Xenofreak Nation, Book Three: XIA (14 page)

The moment the program shut off the signal, Alton took the printer from Savvy and Scott took him back into custody. As he was fastening the zip tie around Savvy’s wrists, Nicola said, “That’s how you thank him?”

“Oh, I won’t be doing the thanking,” Scott replied. “That’s up to a jury of his peers.”

“I’m peerless,” Savvy muttered.

Scott assumed he meant he was too unique or intelligent to have peers. He shook his head, took Savvy’s arm and said, “Move.”

Back in the stairwell, he thought about what would happen next. Shasta would want to do
something
about Fournier, but with the lack of staff and the condition of the building, he didn’t know what. He began to mentally compose an argument for her to send him in. If Maddy got away, chances were good Fournier would be dead when he got there. He tried not to think about Bryn’s chances. He’d been worried about her
before
he saw her holding a shotgun in the company of Fournier and Maddy Singh, but now that he knew what she’d gotten herself into, his anxiety had reached panic proportions.

Halfway down the stairs, Alton asked Savvy, “What were you doing on the third floor?”

Nicola put a hand on Savvy’s arm. “Is it done?”

“Yes,” he said.

“Then go ahead and tell them.”

“I hacked the database.”

“For the National Library of Medicine?” Scott asked. “Why?”

“Because he told me to.”

Scott sighed at the non-answer and swiveled his head in Nicola’s direction.

“My father asked Felson to locate certain documents and release them to the media.”

“Like what?”

“Medical articles that were withheld from the public.”

They reached the bottom of the stairs and Scott opened the door. Bright headlights from a pair of large vehicles parked in front of the building were now illuminating the lobby. “Is that what this was all about?” He gestured to indicate the destruction.

“No.” She shook her head adamantly. “Felson and I weren’t supposed to be part of that. Daddy just wanted to get Lupus back. Everything I told you about running away was true, except…I did call him from the roadblock. He was really mad when he found out you were an agent and that you caught us…until he thought of a way to turn it to his advantage. He’s good at that.”

“Psychopaths generally are,” Alton said.

“He’s not a psycho! He’s a brilliant surgeon who-”

“Yeah, yeah.” Alton’s voice drowned her out. “He’s a misunderstood genius. Now go.”

Nicola huffed out of the stairwell and stomped away, Alton on her heels. Scott had several more questions for her, not the least of which was how Savvy got access to the third floor, but now was not the time to interrogate anyone. He took Savvy’s arm again and headed for Shasta.

The vehicles were military IMVs, which made sense, since National Guardsmen in tactical gear and surgical masks were now prowling the floor. Scott remembered what Carla had told him about the National Guard rounding up xenos, so he holstered his weapon and let go of Savvy’s arm, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets to hide his alterations.

One of the guardsmen challenged Alton, but Shasta called out, “They’re mine.” She was standing near the destroyed stairwell talking with a dark-skinned man with short white hair dressed in fatigues. Scott didn’t need to see his insignia to know he was in command.

His men had gathered up the dead and laid them side-by-side on a cleared space of floor near the far left wall. They’d also corralled and were guarding the living; the men Alton had taken out in the stairwell.

From the commanding officer’s insignia, Scott identified him as a colonel. He heard the tail end of what he was telling Shasta, “…are working on restoring power here and in several adjacent neighborhoods.”

Shasta held her hand out for the printer well before they reached her, an indication of its value to her. When Alton handed it over, she asked, “Did it work?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Excellent. I want all of you out at Fournier’s facility ASAP. Bring him in alive if at all possible. Lo and Boardman are geared up and waiting in the UAAV. Alton, if the opportunity happens to present, work on Maddy Singh.”

Scott knew Alton’s recent assignment had something to do with getting Maddy to cooperate with the XIA, but he didn’t know the specifics and didn’t dwell on it. Shasta had given him the go-ahead to ensure Bryn’s safety and he was determined that this time nothing would prevent him from doing just that.

He spun on his heel to hurry off, but Nicola stopped him with a plaintive, “What about me?”

Scott would have ignored her, but the question was valid. Shasta had just ordered every one of her available agents back into the field. The building security staff were either dead or en route to the hospital, and the building itself had been breached and was on backup power. The other XIA handlers and their agents were MIA in the city’s chaos. Deputy Director Unger was also missing. Essentially, XIA headquarters was crippled. There was nowhere to keep the prisoners.

“I’m afraid you’ll have to come with me, young lady,” the colonel said.

“No.” Shasta shook her head. “They’re witnesses in an investigation and will remain in my custody.”

“My orders are to detain
all
xenos – for their safety.” He stared at Nicola’s face, eyes lingering on her feather eyebrows. “We’ll be taking them to a location called Poppy’s Pier as soon as we’re done here.”

Scott jerked his head towards the four prisoners under guard. “What about them? You just letting them loose on the pier with everyone else?”

“Of course not, but the jails won’t take them, so we’re using prisoner transport vehicles to hold xenofreak offenders for the time being. Marshals are sending a bus.”

“I understand you’ve got a job to do,” Shasta said. “But I’m a senior agent with the XIA. You don’t have jurisdiction here.”

From the look on the colonel’s face, Scott knew what he was going to say before he said it. “During martial law I do. All xenos. No exceptions. Those are my orders.”

Shasta’s eyes flashed, but she acquiesced with a grudging, “Fine.” The colonel not only outgunned her, but he hadn’t yet realized she and her agents were also xenos. If she pressed the issue, she might find herself with a one-way ticket to Poppy’s Pier. For a moment, Scott was afraid Nicola or Savvy would point it out, but they didn’t. Nicola had heard Shasta’s request that they bring Fournier in alive, so it was unlikely she’d do anything to jeopardize that.

