Echoes of War

by Cheryl Campbell

  Oliver stared up at his father. “You shot her?”

  “Well, I mean, I didn’t shoot her on purpose,” Miles said hastily. “I was on an MP raid and Wardens arrived. Everything went to hell. I lost most of my team in the firefight. Dani kept us from getting killed by a quake grenade, but I lost track of her after that. The Wardens attacked, and a few of us were pinned by sniper fire. The shooting stopped, and the sniper stood, so I fired, but …” He turned his gaze to Dani. “I’d already pulled the trigger when I realized I shot the wrong person. You fell, and when I found you, you were already dead—from my gun, the fall, or both, I don’t know. Someone attacked me from behind, knocked me out. After that, two other MPs found me and dragged me out. They insisted there wasn’t a woman’s body, only blood, where they found me.”

  “She must be an Echo,” Oliver said.

  Miles shook his head. “She never turned blue. Dani, you remember that day, right?”

  Dani shook her head.

  “Christ! Do you at least remember us? You and me?” Miles took another step toward her.

  Dani tensed at his approach, and he backed away.

  “We were in a relationship, Dani. It was a bit tumultuous at times, but I loved you.”

  Dani remained silent.

  Miles turned to Jace. “Have you lost your memories too, Jace?”

  “No,” he said.

  “Please stop making us both suffer, Jace,” Dani said. “Is what he says true?”

  Jace sighed. “Yeah. He’s telling the truth. Miles, Dani is an Echo. I struck you from behind before her body began to heal. I wrapped her in a blanket and took her away. I met your two MPs as I was leaving with her and traded information about your location for passage by them.”

  Miles’s jaw dropped, and his gaze darted back to Dani. “You’re an Echo?”

  She nodded. She glanced at Gavin; he remained silent. He didn’t seem at all surprised by the revelation. She returned her attention to Miles. “When my body heals, the injuries disappear, along with my memories. I come back as a ten-year-old kid and don’t remember anything. I don’t even remember the war or what started it. Jace is my brother. If I didn’t keep dying, I’d be around seventy-one now.”

  Miles shook his head. “You lived as a human when we were together.”

  “At that time, she believed she was a human,” Jace said. “I never told her she was an Echo in that life until the day she died.”

  “You let me believe that I killed the woman I loved.” Miles trembled with anger. “For fifteen fucking years, I have carried that grief with me, Jace. Not only was she dead, I was the one who accidentally killed her. Do you have any idea the kind of torment I’ve lived with over that day?”

  Jace scowled. “I don’t give a shit about you. Dani is my sister, and I keep her safe. I’ve been with her for three regens, raising her from a child that forgets who I am each time. You think I’m worried about your feelings?”

  Before the men could come to blows, Dani stepped between them. “Stop. Please, stop. I’m sorry I don’t remember you, Miles. Whatever we had for a relationship is over. It died the day you shot me. I know it wasn’t intentional, and I don’t blame you. We can’t change what happened. Please just agree to stop fighting for a few minutes. Oliver is here, he’s safe, and I’m sure he wants to go home.”

  “I don’t mind staying,” Oliver said. “I like Brody.”

  “Brody? The dog?” Miles asked.

  Oliver nodded.

  The dog, still perched on the bed, wagged his tail upon having attention directed his way.

  “Dani, you had a dog named Brody before,” Miles said.

  Jace groaned. “This is the fourth iteration.”

  “Did you nickname him B, too?” Miles asked.

  Dani’s brow creased. She had only nicknamed the dog yesterday, but apparently this, too, was a behavior she repeated each regen. “Jace says I’m stuck in a cycle with my lives. I forget everything except survival skills. I also adopt a dog each time and name him Brody.”

  “Not this time,” Jace said.

  “Shut up, Jace. Miles, please take Oliver home. Make sure he takes a good, hot bath. Sorry to drag him into a brothel for the night, but Aunt Hattie’s was my only option for no questions but plenty of privacy. Other Brigands would pounce on the chance to take him and hold him for ransom.” Or worse.

