by Julie Kagawa
“Well,” Wes commented as I hung up. “Don’t you look like hell.”
Cobalt
Twelve years ago
I don’t know how he tracked me down, but he did.
A human was waiting for me in the latest dump I’d rented for the night, sitting at the desk in the corner, watching as I came through the door. I tensed, going for the gun I always carried now, and he quickly held up his hands.
“Relax, mate! I’m not here for trouble. Just hear me out.”
I recognized him then. The kid who had been in that meeting with Roth and the Chief Basilisk, so long ago, it seemed. His brown hair stuck out in every direction, hanging in his eyes, and his clothes looked rumpled and dirty, like he’d spent a few days in them. I racked my memory for his name, then realized it had never been given.
“Okay.” I did not lower the gun, keeping it aimed at the kid’s scrawny middle. He might’ve been human, and unarmed as far as I could tell, but I’d had a hell of a week and wasn’t going to be taking any chances. “You have my attention. What do you want?”
“Uh, could you maybe put the gun down? I told you before, mate, I don’t want any trouble. I’m here to help you.”
I smirked. “Really? I find that a little hard to believe. One, you’re human. What can you possibly do that would help me? And two, more importantly, I saw you in that meeting with Roth. You’re part of Talon.”
“Not anymore.”
I faltered and gave him an incredulous look. “Not anymore? What do you mean?”
“I mean, I left, mate. I’m out. Went rogue, dropped off the grid, gone AWOL, whatever you want to call it.”
“How?”
“I’ve been planning this a long time,” the kid explained, a flash of anger and resentment crossing his narrow face. “If you wanna lower the gun, and not make me so bloody nervous, I’ll tell you everything. Including some things about you that you might not know.”
Sighing, I dropped my arm. “Fine,” I muttered, and he relaxed. I did not need this right now, having some strange human show up on my doorstep like a lost cat, but if the kid really had gotten out of Talon, it could be worth listening to him. He might know what Talon was up to, if they had any more plans involving me and another Viper. I’d managed to avoid Stealth so far, but that wouldn’t last. She was still out there, looking for me. The least I could do was hear him out. “Although,” I warned, with one last jab of the pistol, “if Talon unexpectedly shows up while we’re talking, you’re going to be the first one I shoot. Just so you know.”
He paled, but nodded. “Fair enough. Though if the bastards do show, it might be better to shoot me.” Resting bony elbows on his knees, he sighed, sounding suddenly tired, and far older than I first took him for. “I think…I might actually rather be dead than go back.”
Shoving the gun into the waistband of my jeans, I stepped farther into the room. “Who are you?” I asked, pausing at the foot of the bed, watching him. “How’d you find me?”
“My name is Wesley,” the human said, leaning back in the chair. “Wesley Higgins, or just Wes, if you like. Not that it matters, I officially don’t exist in any system anymore. And there’s no need to introduce yourself, Agent Cobalt. I already know who you are. I know a lot of things about you, actually.”
“Do you, now?” I said in a flat, dangerous voice. “And what exactly do you want for this information? Is the deal I give you everything I have, or you go back to Talon to turn me in?”
“That’s not it at all! Look, I’m not trying to blackmail you or anything. I just…ugh.” Wes scrubbed both hands through his hair. “Bloody hell, I don’t want a fight. I’m on your side, okay? Let me start from the beginning. Can I do that, without you blowing my head off?”
I shrugged. Maybe I was being paranoid, but again, hell of a week. “No promises,” I growled. “Get on with it.”
“Right,” Wes muttered, and took a deep breath. I leaned against the wall, crossing my arms, and waited.
“I’ve been in Talon nearly five years,” the human began, eyeing me warily. “Before that, I lived in London, with my folks. I didn’t have any siblings, and both my parents worked long shifts, so I was alone most of the time.”
“What does this have to do with Talon?”
