by L T Anderson
Krystal raised an eyebrow. “At the top? Like you and Dion?”
“Dion and I have a long history. We’re brothers. You’re right up there with him in my eyes.”
She looked down at her boots. “You’ve known me a little over three years. Big difference there.”
“Right. But time has nothing to do with it. I know what you’ve been through and I know what I’ve seen in you. Today, I’d trust you with my life. You gotta believe that, Krys.”
Krystal stood upright. “I’m glad you said that. Trust me when it comes to Silver Long. My history with her won’t cloud my judgment.” She studied Ryker’s face. “And I won’t let you down.”
Ryker stepped forward and opened the door. “I know you won’t. And that works both ways.” He smiled and swept his arm toward the opening. “After you!”
With the Hyperloop well under way, the five Changers released their lap belts and swiveled their seats to face the aisle.
Johnny glanced at Curtis, then did a double take and smiled. “That’s it? That’s your look?”
“What?” Curtis said. “I don’t look like myself anymore, right?”
“Logan,” Levi snapped. “Get this man up to speed. He is seriously lacking in some of the finer points of the Change.”
Curtis did his best to not appear bewildered when he looked at Johnny. What? he mouthed.
Angelica was mildly amused. “You look a little…nerdy.”
Johnny shot a look at Levi, who wasn’t smiling. He turned back to Curtis. “Take on a look that you want to live with. You know, one that’s you. Your personality.” He nodded encouragement. “One that you want to keep while you’re with us.” He leaned toward Curtis and spoke softly into his ear. “Get handsome, like me.”
Curtis nodded. “Ah, got it.”
“I take it breakfast will be served shortly, Leader?” Xander asked.
“Yes, Doctor,” Levi said. “I expect it momentarily.”
Angelica eyed the far end of the compartment. “I see refreshments are on their way.”
A male attendant in a white jumpsuit, pushing a lightweight carbon fiber cart, strode swiftly down the narrow center of the car. He stopped one row of seats in front of the Changers and pressed a small button in the ceiling. A cover in the floor between the passengers slid sideways, giving way to an oval platform that rose automatically to table-height. The attendant bowed. “Fresh-squeezed orange juice for all.”
Curtis swiveled his chair to the table and looked at Johnny. “How’s this?”
Johnny looked at Curtis and sat up straight. He nodded. Then he nodded again. “Yes, Dyer. That’s more like it. That’s the ticket. What do you think, Leader?”
Levi smiled. “Yes, Dyer. I believe you’re a quick study. You’re going to work out fine.”
Johnny turned to Angelica. “I’d say he’s one handsome devil, wouldn’t you, Ms. DeMone?”
Angelica glanced up at Curtis while placing a napkin in her lap. “Yes. Ooh, baby,” she said, expressionless. “Where’s my quiche? I’m ready for breakfast.”
Chapter 20
Dead-End Doris
The waiting room adjacent to the Intensive Care Unit on the fifth floor of Tremayne Medical Center was quiet. Hospital staff had dimmed the lights overnight. The Three Amigos had waited out guests and family members well past visiting hours.
Will sat slumped in a thinly padded orange-and-chrome chair and gazed out through the floor-to-ceiling windows on the street-side wall. Fog. Lights from the parking lot fought to reach the third level of the hospital. Anything above the fourth floor looked like a wet wall of smoke reflecting the interior lighting.
The doctor on duty meandered into the darkened waiting area and stopped. He pulled an electronic tablet from his white coat and flipped a finger on the surface, scrolling the screen upward. He looked up at the Three Amigos. “Anyone here have a relation to a…” He glanced at the tablet again. “…a Ms. Doris Givenzy?” He looked up, seemingly impressed with himself at having properly pronounced the name.
Will stood quickly and turned to greet the doctor. “Room 504?”
Adam nudged Joey hard in the ribs. “Heads up, bro.”
Joey’s eyes fluttered open as Adam stood.
The doctor slipped the tablet back into his lab coat. “That’s correct,” he said to Will. “Are you a relative?”
Will glanced quickly at Adam, then back at the doctor. “Well, yes. Sort of.”
