I gave an uneasy laugh. The bartender didn’t realize it, but he had helped confirm the man’s story. Unless it was all some elaborate set-up.
I waited until the bartender had gone back to the bar before I spoke again. “So let’s say we think there’s an important story in the factory dome, but we don’t know for sure until we get a closer look inside. How would we do that?”
He looked around at all of us. “How many of you? All of you?”
“Four of us.”
The man took a long drink and smacked his lips. He set the glass down. “Interesting. I could arrange that, along with the equipment you’d need, as long as I can come with you. And if there is a story there, I’ll be the first to tell it.”
A story meant our names would be out in the open, and what we’d been doing would become public. My grandfather wouldn’t like it. Did we need the man? We could probably get through the vactram system on our own. But if we didn’t work with him, what would he do? Go ahead and put out some vague story about us? Our names would get out either way.
I looked around at the others. Lainie gave a tiny nod of her head.
Nic stuck her chin out. “We’re going to check you out first.”
“Do all the checking you need.” He pushed back his chair and stood up. “You’ll see I am who I say I am.”
“Okay,” I said. “Meet us back here tomorrow morning. What time does this place open?”
Illarion laughed. “It never closes.”
“Then meet us at nine standard time. We’ll let you know by then.” That would give us enough time to make sure Decker was going to be hired to get inside.
“Good. You won’t regret it.”
I wasn’t sure about that. I wasn’t sure about anything anymore.
“Let’s get back to the ship so we can talk about this without our friendly bartender listening in,” Lainie said. I looked over. The bartender was cleaning the same spot on the bar closest to our table over and over again.
We went back, Decker carrying a dilapidated tech bot with him. I had been so focused on Illarion, I hadn’t noticed that Decker and Lainie had managed to find the kind of bot she wanted for her plan. I still had my doubts Samson would be able to act like a simple tech bot. I could see the MI blurting out a question at the worst moment.
Illarion turned out to be who he said he was. He had articles published by several different media companies, though most of the early ones were basic human-interest stories. The more recent ones took a turn, focusing on corrupt government officials at the local level and minor government scandals. Once Illarion found out Ansun was at the dome, it would definitely be the biggest story of his career.
After a long debate about his offer, Lainie, Decker, and I were for letting Illarion work with us. Javen and Nic were opposed.
“We go ahead,” I said. “Three to two. Neither of you have to come along.”
“Will you stop doing that?” Nic said. “Of course we’re coming along. Your confidence that you can do this without us is getting on my nerves.”
“Just giving you an out if you want it,” I said. “Don’t blame me if it doesn’t work out perfectly. I can’t guarantee anything.”
“We know that!”
“Good. So we’ll meet Mira first, send Decker off, and then go right to the Star Palace,” I said.
“Quinn, you shouldn’t go with Decker to meet Mira,” Lainie said. “Decker should go alone.”
“Why?” I knew I would only see her for a few minutes, but I’d been counting on those minutes.
“Because you aren’t a very good actor. The look on your face when we were talking to Mira totally gave you away. It’s a good thing it was so dark inside, or the bartender would have known you weren’t strangers. Besides, she won’t come alone, and it’s likely whomever she’s with will recognize you.”
I didn’t want to agree, but I gave in. Lainie was right. I could hardly contain my frustration. Mira was so close, yet so, so far away from me.
I tried to focus on anything we were missing. “Lainie, once Samson is inside, can he get into their systems and look for any new tech specifications for the MIs?”
“It depends,” she said. “If another MI that is working better than him has set up a firewall, he might not be advanced enough to overcome it. I’ll ask him to try though.”
In the hours that followed, I spent the time talking to Wren about where we could take Mira’s sister to get some medical help. Since the girl wouldn’t have any identification, we couldn’t take her to a regular hospital unless we got Samson to give her a new identity. I hadn’t figured out how we were going to convince Divana to take Mira and Cadia without the tech specs she wanted, but I hoped once we were in the facility, I could convince Samson to come up with something that looked real enough to pass.
I think everyone managed to get a few hours of sleep. When I woke up, I nearly fell out of my hammock at the sight of Decker. Nic had done an amazing job. His blondish hair had been dyed black and cut short, and his eyebrows darkened so that even without a weave they made his face look different. Nic had added some subtle coloring to his face which made him look older and kind of frightening. I was impressed.
We all went to the cockpit to wait until it was time for Decker and Samson to leave. Lainie had taken out some of the interior workings in the tech bot to make room for Samson in sphere form and for a hidden gabber.
“Now remember, Samson,” Lainie said. “Tech bots don’t ask questions.”
Samson’s voice came through the sound screen on the side of the bot. “I’ll remember. I shall record everything so I can ask questions later. This is all very exciting!”
“Let’s go,” Decker said. “I’m counting the hours until this is all over.”
It wasn’t until Decker was down the ramp and walking through the port with Samson that I began to get nervous. I was sure Decker would be hired, but once inside the dome, he’d be on his own except for Mira.
“What is Samson doing?” Nic said. The bot was lurching about.
