Soulless (The Immortal Gene Trilogy Book 1) Page 13

  Diesel and I exchanged confused glances. Frankie hit the buzzer again, prompting the garage to close behind us as the ground shuddered and tip forward. A concealed hatch opened down as the floor dropped, rolling the car into an underground tunnel held up by wooden mine shafts.

  “Holy crap!” I twisted around my seat, unable to hide my amazement. The headlights hit the muddy cave walls as the curled tails of tree roots scraped over the windows and roof. We drove through the tunnel for fifteen minutes when a crack of light shone through the front window. We drove through a tangle of vines that blew open for us, opening up to an isolated dirt clearing surrounded by trees and shrubs. I twisted around to see the iron wall a good few hundred metres behind us. “Okay, I’ll admit. That’s pretty cool.”

  Vance laughed. “If we catch you trying to sneak in using our secret base, we’ll blow the whole street up.”

  I looked at Diesel to find him smiling. He caught my glance and winked. I cleared my throat. “So, who did you say you worked for again?”

  “We didn’t,” Frankie vaguely answered.

  “You have your secrets and we have ours. Only way to stay on top of the game around here,” Vance chipped in.

  “I think it’s a little unfair. You stole our stuff and read all of our secrets.”

  I caught the fast flash of eye contact between Vance and Diesel. There was something off about the look, but I couldn’t pinpoint what. “We don’t know all of them.”

  We got out onto the main road leading away from the city and the iron fence. The further we drove, the more my knuckles uncurled and my heart sat more comfortably in my chest. We were driving along a narrow road that was bordered with large trees pressed right up to the road bank. We drove into the sunset, sitting at a comfortable one-hundred kilometre per hour. I gasped and pressed my nose up to the window. I had never been outside the city walls before. The trees stood straight like brown soldiers, expanding over the mountainside and clung into the dirt with their tangled roots. I looked at Diesel to find him staring out the window too with his eyes hardened. He was snarling again, did that boy ever have a nice thought?

  Frankie thumbed through the data on the tablet with her feet kicked up on the dashboard. She suddenly sat up. “There. I found something.”

  “What is it?”

  “There’s a note here about a guy 785XX3, calls himself Rodger DiMellow. One of the top wolves in the Mad Dog pack, last seen at the gentlemen’s club down in Old County. Got a DUI and an arrest on assault charges. Charming guy, broke a police officer’s nose before blowing up the whole station.” She leaned over to show Vance the picture. Rodger’s large head looked partially collapsed, probably thanks to too many punches to the head that his skull formed ridges like that on a knuckle.

  “Old County? That’s what, like a week’s drive to get there,” Vance groaned.

  “Well, you don’t have to come,” Diesel suggested.

  “It would be faster if we could fly. I’ll see if I can get in contact with Vic, maybe she still has that working plane,” Frankie proposed.

  “You know someone with a plane? What the hell are you doing scavenging in China Town for?” I asked.

  “We have a job to do. Nothing like being a beggar to make a person feel invisible.”

  Frankie leaned back and kicked her feet back up onto the dashboard. “Another five hours down this road, then we’ll make a turn off at the caravan park. From there, it’ll be a six-hour drive right up north to Queens. That’s where Vic is. She can help us out.”

  I nested into the curve of the chair and turned my face toward the window. I must’ve fallen asleep at some point as in the next minute I am being jerked awake by Diesel whacking me on the shoulder. I bolted upwards and glanced around. It was hitting sunset again, but we were caught in a massive traffic jam. On the single road, there was nowhere to go and no chances of throwing a U-turn unless you’re happy driving your car into a steep ditch. Both Diesel and I shifted over into the centre to see through the front window.

  “What’s all this about?”

  “I dunno. I’ll get out and scout ahead,” Frankie suggested as she went to open the door. As soon as she did, there was a sudden crunch as a robotic arm shot out and slammed her door shut. We all snapped around in our seats toward its direction. From behind the car, a Sweeper knelt down and glanced into the passenger’s window to address Frankie. Immediately, I looked away and Diesel cupped his hand over his eyes.

