by A. A. Bell
‘So?’ said Van Danik.
‘That’s where he died!’
‘That’s classified!’ Duet complained.
‘He died!’ Sei argued, as Mira tugged free to follow Hawthorn’s ghost. ‘There’s nothing classified about his coffin or death certificate.’
‘You shouldn’t tell them anything!’
‘I haven’t, and I won’t, but there’s nothing to say they won’t discover it for themselves anyway. Look!’
Mira felt their eyes on her back as she walked towards the fire exit, drawn by a combination of curiosity and dread.
Ben’s hand beat hers to the door lever.
‘Are you sure you’re ready for this?’ he asked.
She hesitated but nodded. ‘I’ve seen violence and death for years, Ben — muggings and thefts and fighting. It’s terrible what people do to each other when they think nobody’s watching.’
‘This won’t be ghosts from a century ago, though, Mira. You knew Sergeant Hawthorn.’
‘Not very well.’ She offered him a grim smile. ‘Perhaps I judged him too soon, like I did with you?’
Ben touched her shoulder. ‘You’re maturing so fast, soon you won’t need me at all.’
‘That’s the plan, isn’t it?’
‘That’s the plan.’ He sounded sad. He shoved the door open and a warm wall of air fell against her. ‘Go get him, tiger.’
THIRTY-FIVE
Mira closed her eyes to avoid the still-unsettling sensation of walking through a very solid-looking door. Outside, from the top of a short flight of steps, she saw the ghostly cat crouched over two ceramic bowls, one holding milk, the other fish scraps. Hawthorn had already passed the cat on his way to the shadows on the far side of the alley.
‘Do you still see him?’ asked Ben.
She pointed at Hawthorn’s ghost, sensing the others gathering closely behind her. ‘He just lit a cigarette. That’s odd, isn’t it? I never smelled cigarettes on him. Only breath mints.’
‘Neither did I,’ Van Danik replied, ‘and I certainly would have. I only gave up smoking a year ago, so I still fight the craving every time I catch the smell.’
‘He took more toilet breaks than his offsider,’ Zhou said. ‘I just assumed he wasn’t well.’
He’s not putting the cigarette in his mouth,’ Mira said. ‘He’s just letting it burn.’
‘Show us exactly where he’s standing, sweetie,’ said Karin Sei. ‘A lit cigarette can be useful at night as a signal.’
Mira nodded and walked towards the ghost.
‘Watch the van!’ Ben grabbed her arm and guided her around where Duet had parked their vehicle.
Rattled, she moved more cautiously towards Hawthorn and shaped her hands around the ghostly outline of his face and shoulders. ‘He’s right here. See?’
‘What’s that?’ Ben asked as he squatted beside her. ‘It looks like ash … and a bloodstain.’
‘It is a bloodstain,’ Zhou said. ‘And look, there’s another on the wall. That suggests there was foul play — someone else was involved.’
‘That’s classified,’ Duet insisted again, but his tone confirmed Zhou was right.
‘He just said hello!’ Mira glanced around the alley to see who Hawthorn was greeting. ‘Oh, false alarm. He was talking to the cat.’
Light spilled from the fire exit behind her and a ghostly head leaned out to survey the alley.
‘There!’ Mira pointed. ‘Someone’s coming. He just called the sergeant by name.’
‘He knows him?’ said Ben.
‘Can you describe him?’ asked Duet.
‘Sure, he’s tall and wearing a dark suit.’
‘Great,’ Duet muttered. ‘That narrows it down to half the male population in the state.’
‘Dark hair … I can’t tell if it’s brown or black. Everything’s purple.’
‘What about his voice?’ asked Sei. ‘Do you recognise it?’
‘I can’t hear him. I can only read lips.’
The cat spooked and took cover behind the large industrial bin, and Mira felt the urge to join it. She saw Hawthorn motion the stranger into the shadows with him, and stepped forward to read both sides of their conversation.
‘Okay,’ she said, concentrating on the rapid-fire exchange. ‘The stranger just asked Sergeant Hawthorn where he was this afternoon. He says he needs the merchandise.’
‘What merchandise?’ asked Ben.
