Rook Winters - Weight of Ashes

Court hesitated for a few seconds. Was he actually going to do this? Was he going to trust the man who had murdered his adopted family? Did he have a choice?

“Yes, there is another data vault. It contains information about Qyntarak technology. I don’t know the specifics, it was all over my head.”

“And where is that data vault now?”

“Still in Toronto. They hid it before you kidnapped us.”

“Kidnapped you? We took you into custody.”

“Taking someone into custody when they haven’t done anything wrong? How’s that different from kidnapping?”

“If you think you haven’t done anything wrong, you’re more naive than I thought you were, and that is saying something.”

“I told you what you wanted to know. Now let us go.”

“You’re not done yet, kid. You’re coming with me to Toronto to show me where you hid that data vault.”

A guard in the detention facility insisted that Court wear a tracking bracelet when he left with Kane. Once they were outside, Kane produced a T-shaped device from one of his pockets and waved it over the bracelet, which clicked and fell from Court’s wrist.

“I don’t like people tracking my movements. Remind me to reactivate this thing when we get back.”

They boarded a small flyer and Court fought back nausea as it rose and accelerated.

Traveling in the grav flyer made him feel vulnerable. The sound of it dragged his worst memories to the front of his mind no matter how hard he tried to push them away. It was permanently connected to the day he lost his parents and the day he lost his village. He was finding it hard to breathe.

The two of them rode alone in the flyer. Court knew very little about the way Kane and his team operated but this felt off to him.

“You like music, kid? It’s going to be twenty-five or thirty minutes to get to Toronto from here. We can listen to something.”

Court didn’t have much experience with music. What he knew were the little songs they sometimes sang at the campfire or when working around the village. He hoped Kane didn’t expect him to sing.

“It makes no difference to me.”

“I find it helps me relax.”

Kane tapped a button on his wrist computer and vaguely musical noises filled the air. Court couldn’t tell where it was coming from. Kane waved his hands around in time to the music, which helped Court decide that he didn’t care for it.

By the time they reached the university building, Kane did seem relaxed, like he and Court were friends out on an excursion. That fleeting thought triggered a memory of Walker. He felt the initial tingling threat of tears and blinked repeatedly to keep them away.

“Here we are.”

As they ascended the steps to the building, Court asked, “Why did you bring me?”

“Don’t ask stupid questions, kid. I need you to get the data vault.”

“I mean why me instead of someone else?”

Kane scratched at his jaw again. Court felt like he was taking too long to answer.

“The old lady is a pain in the ass. And L37 needs to stay put. Besides, I kind of like you, kid.”

Unlike Court’s first visit, the university doors were locked. That made sense, given that Ursula was unlikely to be here. The door’s lock yielded after a swipe from Kane’s wrist computer. Once inside, they found Maud at her desk, the same place where she’d extorted qynars from Elle.

“Kane. What are you doing back here?” She stammered a little as she stood from her chair.

“Don’t get up on my account. I’d hate to be responsible for you having to do any more work than absolutely necessary.”

“Can I help you with something?”

“Have you been down in the basement since we took the prisoners out yesterday?”

“No, the Others told me not to touch anything in case they had to come back.”

“Good, that’s good. I’m taking the kid down with me to locate something we missed.”

As they went down, Court realized his memories from the day before were a bit fuzzy. He remembered Ursula making a copy of the data vault. Now that he was here, he wasn’t confident about where they’d hidden it. The copy, the one with Reclamation encryption, where did she say that would be safe? He couldn’t recall. The other one, it was, where?

Think, Court. Come on.

The smell of the basement prompted a partial memory. He did remember.

“Over there, there’s a hidden storage room.”

Court opened the wall panel the way he’d seen Ursula do it.

“Where’s the data vault?”

“There was a box, a green box, and a fake brick in the wall behind it.”

“That fake brick?”

Kane pointed to a gap in the wall. On a shelf below it, a hollowed out brick lay without a data vault inside.

“This means there are more people involved. Who else is there?”

“Nobody. I mean, nobody I know about.” Court hoped like hell that his lie was convincing.

Kane said a word that Court didn’t know—it sounded like axe can—and threw the brick at the wall. He turned his back on Court and swiped at his wrist computer.

That data vault was my only advantage, if it’s not here, he’ll send me back, and I can’t get Elle out.

Court watched the gun bobbing on Kane’s belt as he moved. Court panicked and reached for it. The clasp resisted initially and then the gun came free in Court’s hand. Kane spun, his eyes narrow, and bared his teeth like a wild animal. Court aimed at Kane and pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened.

Kane brushed the gun aside with one hand and hit Court in the stomach with the other. The punch doubled him over and he stumbled back with a grunt. Before Court realized it was happening, Kane pried the gun from his hand.

“That was stupid, kid.”

Kane took the Scorpion from his thigh and jammed it into Court. Pain consumed his entire body. Burning from inside came in waves. For a fraction of a second, in a surreal moment of lucidity, he realized that he was bawling and tears were pouring from his eyes, but he didn’t care. He just wanted it to stop.

The pain overwhelmed him again.

He tried to say something, to beg for it to stop, but the words sounded like nonsense.

Then the pain seared through him with even more force, if that was possible, until the mercy of numb blackness replaced it.

Court wasn’t fully conscious but damp coldness compelled him to move. He rolled to his side and it ached. All of him hurt.

Where am I?

He opened his eyes but there was nothing to see in the dark, not just dark but blackness. He couldn’t see anything. Were his eyes even working?

“Hello?”

There was no answer, no sounds at all. He pushed himself up to his feet, the spot from the Scorpion attack burning as he did.

He moved across the floor slowly until his fingers brushed something. Probing with his hands, it felt like a shelf. Kane must have left him in the university basement. That meant he could find the door and get out. He groped his way along the shelves and walls until he found the gap under the false wall panel.

The mechanism released but the door wouldn’t open. He pushed harder with no success. It was blocked from the outside.

He felt his way to the other false wall and leaned into it with his shoulder. That door didn’t budge either.

“Nacking piss bucket.”

In his panic, he’d forgotten to pull the latch. He dropped to his knees again and found the metal lever at the base of the wall. He pulled up and heard a satisfying click. The door swung open.

Enough light came from the far end of the tunnel for him to make his way. He kept one hand against the wall as he went. His pants were wet and once he was aware of that, the smell of urine was unmistakable. He didn’t know how long he’d been unconscious but the Scorpion had left him exhausted and thirsty.