“He decided since the tech bot is supposed to be in poor shape, it shouldn’t move smoothly,” Lainie explained. The bot bumped into Decker, who nearly fell down.
“Samson may be overdoing it a bit,” I said.
“Why do I have a feeling this is going to be a disaster?” Nic asked.
“It will work,” Lainie said. She smiled, but her voice was a little trembly.
“It will,” I added. “It has to.”
An hour later we headed to the Star Palace. I was surprised to see a few customers there that early. Even one of the musicians was in his regular spot, though he was playing with his eyes closed.
Illarion came in a few minutes after us. As soon as he sat down, I said, “All right. You’re in. We need to get close to the dome, and soon. By tomorrow if possible.”
We couldn’t leave Decker in there very long. Every minute just increased the chances someone would figure out he didn’t belong.
“Are you going to fill me in on the background? Who is in there?” Illarion asked.
“Not until we’re there,” Nic said. “If we tell you now, you could pass along that information to people who might make it difficult for us to get there. That’s our condition.”
The bartender, a different one, called over to us. “Can’t stay here unless you’re ordering something.”
“Bring all of us some sbiten. And make sure it’s hot,” Illarion said. “Good drink, you’ll like it,” he said to us.
I couldn’t think about drinking anything at the moment. “We’re planning on going through the vactram tube.”
Illarion shook his head. “Can’t. It’s broken in several spots, and those breaches will be filled in with snow. It would take days to dig our way through each snow blockage. I asked my grandfather about some options last night.”
I felt a moment of fear. “You told him about us? What if he talks to someone?”
&
nbsp; “He won’t. He knows as long as I might get a good story, no one can know what I’m working on. I asked him about the rumors of tunnels leading to the domes. When I was a kid we used to plot schemes to find them and get into the domes, but we never did anything but talk. He said he’d heard the same rumors but never found out if they actually existed. He had a better idea. We go overland to the vactram breach closest to the dome. Then we use it.”
“But that opening will be blocked too,” Nic said.
“Yes, we’ll have to do a bit of digging. Just in one place though. We’ll take the right equipment with us.”
The bartender brought over a tray of steaming drinks in mugs. “Planning a little expedition?” he said.
I started, thinking he had overheard us.
“You can always recognize the tourist hunters, can’t you, Efrem?” Illarion said.
The man smiled. “Well, with this bunch, what else would they be?”
Illarion laughed. “Right. I’m going to be their guide. Wouldn’t want tourists getting lost in the wild. Gives us a bad name.”
“How’s your grandfather?” the bartender asked him.
I suppressed a groan. We didn’t have time for a long conversation.
“Much better,” Illarion said. “That’s why I’m able to take off for a few days.”
The door opened, and I was relieved to see two men enter. The bartender would have to leave us alone to deal with them. “Glad to hear that,” he said to Illarion. “Give him my best. I’ll look forward to seeing him back in his regular seat. Better get back to work now.” He went back to the bar.
Illarion took a sip of his drink. “Ah, this is one of the things I miss most when I’m not here.” He set the mug down. “Now, let’s talk about equipment. You’re going to need the right kind of weapons, not only because we want the people who see us setting off to believe we’re going hunting, but for safety too. I don’t know what you’ve been told, but the animals in the forbidden zone are far more aggressive than ones in nonradioactive areas.”
“I thought that was just a rumor, something to make it seem more exciting and dangerous. Do they actually go after humans?” I asked. “In nonradioactive areas, it would be rare for the species that live here to bother humans, except for the occasional leopard. And bears go after your food way more often than they go after you.”
“It happens here. I have a theory. If we come across any of those animals, you’ll see how thin they are. The long-term exposure to radiation has either sped up their metabolism or made them unable to get enough nutrients from their food. They don’t keep weight on, and they are desperate for food. They would be pitiful if they weren’t so dangerous in that state.”
I knew the thought of starving animals was going to haunt me. I didn’t want to be the person with the weapons.
“Where are we going to get weapons?” Nic asked.
I’d thought we might be able to convince Divana to let us use some of the raiders’ supply, but since Nic was asking, I took it to mean that probably wasn’t an option.
“There’s a place that sells reproduction vintage weapons along with modern ones,” Illarion said. “Some hunters go for the old-fashioned safari idea and buy the vintage ones, but I recommend modern. If a bear is coming at you fast, you want something that will stop him instantly.”
“Can we rent some hover transports to get there? I really don’t want to trek through the snow on foot,” I said.
“Can’t use hover transports in the winter. It kicks up too much snow. We’ll have to go the old-fashioned way.”
“And what’s that?” Javen asked.
“Snow sliders, smaller ones. We can’t take big ones because the forest is too dense, and we don’t want to go on the main track. We’d be spotted. We’ll need at least two for all of us and our gear.”
“Do you know how to operate them?”
He took another sip of his drink. “Yes, but one of you is going to have to pilot the other one.”
“I’ll do it,” Nic said.
“Have you ever piloted one?” Illarion asked.
“No, but how hard can it be? I’ve piloted other small craft and vehicles.”
