Don't Let Go (10 page)

His face brightened. “Yeah, of course. I’ve got a three-year supply of MREs. Lots of good stuff . . . except the lasagna. Not recommending that.”

“All right. Put the backpack on,” Noa ordered. “We should get back to Teo and Daisy anyway.”

CHAPTER FIVE

T
eo chewed in silence. The mac and cheese tasted oddly gummy, but the novelty of having honest-to-God hot food for a change outweighed the pastiness of it. Loki might be insane, but he’d established a pretty impressive setup. Between bites, Loki explained the layout of the place. When he talked about it, his whole face lit up, and he looked marginally less scary. He was younger than he’d first appeared, too, probably in his midthirties.

Apparently they were inside some sort of bunker where the U.S. military used to store nuclear missiles. After the base was decommissioned, they sold it to Loki, which was crazy in and of itself; Teo couldn’t imagine the government just handing over a place like this. Or what would compel someone to buy it.

As Loki made his way through the biggest bottle of beer Teo had ever seen, he went on about all the excellent reasons to live underground. Apparently there was a long list of ways the world could end. It was kind of mind-blowing for Teo; he’d never bothered worrying about that sort of thing. In his experience, the world in its current state was hard enough to deal with.

“How big is this place, exactly?” Peter had been chugging beer, too, and his cheeks were flushed.

“Forty-five thousand square feet,” Loki announced, slamming the bottle down on the table; it teetered, and Noa’s hand darted out to steady it. “It’s got two wells dug right into the aquifer, so there’s plenty of fresh water. I own the entire two hundred and ten acres of land around it, too.”

“So aside from this room, how many others are there?” Noa asked, although she sounded distracted. She kept glancing over at Peter, as if checking to see if he was okay. Which was kind of funny; it was usually the other way around. This was the most alert Teo had seen her since they’d left Santa Cruz.

“Three silos total, with about a half mile of tunnels,” Loki said proudly. “I’ve got two sleeping quarters carved out, this room, and the old control center. I’m still working on the other sections. Takes some time, since I have to do it all myself.”

“Why don’t you just hire a construction crew?” Daisy suggested.

Loki made a face. “This is a secret location. When it hits the fan—”

“When what hits the fan?”

“Solar flares, super volcanoes, collapse of the global economy. You name it, something’s hitting the fan. And when it does, you think I want a bunch of carpenters trying to bust in with their families?” Loki snorted. “Hell, I shouldn’t have let
you
in here.”

“We won’t tell anyone,” Teo said, noting the paranoia that had crept back into Loki’s eyes.

Loki muttered something under his breath, then took a slug straight from the bottle. By now, it had to be mostly gone. Teo squeezed Daisy’s hand under the table. He was getting her out of here as soon as possible, before Loki decided that letting them leave was not an option.

Peter had fallen quiet. He stared down at the ring his beer bottle had left on the table. Teo noted that he’d barely touched his food.

“So what’s going on?” Teo asked, unable to stay silent any longer.

“What do you mean?” Noa said, a warning in her voice.

“I mean, you guys came back and started cooking dinner, like all this is normal.” He waved a hand toward Loki. “So did he agree to help us?”

Noa and Loki looked at each other. Loki cleared his throat and said, “Maybe. Haven’t decided yet.”

“Well, you better decide quick,” Teo pressed. “Like we said earlier, those guys after us? They tend to come at night. And I don’t think a crowbar will stop them. We’re trapped here,” he added, turning to Noa. “Only one way in and out.”

“First of all,” Loki slurred, raising a finger, “that’s not technically true.”

“There’s a back door?” Daisy asked.

Loki nodded enthusiastically. “Always gotta have a bug-out plan.”

“They won’t come tonight, anyway,” Noa said reassuringly.

“Yeah? And how do you know that?”

“I just do.” Her eyes wandered to Peter and something flitted across her face, too fast for Teo to identify.

The fact that he and Daisy were being treated like second-class citizens again steeled his resolve. They’d been through too much to keep secrets from each other. Teo turned to Peter. “Listen, man. I held up our end, and you found the guy. Now we’re taking off.”

“What?” Noa gasped. “You’re leaving?”

Peter was still staring down at the table. He didn’t react to what Teo had said, as if the words hadn’t registered.

