Toby looked disgusted. “You think just because the gun isn’t in your hand you’re not responsible for what Jacobi would have done to her?”
“No more, Toby. Please,” Alex begged. “Let’s go.”
“That woman kept you drugged up in a house for days. Don’t you care?” Toby cocked his pistol and aimed with a shaky hand. “At best she’d have led you back to Jacobi and he would have kept you hostage. More likely he would have tried to twist your mind. He’d turn you into a killer too, Alex.”
Alex pulled Toby off-balance and braced him in a hung. “Ah, Alex. My ribs.” She pulled away. Penny was gone.
“Alex! Now she’s got away.”
Alex steadied his stumble forward.
Silence. The two Ackersons let their thoughts clear. Toby let his anger subside enough to stop shaking. He just had his first opportunity to confront one of Alex’s kidnappers - the people who had forced him to attempt to assassinate Swanson. That woman was just as responsible for the death of Swanson’s kid as Toby was. That poor little boy.
“Toby?” Alex broke the silence.
Toby shifted his weight, waking from a reverie. “Ok, Alex. We need to move.”
“Toby, you’re a mess.”
“Come on. We’ve got a lot of space to put between us and this place. That woman will be back with the Erikssens soon.” Toby gripped hard to Alex’s shoulder as he took a pace forwards.
“Toby, they’re dead.” Alex kept watching Toby’s face. “The Erikssen base was bombed this morning. They were wiped out.”
Toby picked up the pace. “It doesn’t matter. They brought it on themselves. They’ve brought it on us all.”
Alex did not understand. “Where are we going?”
“Not to find the contact,” Toby said, looking backwards at the church spire. “The contact is gone, if they’ve got any sense. We’ll head to Dayna’s house. It’s only ten minutes away.”
Alex dithered. Ten minutes away yesterday would be closer to thirty minutes away today. “Ok Toby, I’ll get you there. Just tell me which way to point you.”
Toby chuckled. “I’m not blind or in a wheelchair, missy. I’ll direct us, you just keep us upright.”
“Yes boss.” Alex smiled briefly before immersing herself back into the challenge ahead of her. “This is one of your contacts?”
Toby lurched forward, forcing her to follow his pace. “You don’t need to know the details. I trust her.”
“You need to hide out for a while.”
“I knew this person before I joined the Ackersons, she’s worth the risk,” Toby said.
Alex squinted sideways at him. “You’ve been in the Ackersons longer than me. When was the last time you actually talked to her?”
She looked away. She hated that look. Over the last eleven years he had given her more fatherly advice than her own Dad. Knowing she had done something to disappoint him was like having an icicle stabbed into her chest.
“Sometimes Alex, you just need to trust your gut. One day you’ll be in a situation when you need to decide if you believe someone is acting in your best interest. Sure, be on your guard, but be prepared to accept that even a complete stranger may honestly want to help you.” Toby smirked at her. “If you can’t trust them then run like hell.”
She smiled. “You always taught me to be a good runner.”
At the park gate Alex shifted Toby’s arm so it looked like he was casually resting his hand on her right shoulder. He tried to control his limp as they crossed the street into an alley lined by hedged gardens.
Alex was struggling to move forwards. Her entire body felt stretched beyond capacity with the weight of her comrade. On top of that, she felt whatever Penny had used to dope her developing into a major hangover. Her whole body shook and stumbled as they approached a junction.
“We’re going right here. Then second door on the right.” Toby’s ankle had swollen massively and he held it hovering in the air. His right shoulder was a mess and Alex held his right hand gently against his body to stabilise his arm.
This was a good part of town. The buildings were only four storeys high, with the entrance for the lower duplexes at the front and the higher duplexes at the back of the buildings. There were roman columns and little white porches jutting across the pavements. Juliette balconies framed the upper duplex windows. These gorgeous houses were gifted to the best and most loyal public servants about seventy years ago. The inhabitants clung on hard to the buildings every time the Government tried to claw them back.
