Banished Worlds (7 page)

I turned Roberts face to me. “It’s red, are you okay?”

“You hit harder,” she replied loudly, like I was across the room. Her eyes darted to the eating guards, then back to me.

“You said there was a shower in there.” I pointed to the bathroom. “Fresh clothes also, clothes for both of us?”

“Yeah, the clothes are in there.”

I took her arm and walked into the bathroom. It had a solid door with a good lock. “All right, we have stuff to do today, so let’s try to get this done fast.” I reached to her shirt and started to unbutton it.

Roberts pushed my hands away and stepped back from me. “Go first and take your time, I’ll shower afterwards. I’ll be just outside.”

I shook my head. “Same time, we’ll get done faster, well maybe.” I reached back to her shirt.

“Really, maybe later,” she offered.

“Yes, now, this is an order.”

She brushed my hands away again, but took up undressing herself.

I pulled my clothes off and Roberts gasped at the bruises that covered much of my abdomen and shoulders. I pointed at the darkest one on my shoulder. “This one is from you.”

Roberts knew that was the shoulder she had grabbed me by, while on the ship. “The rest are Nelson’s agents and Chin.” I waved her toward the shower.

I could see by the look on her face that she was not comfortable with the shower order, but it was an order and she stepped into the shower. I joined her and set the shower to a hard, hot spray, then turned to Roberts.

She stood with her arms folded across her chest.

“I know you do not approve of this shower idea, but something occurred to me from Jenkins reaction to your comment about me going after Highman. What if he does hear and see everything? What if he has help, like the place is bugged?”

“So we’re in the shower to have the noise cover our conversation?”

“Mostly, yeah, that is the important reason.”

Roberts nodded.

“When you were looking around, did you see anything that might be cameras, or listening devices? I know this place is one camp fire above the stone age, but that might be one of Highman and the boss’ secrets, like the supply drops.”

“I didn’t notice any, but I will go over the rooms again. If we can find Price, have him look also. Being a research and development tech, he knows spy gear, old stuff and new, and he might see something I miss.” She looked off to one side, then back to me.

“I can’t promise that. We’ll try to locate Price, Nelson, and the others, but I don’t know.” I took hold of Roberts by the shoulders and held her out at arm’s-length. “Tell me about you and Price. What is he to you?”

“We’re not romantically involved if that is your question. We work well together.” She tried to twist free, but I held her, and she stopped.

I had learned to read people on Lark, so I studied my partner. She had issues with people, guys in particular, and that may be why she liked the armor, liked the opaque face shield. Somehow Price and Roberts got along.

“This isn’t the kind of work he is used to. Price is a tech, a lab guy. We’ve worked together before, setting up safe areas.” She looked up at me. “It was part of my training, but for him it was his normal work. We’ve set up a few surveillance and monitoring posts, more than a few.”

“Okay, that was his thing, so why is he here?”

“I talked him into it and got Nelson on board with the idea. It wasn’t supposed to be anything like this place.” She looked to my battered body. “This wasn’t supposed to be that way either.” Roberts reached out one hand and touched my bruised ribs.

“Well, one thing is for sure, without that second skin armor of Prices’, I’d have lost the fight to Chin.” I looked her down and back up, she showed no reaction.

“I’m sorry for this.”

“Why, you didn’t fight me?”

“Bender got you into this fight because he wanted me.”

“Understand this Roberts, you’re worth it. I don’t mean because of your looks, but because you have been invaluable on this job. I’ve got your back and I know you have mine.”

“Mia,” Roberts said. “When we’re alone, like now, you can call me Mia.”

“All right, Mia,” I said with a soft smile which she returned. “I’ll wash you and you can wash me, what do you say?”

Mia Roberts lost her smile. “I told you once I’m not washing your back or any other body parts.” She stepped into the spray of the shower and began to wash away our first few days on Tirus.

I stood and watched until she finished and left the shower. I cleaned up and got out to find Roberts dressed and waiting for me. I dressed and she handed me Chin’s pistol. I pulled her against my body, and she did not fight or struggle. I stuffed the pistol in the back of her pants and pulled her tucked in shirt out over the weapon.

“Don’t you think you should keep that?” she asked.

“Don’t you want to hold my weapon, keep me safe?” I asked with a wide grin.

Roberts did not grin back, she did not pull away, and she also did not hand me the pistol back. I squeezed her against me tighter and held her in place, and still she stayed. She let me hold her while she held a blank expression on her face. I knew I was being studied by her agent eyes, not her partner eyes. I released her, stepped away, and reached for the door.

Roberts caught my hand and gave me the Taser. “Now we are both armed, partner, in case my assets need saving.”

***

We walked into the main area, the living room of my quarters, to find Bikes there alone. “Bender said to wait here, is that okay, Boss?” He looked nervous to be around us.

“Yes, Bikes, that’s what I wanted.”

“I’m supposed to be out on the streets with my team. I’m not inside at daytime, not much.”

“Bikes, how well do you know your way around the compound?” Roberts asked.

He looked at her and studied Roberts like he did not know what she had asked him. Bikes smiled, brushed at his clothes, and reached out to her. “I’m Bikes, yellow section, demolition team.”

“I know, Bikes, I’m a spotter on your team,” Roberts said to him.

He twisted his head and looked closer at her.

I stood and watched them.

“Bikes, get down!” Roberts yelled, mere inches away from him.

“Little Boss,” he said, grinning ear-to-ear. “Jenkins told me spotter is Little Boss now.”

“Yeah, Bikes, Little Boss,” I said. “So Bikes, what’s the answer?”

“What answer?” he asked.

“How well do you know the compound?” Roberts repeated.

“Where do you want to go? Demolition teams go to the streets, Boss don’t go anywhere. Boss goes up here,” he explained to us.

