by Hal Archer
"That's better," she said.
Through the lens, she saw the details of the alley before her. The edges and crevices of the buildings, the dumpster ahead and to her right, the windows high up on the backs of the buildings—everything was outlined in crisp green. She saw an outlined rat dart into a hole at the base of the building to her left. The lens didn't take anything away from her view; it made everything more noticeable. What her normal vision saw as two objects confusingly blurred together in the darkness, the lens made clearly distinct. Also, the green outline of anything moving, such as the rat, brightened until the motion stopped.
Satisfied she wouldn't be caught by surprise, she continued down the alley.
A minute later, she saw the brightening of a few of the green lines outlining something half visible around the corner of a one of the buildings. She quickly moved to the side of the alley, her back against the wall to fade into the shadows.
The outlined figures came fully into view. They were walking her way. With the help of her custom-made lens, she could see there were three people. They were too far for her to discern if they posed a threat.
She noticed the closed dumpster on the other side of the alley was sitting a few feet out from the building. Glancing behind her, she realized getting behind the dumpster was her best shot. The approaching figures stopped. They appeared to be arguing with each other.
Tiffin ran the twenty feet across the alley and ducked into the space between the dumpster and the building. Crouching, she moved to the other end of the hiding spot and slowly peered out at the strangers. They didn't seem to notice her dash across the alley.
She waited quietly for them to leave.
The voices from the group grew louder. Definitely arguing about something, Tiffin thought. She knew the smart play was to wait them out. She moved back into the full shadow behind the dumpster and sat with her knees bent up against her chest and her backpack to the wall.
The sound of a blaster firing and someone screaming startled her. She jolted and bumped her head against the brick behind her. "Oh, no." She wanted to see what happened, but she stayed hidden.
She heard two loud voices, a woman, and a man. The distance and the thick metal dumpster made it hard to tell what they were saying.
"No!" The woman's scream rang out loud enough to for Tiffin to hear the terror in her voice. Then she heard two more blaster shots.
She remained huddled behind the dumpster. She was shaking as she thought about the three shots. The alley was quiet. No more voices arguing.
She waited. She felt her heart beating heavily. Her breathing seemed louder than possible. She tried to slow it down, to remain quiet.
After what seemed like an eternity, she heard footsteps. She didn't dare look out from the dumpster, but she knew someone was close. She heard the crunch of grit as the footsteps slowed. They were in front of the dumpster.
Her heart felt like it was going to explode.
The footsteps stopped.
She held her breath to stay quiet.
Her pulse thumped in her eardrums.
She had to take a breath. With all the control she could manage, she eased air back into her lungs and paused before letting it out just as slowly. Another pause. Quiet, but for the thumping in her chest and ears.
She heard footsteps again. One. Two. Three. Each slightly louder.
Four.
A man jutted his head around the back corner of the dumpster.
Tiffin screamed. It was the green-skinned thick-set guy that was after Jake.
"Well, what are you doing here?" His face signaled nothing but bad intentions.
Tiffin pushed her way back from the edge of the dumpster, away from the man.
"Oh, no," he said. "You're not getting away from me. Those three failed to do what I asked. You don't want to make the same mistake."
She fumbled her hand into the pocket of her shorts.
The man leaned his head into the space behind the dumpster. He was bracing himself with his hand on top of it. "You picked the wrong alley, girl. But Hyde's got some time for you."
Tiffin quivered.
Hyde laughed, then leaned into the crawlspace more, holding himself up with the top edge of the dumpster. "Oh, yeah. I'll make time for you."
Tiffin pulled the stinger device from her pocket and withdrew every part of her body back against the wall of the building. She held the device up and squeezed it. The white electric charge lit up the space behind the dumpster. The arc jumped onto the thick metal in front of her.
Hyde screamed and smoke came from the corner where his hand gripped the dumpster. His body shook violently, inching the dumpster closer to Tiffin. She recoiled from the metal and released the long flat trigger on the side of the stinger device. The electricity disappeared and Hyde fell backward onto the ground.
