Chapter 26
The One-Winged Bird
The tinkling of the bell in the little antique shop had been quaint at first, but now it was taunting her. Skye had to grit her teeth and force herself not to turn and tear it off the wall. Instead, she put one foot in front of the other, carrying her body forward deliberately until she reached the tiny counter set into the corner of the room. Busy reaching up to fix a crooked display behind him, the shopkeeper didn't see her until he turned around. When he did, both faces displayed the same distasteful smile.
"Oh." The round man dragged the sides of his mouth up, though his eyes looked as dead as the nails he had just pulled out of the wall. "You again."
"Me again."
It had been a trying week. The note in her pocket had led her to first one building and then another, to parking lots, private houses, even to one police station, taking messages from one location to the next and then on to the next. She had traversed the greater lengths of Chicago so thoroughly, she could probably have drawn a map of the city by hand and sold it to buy herself some proper food for once. She had used up the last of her book of monorail tickets late last night. Kensinge's crumpled letter had been with her for so long, it had started burning a hole in her pocket.
Skye leaned on the counter, sucking in her stomach so that the sharp corner didn't punch a hole right through her middle. She'd never seen a more inconveniently shaped building in her life. Everything in the little antique shop was oddly proportioned. The walls were sloped at odd angles, the door jutted out into the street so that any passerby could - and often did - run straight into it, the floor beneath her actually rose in the middle like the belly of some sleeping dragon - even the waddling clerk behind the tiny counter was oddly shaped, though if Skye had learned anything by now, it was that appearances didn't mean much. Still .. the place was stranger than most.
She looked down at the token box in her hand, running a thumb over the smooth medallion inside. Complete, finally. Each piece had clicked together perfectly, a series of tiny unseen magnets holding them in place and securing them firmly to the molded box. The final image was that of an unusual bird, a creature possessing only one eye and one wing. She tilted the black box so that the token rippled with colour, like oil in the sun. It was beautiful, in a way, though part of her hated the thing. But it also represented the culmination of her entire journey - a symbol of the struggle it had entailed. It was her ticket - at least, it was supposed to be. For that reason, there was also a large part of her that wanted to keep it.
"Sorry, girlie, no can do. He's busy. Come back tomorrow."
Skye bristled, willing the man over the counter to inch forward just slightly so she could throw herself across and wring his fat neck.
"That's what you said yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that. Am I to assume he'll never be willing to see me?"
"You can assume whatever you like." The man smiled widely, seeming to enjoy the attention. "But if you really want to pass on your message, I suggest you try again tomorrow. He might be back then. Unless, of course .."
He held out a hand, his beady eyes glittering greedily.
".. you'd like me to give it to him for you?"
Skye snapped the token box shut and shoved it back into her jacket, shooting an icy stare at him as she retreated out of the room.
"Like I told you yesterday, I've come this far, I'd like to give it to him myself."
"Then I suppose I'll be seeing you tomorrow then." The man smiled in a sickly sweet manner than reminded her faintly of Boylan. "Again."
"I suppose so."
The bell repeated its cheerful call as she turned and left the store, pulling her hood over her head as she stepped out into the biting snow. Christmas was almost here, but there was little evidence of the fact in the city minus the irritating jingles of a few hologram commercials encouraging people to buy up big - useless considering no one but the elite had any extra funds to speak of. The rest of Chicago was as dark and hopeless as usual. Christmas didn't seem to be celebrated much anymore. As she wandered back down the street, Skye found herself wondering which of the two factors had come first.
She stared up into the dusty atmosphere, ignoring the dark shapes that shuffled about her like phantoms. People usually didn't bother with each other in this part of the neighborhood. They came and went like wraiths in the night, no one noticing the people around them. No one knew each other's names or recognized the faces that passed them nearly every day of their lives. It was a lonely place, Chicago.
