Drew Karpyshyn - Retribution

Spinning on his heel, he set off once more toward the warehouse district, eagerly anticipating the meeting he had been defiantly refusing to go to only minutes before.

Kai Leng sat on the couch of the small room he had rented two nights before, staring intently at the image on his monitor as he absentmindedly spooned his dinner into his mouth. The monitor was linked to a surveillance camera pointed at the back wall of Afterlife.

His accommodations were less than a block away from the club; a run-down, ramshackle building converted into a pay-by-the-hour motel by an enterprising volus. It was primarily used by patrons of the club looking for a quick hookup who couldn’t afford to rent one of Afterlife’s private suites.

The room was poorly lit, and it reeked of what Kai Leng assumed was a mixture of alien sweat and vomit. But it was close enough to the club that he could maintain his vigil yet still have time to react if he saw anything.

The image on the monitor hadn’t changed. He knew that what appeared to be a solid wall was, in fact, a well-disguised secret door leading to the private rooms in the back of the club. The wide-angle lens on the surveillance camera showed that the narrow alley was completely deserted; unlike the crowded doors out front, this hidden entrance was apparently known only to those who served in Aria’s inner circle.

The Illusive Man had instructed him to keep an eye on Aria’s people to verify they actually delivered on their promise to eliminate Grayson. With no other resources, it was impossible for Kai Leng to keep track of everyone in the organization. So he had initially decided to focus on Sanak, Aria’s batarian lieutenant.

A less experienced agent might have tried to tail Aria herself. But the risk of being noticed was too great, and Kai Leng knew she wasn’t going to put herself at risk by meeting Grayson face-to-face.

Besides, she almost never left the club.

Sanak seemed the next logical choice, given what the Illusive Man had ascertained about his role in Aria’s organization through a few discreet inquiries. The batarian was her attack dog, a blunt instrument.

Whenever a situation called for violence or brute force, he would be her first choice.

Kai Leng’s instincts had served him well. Three days ago Sanak had left the club through the VIP entrance out front. Kai Leng had tailed him as he gathered a squad of heavily armed mercenaries and boarded a ship. When the ship returned the next day, Sanak and the mercenaries weren’t alone: Kahlee

Sanders and Admiral David Anderson, one of the Alliance’s most decorated soldiers, were with them.

It was immediately obvious the humans were prisoners and not guests. He could see the handcuffs on their unconscious bodies as they were carried by Aria’s massive krogan bodyguard, one tossed over each shoulder.

Kai Leng had followed at a distance as Sanak’s crew had taken the hostages back to Afterlife. They stuck to the unused back alleys to avoid drawing unnecessary attention. Upon reaching the club they had used the secret back entrance instead of going in the front, inadvertently revealing its existence to the inconspicuous shadow that had been following them the entire time.

So far everything was going according to the Illusive Man’s plan — they had captured Sanders, and now they were using her as bait to lure Grayson in. Kai Leng estimated he had at least a day before the meeting would take place; wherever Grayson was, it would take time to contact him and set up the location. That gave him time to purchase the surveillance equipment, set up the camera on the back entrance, rent the repulsive room just down the street, and stock up on food and water in preparation for his vigil.

The wireless monitor was portable; when Kai Leng needed to use the bathroom, he brought it with him so he wouldn’t miss anything. It was also set up to beep if the camera detected motion, allowing Kai

Leng to grab a few sporadic hours of sleep as he waited. He never slept well or for very long, however.

He didn’t fully trust the merchant who’d sold him the equipment, and in the back of his mind he was worried it might simply short out while he was dozing.

He wasn’t about to let that happen. Not when things seemed to be drawing to their conclusion.

Aria’s people had brought Kahlee in through the back entrance; he had no doubt they would bring her out the same way when the meeting with Grayson drew near. All he had to do now was watch and wait.

Anderson knew the time was drawing near.

“Are you ready for this?” he asked Kahlee.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

“We’ll be fine,” he assured her. “Just stick to the plan.”

They’d talked it over after Aria left them alone, and had agreed they had to stick together if they wanted to get out of this alive. Besides, there was no way in hell he was going to let them take Kahlee away to meet Grayson alone.

He took a deep breath to center himself, forcing his pounding heart to throttle itself back through sheer force of will.

A few minutes later the door whisked open and Sanak came marching in. Anderson hadn’t been expecting him to be the one sent to retrieve Kahlee, but it didn’t change anything. In fact, it might actually work in their favor.

A pair of krogan stepped into the room right behind him, weapons drawn in case the prisoners tried anything.

“Time to go,” Sanak snapped. “Move.”

Kahlee crossed her arms defiantly, careful not to bend her splinted fingers. Anderson did the same.

“We go together or I don’t go,” she said.

Sanak whipped out his pistol and stepped forward, jamming the barrel into Kahlee’s forehead.

“He stays here. You come with me now, or you die.”

“You won’t kill me,” she said, her voice calm and certain. “You need me for this meeting.”

The batarian tilted his head to the right, an instinctive display of his contempt and frustration. Then he turned and pointed his gun at Anderson.

“We don’t need him for the meeting,” he warned her. “Come with me or I splatter his brains all over the floor.”

“No you won’t,” Anderson declared. “Grayson’s going to be suspicious. He’s going to scout the location out; he won’t reveal himself until he sees Kahlee. And if he senses something’s wrong, he’ll bolt.

“You need my cooperation to pull this off,” Kahlee insisted. “Harm Anderson in any way, and you won’t get it.”

Anderson could see Sanak’s mind churning. Aria would no doubt have emphasized the importance of getting Kahlee to the meeting; the batarian was trying to figure out a way to follow his orders without letting the prisoners dictate any terms.

“You have two options,” Kahlee explained slowly. “One, David comes with me and we all go to meet Grayson. Two, you try to stop him from coming and the meeting doesn’t happen.”

“Then you get to explain to Aria how you blew this mission,” Anderson added.

He suspected the lieutenant was good at following orders. He hoped he wasn’t as good at improvising. Their gamble hinged on it.

Sanak let his pistol drop. He glared at them, then snapped it back into the clip on his thigh.

“If either of you try anything on the way, I’ll kill you both,” he warned.

Kai Leng’s monitor beeped its warning to indicate the camera had detected movement, but the alert wasn’t necessary. He was already watching the screen intently as Sanders, Anderson, Sanak, and a pair of krogan guards emerged from Afterlife.

Grabbing his pistol and knife, he rushed out the door of the tiny rented room. He didn’t bother to pack up the surveillance equipment. He didn’t care if the next guest stumbled across it; he would have no further use for it after this meeting.