“Teddy,” Daisy said hesitantly. “Maybe we should wait until tomorrow—”

“They come at night,” he repeated, enunciating every word. The chagrined look on Noa’s face nearly swayed him, but he forced himself to meet her gaze. “If you two want to stay, I get it. But we can’t take that chance. C’mon, Daisy.”

Reluctantly, Daisy followed him to the corner where they’d stowed their backpacks. He kept an eye on Loki, who thankfully appeared amused by the turn of events. The shotgun still rested by his chair, but the big man didn’t make a move to retrieve it; hopefully he wouldn’t try to stop them.

“Where will you go?” Noa asked in a small voice.

For a second, Teo faltered. She sounded bereft, betrayed. He swallowed hard and said, “We’re not sure. Probably west.”

“Okay.” Noa’s voice was firmer as she added, “But please, wait until morning. It’s a long hike back to the car in the dark.”

“Bears out there, too, remember?” Loki chuckled. “You really want to try that Taser out on ’em?”

Teo hesitated. Daisy’s eyes had gone huge at the mention of bears. It would be the ultimate irony if they managed to avoid getting shot for all these months, only to be mauled by wild animals.

“We’ll be careful.” He unpacked the drives, setting them in a pile on the floor as Noa stood silently watching.

Daisy was following suit, though a lot more slowly. Teo finished and stood, brushing hair out of his eyes. Noa looked back at him calmly. “Good-bye, Teo,” she said, extending a hand. “Thanks for everything.”

“Yeah, sure,” he muttered, shaking. “Take care of yourself.”

They were almost to the door when Peter said, “Wait!”

Teo stopped but didn’t turn around. “What?”

“It was my fault they kept tracking us down,” Peter continued, his voice ragged. “It was because of me. I was bugged.”

“All right,” Teo said slowly. “Let me get this straight. They put a bug in your back, and that’s how they kept finding us. But when you’re wearing the backpack, there’s no signal.”

“Basically, yeah.” Peter’s eyes were bleary from booze, and he sounded defeated. Noa felt a pang of sympathy, although his device could be removed without too much pain and suffering. Probably.

“So you can just keep your backpack on all the time, right? And then they won’t be able to find us?” Teo said reasonably.

“Or we can cut it out,” Noa interjected.

Peter threw her a look; she met it, staring back at him levelly. Just one mistake and their location could be pinpointed again. Plus, she didn’t totally understand his objections. If the extra thymus in her chest could be safely removed, she’d dig it out herself.

“I already offered,” Loki said, swinging the beer bottle in a lazy loop. “Doctor Maoz is officially on call.”

“I prefer my doctors sober.” Peter glared at him.

“It’s probably just below the skin, so it shouldn’t be too hard to remove,” Noa said in what she hoped was a reassuring tone of voice. “Then we can destroy it.”

“And what if it’s not?” Peter retorted. “This . . .
thing
is right next to my spine, Noa, and I’m a big fan of walking. Last time I checked, no one here is a doctor.”

“Hey,” Loki protested. “I got three first-aid certifications.”

“You learn any basic surgery for those?” Peter demanded.

“Well, no,” Loki admitted. “But I can make a killer tourniquet.” Off Peter’s expression, he mumbled, “Maybe killer is the wrong word. . . .”

Noa bit her lip. Peter was right to be scared. But their options were limited.

“You need to get it out, dude,” Teo said softly. “You don’t want those jerks to have any sort of control over you.”

Peter’s face clouded over. But after a long moment, his expression shifted to resignation. “Crap. I hate this.”

“I know,” Noa commiserated. “It sucks.”

Peter’s mouth worked as if he was chewing on something. Finally, he said, “Not tonight.”

“Definitely not tonight,” Noa agreed, relieved. “We’ll do it on a full night’s sleep.”

“I have an idea,” Teo said hesitantly, throwing a glance her way. “Once you get it out, maybe we shouldn’t destroy it.”

“Why not?” Noa asked. Her energy was flagging again. She hadn’t been able to choke down any food, so all she had in her system was a can of Red Bull. She’d pretty much gotten through the day on adrenaline, but that had dissipated.

“Daisy and I could take it,” Teo offered.

“What?” Daisy and Peter said simultaneously.

“Just think about it,” Teo said earnestly. “Right now, they probably know we’re somewhere near Denver, right? We could keep the bug in the packs, wrapped up like the drives. Every day, we’ll take it out for a few minutes so they can get a signal from it. Then we’ll wrap it up and take off again.”

