Darren Wearmouth - Second Activation

“I’ll take care of you. You can’t take the neutralization tool, though. We’ve only got two, and Headquarters will check when they arrive. If I lose this, I lose everything.”

“They’re coming here?” I said.

“I managed to get in touch with a friendly colleague a few hours ago, using our satcom. They’ve already sent a force to deal with Monroe, and he told me to make sure I wasn’t with the local team. They’re docking in Boston. I know they own a warehouse there, filled with weapons and armored vehicles.”

“Do the local goons know about it?”

“They suspect. That’s what’s thrown them into a meltdown. They’re all shitting their pants.”

“HQ is coming from the UK? You’re kidding me?” Jack said.

Brett sighed. “Why would I joke? He said they sent a ship filled with choppers and troops.”

“How long does that take?” I asked and tried to roughly calculate it in my head, remembering the distance to be just over three thousand miles from the airplane computer. “Eight days?”

“I doubt they’re coming over on a pleasure cruiser,” Brett said. “Maybe four, and they left yesterday.”

“If they’re after the local team, and you’ve been attached, what happens to you?” Jack asked.

“GA needs the techs a lot more than Ron’s rednecks. I might be okay.”

He led us to a small enclave and picked up something that looked like a silver Ping-Pong paddle. Brett depressed a button on the side, and a single red light started blinking on the handle. The object made a quiet whirring noise. The light stopped blinking, changed to green, and the device let out a small beep.

Brett held it toward us. “Who’s first?”

Jack stepped forward. “Are you sure it’ll work? You’re not going to turn me into a killer are you?”

“A killer?… Oh, I see what you mean. No, just relax. You’ll feel a bit of pressure in your head for a second.”

He held the device against the back of Jack’s head, thumbed a button, and the object beeped three times. Jack winced and hunched his shoulders.

“That’s it, you’re done,” Brett said.

Jack ruffled the back of his hair. “Am I supposed to feel any different?”

“No. You’re lucky you avoided the first activation. HQ is putting it down to software problems. It hasn’t gone exactly as planned.”

“What do you mean?” I asked. “Do you know the plan?”

“They won’t tell the likes of me. Stay away from people—that’s all I’m saying. We’ve had some crazy reports in.”

“What kind of reports? At least give us an idea,” Jack said.

“It’s too random to give you anything concrete. Sorry if that sounds like I’m hiding something, but the truth is, I don’t know and wouldn’t want any innocent people dying because of my bad advice.”

The red light stopped blinking again and turned green. I switched positions with Jack, and Brett carried out the same procedure. For a second, I felt like I’d just woken up with a horrible hangover, but the pain quickly receded. I palmed my greasy hair flat against my head.

“Can you tell us, in simple terms, a bit more about how the technology works? If we decide we want to do something about it, where’s the best place to strike?” Jack said.

Brett placed his weird implement on the table, turned, and gave Jack a stern glare. “Listen to me. It’s not going to be pretty when HQ shows up. The best thing you can do is to get as far away from here as possible.”

“Come with us. Stop this thing from happening again,” Jack said.

I had been thinking the same thing. Although I didn’t want to suggest to Brett that his family was already dead or that his actions wouldn’t change their outcome. GA was ruthless, and from what I’d heard of them so far, he would be viewed as a flea in their big picture.

“You’re one of the only people around who knows a piece of how these things work,” I said. “Join us and help to locate and destroy the devices. We know of other survivors in New York.”

He slumped in his chair and looked away. “You can use a cattle prod. It’s unreliable; you’d probably have to do it several times at least. But you’ll give people a chance—”

“Brett, come on. Everyone’s life is at stake,” Jack said.

“Take the bull by the horns, mate,” I said. “You only need to take one look at that pit to know what you should do.”

“What are your plans—?”

The trapdoor opened and a head appeared in the gap. “There’s a Rover heading our way. It might be them.”

Brett’s eyes widened. He grabbed a pistol from the top of a workbench. “Stay here and keep quiet.”

He clambered up the stairs and slammed the trapdoor shut. I checked the rifle I took from Brett and shouldered it.

Jack crouched and pointed Kate’s rifle. “Caught like rats in a sewer. I don’t fucking believe it. He set us up.”

“I doubt it,” I said. “Keep your cool and we’ll be okay.”

The voice in the corner of the room said, “Don’t start a shootout. We’re not going down because he brought you here.”

Above us, I heard Brett’s muffled voice, probably handing out instructions to his team.

The trapdoor creaked ajar. Brett leaned down. “They’re heading across the field. Get under those sheets on the mattress.”

The door slammed shut.

“Fuck that,” Jack said. “I’m staying here. If they come down, they won’t be expecting an ambush.”

Through a small cracked window at the top of the room, I heard voices approaching. Boots squelched in the mud outside, getting closer. Somebody thumped on the front door.

More mumbling overhead. The echo of a bolt scratching along its rail. Then a latch being twisted, followed by creaking hinges as the door opened. I could hear every detail through the old floorboards. Perhaps amplified as my adrenalin levels rose.

Loud footsteps clattered in the room above. Frantic voices, occasionally raised. It sounded like an argument, although a loud laugh kept punctuating the debate. Somebody mentioned our names.

The trapdoor creaked open.

“Get ready,” Jack whispered.

Somebody climbed down a couple of steps and cleared his throat.

The instantly recognizable voice of Jerry shouted, “Get out there and start looking for those two murdering assholes!”

A man appeared from a dingy corner of the basement. He walked to the foot of the basement stairs, glancing at me as he passed. “We’ll be out in twenty minutes. Just getting some rest after working the last twenty-four hours.”

“You’re going to need it,” Jerry shouted down. “They burnt Ron’s place to the ground. We’re all heading to Hart Island tomorrow to trigger the second activation.”

The man shook his head. “We can’t get there and do it tomorrow.”

“I know that, you big galoot. I just said we’re heading off. We need to get it done before they realize we’ve missed our cutoff. Who’s down there with you?”

Jerry descended another couple of stairs. My heart thumped against my chest. I prepared to fire.

The man took a couple of paces forward, blocking the basement entrance. “Just me, Terry, and Jim. We’re all pretty beat.”

“What have you got down here? A secret hideout? Did Ron know about this?”

“It’s where we keep our supplies and test kit. Do you want me bring you one of the cases and show it to you?”

Jerry snorted. “Just get your ass out and start looking. I want those two dead by the morning.”

“We’ll be out soon. Give us a chance to get ready.”

Jack edged back. His boot crunched against something. A dry leaf, empty snail shell, or a chip.

Jerry dropped another couple of steps. “Did the rest of you hear what I said?”