Jonathan Bond - The Terminus experiment

“Ah, it’s you,” the man said, showing discolored teeth. “It’s been a while.”

Wake hadn’t called to engage in idle chitchat. “I need to talk.”

The man nodded, staring back from the telecom display. He had a look of shock on his face that he tried to hide, but not before Wake saw it.

“Good god, man, you look like bloody hell.” The clipped British accent turned dry and disinterested, so Wake assumed there were others present.

“Is it safe to talk?”

The man nodded. “Of course. If it wasn’t, you wouldn’t have gotten through. What’s on your mind?”

“I’ve finally taken care of D’imato, but now I’ve got other problems and they’re interfering with my work.”

The man’s expression turned thoughtful. “Of course, we can’t have that. What’s the problem, and what is it you need?”

Wake smiled wearily. “Things are getting… warm here. An old friend of yours has come to call-Martin de Vries. We’ve already had one attack on the compound due to your man D’imato’s incompetence and thick-headedness. From what I know of the people who hit us, I’m sure they’ll be back again to finish the job. They’ve got access to plenty of firepower, and next time they’ll come with enough to level this whole place and destroy all of my work.”

The look of distaste on the man’s face was evident. “De Vries? By the gods, when will that fool learn to leave well enough alone? Still, when you say you’ve taken care of my man”-the distaste turned to disgust-“I assume you mean that it became necessary to make your solution pemianent?”

Wake shook his head. “I wanted to consult with you first, but he has been gently removed from his position, and no one will really notice the change for another month or so.”

The man smiled. “Excellent. That will give us time to plan for his replacement. So what is it that we can do for you?”

“This locale has become difficult. I need immediate relocation. Code Azure.”

The man turned away from the telecom, and seemed to be conferring with others who Wake couldn’t see. When he turned back, he had a satisfied look on his face. “I don’t think that will be a problem. It might cost a bit, but we all agree that the expenditure is worth the service you’re providing. Besides, it wouldn’t do for de Vries to get his hands on your current research data. We’ve put too much effort into making him look as crazy as he is. This would be a bad time for him to actually acquire proof of his accusations.”

Wake nodded. He’d had no doubt that the men of Ordo Maximus would see it that way. After all, they’d already invested too much nuyen to back out now, especially when they believed they were so close.

He kept the smile from his face as he imagined those British fops, with their ridiculous vampire cabal, sitting in their posh offices looking at each other with gaping mouths once they learned that they’d funded the one thing that could make their plan obsolete.

The man continued. “I’ll make all the arrangements from this end, and we’ll have a new lab set up for you through your Zulu BioGen front.”

Wake smiled. “Thank you. I’m sorry things haven’t gone more smoothly here, but hopefully there won’t he any more little complications to detract from the work.”

The man shook his head. “Don’t be sorry. I apologize to you for saddling you with D’imato. He should have been the perfect subject, but apparently he is too unpredictable to be of any use. If you’ve found a way to remove him from the picture, we are doubly in your debt.”

Wake nodded, and hit the Disconnect without further chatter.

He sat back, grateful to realize that some of the tension in his shoulders had eased. That was the right decision, he thought. I probably should have done this a couple of months ago, but this location seemed ideal. He selected another icon from the display and touched it.

“Attention, initiate Code Azure. This is not a drill. I want all equipment not in use at this time marked red, then disconnected and moved to the loading docks for transport to the helipad. All equipment marked yellow is to be packed securely and prepared for transport on the trucks. All green equipment is to be taken to disposal. I repeat, initiate Code Azure.”

Sweat dripped off Rachel’s forehead as she spun to block one of Sinuou’s kicks. It had been two days since the run on the compound. and she’d healed up fast enough that she was back to training again. The salty liquid drenched her shoulders, forming a vee-shaped stain on her exercise bra and the elastic band of her shorts.

She brought her arm down a second too late, and Sinunu’s kick landed hard against Rachel’s hip.

Rachel bit back against the pain that flared. “Sorry, Rach,” Sinunu said.

Rachel clenched her teeth. She felt more anger than pain. “I’m too slow.”

Sinunu smiled. “Let’s call it a day,” she said. “You’re beating yourself up more than I ever could. And it’s because you’re tired, girl. You’ve improved more in two days than runners who’ve trolled the shadows for six or eight months. I’m impressed.”

Rachel picked up a towel from the floor of the workout room. Fratellanza, Inc. had several of them in this facility in the Renton District.

“Anyone hungry?”

Rachel looked up to see Julius enter the room, followed by several soldiers carrying trays of hot food.

“Starved,” Sinunu said. “Rachel?”

“Yeah, me too.”

Julius had his men set up the food in the corner, then he brought a plate over to Rachel, who was sitting on the floor while she stretched.

“I thought you could use something. It’s sundown and you’ve barely eaten since this morning.” Julius set down the steaming tray of meat, hot rolls, and real coffee.

“You keeping track of my diet?”

Julius just smiled.

The smell of the hot food suddenly hit Rachel’s nose, and her stomach grumbled. “If the sun is down, Martin should be back,” she said. Then she picked up a hot roll and a sausage link and wolfed them down.

Rachel realized that her mindset had shifted. The change in her was so dramatic that sometimes she didn’t even recognize herself. She’d been hard before, streetwise and scared in her spike heels and see-through skirts. Now, dressed in exercise cottons, her long hair freshly shorn close to her skull to better accommodate the corn gear, her hardness had changed. In the last few days, she’d transformed from being a mans plaything into a warrior. She liked the change, but it scared her as well.

Now, she felt an inner confidence that seemed to chase away that streetwise fear lurking under her brash exterior.

Julius was studying her face, scrutinizing the fresh bruises under her right cheek. “I see Sin is still getting the best of you.” He glanced over at Sinunu. sitting by herself and shoveling food into her mouth. “How’s she holding up?”

Rachel felt a wave of pity swelling inside. “I’m not sure. When we’re working, she seems okay, but I think part of her has gone dead.”

Julius continued to stare at the albino woman. “Truxa.”

Rachel nodded. “Of course.”