The doctor removed his glasses and tucked them into a top pocket. “We ran her name through our database. We also contacted the Tremayne Police Department. Neither search turned up any relations to this woman.”
“Uh—” Will began.
“She’s a Changer,” Adam blurted out.
The doctor raised an eyebrow. “Really? And how would you know?”
Adam glanced quickly around the room, as if the right words were floating somewhere in the air. “Uh…we’re Changers. We’re here on the highest authority from the Underground. Any information you have about Ms. Givenzy, you can tell us.”
“Sounds like a crock to me,” the doctor said. “You all look like Punks.”
Adam stepped up to the doctor. “If I have to prove anything to you, our leader isn’t going to like it.”
The doctor smiled and looked down his nose at Adam. He folded his hands in front of himself. “I’ll take my chances. Prove it, young man.”
Joey sat on the couch, silently listening to the banter. He speed-dialed Dion.
“Joey? It’s four o’clock in the morning. What’s up, buddy?”
“Yeah, Dion. I’m sorry about the time. I gotta talk fast. We got a situation here at the hospital. Adam kinda told the doctor we’re Changers—”
“What? You guys are working way past your shift.”
“Okay, wait. Let me finish. We can get information on this lady if we can prove we’re Changers. Does Krystal—or anyone there at headquarters—know what we can tell this doctor that will convince him to tell us about her?”
“Holy shit, Joe. Gimme a minute.”
Joey held the cell to his ear and turned around in his chair. “Hey, guys. I got our authorization coming right up.”
The doctor kept his arms folded and swiveled to address Joey. “Well, welcome to the morning, Rumpelstiltskin.” He glanced at a digital clock on the wall. “I really don’t have time for your nonsense. There are other patients I must see.”
“Hey, Joey?” Dion said.
Joey turned back around in his chair. “Yeah. Go ahead, Dion.”
“Krystal’s in a meeting right now. I pulled one of the other Rogue Changers out for this. Let’s hope it’s worth it.”
“Okay. Sorry, Dion. It’s pretty important.”
“Here’s Thomas.”
“All right—”
“This is Thomas. Joey?”
“Yeah, it’s Joey. Here’s the deal—”
“I already know the deal. Listen up. All hospitals and law enforcement have a set of codes they use to verify the Changers’ authority. I’m going to send a code to your phone right now. When the message comes in, it’ll look like an unknown number—no ID. The message will have a code in the image. Just tell that doctor to scan your code into his system. They’ll give you everything you need.” He chuckled. “I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t offer up his firstborn son when he sees the level of authority from this code.”
Joey smiled. “Got it. I’ll wait for the code. And thanks, Thomas.”
“Well, kids,” the doctor said. “I’ve had about enough waiting. I’ll have hospital security escort you out.”
Joey’s phone buzzed. “Wait.” He looked down at the screen. “What you’ll actually be doing is scanning the code on my cell.” He looked at Will and Adam. “If you know what’s good for you.”
The doctor dropped his hands to his sides, and his shoulders slumped. “Oh, fine! Give me that thing!” He stepped up to Joey and hel
d his hand out without looking.
Joey slapped the phone into the man’s hand. “Might want to check your attitude.”
The trio followed the doctor to the nurses’ station. The doctor grabbed the edge of a monitor and swiveled it around to face him. He placed the phone over a near-field communications device and looked at the monitor.
CHANGERS NORTH AMERICA
SECURITY LEVEL 10
The doctor caught himself with a hand on the countertop as his knees weakened. He looked up at the nurse across the counter.
Her eyes were sympathetic. “Doctor?”
The doctor breathed deeply and turned to face the Three Amigos. He smiled weakly and leaned against the countertop with both elbows.
“Well?” Will said. “We asked nicely before. We’d like any information you have on Ms. Givenzy.”
“And we’d like it now,” Joey said.
The doctor, still supporting himself with both hands, turned to the nurse. “Please get them whatever they need.” He turned back to the three. “The nurse will get you any information we have. And…and please accept my sincerest apologies for any misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding on your part,” Adam said.