Nicola did protest vociferously when the colonel refused to let her keep the birdcage. Shasta took it from her, prying her fingers gently off the handle. “I’ll take care of Perky. I promise.”

When the commanding officer left, escorting Savvy and a still-protesting Nicola to a waiting vehicle, Shasta glanced at Scott’s midsection, where his hands were securely hidden.

“How did you know?” she asked.

“Bryn’s godmother told me they were rounding everyone up.”

“Nothing good will come of that.”

He nodded. “What are you going to do?”

“I can use the agency’s mobile surveillance unit and keep an eye on your op from there. Now go rescue your girlfriend.”

At the bottom of the hill, a narrow dirt path split off from the gravel road. It went around the field between the house and the river and disappeared in the unkempt vegetation along the shore.

When Maddy turned onto the path, Bryn balked. She’d seen the yacht’s outboard and knew it wouldn’t hold them all. Maddy would most likely kill Fournier and dump his body in the Hudson River, and being witnesses to the crime, Bryn and Mia would be expendable.

She summoned her courage and lifted the gun. “This is where we part company.”

Maddy’s eyebrows rose. “How are you planning on getting out of here?”

“Dundee’s truck. The keys are in his pocket.”

To Bryn’s surprise, Maddy didn’t argue. She just nodded and said, “Alright. Good luck. And…thank you.”

It felt like a trick, but as Bryn and Mia got closer to the farmhouse, it seemed more and more likely they would escape. When they reached Dundee’s truck, Bryn was almost giddy with relief, even though she wasn’t looking forward to rooting around in a dead man’s pockets. She rounded the big vehicle and stopped in her tracks.

Dundee’s body was gone.

“I was wondering if he was the sniper back there,” Mia said.

“He wasn’t. I saw the guy before I shot him! What are we going to do now? Can you hotwire it?”

Mia made a face. “No. They didn’t teach us that in med school.”

“Well, we can’t go back.” Bryn glanced over her shoulder at the gravel road, expecting a horde of angry men to appear at the top of the hill any second now.

Mia took her holophone out and pulled up their location, putting her finger in the center of the holomap. “We’re here. There aren’t any other roads out, but if we cross the field, we can follow the river to this park.”

Bryn spotted Maddy and the others in the distance. They’d almost reached the tall grass, bushes, and trees along the riverbank. If Bryn and Mia cut across the field at a sharp angle, they wouldn’t run into them. “Let’s get going, then. It’s almost dark.”

Whatever crop had been grown in the field had been harvested close to the ground in wide rows. The dry winter stubble crunched under their boots as they hurried along. Bryn felt horribly exposed and was glad for the near darkness until they reached the field’s far corner. There, the wild vegetation was almost as thick and tall as that along the river. They beat their way through the undergrowth until they were stopped by a chain link fence the same height as the main gate.

“I can’t climb that.” Mia sounded miserable.

“Let’s head for the river. Worst case scenario, we have to get our feet wet.”

After they followed the fence ten yards or so towards the water, Bryn realized she’d spoken too soon when she heard a growl that definitely came from a living thing. Her quills responded by puffing up around her head. With a flash of trepidation, she recalled the loose animals.

“What was that?” Mia asked.

As if in answer, the creature let out another growl that escalated into an eerie, moaning yowl. The vocalizations reminded Bryn of two tom cats threatening each other in an alley. She strained her eyes, but in the low light, couldn’t see anything.

“Back away slowly and we’ll try to go around,” she whispered.

The animal continued making warning sounds as they retraced their steps through the underbrush. Whatever it was, it didn’t attack, which was good, because Bryn didn’t want to shoot it – not only because it didn’t deserve to die, but because a gunshot would attract attention.

Although her plan had been to circle around it, the terrain in that direction sloped sharply downward towards the river. Mia was in no shape to attempt the treacherous footing, especially not in her high-heeled boots. They were forced to walk parallel to the river, each step bringing them closer to where Maddy had gone. Bryn was about to suggest they stop and wait awhile, when she heard raised voices up ahead.

The last thing she wanted to do was involve herself in whatever scenario was playing out, so she grabbed Mia’s arm and pulled her down behind a bush to listen.

“Let her go.” It was Maddy.

Dundee, with his distinctive Australian accent, said, “Trade you. Him for the girl.”

Bryn didn’t need to see who he was talking about to know it was Padme. Dundee, despite the horrific-looking head wound, must have regained consciousness and somehow gotten to Maddy’s yacht. Probably, he’d planned to lie in wait for her, but instead he’d found Padme and taken her. That’s why Padme hadn’t answered her holophone the second time Maddy called.

“No,” Maddy said. “He dies today.”

“Then so does she.”

“I don’t think so.” Maddy sounded confident. “Ask him. The baby is too important.”

Bryn barely made out Fournier’s response. “Don’t kill her.”

“See?” Maddy said.

“He dies, she dies, no matter what he says.”

“Well, then,” Maddy said. “I guess we’re at an impasse.”

“For now,” Dundee replied, “but once it’s full dark, I’ll have the advantage.”

“How so?”

“I’ll still be able to see.”

Maddy said something Bryn couldn’t make out. The words were followed by a mocking chuckle from Dillo.

“Bryn,” Mia whispered, pointing towards the water. “Look.”

Through a break in the foliage, Bryn saw lights from the far shore reflecting off the water of the Hudson. Her gaze dropped to the near bank and she made out the silhouette of a dock. She couldn’t see Maddy’s outboard from this angle, but it had to be tied there.

They really didn’t have much of a choice; they had to try for the boat. Bryn was about to suggest it when Mia’s holophone rang.

“Oh,
crap!
” Mia fumbled in her purse to silence the phone, but it was too late.

“I recognize that ring-tone!” Maddy called. “Show yourselves, ladies.”