‘I want you personally leading the retrieval effort,’ said Amanda.

  ‘My priority is protecting you,’ said Karla.

  ‘I’m in a secure facility, with lots of armed soldiers loyal to you,’ said Amanda. ‘I do need to go attend the council meeting in order to survive, so please arrange that before you go, but what I really need is to secure the Gun. At the least.’

  Not what Karla would prefer. And she wasn’t sure it wasn’t more in order to put distance between them. Looking out the window seemed like a forced stance, given the urgency.

  She’d sooner be near the council meeting, in case it didn’t go well. Not that she’d necessarily be able to do anything. Not enough to make a difference. It’d just get her killed. Was that why Amanda was sending her away? She didn’t think so, and it didn’t matter.

  ‘I’ll have Wexler come fetch you when your transport’s ready,’ said Karla, and turned to leave.

  ‘Bring back the Gun,’ said Amanda. She almost turned from the window.

  ‘Ma’am,’ said Karla, and closed the door behind her.

  She might not be able to help Amanda through the grief - even if they had that kind of relationship - but she could offer more practical help. Standing guard down in the foyer had been useless anyway. The kidnappers were done for. Amanda’s enemies were now all internal. The kinds of knives in the back against which armour offered little protection.

  Chapter 4

  Absalom had been shut out of the council. How the hell had that happened?

  How had Truman managed it? Well, by embarrassing him, obviously. To his face. In front of the council. Letting them know he was being investigated by his own people.

  He made sure not to look around too suspiciously as he strode towards his office in the FBI floors of the federal building, and everyone avoided drawing his attention. He may be letting his anger show. That was fine, as he didn’t want to speak to anyone. He could deal with who around him might be spying on him soon enough. Calmly. Okay, perhaps not that soon.

  It was only temporary, of course. He had friends who wouldn’t let this stand. And no one on the council liked Truman. Even her allies had been willing to throw her to the wolves before she’s scared them with her lies. They’d see soon enough that this was why he’d started an investigation aimed at her. He’d had no intention of allowing it anywhere near the real Euclideans. But she wasn’t a real Euclidean.

  His secretary looked up as he walked past. ‘Sir,’ she said. ‘Agent Nugent has been trying to get hold of you. It seems urgent.’

  He glanced back from the door, taking care to keep his anger contained. ‘Get hold of him for me.’

  He shut the door behind him, and let the bitterness take over. Maintaining the reassuring smile that radiated integrity took some doing. Years of practice let him be sure of the effect it had, but he knew it’d be useless against actual evidence.

  Could he keep the anger contained as he spoke to his betrayer? It was still hard to believe Nugent would actually go over his head. He was such a straight-shooter. Fairly dim, to be honest, or at least subject to a focussed tunnel vision that meant he trusted those around him. He’d need Absalom’s actual allegiance clearly pointed out to him before doing something like this. And he obviously hadn’t gone to Absalom’s direct superior, since he was in their pocket and would have alerted him.

  His computer beeped with the call waiting, and Absalom turned on the monitor. He still had trouble believing Nugent would do this, and needed a decent read of him.

  Nugent’s face appeared on the screen, and from the scene in the background, he seemed to still be at the water treatment plant.

  ‘Agent Nugent,’ said Absalom. ‘What’s the situation?’

  ‘Secure here, sir,’ said Nugent. His expression held only his usual stoicism. Possibly a touch more buttoned down than usual. It was hard to tell. ‘The remaining culprit is still at large, but is beyond the perimeter. Yuen’s informed me the Gun has been used.’

  Already? That was quick. Could it also be useful? ‘Where?’

  ‘Somewhere downstream of the plant. Two bodies were found. They moved them before alerting me.’ He sounded unhappy at the breach of protocol, but perhaps less so than he’d normally be. The bodies would need to be disposed of though. ‘They want help IDing them to try to determine the shooter, and have shared their pictures.’