“I’m getting there, mate.” Wes paused to gather his thoughts before continuing. “Like I said, my folks were absent most of the time. They didn’t know what I did. They weren’t aware that I was an…um…anonymous independent computer specialist.”
“You were a hacker,” I said.
“And a bloody good one, too. Still am.” Wes looked faintly smug, then his eyes darkened. “Of course, that’s what got me into this mess. I was home alone one day, minding my own business, when there was a knock at the door. I opened it, and two uniformed policemen were standing there on the stoop. Said I was under arrest, and that I already knew why they were taking me in. I was terrified. I was fourteen, alone and being dragged from my home in handcuffs.” He smiled grimly, completely without humor. “Of course, it wasn’t the police. It wasn’t anyone in law enforcement. But you already know that, don’t you?”
It was my turn to sigh. “Talon.”
“Bloody Talon,” Wes repeated. “Though I didn’t know that at the time. They took me to a room, sat me in front of a computer and said that if I didn’t do what they wanted, not only would they expose me, they would ruin my family, as well.” Wes shook his head. “I was a stupid bloody teenager. I believed them. So I did what I was told. For three years, I worked for Talon, wondering about my parents, wondering when the organization would let me go home. And you know what I finally realized?”
“They wouldn’t,” I muttered.
Wes nodded slowly. “When I was sixteen, I attended my first meeting with Adam Roth. They brought me into a secure room, no windows, no other humans around. And they showed me Talon’s secret. They showed me who I was working for.” Wes gave a short, bitter laugh. “A gift, they said. A reward for my brilliant service and talents. Bloody bastards. I realized then they would never let me go. I was in for life.”
“That’s when you decided to get out?”
“They bloody kidnapped me.” Wes’s lip curled in a snarl. “Took away my freedom, my family, everything. I was a bloody slave to the lizards for five years. I’d be damned if I was going to stay there.”
“Getting away must’ve taken some work,” I said, amazed that the kid had pulled off something so risky, and that he’d avoided Talon even this long.
“Yeah, well, like I said, I’ve been planning this awhile,” Wes repeated. “I had to set everything up so that when I did leave, I’d be out of their systems forever. And I had to scrape together enough secrets and blackmail to keep my family safe. When I ran, I made it very clear that if they ever threatened my folks in an attempt to get to me, there are some very interesting files on Talon’s businesses that would go public.”
I smirked. “Playing dirty with Talon. I’m impressed.”
The human snorted. “Right. There’s just one small snag,” he said, lowering his brows. “I can’t do this on my own. I can hack my way through just about anything, but I don’t have the survival skills you do, the ones that will keep me alive and away from the organization. If I run, eventually, they’ll send someone to kill me, or drag me back. Some Viper will slit my throat in the middle of the night.” He shuddered, giving me a grave look. “Honestly, I’ve been waiting for someone like you for a long time now. When I heard that you went rogue, I knew it was my chance. I’d probably never get another one.”
“So you tracked me down hoping I’d protect you from Talon?” I shook my head. “I don’t need a human tagging along, slowing me down. I work alone, that’s how it’s always been.” His face fell, making me feel like an ass, but I hardened my voice. “Do you even know what you’re asking? Wha
t going rogue means to the organization? They’ll never stop looking for you. They will never give up, or forgive, or accept any compromise. And they’ll never forget, because dragons have insanely long memories and will hold a grudge forever. You go back now, sure, Talon will lock you away and you’ll live a very sheltered existence until you die of old age or boredom. But at least you’ll be alive. You come with me, and your life is going to be uncertain, violent and probably very short.”
His eyes narrowed. “I don’t think you quite realize the opportunity here, mate,” he said, making me frown. “I’m not just some stupid kid in need of protection. I can help you, too.”
“How?”
He smirked. “For starters…you know all those accounts frozen by Talon when you went rogue? I can open them again, and make it so they’ll never be traced back to you.”
“What?” I stared at him, and his smirk widened.
