S Huang - Zero Sum Game

“I take it you’ve heard of Rio, too, then.”

“Heard of—!” He cut himself off. I could practically hear him mentally rearranging his impression of me in light of the whole works-with-a-mass-murdering-sadist connection. I closed my eyes, heartily tired of this. “That name,” whispered Checker. “Some of the less-than-reputable people I’ve known, before I met Arthur—he terrifies them, beyond reason. It’s like he’s the boogie man. People invoke his name like he’s a demon or something. Cas Russell, I like you so far, but…”

“I trust him,” I said, for what felt like the thousandth time.

“To do what?”

That was a good question. What did trust mean, exactly? “To have my back,” I said.

“I have to think about this.”

“He got Arthur and me out of there.”

“He did?”

“Yes. I told you, I trust him.” I tried for impatient, but the words just came out drained.

“He’s after Pithica?”

“Yes.”

“I have to think about this,” said Checker again. “I’ll—I’ll call you back.”

He hung up the phone and I leaned my head against the wall. The pounding of the rain reverberated through it, a steady thrum. A moment ago I’d been so hopeful. So sure we had a chance, that we could do this, but for the first time I could remember, I needed help to make it happen, and nobody wanted to jump with me. Why did everything involving people have to be so difficult?

Rio came over. “Other plans notwithstanding, we should change location,” he said. “Tresting told me you were made.”

“I lost them,” I said.

“Regardless, now that you are well enough to travel, you should leave Los Angeles. Other plans can wait. Pithica will be able to track you here eventually.”

I’d been thinking the same thing back when we’d lost our tail after Checker’s place, but now my feelings had snapped into orneriness. “Here’s a thought,” I said. “Let them. We’ll set a trap of our own, figure out a way to fight back.”

“Cas,” said Rio.

Arthur joined him. “Leaving LA ain’t a bad plan, Russell. This is too big. Even if the info you think you found is legit—”

I growled at him.

Arthur held up his hands placatingly. “Might be a better idea for us to run anyway. From what you say, we ain’t causing a fuss, maybe they let us be.”

Rio turned away from him slightly. “Your assistance during this has been appreciated; however, you will not be going with her. You are still compromised.”

“Says the man who shot her!”

“You are free to go your own way,” said Rio.

“I can? Why, thank you so much for the permission!”

“Cas,” said Rio, “We must move you to a more secure location immediately. Preferably outside the country.”

“No,” I said.

“Cas—”

“Yeah, you just go and tell everyone what to do—” put in Arthur.

“Cas, I cannot impress upon you the danger of—”

“I ain’t trusting you to keep her safe!”

“Hey!” The shout sent spikes of pain shooting through my still-damaged lungs, but I didn’t care. This was like trying to corral wet, angry cats. Rio thought Arthur useless, Arthur thought Rio an abomination, Checker didn’t trust anyone anymore, and Rio didn’t trust anyone ever, apparently me included. For crying out loud, I was the only one who wanted to be a team player, which was so laughable it pissed me right the hell off. Not to mention the ridiculous, chauvinistic chivalry that apparently came mandatory with a Y-chromosome—I was capable of wiping the floor with both Rio and Arthur at once, and they thought they had a right to dictate what I should do? No wonder I preferred to work alone.

“I’m done with this,” I snapped, and hit the button on the phone to redial Checker, putting him on speaker again. “Okay, you three, listen up,” I said the moment he picked up. “Pithica’s come after all of us. They’ve tried to kill us, they’ve tried to brainwash us, and they’ve messed up our world in ways we probably know nothing about. Two of you have been chasing them for months; Rio, you’ve been going after them forever. I tell you I think we can finally make a difference and bring them down and you choose to give up now?”

“I would like to discuss your discovery,” said Rio, “but first we must assure you are safely—”

“What? Out of the way? That’s not your decision to make!” This was only the second time in memory I’d lost my temper toward Rio, and the first time had been caused by Dawna’s influence. “I get that you’re trying to look out for me or some other ridiculous notion, but that’s not your call. I’m angry—I’m furious —and guess what? I’m going to fight back. If the three of you aren’t in, then, God help me, I will figure out a way to go after them myself, and I will fucking win. And you—” I gesticulated at them wildly. “—can go and do whatever you want with your meaningless little lives, run if you want to, I don’t care, but I am thoroughly sick of trying to work together on this. So if you aren’t in, I’m done. I hope you all have nice lives.”

The rain pounded against the walls, almost drowning out the city noise outside. No one spoke.

“Was that supposed to be a motivational speech?” said Checker finally from the phone.

“No,” I said, quite cross.

“Good, because I don’t feel motivated. I vote against you for team morale officer.”

Arthur’s lip twitched. “That mean we a team?”

“Well, I’ve got a self-destructive streak a parsec wide that needs feeding,” said Checker. “And war, strange bedfellows…uh, something. I suppose I’m in; I mean, was I ever going to say no to this? But, Arthur?”

“Yeah?” said Arthur.

“I still don’t think you should know where we do this thing. At the risk of setting Cas off again—it’s just good sense.”

Arthur hunched his shoulders slightly. “That’s okay.”

“Rio?” I said.

Rio spread his hands. “If you are determined on this course of action, I will assist you.” I couldn’t read his expression. “However, I must still insist we at least leave the city.”

“As long as it won’t delay us too much,” I conceded.

“Leaving the country would still be the best—”

“And would take time,” I argued. “Unless you think flying commercial on a fake passport is secure enough. No, I didn’t think so either. Look, every day we wait on this is another day they can use to rework their financial structure.”

“Is there nothing I can say to dissuade you?” said Rio.

“Nope,” I answered. “You can tell me if it sounds like I’m playing into her hands, or walking into a trap, or doing something that might be Dawna Polk’s lovely programming, but you’re not keeping me out of this. Okay?”

“Of course I shall alert you if you appear compromised.”

“And you trust him to—” started Arthur.

“Rio,” I said, “do I sound like myself, or do I sound like I’m just doing what Dawna wants?”

“You sound distinctly uninfluenced,” said Rio dryly. “Regrettably.”

“I can hit the road within an hour,” said Checker.

“Okay. We’ll get the equipment in the meantime,” I said. “I’ll text you where to meet us.”

“Just make sure it’s not a walk-up,” said Checker. “See you soon.”

“Talk later,” offered Arthur.

There was a brief pause and then a click as Checker hung up.

I bared my teeth at Arthur and Rio in something that might have been a smile. “Okay. Who feels like electronics shopping?”

Rio, with a disapproving turn to his mouth that said he thought a hundred and twenty miles was not nearly far enough to run, volunteered a safe house out near Twentynine Palms. He gave me the address after Arthur was safely out of the apartment. “Take the path from the road to the back door,” he told me. “Do not go in the front.”