  ‘Run them,’ said Absalom. That was in everyone’s interest. ‘The Gun’ll lead them to the shooter anyway, won’t it?’

  ‘Possibly,’ said Nugent. ‘It looks like they chucked it back in the water straight after. Unless they went in the water too. If so, they’re probably already dead.’

  That would remove one complication, but was unlikely. Although it might be an opportunity, rather than a complication.

  ‘Provide whatever reasonable assistance you can to get that thing off the streets as soon as possible. The rest, we can deal with later.’ Getting it out of circulation was in everybody’s interests, so that shouldn’t damage his cover.

  Would suggesting Nugent keep information from Truman cement suspicion in the man’s mind? Given he’d started an investigation against her, it would be reasonable to do. And would not doing so make him look like he was taking care of Euclidean business before dealing with her, also risking arousing suspicion? This was irritating. It would be safer to play it straight for the moment, at least as far as Nugent could prove.

  Nugent seemed attentive, possibly paying him more attention than usual. Trying to pick up on any tells, or seeking ulterior motives. Did the bastard think it’d be that easy? Or was Absalom letting paranoia get the better of him?

  ‘How are you holding up?’ asked Absalom.

  The question blindsided Nugent. Absalom’s chosen management style was not one which was overly concerned with the mental health of his subordinates, unless they became dangerously unstable.

  ‘I don’t know how close you were to the detective,’ said Absalom, in all honesty. ‘But after being involved in a shootout you’ll need to have a session with the counsellor. And I’ll understand if you need some time off once the situation is stabilised.’

  ‘I don’t believe that’ll be necessary, sir.’

  ‘I leave it to your judgement, Agent,’ said Absalom. It wouldn’t be enough anyway. More permanent measures might be necessary. Reassigning him, possibly? That shouldn’t be a problem, given he’d never been happy with the assignment. ‘I could also understand if you wished to put in for reassignment. This taskforce is suffering a high turnover of members from our side of things. I’m wondering whether we should reconsider the whole operation, or at least our part in it. I understand you won’t want to leave Detective Kinsala alone in this...’

  ‘She’s being reassigned,’ said Nugent. ‘She’d had enough. I think she was ready to quit, but Truman let her choose a reassignment.’

  Truman let her go? In a police department where they didn’t have the people in place to keep track of her. That was against policy. But Nugent was watching, so he had to hope he hadn’t let anything show. ‘Understandable.’

  ‘I should at least stay in the position until replacements from the PD are up to speed,’ said Nugent. Was he being conscientious, or trying to stay where he could watch Absalom’s interactions with the Euclideans?

  Absalom nodded. ‘Good man. Use what resources you need to recover the artifact, and keep me up to speed.’

  Absalom ended the call. He sat back and stared at the ceiling.

  He’d have to get rid of Nugent. Not immediately, but soon. He would be the one pushing the investigation, so Absalom needed to learn who else was behind it, then deal with the problem. While it remained, he’d be considered radioactive by the council, and that viper Truman could continue slithering her way into grasping the reins of power that much more firmly.

  Nugent didn’t necessarily need to die, though it’d have to remain an option. But he had to be neutralised if he even suspected Absalom’s true loyalties, and it seemed a possibility. Compromising him would be difficult. Did he even drink? He certainly didn’t do anything more than that.

  And it’d have to be done without exposing himself.

  It would wait though. The Gun was in play. It’d be useful if he could be the one to retrieve it. That might put him in the council’s good books, while also harming Truman.

  Doing anything with FBI resources was out of the question while he might be under surveillance.

  How could he use the Gun anyway? Just handing it over seemed too trusting. Like a puppy looking to apologise for whatever had gotten him kicked. He was sure it could be used as a bargaining chip, but would admit that subtlety wasn’t his strong suit.

  How to use it was still a secondary concern. Some way behind actually having it in his hands. Or having the isolated box it was in in his hands, unless they could find and eliminate the new shooter.