“Where would we take it?” Daisy demanded.

“California. We’d dump it before we got to LA,” he said hurriedly, off her expression. “Way before, so they couldn’t catch us. But that way they’d be following us, not you.”

“And we stay here,” Peter said slowly. “That’ll give us time to try and get the decryption key.”

“Oh, so you’re moving in with me now?” Loki grumbled.

Peter looked abashed. “Well, I’m going to need time to recover from the surgery. . . .”

Loki glowered at him, long enough that Noa half expected him to draw the shotgun again. Then he broke into a broad grin, made an expansive gesture, and said, “Just messing with you, Vallas. What the hell. Most fun I’ve had in months anyway.”

The beer had definitely put him in a better mood, Noa thought. Hopefully he’d remember the offer when he sobered up. Loki had seemed different during the /ALLIANCE/ missions. Saner, for sure. Listening to him prattle on about doomsday scenarios, she got the feeling he’d only let them in because a huge government conspiracy was too intriguing to resist. “So when do you guys want to take off?”

“Soon,” Teo said. “Like, tomorrow.”

Noa tried not to let her dismay show. Deep down, she couldn’t blame them for wanting to leave. She hadn’t been much of a leader lately, and there was no army left to speak of. Even though they hadn’t discussed it, the rest of her team was probably long gone. Besides, Pike really only wanted her. Anyone in her vicinity could end up as collateral damage.

She drew a deep breath and looked at Peter. “So, tomorrow?”

“Yeah, sure,” Peter said ruefully. With feigned nonchalance, he added, “How bad could it be?”

Peter swallowed hard. He was lying facedown on the same table they’d eaten on last night. Loki had moved it into the computer room and covered it with torn-open trash bags, although Peter got the distinct sense that was more out of concern for the table’s well-being. Daisy and Teo had opted to stay in the bunkroom. He suspected they didn’t want to witness a medical procedure that had the potential to go horribly awry.

He gritted his teeth. Loki had scrounged up some Advil, and he’d swallowed three; the chalky taste still lingered in the back of his throat. He didn’t hold out much hope that they’d ease the pain, however.

“You’re sure that’s sterilized?” Peter asked, eyeing the scalpel Loki was brandishing with way too much enthusiasm.

“Yup,” Loki chortled. “Man, I’m so glad I ordered these. Wasn’t sure I’d ever need a full medical kit, but it just goes to show—you’re never done prepping.”

“Don’t suppose you have any type A positive blood laying around,” Peter tried to joke. Now that he was lying here, this seemed like a spectacularly bad idea. He should back out now, while there was still time. Hell, he could turn himself into a living Faraday cage, just tape a bunch of aluminum and cardboard around his torso.
Cody could have fixed this
, he thought with a pang. He would’ve given anything to see his friend walk through that door.

“Shouldn’t bleed much. There aren’t many blood vessels down there,” Loki said authoritatively.

“How do you know that?” Peter demanded.

“I looked it up online.” Loki grinned. “They didn’t have anything specific about removing a bug, but there was a YouTube video about cutting off a mole that came pretty close.”

“All right, that’s it,” Peter said, pushing his chest off the table. “It can stay in my back. We’ll figure out something else.”

“Easy, Peter.” Noa pressed down on his shoulders with both hands.

“I’m not letting him cut me,” Peter insisted. “He’s way too excited about it.”

“I’m not excited,” Loki said, but his eyes were gleaming.

“He’s probably still ticked off that I tracked him here,” Peter argued. “I don’t want him taking that out on my spine.”

Noa bent so that her face was level with his. Quietly, she said, “How about if I do it?”

Peter stared back at her. Noa’s green eyes were totally calm. Looking into them, he felt inexplicably reassured. She didn’t have experience with this sort of thing either, but at least she’d try not to hurt him. “Okay,” he said, sinking back down. “But only you. And have something nearby to stop the bleeding.”

Noa tugged on a pair of latex gloves, then silently held out a hand for the knife. Loki reluctantly handed it over. Pulling off his own gloves, he muttered, “Christ, Vallas. You didn’t have to be such a baby about it.”

“Okay, Peter,” Noa said in a soothing voice. “I’ll be as quick as I can. Just . . . try to think of something else.”

Peter squeezed his eyes shut and tried to imagine that he was sitting at his desk back home. His laptop was propped open in front of him, and he was sipping some of his dad’s good whiskey—