“Do you know where our people are being held?”
Henson nods solemnly. “Birchwood Holding Facility,” he says. By the looks on the faces of Harris and Rudy, this is the worst place they could be.
“Are you sure?”
“I checked myself. I didn't want to be wrong again.”
Rudy nods tersely. “Very well.”
“There's something else. I was talking to some of the other guards at the facility. It's all just rumour, of course, but–”
“Spit it out.”
“Due to the rising sympathy for Phoenix, they suspect the captives are likely to be quietly executed or infected and released... into the outskirts, this time. They don't want a big show.”
A collective breath is sucked from the room. My head spins with a vision of Nick, covered in purple splotches, standing in another ruined street while panic fires around him.
“I see. Thank you for the intel, Henson, you may leave now.” Rudy gestures to sentry to escort him out.
“Wait–” Harris wheels forward and grabs his arm. “You shouldn't go back to the city. It could be dangerous–”
“The longer I stay, the more danger I'm in,” he says, “but I have to go back. My life is there.”
“You could have a life here.”
Henson stares at him, the ghost of a smile flickering in the corner of his lips. “Someday, brother, I sincerely hope I can. But not now. I can still do some good for you yet.”
He pulls away his hand, and disappears down the corridor.
Rudy turns back to Harris and Abi. “Well?” he says. “You've got the location. How soon can you get me some numbers?”
“We can have a plan formulated within a couple of hours.”
“Anything you know you'll need for certain?”
“Two vans,” says Harris quickly. “And as much firepower as you can spare.”
Rudy turns to Ben. “Do you know Jenn, from the armoury?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Go and find her. Bring her. Quick as you can.”
“OK!” Ben speeds off, glad to finally have something to do. Harris and Abi move off next.
Rudy next looks to Mi. “Go to Julia. Tell her what's going on. Get some supplies ready. Be back here in two hours.”
Mi rushes off without another word, leaving me alone with Rudy.
“So... you're going to trust me now?” I ask hesitantly.
“I figured you must be back for a reason.”
I swallow. “Nick,” I say quietly.
Rudy rolls his eyes. “Figures. Boy's besotted with you as well. I've known him for close on ten years now; he's a good judge of character. Sees things in people they don't see themselves...” His eyes glaze, just for a moment, and I realise he's not just talking about me. “Besides which, I'm not entirely sure I have another choice right now. It's trust you or let them die.”
He loves them, I realise suddenly. Whatever his misgivings are against me, he loves his people. A part of me thinks he's foolish for letting so many people in, but another part of me admires him. I would do no less for Mi, Abi and Ben. Can I blame him for caring for a family larger than mine?
“Go and find Scarlet,” he orders. “She'll want to be in on this. Tell her to round up our best fighters. I'm not sure how many we'll need, but I want as much time as possible to prepare. I'll see you in two hours.”
Chapter 31
I go immediately to the gym. There is nowhere else I am needed at present, and I absolutely must do something. I set up an insane obstacle course and run it as fast as I can, ending it with a vicious assault on the trio of dummies stacked by the side. Then I do it again in record time. The monumental clock on the wall is soundless, but I hear it ticking nonetheless. How many hours away is this facility? How long have our people been there already?
Our people. I told myself I came here for Nick, but I don’t want the rest of them suffering either. I remember the sniffling, the wailing, as Rudy announced each name. They’re all somebody’s Nick. They all don’t deserve to die like that man in the market place.
And one already has.
Twenty minutes after I’ve set up, Scarlet comes to join me with a handful of other people. She introduces them briefly. “Chuck, Blue, Jack, Odine, Thor,” she says, each bobbing their head or raising a hand in turn. “They’ll be assisting us in the mission. They’re our best fighters.”
