Chapter 13 — Fugitives

"What am I supposed to do now?" Rika asked again. She was still crouched against the wall in the alleyway, though the street was quite deserted. Her voice quivered in a nervous way that Alden hadn't heard before. Hearing the emotion punctuating her words was the kick he needed.

"It'll be okay," he offered. It wasn't much, but it was all he could think of in the moment.

Rika shook her head. "I'm wanted by the fucking cops, and Rachel's working with them. There's no way out of this goddamn town either. Can't go by train, they'll be watching it, and who's gonna lend me a car?"

"Look, there's nothing you can do for now. We told Viper we'd meet up, so we should probably do that." It's better than sitting around in an alley all day. Alden wanted to see what they'd had in mind, and if they could still pull off the heist. It'd be much more exciting than hiding out at the apartment, at the very least. "You got a better plan?"

"No, but fuck it. Let's go."

Rika held up a hand, and Alden helped her to stand. The shock from their brief connection left his hand tingling. He was beginning to enjoy it.

The trek through the town to the Kettle and Bones was less eventful than Alden expected. While they did stick to the alleys and shadows (to the extent that Rallsburg had alleys and shadows), they were barely given a second look. The few people who recognized Rika shot her a frown or a suspicious glance before heading on their way.

"It's not much of a manhunt," Alden noted.

"Word must not be out yet," Rika muttered. "I bet Ryan'd be out like a wolf if he knew."

"What did you do to him?"

"Huh?"

"Seems like way more than you owing him some eggs or whatever it was."

"Natural twin lizard eggs," Rika corrected. "Lizards have an association with fire for no apparent reason, so Ryan thinks he can use 'em for fire magic. There's a whole reagent business around things that can enhance spells. It was just gemstones, but Ryan's branching out. He figures the rarer or weirder the material, the more powerful it might be. Trying out weird things."

"Huh. Wait, lizards aren't related to fire?"

"Nah, that's salamanders," Rika answered, eyeing the door of the bar with suspicion. "You first? Make sure there's no cops sitting on the other side for me."

"What am I supposed to do if there are cops? They already know we're together."

"Scream really loud. I'll send you a postcard while you're in the joint." Rika gave him a tiny push forward.

Alden sighed and pushed the door open, bracing himself for the noise of the bar.

It was nearly empty. Viper's associate Rook sat at the end of the bar in the corner where she could easily survey the whole room. Alden didn't spot her rifle anywhere, but he had no doubt the tall blonde could still easily kill anyone nearby if she wanted to. A deadly monster lurked behind her icy-blue eyes.

"It's fine!" Alden called back. Rika burst through the door, rushing to the bar as if being chased. "What's going on?"

"Thought I saw someone." Rika plunged her hand into her bag. Alden reached for his pockets, then realized he'd never actually gotten any gemstones from Rika—nor had he any idea how to actually use one.

Luckily, he didn't seem to need any. "Calm down, little girl," Rook said, taking a swig of her drink. "You're safe."

"Tell that to the fucking cops," Rika shot back.

"The sheriff and her deputy are away making house calls." Rook nodded at a tiny radio at her side. "And this man won't be telling a soul, will he?" The man's head shook so fast Alden believed he was trying to dislodge it entirely.

"It's not gonna be here," Viper said, stomping into the room. He took the seat next to Rook heavily. "Same drink as the lady, please."

"So we're here for nothing?" Alden asked, a touch disappointed.

"Didn't say that," Viper answered, taking a sip. "We're just a bit delayed now. If you haven't noticed, the entire town up and flipped over on us overnight."

"No shit," Rika muttered, finally taking a seat. Alden took the cue and sat down at the far end, just beyond Rika. "This why you're open so early?"

"Special request from the mayor," the barman answered nervously.

"So the mayor knows too," Rika concluded. "Now scram." The barman scampered away, in a manner completely at odds with his appearance. Alden fought the urge to laugh at someone who looked like Rika sending full-grown men running for the hills.

"They held a goddamn town meeting," Viper said. "I doubt it's spread far yet, but people talk. Maybe not as much in this town, but it'll get around."

"Fuck."

"Fuck," Viper echoed with a nod. "I'm gonna have to report this back up the line now. My boss won't appreciate being kept out of the loop for too long."

"Wait."

"Huh?"

Rika shook her head. "The whole town will know, yeah. But you don't know Rallsburg like I do. Everyone here keeps things close to the chest. It'll be a long-ass time before it makes it out to the real world."

"That is naive," Rook said.

"Listen, you uptight bit—"

"Rika," Alden cut in sharply. Rika swung round with a glare—but at Alden's expression, she managed to calm down considerably. She took a moment to compose herself.

"I don't know if you've tried the net today…"

"We have our own hookup," Viper answered.

