He adjusted his coat—a scaley like Hayden’s, only in a dark green and without a collar. He felt good. Better than he had in a long time. With the fragments of the bullets removed and the care of a doctor in addition to Ishek, he had recovered quickly and better than he would have guessed.

  And he was ready for whatever came next.

  “Then let’s go,” Haeri said. He didn’t ask the rest of them if they were ready. They were his subordinates. He expected them to be ready when he was, and that was fine with Caleb.

  They filed out of the room with Tora in the lead and Sheriff Duke right behind her, Haeri in the middle and Caleb and Stacker bringing up the rear. Caleb reached up and adjusted the comm in his ear, making sure it was positioned deep enough in the canal it wouldn’t be noticed. They were going to try to get out without too much fuss, heading down to the loop station and riding public transit across to Dome Twelve and the civilian spaceport. Caleb had initially thought it strange that the planet would have civilian starships, but it seemed space tourism was a viable and profitable industry these days.

  If Stacker was right, their plan was already in danger of failing.

  They made it to the stairwell at the end of the block when a loudspeaker embedded somewhere in the walls of the building started to crackle, followed by a calm, stern male voice.

  “Attention citizens of C-District. A dangerous leak has been detected in blocks eight-six through twelve-nine. I repeat. A dangerous leak has been detected in blocks eight-six through twelve-nine. Repair crews are being dispatched from Centurion Prime. Peace Officers are on their way. If you are in the range of this message, you are to evacuate outside of the affected blocks immediately. Again, evacuate outside of the affected blocks immediately.”

  “Here they come,” Stacker said.

  “Won’t that make it easier for us to get out with the evacuation?” Caleb asked.

  “Not exactly,” Tora replied. “The PO will funnel the evacuees through choke points. If they get them set up before we get out, we won’t be able to slip past them without drawing attention.”

  “So how do we get past them?”

  “Already taken care of,” Haeri said. “Where do you think everyone else went?”

  Caleb looked past the group, only now noticing the block was much emptier than before. The other members of the Organization had already gone out into the streets, ready for the announcement and the so-called repair crew to come.

  “We should be clear to the loop,” Tora said. “It’ll get dicey if they decide to stop service to the dome, but to do that twice within a couple of hours will look suspicious and start drawing a lot of attention from the media and the curious.”

  “The last thing the enemy wants is to draw more attention to what they’re doing,” Haeri added. “We’re dangerous, but I’m not convinced they believe we’re that dangerous.”

  Caleb remembered his conversation with Vyte in the Q-net. “I wouldn’t stake my future on that belief, General. Vyte is afraid of Sheriff Duke. He knows he’s here and he might take a greater risk to stop him.”

  “Why me?” Hayden asked. “I’m not anything special.”

  “That’s exactly why you,” Caleb replied. “You represent the standard human. Not a trained Marine or Centurion, not a clone, just a typical man with a fighting spirit. You’re practically a legend on Earth, like Robin Hood or King Arthur. Once you go down, it’ll make the Earthers that much easier to get under control and keep that way.”

  “Then I better not go down,” Hayden said.

  “You and Colonel Card are the only two people here who aren’t expendable,” Haeri said. “Everyone in the Organization will protect you both with our lives.”

  “I don’t want that,” Hayden replied.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Tora said. “That’s the way it has to be.”

  They reached the front door to the block, pausing there.

  “The good news is that you aren’t all that recognizable. Sheriff, keep your head down and in the shadow of your hat. Tora will lead you out. Thirty seconds and then Caleb and Nova will go. I’ll bring up the rear with Jason. Caleb, you have your Skin?”

  Caleb held up the briefcase with the Skin inside. Haeri had talked him out of wearing it, explaining that if the enemy had an Intellect in the city it could use the energy signature to track them down. It was a risk not worth taking. At least not yet.

  “Sheriff, you’re up,” Haeri said.

  Tora moved up beside Hayden, reaching out and taking his hand in hers. “Act like we’re together.”

  Hayden glanced over at her with a pained expression but nodded. “Pozz.”

  Then they went out of the block together, holding hands and sticking close as they turned left and started down the strand in the direction of the loop.

  Sergeant Gray moved into position next to Caleb. “Lovers or business partners, Colonel?” she asked.

  “Considering the briefcase, let’s go business partners,” he replied.

  “Yes, sir.”

  Caleb counted off the seconds in his head. He started for the door. They walked out onto the street. Caleb immediately made out the flashing lights of Peace Officer vehicles in the distance and the groups of people pouring out of their blocks in response to the evacuation order. He scanned the strand ahead for Hayden and Tora, but they had vanished into the crowds.

  “Stay cool,” Sergeant Gray said beside him.

  It took him a second to realize why she had said it. A group of Peace Officers was coming out of one of the splits, moving into position to start blocking off parts of the street to siphon the evacuees through the choke points. A moment later, a group of civilians approached them, engaging them in conversation and distracting them. One of the group members looked back at Caleb, making soft eye contact.

  “Come on,” Gray said.

