Sullivan Saga 1: Sullivan's War (12 page)

SULLIVAN WAS LUCKY. The twins had obviously been having a festive evening, and he could smell the alcohol on them. Sullivan ducked under a slow swing from Franz’s fist but took a blow to the side as Hans tried to hit him in the kidneys. He kicked out with his foot and, based on the sound from behind him, made contact with Hans’s groin. Franz swung again, but Sullivan was able to turn away from the blow, lessening its impact. He put his shoulder into the standing twin’s chest and knocked him into the street. A passing car swerved to try and miss the man, but the driver reacted too slowly. The car clipped Franz and sent him spinning to the ground, dead or unconscious, but either way, out of the fight.

Sullivan turned back to Hans just as he was getting to his feet. Sullivan cold-cocked him before he could take a defensive stance. He dragged the man into the alleyway beside the bar and tossed him roughly into a pile of garbage.

He was about to hit Hans again when he heard steps at the end of the alley. A man stood in silhouette, facing him.

“This is no business of yours,” Sullivan said, turning toward the man.

“That’s where you’re wrong.”

Younger raised his arm, and Sullivan could see the glint of light on metal. He threw himself against the wall as the first shot went off and, staying low, rushed toward Younger. A quick sidestep let him avoid another bullet, and a second later, Sullivan was barreling into Younger, pushing his arm up and letting the gun fire harmlessly into the air.

Younger brought his elbow down on Sullivan’s collarbone and kneed him in the stomach as Sullivan reacted to the blow. As he went down, Sullivan used his body weight to take Younger down with him. The gun flew from Younger’s hand and, losing his balance, Younger fell hard, hitting his head against the concrete.

Sullivan paused to make sure Younger was out. He took the man’s weapon and turned back to Hans. He didn’t know why the man had intervened—maybe he was one of Zednik’s men, maybe he was just a good Samaritan—but without knowing for sure, Sullivan decided to let him live. There would be enough killing in the days ahead.

Sullivan checked on Hans. Brain had told him that Hans was the twin with the moustache, so this must be him. Hans was conscious but woozy. He probably had a concussion. Putting his shoulder under Hans’s arm, Sullivan led him out of the alley and across to the parking garage. Franz was still face-down in the street. The car that had hit him was gone.

HANS WAS SCREAMING obscenities. Sullivan had cleared out one of Brain’s offices and had locked the man in, tied to a chair. He let the yelling go on. Hans would tire eventually. Sullivan wanted him tired, vulnerable. He wanted him ready and willing to talk.

Brain was nervous. He hadn’t expected Sullivan to bring Hans back to the warehouse. “If anyone saw, Zednik’ll know it was us,” he said, glancing up as a particularly loud and threatening yell escaped from the office.

Sullivan smiled. “Maybe that would be a good thing. If we can get him to come to us, we won’t have to go to him.”

“But he won’t come. Zednik never gets his own hands dirty.”

“But say he sends his best men to try and take us out. Those are men we won’t have to deal with when we do go after him.”

Brain was unconvinced. He took a cigarette from the pack on the table and lit it. He inhaled deeply then blew out the smoke. “When are you going to shut that man up?”

“He’ll stop yelling when he’s tired.”

Brain sat in silence, smoking his cigarette while Sullivan checked and cleaned various weapons. He was preparing the arsenal for their attack on Zednik.

After half an hour, Hans stopped making noise. Sullivan got up from the table and climbed the stairs up to the offices. Opening the door, he found Hans with his head down and sweat covering his face and neck.

Hans looked up. “I’m going to kill you,” he said.

Sullivan took the chair opposite Hans and crossed his arms. “There’s really no need for that.”

“Where’s my brother?”

“We have him, too,” Sullivan lied. “He’s hurt pretty badly after getting hit by that car, but he should survive, if he gets proper treatment.”

“If he dies, I’ll kill you.”

“I thought you were already going to kill me.”

“Then I’ll kill that tasty little blonde. Right after I have my way with her.”

Sullivan smiled in spite of his desire to backhand the man across his face. “Really, Hans, we both know that’s not up to you. But I will admit that you’re clever. How’d you know she and I were connected?”

