3rd World Products, Book 16 (13 page)

He blathered on with more of the same as my probe checked his notebook. No mention of us arriving; he must have been sent after the bugs had gone offline. He could see her car, so he’d know she was home. He might not know I was there.
 

The glass door slid back and Tanya leaned out to ask, “What time for dinner?”
 

“Make it six. Where are we going?”
 

“Bardett’s. It’s casual and the food’s good.”
 

“Sounds good to me, ma’am.”
 

She closed the door and retreated into the kitchen for a few minutes, then came back out without her phone.
 

“What’s on your mind, Ed?”
 

“We have a tail. He’s in a white Chevy out front. An NIA guy showed up after I killed the house bugs.”
 

I could almost see her mind whirl around that info, then she asked tensely, “What are we going to do?”
 

Calling up a screen with a map of Ocala, I put a finger on a spot west of the Interstate and said, “You’ll take your car and head for the grocery store at the corner of 326 and 225A. I’ll meet you there. The NIA won’t be joining us.”
 

“Maybe I should have asked what
you’re
going to do.”
 

Letting the screen dissipate, I said, “Nothing much. Zap his engine so he’ll have a decent excuse. They haven’t tapped your phone yet, but that doesn’t mean they won’t, especially when our tail calls for roadside help.”
 

“You want me to leave it here?”
 

Shaking my head, I said, “Nah. Just thinking out loud. I’ll spoof the signal while we’re practicing. It’ll look as if we’re at the store. Grab your gear, ma’am. You’re leaving.”
 

“My gear?”
 

“Backpack. You’ll get used to wearing it on the board.”
 

“I haven’t packed it yet.”
 

“Fake it. Stuff it full of laundry. We only have a couple of hours of daylight left.”
 

About five minutes later, I went out the back door and Tanya headed for the front door. Calling up my board in stealth mode, I flitted to hover near Treat’s car and watched him realize Tanya had made an appearance.
 

He poked a button on his phone and said, “She’s moving.”
 

Tanya left the lot and headed west on Oak Road. Treat followed at a discreet distance. Just past US-301 I sent a surge through his engine electronics that blew components and his car died. As
he guided it off the road, I flew ahead to match speeds with Tanya’s car.
 

Would there be only one tail? That’s not how I’d do it. Using a field link, I pinged Tanya.
 

She answered, “That chime startled the hell out of me! Is anything wrong?”
 

“No, ma’am. I just want you to pull over and stop, then fake using your phone.”
 

As she slowed down and pulled over, she asked, “You think there’s another one?”
 

“Sharp lady. Wanna watch?”
 

“How… I mean, yes. I’d like to watch.”
 

“Okay.” I maintained the link and sent Tanya what I saw as I watched for a tail. Half a mile behind us, a maroon car stopped. I flew back there and found a woman on the phone with Treat. I sent a probe to look for something sharp and had it bring back some long gray sheet rock screws it found in an intersection.
 

Sprinkling them behind her car along her right-side tire tracks in the grass, I saved one to use on her right front tire. Field-poking a small hole where the sidewall met the tread, I waited until the tire had gone flat before inserting the screw.
 

I sent Tanya, “All done. We can go now.”
 

She got underway with, “Is that all of them?”
 

“Probably, but if you want, we can do another phone stop near the Interstate.”
 

“Should we?”
 

“I wouldn’t. This gives us a lead of sorts and we expect them to spot the car at the store.”
 

“We do?”
 

I chuckled, “I do. Now you do, too.”
 

It was only a few miles to the store. Tanya parked on the west side near some picnic tables under oak trees. After a good look at the area, I cast a refractive field around us. She called up her scooter and I had it follow me rather than discuss anything with its rider.
 

At first I kept our speed down and stayed above the swale. Once we were out of earshot, I led her scooter up to fifty feet and headed for a grove of oak trees around a dried-up pond to the north. From behind me came a short scream. I pretended not to hear it. When we landed among the trees, she looked ready to unload on me, so I raised a hand.
 

“Hold that thought, ma’am, and stay on your pony. Flying is part of this practice and we’re going to do some more right now. I’ll keep us just above the trees. You try not to scream again. It upsets the wildlife.”
 

With that, I headed aloft with her scooter in tow. I took it easy at highway speeds for a time, then began increasing our speed. At something like a hundred miles per hour, Tanya very distinctly and firmly sent, “Slow down, dammit!”
 

“You need a break, ma’am?”
 

“I just need you to
slow-down!
”
 

Okay. I parked her scooter above a forty-foot pine and made us visible. Tanya saw me standing on my board next to her. She looked down and turned a bit green, and then she locked her eyes back on me.
 

Her first attempt to speak aloud failed. Her second attempt came out as a croak, then smoothed into, “Why the
hell
are we up here?”
 

“To keep you from jumping off and running, ma’am.”
 

Her gaze narrowed. “
Why
are we up here?”
 

“You needed a break and I want to show you something.” With a grin, I said, “You just wait right there, okay?”
 

Kicking my board forward, I increased speed to nearly its max and circled Tanya’s tree. Checking with my core for clear airspace above, I headed upward and ran through some routine aerobatics before I took the board to full power and blasted by Tanya at a distance of about ten feet. When I arced back around, I slowed and stopped beside her.
 

She stared at my board, then at me, and blurted, “
Jesus! How fast were you going?!
”
 

“Almost five hundred. I need you to be able to go that fast by tomorrow evening.”
 

“You’re out of your mind!”
 

“No, I’m looking at getting Marie out of that building, two hundred miles each way, and back into the building in under two hours. If you want to be part of that, you’ll have to be able to keep up. If you don’t want to be part of that, maybe we can find a use for you back here.”
 