‘Shhh, please! It’s hard enough to keep up with one conversation. Sergeant Hawthorn said he was at Likiba Isle … an unexpected detour … The sergeant is pulling something out of his pocket … a small silver cylinder. He says it’s schematics, interrogation notes, output data … transcripts of all the test cases.’
‘That’s our research!’ Zhou blurted. ‘He must have made copies of our data drives!’
‘Except for one case they had to do at the last minute,’ Mira said.
‘That was you,’ Van Danik replied.
‘Pfft!’ Mira swatted through Hawthorn’s ghostly face. ‘He just called me a crazy blind girl!’
‘We know otherwise,’ Zhou said. ‘What else did they say?’
She sighed, trying to make sense of the blanks that occurred each time Hawthorn turned his head to keep watch on the alley. ‘I think they’re talking about Lockman now. Was he a private?’
‘That’s right,’ Zhou said.
‘Well, this man wants to know if Private Lockman suspects anything, but Sergeant Hawthorn says no. He says he’s been using some excuse … a weak bladder … to slip away from everyone …’
Hawthorn glanced away again and she leaned forward, trying but unable to read his moving lips from the side.
‘… something about good looks and charm.’
She read the colonel’s response and laughed. ‘He just called the sergeant a smart ass, and compared him to you, Mitch.’
‘Me? What did I do?’
‘Sergeant Hawthorn just apologised and … thankedhim for choosing him for the job anyway, and … now they’re talking about how long it’ll be before the sergeant is missed … He’s on a break … But he has a question … something about … Oh! He’s pulled out a gun!’
She gasped and stumbled backwards into Ben.
‘Who’s got a gun?’ Ben asked. ‘The stranger?’
‘No! Sergeant Hawthorn!’
Why did you assign an old has-been like me to this mission, she read from his lips, then ask me to steal something that you’re already supervising? … Unless you plan on framing me …
Blood burst from Hawthorn’s throat and Mira screamed. His body fell against the wall, then slid into a crumpled heap.
‘He’s dead! His neck, it just … exploded!’ She pointed down, unable to look at him.
‘Who?’ Ben asked as she huddled against him. ‘The stranger?’
‘No, Sergeant Hawthorn!’
Ben wrapped his arms around her until her heartbeat steadied.
‘He shot himself?’ asked Zhou.
‘I don’t … No, I don’t think so. He looked surprised. Get away from him!’ she shouted at his killer. ‘He’s taking his watch and … his gun and wallet. And now he’s …’ She followed the killer with her eyes. ‘He’s going back inside.’ She pointed to the fire exit.
‘Stay with him,’ Sei ordered. ‘Where he goes and what he does may help to identify him.’
Mira nodded, keen to find out too.
Ben grabbed her arm. ‘Watch the van!’ He guided her around it again.
‘He’s stopping,’ Mira said. ‘He’s taking something out of his pocket.’ She hurried closer for a better look, but caution and fear still kept her a little distance from him. ‘It’s a plastic bag, one that’s already zip-sealed. There’s a gun inside it … and something that looks like part of a bullet.’ She gasped in horror as she realised what had happened. ‘That sneaky coward! He shot through his pocket!’
She followed him a little further to the steel industrial bin. ‘He’s stashing t
he bag behind there. Ooh!’ She squealed as a blur of claws and fur bolted through her leg.
‘What’s up?’ asked Ben. ‘Did he shoot at you?’
‘No, it was the cat. She scratched him and took off.’
‘Let me take a look,’ said Van Danik. Mira heard a cat growl and spit. ‘I don’t think she likes us either. Back up, little one. Let’s see what you’re hiding.’
‘Nothing,’ Sei said. ‘You won’t find anything back there but the cat.’
‘You sound certain of that,’ Ben remarked. ‘Is that because you think Mira’s crazy now too, or because you’ve already removed the evidence?’
‘Not personally,’ Sei said. ‘However, that evidence has been retrieved.’
‘Corporal, no!’ Duet ordered.
Mira heard a rustle, then gasps and shuffled footsteps. Ben wrenched her sideways.
‘Freeze!’ Duet ordered, but Ben had already switched places with her, and now Van Danik and Zhou were in front of her too. She could feel all three men forming a wall between her and Duet.
‘What’s going on?’ she asked.
‘Stay calm,’ Ben told her.