“I told you, I’m one of the best, mate. You need something, some file stolen or code decrypted, I can do that. In fact…” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a strip of black plastic. “A goodwill offering,” he announced, tossing it to me.
“What is this?” I asked as I caught it.
“All of Talon’s files on you. Everything you’ve done for the organization, all their information on where you’ve been, where you’ve stayed, your case files, your assignments, your hatching date, everything. Congratulations. You are now truly a ghost to them.” I gazed up at him, stunned, and his smile turned hard. “You know you were never supposed to come back from that mission, right? According to your file, you were becoming a ‘liability’ and ‘suspect to corruption.’ Which is Talon’s way of saying they couldn’t control you anymore. So they decided to stage an accident, have you killed in the line of duty.” He shrugged. “But, since you’re here and not buried under a ton of bricks and mortar, I guess you already knew that.”
“Yeah,” I muttered, glancing at the thumb drive in amazement. My whole life, on this tiny strip of plastic. And now, it was mine alone. Thanks to this human, tracking me down had just become that much harder. “I guess that ‘file’ they had me steal from St. George was bogus, too,” I said, slipping the drive into my jacket. “Just an excuse to get me into the compound.”
“Oh, no, mate. That was very real.” Wes grinned again as I looked up. “Talon took a very important file from St. George that day. They already had an agent inside the base, why not use him one last time? Only problem? It seems to be missing now. Like it was never there. Funny how that works.”
“You have the file,” I said, and he shrugged. “So what is it?”
“You’re asking me? I thought you worked alone.”
I glowered, but it was a mostly empty gesture. The human was right; he was far too useful not to keep around. Still, something nagged at me. “Let’s say I accept your offer,” I began, making his brows rise. “Why do this? What do you get out of it?”
“Besides staying alive? I would think that’s a sodding good reason right there, but…there is something else.” Wes leaned back in the chair, his face suddenly hard. “The bloody lizards stole my life,” he muttered. “I’ll never be normal. I’ll never be able to see my family, get married, have kids, anything like that. Because of Talon.”
“So this is revenge?” I asked, and shook my head. “And you think you’ll…what…bring them down? This isn’t a single company you can infect with a virus. This is a worldwide corporation, an empire. We’re only two people.”
“What if there were more like us?”
“Even if there were,” I said, “how would we find them?”
The human’s eyes gleamed. “How indeed,” he said, and opened his laptop, bending over the keys. “You want to know what that file you took from St. George was?” he said, as I edged forward and peered over his shoulder. “Check this out.”
I squinted at the image that popped onto the screen, frowning in confusion. It was…a list. There was no title, no header, nothing to indicate what it was actually for. But the first line read: “Carson City, NV. Talon activity: Moderate. Sleeper agents discovered: 1.”
Sleeper agents? Sleeper was the Order’s word for the hatchlings ready to complete assimilation, when they were sent to human towns to blend in with humanity. I scanned the list, amazement and awe growing with each line. Each row held the name of a town, the level of Talon activity discovered there and one or two possible sleepers. My heart beat faster in excitement.
“This is…” I muttered, and Wes nodded.
“All the places St. George thinks Talon will send their hatchlings,” he finished, and shrugged. “It’s probably not accurate, some of those places might not be in use anymore, especially with Talon’s paranoia. But…”
But it was something. And now that we had a list of possible sleeper locations, the wisp of an idea began to creep into my head. A crazy, impossible, terrifying idea. If we could find these hatchlings, be there when Talon planted them into a town, I could show them the truth about the organization. They needed to know, before Talon sank their claws in too deep, before they were brainwashed completely. They needed to see what Talon was really like. And, if they decided they could no longer be a part of the organization, they needed someone to help them escape, to show them how to be free.
I could show them how.
Wes noticed the change, and a slow smile crossed his face. “So, what’d’ya say, mate?” he said softly. “Partners?”