Once again, Skye felt a pang of homesickness, though the sensation had become dull with familiarity. She paused on the street, turning to stare vacantly at a display in a nearby window. Half the novelty of looking through these windows, she had realized, was trying to decipher what exactly was inside them, past the hazy layer of built-up grime on the outside. This particular window, however, looked into an abandoned shop, so there was nothing of interest inside. It held a special place in her heart for a different reason. She had passed it every day this week, pausing to remind herself what she looked like while she waited around in this world without mirrors, where nobody seemed to remember that they were human anymore. Somehow the habit also reassured her that she didn't belong here, that she had a home to go back to someday. She saw something in herself that she couldn't quite put into words, but it gave her hope. She pulled her jacket tighter about her, staring into her own eyes seriously. It was her only defense against the sea of unfriendliness she was drowning in. This window was her anchor.
"I dreamed about you last night, Mom." She murmured to her partial reflection in the dirty glass. "You and Lucas. You were playing chess, in the Infirmary, but you looked so much better .. and .. you both turned, and you smiled at me .."
She reached out a hand and traced her outline absently, smiling a little despite the salty droplets that threatened to freeze on her cheeks.
"Dr. Shannon was there too, and Taylor, and even Boylan-" She choked out a laugh, her eyes filling up with new tears. She stared at her reflection numbly as they spilled out, barely able to connect the faint image to herself any longer. Her chin trembled as she watched the girl cry on the other side of the glass.
"It was so warm there. Everyone was happy, and I was safe. It was so real, and so perfect, I .. I thought I had died out here-"
She shoved a fist to her mouth to stop the sudden attack of sobs, squeezing her eyes shut as she turned to lean her back against the window. After a moment or two, she regained control and wiped the tears away with the arm of her jacket, hugging herself tightly and feeling the rounded corners of the token box pressing into her ribs. She continued in a solemn voice, one that sounded little like her own, even to her own ears.
"But I hadn't died. Because the monorail jolted and I lost it all. You all disappeared, and I woke up. I woke up to this nightmare." She blew out a cloud of steam and looked up, tilting her head back to gaze into the thick reddish-brown fog above her. The sky was nowhere to be seen.
"I miss you." She said simply to the mist. "I'd give anything to have one of you walk around that corner right now. I'll take anyone. Even Boylan. I don't care if there's a war going on around me. I don't care if I'm stuck in this awful place. I don't even care if I have to live on the street forever, just give me .. someone .. please .."
She waited for longer than she should have, staring in the direction of the corner just in case, by some miracle, her wish came true. But no one came. The next set of footsteps belonged to an old man with a cane and Skye had no choice but to move along. It wasn't safe to stay in one place for too long anyway. Still ..
She cast one last regretful glance at the window on the street corner before putting up her hood again and turning away, becoming nothing more than just another shadow to blend in with the mist.
"Elisabeth." The head researcher snipped, stressing the last half of her name as though irritating his subject would help to make his point. "I need him today. Tell him she'll be fine."
Elisabeth scoffed, shaking her head at the man who had interrupted her day seemingly just to stand here bickering in the centre hallway of the Infirmary.
"Malcolm! I'm not about to stop him! But I'm also not about to force him out, so if you need him that badly, you're going to have to convince him on your own!"
At her words, the curtain parted and Lucas himself appeared from the small room at the back of the building, folding his arms and leaning on the doorframe as he studied them. He looked tired, Elisabeth frowned. Too tired. Perhaps she shouldn't let him go after all. Lucas, however, despite the dark circles under his eyes, appeared to be more interested in casting disapproving looks at his seniors than he was in taking a nap.
"You two argue loud enough to wake the dead. Who's dragging me where?"
"I need you for the afternoon." Malcolm jumped in immediately, ignoring the pointed glare of the woman beside him. "Come on a little errand with me, and I promise I'll get you back in time for your dinner."
Lucas blinked.
"A 'little errand'? How little are we talking?"
"Little." Malcolm assured him. "Tiny, nanoscopic."
"Hm."
Elisabeth smiled as the younger man turned a questioning look in her direction.
"As I've explained to your fan club here .. she seems a little stronger. He tells me you're not going far from the colony, so I'll send word with someone if there's any change. If you'd like you go, I have no objections."