  “Stay in your vehicles,” it ordered before pushing off the car, making it rock. I chanced a peek to see at least another two Sweepers pace down the line of cars, checking into their windows and ensuring all passengers remained in their seats. I twisted around to check out the back; there were another six cars behind us and five cars in front.

  “This is not good.”

  “A random patrol?”

  “They’ve obviously widened their search. We can’t stay here.”

  “Let’s make a run for it; we can lose them in the trees,” Vance suggested.

  The people in the car in front of us must’ve had the same idea. The driver kicked open his door, furious and frustrated as he swung a pistol into view. The Sweeper stepped up beside him, cupped the back of his crown and electrocuted him until the man’s body seized up. As he dropped, the Sweeper stepped around and forced the remaining car doors open. It then dragged two other women out, which it immediately electrocuted as well until they dropped into a pile of bodies on top of the driver. Effortlessly, the Sweeper hooked its fingers around the bottom of the vehicle and flipped it off the shoulder of the road so it rolled into the ditch. The unconscious bodies were then loaded into the back of the police vehicle at the front. Almost though it could read our thoughts, the Sweeper’s head turned toward our car as it slammed the back of the patrol door shut.

  “So… plan B anyone?” Frankie asked.

  “Yeah, maybe running on foot isn’t the best idea.” My voice wavered. “I know what it’s like being fried by those things and it bloody hurts. The last thing we want is them yanking us out by our ankles.”

  “Well, we can’t very well just stroll up and let them scan you. How about you slip into the trunk?” Vance suggested as he flexed his fingers over the steering wheel.

  “You really think they won’t check the trunk?”

  “Well, what do you suggest?”

  I gulped down. Everywhere I looked there were Sweepers patrolling the aisles, marching up and down the cars with their long, metallic bodies so close they could scrap the paint off the doors. There was no way we could outrun them. The Sweepers were just as thick as the trees that cocooned the road, with one swing of their monkey like arms and we’d be sliced in half.

  My heart beat heavily. The sudden possibility that we may not get away seeped into my thoughts. Not only would I be sentence backed to Alpha, but I’d be accused of Doctor’s Fitzgerald murder.

  “What should we do?”

  “Just act normal,” Diesel spoke up. I looked toward him; he was the only one who appeared calm as he cupped his chin into his palm. “They won’t catch us.”

  The car in front of us moved forward as we sat third in the queue. “How can you be so calm?”

  “I’ve seen this many times before.” He assured. “It’s the tension test. They drill the fear of being scanned into you, hoping that the guilty ones give themselves up by trying to run or smashing their car into the woods. If you act normal, they’ll let us pass.”

  “That’s a stupid plan,” I hissed. The car in front of us shifted into drive and drove off. We were now second in the queue.

  Frankie hunched her shoulders up to her neck as she sat anxiously upright in her seat. “They have real scanners there. We have to run. It’s our only option.”

  “No!” Diesel barked over the top, “If you open that car door we’re as good as dead. Just shut up and act natural or I’ll shoot you myself.”

  We all sucked in our breaths as the car in front of us moved forward and the officer
waved us up. In his palm, he held a flat phone scanner. I clenched up in my seat as the car eased forward and stopped beside the man.

  Vance wound the window down. “What’s all this for?”

  “Just a standard procedure, just look this way…”

  BANG! BANG!

  Diesel fired two rounds into the guard’s chest cavity as the window shattered. Everyone in the car jumped and froze up. The Sweepers spun in our direction as Vance slammed his foot down onto the accelerator and the wheels screeched. There was a sudden jerking motion as the car lunged forward only to have us fall headfirst toward the nose of the car. The back wheels lifted up off the road, keeping us immobile. I spun around to see a Sweeper hoist the car up in its attempt to flip it over onto its side and down the ditch. Quickly, I pulled the shotgun from the backpack, pumped the fore-end and blasted through the Sweeper’s torso. I fired twice, one for each elbow until its arms snapped at the ballpoint and dropped off. The car hit the ground with a hard thump, the wheels still spinning rapidly as we lurched forward.