I try not to judge by appearances, but it’s easy to believe this about Chuck and Jack. Chuck looks like a baby giant. He has a big, round face with massive eyes, but is nearly seven feet tall and has muscles the size of hams. Jack is shorter and leaner, but strong as an ox. Blue is small, but has a lot of muscle packed into an otherwise willowy frame. She looks flexible, swift. The only two it’s hard to see this in is Thor and Odine. They’re young –perhaps fourteen or so– with the same beetle-dark eyes and pitch-black hair. Twins, I assume. They remind me of a pair of birds, and look like they could give flight at any moment.
“Ashe?” Scarlet asks, cutting short my appraisal. “What would you like us to do?”
If I’m surprised to be deferred to, I do not show it. I jab my thumb towards the obstacle course. “Start running it.”
None of them match my speed, but the twins make a very good go of it. The older boys are slower, but make quick work of the dummies. Blue is probably the best overall. I spar with each of them in turn, testing their strengths. They’re all capable, hopefully better than the average Lucan guard. Hopefully as good as their soldiers. The twins take me on together, and I realise this is their style. One distracts while the other attacks. They’re very efficient, each reading the other’s move before it happens.
Gabe and I used to fight like that. Mi and Gabe, too. No matter how much I’ve trained with the others, it’s never matched the symmetry I shared with him. It never will.
Eventually, we head back to the study.
Harris, Rudy and Abi are already there, pouring over the blueprints of what must be the facility. Mi arrives not long after we do. He makes his way towards my side and whispers in my ear.
“Are the building plans as scary as the silence in the room would suggest?”
“It’s a fortress.”
“Great. Glad I didn’t volunteer to storm it. Oh, wait…”
Rudy glares at him, and then realises how ineffective this tactic is likely to be and hisses at him instead. Mi has already fallen silent. He can feel Rudy’s eyes.
“As most of you can tell, Birchwood is highly secure building. It is well-guarded and tightly patrolled. They may well be expecting us.”
“Can we be sure this isn’t another trap?” Blue pipes up.
“No,” says Rudy stonily. “But I am uncomfortable with the alternative. You are our finest, but everything you do here is purely voluntary. If you do not wish to go, please say so now.”
His gaze lingers a little longer on the twins, and I know he’s unhappy with the thought of ones so young placed in such a situation. The twins seem to register this.
“No way, we volunteered!” says Odine.
Her brother finishes. “Those are our people, man!”
“Very well. Harris?”
Harris comes forward. “This is not going to be a stealth mission,” he explains. “But timing is of the utmost importance. If we don’t get everyone out quickly, the building will be flooded with every guard in the city and escape will be impossible.”
“So we have to storm it carefully,” Abi takes over. “One van will be disguised as government issue. It will go straight to the front gate and cause a distraction. The second van will be positioned at this corner–” she points to a nearby street– “Mi and Ashe will be in this one. They will scale the wall, then the tower. There is an access point on the roof.”
“Guarded?”
“No. But it’s a reinforced steel door.”
“I hate to sound like a weak little kitty-cat,” I interject, “but the last time I checked, I couldn’t quite break one of
those down.” I could barely dent it, truth be told.
“Which is why you’ll be blowing it up.”
“Sweet!” says Thor, and then looks down abashedly.
Scarlet raises a hand. “Won’t that bring everybody a-running?”
“Hopefully they’ll be distracted by the ruckus at the gate. It will be a controlled explosion. Ashe and Mi will slip inside, everyone else will pool into the yard. I will take down the sentries on the wall. Guards will be drawn into the fray outside, hopefully partially clearing the way for Mi and Ashe to locate the captives and bust them out.”
“I’m understanding it so far,” says Jack, “but how do we avoid and all-out bloodbath in the yard?”
“With a lot of smoke grenades, stun guns, a heavily armoured vehicle, not acting like an idiot, and luck.”
“Well, I’m a big fan of not being an idiot…” Jack agrees.
I don’t like it. I’m OK with my role, I’m used to fighting in tight corners and if Abi’s plan works, we shouldn’t encounter a huge amount of resistance. But I don’t like so many people being outside, exposed in the open. It seems too risky… and what if the guards don’t abandon their posts? What if plenty stay inside? What if Mi gets hurt and I have to get him out? What if the opposite happens, and he’s there practically defenceless?