“Zednik’s been talking about you ever since you killed Wilson and escaped. I’ve seen your picture. I should’ve recognized you at the bar.”

“But it was dark, and you were drunk, right? Is that what you’re going to tell Zednik if you ever get out of here? You think that’ll help explain how I beat three of his best henchmen?”

“Younger’s not….”

Sullivan laughed. “That answers my first question. The man who intervened is working for Zednik, then. But you said he’s not what? Not one of Zednik’s henchmen? He’s a hired gun, then?”

Hans gritted his teeth. He’d already made one mistake, and he wasn’t going to make another. “I’m not saying anything.”

“You don’t like this Younger fellow, do you?”

“Not saying anything.”

“Is it because Zednik goes out and hires him when you or your brother could do the job just as well?” Sullivan shook his head. “All the years you’ve been with him, and he still doesn’t have faith in your abilities.”

“You’re not going to trick me into talking.”

“It’s no trick, Hans. Face facts, he doesn’t respect you. And here’s another fact: Zednik is going down. You’ve seen what I can do. Believe me, I will take him down. And your choice is simple. You can either help me and leave this place a free man, a man who will finally be able to profit from his skills and connections, or you can keep defending Zednik. If you decide on the latter, then you and your brother will die along with Zednik.”

Hans licked his lips. “Can I have some water?”

“How about this,” said Sullivan. “I’ll start asking questions. For every question you answer to my satisfaction, I’ll give you a sip of water.”

Hans said nothing.

“Think about it,” said Sullivan, getting up. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

He left the room and went down to Brain, who was still sitting at the table. “What do you know about a man named Younger?” he asked, opening the refrigerator next to the table.

“He’s a hired assassin. Did Hans tell you he’s working for Zednik?”

“Not in as many words, but it came out.”

“Then we’re in trouble. He’s a sniper. He probably has this place covered.”

Sullivan grunted. “We’d better not go outside, then. Your men have come and gone, but he’s not killed them. You or I must be the target.”

“Probably both. We’re damned lucky he didn’t get us the night of the raid.”

“Not lucky. If Younger had killed one of us, it would have put your men on alert. He wouldn’t have been able to take Kate.” Sullivan took a bottle of water from the refrigerator and an empty plastic cup from the table. “Well, I think Hans might start talking now. Have your men keep a wary eye out.”

“Will do.” Brain took another drag on his cigarette. His cheek twitched slightly as he exhaled.

FRANZ WOKE UP to find himself in a bed. It wasn’t his bed, but he recognized the room. He was at Zednik’s compound on the outskirts of the city. As he sat up, a faint hint of lavender reached his nostrils.

“You awake?” he heard a voice say from the darkness.

Someone stood up from a chair and moved to the window. He heard a whirring sound, and as the curtains were mechanically drawn back by the motor, the light from outside revealed Zednik’s tall figure standing by the window.

“What happened, Franz?” he said, moving over to the injured man and sitting on the edge of the bed.

“A man. We got into an argument and took it outside. Then I got hit and… and I don’t remember anything after that.”

“What man?” Zednik already knew what man, of course. Younger had told him everything.

“I don’t know. Some drunk.”

“Perhaps it was you who was the drunk.” Zednik took his tablet out, unfolded it and tapped on the screen. “This man?” he asked, showing Franz the picture of Sullivan.

Franz leaned forward. The bright light from the window was behind the tablet. He squinted. “I think so. Wait… is that that Sullivan guy?”

Zednik put his tablet away. “Yes, Franz, it is ‘that Sullivan guy.’ And you and Hans let him slip away.”

“Where is Hans?”

“Sullivan probably has him.”

Franz tried to get up but lay back down as his head began to swim. “Then where’s Sullivan?”

Zednik stood. “He’s working for Eugene Brain.”

“We have to get Hans out.” Franz started coughing.

Zednik picked up a glass of water from the side table and handed it to the injured man. “Drink this.”

Franz took a sip. “It tastes funny.”

Zednik withdrew the glass. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let a failure like this go unpunished.”

“What have you…?”

Franz began to see black spots in front of his eyes. They grew in size until he could see nothing. He heard the door to the room open, close, and then all was silence.