The doctor nodded profusely. “Yes, yes. Misunderstanding on my part. If there is anything else you need, please don’t hesitate to contact me.” His hand trembled as he reached into his top shirt pocket and retrieved a business card.
Will looked at the card but made no attempt to reach for it. “Dr. Smith.” He looked up at the doctor. “Seriously? You’re Dr. Smith?”
The doctor nodded again. “Yes. Yes, I am. Dr. Smith. Dr. Stanley Smith.” He took another deep breath. “Now, if you will address Nurse Jones, she will help you.”
“Smith and Jones,” Joey said. “Doesn’t that figure.”
Adam turned to the doctor. “Well, thank you, Dr. Smith. Thank you for your cooperation.”
“Yes, of course. Any time,” the doctor said as he hurried down the hallway toward the restroom.
Will moved over to the nurses’ station and placed his hands on the counter. “Nurse Jones.”
“Yes, sir. I understand you are seeking information on the assault victim, Ms. Givenzy.”
“That’s right. We’d like to see her now.”
Nurse Jones’s hands trembled. “Well, sir.” She glanced down the empty hallway where the doctor had been, then looked back at Will. “Well, sir. You can’t see Ms. Givenzy.”
“You saw the authorization—” Joey began.
“Yes, yes. I saw it,” Nurse Jones said. “But Ms. Givenzy died three hours ago. We spent the last three hours trying to find a next of kin to notify. We found no one.”
“Where’s the body?” Will asked.
The nurse fidgeted with a stylus on the counter. “Well, the body was taken to the basement morgue for immediate disposal.”
“Disposal?”
“Why, yes. You know the policy, correct? With no family or friends to notify, Ms. Givenzy has already been cremated.”
Will looked at his two friends. “Well, Ms. Jones. It would have been wise to check in the waiting room before you cremated her instead of after. Don’t you agree?”
“I am truly sorry, sir.” The nurse reached under the counter. “We have her clothes.” She placed a clear plastic bag on the counter in front of Will. “And her other belongings.”
Will picked up the bag off the counter and reached inside. He pulled out items of clothing and handed them to Adam, one at a time. Shoe, shoe, sweater, bra, blouse. Where is it? Where is it?
He turned the bag upside down over the counter while the nurse watched. Skirt, bracelet, watch. Cell phone! Will shoved the device into the back pocket of his jeans and looked at his friends. “Adam, grab the rest of that stuff. We’re outta here.”
Chapter 21
Amok Raymond
Dion savored the scent of freshly scrambled eggs and sizzling bacon when he entered the control room inside the Depot. Jimbo sat in his usual spot at the communications control console, staring at a huge monitor on the wall.
“Fucking cold today,” Dion said.
“You’re telling me.” Jimbo swiveled his chair to face Dion. “Fog’s so thick, you get wet just steppin’ outside.”
Dion rubbed his hands together. “Breakfast smells good.” He glanced at a side door leading to the dining room and tipped his chin up. “Who all’s in there?”
Jimbo lit a cigarette and dropped his lighter on the bar top. “Let’s see. Ryker, Krystal, Winter, the two Rogue Changers, and Silver, whatever she is.”
“You need to get it straight, bro.” Dion shrugged off his duster and hung it over the back of a barstool. “Krys says she’s a Rogue Changer. Anyone who’s been a Changer but doesn’t want to be one anymore. That makes three Rogues in there, plus two Punks—Ryk and Win.”
“And Silver?”
Dion shook his head slowly. “I guess that remains to be seen. It appears Silver’s on our side at this point.”
“I don’t trust her, man,” Jimbo said.
“No, but I trust Krystal to keep an eye on her.”
Jimbo took a long drag on his cigarette. “I don’t even fully trust Krystal, bro.”
Dion walked toward the dining room door. “I know, man. You and Winter. I think you’ll come around.”
Jimbo swiveled back to the comm console. “We’ll see. Just lookin’ out for the Punks, that’s all.”
Dion pushed the dining room door open and stood in the entryway. He surveyed the diners and inhaled deeply. “Damn that smells good.”
