Taylor and Jack watched Falko pace as he considered Hector’s demands. Deep wrinkles betrayed the brigadier general’s concentration. And then, abruptly, he stopped.
“Get them both here,” he said.
Jack glanced at Taylor, who met Falko’s gaze evenly. The colonel inclined his head and asked, “You’re going to grant them immunity?”
Falko shook his head. “We’ll see. Right now, I want them here.”
Jack hesitated. “So, I offer them…?”
Falko crossed his arms. “Whatever you need to.”
* * *
JUNE 22, 2147
OLVERA BAZAAR – CENTER CITY SUBDISTRICT, NEW LONDON
Hector and Alexandra Salazar
Wraith cursed. “Dead end!”
“No, there!” Alexandra said as she indicated the door to the men’s restroom. She barged through it. Hector and Wraith followed.
Several men inside blinked and were about to protest when Wraith showed his pistol. The men scurried outside. Wraith’s hand slid over the grenades on his belt as he peeked out the door as it slid shut. “They’re close!”
Hector and Alexandra looked for a way out of the restroom. There wasn’t one. They were trapped. And then, Hector’s phone buzzed. He answered, “Yes?”
“The MTD is synced. Enter code 11-309 into your teleportation drives,” said Jack.
“And our deal?”
Jack’s hesitation lasted too long, “Yeah, just hurry.”
If Hector had picked up on Jack’s elusiveness he didn’t indicate it. “Thank you, Jack. I owe you. Get ready for us.” Hector ended the call and turned to Alexandra. “We’re synced! The code is 11-309. Go!”
She entered the code. A swirl of turquoise energy wrapped around her. She vanished. Hector punched in the return sequence. Nothing happened. He turned the datapad over. The slot where its teleportation drive was supposed to be was empty.
“Looking for this?” Wraith leaned against the restroom’s wall. The datapad’s tiny teleportation drive rested between his thumb and forefinger. Snap! He broke it in two. A filthy grin crept across his lips. “Thought you two might try and ditch me. Couldn’t let that happen. Now, who do you think would pay more for you—the XLS…or the Union?”
