“Daebak.”
“What?”
“Just glad not to be number one with a bullet, is all.”
“No promises.” Rhett stood up and returned the chair to the corner. “Like I said, we’re at a crossroads. With Mercer gone, we don’t know how to proceed. Half of us wants to abandon the war effort, and the other half wants to finish it in Mercer’s memory.”
“Which half wants to kill me slowly and painfully?”
Rhett grinned. “Both halves want to kill you, remember?”
“Yeah, but I’m not a fan of the whole ‘slowly and painfully’ part.”
“Who is?” Rhett walked to the door. “Sit tight, Keo. No one’s going to kill you yet, slowly or painfully, until we decide where to go from here.”
Keo finally stood up and walked to the cell bars. “Hey, Rhett.”
Rhett stopped at the door and looked back.
“Do I at least get a phone call?” Keo asked. “Even a condemned man on death row gets a last wish.”
“No one has phones anymore, Keo.”
“One radio call, then.”
“And who would you radio?” He added quickly, “If I were to grant you your wish, hypothetically speaking.”
“A friend,” Keo said. “She happens to be a hell of a lot smarter than me — but that’s not saying much — so maybe she can help you out with your little problem, too.”
“What problem would that be?”
“You got an army, but you don’t know what do with it.” He leaned against the bar and held Rhett’s gaze. “Tell me, why did you go along with Mercer’s plan in the first place? You had to know it wasn’t going to mean dick in the larger scheme of things. Deep down, what was the reason? The real reason?”
“I wanted to fight back,” Rhett said without hesitation. “After everything they took from us — our loved ones, our friends, our city, our fucking planet — I wanted to strike back at the fuckers, and I didn’t know how. Mercer gave me a way.”
“See, the thing about sitting here all by my lonesome night after night is that it leaves you time to think.”
“And a headache, right?” Rhett grinned.
“Yeah, that too. Anyway, it occurred to me that I might know a guy who knows a way you can still do that — strike back at the ghouls — without that whole murdering innocent civilians part. And I bet this army of yours would come in real handy in making that happen.”
“A guy? You said you wanted to contact a ‘she’ earlier.”
“I can’t find the guy, but she can.”
Rhett stared at him but didn’t say anything. Keo couldn’t tell if the man was trying to decide if getting him a radio was worthwhile or how best to dispose of his body. Given how bad he was at reading people, it was probably a coin flip.
“Erin told me she should have stopped Mercer a long time ago,” Keo said. “It was her one big regret — that she let all of this happen. Mercer’s dead, but the damage is done. His way was never going to work. You have to know that.”
Rhett remained silent, but he didn’t turn and leave, either.
“I’m offering you another way,” Keo said. “A real path to victory. You interested?”
Rhett began walking back toward him. “I’m listening…”
“Good,” Keo said. “First things first: Get me that radio. Second thing: Can someone open that fucking window already? I’m choking on my own BO in here…”
Also by Sam Sisavath
The Purge of Babylon Series
The Purge of Babylon: A Novel of Survival (Book 1)
The Gates of Byzantium (Book 2)
The Stones of Angkor (Book 3)
The Walls of Lemuria: The Keo Storyline (Book 3.5)
The Fires of Atlantis (Book 4)
The Ashes of Pompeii (Book 5)
The Isles of Elysium (Book 6)
The Spears of Laconia (Book 7)
The Horns of Avalon (Book 8)
The Bones of Valhalla (Book 9)
The Allie Krycek Thriller Series
Hunter/Prey
Saint/Sinner
Finders/Keepers