The Child Thief 6: Zero Hour

by Forrest, Bella

  “I always tell you to live each night before a mission like it’s your last,” Nathan replied.

  Well, then don’t tell us we have an additional morning as well, I wanted to shout. But it was too late anyway. We were leaving for Chanley now, and I would just have to hope I’d get the chance to see all of my friends, and my mother, again.

  It felt deeply unfair, especially now that I knew how painful losing a team member truly was.

  “What about the planning?” Alexy asked. “I wasn’t at any of the meetings.”

  “It’s a good distance to Chanley, and we’ll all be riding together,” Nathan replied. “There will be time to talk on the way. Now, let’s go.”

  Nathan and the rest of the team leaders walked out of the administrative building’s overgrown yard, and we followed as they passed us. Soon we were all out on Brightbirch’s road, heading toward the tarmac. I looked around at our small team. Was this everyone? Just us against the entire capital city?

  But before I had time to ask, we were nearing the tarmac. There would be no more time for such questions now.

  21

  Jace laid his hand against the cool metal of the mini-airship. It was strange seeing it in the belly of a larger airship, and its presence was nerve-wracking. It meant that we were on our way to Chanley and would be getting up close and personal with the Authority again.

  And we hadn’t even heard all of the plan yet.

  “Admiring your valiant steed?” Nathan quipped as he approached us.

  “I’m just hoping I remember my lessons,” Jace replied, lifting his hand up off of the airship.

  I could sense that Jace was nervous about the mission. I didn’t want to say anything to him, but I was still confused by Nathan’s team appointments. Jace was a proven fighter but was new to the airship controls. Why place him there as opposed to the ground team?

  “I have faith in you,” Nathan told Jace. “And I have faith in Robin. I wouldn’t have chosen you two for this mission if I didn’t.”

  “But how are we going to do this?” I asked.

  I needed to know what Nathan had faith in. I was good at hiding and blending in, sure, so I could see why Nathan had chosen me in that regard. But I didn’t know what the plan was, and because of that I didn’t know if I was going to be able to succeed.

  “I chose each of you for your skills, Robin,” Nathan replied, turning directly to me. “Skills that I have seen each of you display in previous missions. I know for a fact that Jace is a remarkable pilot, even if he doesn’t have much experience. I’ve observed the same from Alexy. And I know that Luka and Zion have proven themselves in combat.”

  “That leaves Bridge and me,” I said.

  Bridge and Luka had walked over to us to listen while Alexy and Zion manned the airship, and Nathan looked over at Bridge and nodded.

  “Bridge is better under pressure than anyone else,” Nathan said. “If things go south then he’ll be able to think on his feet to provide medical assistance, which might save all of your lives. Besides, he’s not bad with a weapon, either.”

  Typical Nathan vagueness, but I assumed that if Nathan had chosen Bridge then he was a lot better than just “not bad.”

  “Then that just leaves me,” I said. It was starting to feel like everyone was here for a reason and had a distinct purpose. But what was mine? What could I do to help this mission?

  Nathan took a step toward me. “I’ve seen you on missions as well, Robin. In fact, you’ve saved my life before.”

  The room was absolutely still and quiet as Nathan spoke. I hadn’t told many people about what had happened in the control room at Smally. And it seemed like Nathan hadn’t either.

  “And what I need from you is your aim,” Nathan finished.

  “My aim?” I repeated, confused.

  “You’re a quick thinker and a good shot, Robin,” he replied. “Especially under pressure. And I need someone like that in Chanley.”

  I was taken aback. I had shot people, that was true. It wasn’t a fact that I was particularly proud of. And I knew that I had better aim than people had expected me to have. But that didn’t make me some kind of virtuoso.

  “Who am I going to be shooting?” I asked cautiously.

  I had come to save Aurora, and I knew that it meant that people would die. But I had never been a fan of shooting people, as my recurring nightmares back in Edgewood had proven.

  “Well, since we’re on our way now,” Nathan started, “it’s definitely time to start discussing the mission.” He raised his voice to reach the front of the airship. “Zion and Alexy?”

  The two turned from their controls to face Nathan.

  “Are you two at a point where you can hit the autopilot?” he asked.

  Alexy looked at Zion and then back to Nathan. She nodded and pushed a few buttons on the control panel, and then the two of them walked back to join us.

  “Chanley is the capital city of the United Nation of America, which I assume you all know. But you might not know the layout,” Nathan said.

  I listened intently. I needed to know this, and not just for the Aurora mission. I would have to come back here someday for Hope.

  “The government leaders are situated in several buildings in the capital proper, which is strictly a government district and is surrounded by high walls. There are some residential zones within those walls, but outside of the capital are the wealthiest suburbs in the country. Everyone who lives in and around Chanley is wealthy and protected, since it’s filled with regime authorities and the ultra-elite. We’re going into a hostile environment, to say the least. And every agent present at the execution this evening will be looking for us,” Nathan went on. “So let’s not let them find us.”

  “How are we going to stay hidden? I don’t have a working identity,” I told Nathan nervously. I knew he knew that already, but I wanted to know how we were planning to work around that.

  “Neither do I,” Luka added.