  “Thank you for looking after him.” Miles looked shell-shocked. “Will I see you again?”

  Dani shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “Do you still steal everything you can from the MPs?”

  She shifted uncomfortably. “Maybe.”

  He smiled. “Then I imagine we’ll cross paths again. I’ll never arrest you, Dani. I know you hate the MPs.”

  “She doesn’t hate them,” Oliver interjected. “She hates that they ‘maintain the status quo’ and won’t change their tactics. She thinks the Brigands and MPs should join forces to take out the Wardens.”

  Dani winced and cursed under her breath. “I said all that stuff after drinking Aunt Hattie’s potion.”

  Gavin snorted a laugh. “An inebriated Dani. I’d pay money to see that.”

  Oliver gave Brody a parting kiss on his snout and hugged Dani. “Bye.”

  Dani patted him on the back, unsure what to do about the hugging. “Uh, bye.”

  He released her and returned to his father’s side. Gavin opened the door for them, and closed it once they were out.

  Jace stood with his arms crossed again. His persistent stubbornness annoyed her.

  “What, Jace?”

  “You took his side,” he said.

  “I didn’t take anyone’s side. That’s what is pissing you off the most.” Dani turned to Gavin. “Is there a place Brody and I can stay that’s not a brothel? I think it’s time I moved out of my brother’s house.”

  “Sure,” Gavin said.

  Jace’s face fell. “You can’t move! If you die—”

  “Yes, Jace, I go back to being a ten-year-old. I get it. You’re still keeping secrets from me. I’m done. I’ll pack my stuff today and leave.”

  “Gavin, if anything happens to her—”

  “Jace! Give it a rest. He’s an Echo too. He knows how this shit works.”

  Jace stared at Gavin. “Is this true?”

  “Yeah.” Gavin looked at Dani. “How long have you known?”

  “Figured it out a while ago. It’s not a big deal. C’mon, B.” The dog leapt from the bed. She scratched behind his ear, and he licked her hand. She shoved her things back into her bag. “Aunt Hattie will want her room back, I’m sure. Though she does enjoy seeing you, brother.” Dani limped to the door and walked out with Brody. Gavin closed the door and quickly caught up to her with his long strides.

  Mary stopped them before they could leave. “Quite the gathering in that room today. Fun?” She winked.

  “Loads,” Dani said with a flat tone.

  Mary smoothed the nonexistent wrinkles from her dress. Her outfit was a stark contrast to Dani’s faded and battered shirt and trousers. “Coming back tonight?”

  “Not tonight, sorry. I like the yellow, Mary. It suits you better than the red.”

  Mary’s face lit with a smile. “Thank you. I’ll be sure to wear this dress when you decide to come back.”

  “Yeah, okay.” Dani continued through the back of the house and out the rear door.

  Brody trotted off into some tall grass to relieve himself.

  Gavin gave Dani a searching look. “I know you’re friends, but I think Mary genuinely likes you.”

  “Uh-huh. Stop grinning. I didn’t mean to throw you in the middle of my issues with Jace, but I was desperate. I need to be away from him for a while.”

  “It’s not a problem. I want to know how you figured out I was an Echo.”

  Since her limping gait created a horribly slow pace, Dani opted to walk while they talked. She wanted to reach her new home, wherever it was, sometime today. “You said you were a marine. I
t’s a dated term. After the war started, all military personnel were reallocated to Commonwealth troops. They have ground, air, and sea troops. The formal troop branches for the army, navy, air force, coasties, and marines all dissolved with the United Nations.”

  “Yes, they did,” Gavin said with a nod.

  “You look like you’re in your forties, and the war started fifty-nine years ago. You’re too young, physically, to have been a marine without being an Echo with at least one or two regens.” Dani’s back began to cramp, and the throb in her ankle returned. “You had no reaction to the news that I’m one too. You already knew?”

  “You were eighteen when Jace hired me to train you. There was too much knowledge locked away in your head for someone of that age. Your memories are in there somewhere.”