  The car tail spun out of control, veering toward the ditch just as Vance managed to correct it back onto course. I sat up to look out the shattered back window. Behind us, chaos ensued. Everyone clambered out of their cars, guns firing, and the Sweepers were swinging at them as though they were flies.

  “Just drive, go, go, go, go!” Frankie gripped onto the door handle as the car flew off into the distance. We must have been speeding for a good twenty minutes before the car started to slow. Above the panicked thumping of my heart, there was a continuous thump coming from the back wheel.

  “Oh, shit, I think we’ve blown a tyre.” The car wobbled with a steady click of the rim hitting the road. “I can’t keep going. We have to pull over.”

  “Just pull over in here; we should be able to walk the rest.” Frankie pointed toward a small clearing in the woods. Vance switched all the lights off so we rolled along the path in near pitch darkness. We parked the car beneath the thickest shrub we could find before scrambling out. The tyre had completely blown and all that was left were shreds of rubber.

  I heard Vance sigh, “I’m guessing we don’t have a spare in the trunk?”

  “Afraid not,” Frankie said before she turned around and motioned back to the road. “We can’t use the car anymore anyway. The Sweepers would’ve tagged the number plate and model type. The caravan park is just up the road. We can rest there for a few hours and then work out how to get to Queens.”

  We climbed to the top of the bank and started to follow the road toward the caravan park. There was a slim, dark billboard a few hundred-metres down that Frankie pointed out to be the entrance. Despite the horrible circumstances that left me in the middle of the country road, tag-teamed with a convicted psychopath and a pair of spy siblings, the quiet walk was actually quite calming. The whole forest took on a chilled slumber as the stars overhead blanketed the sky like a glittery quilt. I craned my head back to star gaze as I followed behind the pack. It was beautiful; I hadn’t seen the stars in such clarity before. Most of my twenty-year-old life I had looked out the same barred window, a clear view right into a crumpled street and decaying ruins of my neighbours.

  I glanced back at Diesel and stopped. Even though his plan had worked, he didn’t seem at all happy with our circumstances. For a man who was always snarling, even I could tell he was upset. He had my father’s backpack on, and in his tightened grip, he carried the rifle. As he walked, he dropped with a limp.

  “Hey Diesel. Wait up!” I called out to him. He slowed for a second, looked at me side on before speeding up. I quicken to catch up with him. “Is something wrong?” Giving me the cold shoulder, Diesel merely turned and kept walking.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN:

  The camp was quiet as we made our way along the fence before scaling over the wire. The park circled around a main playground in the centre, a tennis court and an area for picnics. It would have made an awesome family retreat if it weren’t for the overgrown wildlife overtaking the entire area. The first few caravans we went up to were bolted shut, every door and window under heavy lock and key; they almost looked like prison cells. Vance signalled us over toward an old, crusted yellow caravan near the back of the park. Weeds ate up the sides and rust chewed away the shell. Whoever this belonged to they hadn’t been back in years. It already had a busted lock and an old couch dumped out front. The couch had deteriorated so it was stripped down to strong springs and a sturdy wooden frame. Inside the cramped caravan was a small kitchen, a single table and a bunk bed. It was trashed with pages of pornography and old cigarette butts.

  Vance and Diesel took the papers and used them as kindling to start up the fire. Once lit, we sat around the flames with our fingers stretched out for warmth. It was well into the night and were alone in the park so the crackle of the fire carried deep into the woods. Diesel had walked off to find small twigs and logs. I heard the crunch of his footsteps as he wandered into the darkness behind the campsite.

  For the next two hours, I zoned out completely. The whispers of the fire, the quiet nightlife, the open space with fresh air, I could really get used to this lifestyle. All that was missing was a hot drink and some warm food. Lots and lots of food.