Ryker glanced up and raised his hand to the Punk leader when Dion entered.
Fred turned around in time to see the door close behind Dion. “Boss is here, guys.”
Winter remained stone-faced. “Didn’t know he was in on this meeting.”
“He needs to know everything that’s going on,” Ryker said. He nodded to Krystal. “But Krys is in charge here.”
“Morning, everyone,” Dion said as he grabbed a chair from an adjacent table.
Ryker slid his chair closer to Krystal to make room for his friend. “You order yet, bro?”
Dion flipped the chair around and sat down between Ryker and Winter. “Yep. I called in a few minutes ago.” He glanced up at Thomas. “Thanks for handling that with the Amigos.”
“No problem,” Thomas said. “Shows what a team of Changers and Punks can do.”
Winter looked across the table at Silver. “Punks and Changers. Punks first, guy. Remember that.”
Silver smiled. “A little early for you, Winter? You sound testy.”
“He’s right, Win, whatever order you wanna say it.” Dion took a sip of his orange juice. “Thanks to Krys, we dodged a bullet. Her ability to take down the Chybrids was due exclusively to Changers technology. You can’t dispute that.”
“So what are they up to now?” Ryker asked.
Krystal speared a sausage bite with her fork and swirled it around the maple syrup on her plate. “I got some good info from Felix, guys. You can forget about the fucking mechanical Chybrids ripping us to shreds.”
“Seriously?” Winter said. “So you’re the savior of the Punks and you singlehandedly eliminated our biggest threat?”
Krystal popped the sausage bite into her mouth without looking up. “Let’s get one thing straight here.” She took three long swigs from her ice water and set the glass back onto the table, then looked up at Winter. “The Changers’ ultimate goal is world domination. First, they’re aiming for North America. Right now, they control the entire western half of this continent. Whatever phase this is in their timeline, they want North America next. Those mechanical Chybrids weren’t our biggest threat.”
“Really?” Ryker said. “If not for Felix and you with those skull-buster bullets, we were goners.”
Fred leaned onto the table with both elbows. “You have a point, Ryk. But we know the Changers.
It’s like this. They go for the jugular each time they move forward. But they always have another phase coming.”
“Like a backup plan?” Dion asked.
“Not exactly,” Fred said. “They go for the jugular, and they still want to stomp on your skull when you bleed out. They don’t care. They’re that ruthless.”
Winter leaned back in her chair. “So the next phase is them stomping on our skulls—”
“Which was in their plan all along,” Krystal said.
“I have to pee,” Silver said, standing up. “Where’s the restroom around here?”
Dion pointed toward the kitchen. “Head through that little alcove back there.”
“So, Krys, what’s the word from Felix?” Ryker asked. “Are we ready for the Changers’ skull-stomping?”
Krystal looked at Ryker, then she gazed at the elite team of Punks seated around the table. “Absolutely not.”
Jimbo got up from the control console and stretched. He walked to the Depot entrance and opened the door. The color of the thick fog had changed to a lighter shade of gray as the sun began to rise. He turned and grabbed his duster off of a coatrack near the door before stepping outside. He lit another cigarette and stuck the lighter into his duster pocket.
All sound outside was muted by the thick mist in the air. Jimbo squinted toward the glow of a light post along the concrete pathway in front of him. A wisp of moisture drifted out of place, no longer part of the stationary cloud. He reached around his back and pressed a hand to his waist. Yep, 9mm in place. He squinted into the mist again as a shadow approached. The sound of grit crunching on the sidewalk indicated footsteps.
He shifted his duster around his back and pulled his 9mm from his waistband. “Hey.”
No answer.
From behind him, Jimbo heard unintelligible banter from the two-way radio inside the Depot. “Heads up, man. Who’s there?” Where the hell is security? he thought.
He stood as still as possible, his pistol hung from one hand at his side. His ears prickled at the dead silence.
At the breakfast table, Dion glanced behind him toward the door to the communications room. Banter on the radio had caught his attention. No reply from Jimbo sparked his concern. “Excuse me, people.” He pushed his chair back and stood. “I’ll be right back.”