Toby and Alex struggled up six steps to a thick steel-lined door. Alex pressed hard on the doorbell. The door rattled open to reveal a slim, elegant woman with curvaceous silky brunette hair. Confusion, fear, concern flashed across her face in a fragment of a second.
“Tobias?” The woman held the door open and Alex pulled Toby inside.
“On the sofa.” The woman pointed across the hall. The door clicked shut as Alex helped Toby down. The weight lifted from her shoulders and she lowered herself down to the floor. Leaning lopsidedly against the wall. She felt her back straightening against the solid wall, reshaping the kinks left there by Toby’s weight.
“Hell, Tobias. What have you two done to yourselves?”
Alex studied the woman. She was about the same age as Toby and obviously knew him well. This place was not the home of a typical contact. She was rich, well cared for, in a nice part of town. What was the connection there?
“You’re Dayna?” Alex asked.
“Yes.” The woman sat down next to Toby with a first aid kit in her hands. “And you must be Alex Jenkins. I’ve seen you on the news.”
Alex smiled weakly. “I’m infamous now.”
“You say that like you’re proud,” Dayna said.
“Well, maybe I am. For some of the stuff anyway,” Alex grumbled.
Dayna turned back to Toby. “She’s still a child, Tobias.”
“Nice to see you too, Dayna.” His voice was strained.
Dayna gently raised Toby’s leg onto the sofa and studied it. “Is it broken?” She asked.
“No,” Toby moaned. “It was a complicated sprain when it happened last night.”
“Now it’s a very complicated sprain.” She chastised him again. “You shouldn’t walk on it for a couple of weeks.”
They shared a knowing look. “Not going to happen.”
She sighed. “I know.” She turned her attention to his shoulder.
“Can we stay for a few hours? We’ll head out as curfew starts.” He ignored her look of alarm. “I know this part of town like the back of my hand, you know that.”
She ran her finger over his collarbone and he hissed through his teeth. “The triggers have changed. Have you been keeping an eye on us?” She snuck him a flirtatious look. “You haven’t changed, Tobias. Always on the go, never waiting to think things through.”
She stood up and laid the first aid kit on the coffee table in front of her.
“Dayna, you know I had to go,” Toby protested.
“I know more than you think,” Dayna growled. “The past is the past, but why come here today? You turn up after three years of not a word. You come here with this chit of a girl in a complete state and you think you’re winning this fight?”
“Hey,” Alex complained weakly.
“I didn’t get her in this mess,” Toby said. “I just saved her from a pretty brutal fight with an Erikssen.”
“We weren’t fighting,” Alex said, confused.
Toby scoffed. “No, but it was only a matter of time.”
“Enough!” Dayna commanded. “You are both ignorant to the fact that you are in my house covered in injuries and stinking to high heaven. I can safely bet that neither of you have seen a bath or a decent meal in the last few days. I can give you those.”
“Thank you,” Toby said.
Dayna scowled at him. “We need to talk.” Her eyes flitted at Alex and held her steady. “You. Upstairs, straight ahead is the bathroom. Go get a sho
wer. There are towels hanging next to the bath.”
Steadying herself against the wall, Alex tried to hide her indignation and slowly raised herself to her feet. “Thanks.”
“Wait.” Alex obeyed Dayna’s command. “Do you have any injuries?”
Alex shook her head. “Nothing that won’t wear off.”
Dayna nodded and Alex disappeared up the stairs. They waited for the bathroom door to close with a loud click.
“Tobias, what were you thinking bringing her here?” Dayna sat back down next to Toby’s legs and held his hand.
“We were in Milton Gardens. I remembered us taking the kids to see your parents when they lived here. I knew you’d move in when they passed away. Anything to stiff the Government.” He let the tension slip from his body. “I knew it would be safe here.”
Dayna shrugged, brushing Toby’s hair back from his face. “Well yes, it’s safe. There are a lot of good memories here.”
“Better ones than in our old house,” Toby said sombrely. He looked up.
“Don’t,” Dayna said. “I know what you’re going to say. You were so angry you had to hurt someone. I saw the broken evidence in the bin the week before you left.”
