Now I know Tabs is screwing with me.
Cameron didn’t need any more encouragement. In a minute, they were in their undershirts huddling closer together for warmth. Alex shivered as she nuzzled against him. Awkwardly, Cameron put his arms around her shoulder and pulled the dry layers of their clothes over them like a blanket.
“You are so warm,” she said, poking her cold nose against his skin.
Cameron, please consider the situation. You know who Alex is and where she is going. Do not get too attached. Once we find your mother, Alex will be leaving you.
Tao said please. Tao almost never said please. In another time, that word coming from his Quasing would have given Cameron pause. This time, though, the words went right through him.
All Cameron could think of was how nice it was, and wished he could somehow make time stay still. She was supposed to go with Vladimir to South America. What if he had died during that attack? Could she stay with him then? Would his mom and dad allow it? She’d be an orphan. How could they say no?
Of course it was a terrible thing to think about. It wasn’t like he wished for Alex’s father to die, but Cameron didn’t know what he would do right now if Alex left. For now, he just wanted to keep her safe.
Puberty. I hate it. In the thousands of years using humans as hosts, you idiots have never evolved out of the worst of human conditions.
“What, Tao? Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”
Exactly my point. Do not worry about it. For now, get some rest. I will wake you in the morning before dawn. You need to clean up and be out of here before the store opens.
“What are we going to do then?”
Alex is right about one thing. Your cut is badly infected. We need to take care of that before it gets worse.
“How?”
Why, by keeping your perfect attendance perfect. You are going to school.
Tao waited an hour after both Cameron and Alex were deep asleep. Then he slowly untangled himself from her body. Control over the sleeping boy was awkward again as he got up and walked toward the back office. The experiments he had been doing with Cameron and the conscious control had been pretty cutting-edge. Now, without being able to use Cameron’s consciousness as a conduit, Tao was once again feeling all the inefficiencies of unconscious control.
Tao looked back at the sleeping Alex. Now was a time for some secrecy. With luck, Tabs wasn’t focused on what was happening outside of Alex’s body. Still, he had better do this fast. He found the phone in the back office and dialed the emergency line.
“Twenty-four-hour wake up service. We wake up to wake you up. Can I help you?”
“Identification Tao.”
“Voice recognition matches Cameron Tan. Current condition: Unknown. Base binary code required.”
“Binary code one, one, zero, zero, one, zero, one, one, zero, zero, zero, one.”
Silence.
“Tao, it has been days since the reported attack. We had feared you were lost, either your host or to the Eternal Sea.”
“My host and Alexandra Mengsk survived the attack. This is the first I have been able to report in. What about the others?”
“Jill Tesser Tan survived and is currently at the safe house in Fort Bragg with the scientist. Can you rendezvous with them?”
Tao did some quick calculations in his head. “It’s not an easy trip for two teenagers. Cameron has funds hidden in an emergency pack at school. We can try to retrieve it tomorrow, though public transportation poses a risk if the Genjix are watching.”
“Steal an automobile then.”
Tao grunted. He had hoped to hold off a little longer before starting Cameron’s criminal career. Well, it was their best option until he could think of something better. He spent the next five minutes filling in as much information as he could about the attack, including the military-issued gear the sentry wore. In the end, it narrowed down which Genjix faction had attacked them, though Tao had a pretty good guess it was either the Chinese or the Russians, so either Enzo’s rabid Quasiform group or a remnant of Vinnick’s trying to either reclaim their assets – of which Rin was a valuable piece – or someone there trying to clean up loose ends.
In either case, it seemed more an unfortunate incident that Jill’s operation was found, as opposed to a personal vendetta, several of which Tao knew he might be the target of. It shouldn’t have made him feel better that he was probably not the cause of the attack, but it did.
He thought back to his old host Edward and his wife Kathy. It was as if history was repeating itself. In the end, what trail of tragedies and chaos would he leave this family? Probably the same as he had left the previous one, and the one before. Every time he tried to break this cycle, the hundreds of times, no matter what time period, where he moved or what he tried to do, the results were always the same. Maybe it wasn’t the war that was evil, maybe it was him.
“Tao, are you there?”
“Yes, Datlow. By the way, have you heard from Roen Tan lately? He was missing-in-action last I heard.”
There was a pause. “Records show he reported in a few days back with a Mountain North Region crypto key.”
Relief flooded through Tao. Not knowing what had happened to Roen had weighed heavily on both him and Cameron. Tao had put on an optimistic face for the boy, but had feared the worst. The boy would be thrilled to learn that his father was all right.
“Thank you. I will figure out the logistics for getting to the Fort Bragg safe house. Inform Jill we are on our way and should be there in a few days.”
“Will do, Tao. Be safe. I hope it will be a long time before I see you in the Eternal Sea.”
“Likewise, my friend.”
Tao hung up the phone and made his way back toward the corner where Cameron and Alex had passed out. It would be another couple of hours before they would have to wake. They would have to make a short trip to the school and then start making their way south. Best to steal the automobile outside of town limits, which meant…
Tao stopped as he turned around the corner into the kitchen and saw Alex standing there, arms crossed and leaning against the walk-in freezer. He noticed the knife in her hand and took a step back. Immediately, he considered three ways to disarm her, one of which might not injure her.
It would also depend on whether he was fighting Alex or Tabs. If it was the Quasing in control, he was fairly confident it wouldn’t come to that. Tabs had only had a few months with Alex, while Tao had spent almost all of Cameron’s life with him. His control should easily outclass Tab’s. However, if it was the girl, he could be in trouble.
“Tao,” the girl said, “you were on the phone.”
“Tabs,” Tao replied. “What is it to you, and what is with the knife?”
Tabs looked down at the knife and sheathed it. “Apologies. Never can be too careful, especially these days.” She looked up. “You made contact. Where to next?”
Tao studied her. Could he trust Tabs, especially after what had happened over the past few days? “I think I prefer to keep that private for now, all things considered.”
She gave him a flat stare. “After everything we have had to deal with together, I think I have earned a modicum of trust.”
“Things are need-to-know, especially for you. I do not trust you.”
“You still do not trust my loyalties, even after Alex and I helped you and your boy kill that Genjix soldier? Yes, I know you knew it was a Genjix. You lied about it being IXTF. You talk about how I am untrustworthy; you are one to talk.”
Tao was silent for a while. Finally, he nodded. “You are right. Trust needs to begin somewhere, and since both of our hosts are in this together, I will bridge that gap. The good news is that Jill, Vladimir, and Rin are all well. They are holed up in a safe house south of us. We will head out tomorrow, right after we stop for supplies.”