The biggest mistake I’ve ever made had been when I went undercover in the Mjollner.
I’d revealed my cover too soon.
I’d ruined our plan.
I’d lit the fuse on a cartel war.
And then I just ran from it all.
I’d spent my first few months in exile playing by the rules; blending in at Arkham Academy, no cartel business and acting normal. Tension between cartels was at an all time high and the missing baby had become an afterthought for everyone in the sprawl--but not for me.
I had come so close and I wanted to get answers.
Then there had been Sage.
Sage became my special project. Sage
had been dead, but not dead enough that the preservation tank couldn’t resurrect
some part of her. I spent a year trying to bring her back piece by piece. I
needed her; she was the only one who knew what the kidnappers looked like.
It took me a while, but I did bring her back.
And once we’d found our leads I went undercover.
When I went undercover this time I played the long game. I invested time. I planned multiple moves. I studied the players. I even added a few players. I became Peter Strange.
***
I’d created the identity of Peter Strange because I needed to access the RLA government files. The RLA was unhackable because they’d paid a cool billion to street hackers to come up with the most secure information system in the world. They'd done it by going old school--everything was put on physical servers, desktops and dial up lines. The only way to get information in the Republic was to be on the inside.
So I went inside and enlisted.
And once I’d discovered that what
I needed was in Camp Harmony I had myself transferred.
My goal was to corner Haley on the first day, but I didn’t plan for Kenneth Maxwell always being there. He had been more of a nuance that I had planned but even then, when I made my move---not even he saw it coming.
I’d had Maxwell and Haley stored in the abandoned safe house that had once belonged to Blackbird. The crazy old man had accidentally huffed too many fumes 6 months ago and dropped dead leaving the isolated house and lab beneath it completely empty.
I’d left them locked in what was once an embalming studio. I’d planned to come back the very next day, but it had taken much longer than I planned to tie up the loose ends at Camp Harmony.
Sitting in front of me Sgt. Maxwell looked like shit and his eyes are rageful, but he’s too weak to really fight. He keeps his arm protectively around Haley as Audrina walks them through the lab and upstairs to the living room. I follow behind.
Upstairs Sage is sitting patiently in her silver power chair, the clear IV bags arranged primly in her lap. Maxwell’s gaze bores into Sage as Audrina leads him to sit on the couch., but he doesn’t say anything.
I don’t blame him for staring—Sage is beautiful. I do good work.
“I’ll make coffee,” Audrina says quietly.
“No,” Maxwell says turning to me. “You will tell me what the fuck is going on. How long have you two been planning this ?,”
“Not long and we didn’t mean to involve you, sir.” Audrina says quickly. “Alan works for the Shy Cartel….he contacted me a few months ago. I owe the Cartel some favors from when my ex was involved. Alan promised me you wouldn’t get hurt- --”
“And what exactly do you want ?,” Maxwell demands from me.
“Well, I wanted Harlow Haley,” I explain
“He’s gone,” Haley says, finally speaking.
“So I found out,” I said. “Which is why you’re the next best thing.”
I project an image from my Syndicate.
“Tell me about this man,” I tell Haley
Haley looks up at the image and his brow furrows slightly.
“Don’t say a damn word, Haley.” Maxwell barks.“The RLA does not cooperate with the cartels.”
I had begun to think of myself as less of a cartel member. I’d been living North in NeoLuddite Territory and hadn’t done anything cartel related in what felt like forever, but I had the muscle memory.
I raise the RLA issued gun out of my side pocket and push it to Audrina’s head.
“He will cooperate,” I tell them. “Or I’ll kill her.”
“Alan!,” Audrina shrieks and I feel bad, she'd been a good accomplice, but I need my answers
“That’s Daniel Starling,” Haley says in a quiet voice pointing to the projected image. “He was my brother-in-law, but he’s dead too I swear.”
“I know,” I said. “I also know Harlow killed him .”
“How do you know about Harlow killing him ?,” Haley asks.
“I’ve spent the last few months of my life learning everything I could about Harlow and Daniel… Harlow probably thought he was doing the world a favor. Maybe he was.”
“Why ? ”
I zoom in on the image and focus on the Mjollner ink on Daniel Starling’s shoulder.
“Your brother-in-law was in the Mjollner--,”
“No he wasn’t,” Haley says quickly. “He worked at a Harvest Center--he was a priest---he just did mission work in the Sprawl--”
I laugh a this.