  Fortunately, he knew outside contractors with no links to Euclidean. And with his role supervising the taskforce, and the investigation he’d already started into them, he had access to resources that would make tracking the Euclidean security force easy. The council wanted the investigation closed down, but he could hardly do that without looking suspicious. He’d limit its activities, and wind it down as he could. But for now, it was too useful.

  Was this really the best way forward? He was a loyal Euclidean. His family had been for generations, and he didn’t want to endanger them.

  But Truman was a danger. He was convinced of that, and knew she needed to be stopped. This was the only path he saw to achieve that, so this was what he had to do.

  Chapter 5

  Being on the run could be pretty much non-stop terrorised boredom if you let it, so Penny didn’t let it. Realistically, she should’ve been dead ages ago. Today was just the latest in a run of flukes that saw her keep on going.

  But the run had to end sometime, and there was no telling when. Living in fear just made the life you had left that much worse. Why bother worrying? Take what precautions you could, and do what you wanted.

  She should be safe at least until tomorrow. Matty had lived alone, and she knew where, so it made a convenient place to lay low where they shouldn’t come looking for her.

  Even if she hadn’t killed him, he’d need patching up. They had places for that kind of thing, and would keep them out of sight until they were healed up.

  Having picked the lock - and been unsurprised to find no alarm on the shitty little dump - she could easily understand why he lived alone. There was barely room for one.

  That may not be entirely fair to the place. She’d known before coming here why he was alone, having actually met him before. The apartment could simply be him saving money on the extra space he didn’t need.

  Venturing into the fridge proved almost as toxically offensive as the sewers drains, or whatever they were. The fridge might not have been cleaned anywhere near as often. Or, possibly, ever. Closing it slowly, so as not to wake its residents, she rooted around the cupboard and found a few tins. The peaches were only a few months past their date, so at least in the right decade.

  A look in the cutlery drawer made her reconsider using its contents, so she instead opened the can and ate them with her fingers. After having washed her hands. Or at least rinsed them thoroughly, since the soap was covered with bits she didn’t examine too closely.

  She wished she knew where Burns lived. At least he’d seemed to have a passing familiarity with the concept of hygiene.

  What should she do next, given Venture wasn’t the kind to forget debts? Something that’d let her pay him off would be good, provided it was also fun. But she didn’t want to do a rush job. That was the kind of thing that got you caught, and she had no intention going to jail. If nothing else, it’d make her too easy a target for Venture.

  Running was out, on principle. That’d be too much like letting others determine her actions. She might as well be dead. If she were inclined to let others decide her fate, she’d have a soul-shredding job like everybody else, and probably be stuck in some mutually-enabling relationship with someone as miserable as she was. Middle-class life, as it was generally known. Forget the middle. She’d sooner aim for the peaks, and settle in the troughs.

  Find a way to pay off Venture had to come first. And hope that’d be the end of it. Callum would have a grudge, of course. But he was hardly subtle. He’d come at her straight on, and probably use a gun next time. Something to look forward to.

  It’d offer some excitement. Life had started to get stale, and she needed something like this. Perhaps that was why she’d goaded them.

  The pears started to lose their taste around halfway down the tin, so she set it aside. You’d think the bottom half would have more of the flavour, that it’d drain downwards. Perhaps it was just her. She’d gotten bored of the flavour.

  It hardly mattered. Tinned pears wouldn’t be enough. She might pop out after dark. There were a few places nearby that weren’t entirely useless.

  After she’d gotten some different clothes, she realised as the smell started to penetrate.

  She could see what Matty’s wardrobe had to offer. It should work as a disguise.

  The selection proved predictably disappointing, but there were some plain things that wouldn’t irreparably damage her street cred if she was recognised. They were a bit tight in places, but Matty was in no condition for her to take offense at him about it. And it was only temporary, until she could buy or steal new stuff.

