
Bradwin sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. The crass things that came out of the child's mouth!
"I'm gonna pee all over the seat and it's gonna splosh all over you!"
Scarab almost laughed out loud. When her little girl wanted to sell something, she was as tenacious as Tenet. She could just picture the face Violet was making. She held her breath until finally Bradwin ordered Jace to stop.
"They're teaming up on you, Mr. B," Jace warned.
"They're teaming up on me to what end, Jace? To spoil the carpeting in my best transport? Don't be ridiculous. Pull over and take the girl first, then take the hunter out. You really do make things much more difficult than they have to be."
Jace stopped the transport and stared at Mr. B in the mirror for a minute before throwing the gear into park. "Fine. Have it your way. If they escape, it's on you."
Bradwin laughed. "Escape how? You've got one little girl and a shackled, beaten woman. If you can't handle it..." Bradwin let the words trail off, seeing the steam building in Jace's glare.
"I'm doin' it! I'm gonna pee!" Violet shouted.
Jace swore and opened the door. He stomped over to Violet's door and yanked it open. "You so much as try to run away and I'll leave you out here for the coonskunks to eat!"
Violet's eyes went wide. She believed he would do just that. She let him pick her up and out of the seat and said a prayer to the Mother to let her have some pee. She wasn't supposed to pray to the Mother, but she knew Mumma needed to be able to get outside for some reason and hoped she didn't ruin that. The Mother must have heard her because she was able to pee, and then she gave Jace a smug look. He quirked an eyebrow. "Better?"
Violet nodded. "Now it's Mumma's turn," she said when Jace was securing her back in her seat.
"Mumma can piss her pants for all I care," Jace said, pulling the strap around Violet's chest tight.
"For god's sake, Jace," Scarab said from the back, trying desperately to sound weak and beaten. "Do you really think I'll risk my daughter's life? I just need to take a piss."
Bradwin scoffed at her crass words and shook his head. "It's no wonder Violet speaks like a common seeder!"
Jace heard Scarab's tone and didn't believe her. He knew her too well to buy that line. But Mr. B was giving him that look again, the one that made him feel small and weak and useless, and damn if he didn't want to prove him wrong. He slammed Violet's door, then walked to the back of the transport. He gave it one more quick thought, then opened the back hatch. "If you want to get soaked from the rain and be even more miserable, be my guest, sweetheart."
Scarab looked up at Jace and was shocked at how much older he seemed. It had been over eight years since she'd seen him last, and those years had not been kind. His hair was thinning. He had crow's feet around his eyes and frown lines around his mouth. The mustache he wore was more silver than the dark brown she remembered, and something had given him a deep, purple scar across the bridge of his nose. The only thing that hadn't changed was the cold, calculating look he gave her. She knew that look. It used to make her heart flutter. Now, it just made her already rocky stomach heave.
Jace took out a unitool from his belt and held it up. "I need to reconfigure your bindings so you can walk. But be warned. You so much as twitch and I'll kill you in front of your daughter." He watched the flash of heat in Scarab's eye and felt the old familiar rush of his blood. She didn't answer but he knew she would obey. He yanked her up by her arm while pulling on her bound feet until she was sitting with her hands behind her and her feet dangling over the edge of the transport. He gave her another warning look before he waved the unitool over the invisible magnetic field that bound her feet.
Scarab felt the bindings lift and had an instant urge to kick out and then run, old instincts she carried from her time alone. But she was not alone, she had her daughter to protect, and she forced her feet to remain still. In seconds, blood flowed back into the limbs that had been useless for days and they began to tingle and burn. Scarab ignored the pain, never taking her eyes off Jace. It used to unnerve him when she would stare and she hoped it still made him squirm.
"Now, I'm going to put your hands to the front," he said, trying to ignore her glare. She was the only person he ever met in his life who could set him on edge with just a look, and he was frustrated to find that was still true. "No funny business," he warned. He waved the unitool, pulled her arms forward, then quickly turned the magnetic field back on when her arms were positioned to the front. He shoved the unitool in his pocket and pulled her up by her arm.
Scarab's feet hit the ground and it was all she could do to keep from
pitching forward. She let her gaze leave Jace's face so she could concentrate on walking through the mud. They took several steps away from the transport and Jace let her go.
"There."
Scarab looked at him and lifted an eyebrow. "Uh, are you going to let me use my hands here?"
Jace let out a laugh. "Nice try." He reached over and unbuttoned her pants, then roughly shoved them down. "There."
Scarab refused to let herself blush. "Are you at least going to turn around?"
Jace didn't want to. God, he didn't want to! But he'd let her have this one. He turned slightly and listened to her relieve herself.