Toby shrugged. “You’re right.”
“I was angry too.” She brushed her fingers over his cheek to stop him talking. “I hid it well. I still hide it well. What I do now is too important to risk exposing myself.”
Toby grimaced as intense pain shot along his collarbone. “I’m sorry. For what happened to the kids, for leaving, for putting you at risk when I joined the Ackersons, for bringing Alex here now...”
“She’s a good kid. The cops say they have her.”
“Really? It’s been days since she escaped.” Toby could not believe it. “They don’t want to admit they lost her.”
“She looks like she’s just got out of a fight. Where’s she been?” Dayna asked.
“The Erikssens had her. They had me too, but at different times, different places. It’s ridiculous,” Toby said.
Dayna looked down at his ankle again. “Look, your collarbone is broken and you might have a fracture within your shoulder rotary cuff. Normally I would say you need to keep it in a sling and rest. For you, I’m going to put your upper chest and upper arm in a cast that you need to keep on for eight weeks.”
“Eight weeks? I can’t have a cast on. What if we get attacked?” Toby said, aghast.
“Then you’ll thank me for putting a cast on so your fractured bones don’t move and possibly kill you,” Dayna said shortly. “You’ll keep the cast on. I won’t plaster your ankle though. It’s too swollen to take a cast and if you rest it then it will fix itself.”
“Dayna, life isn’t that simple,” Toby said cheekily.
“You will rest it, or you’ll have a limp for the rest of your life. Understand?” Dayna growled. “I’ll give you an adjustable splint. It’ll get you home... to wherever you’re going next.”
“Thanks,” Toby said again.
Dayna nodded. “You’re family. You are still family, Tobias. We’ll fix you up after you’ve had a wash.”
Toby looked up towards the top of the stairs. The faint sound of running water could be heard. “I hope she’s Ok. It’s probably hitting her now she’s slowing down.”
Dayna shifted uneasily. “Yeah, she’s had a lot to take in this weekend. I bet it’s a big hit to the Ackersons.”
“What?” Toby asked.
Dayna shook her head. “I mean.... Hywel Jenkins’ death.”
Dumbstruck.
She lightly rested her finger on his trembling back. “I’m sorry, Toby. He was executed on Sunday. I’m so sorry.”
Toby kissed her hands gently. “I don’t know what to think. He’s been with us for over a decade. I thought.... After what he did, what should I feel right now?”
She said. “The Erikssens tried to assassinate Commander Swanson last night. Then this morning half of Gateway was on fire after the police bombed an Erikssen base. The building was completely destroyed. They all died.”
Toby nodded. “I heard something about that.”
Dayna looked up at the bathroom door again. “Does she know? About her father.”
“I doubt it,” Toby said grimly.
“She needs to know,” Dayna said.
Toby shook his head. “Not yet. I need to get her back to base before she completely falls apart.”
“Do you know where base is?” Dayna asked.
Toby narrowed his eyes at her. “You know I don’t.”
Dayna smirked. “I know you don’t. I bet you both happened to be at Milton Green because that’s where your contact used to be. Do you have another route back?”
“It’s Ok,” He sat up and calmed himself. “I know a lot of hideouts. The two of us will rest up for a couple of weeks, then I’ll contact someone I know who meets up with Zoe regularly.”
“At least you’ll rest for a while,” Dayna conceded. They heard the shower turn off upstairs. “I’ll go get her some clean clothes. Then I’ll make us some lunch while you’re washing up.”
Dayna disappeared upstairs.
As darkness fell, Toby and Alex, rested and nourished, said goodbye to Dayna and slipped into the shadows. They were taking a big risk coming out here during curfew, but Toby insisted this was his side of town. Nobody knew these streets like him.
They passed the edge of the cafe district. There was a warehouse there. It hadn’t passed Toby’s pre-move checks yet, but this was an opportunity to ensure the site was secure. Zoe knew this site was on Toby’s list, but she would be stupid to move to a base before Toby’s final say.
