“Did you break them or did Sky?” Rhodes said. “I hear it was you.”
“They don’t seem broken,” Hawk repeated, feigning ignorance.
“Then how did Sky get free of them?” Parker asked, circling around Hawk, like he was examining a specimen.
“Santos. She’s his friend,” Benedict blabbed. “And she was in someone’s bed.”
“What else have you learned from him, Mr. James?” Rhodes asked, pulling Benedict up by the collar. “Anything about that other passenger on the ship?”
“He—I—”
“Our date just started. We talked about… comparative farming. We don’t have bugs in Rocan. And engines,” Hawk spoke up. Tray had taught him to stall until help came, and he hoped help was coming. Saskia had called him back to Oriana and he hadn’t checked in. She was bound to be worried.
“It’s true. I lured him out with Virp schematics,” Benedict said, trembling.
Parker growled again. “Kill them both.”
“Please, I’m cooperating,” Benedict cried.
“Why do you want to kill us?” Hawk asked, shifting closer to Benedict.
“Hawk, just tell him who that woman is,” Benedict said.
“I don’t know,” Hawk insisted, making a show of fighting his cuffs.
“You lie,” Parker said. He drew a shock-dart from his pocket and fired before Hawk had a chance to react. The shock sent painful tingles through his limbs. “You lied about Sikorsky. You’re lying about her.”
He fired again, but Hawk dispersed the energy into the spirit realm. Parker didn’t react to Hawk’s blatant use of hybrid power, confirming that the man didn’t have spirit eyes. He fired once more, then snarled in frustration.
“Are you doing this?” Parker asked, tapping the trigger twice more. “Are you Panoptica, too?”
“Doing what?” Hawk smirked, a little too much pride destroying his poker face.
“Shoot him,” Parker ordered Rhodes, turning his back and walking toward the door.
Hawk turned to face Rhodes, needing an eye on the weapon to stop it. With a huff, Rhodes fired his stunner at Benedict, felling him instantly. Hawk’s jaw dropped.
“He’s not part of this,” Hawk shouted after Parker.
Parker cackled, and his phantom hand dug into Hawk’s skin. Hawk could feel his spirit eyes burning and he worried they’d be ripped away again. “You are of no use to me if you are not Panoptica. Maybe your shipmate lied, and it’s him, not you, who is the Panoptica. I’ll kill your friend and his family if you don’t answer.”
Hawk clenched his jaw. The only way to save Benedict was to reveal himself, so he tripped the lock on the cuffs, just as he’d done for Sky. “If you kill him, I won’t help.”
“You have so much more to lose than just him.” Parker smirked victoriously.
Governor Cheoff’s mind was racing at ten times its normal speed. He’d started out bold about traveling with a single guard, but now he understood why people had been trying to assassinate him the last ten years. Parker had been trying. His one trusted advisor.
When they left the slum, Turner reclaimed his uniform, but he kept looking over his shoulder. They passed the school and Cheoff saw General Santos sitting on a bench, his gaze fixed on the main entrance. His resignation had been sudden, like Solvere’s, and now Cheoff worried there was torture involved. He veered toward the bench and when Santos noticed him, his eyes went wide.
“Can we speak, General?” Cheoff asked. He couldn’t remember how he’d phrased the “have you been tortured” question to Turner, but Turner hadn’t been driven out of the Guard. Just before Santos left, there was that incident with his wife—a break in and assault.
“I can’t help. I can’t,” Santos said, hopping from the bench. He paced up the street, then circled back, staying close to the school.
“Do you know what’s going on with Parker?” Cheoff asked.
“No and I don’t want to,” Santos said.
“He knew,” Turner said flatly.
Santos shot him a look. “Where’s the rest of your escort, Governor?”
“I don’t know who I can trust,” Cheoff replied. “I have my doubts about Turner, but at least we’ve agreed we’re against torture. I need to know what Parker is doing. I can’t stop him if I don’t know what he’s doing.”
Santos looked up and down the street, then back to the school. Sweat marks dotted his shirt. He took a breath like he was about to talk, then said nothing. He repeated the breath a second, then a third time. “He’s obsessed with the Disappeared.”
