Antagonist - Childe Cycle 11 (10 page)

"Driver,
what
is
it?"
Bleys
asked.
He
put
into
his
question
all
the authority
he
could
muster,
not
wanting
to
let
her
take
total
control of
the
situation.

"Your
convoy
was
attacked,"
the
driver
said,
keeping
her
attention
on
the
forward
windscreen.
"A
bomb
blew
up
the
front
of
the Hotel
Monaco
as
your
convoy
drove
up.
The
government's
sending an
escort
to
take
you
to
a
safe
place."

"Is
there
any
word
on
casualties?"
Toni
asked.

"No
one
told
me
anything
about
that,"
the
driver
said.
"Hang on—turn
coming
up!"

She
took
the
turn
at
speed
and
managed
to
keep
control
even though
they
slid
far
enough
off
the
roadway
to
bounce
off
the
fence on
their
left
side.

"Carl,"
Bleys
heard
Henry's
voice
say
from
beyond
Toni,
"what
is your
situation?"
After
a
few
seconds
Henry's
second-in-command answered:

"Henry,
we're
all
right,"
Carl
said.
"A
few
bumps
and
bruises, but
the
blast
occurred
before
we
had
fully
pulled
up,
and
we
were partly
shielded
by
a
local
delivery
van
...
there
were
a
number
of casualties
among
the
locals."

"God
be
with
them,"
Henry
said.
"We
need
a
rendezvous.
I
understand—"

"Get
off
the
air
now
!
"
a
new
voice
interrupted
them.
"This
is Area
Command,
New
Francisco,
ordering
you
to
stand
down
and maintain
radio
silence!"

Bley
s
gestured
Henry
to
silence
even
as
he
leaned
across
Toni's front
to
grasp
his
uncle's
left
wrist
and
lift
it
before
his
own
face.

"This
is
Bleys
Ahrens,"
he
said,
using
his
authoritative
voice, "First
Elder
of
the
United
Sects
of
Harmony
and
Association.
We are
here—"
He
was
cut
off.

"We
understand,
First
Elder,"
the
voice
replied.
"An
armed
escort
is
on
its
way
to
you
now,
and
we
request
that
your—"
The
voice paused
for
the
briefest
of
moments.
"—staff
please
avoid
interfering
with
military
operations."

Henry
reached
over
to
silence
the
comm
link.

"They
mean
it,"
he
said.
"They've
been
embarrassed."

"So
what
should
we
do?"
Bleys
asked.

"Nothing,"
Henry
replied.
"Carl
can't
beat
the
military
to
us,
so we
might
as
well
cooperate." "Do
you
need
to
tell
Carl
that?"

"No,"
Henry
said.
"He'll
understand
what
to
do—interactions with
the
military
are
always
included
in
our
contingency
planning."

"So
he'll
just
wait
for
the
military
to
reunite
us?"
Bleys
asked.

Henry
touched
the
control
that
closed
the
window
into
the
driver's
compartment,
then
reached
under
his
seat
for
the
traveling
case in
which
he
carried
a
variety
of
useful
items.
He
quickly
pulled
out a
monitor
and
scanned
for
listening
devices,
then
activated
its
inhibiting
field,
just
in
case;
he
had
scanned
the
vehicle
before
they entered
it,
but
they
all
understood
he
was
determined
to
take
no further
chances.

Next
to
him,
Dahno
reached
into
a
pocket
and
pulled
out
a
small silver
device.
He
held
it
out
before
the
rest
of
them,
looking
a
question
at
them.

"No,"
said
Bleys.
"Not
here
and
now.
It's
not
really
meant
for
a confined
space
like
this."

Bleys
was
referring
to
a
device
they
had
obtained
on
Newton, some
time
back.
Activated,
it
would
generate
a
force-bubble
preventing
anyone
from
overhearing
their
words.

"Yes
and
no,"
Henry
said
a
moment
later,
responding
to
Bleys' question.
"Carl
and
a
number
of
the
Soldiers
will
likely
stay
visible enough
to
let
the
locals
think
they've
got
them
under
control;
but he'll
probably
send
some
of
them
undercover—perhaps
with
the aid
of
some
of
the
people
from
Favored
of
God,
who
of
course
are
not known
to
be
with
us—and
put
them
to
monitoring
our
situation
at
a distance.
And
he'll
already
have
alerted
the
people
we
left
in
Ceta City."

"All
right,"
Bleys
said.

"Can
we
trust
these
military
people?"
Dahno
asked.

"No,"
Henry
said.
"Not
in
everything.
But
chances
are
very
good that
whoever
planted
that
bomb
had
no
backup
attack
ready
to
go. It
will
have
taken
them
some
time
just
to
learn
they
didn't
get
you, in
any
case—and
they
won't
know
where
you
are
unless
they
have ears
in
the
military."