Sovereign Hope (7 page)

I told her the
truth. “Been better.” I rolled my shoulders, trying to rid myself
of a killer case of pins and needles. Their hushed words replayed
in my head. What hadn’t they told me? Whatever it was, it was far
too late to do anything about it now. Daniel would easily be able
to take me down if I tried to escape. He would probably enjoy the
opportunity, given the way he continued to stare at me in the
mirror with that clenched jaw of his. “Where are we going?” I
asked. If I knew that, then at least I could plan which direction
to start running in.

“
We’re about two hours southeast of LA,” Agatha replied, “way
out in the desert. We set up shop here a while back to avoid any
unwanted attention.”

Great. The boonies.
So much for
making a mad dash for home. The urge to start screaming and
demanding to be released was almost irresistible.
There could be a reasonable
explanation
, I thought, which was swiftly
followed by,
Yeah, right. What are the
odds your luck’s gonna change at this late stage in the game?
Approximately zero.

I gazed out of
the window into the inky black but couldn’t make out a great deal:
a bare, lonely tree, what looked like abandoned oil drums,
discarded and rusting by the side of the road, and not much else in
between. We were way out in the scrub. I slumped back against the
seat and closed my eyes.

We drove on
down the same dirt track for another five minutes, the tires
kicking up pale red dust behind the Charger as Daniel sped
dangerously fast into the night. Before long he cut the headlights
and we rolled along in the dark before coming to a stop.

I squinted but
could only just make out the silhouette of two large, imposing
shapes up ahead. Daniel bolted as soon as his foot left the gas
pedal, leaving us behind, and I pulled myself out of the car,
dragging the duffel behind me. It was no use. I couldn’t do it. I
had to find out or forfeit my sanity.

“
I heard what you said, Agatha. What aren’t you telling
me?”

“
You did, huh? Thought as much.” Agatha kicked at a small red
rock, sending it skittering.

“
You’ve gotta forgive me for asking. I’m running kinda low on
trust right now.”

“
Of course. You would have found out pretty quickly, anyway.
We have another guest with us. His name is Aldan. He’s one of the
Immortals.”

I squinted at Agatha, like it was my vision playing tricks on
me and not my hearing. Because that was the only explanation: I
could
not
have
heard her correctly.

“
One of the guys who’s trying to kill me?” Surely if they were
trying to protect me the last thing they would do was take me
right
to
one of
them.

“
Before you start panicking, Aldan is with us. We’re probably
more with
him
,
actually.” Agatha flashed her teeth in a smile that, in the dark,
looked more menacing than reassuring. I glanced up at the looming
shadows of the two large buildings ahead of us, not a single light
visible from within, and shuddered.

The structures
turned out to be impossibly big silos. The closest one was
blistered with fading, peeling white paint and pock-marked with
rust. On either side of it stood high dunes that would be difficult
if not impossible to climb. They were made up of the same dry, red
dirt as everything else. There was no vegetation or signs of life
out there in the scrub. It sure as hell didn’t look very secure or
welcoming from where I was standing. And there was a Reaver
inside.

“
So… this guy doesn’t want to hurt me?” Maybe being told again
would somehow dispel the crawling sensation creeping up my
back.

Agatha’s quiet laughter rang out into the dark. She gave me a
gentle dig on the arm. She had skipped out on the whole
getting to know you
thing. She’d also clearly forgotten that I hadn’t exactly
been polite to her in the fortune teller’s tent.

“
You trusted us enough to come here,” she said. “Just a little
more faith and you’ll see for yourself. Aldan’s the sweetest guy
you’ll ever meet. And really…he couldn’t hurt you even if he wanted
to.”

We made our
way slowly around the side of the first silo, me following with my
hand on Agatha’s shoulder as a guide. I was completely night-blind.
I must have tripped at least eight times. The ground was uneven,
countless rocks protruding from the worn path that encircled the
perimeter. Thankfully, Agatha was sure-footed and confident. She
had clearly walked this path a hundred times before.

