“Hugo, look out!”
Both of the guards were rushing forward, weapons drawn. “Stop!” they commanded.
Hugo pulled his fist back and landed a straight right on the researcher’s jaw. The man kneeled, swayed, and nearly fell, but managed to remain upright. Then, unexpectedly, he turned away from Hugo, as if he’d lost interest in the fight.
“On the ground! Now!” shouted the guards. They took a step forward, but the scientist made no effort to listen. He lifted his hands as if to pray and then began to tear at himself on the neck. Blood was soon streaming down, staining his white coat bright red. Xi blinked in surprise.
The guards came closer. “Now! Get down!”
As if the bloodied scientist finally heard them, he slowly turned toward them and exposed bloody teeth. Everything was still for a moment; then he rushed toward the guards, screaming. Immediately, they opened fire. The bullets lifted the wounded man’s bloody body into the air like a tattered mitten. He flew back, crashed to the floor, and moved no more.
Hugo grabbed hold of one of his comrade’s extended hands and pulled himself up. Just a few feet away, a wave of white-hot rage flooded Xi’s mind. He barreled toward the guards, punching one of them in the throat and bringing him to his knees. Xi hurdled him and struck the other between his legs; that one dropped, too.
The people in the room cried out as the violence flared up again. Seeing Freya, Xi grabbed for her, but she slipped away. Hugo took a step forward and measured a blow to Xi’s midsection.
Xi grimaced but stood strong and stared into Hugo’s eyes. “Do you remember me?” he asked.
Hugo chuckled dryly. “Of course I do. It’s not every day a person gets a chance to exact revenge so quickly. You’re going to die, I promise.”
“Come on, then.”
Xi turned his body toward Hugo, took a step to the side, and slid his knife into his palm. Opposite him, Hugo also pulled a knife from his chest holster. The two men circled each other. Moving like a panther, Xi made a series of lunges at his opponent until, finally, he made contact. Hugo stumbled back, a long cut drawn from his bicep to his forearm. Blood dripped steadily where he stood.
Xi grinned. “This is going to be easier than I thought,” he taunted.
Hugo said nothing but moved to counterattack. He pushed Xi back and managed to land a cut on his cheek. A thin streak of blood ran down his chin.
“Not so cocky now, are we?” Hugo said.
Xi glanced at the motionless guard on the floor ten feet away. His weapon was hidden underneath him, but Xi could see the protruding handle. In one move, he slid to the side and pounced. He landed hard, rolled, and grabbed the weapon. Wasting no time, Xi lifted the handgun and shot. Hugo shouted and threw himself back.
Xi turned to Freya and raised the gun again. A shot rang out. Xi’s expression morphed from rage to confusion as he looked at the small cloud of blood that sprinkled up from his right shoulder. He spun around, saw the guard who had shot him, and put a round in his head.
Voices sounded from outside the room.
Police! In there! Hurry up!
Xi turned toward Hugo’s motionless body and spat. He laughed; this part was finished, at long last. Only one more thing remained to be taken care of: Klaus. Xi left the chaos behind and ran.
*
Things went wrong so fast. Sweat dripped from Klaus’ forehead, and he wiped it away. On the monitor in front of him, he watched Xi shoot Hugo. He watched Hugo fall to the floor and not get up again.
Klaus buried his face in his hands. “No!” Then he reeled around and grabbed Zepp’s collar. “This is your fault. It was your responsibility to ensure that the programming happened correctly.” He paused, pursing his lips, and pointed at the screen. “But look now. Look at this disaster. That was not how it was supposed to go!”
Dr. Zepp stepped back. “You know, it might not be such a total disaster. I mean, the scientists went crazy—not just against the journalists, but more against themselves. Their credibility is destroyed now, right?”
Klaus tightened his jaws and punched Zepp hard on the chin. Zepp’s hands went to his face and he staggered back a few steps, bumping into the monitors. The rest of the crew watched silently.
“That wasn’t what we had planned, was it?” Klaus growled. “Or are you saying that all those weeks don’t matter?”