“You realize this is going to take a long time,” I warned. “The type of network we’re talking about, it will take years to build, decades even. We’ll constantly be on the run, from Talon and St. George. Our lives are never going to be safe, or anything close to normal. Sure you’re up for it, human?”
“Hey.” Wesley Higgins leaned back with a shrug. “I’m being hunted by a bloody dragon empire that won’t stop unless it’s completely destroyed or taken down. What else am I going to do?”
“All right.” I looked down at the screen, at the first place on the list, and nodded. Carson City, Nevada, was our first stop. “Let’s get this resistance started.”
Ember
I lowered my arm, feeling my heart pound, my emotions raging everywhere all at once. Riley was okay; I couldn’t express how relieved I was to hear his voice, to know he was alive. The past few hours had been a nightmare; I hadn’t even realized how much Riley meant to me until he was gone.
And my dragon, surging like molten lava through my veins, was acutely aware of Riley’s promise, was relishing it, even. She couldn’t wait to see him again. She recognized her other half, had always recognized it. Cobalt called to her. She felt the other dragon’s pull as surely as I felt the need to fly or sleep or breathe. And Riley wasn’t holding back anymore.
So what was holding me back?
“We should move.” Garret’s voice echoed at my side. I glanced up and found him watching me, his face shut into that blank, expressionless mask that made my insides shrink. “Talon is probably aware by now that their ambush failed,” he went on, gesturing to the carnage around us. “If they aren’t, they’ll find out very shortly. We should leave the premises before they send in the cleanup crew.”
“Right.” I nodded and pushed myself off the crate stack, but pain shot up my leg and I nearly fell, barely catching myself on the edge. “Ow. Dammit. Ow.”
“Are you all right?” Garret hovered at my side, his remote expression cracking a little with worry. I waved him off.
“I’m fine.” I took another step, clenching my teeth as my leg, back, ribs and shoulder throbbed. I didn’t know if it was from dragon claws, or just general aches and bruises from my fight with the Viper, but dammit I was sore. Of course, the stupid magic Viper suit didn’t show rips or tears, so I couldn’t even see how bad the wounds were. “Right behind you,” I gritted out, wishing I could Shift to my real form
again. The human body didn’t deal with pain as well as a dragon’s. “Just moving…a little slower than normal. Keep going.”
Garret hesitated, then stepped beside me, putting a hand on my back. Surprised, I glanced at him as he bent, scooped an arm under my knees and lifted me off my feet. I gasped, wincing as the motion tore at the open wounds beneath my suit, but then he shifted me gently in his arms, and the pain receded.
“Garret.” My heart pounded, my stomach tying itself into knots at being so close. I put a hand on his chest, feeling his own heart thudding beneath my palm. “You don’t have to do this,” I said, torn between exhilaration and embarrassment. “I’ll be okay…”
I trailed off at the look he gave me. Sorrow, regret and longing glimmered in his eyes for just a moment, before they blinked and became remote once more. “Let me do this one last thing,” Garret said quietly, and offered a faint smile when I frowned in confusion. “You carried me to safety once. Now it’s my turn.”
He sounded sad for some reason. Like this was the last thing he would do for me. Wanting to ease the tension, I looped an arm around his neck and smiled. “You know, if you really wanted to impress, I could Shift right now and you could carry me out like that.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “Somehow, I don’t think I’d get very far. Riley would walk in and see a dragon lying on top of a crushed soldier. He’d probably take a picture to remember it, always.”
I chuckled, feeling some of the awkwardness subside. A soldier of St. George carrying a dragon to safety—what was next? Sighing, I leaned my head on his chest, as Garret walked easily through the maze with me in his arms. His heart beat steady and sure against my ear, and I relaxed. We were okay, all of us. St. George had come for us, and we’d survived. Talon had sent two deadly double agents to force me back to the organization, and I was still here. Riley was alive. Garret was alive. We’d taken the worst Talon and the Order could throw at us and had come out on top.