Tiffin smelled his burnt flesh. She felt nauseated. She looked at Hyde. He didn't move. His eyes were closed.
Careful not to touch the metal of the dumpster even though she knew it no longer had the charge, she shimmied her way out from behind it. She stepped around to Hyde and looked at him. She saw his chest rising and falling with his breaths.
She ran.
CHAPTER 13
J ake heard quick steps racing toward him as he turned the corner of the alley. Tiffin ran into him, smacking her face into his chest. Jake stumbled back a step, but kept on his feet and raised his arms to keep her from falling.
"Hey," he said kindly, "what's going on?"
She jerked her shoulders to free herself from him until she looked up and saw his face. "Oh, it's you." She looked panicked. "He shot them. Almost got me. I was cornered." She shook her head.
Jake braced her by her shoulders and dipped his head down to look her in the eyes. "Slow down. You're OK." He nodded slowly. "Take a breath and tell me what happened."
Tiffin breathed. Then she seemed to realize Jake was holding her shoulders. She stepped back a couple of feet. "The man I told you about, the one following you." She swallowed and took a second to ease her breathing more.
"Go on," Jake said.
"I think I killed him."
Jake raised his brow, eyes widening. "You did?"
"Well, I don't know. I knocked him out, maybe."
Jake glanced down the alley behind Tiffin to see if anyone was coming.
"He was trying to hurt you?"
She nodded. "I was hiding. He killed some people. Shot 'em. Then he found me."
Jake glanced her over for signs of injury. "You're OK?"
She nodded.
"What did you do to him?"
She pulled her stinger device from her shorts and showed it to Jake.
Jake smiled. "Your design?"
Tiffin looked at the device, then smiled. "Yeah. Works pretty well, actually."
Jake took a step back, grinning. "Don't worry. You won't need it with me."
She stared at him for a minute, and he waited for her to decide about him.
"OK," she said finally. "I suppose I won't."
"Yeah, I'm rough around the edges, but I'm not your enemy."
She put the stinger back in her pocket.
"How far from here?" Jake asked.
She turned around and gazed down the alley. "I'm not sure." She turned back to Jake. "After, I just ran."
"You said maybe you knocked him out?"
"He flew back from the shock. He looked dead." She peered down the alley behind her again. "But I think he was breathing."
"Maybe we should go back and check."
"No!" Tiffin shook her head. "I don't want to. I just want to get out of here."
"OK. Maybe that's best."
"Will you…" She looked at her boots.
"You want me to see you home?"
She looked up at him and nodded.
"No problem," he said. "Come on."
They walked down the alley away from the scene Tiffin had fled.
"By the way," Jake said. "I went to see the Professor."<
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"The explosion!" She stopped and faced Jake. "I completely forgot. I'm glad you're OK. Were you there? When it happened?"
"I'm still trying to figure out what went down." He took a couple more steps. "Come on. I'll tell you about it on the way."
CHAPTER 14
"T ell me again why you live on the twenty-sixth floor," Jake said, climbing the stairs behind Tiffin.
"Yeah, sorry," she said. "Elevator's been out for about a year. I'd complain to the building owner, but I'm not actually paying rent." She paused with her foot on the next step and looked back at Jake. "I think he died around the same time. Guess whoever owns it now hasn't gotten around to fixing it."
She climbed the last two flights of stairs and Jake followed. He was used to being active, but the muscles in his upper legs burned.
The door to her floor was missing, but Jake knew from the metal hinges still attached to the frame that there had been one. Tiffin pointed down the corridor. "Mine's the one on the corner."
"Right," Jake said, leaning with his hand on the railing at the top of the stairs.
Tiffin stopped when they got to her door. "I need to let you know," she said to Jake as she placed her hand on the door handle, "I don't live alone. Try not to scare him."
