The Unseen (17 page)

“Well, it’ll have to do for now.”

David scratched his head some more and then nodded. Kari didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t want to tell him anything that would give Joseth a reason to track David down for knowing too much.

“So . . . what about Rosewood?”

“You should leave that alone.”

“Oh. Right. Well, I’m finally all unpacked! Can you tell?” David moved around a little, which allowed the camera to capture small glimpses of his surroundings. He was in the same small dorm room he had been living in for weeks, but now it had some purple and silver accents on the wall. A small printer now rested on his desk. Those were the only changes from the last time she had talked to him.
Not much of an interior designer.

“Yeah, I can.” Kari doubted that Joseth would have any trouble finding David if he wanted to, but there was no need to make it any easier. “How about I call you again when I get the chance?”

David didn’t like that, but he bit his lip and nodded. He mouthed “let me help you,” but she just shook her head to that
. You got dragged into this last time; I’m not going to risk you again. Just calling you is bad enough. The only reason I can talk to you is because Joseth has whitelisted you for some creepy reason.

“Good-bye, David.”

You’d think I’d have an easier time finding her room after how many times she’s dropped in and bothered me.
Kari was on the opposite side of Valhalla, trying to remember which door led to SeptemberMist’s room. She had only been there on a few occasions, and each time she had followed SeptemberMist.
Probably would have been faster to just wait in my room for her to come to me.

Kari opened one door and immediately closed it again. The bright red furniture and weird music coming from the inside was a sure sign that it wasn’t the room she was looking for. She tried the next door; no one answered, but Kari slowly opened it while still knocking.
There we go
. SeptemberMist’s room looked a lot like Kari’s.

Many guests at Valhalla felt a need to customize their rooms and decorate everything, but Kari had found the default style suitable to her taste.
SeptemberMist apparently felt the same way, as the only differences in their rooms were which side of the mansion they were on, and how much stuff was piled in the corners.

And you get on me about showering; at least I keep my room clean.
Kari wasn’t sure why it was so messy in there. At Valhalla, one didn’t even have to clean one’s own room, as there were plenty of workers to help with that. Kari called out for SeptemberMist, but she didn’t answer. Kari left the room and headed for the wing of private quarters where Motorcad lived.

Kari checked the status on a dozen printing projects that she had running on different printers throughout the mansion. She had been printing things nonstop for the last several days—most of them were useless pieces that she would simply recycle, but every once in a while she printed a piece she needed. She was certain that Joseth was watching everything that she printed.
It was how he had known when to meet her in the basement; she was sure of it. So she needed a way to print an escape vehicle without him noticing.

She had toyed around with the idea of hacking the printers and taking control of them directly, but that was risky. Oedipus was too smart to be hacked easily. He’d know what was happening within minutes of her taking over a single printer. Besides, that strategy would likely end with fighting. And that was something she was committed not to do.
I’ve done that once, and it was mistake. I’m going to make it out of here without anyone getting hurt.
To do that, she just needed a small favor from her friend.

Motorcad’s door was open, so Kari strolled in, feeling surprisingly good for the circumstances. SeptemberMist was there, lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Motorcad wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

“Now I find you on his bed,” Kari said. “It’s beginning to be a pattern that I can’t ignore.”

“Don’t let him get you to start believing in his fantasies,” SeptemberMist said. She was wearing tight orange pants and a flowery top. It was a different look for her, but she was a fashion chameleon; she enjoyed wearing different looks and styles. This one was a little too similar to what the girls wore in high school to be of Kari’s taste.

“Oh, I know you’re out of his league—don’t worry. But, you do spend a lot of time together,” Kari said. She sat down on a cushioned recliner next to the pool table. Motorcad had printed a number of items from expensive materials that made the place feel more like a man-cave than a bedroom.

“We’re working on a project together,” SeptemberMist said. “But you’re sounding better today.”

“I’m feeling a little better actually.”
It’s the truth. Closer to getting out of here means closer to happiness.