“ So ? Do you have any idea how many priests are in the Mjollner ? Do you know how many RLA officers ?,” I look to Maxwell just so I could catch his bracing reaction at my last statement. “He was a new recruit so he probably just wanted fast money--”
“Daniel wasn’t rich--,”
“Not yet,” I say. “He’d just joined.”
“If you know so much then why did you need to kidnap him ?,” Maxwell interrupts.
“I’m getting there,” I tell him. “Daniel Starling and two other recruits tried to impress the former Rektor by kidnapping Rayne Washington’s baby.”
“I don’t know who that is,” Haley says. “Daniel never mentioned him--,”
“Rayne Washington heads the Shy Cartel,” Maxwell says. “He’s responsible for half the violent crime epidemic in the Sprawl. He runs all Clarity distribution...you know that drug that fucked up your mother--”
"Maxwell," Audrina starts but doesn't finish
“Mostly correct,” I say.
Minnow has actually been responsible for most of the Clarity drug trade.
Clarity.
I guess that sounded better than M44.
“Daniel didn’t steal that baby,” Haley says. “He…he wouldn’t.”
“He did. I heard him brag about doing it,” Sage speaks up. “He was nice though,”
“I’ve done a lot of shit to find Daniel Starling, and then Harlow and now you,” I tell him. “I know Daniel took the baby to the Harvest Center, but there was no record of the DNA ever being used so he didn’t keep it there. Now, you’re going to tell me everything you know about what happened to that baby or I'm killing everyone."
I was bluffing of course, but he seemed to buy it.
“Did the kidnapping happen two years ago ?,” Haley asks
I nod
“Shit,” Haley mumbles under his breath.
“What ?,” I demand.
“I know where the baby is,” Haley tells me. “I can take you to him.”
“Good,” I say, not betraying how relieved and surprised I am.
I let go of Audrina’s arm and quickly refasten the blindfold and mouthpiece to Maxwell and then Haley. Maxwell tries to fight me, but he can’t. He makes a noise, probably cursing, through the gag.
“You said you’d let them go if he helped!” Audrina shouts at me.
“I will,” I tell her. “Just not yet.”
I head for the door and go outside to get some privacy. Sage can’t do much, but I know she’ll alert me if they try to escape.
Not that there is anywhere to go. Blackbird’s house was hundreds of miles from the closest city.
I connect my Syndicate to Minnow’s as I walk in excited circles around the driveway.
“I barely hear from you in two years and now twice in the same month ?,” Minnow answers. “Did those EUS guys get back East ?”
“Yeah,” I said.
Minnow was technically Rayne Washington’s executive assistant, but in reality she was running the
drug business and skimming his books while he tried to keep this cartel war at bay.
When I knew I needed to get Haley alone I’d hired the Eastern United States POWs to help. I’d told the POWs if they helped me I’d get them back home. Minnow was the only person I knew with access and money to smuggle them home and she’d done it.
St. John had been easy enough to manipulate.
“What do you need from me now ?,” she asks
“I did it,” I tell her. “I found him.”
“You said that last time.” she says. “We went to that Haley girl's house, there was no one there. We had to burn it down to cover our tracks.”
“I know. But now I know for sure. I have a first person account,”
She paused. We didn’t talk about Rayne and Sara’s lost baby—no one in the cartel did. Once the cartels started fighting it got pushed to the side.
“Are you fucking with me ?,” Minnow asks.
“No…can you tell her ?,” I ask.
“Alan,” Minnow sighs. “I don’t want to bring up old pain for no reason--”
“I need her DNA. Please.”
“Okay,” Minnow says. “Tell me where to meet you.”
***
“Release me,” Maxwell commanded Audrina
“I’m sorry, sir.” dhe said. “This will be over soon.”
Maxwell, Haley and Audrina had been locked in the back of an RLA service van Alan Gray had stolen from camp. Maxwell had pointedly noticed that of the three he was the only one who’d been chained to the wall.
“We need to escape before this car stops.” Maxwell argued. “You think they aren’t going to kill us once they get what they need ?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Haley says looking out the small window.
“You will do as I say,” Maxwell barks.
“Alan’s different,” Audrina reasons. "He won't actually kill us."
“The RLA will think I went AWOL. They are probably looking for me as we speak,” Maxwell says. “And If you keep saying shit like that Audrina I may have them arrest you for conspiracy.”
