She shook her head. "No can do, Chief. I don't know who else is in on this right now."
"You know you can trust me."
"I don't know who I can trust right now. Put yourself in my shoes."
He sighed. "Okay, fine. But the longer you're out there, the more of a target you become. If hitters are on your trail, they won't stop because you gave them the slip at the hospital."
"Guess I better get this wrapped up, then. Miller said he had to meet up with the mayor. Any idea where that's going down?"
"No, and I wouldn't tell you if I did. You're not looking too good, Ronnie. You need to be seeking medical attention, not trying to pour gasoline on an already volatile situation. If the Commissioner is really gunning for you, then you're in no shape to fight him. He has the full resources of the law on his side, and he'll use them to protect himself… and destroy you."
"Right. Because I'm just a tiny cog in the machine."
"Not to me, you're not. But I can't protect you if you don't come home."
She took a deep breath. "I can't, Chief. Not until I find out what Miller is up to and shut it down."
"Damn it, Ronnie!" He fumed silently for a moment before collecting himself. "Look, I'm not telling you this, okay? But I just ran a trace on all of Miller's vehicles."
"And…?"
"One of them pings somewhere it definitely shouldn't. An abandoned park that happens to be only blocks away from the Leverich Towers."
"Where we raided and nearly captured Janus."
"Who?"
"Diabolis leader, or one of them, at least. I'll fill you in later. Anything else near the park that might help us out?"
"There's a complete surveillance blackout in the area, which definitely isn't normal. Only thing of interest nearby is… a subway entrance. I can't think of a reason why Miller would suddenly take an interest in tunnel diving."
She exchanged glances with Isaac. "I can think of several. Thanks, Chief. I'll be in touch."
"I'm sending several units to the area, Captain. All you have to do is wait for them. I'll tell them you're in command. Just don't go after Miller by yourself, understand?"
"Understood. I'll see them there."
Isaac shut the connection down, studying her face. "We're not meeting up with them, are we?"
"After what happened at the hospital? No chance. I trust Chief Moore, but I can't bet that some of Miller's men won't be in those squads. We'll have to take our chances tracking Miller ourselves." She looked at Castle. "Looks like I'm on your side for now. Just don't make me regret it."
A wry smile creased his cheeks. "So you're changing the plan? Fine, but keep in mind that we have no idea what we're walking into. Once we follow the snake into its den, all bets are off."
She winced when she shifted in her seat. "Just wish I had time to gear up properly. I hate going into battle unprepared."
Castle raised a shaggy eyebrow. "Oh, I think I can help with that. First, we ditch this ambulance. After that, we're taking my ride. And I don't go anywhere unprepared."
Chapter 18: Labyrinthine
The maze-like tunnels of the Underbelly were eerily deserted.
The chambers that normally housed all-night raves were empty, the grounds littered with the garbage left behind by the revelers. The Haze parlors were shut down, the markets closed. The clatter of old subway trams seemed unnaturally loud, echoing metallically through the cavernous tunnels. The people that lurked in the shadows were the dispossessed, abandoned or deserted by society. Like creatures driven by instinct, they hid in makeshift shelters, ragged tents, under ledges or deep in crevices, furtive eyes staring at the trio of armored warriors that strode through the darkness without fear.
Spitfire looked around as they passed from one winding tunnel to another. "Place is a maze, yo. How do you know your way around?"
Vigil glanced at the shimmering symbol imprinted on the mouth of certain tunnels — markers he placed on the walls when previously tracking the Beasts from Haven Core. The V-shaped marks were visible when viewed by his visor. "I've been here before."
"Well, that makes one of us."
Heretic followed several paces behind, aloof and silent. His white tunic was soiled by dust and mud, but that did little to hide its visibility. Stalking like a red-armored panther, he flaunted his lack of camouflage as if inviting confrontation. Knowing his track record, Vigil figured he did.
Vigil was the complete opposite; cape unfurled and hood up so that he practically vanished into the darkness. Even Spitfire wore a cloak patterned in black and maroon that covered her fluorescent armor underneath. Probably a loaner from Viper, but it helped her blend in better. She threw a look over her shoulder, frowning at Heretic.
"Don't know about bringing him along."
Vigil glanced down. "We can use all the help we can get right now."
"This guy's a murderer, though."
"So am I." He didn't look back at Heretic, although every instinct screamed to do it. "I fought in the Imperial War. I did my share of killing. When you're a soldier, you don't have the luxury to consider the morality of your actions. Your enemy tries to kill you. You try to kill your enemy. You kill to complete your objective. You kill to stay alive. Understand?"
"But… that was war. This is different."
"It's no different. Don't fool yourself — you're in a war right now, Spitfire. That makes you a soldier, just like Heretic. He doesn't fight his war like we do, but we have a common enemy for now. That makes him our ally."
She walked in silence for a while, visibly shaken despite half her face being covered. Taking a deep breath seemed to help her collect herself. "Yeah, that's cool, but what happens when this is over?"
"We can't concentrate on that now. Focus on the—" He turned around but paused in mid-sentence when Heretic stopped, scanning the tunnels behind him. The tunnels illuminated in red-orange light when one of his cross-shaped swords appeared like magic in his fist, crackling with mysterious energy.
Vigil looked in that direction. "What is it?"
Heretic continued staring down the tunnel. "We're being followed."
Vigil glanced at the display on his g-span. "I know."
"I'll take care of them."
Vigil caught him by the elbow. "Don't bother. They're not enemies."
"How do you know?"
He showed Heretic the display. "I deployed scanners when we entered. One-mile radius, front and back. Nothing will catch us by surprise."
Heretic studied the four people on the screen. "Who are they?"
Vigil shut the screen down with a wave of his hand. "Backup." He glanced at Spitfire. "Use your face shield. We're about to have company."
It turned out that Castle's ride was a rolling armory. The vehicle looked like any old delivery van on the outside, but inside it was equipped with a wide assortment of tactical weapons and gear, including a padded brace for Ronnie's ribs. That was followed by a nine-element suit of plate and mesh armor better than what she normally wore from the RCE. Castle just laughed when she asked where he got all the equipment from. He had his face completely concealed by a snug white helmet with a flashing red visor. She had to admit it made him look more formidable.
They left Rook in the van to monitor the scanning equipment and supply intel. Something was familiar about the mousy man, but Ronnie never got a full glimpse of his face after he replaced the surgical mask with a snug-fitting balaclava one. He still looked scared out of his mind, making her wonder why Castle was partnered with an obvious civilian. She didn't have time to think much on the oddity because after gearing up and arming themselves, it was into the darkness of the Underbelly.
She and Castle used foldable zip-scooters to skim across the tunnel floors, with Isaac having no problem matching their pace. He took point, using his enhanced equipment to pinpoint recent tracks. "Looks like multiple hover vehicles have been through here lately. Commissioner Miller definitely isn't alone. Looks like an entire caravan of vehicles, all going deep into the tunnel system."