“I’ve seen the streets. I want to go look at red and blue sections. Do you know those areas very well?”

He cringed. “Mean people in red section. I don’t like to go there. Let’s go to the streets.”

“Will you lead us through red section if Jenkins comes with us?”

“Jenkins is mean too, sure.”

We waited for Jenkins to return, then started our tour of the compound.

Blue section was the smallest of the sections in the compound. It had people, techs, or more accurately wanna be techs, working on broken junk that would never be able to be repaired. Our tour through there was a waste of time. I had hoped we would find Price.

I noticed as we entered the area marked red section that Bikes moved closer to Roberts. At first, I thought it was for protection, but by watching him, watching the mean people, I realized he was intent on protecting her. Several red section people approached her, and Bikes stepped between her and them. Jenkins and I walked a few steps behind them.

“Red section’s main job is to drag back the debris the demo teams bring down and separate it. The bulk of their workforce is in the compound all of the time, sorting and hauling supplies to the right area,” Jenkins explained.

“Danbeu!” Roberts called out and pointed.

I followed her finger, and standing at a table separating bricks from wood was Price.

“Do you know him?” Jenkins asked.

“He’s one of the prisoners that came in with us, name’s Price.”

“Good man?” Jenkins asked.

“Yes he is,” I replied. “How do I transfer him to our little crew?”

“Price, Boss wants to see you!” Jenkins yelled down from the raised walkway we were on.

Price jumped at his name, looking this way and that.

“Price, over here, now!” Jenkins repeated.

Price ran to the walkway, not risking looking up at Jenkins. Beside him another man came forward. He did look up at me. “Boss Danbeu, I’m Andy, red section leader.” He glanced at Jenkins.

“Jenkins, my yellow section leader.” I reached out to Price and dragged him closer to me, then turned his head up by his chin. I could see it in his face that he did not recognize me. I had seen the look on terrorized peoples’ faces before. He had been having a much worse time here than Roberts and me.

Roberts moved over next to me. “Let me talk to him.” She took ahold of his shirt and got down in his face. “Price, I’m Roberts, Roberts, remember that, okay? Now, time to talk to the boss.”

He did not react.

“It’s Roberts, look at me,” she ordered.

“Roberts.” Price seemed to focus a little bit. “Roberts,” he said. “Oh god, Roberts, run they’ll hurt you, run.” Price started shaking like he was freezing.

I grabbed his shirt and pulled him to me. “Now get it together, Price. Uncle Harry doesn’t want to have to slap you around!” I yelled at him.

His eyes focused on me, and who I was. “Danbeu,” he said and looked at me.

“Roberts, take him to my quarters, so I can question him later.” I pushed him back her direction.

I turned to Andy. “It’s been a rough day or two for him from the looks of it.”

“He has had a couple of run-ins with a few people. And you know how that kind of thing goes. You either win and everyone leaves you alone, or you don’t.”

“In which case no one leaves you alone,” Jenkins finished.

“He didn’t win.” Andy shrugged his shoulders. “You can’t baby-sit people, there are just too many other issues going on around here.”

Price and Roberts were talking in low voices off to the left of our group.

Roberts glanced my direction.

“Does he know anything about Nelson?” I asked and got a nod from her.

“Who’s Nelson?” Jenkins asked.

“The guy that came in with him, nosey little guy,” Andy said.

Roberts joined us. “Nelson is in what passes for medical around here. He ran into some of the guards last night.”

“Nosing around,” Andy added.

“Jenkins, go to medical and collect Nelson. Price and Roberts, go back to my quarters. Andy, you’re my new tour guide. Bikes you’re with me.”

I started to walk the path again, Andy a step behind me. I did not look back, but heard Jenkins raise his voice to Bikes, ordering him to follow me.

Bikes did not want to leave Little Boss and was telling Jenkins this even though he had his orders. I put that little piece of information aside; she might one day need a protector when I was not around. Bikes had already started fulfilling that roll.

“Boss Danbeu, report to The Highman, Boss Danbeu, report to The Highman.” The message came over the building public address system.

“Andy, where is The Highman?” I asked. “Where do I find him?”

“I don’t know, boss, I’ve never been there.”

Travel was not one of the things permitted around here. I noticed out of the corner of my eye Bikes talking to himself and shaking his head. “Bikes, take me to The Highman.”

“No, boss, you don’t want to go there, boss.”

“Yes I do, now show me,” I ordered. “Tell me how to get there and you can go with Little Boss.”

“Can’t go with Little Boss, Jenkins said no, got to stay with Boss Danbeu.”

“Tell me how to reach The Highman, tell me now, Bikes.”

Bikes pointed through the workers of red section off to our right.

“Okay, Bikes, go back to Little Boss,” I told the frightened man.

He shook his head and started pushing his way through the crowds to Highman.

I snagged Andy’s arm and pushed him after Bikes.

It was discovered on our walk that the compound had an east gate like the northern gate the teams went out through. The east gate led to one place, Highman. It had a lot of guards on the gate and roving patrols. As we reached the gate, Andy and Bikes drifted back behind me. I noticed them, but said nothing.

“I’m Danbeu, The Highman called for me.”

“We know,” one guard said to me. “Follow us, your men stay here.” The guard pointed at Andy and Bikes.

“Andy, see Bikes gets back to yellow section, then return to your work area.”

“Yes, sir,” Andy replied.

“Home unharmed,” I added and turned to the guards. “Okay, lead on.”

We walked through the east gate and across the open area to a building. At the door, a guard motioned me to enter. With my attention on the doorknob, he slugged me from behind. I fell against the door, and he hit me a second time. I saw his grin, through my blurred vision, then passed out.