“No one knows you are missing, sir. Alan told St. John you’d been pulled away for some kind of top secret crisis.” Audrina says. “St. John’s been in charge and the camp is fine-”
“Except the POWs escaped under my watch.”
“Alan said he would fix it--,”
“Audrina, I am not working with the cartel--”
The van comes to a stop and they go silent.
The van doors swing open and Alan Gray is standing by the doors He is no longer in the RLA uniform, he is wearing all black and his arms are bare to reveal a clean sweep of sharp metal jutting out of his forearms. In his hand is a shining silver gun that he points towards Haley.
“Out,” Alan says to Haley.
“You are not taking him,” Maxwell tells him.
With only a cautious glance at Alan’s bladed arms Haley
stands and walks out of the van of his own volition. Alan jerks Haley so his back is pressed to his chest. He crosses his mutated arm over his chest like a shield. Puting a gun to his forehead Alan walks Haley away from
the van and out of Maxwell’s line of vision.
Maxwell jerks against the cuffs securing him to the van.
“Don’t worry, sir.... I’ll follow.” Audrina says jumping out of the van, leaving Maxwell chained inside.
It was night, but it was still so ungodly hot outside. The street is lit by soft orbs of light floating 20 feet above the ground. She stares out of the neighborhood of perfectly identical steel and glass houses running near parallel to each other.
Everything in the neighborhood is quiet and orderly.
Which made the brilliant orange sports car idling by the sidewalk look especially out of place.
***
-Alan-
-2-
I can feel Haley’s heartbeat skyrocket underneath my arm, but he doesn’t yell or scream for help. I walk us towards the gawdy sports car and Minnow springs out of the driver’s seat.
A part of me thought she might be different after all this time, but she is almost exactly the same. Her hair is darker and she is wearing all black, with a pair of leather guns holsters crossed across her back.
Her dark pink lips break into a smile when she sees me. She looks past me to where Sage had rolled herself out of the RLA van.
“You really brought the whore back,” Minnow says.
“Kind of,” I said. I still had a lot of work to do on Sage.
The passenger side door of the sports car opens and Sara walks cautiously towards me. She’s wearing a tank top and shorts with small gun strapped to her thigh. Her red hair is in short spikes and he face is hard. When I smile at her she doesn’t return it.
She only looks at Haley who is in my arms. His large eyes land on all of our weapons before going back to the blade that is inches from his throat. I can feel his body trembling like a scared puppy in my arms.
“This isn’t him,” Sara says.
“ I know,” I say.
Without another word I start walking Haley to one of the houses--his house. Sara and Minnow follow after me.
“ISLA RUN!,” Haley suddenly shouts as we approach the front steps. He starts struggling against my grasp. “ISLA RUN! THEY HAVE WEAPONS!
I hear a commotion in the house and doors slamming. Minnow sprints to the front door and after a few attempts kicks it open. She reaches to her back for her gun and starts firing into the air—horrified screams come from inside the house.
“Nobody move !,” Minnow shouts
Strengthening my grip I walk Haley inside the small house.
There are three women inside; two of them are older and are sitting on a couch looking scared out of their fucking minds. The other one is younger with loose curls down to her waist--she must be Isla. She's standing and she has an old gun in her hand, but the safety is still on—not that she seems to know that.
“Alex,” Isla says loosening her grip on the gun.
“Isla,” Haley says. “I’m so sorry--”
“Shut up,” I say. “Nobody move. Nobody talk.”
Minnow and Sara start walking through the house, I can hear them turning over furniture and opening drawers. After nearly 20 minutes Sara steps out of a room and walks up to Isla until they are nose to nose.
“What do you want--,” Isla says boldly
“Where is my son ?,” Sara demands.
“They want Skylar,” Haley says. “She’s his real mother.”
Isla’s face drops and she looks Sara up and down.
“No,” Isla says. “You can’t be.”
"Isla-"
“Where is he ?,” Sara demands again
Isla doesn’t say anything, she only gives Sara all the defiance she is giving her.
Without losing eye contact Sara disarms Isla and throws the gun towards me. I catch it with one hand, remove the safety and point it towards Isla.
In
the silence I can hear a faint crying from the backyard. Sara must hear it too
because she runs for the backyard, practically pulling the backdoor of its
hinges. Isla follows behind and I go after them.