“Can I have one more with me?” I ask Abi.
Abi quickly runs some calculations in her head. “It makes little difference to the chances of success,” she says. “Who can scale a wall quickly?”
The twins, Scarlet and Blue raise their hands.
“Take Scarlet,” Rudy orders. I can tell he wants, if at all possible, to keep the twins in the van the entire time. He’ll probably ask whoever’s in charge of the vehicle to try and make sure that happens. I know I would, if it were Ben in there. I know I’m not happy with Abi being on the walls, taking out the guards. Stun guns or bullets? One is a lot more efficient, a lot quicker. She’ll know this.
“Are there any further questions?” Harris asks. “I’ll brief the gate team on the way.”
No one says anything more; I think we are all keen to move. Rudy gives the order, and we go down to the hangar. Two vans are waiting, already being stocked by a burly-looking woman with dark silver hair. Jenn, I assume, the armoury master. Ben is her ever-willing assistant. He grins when he sees us come in, but his face drops when it settles on mine. He must still be mad at me for snapping at him.
There are a few words and then everyone starts piling into the vans. I hang back a bit to ask Jenn to watch over Ben for me. She assures me she'll find him something to do. I try to talk to him, but he doesn't want to talk, so I just tell him to be good and we'll be back as quick as we can. I don't think he believes me. I think about talking Mi or Abi into staying with him, but it's too last minute. They're as committed as I am. It feels all kinds of wrong though, leaving him behind.
Scarlet, Harris, Abi and Mi pour into one of the vans, the non-government issue. A driver is already stationed in the front, but not one I recognise. The other five climb into theirs. Twelve people, all in all. Is Rudy right to send so many on a mission to rescue so few? Or is this the smallest number that offers us a decent chance of success?
Trust in Abi's numbers, a voice reminds me.
We close the doors and drive off.
Chapter 32
Henson lets us in through the gates again. I wonder what he risks, every time he does this. Someone must know what he's doing, or they'll figure it out soon. Does he rely on bribery to keep him safe, or are there others that share his views? Does he know he's living on borrowed time?
We enter the city without much trouble, and are a good few minutes in before Mi tries to lighten the mood.
“I can't see anything– are we there yet?”
Abi punches him in the arm.
“Yeah, I deserved that.”
“We could play a game of I-spy, if you're bored?” Scarlet offers.
“I like you. You're funny."
“I spy with my little eye, something beginning with S–”
“Spanner," Mi says, not missing a beat.
Scarlet blinks. “How–? How did you–?”
“There's a tool box banging about in the corner, it was a good guess.”
“I could actually have fun with this...”
Incredibly, Mi and Scarlet do actually partake in a game of I-spy as we crawl through the city, while Abi and I stare at each other, somewhere between incredulous and delighted. Scarlet initially comes off worse in this, giving him far too easy subjects while his are often out of sight. She complains this isn't fair.
“I'm sorry, are your two good eyes inconveniencing you?”
“In this case, yes!”
“Try closing your eyes.”
“You have super-hearing!” She pouts. “You still have a clear advantage!”
She ups her game, and I do manage to find a little amusement in this. Perhaps they're forcing it a little, not just for their benefit, but for ours. We need a little lightness, however fleeting, however brief.
A horrible thought coils inside me. I have a sudden feeling, like this moment is dissolving before my eyes, and it will be a long time before any one of us knows such brevity again.
Nevertheless, there are things to be done. I set to work memorising the layout of the compound, at one point pulling Scarlet over to do the same. We check through our equipment, choosing our weapons. Scarlet slides a pair of goggles onto her head and then packs a small armoury onto her lean body: handgun, throwing knives, dagger, baton, knuckles, grenades. I don't really need or want any of those things. Blunt weapons can't add much to my current repertoire, and sharp ones are likely to lead to fatalities. I take a small knife, more a tool than a weapon, and refuse everything else. Scarlet looks baffled when Mi does the same.