  They stayed on the strand, making it two more blocks. Caleb saw the scene with the Peace Officers repeated twice more on the way, the Organization expertly delaying the officer’s orders. It was easy to disrupt something as predictable as standard procedure.

  “Nothing to worry about,” Gray said.

  Caleb was about to agree when he caught sight of a pair of Judici coming toward them through the crowd. “Are you sure?”

  Gray saw them too. “Shit.”

  40

  Hayden

  “We need to go back,” Hayden said.

  “We don’t look back, we don’t go back,” Tora replied.

  Hayden tried to pull his hand from hers, but she gripped it tight. He didn’t have a problem with holding her hand, but the idea of treating her like she was special wasn’t sitting well. Only one woman would ever be special to him, and she was gone.

  That wasn’t why he wanted to go back. “Understood. But Caleb’s in trouble, and while Haeri might think I’m indispensable, he’s more valuable than me.”

  “What makes you say he’s in trouble? I didn’t notice anything.”

  “Then you weren’t paying close enough attention. Did you see how the people were avoiding the corner back there? Flowing around it like there was something there they didn’t want to get too close to. They weren’t reacting like that to the Peace Officers, but—”

  “Judici,” Tora said. “Damn. How long have you been on Proxima, Sherriff?”

  “A few hours. But I’ve spent my entire adult life as a Sheriff. It’s my job to notice things.”

  “That doesn’t mean they’ll recognize Caleb. They don’t know what he looks like. He had the Skin on before.”

  “They might know what Gray looks like, though. Haeri should have put you with Card and Gray with me.”

  “The Judici weren’t supposed to move in until the evacuation was closer to completion.” Tora didn’t let go of his hand, but she did turn them around. “It’s still no guarantee they’ll recognize her with shorter hair and civilian clothes.”

  “We should stay close, just in case. Don’t you think?”

  “Agreed. We’ll cross back to where we can see them. We’ll look suspicious just standing around.”

  “We’ll figure something out, I’m sure.”

  Hayden pushed his way through the people trying to get out of the area. A few of them tried to be helpful, pointing out they were going the wrong way. Tora thanked them and told them she forgot her meds, an excuse she would likely give the Peace Officers if they tried to stop them.

  They doubled back an extra block. Hayden continued watching the crowd, noticing that the flow of people had changed, adjusting dynamically. “They’re moving,” he said.

  “Do you think they identified Gray that easily?”

  “I don’t know. We can’t chance it.”

  They increased their speed. Tora finally let go of his hand, walking briskly beside him.

  The crowd started shifting around something directly ahead, in line with where the Judici had been. The evacuation was thinning out a little bit, and Hayden could see through to the black suits of the Judici, their backs to he and Tora.

  “We need to scan your identification,” one of the Judici said.

  “Why?” Gray asked. “We haven’t done anything wrong. We aren’t even military. What could the Judicus Department want with us?”

  “Statute 64 of the Proxima Civil Code compels your compliance. Give me your wrist.”

  Hayden saw Gray glance at Caleb, her face tensing slightly as if she was about to spring into action. Then she caught sight of him approaching.

  “Fine,” she said. She lifted her hand, turning her wrist over. Then she closed her fingers until only the middle digit remained. “Go to hell.”

  The Judicus grabbed Gray’s hand, moving faster than was humanly possible. She cried out in pain. “You’re an insolent grub, aren’t you?” He held Gray’s wrist, reaching for a small, portable ID scanner.

  “And you’re dead,” Hayden said, jabbing the microspear into the Judicus’ back at the same time Tora grabbed the other one from behind. Caleb had a microspear too, and he quickly stabbed it into the chest of the other Judicus. Both of the khoron writhed, becoming dead weight as they lowered the dead to the ground.

  “Thanks for the save, Sheriff,” Caleb said.

  “Aeron, our cover’s blown,” Tora said. “No point screwing around.”

  “Roger,” Haeri replied. “Meet us at the loop station. Get there any way you can.” The comm clicked as Haeri changed to the general channel. “All hands, this is Haeri. Execute Code Three.”

  “Code Three?” Hayden asked.

  Tora smiled. “Just act casual.”

  All four of them started walking back in the direction of the loop. The civilians who had witnessed the murders of the two Judici moved away from them, suddenly fearful. Hayden could see Caleb breathing harder, feeding the Relyeh on his arm by soaking up the pheromones.

  Heavy thunks began to sound behind them, followed by a series of clinks. A moment later, smoke started billowing out of canisters fired from somewhere inside the block.

  The sudden smoke scared the civilians, and they began to run, thinking it was related to the reported leak. Tora urged Hayden and the others to stay at the same pace, letting the civilians rush around them, desperate to escape.

  Hayden heard grunting nearby, and looked to the right, switching his glasses to infrared to see through the rising smoke. The Organization members who had been chatting with the Peace Officers were subduing them now, shooting them with stunners at close range.

  Additional cracks began to sound from the block behind them. Hayden looked back, able to see the blue flashes of more stun rounds fired from the windows above and hitting targets in the distance—helping to clear a path.

  “We need to make the loop station before they can shut it down,” Haeri said, coming up behind Hayden and Tora, passing them at a run. Hayden sped up to join him, the group sprinting down the strand in the direction of the loop while the chaos flowed around them.