Scarab quickly scanned the horizon. They were in the Midland Plains still, though this particular area didn't look familiar. She couldn't see any signs of civilization, and wondered if that meant they were heading southeast. Yes, she thought. By now, they'd have hit more mountains if they were going to the west. Clearly Bradwin didn't want to be seen. That meant the government of the Borderlands didn't know he was within their border. If that was true, then they'd have to go through the eastern desert area to cross back into Southland. There would be plenty more wide, flat areas to travel. That was both good and bad. That lessened her chances of getting Violet out of there and hiding safely, but it made the odds that any party following could reach them before they hit the border much higher. She wished she could turn and scout for signs of...
Jace nudged her with his foot and pulled her up. "You're done pissing," he said roughly, pulling up her pants. "Back in with you." He pushed her forward towards the transport, and as soon as Scarab got a good look at their ride, it was immediately clear why Bradwin and Jace were staying away from population centers. The technology was completely foreign to the styles of transports available in the Borderlands and would have stuck out like a sore thumb in any population center.
"Nice ride, Jace."
"Stop talking," he said, pulling Scarab's arm to make her duck under the open hatch door.
"Blends in with the locals." Jace pitched her forward into the cargo area and her breath whooshed out with the impact of her chest hitting the floor.
"Don't hurt my Mumma!" Violet said, hearing the thump and her mother's breath. She began to struggle in her seat and Bradwin tried to calm her down.
"Mr. Jace didn't hurt your Mumma."
"She tripped," Jace said with a smirk. He pulled her up and spun her around. "And she'll be much more careful in the future, won't she?"
Scarab's eyes burned with hatred. "Yes," she said for Violet's benefit. "I will be very careful in the future."
Something in her tone did not set well with Jace. "Hold still," he said gruffly. He yanked the unitool from his pocket and waved it over the cuffs. He turned Scarab and secured her arms behind her once again. He felt better when her hands had been rendered useless. "Feet," he ordered.
Bradwin sighed. His granddaughter was worked up enough, and Jace's gruff words to her mother were going to make it worse. He would do just about anything for a quieter afternoon. "Leave the feet."
"But..."
"But nothing, Jace," Bradwin snapped. "What the hell can she do back there, hm? She's magnetically locked in. You've got every kind of monitor on her." He rubbed his tired eyes. "For goodness sake, she's pinned and caged and harmless. Let's just get moving."
"Yes, let's just get moving, Jace," Scarab said quietly.
Jace was tempted to secure Scarab's feet anyway, but knew she'd pitch a fit. She had him, and Mr. B helped. "Fine," he ground out. "But like Mr. B said, I've got eyes on you. Try anything funny..."
"What am I possibly going to try?" Scarab asked in an innocent voice. "Like Mr. B said, I'm harmless."
The cold in her eyes made Jace shiver. As he slammed the back hatch shut, he wondered idly if that's how his prey felt when he had them cornered. Harmless? Yeah. Right. He got in his seat and started the transport, then fixed the mirror to look to the back. Sure enough, she was sitting up, her eyes boring straight into his in the reflection. Mr. B had no idea what the hell he was doing, and Jace was convinced the man had to be the dumbest evil mastermind Jace had ever met. He shoved the mirror aside, not wanting to see either of them and drove on through the rain.
"I'm thirsty," said Scarab.
"I'm thirsty, too!" said Violet. Mumma's voice was close and she tried so hard to turn in her seat and see her.
"Stop thrashing before you hurt yourself," Bradwin ordered. His granddaughter stopped wiggling and he reached into the cooler and took out a bottle of water. He opened it and helped his granddaughter take a sip, then turned to Scarab and only his years of dominating the board rooms kept him from jumping back at the terrifying look in her eye. For a split second he was tempted to order Jace to stop and secure Scarab as she had been before the little break. But Violet had calmed, and he was correct in saying that there was nothing the hunter could do. Or, perhaps more accurately, would do. She was not a stupid woman. Even if she did somehow manage to get herself into a position to run, she would not risk the life of her daughter.
"Drop the field, Jace," Bradwin said, telling himself his fears were ridiculous.
Jace shook his head but was beyond arguing. He hit the button that dropped the electromagnetic field that shielded the people in the cabin from their prisoner in the cargo hold. He moved the mirror and watch Mr. B help Scarab drink some water, his finger hovering over the button just in case he had to put the shield up quickly.
Scarab was surprised that Bradwin gave her water. He was certainly proving to be more of a mystery than she would have thought. She was not naive enough to believe Bradwin acted out of kindness. There was no kindness in the cold man in front of her, and she didn't for a second let herself pretend there was. However, the reasons behind his actions weren't clear. Perhaps she was just still foggy. She took several large sips and then nodded.
Bradwin capped the bottle then forced himself to turn around. He didn't want the hunter thinking he was in any way afraid of her. Just like in business, you never let them see your fear. "Place the shield back up," he said casually to Jace.
