Cipher, page 5
I accepted the assignment with a nod, and logged everything into my calendar. I could’ve ended up with a worse assignment. Talking little kids into trying out and lying about how fantastic our way of life was would be too hard to fake. But beating the shit out of Oliver? That I could do.
The temporary barracks for Black Helixes was set up next to the Trials site. Thirty rows of bunks filled the utilitarian space. It wouldn’t give me a lot of privacy, but I wasn’t planning on staying here at all—except to sleep. Lady Eva had sent me the info on a safe house that I could use for whatever I needed. First I needed to figure out where Dex and Oliver were, and then I’d head to check out the space. I always preferred to know the hiding spot before I needed it. I put in a text to the guys, telling them to get their asses back here, and went about finding a bunk.
Most of the beds were already claimed by the other Black Helixes working the Trials, but I found one with the mattress still rolled up at the bottom of the bed frame. The locker beside it was empty except for the standard white sheets and towels. Making the bed took little time, and I was unpacking my little bit of stuff when Dex and Oliver came in.
“What is up, douchebag?” Dex said. His blond hair fell to his shoulders and he was definitely going to get reamed for it.
“What’s up, girlyman?” I loved making fun of Dex’s non-regulation hair.
“Don’t dis on the locks.” He flicked his hair back with a flourish. “You only wish you were man enough to pull off my hair.”
“Right.” He pulled me in for a quick hug. I hit him on the back before shoving him away with a laugh.
Oliver towered over the both of us. He was a beast, and looked it—at seven feet and change, thick with muscle, and bald—he’d scare even me if I didn’t know him. Truth was, he was the biggest softie I’d ever met. The dude cried during sappy movies. “What’s up, Ollie?”
“Not much.” We did the hug, back hit routine. He tapped a finger to his ear, telling me to engage my blocking tech.
I reached in my pocket and activated it, nodding to him when it was done.
“You found your girl?” he asked.
My girl. The responsibility of the mission weighed on me. I hoped I’d found her. “Maybe.”
“Oh, man. That means you’re going to settle down. That blows,” Dex said as he sat on the closest bunk.
The guy had lost his mind. “No way. I don’t have any romantic interest in the girl. Hell, she was just a kid last time I saw her. You know me. I don’t date. I do one-nighters. Emma included.”
Dex and Oliver shared a look.
“Fuck off,” I said. “Just because we’re paired doesn’t mean we’re going to end up together. Working together, sure. But that’s it.”
“Yeah. You say that now, but we’ll see when the two of you are together.” Dex crossed his arms as he stared me down. “You’re paired because you’re compatible in every way. Every way.”
“Michelle’s a Red and she’s not romantic with her paired partner.”
“Dude. Her partner is her sister. You’re not at all related to Emma.”
“Whatever.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about getting involved with Emma romantically. Even if I did the whole girlfriend thing—which I didn’t—Emma was still an eight-year-old kid in my head. Anything beyond brotherly platonic care was out of my realm of perception. I placed my five black T-shirts, neatly folded, into the locker. “Where were you guys?”
“Went to a gaming club called Marx’s. Totally up your alley. We should check it out tomorrow night.”
I lined my toiletries along the edge of my top shelf, labels facing out so that I could see everything, and then rolled up my bags and placed them on the bottom shelf of my locker. Everything was precisely stored. Not that any of this mattered. Five black shirts. Five black pants. Five black socks. Five black boxer-briefs. Plus two civilian outfits—jeans, a gray T-shirt and a white button-down. All generic brands. That’s all I brought with me. Easy enough to replace. None of it said dick-all about myself should I need to run. Nothing they could use against me.
I sat in the bunk across from Dex as I weighed the reasons for hanging out in the club. And yeah, the guy was thinking with his dick. “We’re not going to be doing much of anything but the mission. No messing around with the local ladies, Romeo.”
“I always have time for local fare.” Dex shrugged. “And there’s a chance she could be at the club.”
