The Darwin Elevator

by Jason M. Hough

Page 51

 

  Disguises served their purpose.

  The climber car dropped into place an hour later. Skyler waited until the others had lined up before joining the queue himself. He gave the name Nera to the woman with the clipboard and was waved through without even a cursory glance.

  Chapter Forty-two

  Anchor Station

  14. FEB. 2283

  At the stroke of midnight, Tania’s terminal rebooted. The screen flickered through the start-up procedure, casting her small cabin in a sudden blue-green glow.

  She’d been awake for hours, staring at the ceiling, thinking. In the sudden illumination, she sat up and swung her legs off the bed.

  Russell Blackfield had placed her under house arrest shortly after arriving. Whatever plan he’d had to interrogate her abruptly changed after the first question he’d asked.

  “Tell me about the research you’ve been doing for Neil Platz,” he’d said.

  “No,” she’d replied.

  Then Natalie had chimed in. Her voice so calm and collected that Tania had gone numb. “I’ll tell you,” Natalie had said. “I’ve been doing most of the work anyway. ”

  A huge grin had spread across Russell’s face. He’d instructed a pair of guards to lock Tania in her quarters until further notice. She’d been too shocked to fight them, or say anything. She could only stare at Natalie, baffled, trying to find some glimmer of explanation for her betrayal. But Natalie, her assistant and friend, would not meet her gaze. Instead she focused completely on Russell Blackfield, looking every bit the eager helper.

  Tania had not been allowed to see anyone. She’d tried her computer the moment they’d closed her door, only to find it locked in station-wide “maintenance mode. ” The distinct beep of the reboot marked the first change in her monotonous imprisonment.

  Then she heard another sound. One that made her jump.

  The door unlocked.

  She stared at the handle, waiting for someone to enter, wondering if she should turn off the computer or pretend to be asleep. The door remained closed.

  Confused, she went to it and opened it a crack. Outside, the hallway was dark and quiet. She left the door open slightly, worried that the lock would reengage if she closed it, and went to her terminal.

  Instead of the usual passphrase prompt it displayed her messages. One was new, from Neil Platz, sent eighteen hours ago.

  With a rush of hope she opened it and read, “I’m dead or captured—here’s what you must do …”

  That hope gave way to agony at Neil’s stark, abrupt words in the second half of the message.

  Neil had triggered a fail-safe program, inserted into the stations’ systems months ago. The door locks had been disabled, the security systems reverted to month-old backups.

  She wanted to mourn, wanted to beat her fists against the wall at the madness of all this. She knew Neil would never let himself be captured. He had too much pride. He was gone and she couldn’t even be there at his side. Just like when her father passed.

  But Neil’s amazing knack for thinking ahead gave her a sudden glimmer of confidence. The words that followed replaced her agony with an anxiety like none she’d ever known. Neil’s plan, as crazy and bold as the man himself, left her breathless.

  Tania read it twice, fighting tears all the while. For a moment she sat in plain awe of Neil’s ability for forethought. The few simple sentences implied months, even years, of devious planning.

  She memorized the instructions. Then she deleted the message and reset the terminal.

  In the hall outside, people were emerging from their rooms. She took a moment to calm herself, put on a face she hoped showed courage, and walked out into the hallway.

  “What’s going on?” a neighbor asked. “Why did the doors unlock?”

  “I’m not sure,” Tania replied. “Stay in your room. I’m going to check. ”

  She moved at a brisk pace to Natalie’s cabin and found it empty.

  Flashes of her imprisonment in Nightcliff forced their way into her mind. She shuddered to think what might be happening to Nat. The poor girl had no idea what Blackfield and his thugs were capable of, regardless of her offer to help them. Yet Neil’s message held a deeper grip on Tania’s mind. Natalie would have to wait.

  Tania headed for the observation lounge.

  At one point she heard approaching soldiers, sprinting along the main hallway. She ducked into the closest cabin, pushed the door shut, and waited.

  In the cramped room, a man and a woman were embraced, partially undressed, and looking at her with wide eyes. Tania recognized one of them as a low-level researcher.