The door to
the entrance had been removed, and the gaping hole that Agatha
disappeared into seemed even blacker than outside. Not wanting to
walk into the void, I stood at the edge of the doorway and gulped,
perceiving the large empty space ahead of me.

“
Come on, kiddo.” Agatha’s voice pricked me through the
silence and a small hand reached back and found mine, gently
pulling me in. As I stepped forward, a single beam shot up from the
ground to illuminate a thin yellow pillar of light. It traveled
unbroken in the dusty air until it reached the roof high
overhead.

Daniel’s torso
emerged from a service hatch in the ground a few feet ahead of us,
a flashlight firmly grasped in his right hand. He thrust out his
other hand. He wanted me to follow him down into the small hole.
The prospect of climbing down into the unknown, even with the
promise of the light he was carrying, was not a good one. His look
of impatience spurred me on, however, and I swallowed my fear.

Daniel scooted
around so I could squeeze by, holding onto my arm as I lowered
myself down beside him. My feet dangled in space before they made
contact with a metal rung bolted to the side of the tunnel. When I
had both feet balanced on the rung, he let go of my arm. I wobbled
for a terrifying second before reaching out to find another rung at
head height, clasping onto it for dear life.

Once the
thundering of my heart slowed to a loud thud in my ears, I could
make out the sound of him descending below. I cursed him under my
breath and lowered myself, searching with my foot for the next
step. I found it and realized they weren’t spaced that far apart.
It was easy enough to make my way down one step at a time, but my
arms and legs still trembled uncontrollably. Agatha grunted above
as she pulled the cover back on the service hatch, then the
darkness was ultimate and complete.

…
Twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four…

My foot hit
solid ground. The light from Daniel’s flashlight was out, and the
only sound to disturb the silence was Agatha’s hurried descent. The
petite woman jumped the last few rungs, the air huffing out of her
lungs as she landed with a thud beside me.

“
I’m sorry about him.” Agatha found my hand again. I squirmed,
not knowing where Daniel was in the pitch black. “We both know this
place inside out. We mostly don’t bother with flashlights. He’s
being difficult, though. He should have left you the
light.”

So he’d
already gone ahead. I clenched my teeth. This guy really was a
jerk. Agatha moved off, and I held onto her shoulder again,
trusting that she wouldn’t walk me into any walls. I closed my
eyes, finding that for some reason this gave me a sense of
proximity.

“
How long have you guys been down here for?” I asked. The
claustrophobia was already building in my chest.

“
Five years,” Agatha replied. It sounded as if it were the
first time she had realized that fact herself. “Five years flies
by, I tell ya, kiddo.”

“
And how long do you think
I’ll
have to stay down here?” My
heart sank when she didn’t answer right away.

“
You can leave whenever you wish,” Agatha said eventually.
“I’d just hate for you to be out there on your own. You’re so much
safer here with us.”

This was
crazy. Less than two days ago life was as normal as it ever had
been since my mom disappeared, and now I was going to be living
down a hole for the rest of my days.

Agatha turned
sharply to the left. Further on, another left-hand turn was
visible, lit by the unmistakable hue of fluorescent strip lights.
Ahead lay Aldan. And Daniel. For a second, I almost wished I could
stay back in the dark.

“
There’s no need to worry,” Agatha reassured me.

I dropped my
arm to my side now that I could see well enough, chasing away my
cowardice. “I’ll be fine,” I said.

We reached the
end of the corridor and followed it around, leading us straight
into a vast, open hangar. The ceiling was high, dotted with
countless strip lights and the occasional residential light
fitting. They had a quirky effect, kind of like hanging a
chandelier in a prison.

The place was
huge. Daniel was out of his Union coat, propped against a concrete
support pillar with his arms folded across his chest. For the first
time I could see what he was wearing properly: a loose-fitting grey
v-neck t-shirt and a pair of ratty jeans with holes worn below the
pockets. He watched as we entered with a strange, intense look on
his face. His eyes followed me as I stepped into the room—part
workshop, part office, part home.

