“They’ll fly them to Lima?”
“No, they will not fly,” Jaime said. “They must have been warned about Tanner, because they did not bring any aircraft into the area. And Tanner destroyed all the Elgen helicopters.”
“But you said that Tanner’s gone.”
“The Elgen and the army do not know that.”
“Then they’ll have to drive them to Lima,” Tessa said.
“There is only one road to Lima,” Jaime said. “It is a mountain road and very narrow at spots. That is your best chance of stopping them. It could be like Thermopylae.”
“The what?” Tessa asked.
“Thermopylae is an ancient place in Greece where three hundred Spartans held off tens of thousands of Persians. It is a narrow place that a large army can’t march through. If only a few people can get through the door at a time, it doesn’t matter how many people there are.”
“If we stop the trucks in front, the rest will be trapped behind them,” I said.
“Then what?” Tessa asked.
“In the confusion, I’ll sneak in and free my friends.”
“They will be guarded,” Jaime said.
“I can take care of that,” I said.
“But you will still be surrounded by the entire army,” Jaime said.
“If we had everyone’s powers . . . ,” I said.
Jaime looked skeptical. “Those powers did not stop them from being captured.”
“But if they were enhanced.” I turned to Tessa. “Could you enhance everyone’s power at the same time?”
“I enhanced a half million rats’ power at the same time,” she said.
“If we had even ten times the power, Taylor could reboot all the soldiers at the same time, and we could just walk out of there. Zeus could fire real lightning and destroy any weapon. McKenna could go supernova and melt everything in sight.”
Jaime looked at me. “It is still a big risk. We need to talk to the voice and see what he says.”
“You can contact the voice?” I asked.
He looked around cautiously, then nodded. “Yes.”
“What’s ‘the voice’?” Tessa asked.
Jaime looked at me, then Tessa. “We cannot speak of the voice around her.”
Tessa turned red. “You don’t trust me? I followed you into the middle of the jungle, and you don’t trust me?”
“Tessa, it’s okay,” I said. “He’s not trying to insult you. He’s just got to be sure.”
“Then get sure,” she said to Jaime.
Suddenly, Jaime froze. “Do you hear that?”
We stopped talking to listen. “No,” I said. I looked at Tessa.
“I don’t hear anything,” Tessa said, still sounding annoyed. “In fact, it’s kind of quiet.”
“Yes,” Jaime said. “Exactly.” He stood. “Just a minute.” He parted the door and walked out of the tent.
As soon as the tent’s flap shut, Tessa asked, “What’s this voice?”
I looked at the door to make sure Jaime was really gone, then back at her. I lowered my voice. “After we escaped from Pasadena we went back to Idaho. The Elgen followed us. We were hiding from them at a tanning salon when a woman came in and handed me a cell phone. There was a man on the other end. He knew who we were and where we’d been. He knew all about the Elgen. That’s how we got down here. He flew us down.”
“Who is he?”
“I don’t know. All I know is that he hates Hatch as much as I do.”
“Why is he so secret?”
“Because secrecy is his most important weapon. You can’t fight an enemy you don’t know exists.”
She nodded. “That makes sense.” She looked around the place. “What if this voice tells you not to go after your friends?”
“I’ll go anyway.”
“They mean that much to you?”
“They’re my friends,” I said. “You don’t abandon your friends.”
For a moment she was quiet. Then she said, “It wasn’t like that at the academy. We got along because it was a rule. But everyone was in competition with one another.” She looked at me seriously. “Friends or not, I don’t think it’s a good idea going up against the army. You’ll only get caught.”
“I have to,” I said. “And I really need your help.”
She looked down. “I don’t know,” she said. “I have to think about it. If Hatch captures me, he’ll punish me for running away.”
I looked into her eyes. “Tessa, I can’t do it without you.”
She took a deep breath. “I just don’t know. I have to think about it.”
I sighed. “Think about it. Because either way, I’m going.”
The silence between us grew uncomfortable and I began gulping. After another minute I said, “Jaime’s been gone a long time for just checking around.”
“Maybe he had to use the bathroom,” Tessa said.
I stood. “I’m going to go see what he’s doing.”
I walked out of the tent. At first I didn’t see anything. I took a few steps before I saw Jaime lying motionless on the ground.
“Jaime?” I started walking toward him. “Tessa!” I shouted.
Tessa came to the flap of the tent and looked out. “What is it?”
“Jaime’s on the ground.”
“Did he have a heart attack?”
Someone shouted, “Put your hands on your head and walk out of the tent! Now!”
I looked up as a squad of uniformed Elgen guards emerged from the jungle. Their guns were pointed at us.
“Now!” the guard shouted again. “Both of you. Or we’ll open fire.”
“I’m not going back,” Tessa said, her voice pitched with terror. She ducked into the tent.
I put my hands on my head. “Don’t shoot.”
“Don’t try anything, Vey,” one of the guards said. “Or we will. And tell the girl to get back out here before we shoot up the tent.”
I turned back. “Tessa, come out!” I shouted. “They’ll shoot.”
“Tessa?” the short guard to my left repeated. “Was that really Tessa, aka Tesla?”