  “The doors opened,” he said, mumbling in fear. “We hadn’t seen each other—”

  “Quiet,” Tania said, too tersely. The man swallowed back the rest of his explanation. Tania faced the door and leaned against it. She pressed her ear to the surface and listened as the soldiers ran by. When their footsteps receded, she nodded to the amorous couple and stepped back into the hall.

  The guards were headed for her room, she had no doubt of that. No time to waste, then. Tania sprinted the rest of the way.

  Starlight spilling in from the giant windows provided the only light in the observation lounge. Despite everything happening around her, the view of the shell ship, and Earth beyond, still took Tania’s breath away.

  She shook off the feeling and went to the bench. Memories of a hundred idle conversations with the old man fought for her attention. “Your parents would be so proud of you,” he had said so often, the only praise she’d ever received that mattered.

  Kneeling by the bench, she looked underneath the plush cushion. In the dark she saw nothing but shadow. She reached her hand below and ran it across the cool plastic support surface. Her fingers brushed something. Paper. An envelope, glued to prevent it from falling. Try as she might, should could not pull it away, but then her fingers found a flap along one edge. She pried it open and used her nails to pinch the bundle of papers inside. They were tightly packed, but after a struggle they came free.

  The overhead lights came back on. All along the curved hallway she heard the snap snap of doors locking. She felt glad she’d left her own door ajar. If it remained that way, she could sneak back in.

  Tania stuffed the folded papers under her shirt and walked briskly to a nearby restroom. A sigh of relief escaped her lips when she tried the door and found it open. It was bright in the white-tiled room, enough to make her squint. Tania moved to the stall at the very end of the row, closed the door behind her, and sat on the water tank above the toilet, using the seat as a footrest.

  Only then did she remove the papers and read them.

  The information there was at once terrifying and exhilarating.

  In the morning, three guards entered Tania’s room without a knock. She sat bolt upright, pulling the blanket up to cover herself.

  “Get dressed,” the largest one said. “Blackfield wants to see you. ” They stood in place, waiting for an answer.

  “Where’s my assistant? Natalie Amm—”

  “Get dressed, now. ”

  She gripped the blanket until her knuckles turned white. “Mind waiting outside?”

  The words lingered as the man in the center merely grinned. “He said not to lay a finger on you, but didn’t say nothing about watching. ” One of his friends kicked the door closed and the three stood and waited.

  She let the blanket fall as she stood up, determined not to let them see weakness in her. The soldiers were openly disappointed to see she was wearing a tank top and running shorts, but still their eyes stayed glued to her as she stepped into a jumpsuit.

  “They don’t make ’em like you down in Darwin,” one of the guards said. Another laughed. She did her best to ignore them, cursing her hands for shaking.

  He said not to lay a finger on you. Tania considered the deeper implications. Blackfield
wanted her for himself. Or he still needed something from her. In the back of her mind, a tiny voice wondered if she could use her body as a weapon. She hated herself for even thinking it.

  She’d rather die.

  Tania wiggled into the garment and zipped it up. “Let’s go. ”

  The tall one led the way, striding along the corridor like he owned the place, near enough to the truth. They passed only a few other researchers, each under guarded escort. Tania did everything she could to mask the embarrassment she felt. She’d become something of a leader after the mutiny, and had been wholly unprepared for the counterattack. She had let them down, and she doubted the guards had orders not to lay hands on anyone else.

  She’d heard nothing from her fellow mutineers since Blackfield and his troops had arrived. They’d either fought back and failed, or melted away.

  “In there,” the thug in the lead said.

  Tania had been lost in thought. They stood in front of the conference room on Black Level. The three guards took positions on both sides of the door, leaving Tania to open it for herself. She turned the handle and stepped inside.

  “Tania!”

  She felt an enormous relief to see Natalie, and ran to her. They embraced.

  “No kissing now,” Russell Blackfield said. “This is a family-friendly environment. ”

  The sound of his voice made Tania’s heart sink. “I was so worried,” Tania whispered, holding her assistant as tightly as she could. “Why did you offer to—”

  “Later,” Natalie whispered.