"Thank you." Malcolm gushed sarcastically. Lucas raised a hand to rub some of the tiredness from his eyes.
"Fine, but we better make this as quick as possible."
"It'll be worth it, trust me."
Lucas stared at him searchingly for a moment, then, as though suddenly deciding he didn't want to know the answer to his unspoken question, he turned away and headed for the door.
"Alright. Let's go then."
"That's the spirit!"
As the head researcher made to follow his protege, he found Elisabeth's hand on his arm.
"Malcolm."
"What? Ow!"
Elisabeth stopped in surprise as he shrank back, then used the back of her hand to swot at him sharply.
"Stop it! I thought I actually hurt you for a minute!"
"You did hurt me!"
Elisabeth threw him a tolerant look.
"That wasn't even your bad arm. I ought to know, I set it!"
"Then why did you jump so high?" Came the snarky reply.
"Keep talking and I'll hit you harder this time. And maybe I'll forget which arm is which!"
"Always knew underneath all that charm and elegance you were really a barbarian."
"I shall take that as a compliment." Elisabeth retorted. "Now listen, I want you to take it easy on him, alright? Don't push him too hard. I mean it. He's been through a lot these past few weeks."
Malcolm smiled innocently.
"Darn it all, and here I was planning on bull riding him down the mountain."
He tried to jump back as Elisabeth's arm shot out, but he wasn't quick enough to avoid the pinch just above the top of his cast. He yelped and rubbed his arm, glaring at his attacker with great offense just as Lucas poked his head back in, annoyance written across his face.
"Are we going or what?"
"Yes." Malcolm shot a look at Elisabeth as he retreated. "We're going. Before we end up in here permanently."
She laughed a little, waving them out the door.
"Have fun .. and for goodness sake, be careful."
"Can't be any more dangerous outside than it is inside!" Malcolm chirped as he turned away, leaving Elisabeth to shake her head at their footsteps.
He led the way to the autobay, where a great chaos of industry was currently taking place. He wasn't at all interested in the workers, however, ignoring the hard labour of the people he stepped over to get to the back door. Lucas followed him into the latter half of the large shed, to the section still reserved for vehicles. The researcher stopped beside a Rover, throwing the starter key to his apprentice over the hood.
"You drive."
Lucas looked down at the key in his hand, smiling a little as he raised an eyebrow at Malcolm.
"Oh, you needed a chauffeur."
"Yes. But I needed one with an IQ above 150."
"That's .. come on, give me a little credit-"
Malcolm slid into the passenger seat, cutting Lucas off as he slammed the door shut. He turned to watch his driver drop into the seat beside him.
"I suppose you also happen to be easier to put up with than most people."
"Aw, shucks, Malcolm, there go my heart strings."
"Drive."
Malcolm's version of "not far from the colony" turned out to be a little farther than most. An hour and a half later, just as Lucas was starting to drift off in the driver's seat and the Rover was beginning to veer rather alarmingly to the left, he was startled awake by Malcolm's cry as the man smacked a hand down on the dashboard.
"There! Stop the car!"
Lucas pulled over in bewilderment, watching his supervisor throw the door open and leap from the vehicle.
"What-"
"Shh!" Malcolm threw back at him, then tip-toed to the crest of the hill, dropping gingerly to his knees a few metres away. By the time Lucas had joined him, he was peering gleefully over the edge, his good arm holding up his binoculars. Where he had managed to produce them from was anybody's guess.
"Look."
He nudged Lucas as the younger man settled down on the hill beside him, handing him the set of binoculars expectantly.
"What-"
"Just look! Look, man, look! Look!"
After eyeing him strangely for a moment or two, Lucas obeyed, his jaw dropping a little as the subject of Malcolm's wild enthusiasm finally came into focus.
"Are those .." He lowered the binoculars to squint down at the valley below, as though the action would somehow help him to see better. "Are those what I think they are?"
Malcolm grinned from ear to ear, evidently pleased with his companion's reaction.
"If you think they're horses, you'd be right."
"How?!" The binoculars were back in place over his eyes. "Do you think the future brought them through?"