“Not likely. Emma keeps to herself. Plus, I don’t see her as the gaming type.” That little girl who wasn’t even allowed a gaming console in public? No way.
But Dex’s comment about settling down with Emma made me twitch. A little trip over there wouldn’t hurt. “Any decent ladies there?”
Oliver whistled. “I met a couple. One was a little thing with blue hair. Cute as a button, but tough. She didn’t even crack a smile at me. Her friend was this hot blonde—real friendly. They were still there when I left. We could go back.”
I wasn’t in the mood to hit a club. Even a gaming one. “I don’t know…”
“You don’t want to stick around base too much. Didn’t you have a run in with Parson a while back? We’ve already seen him and we weren’t exactly hanging around.”
I grunted. “It was a long time ago. I don’t know if he’d remember me. Any word on why he’s taken over the Trials?”
“He’s looking for someone. No one but the top of the chain knows who, though. Wilton’s been keeping tabs on this area for a while now. I’ve reached out. It’s why we went to Marx’s. The chicks Ollie was hitting up were a total side benny. Wilton was busy doing his thing, so we didn’t get to talk to him, but he’s gonna let us know—” Dex’s com beeped. He pulled it from his pocket. “That’s him. Says we should head back to Marx’s. He’s got info.”
“Guess I’m overruled then.” I stood up. “Parson and I are most likely after the same girl. The quicker we can get this done, the better.”
“You sure?” Oliver asked.
“Maybe I’m being paranoid, but it’s the only thing that makes sense.” I made sure my locker was secure and followed the guys out the door.
***
Marx’s was fully packed when we walked in. It was like any other gaming club I’d been to. The music was too loud and the drinks were flowing a little freely. I didn’t mind coming to places like this every once in a while, but tonight it put me on edge.
I spotted Wilton across the room. He was doing his usual cover routine. The guy had built it up for years, playing off his scrawny build and acting like a tweaker. Make someone laugh at you and they didn’t think you were dangerous. He was the best at entertaining, so people told him all kinds of stuff. It helped that he kept his Blue Helix well covered. Only the raven on his hand alerted other Shadow Ravens that he was legit.
“Look at you, douche. Haven’t seen you in forever,” Wilton said in his fake-ass whiny voice. The glasses he didn’t actually need made his eyes look too large for his face.
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing when I looked at him. “What’s up, Wilton?”
“I got a booth over here, gentlemen. Let’s do some business.”
He motioned us to seats in the corner that were completely covered in shadow. The backlights that ran along the edges of the ceiling were burnt out above only this booth.
I pulled my com out of my pocket and tapped the screen twice, turning on the anti-bug software. “What have you got? Any info on why exactly Parson is here?”
“Nah. No word on that yet, but I’m meeting up with a guy tomorrow who has a big mouth. I’ll get what I can from him. But that’s not why I called you back here.”
I leaned forward. “What’ve you got?”
“Tweedle Dumbs one and two here didn’t pick up on the little Raven. They bailed out before I could tell them. The girl has been here for weeks. Her gaming skills are top of the line. Best I’ve ever seen. Never had the chance to meet her—she’s not the friendly type and I’ve never seen her leave with a guy—but she came up to me asking for a Knight processor.”
I raised a brow. Those were mine, handmade from circuits to soldering. And they were expensive. Not too many people in the Voids could afford the price, and I knew just about everyone who could. “What’s her handle?”
“Cipher.”
That one word took me a second to process. I never thought I’d ever even get close to meeting her. “Cipher is here? And a Raven?”
“Yeah. You know her?”
“She’s a legend. So yes, I know her. We talk online sometimes. Are you sure this girl is the real Cipher? A lot of wannabes out there use the name these days.”
Wilton shrugged. “That’s the name everyone calls her. Showed up in town out of nowhere. Came in one night with her girl, Mona. Been coming in few nights a week since. Sometimes with the friend. Sometimes alone. Kills it on the games. Only total morons bet against her when she’s playing. Doesn’t drink. Doesn’t flirt with the guys. Or with the girls. Just comes to game. Never seen anyone beat her either.”