“She’ll manage,” I said. “What do we do first?”
“Follow me.” Ilarion took a last sip of his drink and stood up. “You’re paying, I presume?”
We spent the rest of the morning collecting equipment. It was a good thing Fade had sent so much currency, because we spent a big chunk of it. I basically let Illarion pick out what we needed, and then we divided everything we weren’t going to wear into backpacks he picked out for us.
After a few hours Lainie got edgy, and that affected all of us.
“We should have heard from Decker by now,” she said.
“We’ll hear soon,” I said, hoping that was true.
By the time we loaded the supplies in the rented snow sliders, Lainie was so nervous she couldn’t stop moving. I didn’t know what to tell her. I was getting nervous too.
“I think we have everything,” Illarion said. “We should set off at first light. If all goes well, it will only take us an hour or so to get to the vactram tunnel, but I don’t know how long it will take us from there. We should leave ourselves plenty of daylight. Artificial light might attract attention.”
“We’ll be there,” I said. Even if we hadn’t heard from Decker by then, we’d have to go ahead. If he didn’t contact us, that would mean he’d been identified, and we’d have to get him out too.
Once we were back on board the Paradox, Lainie’s gabber finally buzzed. She tuned it so we all could hear.
“I’m in,” Decker whispered. “But I’m restricted to one level, the maintenance area. They’ve installed bunks for the outside workers. Someone said they bring food down to us.”
“How tight is the security?”
“Not very, from what I can see. Samson is going to get into the system and evaluate it. All the temporary workers have restrictions on where they can go, depending on what job they have. Except I’m not sure anyone is really paying attention. The place is really rundown, and there aren’t enough people to do all the work. They can’t get the temperature right. It’s cold in here, and the Fosaanians I’ve seen look fairly miserable.”
“I can believe that,” Javen said. “I haven’t felt warm since we landed, and I have the right clothing.”
“Can you get us in?” Lainie asked Decker.
“I haven’t been able to look at the entrance where the vactrams used to enter. It’s one level down. I’ll have to wait until nighttime and see if I can get close.”
“How many non-Fosaanians are there?”
“Quite a few on the maintenance level. The Fosaanians act as supervisors, but all the people doing the work are outsiders. Probably fifty or so.”
“Okay, I’ll contact you when we are close,” Lainie said. “Be careful.”
The gabber went silent. Lainie didn’t say anything. She got up and walked over to the loom, staring down at the partially finished weave as if it was the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen.
“I’ll go with you if you want,” Wren told Lainie. “Maybe I can be a help.”
Lainie looked over at me. I think we both realized what an act of bravery it took Wren to even offer. I’d finally realized that whatever had scared Wren about being around people she didn’t know had made her confine herself on the ship.
“No, it’s better if you stay here,” Lainie said. “We might need to make a quick getaway, so the ship needs to be ready.” She laughed. “And who knows, we might need you to blast someone.”
Wren actually grinned at that. “Any time,” she said.
Chapter Nineteen
The next morning I pulled Lainie aside while the others went to get something to eat before we left. “I don’t think we should come back to the ship once we get Mira and Cadia out. I don’t want to put them into Divana’s hands. She’d try to use
them as much as Ansun would. We’ll ask Illarion how to get a passage on another ship. But I don’t know if we should tell the others right now.”
“No, don’t tell Nic. I don’t trust her. Javen will go with Mira and Cadia, whatever happens. That’s why Fade sent him along. Decker and I don’t have anything we’d be sorry to leave behind. He’s got his carine on him, and I’ll take the bag to carry Samson if I have to. What are you going to do about Mags?”
“I don’t know. Wren would take care of her, but I hate to leave her behind. It might go just as badly as when I left Mags with Riley.”
“I trust Wren,” Lainie said. “Don’t you?”
“Yes, but should we tell her we won’t be coming back?”
“Yes. She’ll be in contact with us. Maybe she can get Manny to bring Mags to us. He’ll do anything for her.”
“He will?” I hadn’t noticed them ever even talking.
“Yes, and he’s not the only one. She’s like a little sister to them. But I think Manny would be the one to take some action. Let me talk to her. Divana won’t get so suspicious if she sees me with Wren. It seems like everything you do makes her nervous.”
“Okay.” I glanced over at Mags’s cage. She was sleeping again. She’d been sleeping even more than usual, and it worried me. I told myself as soon as this was all over, I’d get Mags to my grandmother, to a place where the bird wouldn’t have to be moved around. We just had to make it through the next several hours.
We met Illarion right when the sun was coming up over the horizon. He’d given us directions to his grandfather’s house, which stood on the outskirts of the town. It was a fairly good-sized house and though it was old, it was in good repair. Illarion was waiting for us on the front porch. He took us around to the back of the house where he’d parked the snow sliders.
“Who’s best with weapons?” Illarion asked.
“I am,” Nic said.
“I am too,” Javen added.
“I don’t think he means your little knife,” Nic said to Javen.
Javen gave her such a deadly look I thought Nic should be a little concerned with her own life and limbs.
Paradox Hunt Page 20