“This may shock you, but I am not a terrific shot,” Mi explains. “I'll take a quarterstaff, if you have one?”
Scarlet raises an eyebrow. “I'll go find a time machine and order you one in the Middle Ages,” she says. “For now, we have batons?”
“That'll do.”
Mi does not need help as a general rule with anything but reading, but he does not complain when Scarlet helps him strap on a couple of batons. She helps me with mine too, and it is a little easier with her assistance to get kitted up.
All too soon, the van is coming to a stop. I spent so long wanting to get here, but now I don't want to leave. I don't want to plummet in the belly of this concrete monster and know, for certain, whether or not Nick is waiting there. But he could be, and so I must go.
I tap the driver on the shoulder.
“What's your name?” I ask.
“Er, Dave.”
“I'm Ashe.”
He smiles at this. “Yeah, we all know your name!”
I wonder how much everyone at Phoenix knows about us now. We've not been very secretive these past few weeks. Is this what Mi and Abi like about being there? Not having to hide any more?
The feeling isn't as terrifying as I thought it was.
Harris hands us all earpieces. “Keep in contact,” he insists.
One of the monitors suddenly starts beeping. He picks up his headphones and plugs himself in. “Harris,” he says, then looks back at us. “Get ready.”
We push the earpieces in, do a final equipment check, and slide the door open. The great wall rises ahead of us. Abi points to the precise spot we must climb up to avoid detection.
“I need to wait until the distraction to take out the guards,” she announces. “Falling bodies will present just as much of a risk.”
“When you say 'take out'–”
Abi pats a stun gun at her side, but she has another, much more lethal option, hidden beneath her jacket. Does she think I don't notice it? I hope she doesn't have to use it. I know too well the weight of another's death on your soul. I'd shoulder it again before having her relive that pain.
We move swiftly towards our mark, listening t
o Abi, who times everything perfectly to avoid any gaze.
Scarlet hands me a pair of wire cutters. I tuck them into my belt. Abi and Mi ready a boost. I take a short running jump, they thrust me into the air, and I catch the top ledge.
It is difficult, even for me, to hang on with one hand and cut the wire with another, and it takes me longer than I would like. Eventually, though, there is enough of a gap for a human to squeeze through. I loop a rope around one of the posts and drop it down for Abi to follow, then tell Harris we're in position.
Within seconds, the van bursts through the gate. Every sentry on the wall springs immediately to life. Bullets are blazing. Armoured guards run out. There are a dozen in total, all firing. A smoke bomb is released –one of ours– and everything is lost in a haze.
There is no time to waste. I drop into the yard and spring towards the tower, Mi and Scarlet quick at my heels. Abi is already on the walls, one guard down. Unfortunately, the other notices his comrade fall. He turns, but Abi is quicker. The strap of his rifle now wrestles against his throat.
“Ashe!”
Scarlet is by the foot of the tower, standing beneath a grapple. Time is of the essence. Without another word, I seize the cable and crawl up the wall, leaning back down to help the others up. Scarlet lays the explosives at the hatch, and we scurry as far away as possible for the detonation.
It is strangely quiet, and I creep back towards it expecting it still to be welded shut, but the hinges are blown clean off. I go to lift it–
“Look out!”
Mi launches himself forward, just as a hail of bullets shoot up into the air. One skims straight by my cheek. Red droplets dust the floor beside me.
Mi glares. "You have super hearing too!” he hisses. “Use it!"
All three of us remain flat against the floor, waiting for the shots to cease. I can hear Mi counting.
“How many?”
“Three.”
“Don't suppose you know how many bullets–”
“No,” says Mi. “But they're reloading. Quick!”
I throw myself into the hatch, landing squarely on one of their shoulders. I hang on fast as he flails, knocking into the other two. One has almost finished re-loading when Mi soars down, yanking the rifle from his grip and smashing it into his face. Scarlet wrestles with the third, but it is no easy task. She is no match for his sheer strength and it's all she can do to stop him from firing as we struggle with taking out ours.
The Phoenix Project: Book I: Flight Page 15