“No, of course not. You’re right. This is a failure, and I take full responsibility,” Zepp said.
Klaus threw his hands up in the air when he saw Xi bolting from the press conference room. “It doesn’t matter now.”
He turned from Zepp and sat down. He had to get away from here, had to get himself to safety. What had Heidi said? Something about an apartment on the other side of Hyde Park. He glared at Runner, who had been sitting quietly for the last quarter of an hour.
“Time to go,” Klaus told him.
Runner opened the door. “Okay. Where?”
*
The ice cold hit him square in the face. Xi stumbled outside, leaving the pandemonium behind him. His shoulder burned with pain, and he whimpered.
Police officers came rushing up the steps, and Xi stepped aside. Once they were gone, he scouted the area. Klaus was nearby, he was sure of that. The surveillance range wasn’t very long, just under a hundred meters.
He spotted it. A large, black van sat parked seventy meters away, and Xi started toward it. When he was halfway there, the back doors opened, and a man with dark, close-cropped hair stepped out. A second later, Klaus followed. Xi smiled. This was indeed a day of happiness.
Xi started running in Klaus’ direction. After a few paces, however, his feet found a slab of black ice, and he hit the ground hard. He wailed in agony.
As he picked himself up, Xi saw Klaus and his friend staring at him. Xi pulled back his teeth in a shark-like smile. He smacked his lips and sensed the taste of metal. The two men were less than thirty meters away. Despite the pain, he started running toward them once more. Runner grabbed Klaus’ arm, and they took off toward the park.
“Klaus!” Xi called after him. “Stop!”
They didn’t turn around but instead ran faster. Pain resounded through Xi’s body with each step he took. He put his hand inside his jacket and felt for his shoulder; when he pulled it out again, his fingers were red and sticky.
But he couldn’t give up now, not when he was so close. Klaus and his companion disappeared into the park, and Xi followed.
*
Stars flashed before him, and he blinked hard to make them disappear. A voice permeated the fog that lay over his consciousness.
“Hugo. Can you hear me, Hugo?”
Hugo tried to open his eyes, but they were stuck together as if with superglue. He jiggled an arm, and someone grabbed hold of his hand.
“Yes,” he mumbled. “I can hear you.”
“It’s me, Freya. Can you open your eyes?”
Hugo strained with all his might and finally forced them open with pure willpower. Freya smiled at him.
“Hello.”
Hugo groaned as he slowly sat up. A nurse sitting next to Freya pulled a bandage from a first aid kit.
“Here we go. Take it easy.” The nurse carefully wrapped the bandage around his head.
“Do you have anything for the pain?” Hugo said, his voice low and wobbly.
The nurse looked from Hugo to Freya and back again. She hesitated. “Yes, I do. But I need you to stay there until we get a gurney.”
“No. Give me what you have. Please.”
The medic hesitated again, but Hugo’s flashing eyes convinced her. She pulled out a small disposable syringe and stuck it in Hugo’s arm. Warmth spread through his arm and toward the rest of his body, and he relaxed.
“Thanks.”
Hugo reached for Freya, and she helped him up.
“And now what?” she asked.
Hugo looked around. The two motionless scientists lay on the floor, covered with white blankets.
“Cal
l Madeleine and update her on what’s happened here,” he instructed.
“What are you going to do?”
Hugo’s voice became cold as ice. “Claim my revenge.”
*
Safety. It was within sight. Klaus’ foot caught on a root, and he stumbled and fell, hitting the ground hard. Runner stopped and helped him up.
“Come on! We’re almost there.”
Klaus groaned as his fingers slid across the icy ground. He got back up on his feet and continued to run. At the edge of the park, they kept running across the street; cars honked, but Klaus ignored them.
“Here! Hurry up.”
They had arrived at a beautiful gate. Klaus stared at the handsome numbers. Twenty-three.
He ran to the doorbell and pressed the name Heidi had told him. A few seconds later, a voice answered.
