Vicki, Gabriel, and Richardson heard a squeaking sound as a fire door was pulled open, followed by footsteps on concrete. A moment later, Shepherd came out of the emergency stairwell.
“Now this is quite wonderful.” Shepherd strolled past the elevators, stopped, and grinned. “I thought the Tabula might get rid of me, but now they’re going to give me a bonus. The renegade Harlequin saves the day.”
Gabriel glanced at Vicki, then drew the jade sword. He swung it slowly through the air and remembered what Maya had told him. A few human-made objects were so beautiful-so pure-that they were free of greed and desire.
Shepherd snorted as if he’d just heard a bad joke. “Don’t be a fool, Gabriel. Perhaps Maya doesn’t think I’m a real Harlequin, but that doesn’t change my skill as a fighter. I’ve been trained to use swords and knives since I was four years old.”
Gabriel turned his head slightly. “Look inside the other van,” he told Vicki. “See if the keys are in the ignition.”
Shepherd reached into his carrying tube. He drew his Harlequin sword and snapped the guard into place. “All right. Have it your way. One good thing is going to come out of this. I’ve always wanted to kill a Traveler.”
Shepherd assumed the fighting position and Gabriel surprised him by attacking immediately. Running forward, he pretended to stab at Shepherd’s face. When Shepherd parried the blow, Gabriel spun around and slashed at the heart. Steel clashed against steel two, three, four times, but Shepherd defended himself easily. The two swords locked together. Shepherd took half a step back, made a quick movement with his wrists, and twisted the jade sword out of Gabriel’s hands.
The sword clattered onto the concrete floor. In the empty parking structure the noise was loud and distinct. The two men looked at each other and the Traveler saw his opponent clearly. Shepherd’s face had assumed the Harlequin mask, but something was wrong with his mouth. It twitched slightly, as if the lips couldn’t decide if they were going to smile or frown.
“Go ahead, Gabriel. Try to get it back-”
Someone whistled-a sharp, piercing sound. Shepherd spun around just as a throwing knife flashed through the air and buried itself in his throat. His hand released the sword and he fell to his knees.
Maya and Hollis came through the open doorway. The Harlequin glanced at Gabriel-making sure he was safe-then approached the wounded man. “You betrayed my father,” she said. “Do you know what they did to him, Shepherd? Do you know how he died?”
Shepherd’s eyes could barely focus, but he nodded slightly as if admitting his guilt could somehow save his life. Maya pushed the palms of her hands together like a nun about to pray. Then she made a quick, jabbing front kick that struck the handle of the knife and drove it deeper into his flesh.
59
Maya turned and pointed her shotgun at the tall man wearing the white lab coat.
“Don’t!” Vicki said quickly. “This is Dr. Richardson. He’s a scientist. A friend. He’s helping us get out of here.” Maya made an instant evaluation and decided that Richardson was frightened, but harmless. If he panicked in the tunnels, then she would have to deal with that problem. Gabriel was alive; that was all that mattered.
As Hollis explained how they had entered the research facility, Maya approached Shepherd’s body. She stepped into the blood that trickled in bright red lines across the concrete floor, knelt beside the dead man, and retrieved her knife. Shepherd was a traitor, but Maya didn’t feel happy about his destruction. She remembered what he had told her in the storage room of Resurrection Auto Parts. We’re the same, Maya. We both grew up with people who worshipped a lost cause.
When she returned to the group, she saw that Hollis was arguing with Gabriel. Vicki stood between the two men, as if she was trying to negotiate a compromise.
“What’s the problem?”
“Talk to Gabriel,” Hollis said. “He wants to look for his brother.”
The idea of remaining at the research facility seemed to terrify Richardson. “We’ve got to leave immediately. I’m sure the guards are looking for us.”
Maya touched Gabriel’s arm and guided him away from the others. “They’re right about this. It’s dangerous to stay here. Maybe we can return some other time.”
“You know that’s not going to happen,” Gabriel said. “And even if we did come back, Michael won’t be here. They’ll move him to another place with even more guards. This is my only chance.”
“I can’t allow you to do this.”
“You don’t control me, Maya. This is my own decision.”
Maya felt as if she and Gabriel were tied to each other like two mountain climbers on a rock wall. If one person slipped or if a ledge crumbled, both of them would fall. None of her father’s lessons had prepared her for this situation. Come up with a plan, she told herself. Risk your life. Not his.
“All right. I’ve got another idea.” She kept her voice as calm as possible. “You go with Hollis and he’ll get you out of the building. I promise to stay here and look for your brother.”
“Even if you found him, he wouldn’t trust you. Michael has always been suspicious of everyone. But he’ll listen to me. I know he will.”
Gabriel looked into her eyes and for one breath-one heartbeat-she felt a connection between them. Desperately, Maya tried to figure out the right decision, but that was impossible. This time there was no right decision, only fate.
She hurried over to Dr. Richardson and grabbed the ID card clipped to his lab coat. “Will this open any doors around here?”
“About half of them.”
“Where’s Michael? Do you know where they’re holding him?”
“He usually stays in a guarded suite of rooms in the administration center. Right now we’re on the northern edge of the research center. Administration is on the other side of the quadrangle, directly south.”
“And how do we get there?”
“Use the tunnels and stay out of the upper passageways.”
Maya pulled some shells out of her pocket and began to reload the combat shotgun. “Return to the basement level,” she told Hollis. “Get these two out through the ventilation duct while I go back with Gabriel.”
“Don’t do this,” Hollis said.
“I have no alternative.”
“Make him come with us. Drag him out of here if you have to.”
“That’s what the Tabula would do, Hollis. We don’t act that way.”
“Look, I understand why Gabriel wants to help his brother. But both of you are going to get killed.”
She pumped a round into the shotgun’s firing chamber and the snapping noise echoed through the empty parking area. Maya had never heard her father say “thank you.” Harlequins weren’t supposed to feel grateful to anyone, but she wanted to say something to the person who had fought beside her.
“Good luck, Hollis.”
“You’re the one who needs the luck. Take a quick look around and get the hell out of here.”
A FEW MINUTES later Maya and Gabriel were walking down the concrete tunnel that passed underneath the quadrangle. The air was hot and stuffy. She could hear water running through the black pipes attached to the walls.
Gabriel kept glancing at her. He looked uncomfortable, almost guilty. “I’m sorry we have to do this. I know you wanted to leave with Hollis.”
“This was my choice, Gabriel. I didn’t protect your brother when I was in Los Angeles. Now I have another chance.” She avoided his eyes and tried to sound reassuring. “We’re making an emotional decision. Not a logical one. Perhaps they won’t anticipate this.”