"Horses?!" Malcolm snorted disdainfully. "Why? Where would they get them from? Those things are rarer than dinosaurs in 2151 .. unless .."
"Unless what?"
Lucas lowered the binoculars again, glancing curiously at the head researcher before his eyes flicked back to the horse in the lead of the herd. The large black's muscles were carrying him forward in bounding strides, his sleek coat rippling in the sunlight. His wavy mane was strewn out in his wake like he was leaving his shadow behind with every powerful leap. It would have been an unusual and awe-inspiring sight in any world. Malcolm watched for a moment as well, his face a mixture of admiration and mental calculation.
"Unless by 'future', you mean the future of this world, not the old one."
"What's the difference?"
Malcolm took so long to answer than Lucas was eventually forced to lower his binoculars once again and turn to look at him. The other man was already staring back at him with a disappointed expression.
"Lucas, honestly, of all people, you shouldn't have to ask that question."
"What question?" Lucas began to raise the binoculars to his face again, but found them wrenched out of his grasp.
"The question .." Malcolm repeated impatiently. ".. of difference. Between futures. Not just old world and new world, of periods of time corresponding to each."
".. alright, go on."
"Look." Malcolm began, feigning irritation at having to explain himself, though both parties knew he had been dying for such an opportunity. "Obviously we're familiar with our own future - 2151 future. We're also fairly familiar with our own past - what we would class as 'history' in 2151. What you don't seem to be grasping - or perhaps the horses have thrown the sense from your brain - is that this future - our new future - is not the future we've come to think of as 'the future'. 2151 is not our future anymore. With me?"
Lucas tilted his head, his eyes reflecting the bright aqua blue of the cloudy sky.
"Right. Different time stream, different future. Nothing's the same, the world could be unrecognisable by the time we get to 2151 here. In fact, it almost certainly will be."
"Exactly." Malcolm pointed at him. "Who's to say if the Aztecs ever exist? Or the Revolutionary War is fought? Maybe man will walk on the moon at such an early time period that half of us will be living strewn across the galaxy by then. Put it this way, whatever the original future of this world was going to be - or had been - our arrival here completely obliterated the whole thing. Or maybe we were always meant to arrive here and there was no alternate future."
"And therein lies the enigma." Lucas commented cheerfully. "But .. what was your original point?"
"The whole thing brings us back to those horses." Malcolm returned his attention to the herd, which now appeared to have picked up a few stray Gallimimuses for the ride. The dinosaurs sped along joyfully, easily keeping pace with the pounding of the horses' hooves beside them.
"What about the horses .. exactly?"
"Well, think about it. They couldn't have come from the old future - 2151. We know there are barely any horses left there. Right? And we're fairly certain they don't come from here natively. Which brings us to three hypotheses. One - that they came back in time somehow at a particular point in this world's future, which would present us with the possibility that there are descendants of ourselves walking around out there and we have yet to meet them."
Lucas chuckled.
"A scary thought."
"Scary indeed." Malcolm agreed. "Or there's two - that they somehow came from the original future of this world, the one that our arrival destroyed and overwrote. Maybe because they came through a fracture and looped back, they're all that's left of it."
"Or .. maybe they're not .."
"Quite." Malcolm muttered darkly. "Or the third possibility-"
"That they came from somewhere further back in the past of the old future, right? Centuries before 2151. We know fractures can occur naturally, so it's not unreasonable to assume they came from there."
"Right." His companion nodded eagerly. "Like what we assume to be the story behind the figurehead that's now in the mess hall. An accidental step through a dimensional doorway. Either way, each alternative theory results in this world being a melting pot of time streams and periods. Anything could be out there, new or old, future or extinct. Anything at all."
Lucas' mouth twisted dryly, his mind flying in an assortment of wild directions before returning to the present.
"I can see this has been keeping you up at night."
"Amongst other things .. yes." Malcolm eyed him. "But I'm not the only one who hasn't been getting much sleep, am I?"
"No, I'd say the entire colony is probably with you on that one." Lucas murmured.
