Tempered

by Britt Ringel

  “I can apportate and I see the past but the scorch wrecked my memories.” Kat licked dry lips. “I barely remember anything and what I have is more intuition than recollection.”

  Tess’ eyes closed and she uttered a long expletive. “You really don’t have a safe house set up?” She opened her eyes and leaned across the car. “Cat, please, trust me. I’ve taken awful risks for you.” She stared, waiting. Without an answer, she retook manual control over her vehicle. “Shit. Okay…” She nodded toward the back. “What about her? We don’t know any of Kat Smith’s friends. Will she help you? Can you stay with her?”

  “What are you going to do to me?” Tabitha whined from the back seat. “Please, just let me go and I won’t tell anyone.”

  “What were you planning on doing with her?” Kat asked. She feared the answer.

  Tess shrugged. An earnest look took hold of her. “Talk to her, help her understand. Beg her to help us. She will. People want to help each other. It’s our nature no matter how buried it might become.” After a beat, she tilted her head and cocked an eyebrow. Her blue eyes narrowed. “I don’t want you to hurt her.”

  Relief flooded into Kat. “I don’t want to either.” She swiveled in place. “Tabitha, we’re going to your apartment. If you don’t cause trouble, I’ll keep my promise and let you go unharmed.”

  Tabitha nodded energetically. “I won’t say a word. You can have the whole place to yourself. I’ll just wander the streets. You can take my FLAT.” She began to dig into her pocket for her handheld.

  “I don’t think she’d betray us if we had time to explain the situation. But right now, we can’t let her walk, Cat. I may be a little idealistic but I’m not stupid. She’s scared. I don’t blame her but she’ll alert corp-sec. The Society has an infinity tap on the station’s comms. We’ll show up before corp-sec does.”

  “Can’t you just read her mind?” Kat asked.

  “Actually, no.” Tess looked back to Tabitha. “Flick your address to my FLAT, please.”

  Tabitha opened her handheld, brought her address up and flung the data with the thrust of a finger toward the handheld device docked to the aircar’s navigation system. A route appeared onscreen.

  “Thank you,” Tess responded before turning back to Kat. “I’m a one-way telepath. I can only send thoughts. I can’t read minds like Lolz could, thank God.”

  “Thank God?”

  “I’m not sure how much you remember but Lolz wasn’t the most stable person in the world. There’s good reason for that. Human minds can’t handle extra sensory perception.” She chittered nervously. “They say we all end up a little crazy.” Light rain began to patter against the windshield. “That includes you, Cat. Our only precognitive went insane and hung himself just three months after he manifested. I can only imagine what postcognition is doing to you.” After a beat, she added quietly, “After what the Society’s done to you, who knows how you’ve stayed sane.”

  “I’m not that person anymore, Tess.”

  “You never were.” She guided the vehicle to the ground, coasting to a stop in front of the apartment building. “Maybe it’s for the best that you can’t remember but don’t despise Pre-Cat. She was a strong woman who overcame incredible odds.”

  Kat punched the door controls and the gull wing lifted upward. The rain beat an accelerating tempo against the car. Before Kat could step out, Tess grabbed her wrist.

  “I’m afraid we’re going to need Pre-Cat if we’re going to stop them. Stop all of it.” She inhaled unsteadily and sucked her lower lip into her mouth. “There are others who want to act but they’re scattered.” Blue eyes pierced into Kat’s soul. “Pre-Cat is the only one who can unify us.”

  “Why?” Kat ground out loudly over the noise of the growing storm. Black hair lashed her face as the wind swirled through the open door. She tapped her chest fiercely and flashed angry eyes at Tess. “Why does this all fall on me?”

  Tess rocked away and rolled her hands as she stammered, “B-because you’re Pre-Cat! You’re a legend! Even the biokinetic operatives are afraid of you. And despite everything that you did and was done to you, you refused to give yourself to the Society. You kept your humanity and turned your back on our keepers. You threw the privileged life they offered you in exchange for your loyalty right back at them and remained true to your heart, your human heart.” Her eyes searched Kat before looking away. “I’ve got to get back. I’ll try to contact you through Tabitha’s FLAT but for heaven’s sake stop using your powers! They don’t know you still have them. I’m the only true sensitive, the only one who knows, but when Em arrives she can sometimes feel psionic echoes. She’s coming, by the way. Along with Tears, Teki and Bowen.” The woman continued nervously, “They’re not sending Teg in though.” She chuckled humorlessly again while a shudder worked through her body. “I guess they’re holding one telepath in reserve, afraid you’re going to slaughter us all.”

