Angel City

by Jon Steele

  “What fucking traffic?”

  “It’s there, you just can’t see it.”

  The blips on the screen disappeared. Officer Jannsen hit the accelerator, and the Explorer shot across the road and into the cover of the forest.

  “Not that I know what you’re talking about, but why are we going to the house, anyway? Why aren’t we following the invisible cars to Carson City or Portland? Why are we going where the goons are?”

  “Our defensive perimeters are jammed, Kat. We’re locked in. We just have to hold off the goons till reinforcements get here.”

  “Bullshit, let’s just jump the fucking wall and blow this place.”

  “We can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “Our defensive perimeter isn’t a wall, it’s time.”

  “Are you telling me we’re trapped in time?”

  “I’m telling you we have to hold out till we get backup.”

  Katherine tried to make sense of it.

  “Bullshit, turn around, get on the highway, get us away from here.”

  “Listen, Kat, this is the only chance Max has. The bad guys know who he is. Out there, in real time, there are millions of goons; he wouldn’t stand a chance. In here, we can fight as best we can.”

  “Out there we can hide.”

  “Kat, there is nowhere to hide in the world. You found that out at Lausanne Cathedral. There’s only here and now, and you’ve got to focus on not letting Max fall into the hands of the goons. Your only chance, Max’s only chance, is the safe room.”

  Katherine saw herself in the belfry again. The tall silver-haired goon with the silver eyes, ramming a knife into Marc Rochat’s stomach, raising his crooked body on the blade and dropping him on the ground. She looked at Max, still tapping the pictures of Pompidou the Flying Caterpillar. She suddenly knew she was two places in time at once. She looked at Max, felt herself tremble.

  “Get us home, Anne.”

  Officer Jannsen sped ahead. Goons rushed from the trees, raised weapons, and fired.

  “They’re trying to cut me off,” she said. “Give me cover.”

  “Roger, Chef,” Luc said.

  He hit a button on the dashboard and a section of the Explorer’s roof blew off. He stood on his seat, sprayed a ninety-degree arc of bullets into the trees. The Explorer rounded a turn. A huge log had been dragged across the road.

  “Scheisse!”

  Officer Jannsen pulled the emergency brake, turned the wheel, and forced the Explorer into a spin. Luc dropped back into the truck as its rear wheel hit a stump—wham! The truck flipped onto its side and skidded over the road. Katherine had Max in her arms, covered his head with her hands. Max screamed and from the forest there rose a howl of ravenous voices. Then:

  Quiet.

  “Everyone good?” Officer Jannsen said.

  “I’m good,” Luc said.

  Kat twisted Max in her arms.

  “Yeah, we’re okay.”

  Officer Jannsen crawled over Katherine and Max into the back of the Explorer. She kicked the release and the hatch blew open. She crawled out, reached back.

  “Give me Max and come.”

  Katherine held out Max to her. He waved, kicked his legs, and shrieked, “Maman! Maman!”

  The goons howled from the trees hearing Max’s voice.

  Officer Jannsen got her hands under Max’s arms, pulled him out. Katherine quickly crawled out, then Luc with his Brügger & Thomet slung over his back. Max flew into Katherine’s arms. “Maman!” She put her hand over his mouth.

  “Shhhh, it’s okay, honey. It’s okay.”

  The forest fell quiet again.

  She heard Officer Jannsen and Luc whispering to each other in German. He nodded, reached back into the truck, pulled out two bags. One was a medical kit, the other a backpack. Officer Jannsen found a pressure bandage in the med kit, tore it open, and wrapped it around her thigh and the jutting glass.

  “Aren’t you going to pull it out?” Katherine said.

  Officer Jannsen shook her head. “Too close to an artery. I’ll bleed out.”

  Luc fitted the small canvas bag around his shoulders. He reached in the truck again, pulled open the side panels, took out two more Brügger & Thomets, handed one to Officer Jannsen, draped the other around his neck; now he had two. Officer Jannsen reached in the truck, pulled out an ammunition case, and opened it. It was stuffed with loaded clips. They continued to whisper in German, slapping clips into their weapons, stuffing extra clips into their pockets.