“He mocks every witness statement,” Cheoff said. There was a reason Cheoff hadn’t told Parker that he’d witnessed an event. He didn’t try to claim that Sikorsky disappeared from the Marble.
“He revels in every witness statement,” Santos said. “It means that Galen got someone out of his way.”
“Galen?” Cheoff asked.
“An Elysian,” Santos said, pausing to let the myth sink in as reality. “Three months back, when Colonel Solvere ‘stowed away’ on Oriana and Mr. Parker seemed to disappear for a week… he says they were in Elysia talking to a creature. Lieutenant Carr is somehow a witness. There is something they don’t want the rest of us to connect with the Disappeared and the Elysian mythology.”
“And you made it to the rank of General without learning? You never saw someone Disappear?” Cheoff asked.
Santos pressed his lips together, his eyes carrying the confession. “I was never more than a public image to them. We were the picture perfect family,” he said, waving to the school. “He used me to gain the trust of our people.”
“You were more than that to me, General,” Cheoff said.
“And where were you when Solvere attacked my wife and put my son in the 5?” Santos rasped. The sting of the accusation hit Cheoff as hard as the projectile bullet that had shattered his elbow. Santos checked his Virp, then muttered an excuse and ran toward the school.
“You can’t bury your head in the sand and pretend it will all work out,” Cheoff called after him. “It won’t work out unless you do something. You know more than I do! Help me!”
“Sir!” Turner warned, pushing Cheoff back and raising his stunner.
Cheoff crouched instinctively, searching for the danger. A slender gray-suited man approached, his hands raised though he still had a pulse rifle in his jacket.
“Hold fire. I do need to speak to him,” Cheoff ordered, standing to face Sikorsky, but staying behind Turner. Turner gave Cheoff his stunner, and boldly relieved Sikorsky of his pulse rifle. Then he patted the man down and found a mini-dart as well.
“You believe me now?” Sikorsky asked, eying Cheoff. He looked pale up close, and he’d lost a finger since Cheoff saw him last. The digit was bruised, and there was blood crusted at his ear.
“I’m ready to listen,” Cheoff said, his hands shaking on the stunner. He’d just figured out that his people believed him a homicidal dictator, and here he was in full public view with a stunner trained on an old man putting up no resistance.
“Parker has Janiya Coro prisoner. He is going to use his Panoptica prisoner to find Elysia,” Sikorsky said. “Did you speak to Damien?”
“Not yet. You’re saying Janiya is Panoptica?” Cheoff asked, relieved when Turner returned to his side and took the stunner back. “Parker won’t kill her if he needs her.”
“While. While he needs her,” Sikorsky corrected. “I think his plans will be catastrophic to the dome, possibly the entire settlement.”
Cheoff frowned at the vague threat.
“He has Janiya Coro caged in the basement of the Marble,” Sikorsky said.
Diana Solvere had also mentioned something Parker hid in the basement. “Then let’s free her,” he decided, motioning Sikorsky to walk. He looked to Turner for help. There was no way Turner could cover Sikorsky and protect Cheoff from outside attack.
“How did you Disappear and come back?” Cheoff asked, coming next to Sikorsky so th
at Turner could cover them both.
“I didn’t Disappear. I teleported,” Sikorsky said. “Panoptica power; not Elysian.”
“What’s the difference?” Cheoff asked. “Or more importantly, can you teleport us back to my office?”
“No. I don’t have that control,” Sikorsky said, keeping a quick pace. “Did you tell Parker you saw me?”
“Haven’t had the chance,” Cheoff said, dropping back a pace so that he was next to Turner. “Just so we’re clear, Sikorsky, we are not allies. You are being escorted as a criminal informant.” Turning to Turner, he added: “This is the man who accosted me at the Marble.”
“Yes, sir,” Turner said stiffly.
“Do you recognize him?” Cheoff asked.
Turner nodded. “Quin crime boss. Colonel Rhodes distributed his image at the morning briefing.”
“He’s known all this time?” Cheoff asked.
“He suspected,” Turner replied.