  With that, Kat slipped out of the car, pulling Tabitha with her as she exited. The door lowered and closed without a farewell, leaving them in the cold rain. Lightning flashed and the sky rumbled seconds later. Kat could smell ozone and feel the vibrations of thunder in her chest. “Let’s get inside,” she said while watching the aircar vanish into the deluge.

  Chapter 17

  Tabitha Carter’s apartment mirrored Sadler’s layout. The pair stood in the foyer, dripping water onto the white tiles by the door.

  “Do you trust me enough to let me get some towels?” Tabitha asked as she ran her fingers through her drenched hair. The long locks had darkened into a honeyed-blonde. She pulled her hands free and shook them toward the floor.

  Kat considered the request as she inspected the apartment. While clean, it was surprisingly cluttered. A crumpled blouse lay over the arm of a sofa. Three pairs of shoes were piled haphazardly near the door. A lightweight jacket hung over the single stool in front of the counter separating the living room from the kitchen. There were dirty dishes in the sink. Her eyes caught on a picture frame resting on an end table. Tabitha’s smiling face and a younger doppleganger were pressed cheek to cheek in the image.

  More thunder cracked outside as rain pelted the windows. Tabitha wrung her hands. “What do Trodden do when it storms?”

  Kat looked away from the photograph of Tabitha and her sister. “We get out of it.”

  Tabitha stalked into the living room and made way for the hallway past the kitchen. Kat followed her part of the way, making sure she wasn’t heading for the apartment’s master controls on the low counter between the kitchen and living room. The embedded comm unit beckoned to her. I need to talk to Sadler. This posed a problem. His handheld wouldn’t receive a signal deep in the mine. It was the reason foremen carried the special walkie-talkies that relied on repeaters placed in the tunnels to communicate with each other and to the Vox devices in the offices. The Vox at her desk was far out of reach.

  Tabitha reentered the kitchen with a towel wrapped around her head. A second one landed on the counter near Kat. “There.”

  Kat draped the towel over her head and scrubbed. Her wet hair came away smooth and clean. The ends curled under the dampness and strands clung to her jawline. Kat felt Tabitha’s intense gaze burning into her. “What?”

  The woman looked away angrily. “Nothing.” She patted her own hair dry and removed the towel.

  Kat attempted to gather her hair behind her head. “Do you have a ponytail holder I can borrow?”

  Tabitha huffed loudly as she stomped to the bathroom down the short hall. “It’s not going to stay in on the right side,” she declared, her voice echoing from the hall. She returned with a black band. “Why’d you do that to your hair anyway? It would look… nice otherwise. Is that what they call fashion in Shantytown?”

  Kat tried to capture her dark strands but Tabitha’s prediction proved correct. The right side was still too short to gather. Without the added restraint of her old miner’s hardhat, the ponytail became unbalanced and fell to her left
shoulder. She pulled the band out and dropped it onto the counter by the comm unit. I really need to talk to Sad— “Hey! Did you just compliment me?”

  Tabitha slumped onto the stool. “Maybe. I figure I better be nice to you since you’re apparently… some kind of gang enforcer?” She rested her elbows on the counter and sank her face into her hands. “Honestly, Kat, I don’t want to be involved. I don’t care if you sold drugs—” she gave Kat’s body a sideways glance, “—or anything else in the slums. So long as it doesn’t affect me, I promise I won’t call corp-sec.”

  “I’m afraid it’s more complicated than that.”