  She should check if he had any cash about the place. Chances were, it wouldn’t do him much good now, and she only needed the change of clothes because he and his friends had dragged her down there, completely against her will.

  Nothing under the mattress, and she avoided too close an inspection of the bed. No way could that loser have enough hidden here to make it worth her while.

  Abandoning the closet of a bedroom, she returned to the larger closet of a main room, and froze.

  Matty and Burns. Standing there, staring at her with no signs she’d shot them.

  ‘Hi,’ said Penny. What was going on? She attempted a smile, just to confuse them.

  They’d fallen as she shot at them, and not moved. She was sure of that. If they were uninjured, they must have been faking it, which made no sense. And at that close range she should at least have hit Matty. Did that mean the gun hadn’t worked, despite the sound. Blanks? And if they’d stayed down, they must have expected it.

  It had been a set-up. But why? And how?

  This kind of game wasn’t their thing. They got confused keeping the colours straight in checkers.

  She had hit Callum though. He wouldn’t be happy with that. So where was he? And why were this pair staring at her, and not doing anything? At least it gave her a chance to act. It’d just be nice to have any idea of what she should do.

  ‘You guys are kind of making it awkward just standing there,’ she said.

  No response.

  She started swaying a bit, and moving about on her feet as she spoke, to see how they responded. ‘Matty, sorry about breaking in here, but in my defence, I genuinely thought you were dead. I’d say you’ve got a nice place, but even I’m not that good a liar. And let’s be honest, I’m a great liar.’

  They continued staring. What were they waiting for?

  Since movement didn’t jog them into action, she started sauntering around the sofa that separated her from them. Towards Matty’s side, since he was the smaller and she was more confident she could take him. Possibly not before Burns reached her, but one thing at a time. She never planned too far ahead.

  ‘Since I assume Venture is still upset about the money, I don’t get what this is all meant to be.’ They kept watching her as she moved, but took no other action. That was just freaky. ‘And you guys not saying anything really doesn’t seem right. Kind of makes me think you’re trying to freak me out, and that just ain’t your thing.’

  She was close to Matty now, and reached out to put a hand on his shoulder. It’d make it easier to push him.

  Her hand found nothing solid. She stood for a moment, staring at her hand. Then at Matty. Then she walked through him, and stared down at her own body.

  Letting out a little laugh, she collapsed on the sofa. ‘You’re just ghosts. That’s a relief. For a moment there you had me thinking I was in trouble.’ She glanced between them. ‘So, what, are you haunting me or something?’

  ‘No idea,’ said Burns. It actually sounded like him. Like he was really there.

  She almost got up and tested he wasn’t, but Matty also responded. ‘You’d deserve it though.’

  ‘Why would I deserve it?’ she asked.

  ‘You killed us,’ said Matty, sounding offended. Vaguely, and with little real passion.

  ‘You holding a grudge?’ she asked.

  ‘Kinda,’ said Matty.

  ‘Not really,’ said Burns. ‘We were there to kill you, and it’s how we’re all likely to end up in this life.’

  Matty turned to stare at him. ‘I thought I’d die in my eighties, on a beach in Mali, of a cocktail of STDs.’

  ‘Sorry to spoil your retirement plans,’ said Penny. ‘Although I’m actually starting to like your style, Matty.’

  She was still coming down from the danger. And trying to make sense of this. Her eyes caught on the open can. ‘Matty, did you poison the peaches? Is that making me hallucinate?’

  ‘Why would I poison a can of peaches?’ he asked.

  ‘Why would you have a can of peaches?’

  ‘I was sure the store security guy thought I was shoplifting, so shoved something in the basket so he wouldn’t check my pockets.’

  That made more sense than him having peaches here for any healthy eating reason. Which the date kind of put paid to.

  ‘Is it because they were off? Is that making me hallucinate?’

  ‘Wouldn’t work that fast,’ said Burns. ‘And it’d more likely give you a bad gut.’

 

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