28
The power plant was spread across the north-eastern border of the Main City, taking in feeds from thousands of solar panels spread long the outer rim of the crater in which Terrana was built. It was the only border of the city that did not fall into the shadow of one of the other domes for a significant part of the long, lunar day. The campus was surrounded by an electric fence, and at least once a week, some invincible teen was found passed out next to it with burns on his hands. If Sky remembered correctly, the building rarely had more than eighteen workers employed, and they were divided into three shifts of six persons each. Everyone knew everyone, and it was important not to be seen, especially after Tray’s warning to ditch the truck.
“If we had the ‘sled, we could fly over this fence,” Amanda commented, pulling a duffle from the rear of the truck. She fished out a long glove and loaded it with sleek, Guard-style invisible stunners. Then she donned a belt with a slew of utility pockets.
“Is Danny coming here?” Sky asked, checking out the cache they’d harvested. The weapons were smaller than what they had on Oriana and easier to wear. Sky helped herself to the stunner that fit over her middle finger.
“He’s positioning the ‘sled at the Marble so we have an exit,” Saskia replied. Sky expected Amanda to get eerily cogent, calm, and deadly, like she often did in the face of danger. With Chase being hurt, Danny was the wild card. Saskia was smart to keep him as the get-away driver.
“I don’t know what these are,” Amanda said, showing Sky a handful of pellets. “Saskia says it’s a stun grenade. She wouldn’t let me test one.”
“Oh, I’ve seen these. We call them peppercorns,” she said. “It works like a tear gas. This glove should have a compartment for launching them. Is that the only long glove you have?”
“Only one we found,” Saskia acknowledged.
“We can’t break the fence with a pulse rifle,” Amanda muttered. “Sure could use your grav-gun.”
“Without avalan, it’s just a pretty shell. Don’t worry. I lifted a few trinkets when I went to Tamrin,” Sky said, slipping a disk from her pocket.
“You can’t use a therapy disk as a weapon,” Saskia said.
“Watch me,” Sky smirked. She laid the disk on the ground next to the electric fence. Giving it a soft kick, the disk collided with the fence, took the electric charge, then its shielding blasted apart. The gravitational pulse pulverized a small part of the fence and shook the ground, leaving a crack in the street, and a ringing in Sky’s ears.
“Remember to lose the truck,” Sky said, dropping to her stomach and shimmying through.
“Amanda—” Saskia began.
“I’m going with you,” Amanda said, crawling through the hole. Saskia gathered the rest of her weapons and followed.
The power plant had only three entrances and all were locked. Coming up to the closest door, Sky hacked the lock with one of Diana’s old codes, and the three of them slipped into the building. It was chilly and loud inside. Pumps and compressors hummed, masking their footsteps. There was a loud whoosh as one of the condensers went active, and Amanda fell into a crouch.
“Hey! You’re not allowed in here!” a man shouted, running toward them, his voice almost drowned by the noise.
Saskia fired her pulse rifle, knocking him down. She trotted over to the man, then motioned Sky to help her drag the body out of sight. They laid him near one of the pipes.
“Does he have a weapon?” Amanda asked, shaking off her jitters.
“No, he’s an electrician. We’re not going to see weapons until we draw the Guard,” Sky said, looking around. The bulk of the power plant equipment was underground, salvaged from the original lunar tunnels and redirected to the surface. They were at the top level, and the floor was made of moonslate and steel grating.
“If the truck by the door doesn’t tip them off, the hole in the gate will,” Saskia said.
“Hey!” a young woman in coveralls shouted from across the floor.
“This way!” Sky said, running in the opposite direction, heading for the nearest ladder. “Go!”
Saskia alighted down to the main floor and Amanda followed nimbly. Sky slipped onto the ladder and waited, listening to the conversation above. Saskia’s boots hit the ground light as a feather. Amanda leapt from the ladder less gracefully, but landed quietly, her knees bending until her hand touched the ground.
Sky descended, then shooed the others under one of the larger steam pipes, concealing them as they moved rapidly across the main floor. It was hot under the pipe, and the clearance was low. The pipes went to the center of the room, then branched off. Amanda led the way, taking the branch that would get them to the Marble passage, navigating as if she’d run the path a hundred times before. The pipes were narrower in that direction, providing less cover.