  “Of course it is,” Tabitha spat as she rolled her eyes. “I’m sure you had to break laws and hurt people to survive, right?” Her tone turned acidic. “Heaven forbid you miscreants play by the rules and just work hard.” She spun on the stool to look directly at Kat. “Trodden love to bitch and moan about how they’re shut off from society.” Air quotes emphasized the last word before a finger pointed savagely at her captor. “Well, you’re the reason we need the wall around our town. We just want to be safe. We want to be secure. We want to know that if we work hard and follow the rules, we’ll live a decent life.” Her lips curled back ferally. “And the second we let one of you in, you bring violence and chaos with you. It’d be so much easier if you all just… disappeared!”

  Kat sighed and dropped her head to her chest. “The Society isn’t what you think it is and I don’t have time to explain. I need to talk to Sadler.”

  “Why drag him into this? Does he even know about your past?”

  “Look, do you want me to disappear or not?”

  “Hell, yes,” Tabitha snorted. “Have one of the receptionists at the main office use their Vox to contact him. They’re chained to the mine’s system.”

  Kat’s head shot up. “Of course! But, whoever I get will wonder why I’m asking them to do it.”

  “Brooke’s a busy-body for sure.” Tabitha shrugged casually. “I can’t call either because she’d wonder why I wasn’t having you do it for me. It seems you’re stuck.”

  Kat picked at fuzz on her towel. “Okay, so who else is there?” Her train of thought derailed. “Shit. Tabitha, do you know Aileth Wess?”

  “Honey,” Tabitha’s voice turned sour, “I dated him before you did.”

  The reminder made Kat want to place her hands back around the woman’s neck. “Call Aileth and ask her to have Sadler call you at home. Don’t get cute, Tabitha. Once Sadler gets here, we can talk about letting you go. But if you try sending Aileth some hidden signal—”

  “Yeah, I get it. You’ll snap my neck in the name of society, right?” Tabitha gestured to the comm unit. “Can I make the call?”

  Kat positioned herself off to the side but still within arm’s reach. “Do it.”

  Tabitha activated the unit and several pings later, the vice president appeared onscreen. “Tabitha? This is a surprise.”

  Tabitha smiled reflexively. “Hello, Aileth. I’m sorry to bother you but I need to ask a favor.”

  The woman in the grey suit rocked back slightly but remained quiet. She held her head high, conveying an offput but regal demeanor.

  “Can you contact Sadler, please, and have him call me at home?”

  Green eyes narrowed on the screen. “Why don’t you have your exquisite, new receptionist do that?”

  “Good question,” Tabitha muttered bitterly. She regained her smile. “She’s not at work today. The whole office is shorthanded. It’s really important.”

  “Kat didn’t come into work today?” Aileth repeated.

  Kat thought she detected an undercurrent of emotion in her tone, almost concern.

  “I hope she’s all right. There was a riot outside town on Sunday,” the elder woman continued.

  “She came in but left early,” Tabitha answered.

  “Oh. Good.” A smile played over Aileth’s face, creasing the corners of her mouth. “She actually came all the way into town to meet me. That took a lot of moxie.” If it bothered the matriarch to talk about her son’s new girlfriend in front of his old one, she didn’t show it.

  Tabitha shifted uncomfortably. “Make sure he calls me at home, Aileth, okay?”

  “I’ll do it this time.” The woman’s tone darkened. “But I’m not your secretary, Miss Carter.”

  Tabitha sat up straighter. “I understand. Thank you, Ms. Wess.”

  Kat slid her hand low over the comm unit and disconnected the transmission.

  “Huh.” Tabitha continued to stare blankly at the black screen.

  “What?”

  “She likes you.” Tabitha frowned. “Well, enjoy it while you can. Aileth will have you arrested when she finds out you were in a gang.”

  “I wasn’t… and who would tell her that, Tabitha?”

  “Oh.” The blonde grimaced and ducked her head between slim shoulders. “You know I wouldn’t tell her but it sounds like your gang wants you back, or dead. I mean, one of them flew out to the mine. Your past is going to come out sooner or later.”

  Kat folded her arms and rocked back. “Don’t insult my intelligence. You’re going to run to corp-sec the second I leave you alone. In fact, you’ll tell them I kidnapped you.” She shook her head and sighed. “It’s fine, Tabitha. I actually can’t blame you.” A sickening feeling welled up inside her. I’m living the final hours of Kat Smith’s life. She wiped at dampening eyes with irritation. Her nose wanted to run and she sniffed to stop it. No, just the name is dying. Not me. Not who I am.