  “What is it, what are you guys saying?” Katherine said quietly.

  Officer Jannsen looked at Katherine.

  “The goons are regrouping for an attack. The house is sixty meters through the trees. You and I will run with Max.”

  Katherine looked at Luc.

  “What about you?”

  “I will stay and give you cover.”

  “But the radio said there are hundreds of goons inside with us, maybe thousands.”

  Officer Jannsen touched Katherine’s arm.

  “Kat, they’re coming at us from all sides. We must cover our rear or we’ll never make it to the house.”

  “Yeah, but how?”

  Luc opened the backpack. Katherine saw a timer, watched the guard set it for two minutes, hit the switch. The timer started counting down.

  “I will fire double taps for ninety seconds, then stop. The goons will think I am out of ammunition and charge. That will be your signal to get down.”

  “No,” Katherine said. “You can’t do this.”

  “Madame Taylor, it is my duty,” Luc said. He looked at Max, smiled, and gave him a salute. “And may I say, Captain Picard, it has been a great honor to serve with you.”

  Max stared at him as if knowing the true meaning of the man’s words.

  “Woof,” Max whispered.

  The guard checked the timer.

  “One hundred seconds. Ich wünsche Ihnen alles gute, Chef.”

  Officer Jannsen grabbed the guard’s hand. “Im namen des lichts, mein bruder.”

  “Und du bist, meine schwester.”

  Katherine leaned to the guard, kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”

  Officer Jannsen pulled Katherine’s arm.

  “Let’s go.”

  They ducked into the forest, heard the Brügger & Thomets open fire in succession. Pause, speed reload, fire again. Bullets counting down like ticks of a clock, then the guns stopped and ravenous howls sounded through the forest. Officer Jannsen led Katherine into a gully.

  “Get in, get down, cover Max.”

  Katherine jumped into the gully, lay Max on the ground, and curled her body over him. She covered his ears . . . a great crump rocked the earth, and bits of metal screamed through the air and smacked the trees. Katherine looked at Max. His eyes were wide, fear was clawing at his throat.

  “We’re almost there, Max, we’re almost there.”

  Officer Jannsen peeked over the rim of the gully; Katherine did, too. A ten-meter-wide section of forest was burning. The Explorer had been ripped apart.

  “Let’s go,” Officer Jannsen said.

  Katherine picked up Max, his arms dangling from his sides.

  “Max? Max?”

  Officer Jannsen checked Max’s eyes.

  “He’s falling into shock. Keep talking to him, but keep moving.”

  They ran ahead, autumn leaves and brittle twigs snapping under their boots. Katherine saw Officer Jannsen wasn’t running, she was limping. A burst of automatic fire crackled and echoed through the forest. Katherine got down; Officer Jannsen turned back, pulled at her arm.

  “It’s outgoing, Kat. It’s not coming at us. The house is twenty meters away. Keep moving.”

  Katherine held Max close.

  “It’s okay, honey.
We’re almost there, Mommy has you. Mommy has you, Max.”

  The guns crackled again, the forest filled with death squeals. Then quiet. Officer Jannsen stopped, leaned against a tree. Blood was dripping down her leg and onto the ground. She tightened the pressure bandage, grimaced with pain.

  “Anne, you’re really hurt.”

  “It doesn’t matter. All that matters is getting you and Max into the safe room. Let’s go.”

  Officer Jannsen limped ahead. Branches of the trees began to sway, the entire forest seemed to bend.

  “Down, Kat.”

  They ducked behind the widest tree. Crump, crump. Then a blast of heat.

  Up ahead, through the trees, Katherine saw the house. It was in flames.

  “Holy fuck.”

  Officer Jannsen nodded to the thick of the forest.

  “We’ll circle around to Control. Come on.”

  Branches of pine slapped at their faces. Katherine tucked Max inside her cloak as they ran. Two minutes later, Officer Jannsen stopped, called out, “Hold fire at your rear!”