“Yes?”
“Yes, hello, it’s Klaus Horst. I need to come in.”
No answer.
“Can you hear me? This is Klaus Horst. Let me in, please.”
Still nothing. Panic slid grabbed hold of his heart, and his voice went up an octave.
“Listen, you bastard. If you don’t let me in, I’ll make sure you regret it for the rest of your life.”
Four seconds later, the big gate clicked and slid open. Runner pulled out his phone.
“We’re in. Number twenty-three. Get here as soon as we can. Right now, we’re exposed.”
Klaus rushed in through the gate, and when he entered the beautiful hall, his anxiety began to drift away. Intricate murals and statues lined the walls. They hurried on to the elevator. The doors slid aside, and they stepped in.
“Top,” Klaus instructed.
As the elevator began to move, Klaus felt the tension in his muscles begin to ease one by one.
*
So close! Xi stood on the other side of the street and watched Klaus disappear through the elaborate gate. He cursed.
The cars sped by him as Xi studied the property. It was a beautiful old Victorian mansion with four floors. The only question was how he’d get in. When there was a gap in traffic, he ran over to get a closer look. Xi examined the windows carefully until—there. A series of windows lit up on the fourth floor. With a half-grin, he ran around the corner and scoured the area.
A large scaffolding hugged the side of the house next door, following the wall all the way to the top. He judged the distance between the two houses. It looked to be just under three meters, possibly four. It would be a challenging leap, but he had fared worse.
He jogged over to the other house, jumped the fence, and started to climb the scaffolding, his shoulder thumping with his heartbeat. When he reached the top, Xi walked to the edge and stared down at the abyss that opened under him. He yanked away one of the protective barriers and threw it to the side.
Now. It was time.
He took charge and tightened every muscle, then sprinted and jumped out into the darkness.
32
Something burned within him. Hugo stepped out into the frigid air, and the hair on his arms stood up.
A voice called out, “Hugo!” Mikko came running up the stairs to meet him. “What’s going on?”
“It was a trap,” Hugo said. “It was the scientists themselves who were the assassins. It was them.”
“What?”
Hugo shrugged. “I’ll explain later. The important thing right now is to get hold of Xi before he disappears again.”
Mikko turned and pointed to the park. “I don’t think you need to worry about that. I saw him run in there. With fire in his eyes.”
Hugo narrowed his eyes. “What? Xi Liu ran into the park? He didn’t have a waiting car?”
“Apparently not. He came out of the hotel five minutes ago and ran that way. I think he was following two guys who jumped out of that dark van and also ran into the park.”
Mikko pointed at the van. Its windows were tinted, so Hugo couldn’t tell if anyone was sitting in the driver’s seat, but as he stared at it, he got the distinct feeling that something about the van was wrong. He couldn’t put his finger on exactly what it was, but something had gotten his inner warning system going.
There was something else, too. His gaze glided over the surroundings and landed on the buckled red van that had pursued them on the highway. He froze.
“Mikko, look behind you. It’s the red van.”
Mikko’s eyes widened, and he pulled out his phone. “I’m calling the cops,” he said. Then, a moment later, he said into the receiver, “Yes, we need some help. There’s a red van sitting on the roadside, and the people in it are armed. Can you send a patrol at once to check them out?”
A few seconds passed before Mikko clicked off the call and put the phone back into his pocket. “They’re on their way,” he said.
Soon, a police patrol quietly surrounded the van. Hugo heard the harsh voices of the police officers.
“Open the doors! Come out with your hands in the air!”
Hugo tensed, expecting chaos, but nothing happened. Instead, the driver’s door opened, and a man stepped out and raised his hands. A couple of other men stepped out after him. Hugo glanced at Mikko.
“All right,” Mikko said, raising his hand for a high-five. “One down, one to go.”
Hugo slapped Mikko’s hand passively and said, “Call the police and see if they can surround the black van, too. Do it as imperceptibly as possible. It’s of the utmost importance that we don’t let any of these guys get away.”