  They caught up with the fleeing civilians, joining the rush. Fresh sirens blared as Centurion APCs appeared on the streets, responding to the situation. Marines poured out of the transports, setting up a perimeter to try and spot their targets among the crowd.

  They crossed two more blocks, nearing the end of the evacuation zone. The smoke was thinning out further from the Organization’s base, becoming light enough for Hayden to see all the way to the end of the strand.

  To where a Centurion APC had stopped.

  “General,” he said, getting Haeri’s attention.

  “We can’t waste time going around,” Haeri replied. “They give us trouble, we give them trouble back.”

  “Pozz,” Hayden said. He reached for his revolver, keeping his hand tucked under the coat as he ran. He didn’t want to shoot them. They were just following orders and trying to protect the city. They likely had no clue the Relyeh had put them in this position.

  Four Centurions circled to the front of the APC, one of them moving forward. “Go around!” he shouted, waving his arms to direct them down the strand to their right. “Go around!”

  “Go straight,” Haeri said. “Non-fatal only.”

  “Go around, or we will use force!” the Centurion shouted.

  “Not if we use force first,” Tora replied.

  She drew her HRG, firing at the Centurions. Haeri, Stacker, Gray and Caleb followed suit. Their attack came with such ferocity it forced the Centurions to dive for cover. The squad leader dropped as one of Tora’s rounds caught him in the leg.

  Hayden let go of his revolver. The group reached the APC, breaking around it. The strand immediately behind it was clear, the path to the loop station open.

  They had made it.

  41

  Hayden

  Hayden descended into the loop station behind General Haeri and Tora, with Caleb, Stacker and Gray close behind. They had managed to get around and through the Centurion forces sent to block their escape, but that escape was still far from over.

  It was one thing to get through a few blocks of C-District to reach the loop, another to make it from the loop to the spaceport, and from the spaceport to a ship in space. For starters, the loop had its own security.

  And its own security guards.

  Not to mention, the gates into the loop were identification controlled. Everyone who went through had to scan their wrist for access, as well as pay for the ride. The Doctor had attached a temporary identification chip to Hayden’s augment, and implanted Caleb with one too, but the chips were illegal, their identities falsified so they would register as someone else. It wouldn’t be hard for the Judicus Department to put the identity, location and time together to conclude he wasn’t who the chip said he was and start tracking him through the tunnels of the transportation system.

  The only question was whether or not the enemy would reach that conclusion before or after they had reached the spaceport.

  Timing was everything, and everything was riding on them timing their escape just right. The Judici picking Gray out of the crowd so quickly was already a wrinkle they had hoped to avoid. What else might go wrong between point A and point B?

  Haeri slid his wrist over the scanner, the LED on the turnstile switching to green and unlocking the bar. He passed through, waiting on the other side. Tora followed him, and then Hayden went up to the scanner. He stared at it for a moment before swiping his augment over it.

  The LED remained red.

  He glowered at the scanner, sliding his wrist over it a second time. Still red. He looked up at Haeri.

  “A little more slowly,” Haeri said. “The metal may be interfering with it.”

  Hayden did as he requested, moving his arm more slowly. He blew out a sigh of relief when the light turned green, and he was able to go through.

  None of the others had the same issue, and they all made it into the station. Hayden couldn’t help but stare at the advertisements plastering the walls, the brightly colored and loud videos pushing everything from the latest clothing fads to designer clone babies.

  It wasn’t the first time he had been a fish out of water, and if there was one thing he was skilled at, it was adjusting to new environments. He looked away from the ads, tilting his head to see down the loop tunnel. It reminded him of the tunnel where he had first seen a xaxkluth, and he kept waiting for tentacles to emerge from the darkness.

  Fortunately, the only thing that came out of the tunnel was the cab, which stopped in front of them, doors sliding open. They weren’t the only people who had decided to escape through the loop, leaving them surrounded by other civilians as they boarded. The volume of people around them was a benefit, helping to hide their presence on the transportation from any Peace Officers or guards who might be on board.

  Hayden and the others made their way toward the back of the vehicle, finding three empty seats and enough room for the others to stand. Hayden grabbed onto one of the handles in the aisle with Jason Stacker and Tora while Gray, Haeri, and Caleb sat.

  None of them spoke as the doors to the loop cab slid closed. Hayden only felt a slight tug as they got underway, confused by the lack of force.

  “I thought you said the loop was fast?” he said to Tora.

  “Dampeners keep the g-forces minimized inside,” she replied.

  “If you have that kind of tech, why don’t you use it on your dropships?”

  “Expensive,” Haeri said. “And generally unnecessary for Centurions.”

  “Especially clones,” Stacker added. “We can take a beating.”

  “I know,” Hayden said. “I’ve already dealt with your twins a couple of times. It’s not a fight I want to get into again.”

  Stacker smiled. “You don’t have to worry about me. I just do what she says.” He pointed at Gray. “And by extension what he says.” He pointed at Haeri, his smile getting larger. “And I guess now what he says.” He motioned to Caleb. “But her first.”