They were risking a lot, skirting the edge of the city past high security sites. Some of the streets were completely unnavigable and they doubled back to avoid police surveillance points. The warehouse was not far from their old base and when they approached Alex could almost imagine the same layout inside waiting for them.
“Where’s the way in? Is it alarmed?” She whispered.
“We go in through a loose side panel on the back wall. It’s all corrugated iron down that side, with no brick,” he added.
“Bit of a security weakness,” she added snidely.
He didn’t rise to the bait. “The building needs a lot of repairs to keep it upright. Last time I visited this site I decided we’d never use it for residential use. It’d be a fair storage site. We won’t stay here long.”
The back alley was a dead end. That was not a good feature for a base. If they needed to evacuate they would funnel in one direction and be shot down. The alley was filled with piles of rubbish and rubble. The surrounding roofs were all flat and smooth, making her think they’d be perfect sniper stations. None of this was helping her grim mood.
Toby lifted his arm from across her shoulders. Her spine was on the verge of spasm as his weight left its compacted vertebrae. Toby felt the edge of a sheet of iron and lifted it gently.
Suddenly the street was filled with shouting. The sounds of weapons cocking sounded above everything else. Alex spun around to see men appearing from piles of bricks. Someone was on the roof. The corrugated iron pushed back to reveal another armed man. Toby stumbled back and Alex grabbed him before he could fall. She had no weapon. They were defenceless.
“Stop!” A woman lowered her weapon and rushed forwards.
Toby stumbled as Alex dropped him, bracing herself to defend.
“It’s Alex!” The voice was so familiar. “And Toby!”
Zoe swung her rifle onto her back and pulled Alex into a tight hug. Alex felt her chest constrict and she gasped, trying to control the tears on her lashes. “How?”
Alex swung around to check on Toby. Marcus was there, keeping him steady. Barney was holding open the makeshift door. Light was pouring out into the night, inviting them in. Voices inside sounded jovial and simple. Nothing had changed. They were stepping back into normality.
Emma abandoned her place at a dinner table and ran towards them.
Emma took in Toby’s makeshift splint and chest cast. “Let’s take a look at you.”
“No,” Toby protested. “See to Alex first. I don’t know how bad she really is.”
Emma looked quizzically at Alex, got the teen to a seat and checked her over.
“Thank God you’re Ok,” Zoe gasped. “We thought you were both dead.”
Toby clung on to Marcus’s shoulder and glowered at Zoe. “What if I had been? What the hell are you doing here?”
Zoe stuttered. “I... Toby, I couldn’t... everywhere else was too far away.”
“This was my site. I didn’t think it was safe, so what the shitting hell are you doing here?” Toby’s voice was climbing.
Marcus held Toby away from his wife. “Calm down, Toby.”
“Nobody keeps their secrets forever. You all know that. By now a tortured man would reveal everything. You’d all be dead!” Toby growled.
Zoe shook her head. “It was the only option. We’d already relocated before we knew you were missing.”
“Then you should have moved again,” Toby said. “You should have moved and kept moving until you were somewhere I didn’t know about. Somewhere nobody but you knew about. Hide yourselves away somewhere safe.”
“Toby, we were on the run. Almost the entire group were compromised when Hywel gave away our names. We had to move. We couldn’t stay out in the open.” Zoe begged him to understand.
“I haven’t secured this site yet. What if the owners had come back and found you? They’d call the cops or hand us to the Erikssens or worse,” Toby growled.
“The Erikssens are dead,” Barney said.
“If we stay here we are all dead,” Toby shouted.
“Hywel didn’t know about this place,” Zoe insisted.
“Hywel isn’t the problem here.”
“Where is he?”
Everyone turned. Alex pushed her way back through the crowd. She looked cautiously and eagerly at her seniors.
“Has he made it here? Is he Ok?” Alex asked again.
Zoe gasped and walked away from the group. Emma was at Alex’s side. “No, Alex. He’s not here.”
Confused, Alex approached with suspicion. “They told me he’d escaped. Did you turn him away? I know what he did was unforgivable, but...”
Rise Page 18