‘What are you doing?’ Sei said forcefully. ‘Stow your weapon, John. She’s an innocent witness!’
‘Witness,’ he agreed, ‘but hardly innocent. She knows more than she should, which means we detain her for the colonel.’
‘Now, hang on!’ Van Danik said. ‘You alreadydragged him over here once and look where that got us. He’s not interested in Mira’s ability.’
‘He will be now, Doctor. Make the call, Karin. From what we’ve just heard, these guys are not only in possession of classified information, they may also be party to selling it on the black market.’
‘Nonsense!’ Zhou protested.
‘Is that so?’ Duet said. ‘Then why did she fail to identify the killer when she could rattle off precise details of everything else? She’s deliberately trying to protect him. I’ll have my sunglasses back now, thank you, Miss Liar.’
‘I’m not a liar, and I’m certainly not trying to protect the killer!’ Mira snatched the glasses off her nose. She felt like hurling them at him, but handed them calmly to Ben, keeping her eyes clamped tightly shut until he could give her the similar-coloured pair that would allow her to see the murder again in roughly a week.
‘I can’t recognise anyone,’ she said, ‘unless I’ve seen them before, and I haven’t seen that killer — yet. I won’t be able to match his voice to his face until tomorrow at least.’
Duet laughed. ‘If you could recognise Hawthorn, you should be able to recognise the kid who was practically glued to him.’
‘Private Lockman?’ Zhou asked.
‘No,’ Mira said, ‘he wasn’t here. I told you; the killer asked about him.’
‘That’s hardly convincing, Miss Chambers. In fact, your attempts at diverting blame away from him are fairly glaring.’
‘I am not lying!’ Mira shouted. ‘Private Lockman didn’t do it. Find the man with a bullet hole in the left pocket of his jacket and three long scratches on his left wrist, and then you’ll find the killer!’
‘That suggests he’s left-handed,’ Zhou said.
Van Danik gave a fake-sounding cough. ‘That’s enough, Mira,’ he warned kindly. ‘You’re wasting your breath if they don’t believe you by now. But since they insist on detaining us for questioning, I insist they go straight to the top — to General Garland, not Kitching.’
She felt Ben’s hand reach behind him and touch hers with a warning pressure, as if he needed her to stay calm, wait and listen.
‘Damn headset!’ Sei complained. ‘I can’t get enough reception here to call the colonel, but if we’re lucky it may be enough to send a text by phone. In any case, we know where he’s headed. I suggest we meet him back at Sandy Creek … No, don’t look at me like that, Mitch. If you’re innocent, you can speak with General Garland there as well in a week.’
‘Unlock the van, Karin,’ Duet ordered. ‘Here’s the keys.’
Mira heard them fly through the air, clip something and land on the pavement. She also heard a soft noise behind that, near the invisible van, a little like the brief vibration of a mobile phone inside a pocket full of coins. Her stomach churned a warning that rose instantly to her mind as fear.
Someone else is here!
‘Ben!’ she whispered as the side door of the van rolled noisily open. ‘We have to get out of here!’
‘That’s the idea,’ Duet said, closer than she’d realised. ‘Get in.’
Hands clapped, shoes crunched on gravel and Mira knew that whoever was on the far side of the vehicle had revealed himself.
‘Well done!’ he declared. ‘You lose a few points for failing to watch your back, Corporal, but other than that, I’m impressed with your initiative.’
‘Colonel?’ Duet said, surprised.
‘I just tried to get you,’ Sei said, sounding equally flustered.
Mira frowned, confused too. Colonel Kitching thought she was insane; he didn’t believe she could see anything. So why had he followed them to the alley?
‘Get in the van,’ Kitching ordered.
Ben clasped Mira’s hand to lead the way, his palms sweating. She fell into step behind him, unsure of where the doctors were now, or how they were reacting. The footsteps in front and behind her could have been any of them. She just knew they were no longer shielding her.
Ben climbed into the back of the van without letting go of her hand, then helped her into a seat before taking the one beside her.
‘Turn those Magnums to your foreheads and pull,’ Van Danik said. The back of the vehicle sagged and his voice shifted from being outside to in. ‘You both need a lead lobotomy if you can’t see what’s going on here.’
‘You need to get that flapping mouth under control,’ Duet warned, ‘before it catches a bullet.’