  A voice answered from ahead in the trees, “Blue Four, where are you?”

  “Ten meters out on your one-sixty. Is it clear?”

  “They’ve taken the house, they’re trying to take Control. We’ve held them back twice. We can’t do it a third time.”

  “How many of you are there?”

  “Five.”

  “Post two men at the top of the stairs to the safe room. When they’re set, give it five seconds and open up on the goons. We’ll come in on your left, copy?”

  “Hurry, Chef, here they come.”

  Then the howl of goons closing in for the kill. Officer Jannsen looked at Katherine.

  “I’ll lead you to the guards, you keep going into Control and down to the safe room.”

  “What about you?”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be right behind you.”

  Officer Jannsen jumped to her feet, hurried ahead, broke through the trees and into a clearing. She called back to Katherine.

  “Now, Kat, move it!”

  They dashed from the trees. A wave of goons charged from the forest to cut them off. Officer Jannsen dropped to a firing position, let off a spray of automatic fire. She ejected the clip, reloaded, fired again. Something caught hold of Katherine’s legs, pulled her to her knees.

  “No! No!”

  She held on to Max, kicked herself free, saw two goons crawling toward her.

  “The child is ours!”

  Katherine looked at Officer Jannsen, reloading again, firing into a second wave of goons from the left.

  “Oh, Jesus.”

  She swapped Max to her left arm, covered him with her cloak. She pulled the Glock from her belt, her hand shaking. She fired two rounds wide. Max screamed at the sound. The two goons howled, got to their feet, rushed ahead.

  “Fuck!”

  Katherine steadied, squeezed the trigger twice. Blew open the first goon’s head. The second goon fell on top of her, raising a knife to slice open her throat. She jammed the barrel into the goon’s left eye, fired. The goon flew back, black blood and brains splattering a tree; and when the goon hit the ground, Katherine put one more round into its shattered skull.

  “Don’t ever touch me, you fucking pigs.”

  Hands pulled at her again. Katherine spun around with the Glock—she had dead aim on Officer Jannsen.

  “Jesus.”

  “That’s my girl, Kat.”

  “Where are the rest of them?”

  “They fell back to the house. How’s Max?”

  Katherine opened her cloak. He was dangling in her arms.

  “Max? Max?”

  Officer Jannsen checked his pulse and eyes. They were open, but had lost focus. His skin had gone white.

  “He’s going into severe shock. You need to stabilize him.”

  “How?”

  “In the safe room there’s a med kit under your bed. You’ll find a silver box with injectors. There’s a red one, give it to Max. It’ll bring him around. Come on.”

  An explosion of gunfire and squeals ripped through the air, and a voice called from ahead. “Chef! It’s now or never!”

  “Let’s go, Kat.”

  Katherine got up, held Max with both her arms, followed Officer Jannsen through a patch of trees and onto the driveway. The house was like a funeral pyre. Seven Swiss Guards lay nearby with their throats slashed open. Ahead, three more guards were firing across the back garden.

  “On your left!” Officer Jannsen shouted.

  One of the guards called back: “We’re on our last clips! Make it fast!”

  Officer Jannsen looked at Katherine.

  “Do not stop until the two of you are in the safe room. Give him the shot, keep him warm. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  Officer Jannsen ejected the clip from her Brügger & Thomet and reloaded.

  “Run, when I say.”

  Officer Jannsen limped up the driveway, took a firing position with the guards.

  “Hold your fire for the next charge.”

  The three machine guns ripped apart the air; Katherine heard squeals and howls.

  “Now, Kat!”

  Katherine charged from the trees down the driveway. Between the burning house and Control, she saw the garden . . . It was filled with dead goons. And now, hundreds more charged from the trees . . . all of them with knives. Katherine kept running, made Control, ran down one level, through a hall, made the stairs down to the safe room. Two Swiss Guards were posted at the top of the stairs, their weapons targeted at the entrance.

  “Hurry, Madame Taylor, get in.”

  “You, too, get in.”