  I glanced at Jace and Alexy, who were also shaking their heads. We’d all given up our identities when we came to work for Little John. None of us had a scannable ID, which meant we’d all be caught if there were agents with scanners in the crowd.

  “They won’t be scanning identities. This is a heavily publicized and hyped-up public execution in Chanley’s square. There will be far too many people there to scan them all,” Nathan replied.

  That was good to hear. I wasn’t going all the way to Chanley to be tossed into a federal prison when they figured out who I was, and who I wasn’t. I still had too much to accomplish.

  “Seems dangerous to try to rescue someone during a public execution with that many people present,” Alexy said.

  “Except none of those people are going to be there to help the government,” Nathan said. “Of course, that doesn’t mean they’ll help us, either. They’ll just run, back to their mansions and their legacies. It’s not the crowd we have to worry about. It’s the agents.”

  “And how will we do that?” Jace asked.

  “You’ll all be going in dressed in your best, to blend in. And since we won’t have to worry about individual security checks, you’ll be able to carry weapons and wear your second-skin suits as well. And the five-hour masks,” Nathan said.

  I was relieved to hear that we weren’t going to have to go in as vulnerable as we had been in the Helping Hands detention center. If we had only been wearing our second-skin suits there, Kory would probably still be alive. And while we were still at risk of losing more team members, the armor was a good sign.

  “Aurora will be on a platform over the crowd, if I remember correctly how Chanley likes to do their public executions,” Nathan went on. “The ground team will take out as many agents as they can. We will take out the executioner. Then Alexy and Jace will open the doors of the airship over Aurora and pull her up, before flying low enough for the ground team to access the ladders as well. Then you make it back to the escape ship together.”

  Nathan st
opped and looked around at all of us.

  Was that . . . it? He made it sound so simple.

  “How will we position ourselves to take out agents and the executioner?” Bridge asked.

  “There are four of you, and there are three main entrances to the public square, where agents will be positioned. The fourth person will take out the executioner,” Nathan answered. “That will be you, Robin.”

  The team turned to look at me. I nodded at Nathan, even though I was feeling frightened and unsure. I had never faced a task like this before. Was Nathan that confident in my abilities just because I had saved his life once and managed to aim accurately while on a moving motorcycle before? But it was too late to go back now, and Nathan obviously thought I was the best person for the job.

  “How do we get in?” I asked.

  “There’s a car waiting for you outside of town. You’ll drive in together and enter the public square like all of the other spectators. The only difference is that you won’t be there to watch Aurora die. You’ll be there to save her life,” Nathan said.

  “Nathan,” Alexy said suddenly, cocking her head toward the airship windshield.

  “Ah, of course,” Nathan said. He was beginning to look more and more tense and nervous as we approached our final destination. “You and Zion go ahead and get back on the controls. I’ll help everyone else get prepared.”

  Alexy and Zion walked to the front of the airship and turned autopilot off.

  Nathan turned back to the rest of us and spoke flatly and with a blank expression. I could see the fear in his eyes. “Welcome to Chanley.”

  * * *

  Once the mini-airship had been flown out of the main cabin, we found ourselves standing outside in the late afternoon.

  “Have you ever seen anything like that?” Jace asked.

  We were looking at a luxurious cherry-red convertible sitting on a dirt road a few hundred yards off the interstate.

  “We had one,” I replied. “But ours was blue.”

  Jace looked over at me in shock. Only it wasn’t Jace’s face anymore. It was the face of a younger, plain-looking man who was dressed in fineries befitting a Chanley citizen.

  “It certainly matches these dumb clothes,” Alexy said, her face also obscured by a mask. She was pulling at the petticoats of her lilac-colored dress in distaste. “Why do we have to wear these again, if we’re going to be on the mini-airship?”

  “Precautions,” Nathan replied, standing in the open hatch of the main airship with Sy. “If something happens and you find yourselves out in the crowd, you’ll be glad to have a disguise.”

  We were all preparing to set off on our short drive to Chanley together, and the atmosphere was fraught with tension. Jace in particular seemed unhappy to be leaving me on the ground team while he was in the relative safety of the mini-airship.

  “Everyone dressed and ready?” Nathan asked.

  We nodded. We were definitely dressed, but I wasn’t so sure about feeling ready.

  “It’s a straight shot to Chanley. Follow the signs. Have the car valeted and then take your positions in the square,” Nathan said. “We’ll be here when you return.”

  Nathan paused then, and we all looked over at him, expecting him to go on. But instead he was standing and staring out at us with a stoic expression. I wondered what he was thinking. Was he concerned for our safety on this mission? Was he worried we wouldn’t be able to save Aurora in time? Or was he proud of what we were doing?

  But he didn’t say anything else. He nodded at us, and then the airship hatch shut and the finality of our decision set in. It was time to head into Chanley, the capital city of our enemies, and try to snatch a Little John member back from their grasp.

  “Hope at least one of you guys knows how to drive,” Alexy teased.

  “You just worry about that ship of yours,” Zion replied with a wink. “I’ll be driving this little beauty.”

  “Men and their cars,” Alexy said to me, rolling her eyes.