“Fuck. Might be the real Cipher.” I shook my head. I’d been talking to her for years now. Sending her gear when she needed it, although she was shifty about where to send stuff. “I thought she was a dude.” And I had no idea she was a Raven. How could I not know her if she was a Raven? Was she in deep cover?
“Well, this little one is definitely a girl. You met her, Oliver. What’d you think?”
“Tiny thing? Blue hair? Piercings? Tattoos?”
Wilton nodded. “That’s the one.”
“Hot.” He paused for a second. “Didn’t see that she was a Raven though.”
“I think she hides her tattoo,” Wilton said. “I hadn’t seen it before, and you better believe I check everyone who comes in here. Plus the girl broke her usual M.O. She got a drink instead of heading straight to the tables, and then came over to me. Didn’t think much of it until she spilled her drink and wiped it on her pants. When I shook her hand, I saw the ink. Still had some makeup on it, but the color was there.”
I shook my head. That didn’t make sense. “Could be the Red we’re looking for or a different one. Could also be some other agent under cover.”
Wilton tapped a finger on the table. “It doesn’t add up. Why would one of us ever cover our tattoo?”
“We wouldn’t,” Dex said. “Only another Raven could ever see it. So why hide it?”
“Yeah. But she did. Did you see it, Oliver?”
“No. She wouldn’t shake my hand. Stuck hers in her pocket and even took a step back.”
Wilton pointed at me. “You see. That’s not fucking normal behavior. We check for the Raven on everyone. We make sure to show it. Something’s up with this girl.” Despite his lack of precise terms, Wilton was an expert in psychology and human behavior. The guy had a photographic memory, too. If he said she was acting shifty, then she was shifty.
“So, she here still?” I asked, glancing around the room for anyone with blue hair.
“Nah. Left just before you got here. Oliver told me the two of you would be battling in the Black arena tomorrow, so I sent her to you. Tiny pixie with miles of wavy, long blue hair. Can’t miss her. I’ll leave it up to you how you earn her trust.”
I leaned back in the booth. “I don’t have time for Cipher anyway. I’m looking for a Red Helix. Strawberry-blonde hair. Hazel-green eyes. Small nose, slightly pointed up. Freckles. Roughly five feet eight inches. You seen anyone like that around here?” I showed him my com, displaying the image of Emma captured from my memory scan.
He took the device and studied the image for a second. “You’re looking for a little girl?”
“Nah man. That picture is twelve years old. She’s twenty.”
Wilton studied the picture. “Looks kind of familiar.”
I flipped to the age-projection photo, but it didn’t look quite human. The eyes had a glassy look from the software generation.
Wilton twisted his head to the side. “I’ve seen her, but I’m not sure where. How tall is she again?”
“According to her DNA projections, she should’ve hit five eight with maybe a quarter inch wiggle room.”
Wilton rolled his eyes. “With all this precision intel you’ve given me, it’s a wonder I can’t think up more possibilities.”
“Give me a break. No one’s seen her since she was eight and the one image we have is from my brain, so it could be a little off.”
Wilton snorted. “Right. Memory from that long ago isn’t accurate at all. This is probably more a shadow of what the girl really looks like.” He zoomed in, taking in each part of her face separately. “It’s on the tip of my tongue. I know I’ve seen her and recently, but something’s off. Something’s different. She’s changed her appearance to make herself unrecognizable.” He zoomed back out and then in again. “Shit. I don’t know. Does that look like Cipher to you, Oliver?”
Oliver took my com from Wilton. “No.” He squinted. “Maybe around the mouth and chin? But the eyes and forehead are different. Color is right but the shape is off. Eyebrows, too. Cipher didn’t have freckles, but maybe it was too dark in here to tell. And she’s short. Barely brushed five feet, if that.”
“Yeah. Girl made me feel like a giant, and I’m only five five.”
“So Cipher isn’t Emma?” I asked, holding my breath while I waited for his answer.
Oliver handed my com back to me. “I don’t think so. Sorry.”