  “Enough,” Russell said. “You’ll make me all weepy. ”

  “Did he hurt you?” Tania asked.

  Russell threw his arms up. “I’m standing right here, dammit. Hello?”

  Tania released her friend, and realized she was crying. They both were. She wiped the years away on her sleeve and turned to Russell. “If you’ve hurt her …”

  “She’s fine. You’re fine. Right?”

  Natalie had kept hold of Tania’s hand, and squeezed it. She nodded.

  “There, see? Everyone’s fine. ”

  Tania stood her ground. “What do you want?”

  “A thank-you would be nice. ”

  “Thank you?”

  He gestured toward Natalie. “Not me, her. Your lover here has earned your freedom. Strings attached, of course. ”

  Tania glanced briefly at Natalie, who wore a sad smile and kept her eyes aimed at the table. Lover? She must have concocted a story in a hurry. She fixed her gaze on Russell again. “What strings?”

  “I thought that would be obvious,” he replied. “Your research. I want it finished, now, and I want the results. ”

  Before Tania could craft a response, Russell pulled a sinister-looking pistol from a holster inside his jacket.

  The room went deathly quiet as he pointed the business end at Natalie.

  “You two lovebirds have twenty-four hours,” he said, “to tell me where the Builder ship is going to park. ”

  Tania’s eyes grew wide at the revelation. She really told him. At least she had not divulged the crucial piece of information. If she’d told him that, everything would be over.

  “Yes, that’s right. Your girl here sang like a bird, when her mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied. What a tireless little champ! Very convincing. ”

  “You said you wouldn’t tell her, you son of a bitch,” Natalie said, her words startlingly loud in the closed room.

  Russell kept his attention on Tania. “No more delays, no more excuses. In twenty-four hours I want the location where my new Builder ship has arrived, or your friend here dies. ”

  Tania swallowed, and deep down cursed herself for doing so. “Kill me instead. ”

  “No such luck, I’m afraid. No, if you don’t give me what I want, you will spend the rest of your life servicing my soldiers. And that will only be the beginning of your misery,” Russell said.

  “And if we cooperate?”

  He smiled. “Then you can continue here, doing whatever the hell it is you do. There’s no reason that has to change in the new world order. Stay here, work, and enjoy the pleasure of each other’s company. ”

  His constant allusions to their supposed romance had a twinge of sarcasm. Tania wondered if he really believed it, or if he just found it humorous. She looked at Natalie. Their eyes met and held for a long, tense moment. Her friend then nodded to her, a nearly imperceptible motion that Tania returned.

  “Fine,” she said to Russell Blackfield. “Just, please, leave the rest of the crew alone. ”

  “Agreed, for twenty-four hours. Starting now. ”

  They walked in silence, under escort, to the computer laboratory on Green Level.

  In the front room of the lab, with the guards keeping close by, Tania removed a number of bound folders from a shelf before continuing to the back room.

  Two of the guards stayed with them, taking seats on each side of the door.

  “It’s really not necessary,” Tania said. “There’s nowhere to go. ”

  “Orders,” came the snapped response.

  She shrugged and took a seat at the console, activating the three large monitors that spanned the back wall. A number of smaller monitors on the desk also flickered to life.

  Tania turned to Natalie before she could sit. “Would you dim the lights, please?”

  “I got it,” the guard said. He was seated next to the switch, and ratcheted it down to quarter strength.

  Natalie took the seat next to Tania, spreading out the folders Tania gave her. “Where’d you leave off?” she asked. The first words she’d spoken since they’d left Russell’s presence. A genuine apology came through in the tone, unspoken but nonetheless welcome.

  Tania’s fingers danced across the keyboard, filling the screens with a myriad of images and data structures. She flipped the pages in one of the folders until it was open to the middle. “Here’s the latest. Last week I thought it might glance off the atmosphere, aerobraking, and perhaps settle into position on its next pass, in a year or so. But look here …”