  Frankie looked at me. I caught her gaze through the wispy smoke as I peeked up from the flames. She smiled. “Cool haircut by the way,” she said it with genuine kindness, but I still felt defensive.

  I ran my hand across the prickly patch on my left side, before tangling my fingers with the rest of my longer locks down my right. I still had ninety-percent of my hair left, but that small shaven patch felt like it overtook my whole head. I looked away, biting my tongue.

  Vance cleared his throat. “So, what’s going on with the two of you?”

  “Why don’t you tell me about you guys first?” I said with a little too much bite in my voice.

  “Still don’t trust us?”

  “Why should I?”

  Frankie sighed. “Fine, if it’ll make you feel more at ease, this is our back story. Our parents were retired breeders and we were their last batch, so we didn’t know any other kids growing up. Which meant Vance and I did everything together; even when we started to go through the transition, we promised each other it wouldn’t change anything between us.”

  Vance scooted closer. “It was easier for us, I had already met Frankie many times from my previous lives, so to be reborn as her twin was a sign.”

  “A sign? For what?” I asked.

  “That we were meant to be together. That our souls are matched and that no matter what happens, we’ll find each other in the next cycle,” Frankie chipped in with a grin.

  Vance added, “We’ve been part of each other’s previous four lives. I was once her teacher, and then she was my babysitter. We took the same entrance exam to get into IUO University. Heck, we even got into the same line of jobs just a year apart. Now this? You can’t say this doesn’t mean something.” Vance looked at Frankie as a smile pinched his cheeks. “It’s nice knowing you’re not alone out there.”

  A pang of jealously hit me. Why couldn’t Annie and I be like that?

  “Now, you tell us how you and Diesel know each other?” Frankie asked again.

  I wrapped my arms around myself tighter. “I met him in a prison cell. He saved my life, twice.”

  “It’s unusual for strangers to look out for each other. It’s obvious he’s protective of you, aggressively protective. How long have you known him?”

  “Not that long, but we share a common interest.”

  “And that is?”

  I grinned. “Survival.”

  “You don’t seem the type to be locked up in a place like Alpha. What did you do? Steal some rich guy’s organs?”

  I scrunched my face up, “No. Nothing like that.”

  “So what, shoot down some Elites?”

  “No.”

  “Set fire to the parliament house?”

  “No, no.”

  Behind me, Diesel
returned with an armful of sticks. Without saying a word, he walked up to the fire pit, dumped his handful, turned around and headed back out.

  “Hey, wait a sec!” Frankie called up. Diesel didn’t slow as he marched back out into the darkness. Frankie looked to me for answers, “What’s his deal?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. I barely know the guy.”

  “There’s something about him I don’t trust,” Vance started. “He looks like he’s waiting for the perfect moment to slash my throat.”

  I twisted back around to look in Diesel’s direction. “He can’t be that bad of a guy. He did save my life. He saved all of our lives.”

  Vance scoffed, “What he did was extremely risky. If we were caught, then all of us would’ve been blacklisted and imprisoned.”

  “I’m not saying he always makes the best decisions, but it did work.”

  Frankie quickly intervened, “You still haven’t answered us. Why were you locked up in Alpha prison?”

  I shuffled back. “Actually… I didn’t do anything worth being imprisoned for,” I admitted and bowed my head. “I… my parents… it’s just some people, like Doctor Fitzgerald, heard about my condition and thought I was the best test subject. I never really understood what he was trying to get out of me.”

  “His notes aren’t exactly clear,” Frankie admitted. “Vance and I were reading over them. He had some really radical ideas but there was something missing in his prognosis.”

  “Well, he didn’t exactly get to finish the job.”

  Vance rubbed his palms together before crossing them over his chest. “So, tell us about what you did before Alpha? You’re a complete mystery.”

  “There’s nothing mysterious about me. I had a family like most people and a younger sister who was just starting her transition. Nobody wanted to hire some dropout freak with no soul imprint so I never got a job.” I shrugged. “That place just wasn’t for me. Nothing but fear, prostitutes, junkies and politicians with sticks up their asses.”