I spent the next few hours in the little copse by the truck stop, briefing the saurians on exactly what had happened, and laying plans for the next few days. They were amazed to learn that I could override electronic systems.
‘You mean that you can’t?’
‘No, only via a radio link through a headnet – but the systems have to be set up for that.’ Primo was silent for a while, then concluded, ‘well, it is a truism that hybrids are often stronger than either of the contributory species, and that seems to be the case with you. I wonder what else you can do?’
Later I had a brief nap to recharge my mental batteries, and ate and drank some provisions I had lifted from another shop. I was beginning to settle into a life of petty crime; but at least I wasn’t leaving any fingerprints behind. Then I called Richards. He sounded brisk and upbeat.
‘I’ve managed to speak to some of my contacts in the US intelligence services – I’ve known them personally for years and can trust them. They know that you were both taken by an unofficial group, which has links within their services. They are not at all happy about this situation, and have done their best to locate Freya. They can’t get her released, but they believe that she is probably being held at a country house owned by this group, in Virginia.’
He gave me the address, to the west of the town of Winchester, and rang off with a final ‘good hunting!’ I contacted Primo, who had taken over the watch, and asked him to plot me a course. Using the signal from my headnet he was able to pin down my location to just outside Wichita, Kansas, as I had thought, and used internet maps to plot the best route for me to take. The distance was well over a thousand miles.
Many hours of switching between trucks followed. It was a gamble not knowing where the trucks were going – I could hardly ask the drivers – so I relied on the saurians to keep track of my position and tell me if I was going in the wrong direction. I felt I was playing snakes and ladders, winning on one trip then getting a setback on the next. I was still a long way away when night fell, so stopped off near a motel and checked the cars outside. Bypassing their electronic locks, security and ignition systems was an easy task, so I checked several cars before finding one with a full tank.
A seemingly endless night of driving along countless miles of straight roads followed, with a switch to a different car from another motel when my original acquisition began to run low on fuel. I felt consumed by a desperate anxiety to reach Freya as quickly as possible, especially after Tertia had brought me up to speed with events since my capture.
‘There has been much speculation about your disappearance. Some argue that you have been captured and killed by the people who attacked the Long Island house. The disappearance of Freya has also been noticed and the two events are being tentatively linked – some are joking that you have eloped together. Others claim that you are our tool for achieving world domination and that now you have served your immediate purpose, you are being held in reserve for some future event.’
‘What about the wider picture?’
‘The world remains deeply divided about you, and us. The technical information we provided has been verified, which has helped a great deal. The UN is actively engaged in brokering arrangements to make the lower-level technologies widely available. For the first time, there is a sense of optimism among those supporting a technological solution to the environmental problem.’
‘There’s a “but” there somewhere…’
‘Yes, there is still intense opposition. Not so much to the environmental help we can provide but to the proposals to find ways of restricting the birth rate and reducing the world’s population. This is led by many religions who regard the idea as blasphemous, and they have turned many parts of the world against us. As you can imagine, the USA is particularly divided. I’m afraid that your brother has been outspoken in his condemnation of the idea.’
I sighed, wondering how a man could be so intelligent and so concerned to do good, yet be channelled by his religious beliefs into rejecting the only long-term solution to the problems faced by humanity.
I finally reached my destination as a cold dawn was breaking, the first snap of early winter in the air. It was a large estate in hilly, wooded country. I drove past the entrance gates, which were high wire-mesh affairs in an equally high fence; I detected various sensors and intruder alarms. I could not see the house from the road. I drove past and parked off the road on the opposite side, down a short track which concealed the car from passers-by.
I walked over to the fence, traced and disabled the security systems with a few moments’ thought and vaulted over. After passing through a belt of trees I came out into a wide open grassy space, white with early frost, with a house in the middle. It was large, with a columned portico on the front, and its white paint was glowing orange in the dawn light. A wooded ridge of higher land rose behind the building. I scanned the house and discovered half a dozen men, all but one asleep – apparently they had not imagined that I could locate them so quickly, as they seemed to be taking no special precautions. I also found Freya. I woke her up with a nudge and the next few moments of contact I will leave to your imagination.
I felt a fierce grin spread across my face as I froze the image from the external CCTV cameras and began to run towards the house – this was payback time. Three dark shadows sped across the grass towards me. I scanned the ferocious little minds of the attack dogs and pressed the appropriate mental buttons. They skidded to a halt and stood for a moment as I ran past them, then turned and sped after me. I had become their pack leader and they were mine, now – weapons to be launched with a thought. I accelerated as I reached the front door and smashed into it with such violence that it was hurled down the hallway. I sensed the startled response of the guard, the others groggily beginning to waken. My mind swept over them, dropping them into unconsciousness. I ran up the stairs and broke open the door to Freya’s room. She was standing fully dressed in the centre of the room, and looked at me with a wry smile on her face.
‘Like the colour – it complements your eyes.’
I looked down and saw that my skin was a flaring crimson, just beginning to fade. ‘Can you sort out some food and drink to take with us? I have some work to do.’
I went around the guards, checking their IDs and making adjustments to the patterns of their minds. The leader I woke and grilled for a while. I was not gentle with his mind and he crashed into unconsciousness when I released him. Then I went back to the hall where Freya was waiting, clutching a couple of bags. We walked out onto the grass where the dogs sat; they gave brief wags of acknowledgement. I contacted Secundo and we waited. There was a short pause before a shattering explosion ripped up the turf on the lawn a hundred metres away – the dogs jumped up and barked with shock. We walked over to the patch of torn earth and burnt grass, collected the silvery ovoid and put on the headnets inside. Freya sighed with relief as she regained contact with the saurians. I took out the patch from the ovoid and passed it to her. She pressed it against her arm. This time, we didn’t bother to watch it being absorbed.
We took one of the cars parked around the back – a big SUV which fortunately had its side and rear windows darkened – and drove off, leaving the dogs looking forlorn. I contacted Secundo, spelling out what I wanted him to do. ‘These are the details of the men in the house, plus those of the men who control them and where they are based. I want you to send emails to every news agency, describing how we were captured, where we were held and by whom.’ He agreed and signed off.