“Great, but you better be careful around here. As soon as Motorcad gets back, he’s going to insist that you play a game with us.”

“What is it with him?” Kari said. “Every time he sees me he is trying to get a game going.”

“I think it’s some sort of manly deficiency. He has an urge to try to prove that he’s better than us.”

“I don’t know why. I’ve lost every time.”

“I don’t think you’ve played enough games for him to be satisfied. He hasn’t beaten you at your best yet.” SeptemberMist grinned and stretched her neck. “Hasn’t beaten me at my best either.”

“Well, I’m not much into the popular games around here,” Kari said.

“Why’s that?”

“They’re just too violent. I know that sounds crazy, but I’m just over the military tech, the war scene. I’ve had more than enough of that for my life, with clients and with the civil war. I’m more interested in other things now.”

“A fascinating opinion coming from you.”

“What do you mean?” Kari asked.

“Well, you’re known for it.”

Kari winced. She had done a lot of projects with military applications in the past. But that was mainly because most clients that were pushing the technological boundaries were militaristic, not because she enjoyed the industry itself.

“Well, I’ve changed.”

“Good for you,” SeptemberMist said.

“Hey, I was wondering if you could do me a favor.”

“Of course. What can I do for you, honey?”

“I’ve been trying to print a couple of things, and I can’t seem to get them to process correctly. I was wondering if you could try printing a couple of designs for me.” It sounded natural enough to Kari. She just hoped that SeptemberMist didn’t push her too hard on why the designs wouldn’t print for her.

“Yeah, of course, just send them over.” Kari sent her the designs right away. She had spent some time thinking of excuses if SeptemberMist asked why she was printing a modified EMP gun and a powerful motor. Kari prepared herself to explain that she was working on some research regarding enabling an electronic device to reboot after being hit with an EMP.

“Done. Ordered them to the basement. Printers B12 and B13.”

“Great—thank you so much,” Kari said.

“No problem,” SeptemberMist said.

“OK, well, I’ll see you guys later. Tell Motorcad that he’s lucky that I missed him.” Kari left the room in a hurry, walking first to a couple of printers located in a workroom off to the side of one of the cafeterias.

Kari had been tempted to try to convince Motorcad and SeptemberMist to come with her, but she had decided it was too risky. A three-person escape would be much more obvious. Besides, she wasn’t sure the others would believe her if she told them all about Joseth’s nanobots and his insanity. It was better to go it alone this time and give her friends plausible deniability in case Joseth was angry with them for helping her.

She picked up a few pieces from the workroom without being noticed before walking back to her room. Inside of her closet were hundreds of little pieces and components that she had printed in the last few days. She grabbed the pieces she needed and attached them together with the ones she had just printed.
Another section ready to go.
The fully assembled parts formed a large rotor, which barely fit in her bag. Luckily, graphium was an incredibly light material, which allowed her to carry it around without much difficulty. Kari put a leash on Lars and ordered a couple more pieces to be printed from various printers in the basement.
Just a few stops before we get there.

He’s not here. He’s not here!
Kari had expected to find Joseth sitting next to printers B12 and B13, waiting for her, but he wasn’t there. The final part she needed to complete a self-assembled delivery drone was sitting there in the finished queue of printer B12.

Kari set her bag down and rushed around the basement, grabbing other pieces from the shelves of finished projects that had been printed days before. She was frantic, convinced that Joseth or one of his cheetahs would arrive any minute. But slowly she started to piece together her new drone.

She grabbed the engine from printer B12 and hooked it into the center of the drone, connecting it to the rotors that would carry her to freedom. It didn’t look like much compared to a drone that was printed whole by one printer, but it would have to do. The drone was big enough now that moving it around was difficult. It was as tall as Kari and several times as wide, but still narrow enough to fit through the halls easily.
She had designed it with small wheels on the bottom so she could move it with ease.