Directly ahead
on the floor, a dismantled car engine lay on a grease-smeared
sheet. Tall, fire-engine red tool cabinets stood to either side.
Their halves were pulled open to reveal wrenches and spanners in a
million different sizes. Behind that was what could only be
described as a mechanical graveyard. Lawnmowers, microwaves,
computers, an old printing press. Parts lay everywhere. A snake pit
of multicolored cables, wound and tangled together in places,
covered every inch of the floor close by.

Agatha grunted
as she followed my gaze. “He may be a pain in my ass but the guy
can fix just about anything. Shame we have nowhere to put any of
this crap.”

I walked ahead
and hung a left towards a group of four computer desks. They were
piled high with stacks of paper and various maps, the only evidence
of any computer equipment being the soft hum and occasional
flashing light that could be made out beneath the chaos.

The walls were
covered with notes and papers, post-its and photos. As I followed
behind Agatha, I noted, dismayed, that a number of them were of
me.

“
Sorry, kiddo,” Agatha said. “We’ve been watching you for a
while. I hope that doesn’t make you uncomfortable.”

A particularly
unflattering picture of me eating breakfast cereal in my pajamas,
mouth half open, hair on end as usual, stood out from all the
others. “No, not at all,” I lied, looking up in time to see Daniel
hide a wicked smirk. He looked great when he smiled. For a second I
was torn between anger at his cruel sense of humor, and how
disarming it was when he looked happy. By the time I’d recovered
from the unwelcome idea that he was actually very, very attractive,
he had regained his stony-faced expression of nonchalance. I glared
at him.

“
I thought you said you knew where I lived from my insurance
card.”

He rolled his
eyes to the ceiling. “Sue me.”

I had to pass
him as I walked by the computer desks towards the rear of the
hangar, and the skin of my cheeks prickled as his gaze followed. I
looked to the floor, equally embarrassed and annoyed that I should
react to him in any way.

On the far
side of the hangar, a regular, modern kitchen had been outfitted,
and opposite was a lounge area with flat-screen TV, stacks of
unopened DVDs and a huge sheepskin rug. I paced over to the kitchen
counter, tracing circles on the cold black marble. I pursed my
lips, studying the bright red four-seater sofa. “This may seem like
a stupid question but how on earth did you get everything down
here? That service hatch was three feet wide at best.”

Agatha smiled.
“There are other ways in. We just seal them up when we’re not using
them.”

“
Huh. And so…well, where’s this Aldan guy, then?”

Not knowing
might have been better, but the Reaver’s absence was glaringly
obvious. Daniel stiffened at my words. Agatha shot him a sidelong
glance before answering.

“
He’s in his room. He won’t be bothering you. Daniel and I
take care of him, so you really don’t need to worry.”

“
Take care of him?”

“
Aldan’s bed-bound. It’s a complicated story. I think we
should leave that for another time,” she said.

Complicated.
Was there anything left
in the world that wasn’t complicated?

Daniel pushed
away from the pillar he’d been leaning against, his arms still
folded across his body. “Just don’t bother him, okay,” he snapped.
“He’s sick, and he doesn’t need strangers harassing him.”

“
Daniel!” Agatha cried, shocked. “Go and see if he needs
anything.” Her face took on a hard look. He met her gaze and held
it there for a second. She didn’t back down, so he spun on his heel
and marched out, the muscles in his back tense with hostility. He’d
really perfected the angry walk-away.

“
I’m sorry. He’s very protective over Aldan.”

“
It’s okay, really…” I was feeling more and more unwelcome by
the minute. Hadn’t he just been the one to convince me to go with
them?

“
He’ll probably be much more amicable after a good night’s
sleep. Don’t worry about it.”

I bit my lower
lip and fixed my eyes on my feet, wondering what constituted a good
night’s sleep around here, given that it was already past five in
the morning. Up there somewhere, fifty feet above our heads, the
blackness of the night would be lightening to a bruised deep blue
as the sun threatened to peek over the horizon, heralding the start
of a new morning. Yet down here, there was no way to know whether
it was night or day without the benefit of a watch.