  She wasn’t sure she wanted them to resurface. A war starting and her parents dying weren’t memories she cared to recover.

  Gavin squinted at her. “You really don’t recall anything of your life with Miles?”

  She shook her head. “I noticed you kept the medicine bottle. Can I have a sip?”

  “No. That stuff will melt your brain.”

  “I never sleep well, and I slept great last night.”

  “Passing out is not the same as sleeping. We’re not in a rush to be anywhere; we can stop as needed. Once you’re settled for the night, I’ll take a look at your ankle.”

  “Where are you taking me to stay?”

  “Mount Hope.”

  Dani stopped. “The cemetery?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Because that’s not a creepy place to live.”

  Gavin laughed. Brody’s heavy feet thundered by as he caught up from wandering in the grass outside Aunt Hattie’s and raced ahead.

  Dani resumed limping. “Brothel one night, cemetery the next. Lovely.”

  CHAPTER

  22

  After dropping off the final items owed Aunt Hattie for her solar panel, Dani walked to a large oak tree nearby and sat down at its base. She left her pack on her back, using it as a cushion to lean against. She extended her leg and rotated her sore ankle. It was healing well; the noxious-smelling green paste Gavin made her apply to it and her back every night must be working. She’d be back to fighting shape soon. In the meantime, she was using her time with Gavin to pester him about maps and military tactics.

  A scuffling noise on the other side of the tree made her roll her eyes and chuckle. “You can stop hiding, Oliver. When Brody is done begging for food from Hattie’s kitchen, he’ll find you and lick you to death.”

  A sigh came from the other side of the tree, and Oliver emerged. He sat next to her and grinned. “You knew I was here the whole time?”

  His clothes were rumpled, hems tattered. His shirt and the knees of his trousers were stained, and his face was smudged with dirt. He looked like he belonged in Brigand territory. Dani was impressed.

  “Saw your big head poke out earlier. Nice clothes.”

  He smiled. “I met a Brigand kid my age the other day and traded him food for some clothes. I wanted to see you, and this was the only way to make it happen. You owed Aunt Hattie her solar panel, so you had to come back. I was afraid I had missed you, but Mary said you had to make more than one trip.”

  “Mary aiding your delinquency, no surprise there. You’re a smart kid, Oliver. I’ll give you that.”

  Brody galloped toward them and, seeing Oliver, barreled into the boy’s lap, knocking him over. Dani laughed as Oliver struggled with Brody’s weight and lashing tongue. When Oliver finally managed to sit up again, Brody sprawled in the grass on his belly.

  Oliver wiped the dog saliva from his face. “I like his new collar. He seems happy, and he’s put on some weight. Still a little bony, but not like before.”

  “His winning personality gets him lots of handouts.”

  Oliver studied her face. “You look tired though. Dad gets dark shadows under his eyes after working a night shift and staying up too long. That’s how you look.”

  “I haven’t been sleeping much.”

  “Is it because you killed that guy?”

  “I normally don’t sleep well, but that day does still bother me.”

  “Are you going to merge the Brigands with the MPs?”

  She wasn’t about to tell him that was the exact reason why she’d been sleeping so little lately. Oliver’s words about her being the same as the MPs, unwilling to attack the Wardens, irritated her more than her lingering back and ankle pain. “Let’s go.”

  Oliver scrambled to his feet faster than she did, and it annoyed her. She thought of Jace and his movement limitations due to his age. An injured Brigand scavenging alone was a dead Brigand. She decided she would find extra food today to bring to him later. A few days without seeing him had eased her anger.

  Dani started up the hill, and Oliver and Brody walked with her.

  “Where are we going?” Oliver asked.

  “I’m taking you back to your father.”

  They talked as they hiked, and Dani took a different path to stay clear of the Standpipe. Though the uproar among the Brigands over the death of Dani’s attacker had resolved once the witness had been identified as one of the would-be kidnappers, she wasn’t ready to venture so close to the Standpipe again.