‘Check his left wrist for scratches!’ Van Danik insisted. ‘They were fresh at our meeting last night.’
Silence stretched between the seconds, then many things seemed to happen at once. Ben let go of her and she heard a struggle, a thump, grunting and the shuffle of footsteps. Something went puh! like a metal fist into a pillow. Duet grunted as the van rocked and the metal fist hit the pillow again.
‘Karin!’ shouted Van Danik.
No reply, just more heavy grunts and shuffling.
The van rocked and banged violently, as if someone had locked a bull in with them, but the back doors were still open. Mira could feel the fresh air — and smell blood.
‘Ben!’ she cried. ‘What’s happening?’
The window shattered beside her and she screamed. Something heavy hit Ben’s seat and he gasped. Van Danik yelped too, and she felt dampness spray her hand — blood from the smell of it, but whose?
‘Ben?’ she squealed.
‘Run!’ Zhou shouted.
‘Come on, Mira!’ Ben wrenched her to her feet and ushered her roughly out of the van. Her foot touched down on a thick soggy lump, and Ben saved her from falling, lifting her and carrying her away from it, running towards the inn’s back door where he set her down on clear ground.
‘Keep the pressure on,’ Zhou said.
Behind them, near the van, she heard struggling.
‘Karin?’ Van Danik called again, sounding uncharacteristically confused.
‘Get going!’ Sei shouted. ‘I’ve got your back!’
Mira tripped on the steps up to the door, causing Ben to stumble too. Her face touched his shoulder and she smelled blood again, this time on him. ‘You’re bleeding!’ She tried to lift him back to his feet.
‘I’m fine, come on.’
He lunged to his feet, dragging her with him. She bumped through the narrow doorframe crushed close against him then lost her grip again just as something small zinged off the doorway, above her head.
Hands grabbed her from all directions, ushering her swiftly inside and around a corner.
The door groaned as it clos
ed automatically.
‘Keep moving!’ Zhou urged. ‘We have to get help.’
‘Wait for Karin,’ Van Danik pleaded. ‘We can’t leave her.’
‘She’s dead!’ Zhou argued. ‘They both are. Just keep a tight hold on that ear and come on!’
‘Dead?’ Mira clutched at the tablets still concealed close to her chest. ‘But she was so nice to me!’
Her blood pulsed in rising panic as she was pushed and pulled along, but her head stayed numb with shock. Part of her wanted to haul Ben to a halt, but her legs pumped mechanically to keep up with him. She stayed glued to his back as far as the elevators.
‘Stop!’ Zhou whispered, now right in front of her. ‘Kitching’s driver is in the foyer.’
‘Raptis regalitor,’ Van Danik mumbled.
‘We are not royally screwed,’ Zhou said.
‘Then what?’ Ben snapped. ‘We can’t let him see us.’
‘Up,’ Van Danik suggested. He stumbled against Mira and punched the control panel beside her to call the elevator.
‘We’ll be trapped,’ Ben argued.
‘Maybe not,’ Zhou said. ‘Mira, can you jump?’
‘I can cartwheel if that’s what it takes to get away from here!’
‘What did she say?’ Van Danik asked loudly, still sounding disoriented. ‘I think I’ve gone deaf.’
‘Keep your voice down! We have to call the police,’ Zhou said, ‘but not from our rooms. That’ll be the first place Kitching looks.’
‘We need an ambulance too,’ Mira insisted. ‘Ben’s hurt.’
‘No, it’s just a fat lip.’
‘But you’re bleeding! Don’t lie. I can smell it!’
‘That’s Mitch,’ Zhou explained. ‘A bullet nicked his temple. But don’t worry, Mira — head wounds often bleed a lot. He was so close to the trigger, it’s knocked him silly. I’m more concerned about his eardrum after the compression wave … Where the hell is that elevator?’
‘But I can smell blood on Ben!’ Mira persisted.
‘Overspray,’ Ben told her. ‘There’s some on you too.’
Mira searched his chest urgently with her hands. ‘You’re not hurt?’
He scooped her fingers together and kissed them. ‘Would I lie to you?’
She blushed, relief sweeping over her, soon replaced by a warm, yearning ache to wrap her arms around him.