I didn’t answer.
“Jackpot, boys,” the guard said. “It’s two-for-one day at the Happy Mart. Vey and Tessa. Hatch is going to be happier than a monkey on a banana boat.”
Tessa slowly walked back out. She was shaking.
“Beautiful little Tessa,” the guard said, grinding his teeth. “Remember me? Carvelle?” He walked up to her. “I always had a thing for redheads. And then you had to go and run off.” His expression turned dark. “Hatch was so upset when you went missing that he fed your bodyguard to the rats.” His eyes narrowed. “He was my cousin.”
Tessa swallowed. She looked pale, like she might faint.
“Did someone radio base?” a guard asked.
“There’s no coverage,” the captain replied. “We’ll radio it in back at the river.”
“Look at that tower,” another guard said. “They’ve been communicating with someone.”
“Let’s find out who,” the captain said. “Search the tents.”
Four of the guards disappeared into the tents.
I was twitching a lot and electricity was sparking around me wildly. Under duress it always did, but with Tessa standing next to me it was crazy. It was even sparking between my legs, climbing from my ankles to thighs like a Jacob’s ladder.
“Stop sparking!” the main guard shouted.
“I can’t help it,” I said.
“Then I’ll help you,” another voice said. Two of those yellow-and-red-striped darts struck me in the side.
I collapsed to the ground, groaning as I fell. But I was still sparking. The darts started smoking, then blew. My energy immediately returned.
“It’s Tessa,” Carvelle said. “She’s making him more electric. She’s got that way with men.”
Three darts hit Tessa. Then another three darts hit me. Tessa fell to the ground about two yards from me. My electricity stopped.
br />
Tessa was almost breathless with pain. My own pain was agonizing, but she seemed less able to handle it.
“Let’s move it,” the captain shouted. “Pedro, Pair, and Sanchez, secure the radio. Find out who they’ve been broadcasting to. I want all codes, logs, and frequencies. Then we’re going to pack that thing out of here.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Johnny and Ryan, you have Vey. Cuff and RESAT him. And be careful, he’s slippery. Carvelle, since you and Tessa are such good friends, she’s all yours. RESAT her, too.”
“My pleasure,” Carvelle said, pulling the white RESAT box out of his pack. “I’m going to keep it turned up a bit high just to be sure you’re not enjoying this, sweetheart. Every time you scream out with pain I want you to think about my cousin in the bowl.”
Tessa began to cry.
The men connected the RESAT to my leg, then they rolled me onto my stomach and pinned my arms behind my back and banded them together.
“Should we band his legs?” one of the guards asked.
“Only if you want to carry him out of here,” another replied.
“That would be negatory.” He laughed. He smacked me in the head. “Sorry, boy. No free rides on this train.”
Out of my peripheral vision I could see them cuffing Tessa’s hands as well. She was still crying but not struggling. She looked as if she was having difficulty breathing. The RESAT was set way too high for her.
When we were both secure they dragged Tessa, on her back, to the center of the camp and lay her next to me; then the men left us to join the others searching the tents, leaving just two guards to watch over us. That’s all they needed. With the RESATs we could barely even breathe, let alone escape.
With some effort I looked over at Jaime. He was so still I wondered if he was dead. But I hadn’t heard any gunshots and he’d been cuffed, which wouldn’t make sense if he were dead. Then I saw the dart sticking out of his hip. It was not like one of the RESAT darts—it was more like a needle. They had tranquilized him. Of course they had. The Elgen only killed when their foe had no value. Jaime had value. They would torture him for information. They would break him and learn about the voice. They would know everything. Our cause would be lost.
Then I noticed something else. Something on the ground next to him. The small black remote to the robotic guns had fallen out of his pocket.
“Tessa,” I whispered.
Only her eyes moved toward me. Her cheeks were stained with tears mixed with dirt.
I struggled to take a deep breath. “No matter what happens, don’t move a muscle. Not a muscle. Understand?”
I gestured with my eyes to the remote.
She followed my gaze to the device, then looked back at me. She looked scared but blinked in understanding.
On my stomach, I inched my way toward Jaime. If I could get close enough, I could roll over onto the remote and activate it with my fingers. Moving was slow and painful, and I had to rest after each exertion, hoping that the guards didn’t notice me and that the other guards didn’t finish their search before I got to Jaime. I was about two feet from the remote when the rest of the guards emerged from the tents, their arms loaded with papers and equipment.
“We’ve found a treasure trove, gentlemen,” the captain said, his arms laden with boxes.
Then one of the guards glanced over at me. “What’s he doing?”
“He’s going for that thing,” another said, pointing to the remote.
“What is that?” the captain asked. “Someone get that.”
With everything I had, I rolled onto my back over the remote.
“Get him!” the captain shouted.
Slightly arching my back, I got the remote in my hands and moved it around in my fingers. As the first guard reached me, I pressed the button. The entire campsite exploded with machine-gun fire.
“Ambush!” a guard shouted, before falling to the ground riddled with bullets. The sound of bullets whistled past me, one so close that it caught a flap of my shirt, ripping the side of it open.