I blew out a breath. “Would’ve been too easy.” I turned to Dex and Oliver. “I’ll do the initial meet with Cipher, and then intro you two, but I need to move on finding Emma. You guys figure out if she’s the legit Cipher, and why she’s being shifty about her Raven.” I met Wilton’s gaze. “Do you think she’s turned?”
“I didn’t get that from her,” Wilton said. “She was guarded and distrustful, but mostly spooked. As soon as I recognized her tattoo, she wanted out. Maybe one of us betrayed her?”
“I agree. If anything, this girl was hiding. Must’ve gotten burned before,” Oliver said.
“Either way, we’ve got her more than covered,” Dex said. “You can focus on Emma.”
“Yep,” Oliver said. “And I know where Cipher’s friend works. If she doesn’t trust you, I’ll get in through there.”
“Good.” I glanced back at Wilton. “I want you on the streets, at the Trials, at shops, scanning any public area you can get into, searching for the girl in that photo.” I checked the time. “I’m going to head to the center of the blackout area. See if I can find anything there.”
“You want us to come?” Dex asked.
I considered it, but it’d be easier if I went alone. “No. I got it covered. If I find anything, I’ll link you in.”
He pulled three little devices out of his pocket. “Want one of these to watch your back?”
I stared at Dex’s little bots. He made them himself and always had some stashed in his pockets. They looked like little balls of scrap now, but when expanded, they turned into mini-drones. They usually carried a bit of explosives and could be given minor orders. Like blowing up a small target.
“No, thanks. I’m going to keep it really low key.”
“Cool,” Dex slid out from the booth so that I could go.
I gave them a nod and headed out. As soon as I was back on my bike, I tried to think about what Emma’s next move might be—the only thing that made sense was leaving town. I needed to find out if she was gone already. Sticking around would be pointless if she’d already hit the road.
People packed the Void around the old city of Tempe. High rises were stacked nearly on top of each other, and the traffic was crap. Thanks to my bike, I could weave between cars. The city lights slowly faded as the high rises turned to tiny houses stacked nearly on top of each other and then to endless shanties. Beyond that was the desert. Trailer parks filled up the space as far as I could see. Some couldn’t afford anything else and others liked the mobility. Crime ran rampant in the parks, and I hated the idea of Emma in one of them, but that was where the coordinates led.
I slowed when I reached the park gates, but no guards were on duty. The arm of the gate was up. What a joke. This place had dick-all for security.
The park seemed like a maze until I found the pattern in the madness. I slowly made my way through the aisles to the center of the blackout area.
Power had been restored and I had to assume that Parson or his goons had already been by. But they weren’t here now.
I put down the kickstand, and turned the bike off. A trailer sat at the dead center of ground zero from my readings. The hints of other tire tracks cut through the sand, but no way to tell if this was Emma’s place or not.
I took a wild guess and knocked.
No one answered, so I knocked again.
After the third knock, I decided to let myself in.
Whoever owned the trailer didn’t give a shit about security. The lock was old school. I didn’t even need a pick. I ran a card along the jamb, and the door swung open.
The smell of extreme B.O. and feces slapped me in the face. It took me a second to stop the gag reflex before I could step inside. Trash littered the floor and paraphernalia jammed the kitchen sink.
I wasn’t too shocked when I found the owner passed out in bed. Looked like he’d barely made it there. His feet hung off the edge of the mattress. One of his arms was out of his shirt. And no sign of Emma.
I let out a relieved sigh. As much as I wanted to find her, I’d lose it if she lived like this.
I slipped out and headed for the main office, following the signs to the center of the park. People were always moving in and out of these places. It was par for the course. Most people didn’t even register themselves, and if they did, it was under an alias. I didn’t expect to find much, but I wasn’t about to leave without at least checking it out.
The one-room cement office building was closed. A fence dotted with motion detectors surrounded the structure. Why this crappy park needed an office with so much security was beyond me. But it didn’t matter. Nothing was keeping me out of the place.