Jake was surprised by the comment, but relieved to confirm Tiffin had no designs on him romantically. She was way too young for him to even get such a notion about her. He glanced at his hands as he turned up his palms and shrugged.
She opened the door. "Squeakers, it's me."
Jake furrowed his brow as he came in behind her.
What kind of a name is that?
Jake stepped in and watched Tiffin walk over to the folded carpet on the floor at the other side of the room. "I'm back," she said, peering into the hole made by the doubled-over carpet.
Jake noticed whiskers sticking out of the hole, twitching.
That kind of name. OK.
Tiffin turned and pointed to the tattered couch. "You can sit." Her tone was unrefined. Jake guessed she had few visitors.
"Thanks," he said, "but I'm good."
He moved to the pile of junk beside the couch. "What's all this?"
"Supplies."
"Right." Jake scanned the room and spotted the drone which had spied on him earlier. "I remember that fella." He gestured to the drone.
"Birdy's a girl," Tiffin said.
Jake grunted.
"The rat's your roommate, then?" Jake asked.
"Squeakers is a mouse. We look after each other."
Jake went to one of the glassless windows. The breeze blew in against him. He peered out at the city and listened to the faint noises from the streets far below.
"I feel bad about sending you to the Professor," Tiffin said.
Jake, still looking out the window, replied, "Don't. I needed the lead. You couldn't have known about the explosion."
"Yeah, but I'm glad you didn't get killed."
"Makes two of us."
"You really think the Baron will fall for the Professor's plan?"
Jake turned around to face Tiffin. "I have no idea, but it's worth a shot. Whatever happened to the Professor when the explosion did more than he figured, the Baron will see it as a good thing. I might as well lay claim to it, if it'll help me get what I need from him."
Tiffin took her binoculars from the pocket of her shorts and tossed them on the couch. Then she pulled off her backpack and set it on the floor.
"You want something to eat? I've got cheese. That's about it."
Jake had scarfed down a few protein sticks in the cab ride to Urgru Tower. "I'm good, but thanks."
Tiffin shrugged before pulling out a chunk of cheese from her pocket. She broke off a corner and gave it to Squeakers, then ate the rest.
"I think it's a bad idea." She spoke while chewing the cheese.
"Maybe," Jake said, "but I need to get the license. The Professor, if he's still alive, isn't going to be of help. Unless there's another kingpin you recommend I deal with, the Baron's my best bet."
"What if the Baron rigged the explosion to go off bigger?"
Jake stared at Tiffin. "Shit."
He gazed at the floor for a couple of seconds.
"A chance I'll have to take. I don't see how he could've gotten to it anyway."
"Maybe you're right," Tiffin said. "Still, he's dangerous. Could be he's the one who put that guy on your tail. The one who came after me."
Jake thought about her theory for a moment. He noticed anxiety returning to her face. He walked over to the poster on the wall.
"Nice picture," he said, nodding at it.
"Yeah. Sometimes I think about going there." She moved next to Jake. "I don't think it's a real place though. Got the poster in a barter with somebody a long time ago. He said he knew someone who had been there, but I think he made it up."
Jake racked his memory for anything about a place called Erith, but couldn't come up with anything. "The galaxy's a big place. I've seen a lot, but I'm sure there are a billion more worlds out there." He glanced at the ratty couch and the state of her apartment, then he looked her in the eyes. "Maybe, it is real."
"How many?" Tiffin asked.
"How many what?"
"How many worlds have you seen?"
Jake thought about her question for a while before answering. "I think I've lost count. Hundreds, maybe."
Tiffin's eyes widened and her mouth hung open. "Wow."
Jake chuckled. It dawned on him that he was once similarly taken with the idea of galactic travel, of possibilities. "Sounds good," he glanced at the poster, "but not every place out there is Erith."
Tiffin looked deflated. "I wouldn't know. Been here my whole life. I'll probably die here too."
