He watched as she disappeared into the hospital and turned a corner, and gave himself a mental pat on the back. He had used her in more than one way. His con job was a little sloppy, but the bug he had planted on the bottom of her shoe right in front of the heel should hold. Both the sole and the bug were black, so with just a little luck, she’d never notice the small attachment. He grinned as he hurried back to the hotel.
30 The Way South
ProGenesis, the modified artificial Quasing atmosphere, is a breakthrough because it not only allows us to reproduce, but also allows us to reconnect our thoughts. However, for many of the Quasing who call Earth home, it has a price that we are not willing to pay. There is a secret regarding my people that very few humans will ever be aware of, one that will change the way humanity views the Quasing forever.
Tao
Cameron and Alex scoped out the local bus station from across the street. There were seven cars parked in the lot and two buses with their engines on. The bus on the left would take them south to Fort Bragg. The question was, how would they get on it? Was it safe to even try? Cameron studied the faces of each person who walked to and from the station. He recognized some of them; it was hard not to when you lived in a small town. However, he wasn’t prepared to make a trip across the street to buy a ticket, especially after what had happened at the school the day before. There was only one bus station in town, so it made coming here especially perilous. There was a high likelihood of either the Genjix or the police waiting for them. Or both.
Police car a hundred meters up the street. There is someone sitting in the blue sedan on the right. He has been there for thirty-five minutes.
“We’ll never learn anything by just sitting here,” Alex said. “Besides, the police are not going to watch the station just because a few kids got beat up.”
“You don’t know small towns, then,” he said. “This is probably the biggest thing to happen to Eureka in years.” He turned to her. “Besides, you didn’t just beat them up; you brutalized them. We’re just lucky you didn’t kill anyone.”
She rolled her eyes. “That is the Hatchery way. If you show compassion to your enemy, you only invite them to return twice as determined. Those kids will never try to stop us again.”
She also got every parent and cop in this small town on alert for a blonde psychopath.
“You didn’t have to do that,” Cameron muttered. “It’s made our escape much more difficult with everyone looking for us.”
Unfortunately, Cameron’s words probably weren’t too far off. News in the small town had spread like wildfire that a bunch of students at the local high school got their asses kicked by a Russian teenager. As they are wont to do in a place as small as Eureka, the rumors had taken a life of their own. Right now, half the population probably thought there was a vixen serial killer in their midst, while the other probably thought they were being invaded by the Red Army, and were forming up as if they were in the movie Red Dawn.
Technically, there hasn’t been a Red Army since World War II.
“Not very helpful right now, Tao.”
Alex, who was wearing a beanie to hide her now-very-publicized blonde hair, stood up from their hiding spot. “We’re not going to figure anything out hiding behind this garbage can. Go buy bus tickets. I’ll meet you at the south end of the parking lot. We can hide in the crowd.”
That sounded as good a plan as any. They weren’t going to get any closer to Jill by staying here. He couldn’t wait any longer, anyway. The bus was leaving in twenty minutes. If they wanted to be on it, he had to go now. He pulled his cap down on his head and shouldered his pack.
Get a contingency plan in place first.
Cameron pointed to an alley down the street. “If things go wrong, rendezvous there.”
She nodded, and they split up. She circled around the back while Cameron braved the bus station. They had just enough to buy one-way tickets, though not enough for lunch. Cameron cursed those two video games. Food would have been nice. Or another set of clothing, or even a couple of bottles of water. One of the damn games wasn’t even any good either.
I will not say I told you so.
“About spending the money or buying that game?”
Both. I mean, you already had the previous version of that game. Is it that much different?
“It had new decals to download.”
You, somehow, have the greatest potential of all my hosts, and are one of the dumbest, at the same time.
“Gee, thanks for the confidence booster.”
On the contrary, it is brave stupid people who change the world. The smart ones are usually too smart to even try.
Cameron made it three quarters of the way across the lot when he was accosted by Officer Underwood. Cameron groaned, partially because he had naively hoped that it might actually be that easy to get away, but mostly because he knew Underwood. The man lived a couple of farms down from the Tans and had once sheltered him when he got caught in a rainstorm biking home. Underwood even fed him dinner while they waited for his dad to pick him up.
Sometimes, we have to do unpleasant things. Be ready.
“Hello, Cameron,” Underwood said, extending his hand out.
Crap. Underwood was shaking his hand. What did his dad say about men shaking hands? Something about how it’s wrong to fight someone who shakes your hand, or some sort of man-code that has to be followed. He couldn’t quite remember. Roen often spouted wisdoms that Cameron found wisest to ignore. For some reason, this one came back to him as he shook the policeman’s hand.
“Hi, Mr Underwood,” he said.
“Listen, son,” Underwood said. “A lot of kids got hurt yesterday. I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to come with me to the station to explain a few things. Also, I need to ask you if you know what happened to your family’s house.”
“What happened to my house?” Cameron asked, stunned.
Underwood looked concerned, which just made Cameron feel even guiltier. “You don’t know? The house is gone. Bulldozed over. Yours and three others in your area. Everyone’s baffled by how it could have happened.”
Genjix cleaning team. You need to get out of here. Now!
Cameron stood frozen while the words sunk in. Everything was gone. For some reason, he had assumed that once he found Mom, everything would go back to normal. Now, he realized there was no going back. The Genjix had come and wiped away his entire life in a matter of days. He slowly backed away.
“Come on, son,” Underwood said, putting a hand on his elbow. He tugged, but Cameron wouldn’t move, the shock numbing his entire body. Underwood tugged again. This time, Cameron tried to snatch his arm out of his grasp. The police officer reached into his side pouch for his handcuffs.
Cameron. Snap out of it. Remember, your parents are still alive. Everything else is just stuff. You need to get moving if you want to see your mother again. I cannot move you on my own. Your mind is not opened to me. Get moving!
“I’m… I’m sorry, Mr Underwood,” Cameron said as the officer tried to cuff his wrist. He twisted away until he had reversed Underwood’s grip on his elbow. Cameron snatched the handcuffs from Underwood and cuffed the officer’s left wrist. Then he yanked down on the chain until the older man bent over. Then Cameron cuffed the officer’s right ankle with the other end of the handcuff. Underwood hopped comically, twisted around like a pretzel, his right arm waving wildly around for balance. He considered taking Underwood’s handgun. After all, they only had the assault rifle and the pistol. They could use another. The rifle was too unwieldy.