  “Maybe it won’t be so bad,” Tabitha said in a softer tone. She reached out to touch Kat’s arm but stopped. “Maybe you could go to corp-sec and turn yourself in. You could ask for clemency and turn in your leaders.”

  “The people after me are a lot more powerful than Waytown corp-sec.”

  The comm unit chirped loudly. Tabitha looked down and said, “It’s Sadler,” before accepting the call.

  The screen flickered and Sadler appeared. “Tabby, what is it?” His grimy hardhat had the faceplate flipped up. His cheeks were black with coal dust, contrasting eyes that shone bright as lightning flashed behind him.

  Kat moved next to Tabitha and waved weakly. Sadler’s dirty brow furrowed. “Uh-oh. This ought to be good.”

  Kat spoke before Tabitha could. “Someone from the Pelletier’s Society approached me at work today.”

  “Shit.”

  “Yeah, shit, but we got lucky. The woman was a friend. I’m hiding in Tabitha’s apartment but I can’t stay here forever. I need someone I can trust to get me into Shantytown. I can’t process through the gate because I don’t have a visa to be inside Waytown in the first place.”

  The background behind Sadler blurred as he set in motion. “I’m on my way.” He then tripped to a sudden stop. “Did, um, Tabby actually help you?”

  “No,” Tabitha barked loudly. “Tabby did not help your Shantytown gang member, Sadler-dear.”

  His expression screwed into confusion. “Shantytown gang member?”

  Kat snorted. “I’ll explain when you get here,” she promised and disconnected. After the screen went dark, she clenched her jaw and ground out, “You couldn’t tell him fast enough, could you?”

  “He didn’t know, did he?” Tabitha grinned briefly in triumph before her expression turned wicked. “Well, I live a clean life so I don’t have to hide the truth. Neither does Sadler. If you keep me hostage, I’ll make sure he learns everything about you.”

  They waited for Sadler, the silence growing beyond uncomfortable. Kat tried to use the time to plot a course of action. The Pelletier’s Society had found her. Her identity was blown. Once Tess led her disposal team back to the mine, the Society would know Kat had fled. Then what? At least Sadler wouldn’t be there when they arrived. Waytown was certainly no longer safe for her. Kat searched for a way to gain an advantage but nothing came to mind. Behind Kat, the storm pounded relentlessly on the windows as if in warning that fouler weather lay ahead.


  The master controls on the counter chirped and Sadler’s voice carried through the speaker. “It’s me.”

  Kat began to run for the front door but stopped. She looked back to Tabitha lingering dangerously close to the controls and summoned her with a finger.

  They met Sadler at the door and he stepped in, soaking wet. The black dust that had been covering him on the comm call now stained his face in streaks. Kat didn’t care. She hugged him, clinging to him like a life preserver in her sea of troubles. His arms closed around her. We may not have many more hugs left, she realized. “Sadler, I’m going to have to run,” she choked.

  “How did they find you?” he asked.

  She sighed before releasing him. “Well, I left quite a trail last Tuesday night. Then they got my name from the hospital visits.”

  Tabitha coughed delicately as she leaned against the back of the couch. “Hi, Sadler.” A smile played over her, as if the drama in front of her satisfied her appetite.

  “Hello, Tabby,” he answered coolly. “Thanks for letting Kat stay here.”

  “Like I had a choice. She and her friend took me hostage. Your new girlfriend literally threatened to break my neck if I resisted. She’s running from her old gang and I gather that she’s basically everything you’d expect from a Trodden.” She flashed a brilliant white smile and fluttered her eyes. “How am I looking now, honey?”

  Kat stepped away from the door and stalked back to the kitchen. “Tabitha thinks the Pelletier’s Society is a Trodden gang. That’s probably for the best.”

  “Oh, I’m sure it’s actually a charity,” the woman retorted from the living room.

  Sadler followed Kat to the kitchen and began to wash up in the sink. “So, what do we do?”

  Kat fought to push the words through her lips. “I think I’m leaving Waytown. I don’t have a choice.”