“And you?”
“I have another task,” said Hugo. “See if you can get Sussie to search the area around Hyde Park for any room or apartment that has a connection to QuantumCorp. Have her send what she finds as quickly as possible.”
“Got it. Good luck.”
Hugo descended the stairs, and when a hole in the traffic arose, he ran across the road and into the park. The pathways were covered by a thin layer of snow, but he kept good speed. Xi was five minutes in front of him.
Hugo could only gamble that Sussie would find a lead he could use. He started to run faster, and before long, he spotted tracks in the snow. Judging by the step length, two men had run through here. Hugo followed their footprints, continuing through the park until he had reached the other side, straight across from the Oriental Mandarin.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. It was Sussie.
“Hey.”
“I might have something,” Sussie said.
“What did you find?”
“There’s an apartment not far from where you are now. The rent is paid by a company in the Caribbean called Entanglement Limited.” Sussie chuckled “Which means—”
“I know what it means—intertwining,” Hugo interrupted. “It must be a reference to QuantumCorp.”
“Exactly.”
“Good job, Sussie. Text me the address.”
“Sending it now.”
“Great. How are Mikko and Freya doing?”
“Mikko has got hold of a police officer, and it looks like the cops are surrounding the van now.”
“Excellent. Make sure you support them as much as possible.”
“And you?”
“I’m going to fix this once and for all.”
Hugo ended the call. He ran across the road and proceeded to the address Sussie had sent him. When he arrived, he stared up at the gorgeous, handcrafted gate.
Now what?
He yanked on the gate, but it was locked. He let his hand slide over all the buttons next to the doorway. A voice responded.
“Who’s there? Who is this?”
Hugo cleared his throat. “I’m from the pizzeria. I have a delivery.”
“Not for me—you must have the wrong apartment.”
Before Hugo could protest, the voice vanished. He cursed under his breath. He had to enter the gate now, before Xi got too much of a head start. He saw movement through the glass and saw two elderly women come out of the elevator, each carrying a small dog.
Hugo stepped aside as one of the ladies opened the gate and tried to get her dog out. Hugo took a step forward and smiled.
“Here. Let me help.”
He held the gate open for both of the ladies, who nodded apprehensively when they saw his bruised figure.
“Thank you, young man”, one of them said and raised an eyebrow, “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, thanks, I’m alright, it’s just been a rough evening.”
The lady nodded briefly, the dogs started japing and they quickly moved on. Hugo let go of the door as one of the ladies glanced back.
Hugo let the gate close but positioned his foot so that the lock wouldn’t engage. The old ladies disappeared around a corner, and Hugo pushed the gate open and slid through.
*
The pain echoed up and down his legs. Xi got up into a crouching position with a pounding headache. He must have fainted, he realized. His knees seared with pain from rolling after the landing. He stood and limped to the edge that looked over Hyde Park.
He leaned over the low wall. Far below him, cars swept past, unaware they were being watched. He leaned further out and saw the light still shining from the house’s top row of windows. Xi went through his options; none was better than the other. Klaus and his friend knew that Xi was on his way, and they’d had time to prepare. So no matter what, this was going to be difficult. He stared at the traffic, thinking, then turned around with a gleam in his eye. He knew what to do.
*
The smell of his sour sweat irritated him, and he groaned as the damp shirt stuck to his back. Klaus secured the weapon in his hand and weighed it. It was an excellent semiautomatic with enough power to stop a raging elephant. The door opened and Runner came in.
“Our men are on their way here. I’ve sent them the address—they should be here any time.”
“Good. Go through the apartment one more time and make sure everything is as it should be.”
“Sure thing.”
Runner closed the door behind him as he left the room. Klaus was in the office, and along one side was a large stone fireplace. A fire crackled in the hearth, spreading a warm glow. Klaus got closer and sat down in one of the armchairs in front of the fireplace. The heat stretched over him, and he rubbed his hands together until warmth slowly returned.
The Hugo Xavier Series: Book 1-3 Page 22