  She heard steps shuffling down the hall, looked back, saw Officer Jannsen limping toward her. The bandage had fallen from her thigh and her wound was draining blood.

  “Anne, your leg.”

  “I’m right behind you, Kat, move!”

  Katherine rushed down the stairs, squeezed through the guards. At the bottom of the steps the door to the safe room was open. She rushed in as gunfire broke out at the top of the steps. Squeals and howls echoed down the stairwell into the safe room. She rushed into the room, opened her cloak, and lay Max on the bed. Behind her, the hydraulics kicked in and the steel door began to close.

  “No, wait! Anne! Anne!”

  She rushed to the door.

  Goons were mobbing the top of the stairs, crushing one another to get through. Their eyes flaring, their knives dripping blood, black drool dripping from their mouths. Officer Jannsen was running down the stairs, blocking the guards’ line of fire. One goon broke from the mob and flew down the stairs. Katherine raised her Glock, fired two body shots. It dropped and the guards finished it off. Officer Jannsen squeezed by the guards.

  “Hold your fire till they charge,” she ordered.

  She opened a panel on the back of the closing door, pressed in a numerical code.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Overriding the release codes so you aren’t fooled into opening the door. You and Max can hold out here for two months if need be.”

  “No. You have to get in here, all of you.”

  “There’s not enough oxygen. There’s only enough for you and Max.”

  “Anne, wait! Don’t leave us!”

  Officer Jannsen pulled back her arm as the massive door began to seal.

  “I love you, Kat.”

  Katherine heard the goons charge down the stairs. There was a blaze of gunfire, then the guns stopped, then screams and howls and the gnashing of teeth . . . then the vault’s hydraulic bolts slammed into their sockets. Quiet.

  IV

  KATHERINE TOUCHED THE DOOR, THINKING IT WOULD OPEN ANY second and all would be well. She pressed her ear against
the door; there was nothing. Then she remembered the door was solid steel, a meter thick. There would be no sound from the other side of the door. But there was a sound in the safe room, a quiet gasping sound. She turned around, saw Max on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

  She went to him, dropped the gun on the bed. And though he still had a hold on his rubber hammer, there was a terrible, lost look in his eyes. She saw herself in the belfry of Lausanne Cathedral with the same look in her eyes. It wasn’t shock, she realized; Max was slipping into the madness of seeing unknowable things.

  “Honey?”

  He didn’t respond, he didn’t blink.

  Katherine bent down, pulled the medical kit from under the bed. She dug through it, found a small silver box containing auto-injectors. The top of the box had a list of what colored injector did what. She grabbed the red one, flipped the cap, and pressed it into Max’s thigh. She hit the release. Max didn’t even jump when the needle punched his skin. She dropped the injector on the floor, leaned over Max’s face. She almost touched his face, saw blood on her hands, saw blood on Max’s clothes from her holding him. She wiped her hands on her cloak, she combed Max’s hair.

  “Honey, it’s Mommy. We’re safe now. No one can find us. Max, look at me, honey. And, oh, look what silly Mommy remembered, here’s Mister Gummy.”

  She put the pacifier in her mouth to clean it, held it to Max’s lips. He didn’t take it.

  “Max, it’s going to be all right.”

  She stood, hurried to the kitchen area, opened the refrigerator. There were bottles of Molly’s apple juice in one side drawer. She took one out, poured some in a glass, walked back to Max.

  “Hey, look what I found. Some of Molly’s juice. And I’m going to dip in Mister Gummy and swirl him around, and here you go, honey. Taste it. You know what it is. It’s from Molly . . .”

  Katherine choked back tears remembering Molly, how she loved Max. How they all did.

  “Come on, honey, taste it, please.”

  The juice sank through Max’s lips, he tasted it on his tongue, and he blinked, saw his mother.

  “Mowy jooz,” he whispered.

  “Yeah, there you go. Here, let me do that again, that was fun.”

  She dipped the pacifier, set it to Max’s lips, and he sucked at it. She stared at him, wet her thumb, and wiped the tracks of tears from his cheeks.