The guards shouted in panic, making their situation worse as they went for their weapons to combat their unseen assaulters. The firing probably lasted less than twenty seconds, but felt much, much longer. I closed my eyes until the firing stopped, the stench of smoke falling low to the ground. I fought coughing. I dared not even move my head enough to look around to see if anyone was left. I was afraid to look at Jaime and Tessa.
When it had been quiet for nearly thirty seconds, I pushed the remote button again, then slowly raised my head enough to see the turret. The red light above the gun was off. I breathed out in relief, then fell back again, my body racked with pain. The Elgen guards were lying all around me, but no one was moving.
I looked back at Tessa. She was shaking.
“It’s off,” I croaked.
She tried to speak but couldn’t. She was drenched with sweat and her blouse looked as if she had showered in it. The RESAT was set way too high. I worried that if I couldn’t get it turned off soon that it might stop her heart. But I could barely move myself and I doubted that I could cut myself loose, even if I could wriggle myself to the nearest guard and unlatch his knife.
That left Jaime. I had to get the dart out of him. I rolled over again, then pushed myself up over him. I felt around until I found the dart, clasped it with my fingers, then rolled off, collapsing on the other side of him. I had the dart. Now he just needed to wake up.
It was nearly a half hour before Jaime stirred. About five minutes before Jaime woke, Tessa began convulsing, and then her eyes rolled back into her head and she passed out. I struggled back to her and even tried to kick the RESAT, but I was too weak.
Jaime groaned, then his eyes opened.
“Jaime,” I said.
He looked at me.
“Help.”
He sat up and looked around at the fallen guards. “What happened?”
“Turn this off,” I gasped.
He walked on his knees over to me. His hands were still bound behind his back.
“I can unfasten it,” Jaime said.
“No. If they’re unfastened without being turned off, they power up to full. It could kill me.”
“How do you turn it off?”
“The guard right there put it on me. He should have the control.”
Jaime crawled over to him and felt through his pockets. “I think I found it.”
“Push it,” I said.
My RESAT powered down. I took a deep breath, then pulsed as hard as I could, melting my wristbands. Then I crawled over to Carvelle and turned off Tessa’s RESAT. She immediately gasped for air, as if she’d just come up from under water. I detached the machine and threw it into the jungle, then put my head against her chest. To my relief her heart was beating.
“Cut me loose,” Jaime said.
I stood up and walked over to him. Careful not to touch him, I grabbed his bands and melted through them.
“Gracias,” he said. He stretched out his arms, then rubbed his wrists. “Muchas gracias.”
I went back to Tessa. Her eyes were still closed. I gently rubbed her face, wiping the mud off her cheeks. Her eyelids fluttered, then opened. She looked into my eyes, still too weak to speak.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
She took another few breaths, then said softly, “Yeah.”
“Let me take care of your bands.” I grabbed her bands and pulsed. With the enhancement of Tessa’s returning power the band didn’t melt, it vaporized. She brought her hands to her face and began sobbing. I put my arms around her and she fell against me, her face buried against my chest. When she had settled a little, I asked, “Are you okay?”
“I thought I was going to die,” she said.
“What happened?” Jaime asked. “How are the Elgen guards all dead?”
I turned back to him. “Your remote fell out of your pocket. I pushed it.”
Jaime looked at me with admiration. “You are very clever,”
he said. “Very, very clever.” He looked at the radio and papers scattered around the campsite and his expression turned grave. “Were we compromised?”
“I don’t know. I heard them say that they didn’t have radio coverage here.”
“Madre de Dios,” he said. “Esquivar una bala. We were lucky. We need to get out of here. The Elgen usually travel like lobos. And their radios have tracking devices. We need to leave before these guards are found missing.”
“Where do we go?”
“We need to radio the voice,” Jaime said. “But we cannot carry the tower. We will have to find a mountain.”
“Where?”
“West of here. It is also in the direction of the mountain pass the army will take to Lima.”
“How long will it take us to get there?”
“To the mountain it is several days without packs. But we have much to carry. The radio and decoder are very heavy. I will need a gun and ammunition. And we will need food.” He sighed. “It took me a month to carry all this in. We must leave in minutes. We must burn everything we do not take.”
“But won’t they see the smoke?” Tessa said.
“Yes, but it is too much for us to carry,” Jaime said. “We must take that chance and be gone before they arrive.”
“I’ll start the fire,” I said.
“No, we must be ready to go before we start a fire. In case they are near.”
“What do we need to do?” Tessa asked, forcing herself to her feet.
“Help me pack the supplies,” he said to Tessa. “Michael, the Elgen have helped us. Please gather what they have dropped into a pile. Then we will soak it with gasoline.”
“On it,” I said.
Jaime and Tessa disappeared into the tent while I walked around the camp and picked up all the papers and books the Elgen had already brought out. I piled them in the center of the clearing, then dragged some logs over and made a fire pit.
As I was finishing, Jaime and Tessa came out carrying three large backpacks. Jaime took two of the guards’ utility belts and fastened them around his waist. I took one of the backpacks from Jaime, and we carried the packs outside the clearing. I turned back toward the camp. “Are we ready to start the fire?”