Truthseer Page 9

  15

  ‘Shure you won’t have a drink?’ The bearded man waved a grubby bottle in Karim’s face.

  ‘Thanks, but we don’t. Erm, it’s against our religion.’ Karim could smell the vicious stuff just from the proximity of the bottle and wondered why the guy wasn’t already permanently pickled. He couldn’t help liking him. They’d been listening to his tales of life on the street since Karim’s conversation with Jac had attracted his attention.

  ‘I bin here two yearsh. It’s nice. Staz don’t bother us down here.’ He drained the bottle and looked round hopefully for another.

  Karim cast bleary eyes around the grey concrete of the bridge footings, silently berating himself for falling asleep while trying to keep watch.

  I guess it’s a mistake I got away with seeing as we’re not dead.

  He tried to focus on the present, desperate to banish memories of the previous evening’s blood and chaos that had spat them out in this dusty and dismal place. If rescue didn’t arrive soon they’d be moving in with the pickled resident and Luc would probably die without medical attention.

  Karim looked anxiously at the huddle of damp blanket beside him, a few strands of rumpled black hair the only sign of his friend’s presence.

  ‘Hey, Luc, wake up. Someone’s coming to fetch us. It’s going to be all right.’ He helped Luc struggle into a sitting position with his back to the concrete bridge supports. His left arm and side were soaked with drying blood. He looked weak and cold and past caring whether he got out of there or not. His skin was pale under its deep tan and the determined strength that had kept him going through the series of burns on his arm seemed to be finally giving out.

  Karim felt a flood of relief as a familiar dark silhouette blocked the sunlight beyond the bridge. Razz knelt beside them and slipped a powerful arm under Luc’s shoulder.

  ‘Come on. I’ve hired a car, waiting in the next street.’ He helped Luc to his feet.

  Luc swayed unsteadily but managed a few steps. ‘Where are we going? I feel like a sack of baggage anyway, but it helps to know.’

  ‘Our place. If we can dodge the patrols. But they’re less likely to hassle us in a car than on foot.’

  It took just over fifteen minutes and a couple of detours to reach the east side residential area and the ten-storey slope-sided apartment block where Razz and his team lived. It was slow work getting Luc up three flights of concrete stairs to reach a cramped apartment that was a familiar sight to Karim, being a copy of all the other concrete boxes in the city. The only furniture was a low table and a few floor cushions, with a rack of crammed shelving filling the whole of one side.

  The last of Luc’s energy gave out as they made it into the tiny living space. Razz eased his burden against the wall with the cushions, looking concerned at the amount of blood soaked into Luc’s clothes.

  ‘Sorry for the stairs. Ground level reserved for elders.’

  ‘Any fresh bandage?’ Karim wished they could have gone to the east side clinic instead. If only it still existed.

  Razz searched the shelves. ‘No bandage. Someone must’ve cleared it out prepping the clinic for the market op. Plenty of tape.’

  ‘Tape not a deal of use for this. Nothing much left to stick it to.’ Karim examined the bloody mess wrapped round Luc’s arm, not daring to interfere with it in case he made things worse.

  Razz put the tape back on the shelf. ‘Hang on for a while longer. Jac and Fin are taking care of Kit. Soon as they get him to the safe house they’ll come over here and do a proper job on that arm with more expertise than I have.’

  ‘Sure. So long as I don’t have to move for a while.’ Luc closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep.

  *

  Jac was sitting on the floor by the entrance to the city-centre clinic, supporting Kit’s half-conscious body propped against the pile of their gear. It was the first time she’d seen a full clinic relocation in action and was impressed by the efficient professionalism of the volunteer tigers and medics.

  The beds had been folded and moved into hiding and the meds repacked and moved out. Nothing remained in the stripped-out room. Mirel was disinfecting walls and floor with a backpack spray. Fin appeared in the doorway.

  ‘Mirel, hurry up! The enforcers will be here any minute.’