Sky pointed to a hole in the floor where two of the pipes went even further underground. Amanda jumped, but when her hand touched the pipe, she cried out and pitched sideways, slamming hard against the narrow catwalk grating below. Her voice drew the attention of the workers upstairs, and they sounded an alarm. Grabbing Sky’s hand, Saskia lowered herself more gingerly onto the pipe, then made the second leap onto the catwalk. She reached up a hand to steady Sky when she made the jump.
The path from here was narrow and hot, and the two pipes took up most of the space. The tunnel split three ways, and Sky moved to the left.
“Not that way,” Amanda said, pointing to the right tunnel.
Sky pressed her finger to her lips and motioned the others to follow. The path hooked around, and as soon as they were clear of the junction, Sky stopped and waited. A few minutes later, two of the electricians crawled in and veered right. As soon as the voices faded, Amanda started back, but Saskia grabbed her arm and shook her head, waiting again. Five minutes later, the voices returned.
“They didn’t go that way,” said a woman with a high-pitched, nasal voice.
“Well then where are they?” her gravelly-voiced companion asked. “That way’s residential. That way’s the next junction in the commercial district.”
“We should still call the Guard,” the first said. “Someone came into the plant.”
“Call the Guard? I think you’ve been working too many days with no sleep,” the second one commented. The two passed by, their voices fading into the distance. Sky exhaled in relief, and Amanda scrambled past, taking the lead to the Marble.
When they reached the end—the part that used to dump into an electrical closet—they found a wall. The two pipes threaded through a molded path. Amanda thumped the wall, but it didn’t echo. It was solid rock.
“So much for this idea,” Saskia said.
Sky had three grav-disks left. “Stand back,” she said, hooking an arm around Amanda’s legs and hauling her back.
“Sky, you can’t blast it. The whole tunnel could cave,” Saskia protested.
“Stand way back,” she amended, laying two of the disks.
Amanda shimmied backward, out of Saskia’s grip, narrowly squeezing
under Sky. The tunnel was barely wide enough for Sky to turn around, and Saskia could not scoot past her as easily.
“It’s too dangerous,” Saskia said.
“It’s our only chance!” Amanda said.
Pushing Saskia’s body flat against the catwalk, Sky clenched her jaw. She needed to use the pulse rifle to trigger the reaction. Holding her breath, she took aim and fired. Rubble and dust flew, carried on sparks of disrupted circuits. An alarm sounded.
“Move!” Sky ordered.
Danny ran his fingers over the Bobsled console and he stewed in his guilt. He knew Terrana wasn’t safe, and he’d brought Chase anyway. He was selfish and wanted the company. Chase had needed his company.
“Matthews, I thought you were back on the ship,” Sikorsky vrang.
Danny jumped and the Bobsled’s altitude dropped. He’d gone high to escape notice, but the closer he got to the ceiling, the greater the shadow he cast with the GLO.
“We’re having a bit of a situation, Sikorsky. It’s your fight. Why aren’t you in it?” Danny groused.
“Do you have a weapon? The Governor and I need to get into the Marble,” Sikorsky replied. Danny glanced into the back seat. He had every weapon he and Johann had left stashed on Terrana. Santos said Johann had Disappeared, so he didn’t need the cache.
“Your Confluence crystal tricks aren’t working, I take it?” Danny asked. “Where are you?”
“Do you know where the school is?” Sikorsky asked.
The school wasn’t far from the Marble, and Danny suspected that Tray or Saskia had orchestrated this to stall him from breaching. But coming in with the Governor at the tip of his pulse rifle would feel stronger.
“Be right there,” he decided. Gliding between the narrowly spaced buildings, he landed gracefully next to the tree-lined school lot. He’d never been to the Terranan school, but he knew it was a common meeting place. Even though Sikorsky had said he was with the Governor, Danny was surprised to see the man up close and in person, standing still. Cheoff was shorter than he’d imagined, and he looked very much like the useless puppet that everyone described him as. He and Sikorsky were similarly dressed, though Sikorsky looked beat up. A young, buff Guard stood next to them, his lips parting in awe as he watched the Bobsled land.
The Confluence: A Space Opera Adventure Series (The New Dawn Book 6) Page 21