  “When are you guys leaving?” I asked Alexy, looking between her and Jace.

  “Now,” she replied confidently. “We’ll keep an eye on the roads and see you guys into the capital, just in case something goes wrong and we need to swoop down and save you.”

  Alexy popped the hatch on the airship with the handheld remote and entered. Jace lingered by the hatch.

  “Be safe,” he told me.

  “I’ll do my best,” I replied.

  My heart had started to race as soon as we had landed. Even now, in Jace’s comforting presence, it wasn’t slowing. Probably because I knew he was about to leave without me.

  He leaned forward and gently kissed my forehead. When he pulled back, he placed one of his large hands against my cheek.

  “I love you,” he said softly.

  “I love you, too,” I echoed, my voice cracking at the end and threatening to give way to a sob. I was so afraid of losing Jace because I could no longer imagine a life without him.

  Zion sauntered over beside us. “How much longer is this romantic moment going to last?” he asked with a smile. “Because we have a mission to begin.”

  Jace smiled and then looked back at me once more with his loving, honey-colored eyes. Then he walked up the hatch and into the airship without me. It closed with a hiss and then, like magic, became invisible as the stealth mode was flipped on.

  “If only our car could do that,” Luka said, his mouth agape as he stared at the place where the airship had been. And maybe it was still there. It was almost entirely silent, which was going to come in handy when it lowered down over the executioner’s platform.

  “Let’s go,” Zion said. “I’m driving.”

  We piled in, uncomfortable in our fine clothes, and Zion turned the key in the ignition. He revved the engine, and we took off down the dirt road and back onto the interstate toward Chanley. I sat in the passenger seat, and Bridge and Luka sat in the back seat. It was much warmer in Chanley than it had been in Brightbirch, so the convertible top was a welcome feature.

  The wind blew through our hair, rustling our capital-appropriate ruffles and long skirts, for several wordless miles. The combination of nerves and the roar of the convertible made conversation almost impossible. But as we exited the interstate for Chanley and began to drive slower, the drive became more suitable for talk.

  “So this is where the bad guys live,” Bridge said as we drove under a large marble arch with CHANLEY carved into it. The roads in the city were paved and new, so our convertible was able to drive smoothly over them. People walked in groups, dressed in their best, along the wide cobbled sidewalks beside the road. Stately trees, lampposts, and topiaries lined the roads. White government buildings stood tall on either side of us as we headed to the public square.

  “Sure looks like Chanley people like watching executions,” Luka said. “They’re all dressed up.”

  “Well, they think they’re hanging a traitor,” I replied.

  “So you don’t think Nathan’s broadcast worked on these people?” Zion asked me.

  “Who knows?” I replied. “If it did, they’re probably too smart to show it. Chanley is the last place you’d want to seem unpatriotic.”

  The crowd grew thicker as we approached an entrance to the square. Just like Nathan had predicted, there was a large group of agents watching as people entered. They were gathered into groups and talking amongst themselves as they looked ominously out over the spectators.

  They were looking for us.

  “Agents,” I said, narrowing my eyes to stare at the group of armed men.

  A valet attendant approached Zion as our convertible slowed to a stop up against the sidewalk that led into the square. A line of cars went on before and behind us, and rich people were stepping out and handing their keys to the well-dressed valet drivers.

  “Here for the show?” the teenaged valet asked.

  Zion looked over at me with a knowing glance. “We sure are,” he replied.

  We s
tepped onto the sidewalk of Chanley and began to walk into the square along with the rest of the crowd. I counted the agents as we passed them.

  “Seven,” I said aloud, quietly.

  “I’ll take this entrance,” Luka said.

  “Have you ever shot seven men before?” Bridge asked.

  Luka shook his head no. “Not at the same time,” he said. “So let’s hope Alexy and Jace are quick about this.”

  As I entered the square, I saw that Nathan was right. There were three entrances, each with roughly the same number of agents. The executioner’s platform was positioned against the back of a government building. It was empty so far. But the square itself was full of thousands of rich people, talking and laughing as if they weren’t about to watch a woman die. Or as if they were excited about it.

  “I’ll take the east exit,” Zion said. “Which leaves the south exit for you, Bridge.”

  Bridge nodded.

  “I guess you’ll be heading to the front and middle, Robin,” Luka said.

  I looked into the crowd, my heart racing wildly. I was going to be in the most vulnerable position of us all. There would be throngs of people around me, and when I took out my gun and aimed at the executioner, I would immediately become a target. Would the agents have time to home in on me if Zion, Luka, and Bridge didn’t take them all out? Or would the crowd be brave enough to turn on me first?

  And how would I escape if the crowd latched on to me?

  The rest of the ground team had daunting tasks of their own. From what I could see, it looked like they were going to have to shoot or otherwise occupy seven or eight agents apiece. But even though I had only one target, I was worried that it would be the toughest shot of them all.

  Zion’s hand came down on my shoulder.

  “We have faith in you, Robin,” he said. Luka and Bridge nodded beside him. “Shoot true. Good luck.”

  I nodded and then turned back to the crowd.

  My team had faith in me. Nathan had faith in me. But did I have faith in myself?

  Because if I missed, Aurora would die.