  ‘Nearly done. I don’t want to leave anyone’s DNA in here for when they come trampling in.’ Mirel sprayed one last corner, took off the backpack and gave it to Jac. ‘Give this side one final blast, soon as the hire-car arrives and the others get in.’ She ran for the adjacent garage and the waiting jeep with the last of their patients.

  Fin signalled to Bel. ‘Help me keep watch by the garage door until the car gets here.’

  As soon as they had gone out Lizzie closed the inner door behind them and leaned on it for a few moments to catch her breath. At the end of their long session treating injuries she was on the edge of exhaustion, her mop of sandy hair escaping its moorings and her smart clothes blood-spattered and dusty.

  ‘Jac, the hive update says it’s really getting crazy out there. Nowhere’s going to be secure for a while. Soon as the car gets here, forget the safe house. See if they can get you straight under the wire and into the forest.’

  ‘If Kit thinks he can do it.’

  ‘Better in the forest than here the way things are going. I’ll go over to Razz’s place, see if I can get Luc and Karim out of the city––’

  Her words were cut short by a racket outside the door. Bel and Fin hadn’t a hope of stopping a heavily-armed security patrol with their bare hands but seemed to be making an all-out effort to slow them down.

  ‘Sounds like staz got here first.’ Lizzie slammed home the flimsy bolt on the door but her face said she knew it wouldn’t survive the first kick. Jac pushed her towards the back window.

  ‘Lizzie, get out! Tell Raine what’s happened.’

  Lizzie gripped her arm. ‘You come too.’

  ‘I’m not leaving Kit.’

  There was no time to argue. Lizzie scrambled through the window into the yard. Jac watched her slip through the gap in the wire fence to the narrow alley and run.

  She sat down next to Kit, waiting for the patrol to crash into the room.

  Her eyes were so fixed on the door she almost didn’t notice Kit moving slowly and painfully, quietly pulling his knife from the pile of gear and sliding it up his sleeve. She moved to stop him, then changed her mind. Whatever the risks to his injuries of getting into a fight, the alternative was probably far worse.

  *

  Parry was back in the park where he’d first met with Joe Hilman. Now he was wishing he hadn’t involved someone so inexperienced.

  ‘Joe? Why did you want to see me? I’m incredibly busy today.’

  The young chemist was making a visible effort not to be intimidated by Parry’s new rank and power. ‘Yes, Colonel. I’m sure you are. I saw your TV broadcast this morning and I needed to ask why you went along with that whole story? It’s fake, you know it is.’

  ‘Look, I meant it when I said forget you had anything to do with this affair. It’s dangerous.’

  Joe took off his glasses and absently wiped them on his sweater. ‘The thing is, my wife’s a lawyer. She says that fake report is solid evidence of how many lies Moris is prepared to use to cover-up the extent of the epidemic and his lack of action to stop it. And... it seems Burton was also involved in something more serious that Moris is planning.’

  ‘More serious? Where would she have seen this?’ Parry was getting that familiar sinking feeling again.

  ‘She didn’t tell me. I expect it’s confidential so I didn’t insist. What are you going to do with that genuine path report I gave you?’

  Parry could see Joe wasn’t going to let this go easily. ‘It’s more complicated than you think. The people involved are far more powerful than I am. I saw a chance to do what little good I can.’

  Joe shifted awkwardly in his seat, trying unsuccessfully to disguise his nervousne
ss. ‘And in return you signed up to their story?’

  ‘And in return I handed over your report proving those people died from the virus. I expect they’ll destroy it. Forget about it and keep your family safe. I assume you’ve destroyed any copies you made?’

  Parry noticed just a tiny flicker of hesitation in Joe’s eyes, but he didn’t look away when he answered.

  ‘Yes of course, Colonel. As you requested.’

  ‘Good. Make sure it stays that way.’

  Parry walked slowly back to the security building, wondering if lies piled on top of lies would have a way of simply falling into the open when the sheer weight of them reached some kind of tipping point. Whether the public would ever find out. Whether the public would even care if it did find out. And if it did care, what the hell could ordinary citizens do about it anyway?