"Right, fancy-schmancy. Well, they've been tracking everything going in and out of the town broadband. No one in this place knows shit about encryption so practically all traffic is open. I watched them pick up a few packets I sent out to deliberately flag up. And anything that needs higher bandwidth, even fucking voice chat is being locked down hard. Everyone's gonna assume it's the crap connects we get way out here, but I can see what they're doing. And everyone else who knows their stuff is on Rachel's side already."

"So they're censoring the town."

"Nah, just traffic out of the town." Rika flipped her hair back. She did that whenever she was trying to be impressive. "Between that and how rare it is for people to actually come and go, news will take a long time to spread. By then, Rachel might actually manage to persuade the whole town to keep it secret. And you know everyone loves to be part of a big secret."

"What happens when everyone wants to awaken though?" Alden asked.

"We start killing," Rika said with a grin.

Alden's jaw dropped.

"Holy shit, I was joking," Rika added hurriedly. "I bet Rachel told people that there's no way for newcomers to use magic."

"Yeah, that's the gist I got," Viper confirmed.

"So until someone on our side spills the beans, we're still in the clear. It's not like anyone can just awaken at random. Which brings us back to why we actually showed up today." Rika cocked her head askew, giving Viper a curious look. "So who is your all-knowing source?"

"Not part of the deal."

"Aww, not even for a cute girl like me?"

"Not my type, thanks," Viper said, his face completely unmoved.

"Oh, sorry, you clearly prefer a viking warrior-maiden to a sweet innocent—"

Rook cleared her throat. "Nothing about you is innocent."

Rika grinned. "Can't argue with that. So what's the new plan, El Capitan?"

"We lay low. It's too hot right now."

"Bullshit. This is the best time, while everyone's distracted. Where's the damn Scrap?"

"I'd have to talk to my source again and convince him," Viper said. "He wouldn't give me the info."

"Piece of cake. Let me at him."

Viper frowned. "Why do you think you'd be able to persuade him?"

"Because I figure I've got a fifty-fifty guess at who your source is, and I know both of those fifties. One much better than the other, but still. It's the personal touch."

Viper shrugged. "If you guess right, then we can talk."

Rika grinned. She leaned in and whispered a name in his ear. From the way Viper's eyes widened, she was right on the money. He stood without a word and Rika followed him out the back door.

Alden hadn't been sure if he was allowed to follow, so he stayed rooted to the stool.

"Can I get you anything?" the barman asked. He'd returned after seeing the lull in conversation at the bar.

"Uhh, I'm underage…" Alden said nervously.

"No shit, kid. I meant like a soda."

"Just water, please," Alden answered. Rook made a sniffing noise, as if she found something distasteful. "What?"

"Little boy afraid of a man's drink."

"I'm happier without my brain messed up, thanks," Alden said, hoping it sounded as confident out loud as it did in his head.

Rook didn't look impressed. "The drink doesn't cloud the mind, it frees you from burden. Only people who can't handle that freedom get lost in the bottle." She downed a swill, ice-blue eyes never breaking their lock on Alden. "When you are older, you will understand."

"Where are you from?" Alden asked, desperate to change topics. Anything to move the focus onto her.

"Why?"

"What?"

"You ask a personal question. What is your motive? Are you trying to gain an advantage over me?"

"No, I was just curious," Alden trailed off. "I don't really know the rest of the world that well. You're from Europe, right?"

"Yes, but also no."

"Oh, err…" Alden cast around for another topic. Silence stretched out the minutes before he finally came up with another question to ask. "What brought you and Viper together?"

"I was assigned to be his partner."

"Oh, so you two aren't together or anything?"

"No." Rook's eyes flicked to the front door for a moment, then back to Alden. She took another sip of her drink, her face still utterly frozen in empty expression. Another long silence ensued. Alden cast about desperately for a topic. Something about her obstinance made him determined to get to know her, particularly if they were to be working together in the future.

"What's your favorite color?" Alden asked finally, determined to get an actual personal detail out of her before Rika came back.

"I don't have one."

"Well, you two have all the chemistry of a funeral," Viper said dryly. Alden started. He hadn't realized they'd returned yet.

"Some of the best sex I ever had was right after a funeral," Rika commented, emerging through the door behind Viper. The entire room looked round at her. "What?"

"Girl, there's something wrong with you," Viper said.

"It's totally normal," she protested.

"They want to feel alive," Rook concurred with a slight nod, surprising everyone once more. Even Rika looked shocked that the woman had taken her side. "Everyone feels the true fear of death and returns to the process of life."

"See, she gets it," Rika said triumphantly.

"You are still an uncouth child who needs to behave herself." Rook added, returning to her drink.

"And I hate you again. Come on, Zack. Let's go."

"Where are we going?" Alden scrambled to his feet.

"To track down a source." Rika smirked. "Don't worry, you can flirt with the viking later."