Calling up a screen, I showed her the specs for her board. That led to a display of what it could do. When the show ended, I sat waiting for her comments.
 

Tanya studied the display for a time, poked links to specific info and re-read it, and then looked at me.
 

“Okay. I’ll try.”
 

With a grinning nod, I said, “In that case, no more towing and no more scooter. Make it a board and we’ll take it kind of easy until you have the hang of things.”
 

“Kind of easy? What does that mean?”
 

“Half speed or less for now.”
 

“That’s still over two hundred.”
 

“You’re good with math, too. Kewl.”
 

She morphed her scooter to a board and said, “Smartass.”
 

“Yes, milady. As you say, milady. Follow me, ma’am.”
 

As I started us in a slow downward spiral around the tree, Tanya squeaked and I set her board back to stealth mode.
 

Tanya promptly asked, “Am I invisible again?”
 

“Yes, you are, milady. What tipped you?”
 

“My shadow’s gone.”
 

“You’re observant, too. I like that.”
 

“Great. Why am I invisible? You aren’t.”
 

“Do you really want me to watch you re-learn how to stand on a board? I will if you want.”
 

Her quick answer was, “No, this is fine.”
 

In fact, I could see her, through the ‘eyes’ of my core. She didn’t wobble and flail all that much, really. A course change at the base of the tree made her windmill a bit to keep her balance, but she made the turn upright. I led us through some gentle ‘S’ turns among the trees, then tightened them and added some complete circles and figure eights.
 

After about fifteen minutes, I called a halt and asked if she wanted a sip of my coffee. Tanya’s eyes went to the mug hanging off my left pocket.
 

“How does that thing stay there? More fields?”
 

“Nope. It just does. If I don’t get too wild, that is.”
 

“Yes, I’d like some.”
 

Taking a sip and making a face, she then took another sip and didn’t make the face. Handing my mug back, she said, “Thanks. I didn’t realize how thirsty I was.”
 

“Nervousness does that. Oops. Now you know why I always carry it. I get nervous a lot.”
 

Tanya laughed, “I seriously doubt that. What are we going to do now?”
 

I shrugged. “Higher and faster. We’ll work our way up to some real speed and see how you hold together.”
 

Glaring, Tanya snapped, “I’ll hold together just fine.”
 

Her flash of temper made me want to tell her how much she reminded me of her mother right then. I didn’t. I merely saluted and said, “Oh, yes, milady. So sorry for doubting you, milady. Follow me,” then I moved out, weaving gently but quickly among the trees.
 

Chapter Nine
 

Tanya didn’t catch up and she cut some corners, but she was moving as fast as I was through the woods. She nearly lost her balance during one turn and went to her knees to grasp the board with both hands. Spurring it forward, she sped up to fly just behind me and carefully got to her feet.
 

Okay. Rusty but competent. Time to go up. I headed for the sky at about fifty degrees. She continued forward and sent, “How the hell do I make it do that?!”
 

“Just think ‘up’ and look where you want to go for now.”
 

She apparently did so, angling into the sky as she asked, “What do you mean, ‘for now’?”
 

“I mean you’ll get to where it’s even easier than that.”
 

“How can it be easier than that?”
 

“It just is. Almost automatic. You’ll see.”
 

For a while I led Tanya through similar curves, straights, and figure eights at higher speeds and altitude. She picked it up fast, I’ll give her that. She no longer wobbled or flailed much and she naturally kept her knees flexed a bit.
 

The sun had turned huge as it neared the horizon. We had just over an hour before meeting Jessica. I aimed us at the car and went back to stealth mode.
 

Tanya sent, “You just disappeared. Are we finished?”
 

“It’s almost five. I thought you might want to spiff up for dinner, ma’am.”
 

“You thought right. Thanks.”
 

“Land by your car. I’ll set up a stealth field.”
 

At the car, I stepped off my board on the passenger side. A guy at a table noticed me and gave me an odd look, then returned his attention to the setting sun.
 

When Tanya landed, I set up the stealth field and said, “Now.” She appeared by the car and unlocked it.
 

Heading back to the apartment, I noticed her hands trembling slightly and looked at her legs. When she pressed the brake, her step was unsteady at first, then firmed up. She saw me looking at her legs and gave me an eye-roll and a grin. I said nothing about her shakiness on the brake.
 

We didn’t see either of the NIA cars along the road, but when we arrived at her apartments, Tanya said, “I don’t know that car,” and pointed at a blue sedan.
 

I sent a probe to the guy’s wallet and said, “Yup. NIA.”
 

“How do you know?”
 

“Sent a field to check his wallet.”
 

Tanya gave me a sharp glance and asked, “Are you sure you aren’t one of those AIs, too?”
 

“I’m starting to wonder about that, too.”
 

As we parked, she said, “Smartass.”
 

“Yes, milady. As you say, ma’am. Is Jessica coming here or are we meeting her?”
 

“She’s coming here.”
 

We took turns in the bathroom and just as I was drying my hands, the door bell rang. I sent a probe and found a tall, extremely skinny, late-twenties blonde in a T-shirt and skin-tight jeans with a denim purse.
 

Her ID was just a driver’s license. No agency creds. I checked her employment anyway and found she was a bank teller. Her scrawniness disturbed me. I had my core check her health and it reported amphetamines in her system. Diet pills or worse. Wonderful.
 

As I left the bathroom I saw Tanya’d already let her in and strode to meet her with, “Hi, there. I’m Ed.”
 

Was her smile real? She said, “I’m Jessica. Tanya’s told me
nothing
about you.”