  He gave his cramped office one last check for anything left behind, collected his tablet and the photo of Jess. His security handset buzzed. It was the first time Raine had called him rather than the other way around and he didn’t like the fact he was in his office and not the public park on the dark network. At least he wasn’t yet in Burton’s heavily spied-on workspace.

  ‘Raine, we agreed you wouldn’t call me here.’

  ‘Should be okay. I’m using the clean fake ID we used before and added the encryption you gave me during the bomb scare. And it’s something that can’t wait.’

  Parry didn’t try to conceal his irritation. ‘Fine. Go ahead.’

  ‘Congratulations on your new post. Assuming it’s true?’

  ‘With constraints, but yes, basically true. Not what this is about though?’

  ‘Security patrol arrested four of my people at the central clinic. Was that on your orders?’

  Parry wanted to say, I don’t do that. But it would mean following through on it and he wasn’t sure if he could. ‘Not on my orders. I’m only just catching up with Burton’s legacy. Finding out what he initiated before he was removed.’

  ‘So yesterday you were only an observer. Now you can protect them.’

  ‘Raine, it’s not that simple. I have to look as if I’m running the security service, not a safe house for your people.’

  Raine didn’t answer and the empty space felt like an accusation. Parry felt responsible, pressurised, trapped, exasperated. Not necessarily in that order. He had to say something to drown out the silence.

  ‘I’ll find out what happened and see what I can do.’

  ‘While you’re checking Burton’s records you may find that he decided Lucas Tyrel had served his purpose. As he had no further use for him he used his kill option. Don’t do that to my people.’

  ‘If you’re implying I’m no different––’

  The connection went dead. Parry sat for a few moments watching Jess stare back at him from behind the glass frame.

  Could I become the same kind of monster as Burton?

  He tried to shake off the feeling of discomfort as he left the cramped room for the last time, headed down to the open-plan area and walked through into Burton’s spacious office. Now it was all his. Diffused pearl-glass lit walls, wide desk, large wall screen. Yet it already felt stale somehow, as if the symbols of success in this particular hierarchy had become permanent reminders of what he’d done to get here. He took Burton’s handset off the desk, linked it to the wall screen and keyed in.

  What exactly am I in charge of now?

  A map appeared showing the five proposed military bases currently being established around the edge of the east marshes. He scrolled through to images of the seven people caught on the market security camera, captioned ‘track down and arrest.’ He rubbed a weary hand across his eyes.

  Seven volunteers who went in to stop the slaughter. Then we doctor the camera footage to ‘prove’ they’re guilty of planting IEDs. Is it worth the trade against all the people Burton would have killed in future?

  Once again he found himself staring at the photograph of his daughter. Her eyes seemed to focus on him wherever he was in the room. He didn’t want to think about what she’d have said about his devil’s bargain with Moris. There were probably several other things she’d disapprove of as well.

  Would I have done it if she was still at home? Impulsive and naïve and idealistic. Totally unrealistic in her expectations... Was I unrealistic using Raine’s people to protect people from Moris’ election drama? They paid a heavy price for their efforts––and now Moris is checking that I’m putting enough resources into hunting them down...

  He called Smith. ‘What do you have on those arrests at the illegal clinic this morning?

  ‘Two of the women cross-referenced with the market video and we found weapons of the type used by the Resistance.’

  ‘Where are the prisoners now?’

  ‘Going to east marshes temporary HQ with ground forces. If we get useful information out of them it’ll save hours of search time. It’s a big area.’

  ‘Good move. Hold them till I get there. Meanwhile, pull everyone off the city search and send them to the marshes.’

  Smith sounded appalled. ‘With all due respect, are you sure? We have positive ID on them and we are so close––’

  ‘Orders from the top. Priority to capture as many Resistance personnel as possible and this east marshes base is our best chance of doing that.’ Parry didn’t want to think about how he’d try to justify his deliberate misunderstanding of Moris’ orders. He’d deal with everything in sequence.