17

IT HAD BEEN two days. This prison, at least, was more tolerable than her last. It was a beautifully appointed room with an attached bathroom. But despite the comfortable furnishings, Kate was not at ease. Aside from a few fitful hours of sleep each night, she had stayed near the window, looking out on what the daylight hours revealed to be a luxurious compound. She was on the second story of the house and high walls, almost as tall as the top of her window, enclosed a courtyard with a fountain in the center of it. She could just see beyond the top of the wall and knew, from her observations, that this compound was isolated from the rest of the city. She could see the roofs of a few small buildings and beyond, only desert.

An older man with kind eyes but a sad face had been bringing her food. She could tell that he wasn’t a soldier. He was probably one of Zednik’s servants. Twice she had been able to peek out through the open door of the room as he left, and both times she could see that the hallway was guarded by a man with a rifle slung over one shoulder.

On the evening of her second day of captivity, the man entered with a tray as the sun was skirting the wall of the compound, soon to set. She tried again to speak with him. Every other time he had simply smiled, laid down her food and withdrawn.

Kate smiled kindly at him as he entered. “My guy Friday. What’s on the menu tonight?”

The man smiled back and set the tray on the small table by the window.

“Surely you can speak to me?”

“I’m sorry, miss, I have strict orders.”

Kate got up from the table and put her hand on his arm. “Please. It’s so quiet and lonely here. Just a minute of conversation?”

The man moved to the door and spoke with the guard in hushed tones. He closed the door and returned.

“What did you tell him?”

“That you want to confide something in me and that the information might be valuable to my employer.”

“And what will you tell him when he asks you what I confided?”

“Simply that you’re having female issues and require some extra amenities.”

Kate smiled again. “What if Zednik has this room under surveillance?”

“He doesn’t. Mr. Zednik is very careful about his privacy. None of his homes have any cameras or listening devices in them. He’s afraid they could be used to track his movements. He’s rather paranoid about technology in general, actually.”

“He’s kind of a freak, isn’t he?”

The man pursed his lips. “He’s very particular.”

Kate looked away, toward the window. “He’s a monster. How can you work for someone like that?”

“On Abilene, one doesn’t say no to a well-paying job. And any job that doesn’t require me to do anything despicable is acceptable to me.”

“You speak very well. You’re not like the other people on this planet, are you?”

“I suppose not. Early on, I realized that if I wanted a life away from Abilene I would have to improve myself, my mind. I hoped to be able to emigrate to an Assembly planet. Unfortunately, there aren’t any planets that want to take a chance on someone from this place.”

“But there are better planets than this that aren’t part of the Assembly. You could go to one of them.”

“I had hoped to do that one day. I began working for Mr. Zednik so I could save up some money. I didn’t realize that employment for him is not an optional position. You work for him until he decides to release you.”

“So you’re stuck.”

“Yes.”

“What’s your name?”

“Emerson, miss.”

“Is that your first or last name?”

“Last. My first name is Abraham.”

“Abraham Emerson. It’s a very elegant-sounding name.”

“I chose it myself. My parents, my father… I left that name and that life behind long ago.”

“Abraham, I have to tell you something. There’s a man coming for me, a man who won’t stop to worry about who you are. He’ll only see that you work for Zednik.”

“You speak of Richard Sullivan?”

“You know about him?”

“I overhear a lot while I’m serving Mr. Zednik.”

Kate put her hands around his. “Abraham, when this happens, when Rick comes, I want you to come here and stay with me. I’ll be able to protect you, to tell him you’re not like Zednik’s other men.”

Abraham smiled his sad smile. “I thank you for your concern, Miss Alexander.”

“When I’m free, I can take you back to Silvanus with me. My father can set you up in a position; you can have the life you deserve. Will you do it?”

“I will consider it.”

“Please, Abraham. Don’t die for a man like Zednik. Come to me when the shooting starts.”

Abraham got up from the table. “I’ve stayed too long; they’ll be suspicious.” He crossed to the door and knocked on it. As the guard opened it from the outside, Abraham turned back toward Kate. “Enjoy your meal, Miss Alexander. I’ll see that you receive the items that you have requested.” He bowed his head and departed.