Page 131 of Coldwire
“I suppose you found a good method of transport into Offron?”
The sleeping figures down here haven’t moved at all.
“It’ll do,” Miz replies. “I told my friend that we wanted quick over upscale.”
She doesn’t actually sound all that excited about her success in retrieving a route into Offron. So I suppose it’s something else. Whatever program they’re finally closing in on. That they’ll soon have in their possession.
And as soon as they do, there will be NileCorp helicopters overhead. A whole perimeter surrounded with soldiers and rifles.
I swallow hard. Miz opens the door and glances at me just at the wrong time to catch my expression.
“There won’t be any problems,” she says when we step out. Nik and Blare are still on the stairs, making their way down. “I made sure of that.”
It’s fortunate that she provides this excuse for me to seize on to. “You’re certain your friend is trustworthy?” I ask, pretending that’s what distracted me. “Nik’s been active in Atahua for a while. I assume that means you’ve been with him since the beginning. At minimum, you haven’t been present in Medaluo for the last ten months. No time to uphold the connection.”
Miz doesn’t look bothered. She takes a left, proceeding down the block.
“That’s why it’s calledfriendship,” Miz says. Her tone turns exasperated. “There’s nothing to uphold. It just is.”
I’ve successfully derailed her from my reaction, only to stumble into this, and I find myself experiencing a new twist of panic. It’s odd. It’s nonsensical.
“I apologize. I didn’t mean to offend you,” I scramble to say.
“You didn’t.” Miz frowns. She reaches up to smooth her hair, mussed from the Claw. “Don’t be weird.”
My heart thuds beneath my ribs. Wespic is colder than any of the other cities we’ve been to. Drier, too, its air sharp in my nose. I put my hands in my jacket pockets.
I suppose my apology is less about what I’ve said here. I’m jumping ahead for the inevitable apology I’ll owe when NileCorp rushes in.
Miz hurries forward, our conversation over. There’s an armored van ahead, and she calls for everyone to hurry up, particularly Nik and Blare, lumbering down the block. I slow to gather a few extra seconds alone on the sidewalk, to think,think—
I can’t envision any scenario where NileCorp will let Miz and Blare free.
Miz pulls the van’s door open. “Courtesy of the Medan government’s discontinued junkyard collection,” she announces. “Get in.”
36LIA
A STRANGE LOOP…
ON A STRANGELOOM…
WELCOME BACK.
The Pod opens its lid, releasing its internal atmosphere with a hiss.
I’m confused for a moment. I’ve never emerged from the Pod during the dead of night before. Only a freckle of moonlight creeps through the blinds, cast onto the carpet at the foot of my neatly made bed. I haul myself upright with a grunt, easing my head out of the Claw to avoid snagging my hair in the nodes.
“Dad?” I call, though I know he won’t be here.
The house is silent. I get out of the Pod, finding my balance. My socks are smooth on the carpet threads. The faint scent of bleach hits my nose as soon as I straighten up. Slowly, I make my way through my room, then open the door into the cold hallway.
There’s no responding noise, no shift of the floorboards to signal that the house has acknowledged my return. A digital panel blinks on the walloutside my room, one half showing the external temperature and another with a monthly display calendar. I don’t know what guides my hand to tap the next arrow, browsing through the weeks. I tap the arrow, again, and again, and find one date circled, marking my next reset day, a week before graduation.
I want you to stay where I can see you, where you can’t be hurt—
I push Kieren out of my mind firmly. If I digest what he said back there, I’ll end up spiraling in circles for hours. I need answers to my questions. Regardless of what he did, what information he sent to NileCorp, it’s all done, and every puzzle piece has been shaken out of the box.
I need to put it all together. I logged out for the truth.