Kari grabbed the EMP gun that SeptemberMist had ordered and clutched it closely. If Joseth sent a cheetah or two after her, she would just flash them with the EMP gun and take off.
It was a beautiful plan. She wheeled her drone through the back exit of the basement. She was sweating by the time she made it outside with her drone. She searched desperately for anyone in sight who could stop her. She found no one.
This is going to work. If I don’t get myself killed, that is. Just like saving Aubrey, the perfect escape.

Kari lowered the drone to the ground, which she managed to do with a small thud. She tossed the EMP gun to the ground reluctantly; she wouldn’t be able to hold onto it while she flew, and there was no sign of anything coming to stop her. She picked Lars up and settled him into a little harness that she had brought with her. She strapped Lars’s harness onto her back and carefully positioned herself on top of her delivery drone.

She hadn’t been able to print any arms to carry her underneath the drone like her original designs had called for—they were too complicated to assemble herself—so she designed this drone to carry her on its back. Kari heard some noise over her shoulder and looked back to see a group of people watching her from one of the second-story decks on the back of Valhalla.
I hope none of them have Joseth on speed dial.

She activated the drone and ordered it to fly her to Jackson Hole, the closest city that was big enough for her to hide out in. The engine in the center buzzed to life and quickly accelerated, powering the numerous turbines, which caused quite the dust storm.

Kari closed her mouth and her eyes as tightly as she could.
Why didn’t I think of printing a mask and goggles to wear?
It had been an oversight, but she just hoped it was the only thing she had missed in her plan.
I didn’t get the chance to test this, so here goes nothing.

The drone inched off the ground and held her steady before lifting her another couple of inches. It strived to keep itself balanced and prevent anything on the ground from being lodged in its propellers. It was the most difficult part of the process, and the most time consuming. Kari looked over her shoulder to see that more people had gathered on the deck, and they were all focused on her.

She couldn’t hear anything over the sound of the drone, but it looked like a few of them were trying to shout at her.
It’s too late; no one can stop me now. I’m out of here, and any of you who are working with Joseth should leave as well—because I’m going to spend every waking minute after I’m free trying to shut Joseth down.

Joseth might have had good intentions, but the way he wanted to accomplish his goals was heinous. He needed to answer for his crimes. But she knew she couldn’t bring him to justice from the inside, where he had complete control over all of her communications. She would need to get herself to a safe spot first, before spreading the news of Joseth and Rosewood to the world.

She knew it would be a challenge to handle the situation in a way that would allow the government to take Joseth and Rosewood peaceably by surprise while also not giving herself away.
But they are going to need my help. I never thought I’d be helping the government arrest hackers, but Joseth is too dangerous to let the government people mess this up on their own.
It was a challenge she was looking forward to.

Not good.

A notification blinked into the corner of her vision; Oedipus was calling. Kari took a look down to the ground; it was a good twenty feet below the drone she was riding on top of.
She wasn’t quite above the tree line, but she would be there soon.
If he’s calling, he already knows I’m leaving.
Kari answered the call, but didn’t allow the camera to detach from her processing unit, which would prevent him from seeing her.
Just in case.

“You should land,” Joseth said. His face filled a corner of her vision, and she hated it.
Can’t believe I ever liked him.

“No, thank you,” Kari said. She had cleared the treetops and was accelerating horizontally away from Valhalla.

“I would really advise it.”

“Why’s that?” Kari couldn’t help but ask. She looked back and noticed that the deck had emptied, and there was no longer anyone watching her.
Not a great sign.

“I could send drones to attack you, or just have some cheetahs shoot you down. But despite my better sense, for some reason, I’m still rather fond of you.”

The cheetahs had been a possibility she had considered, but she believed she could have the drone climb high enough in the air to escape their attacks. She had counted on making it past the cheetahs before any drones could catch up to her. It was a risky plan, but she hadn’t counted on Joseth catching on to her escape so quickly.
He’s gone weeks without noticing me before . . .