Cripps stepped up to Maxwell while the Sandoz hung back, their eyes scouring the library.
‘It’s been a long time, Bailey,’ said Maxwell, stepping towards him. ‘What brings you here?’
Luc saw Cripps unfasten the holster at his side. ‘Master Rachid,’ Cripps said over his shoulder, ‘tell your men to search everywhere until you find Gabion.’
Luc pulled his data-ghost back into the shadows, not wanting it to be seen just yet, and watched as Rachid ordered four of the soldiers to the nearest elevator platforms. At the same time, he fired a command to Maxwell’s flier. It lifted up from the frozen concrete, the tarpaulin that had been covering it falling away as it rose. Within seconds it was accelerating towards the clouds covering the nearby mountain peaks.
‘To be honest, Javier,’ said Cripps in that same moment, turning back to Maxwell, ‘it’s not been nearly long enough.’ Eleanor remained silent by his side, her expression pale and nervous. ‘Why don’t you save us the time and trouble and tell us where Luc Gabion is?’
Maxwell affected mild confusion. ‘Who?’
Cripps’ face darkened. ‘Don’t waste my time. We both know Zelia de Almeida sent him here. Where is he?’
Maxwell affected a tone of distant curiosity. ‘Why are you looking for this man?’
‘Zelia has been conspiring to assassinate Father Cheng and destabilize the Tian Di – a conspiracy I have reason to believe you are part of. Gabion is a Benarean Black Lotus agent under her command. Now tell me where he is.’
‘Or what? You’ll kill me? Surely you can do better than that.’
‘I know where every one of your backups are located,’ Cripps barked. ‘Don’t think I would hesitate to wipe every damn one.’
‘It makes no difference,’ Maxwell replied with a shrug. ‘I have no idea who or what you’re talking about.’
‘Fuck it,’ said Cripps, sliding the pistol from its holster and shooting Maxwell at close enough range that the blast very nearly decapitated him. Blood hissed as it splashed against the floor and nearby furniture.
Cripps turned to the two remaining Sandoz and muttered something indistinct as Javier Maxwell’s body crumpled to the floor. A moment later one of the Sandoz opened fire on the library mechant. It jerked backwards under the sudden assault, and Luc lost contact with it. He saw its blackened remains thud to the floor.
‘Hey!’
Luc glanced up from behind the pillar to see a Sandoz staring down at him from the upper gallery. He darted backwards, moving fast, and a loud, hollow thud filled the air at the same moment that a crater appeared where his data-ghost had been standing only a moment before.
Maxwell had allowed Luc to upload a map of the library once he had explained his intentions, and he now retreated towards a doorway leading out of the atrium and into a maze of reading rooms. He ran past low tables and couches and through several more doors connecting each room to the next, hearing muffled shouts and heavy footfalls following not far behind.
By now, Maxwell’s flier had very nearly reached low orbit. Luc felt his weight begin to fall away. He squeezed his eyes shut, sweat trickling down his brow, and focused on what was happening in Maxwell’s library, already some hundreds of kilometres behind him.
‘Gabion!’ Cripps’ amplified voice boomed through the library as he ran. ‘My men are seeding this place with explosives. You can either surrender, or go down with it. Your choice.’
Go to hell, thought Luc, guiding his data-ghost into a corridor lined with yet more doors. He checked Maxwell’s map and saw that the corridor joined another up ahead to form a T-junction. That second passageway angled back at both ends to wrap around the reading rooms.
Another Sandoz appeared from around the corner of the T-junction, taking aim.
Luc dived through a door to one side, finding himself inside a reading room indistinguishable from any of the others, then ran through the door set into its opposite wall. He could hear the Sandoz stamping after him.
He passed through more doors and more rooms until he came out into a corridor, and saw an elevator platform tucked into an alcove to his left, right where he’d known it would be. Heavy, muffled footsteps came slamming through the reading rooms behind him, getting closer with every second.
In the blink of an eye, Luc was standing on the first floor gallery, looking down at Eleanor, who hadn’t moved. There was no sign of Cripps.
‘Eleanor?’ he screamed down at her. ‘What the hell is going on? Is Cripps holding you prisoner?’
She looked up at him, lips set in a thin line. ‘None of this would have happened if you’d just listened to me and talked to Director Lethe, like I asked you to.’
‘Eleanor, you have to listen—’
‘No, Luc, you need to listen to me. I spoke to Lethe on your behalf and told him everything – about what really happened on Aeschere, about the lattice and Zelia de Almeida – all of it. I had to, don’t you see?’
‘I thought you understood,’ he said. ‘I trusted you more than anyone else. Or do you really believe what Cripps just said about me?’
She hesitated for a moment. ‘No, of course I don’t. But we need to find a way to fix you first. Then you can explain your side of things.’
Luc felt like she’d torn him open with claws of steel and left him to bleed to death. He stared down at her, suddenly lost for words.
Hearing a high-pitched beep to his right, he turned to see a Sandoz mechant accelerating towards him.
Instantly he ran, explosive rounds ripping chunks of wood and brick from the walls and shelves behind him, the mechant banging into walls as it came veering after him.
He was running blind now. Incredibly, Cripps still hadn’t worked out he was already long gone.
Turning a corner, he came face to face with yet another Sandoz warrior. The suited figure lunged towards and then through him, and Luc heard the warrior grunt with surprise as he slammed into the balustrade overlooking the library floor.
Luc stood where he was and made no effort to escape. There was no point in running any more.
‘Sir!’ the Sandoz yelled, staring around at Luc. ‘It’s a data-ghost!’
Luc ignored him, stepping over to the balustrade. Cripps came darting out of a doorway, pistol in hand, and stared up at him.
‘Very clever,’ said Cripps, his voice echoing as he re-holstered his weapon. ‘But wherever you’re hiding, you must know you’re only delaying the inevitable. You can’t escape through the Hall of Gates now.’
‘Why did you kill Maxwell?’ Luc demanded.
‘Because he’d become too dangerous for his own good,’ Cripps snapped.
Another Sandoz came running over to Cripps and whispered something in his ear. Cripps whipped around to glare at Luc, his face full of hatred.
‘Turn that goddamn flier back!’ Cripps screamed up at him.
‘And get my head blown off like Javier Maxwell did?’ Luc shook his head. ‘I don’t think so. Sevgeny Vasili knew who was coming to kill him – and I’m pretty damn sure you’re the one who pulled the trigger.’
Luc dropped the connection before either Cripps or Eleanor could say anything else.
He found himself back in his own body, staring up at the curved hull of the flier’s cramped cockpit.
Eleanor’s betrayal had shaken him to the core. He felt more alone than he had ever felt since he’d lost everything back on Benares as a child. The nearest thing he had left to a friend or ally was Zelia de Almeida, and he still wasn’t sure if that was better than having her for an enemy.