  “Stay quiet,” Dani told Oliver as they neared the Union Street boundary line. She heard distant voices. She gestured to Oliver to remain behind with Brody. “I’ll whistle if it’s safe for you to join me.”

  He knelt and took Brody’s collar, and Dani crept toward the voices. She spotted two men and recognized them both. Xander stood with his arms folded across his chest. Miles waved one hand while leaning toward him. Both of their faces held scowls. She couldn’t hear everything Miles said, but after a few more sharp words, Xan’s arms fell to his side, and his body stiffened. Miles had used his rank, and Xan now stood at attention.

  “Get the hell out of here!” Miles said.

  “Yes, sir.” Xan turned sharply and jogged back toward the barracks.

  Miles passed his hand through his hair with a sigh. Dani continued to linger and observe. He turned to walk away, and she stepped into the open.

  “Miles.”

  He jumped and turned to face her. “Christ, Dani. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m not the one on the wrong side of the boundary.”

  “My son has wandered off, and I’m going to find him. Please tell me he’s with you.”

  She whistled and seconds later, Brody reached her side. Oliver took a little longer to catch up. Miles’s face softened to see his son safe, but his look quickly turned to one of irritation.

  “I wanted to make sure she was okay, Dad,” Oliver said.

  “Dani knows how to survive just fine without you checking in on her.” Miles’s lips pinched into a frown. “Where did you get those clothes?”

  “Oliver,” Dani said before he could answer, “can you go play with B for a few minutes?”

  “Sure! C’mon, Brody.”

  Oliver led the dog to a more open area in the trees several yards away. He found a stick to throw—and quickly realized Brody didn’t know how to fetch. While he took on the task of teaching him, Dani turned her attention to Miles. He was staring at her.

  “He’s a good kid. Don’t be too mad at him.”

  “So I should only ground him for a few years instead of forever?”

  Dani grinned. “Yeah, something like that.”

  “I’m glad to see you, Dani. You’re moving around a lot better than before.”

  “Yeah. The first couple of days were miserable.”

  “I’m sure. You don’t sleep much—well, I mean, you didn’t before. You look tired.”

  Dani rolled her eyes. Miles knew her better than she had realized. “That hasn’t changed. But I didn’t send Oliver off to play with Brody so we could chat about my health.”

  Miles nodded.

  She stalled for a moment and picked at some dirt on one of her p
alms before thrusting her hands into her pockets. “When is the next site visit by CNA higher-ups?”

  “We only warrant mid-level CNA leadership coming to Bangor. Our barracks aren’t big enough for a visit from the higher brass. They’re due to arrive middle of next month. Why?”

  “The less you know, the better for you if things go sideways.”

  “Shit. You’re going to do something stupid.”

  Dani snorted. “You do know me.”

  “Yeah.” Miles reached for her right hand.

  She resisted the urge to back away from him. He was still a stranger to her, but he wasn’t a threat. He pulled her hand from her pocket. His fingers curled around her hand, and his fingertips touched her palm.

  Dani relaxed slightly. Miles was somewhat familiar to her, in the same way Jace had been when she was a child standing on the side of the road, watching him help push a truck out of a hole. She hadn’t run away from Jace then, and she didn’t flee from Miles now.

  He passed his thumb over the back of her hand and sighed. “The day you died … we argued that morning. You burned the back of your hand, and it was my fault. But there’s no trace of a burn now; it’s gone, just like your memories of us when we were together. I am sorry for everything I did wrong that day.” Miles released her hand and shook his head. “I’m so sorry.”

  Part of her wished she could remember her life with him. The other part of her was glad she couldn’t. They stood in silence for a few minutes, pretending to watch Oliver play with the dog.

  “Why are you interested in the CNA?” Miles eventually asked.

  “What are the chances of a CNA–Brigand merger? I don’t mean the Brigands becoming part of the CNA troops, but for the two to work together to end the Wardens and this war.”

  “You were serious when you told Oliver the two should join forces?”

  “At the time, not really … except the little turd said something the next morning, before you arrived, that changed things.”

  “What?”