Sara runs to an old looking dog house in the corner of the yard and shakily opens the doghouse door. A red faced three-year-old crawls out of the doghouse and plopping himself on the fake grass continues wailing. Sara picks the toddler up and hold him to her hip.
The
crying child looks towards Isla, but he doesn’t reach for her or call for his
mother like I expected.
One handed Sara pulls a small needle attached to a microscreen out of her pocket and sticks her shoulder with it. She then quickly pricks the toddler in his thigh with the same needle and he lets out a high pitched screaming cry at the prick.
Sara tightens her grip on the boy and sways slightly, rubbing the child’s back until he stops crying.
“You made him stop crying,” I hear Isla say distantly.
The microscreen on Sara’s needle beeps and bright green message appears on the LED.
MATERNITY DNA MATCH
“Holy
fucking shit,” Minnow smiles.
Sara’s
face breaks into a smile and she rests her head against the toddlers head. Small lines of tears come down her cheeks.
I let go of Haley and he runs to his sister. They embrace each other and start whispering quickly.
“How the fuck could you keep someone else’s baby ?,” Minnow demands of Isla.
“ I though--I---My husband brought him home as an infant from his job,” Isla said. “He said a mother was dying of a drug overdose and had tried to sell him at the Harvest Center for money. He said we had to take him in.”
“Daniel lied. He... was trying to join a cartel,” Haley tells her. “He stole Skylar from them...I think Harlow knew.”
Sara walks towards Isla, her hands protectively around the toddler. Isla looks like she wants to step back but she doesn’t.
“Thank you for taking care of him,” Sara says tersely and turns to Minnow. “Let’s go.”
“You can’t just take him !,” Isla shouts tears going down her face. “My husband and I legally adopted him--”
“Do I look like I give a shit about the law ?,” Sara asks.
Sara unlatches the back fence and starts walking towards the sports car, where Sage and Audrina are sitting and watching. Isla follows behind Sara, not at all concerned about the gun on Sara’s thigh.
“Stop ! Please ! He’s all I have left from my husband,” Isla begs. “Please, wait!”
Sara only walks faster ignoring the crying woman behind her.
Minnow shoots in the air and the toddler starts crying again.
“Go back inside or the next one goes in your chest,” Minnow warns Isla.
“No. Please. You have to listen to me---I raised him for two years,” Isla said. “You can’t just come in here and take him—”
Minnow fires a shot close to Isla’s bare feet and she backs away screaming. Haley pulls on his sister’s hand and leads her, wailing, back into the house.
Minnow walks to the driver’s door of the car and turns to me.
“Coming ? ,” she says. “Rayne will want to see you.”
“Give me a minute,” I say.
I signal
for Audrina to follow me and I jog back to the stolen RLA van where Maxwell was still chained.
“What the hell did you do with Haley ?,” Maxwell asks.
“He’s alive,” I tell him,
I reach into my pocket and hand Maxwell back his Syndicate. I’d taken it from him when I'd had to kidnap him.
“There are two images on here of General Christine Hinkley meeting with Illena Bishop,the Mjollner's Rektor.” I tell him.
“What the fuck should I do with those ?”
“ The RLA will discover three POWs escaped under your watch. I’m saving you from jail,” I tell him. “Don’t tell me you don’t know how blackmail works.”
I hand Audrina the keys to the van and to Maxwell’s handcuffs.
“Thanks for your help,” I tell her.
“Go fuck yourself,” she responds snatching the keys.
I walk away from them and slip into the backseat of the sports car where Sage had found a way to maneuver herself inside. Sara sits in the front seat holding the toddler in her arms, stroking his dark hair.
He looks more like an actual person than the last time I saw him--he looks like Rayne.
“Thank
you, Alan.” Sara says as Minnows pull off into the sandy desert.
"She did," Sara nods. "Rayne will be glad to know that--,"
"Oh shit," Minnow says. "I didn't tell Rayne where I was going. I should call him--"
"Not yet," Sara says quietly, kissing the baby's hair.
The car is silent as we drive, the only sound is the sloshing of Sage’s IV bags
I was going back to the Sprawl. Sara finally had her son back. Rayne had his heir. Minnow had her power. I’d try and fix all the relationships I’d lost when I was gone. I'd start over.
Sara makes a sudden move and lifts her hand to Minnow's shoulder
“Stop,” Sara orders. “Minnow turn the car back around.”
The End
--------
+++