Scarab leaned forward, testing. She heard the hum of the shield then felt a crippling jolt shoot through her temple and neck, making her collapse.
"Mumma!"
"I'm fine!" Scarab panted, trying to shake off the effects.
"Electromagnetic, sweetheart," Jace called back with glee. "Not just for cattle anymore."
Scarab worked her way back up to her knees and leaned against the side of the transport trying to shake off the electric tingles that raced up and down her spine. She had to be in a shock collar, only this one linked directly to the brain monitor on her temple. It was tech the ranchers used to keep cattle in their pens. She didn't know they developed that type of restraint system for people. Six years away from new developments really put her at a disadvantage.
"I suggest you don't try that one again," Bradwin said calmly, looking over his shoulder.
Scarab heard the little camera whir near her head. She turned and gave it a scathing look, then heard Jace's laughing response. She pushed against the side of the transport with her shoulder and turned to kneel where she had been before, looking through her invisible cage into the mirror at the front of the vehicle. If Jace was going to stare at her, she'd stare right back.
They drove in silence for awhile until Violet got fidgety. She wanted to hear her mother again. "Mumma, tell me a story."
"No stories," said Jace quickly. Scarab was cunning, and it was becoming clearer and clearer to Jace that she was raising her daughter the same way. He didn't plan on giving her any chance to signal a plan to her daughter.
"You like stories?" Bradwin asked, turning from his window. When Violet nodded, he smiled. "Your father used to like stories, too. Shall I tell you one of his favorites?"
It wasn't going to be one of Mumma's stories, but if Da liked it, she would, too. "Sure."
Sure? Bradwin shook his head. "It's 'yes', not 'sure'," he corrected automaticall
y and Scarab cringed. She hated that Tenet was in any way like this man. If she ever saw Tenet again, she'd tell him he was never allowed to correct them again.
When. When she saw Tenet, she told herself.
"Well, then," Bradwin said, clearing his throat. "Let's begin. Once upon a time, there was a little boy..."
Violet crinkled her nose. "I don't want a story about a boy."
"Fine. Once upon a time, there was a little girl." He looked to Violet who nodded her approval. "This little girl lived on a great alfalfa farm."
Scarab frowned and Violet tilted her head. "What's alfalfa?"
"It's a vegetable. Now hush or we'll never get through this story. Her father was given the farm at great expense to the government, and instead of being grateful, he was bitter and angry. He started to teach the little girl how to be bitter and angry, too, and worse than that, he taught her that it was okay to kill people she didn't like."
Violet gasped. "No!"
"Yes," said Bradwin, leaning toward his granddaughter. "And she liked to do it, too!"
Scarab silently seethed. She knew then exactly what Bradwin was doing. He wasn't being kind to his granddaughter, he was starting to turn her against them. "This is one of Tenet's favorites?" she said, with as much control as she could muster.
Bradwin turned in his seat and looked Scarab right in the eye. "Apparently it's one he simply adores."
There was nothing Scarab could do. There was nothing Scarab could say. As Bradwin continued to spin a wild tale loosely based on her life, Scarab had no choice but to hold her tongue. Jace smirked in the mirror. She bet he was absolutely loving this torture. And still she held back all she wanted to say. Her daughter was wrapped up in the tale. She could imagine Violet's wide eyes, the look she got when she was taking something in, holding it close. She knew Violet would remember the story forever, and she feared the day Violet found out the story was really about her. Bradwin made the girl in the story sound like a monster. He made the girl sound exactly like what Scarab had always feared in herself, and by the time he was done and Violet had fallen asleep, Scarab felt numb.
They weren't simply going to take her daughter from Scarab, they were going to make her daughter hate her first. They were going to make Violet turn away in disgust, just like the rest of the world. Scarab leaned back against the transport wall, helpless and sick with useless rage. She begged silently for Tenet to come for her. The camera arm hummed and Jace's chuckle reached the cargo bay. She couldn't stop herself from kicking out her foot and knocking the little camera off the control arm. It felt so good to actually be able to do something that she kicked again and it shattered against the floor.
Bradwin chuckled. "I guess someone didn't like our bedtime story, Mr. Jace."
"All the world's a critic," Jace said, grinning at Mr. B. The old man had a few tricks up his sleeve after all. He had managed to get to Scarab. Someone finally cracked the shell. And now Jace knew exactly how to get to her, he planned to take full advantage. He'd have her begging for him soon enough.
The transport hit a mud hole and only Jace's quick reflexes kept them from bogging again. He turned his concentration back to the ground ahead and wondered how far they were from the pick up point. They should have reached it the day before, and perhaps if they had better weather. He sighed heavily and pushed on. He just had to reach the pick up point, and then he would have all the time in the world to think about Scarab and the rest of their life together.