Jake looked at her. He felt sorry for her. Then an alarm went off in his mind. No way I'm bringing her with me. "Life's complicated as it is."
"What?" Tiffin asked.
Jake realized he said the last thought out loud, though he didn't mean to.
"I mean, life is complicated," he said. "You never know how it will turn out."
Tiffin plopped down on the couch, sitting on the side. She leaned against the torn upholstered arm and stared ahead.
Jake felt his frustration welling up. How the hell did this turn into a father-daughter life lessons talk?
He exhaled and gave it another shot. "Maybe, if you find some people. You know, to talk to and hang out with."
"Me and Squeakers talk," she said, still staring at the wall on the other side of the room.
"Yeah," Jake said, "but…"
Ugh. I think I preferred the explosion… or the ambush in the alley.
"You're talented," Jake said, gesturing to the drone and the pile of electronic and mechanical parts beside the couch. "Ever thought about doing something more with that?"
"Like what?"
"I don't know, but somebody'd be lucky to get those skills working for them."
Tiffin looked at Birdy, then to the pile of parts she'd collected, then up at Jake. "Yeah?"
"Sure. I've never seen anyone who can make things like you."
Tiffin smiled. "Thanks. I'm working on something else. Like Birdy, but for me. Can't show it to you. It's not done."
He was relieved to see her smile. He needed an out from the conversation and decided that would do.
"I need to go. Gotta go see the Baron," he said, taking a few steps toward the door. "You alright? I mean, with what happened in the alley?"
Tiffin looked surprised he was leaving. She stood up. "Oh. Yes. Thanks."
"Good. Thanks for the heads up on the guy tailing me." Jake smiled. "And for taking him out. You're a tough girl."
Tiffin nodded, looking a bit dazed.
Jake opened the door to leave, then turned to Tiffin. "Take care of yourself."
She nodded slowly. "You too." Before he stepped out, she spoke up. "He said his name was Hyde."
Jake stopped in his tracks and looked back at Tiffin. "What?"
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"Hyde. He said his name."
Jake slowly shook his head. "Shit. I didn't think he'd come here."
"You know him?"
"Yes," Jake said. He stared at Tiffin. "I'm glad you're OK." He paused for a few seconds. "Maybe you should stay inside for the next couple of days."
"Why's he after you, Jake?"
Jake glanced at the floor then back up at Tiffin. "He seems to think I should die, and I keep disappointing him."
Tiffin looked worried.
"Just stay here for a day or two," Jake said. "He's not looking for you. If he found out I'm here, he'll know when I leave."
He nodded to her, then left and headed down the twenty-six flights of stairs. He fiddled in his pocket with the disc he got from the Professor as he descended the stairs, thinking about his coming meet with the Baron and about how Tiffin had come to live in a run-down apartment with a mouse, and about Hyde. He wondered why fate stuck him so many problems. He kept moving, knowing he had a half-ass plan and that was as good as it was going to get.
CHAPTER 15
I gnoring the needle pushers and hustlers along the way, Jake took the route through the alleys to the turn, which put him through the cold fog cloud outside the Baron's place. He'd watched his back more this time than before. Hyde wouldn't get out of his head. Now he stood in front of the Baron's dented metal door wondering if Hyde was waiting inside too.
Wouldn't that be poetry?
A mist was falling from the artificial clouds belched into the Eon sky by the atmosphere generators somewhere in the city. Darker spots appeared on his brown leather jacket from the moisture. His calm exhalations were visible in the dim light as they met the chilly air.
The door was shut this time. He opened the flap over his blaster and reached for the door handle. He hesitated, glancing behind him again and the other way down the alley.
"One way to find out," he said, turning the handle, and opening the door.
He entered the room, glancing at the sealed door to his right—the Baron's cold room. He walked in the dim red light to the chipped mirror at the other side of the room, checking for trigger-happy nephews in the hallway to his left as he passed it. He felt the cracks in the floor through his boots.