  Smith was controlling his frustration with evident difficulty. ‘Fine. When do we get to the marshes?’

  ‘Three hours. We go with the air cover. Get your gear ready.’ Parry hung up, then walked over to the park and called Raine.

  *

  Raine was waiting anxiously, poised between updates from the hive––which didn’t tell him much as they’d had to pull all their lookouts off the streets––and keeping the other channel open in case Parry called. The colonel’s allegiances seemed to shift and change by the minute and Raine was still uncertain if asking for his help would put his people in more danger instead of less. Still, this was his only chance right now.

  When the call finally came Parry seemed tense and preoccupied. ‘It’s Michael. I pulled all units off the city search, sent them to the marshes.’

  ‘Thank you. What about the four people who were arrested?’

  ‘They’re being taken to marshes HQ by road. I’ll go with the air detachment and arrive almost the same time. I’m going to need information on your... operations there.’

  It was a tiny hesitation, but it said everything. For a moment Raine’s thoughts were in turmoil.

  He knows it’s a false-trail! He’s known all along. And he’s dispatching all units there anyway.

  ‘I’ll send you everything I have.’

  16

  Karim forced himself to watch Lizzie bandaging Luc’s arm, knowing with a kind of cynical fatalism it would become his job again very soon. Lizzie surveyed her handiwork with the dissatisfaction of someone with enough experience to know the limitations of her skill.

  ‘It’s only a temporary fix. It needs proper surgery. I can’t do that, only general nursing and first aid. And with staz patrols everywhere I can’t get you across the city to one of our medics.’

  Karim took the spare bandages she offered. ‘You sure? It really needs sorting.’

  ‘Not with this hunt going on everywhere. Wait, I’ll see if anyone can make it over here.’ She plugged into the hotspot and started searching.

  Razz was tracing the route of their hotspot’s concealed wires with a frequency sensor. ‘We’ll have to strip out this connection before the search gets here looking for Beau. In any case, we’re probably due to be evicted in a week.’

  Karim moved his attention away from feelings of inadequacy in caring for Luc’s injury. ‘Sounds like all that’s got worse since I quit the city a couple of years ago with staz on my tail. How many living here?’ He peered into the only other room. It
had three layers of bunks around three walls, leaving a tight six-foot square of bare floor in the centre. ‘Nine?’

  Razz laughed, his voice muffled from behind the storage framing while he continued his cautious probing. ‘Nine would be luxury. Eighteen. Two shifts. Even four/twelve gives you no chance to re-adjust your body-clock so we just stay on routine of whichever shift we’re on.’

  ‘Doesn’t it get a bit crowded?’

  ‘We’re only here to eat and sleep. Out with the volunteers in food banks and clinics most days. If we mess up our timing it gets a bit mad. How else to be part of the Resistance and still eat?’

  ‘What does the loan franchise say to this level of packing-in?’ Karim and his father had lived with six others––all computer experts and hackers––during his time in the city. Until the franchise-landlord discovered the extra people and kicked them all out.

  Razz seemed resigned to the way things had gone since. ‘Word got round last year. They started regular checks on numbers. Now it’s hard for people renting. They have to keep watch, move on before they’re caught. Mostly now people do same as us. My brother signed up for a lifetime on the edge of debt slavery to buy this place and everyone with income contributes. The loan franchise hasn’t tightened up on inspections yet.’

  His wire-tracing had reached the tall window leading to the narrow balcony. He opened the door section and peered down the sloping walls of the block to get a better view of the street three levels below. ‘No patrols yet.’ He resumed his probing down the side of the window frame. ‘Defaulting on payment is what gets you repossessed––unless Beau manages to find a legal loophole.’

  That caught Karim’s interest. ‘I thought legals were only for Avarit people? I couldn’t afford anything like that when they traced my hack into the sefet-system.’

  Razz looked up with a grin. ‘So, straight under the wire, eh?’

  Karim gave a self-deprecating shrug. ‘I was just lucky the rangers found me before I starved. I might have tried the legal solution if I’d known about it.’