“Maybe he was in cahoots the whole time?”
“With Edison?”
“Why not? Anything’s possible, right?”
“Nah, that’s not Nomad’s style. He’s just as vested in this outcome as we are.”
“But what if we’re wrong?”
“Won’t matter. What’s coming can’t be stopped, no matter how hard they’ve hunkered down.”
“Maybe we should call down our Demo Team from the surface as reinforcements?”
“Negative. Let’s hold them back. They did their job.”
“Now it’s our turn,” Dice said, his tone firm and resolute.
Fletcher gave him a head nod, appreciating the support. “Never ask your men to do something you are not prepared to do yourself.”
“You’re right, boss. As usual. Plus, it’s probably wise for them to keep an eye on Stipple’s men up there, too. Not sure what that’s all about. Why keep one Scab on the surface, then assign three guards?”
“I wondered that myself. Especially that leash.”
“I’m sure Craven has his reasons.”
“It’s almost as if he doesn’t trust this op. Or Stipple.”
“Or us,” Dice said.
“Good point. If I were him, I’d want to hold back a squad in reserve, just in case this mission doesn’t go as planned.”
“Or we don’t.”
“Or the Scabs down in this hole. I’m sure his men are just as wary as we are.”
“True.”
“We may appear to be one happy invasion force right now, but all it takes is a single mistake and lines are drawn. That’s how massacres happen.”
“Agreed. In essence, this entire complex is a fatal funnel, with poor sightlines and a complete lack of egress options.”
“Never a good thing,” Fletcher said. “Even so, this is what we signed up for when we hatched this plan.”
“I’ve got your back, sir.”
Fletcher tapped Dice on the back with an open hand. “Keep moving. Stipple will find them.”
Dice moved ahead, sweeping his rifle from left to right and back again, same as Fletcher. “Seriously then, Fletch, if it wasn’t Nomad, then how did they know? Motion sensors?”
Fletched shrugged. “Must be well hidden because I haven’t seen dick.”
“Me either.”
Before they made it to the next corner, two whistles were heard from somewhere ahead. The sounds were muffled but sharp.
“Must have found something,” Fletcher snapped, breaking into a sprint.
Dice followed next to him, running in a clatter of boots.
When Fletcher and Dice caught up to Stipple, they found him bent low on one knee, gasping for air with a hand on his chest.
“You all right?” Fletcher asked, wondering if the man was going to drop dead before his next breath.
“Just a little chest pain, that’s all,” Stipple said, his face devoid of color.
“Your heart?”
“Yeah. Nothing I can’t handle,” he said, pushing to his feet. “Been dealing with this all my life. It’ll pass. It always does.”
“We heard your whistles, so we double-timed it,” Dice said.
Stipple pointed ahead, down the hallway. “They’re on the scent.”
“We should get moving, then,” Fletcher said, nodding at Dice to get his feet in gear.
Stipple took the whistle from his neck and held it out to Fletcher. “Here, I need a minute.”
Fletcher pushed the chain back toward the man. “Not a chance. I’m not the one who trained those meat eaters.”
“Trust me, they’ll never know. Not once there’re on the scent.”
Dice held out his palm. “I’ll do it.”
Stipple looked at Fletcher and raised an eyebrow.
“Fine,” Fletcher said, nodding at Dice.
Dice snatched the chain and slung it around his neck.
Stipple unbuttoned his shirt pocket and retrieved a slip of paper. It was white and folded in half. He held it out to Dice.
Dice took it from him. “What’s this?”
“Instructions. Just be consistent with your blows and space them out. They need to hear the breaks properly. Cadence is just as important as volume.”
Dice opened the paper and looked at the handwritten list, holding for a few beats. “Seems easy enough.”
Stipple pointed at the whistle. “Just wipe it off when you’re done. I want it back.”
“Sure.”
“Let’s move,” Fletcher said, tugging on Dice. “Before we lose them.”
“I’ll be a minute or two behind, just need to catch my breath,” Stipple said, giving them a halfhearted wave with his hand.
CHAPTER 2
“Where’d they go?” Dice asked, working his feet forward with Fletcher a pace or two behind him. He could hear a rumble ahead and a mishmash of other sounds. Some of them were clunks and others were snarls.
“We should split up, cover more ground,” Fletcher said.
“Ah...sure, boss. Whatever you say, if you think that’s wise.”
Fletcher grabbed Dice from behind, stopping his feet and twisting him around. “All right, out with it. You’ve obviously got something to say.”
Dice drew in a deep breath and let it out. “Well, sir, ah, it’s just that I’m the only one with a whistle around here.”
Fletcher nodded, holding for a moment before he answered. “If they’re truly as micro-focused on the hunt as Stipple said, they’ll never know we’re here.”
“That’s a big if, sir.”
“You think he’s lying to us?”
“Wouldn’t put it past him. I’m not sure I buy the whole bad heart thing. Seems awfully convenient. Plus all that crap going on up on the surface.”
“Kind of hard to fake that ghostly look.”
“Maybe, but we really don’t know the guy from dick,” Dice said, wanting to drive his point home without being too obvious. “Do we really want to put our lives on the line, based solely on some statement Stipple made? He does work for Craven, after all.”
“You mean put your life on the line, while on point.”
“Well, sir, technically, it’s both of us. With all of them ahead of us, we only get once chance to be wrong. Tight quarters and all.”
“Noted,” Fletcher said.
“I’m starting to think the only smart ones in this whole mission are the guys Stipple left on the surface.”
“And the Scab.”
“The rest of us are just guessing here.”
“You think this is some kind of trap.”
“Starting to feel like it, sir.”
“That would mean Craven and Edison’s people are working together.”
Dice shrugged, not wanting to offend his boss by sounding too pushy. Or too knowledgeable. “Well, in the end, what do we really know? It’s not like we trust anyone, anyways. Why start now?”
“Okay, assuming any of this is true, what do you suggest?”
“Could always fall back and find a more defensible position. Let the Scabs do their thing, then reassess as needed.”