They turned back to survey the horses one last time. Then, as Malcolm sat up to leave, his apprentice turned to him, forehead creased in thought.
"But wait a minute, I thought the general consensus was that none of our fractures lead back here. They all seem to lead over there, to the old world and vice versa. We've never found any that return to their own time stream. So how could these horses be from any future of this world?"
Malcolm shrugged airily, unbothered by the dilemma.
"Nothing is 100% certain. But just because something hasn't been observed happening doesn't mean it can't happen. Don't hold your theories too closely, or they might stop you from seeing the truth." He looked down at Lucas with a wry smile. "Besides, no one in the early 2140s would have ever imagined that there would eventually be a way to reverse the direction of a time fracture. Who's to say that in another few years, someone else might come along - say, someone very much like yourself, for example - and work out how to tether the future of this world to its own past? What then?"
Lucas nodded slowly.
"Yeah, I guess it's possible .."
"Anything's possible. You see?"
Lucas smiled a little, leaning on the hill again to watch the herd disappear into the distance. Malcolm watched him for a few moments.
".. what? What is it?"
"Hm?" Lucas looked at him quickly, his face clouded with confusion. Within a second or two, it cleared, however, and he laughed under his breath, shaking his head as he looked away.
"Oh. Nothing. Just .. Skye'll be so mad she missed this .."
He himself missed the condescending smirk that followed his own statement - probably just as well - but a moment later, he felt a heavy pat on his shoulder as the other man used the opportunity to get up.
"Don't fret if you can help it." Malcolm sighed as he stretched out his back in preparation for another long car ride. "I'm sure she's on her way home right now."
"I hope you're right."
"You really miss her, huh?"
"Ah." Lucas gave a half-hearted shrug. "Worrying about her is like breathing - after a while, you get so used to the feeling that you only really start to notice when you're not doing it."
Malcolm eyed him pityingly.
".. that would almost be charming, perhaps even heartwarming if it wasn't so utterly depressing."
Lucas laughed a little. Malcolm studied him keenly, his sharp eyes locked on his apprentice's usually inscrutable face.
"But I didn't ask if you were worried. I asked if you missed her .."
Lucas was silent for a moment, then turned and stood, dusting himself off as he trotted back down the hill toward the Rover.
"We should be heading back."
"Aha!" His boss crowed after him, following at a more leisurely pace. "Avoiding the question, are we?"
Lucas leaned on the roof of the vehicle, watching Malcolm's slow progress with a gleam in his eye.
"Seeing as I'm the only one who can drive this thing, either you get in the car or you can walk back."
"And this he says to an injured man. How cruel."
"You dragged me out here. You only have yourself to blame."
"Touché."
"As it turns out, you're in luck. He just arrived back in town this morning."
Skye's knees almost buckled with relief.
"When can I see him?"
The antiques dealer leaned on the tiny countertop, his thick forearms folded in front of him like mounds of dough.
"Well, let's see, that depends .."
Skye stared at him.
"On what?"
He was quiet for a few minutes, internally deliberating over the question.
"Fine." He threw out finally, his voice sounding more like the yap of an irritated dog. "You can go down and wait for him. On one condition."
Skye eyed him.
".. what?"
"The token." His gaze roved greedily over her jacket, settling on the pocket he knew she kept the box in. "Give it to me."
Skye's stomach clenched.
"I'd rather give it to him."
"You give it to me or you don't get in at all."
"You've already seen it!" She protested. "You know I have it."
The man's shoulders shrugged as if of their own accord.
"Last chance. Hand it over."
"No."
The man's black eyes watched her starkly. Skye stared back. Finally, he snarled and reached down below the counter, yanking an invisible lever upward, perhaps a little harder than necessary. It gave way with a shriek that caused Skye to grimace, though the other man actually seemed to enjoy the sound.
"Fine, have it your way. If it finally gets you out of my hair, I guess it'll be worth it."
His words were partially lost on Skye, who had turned in surprise as a series of rhythmic clunks sprang to life behind her. As she watched, a section of the skirting board on the far wall ("far" being a relative term - it wasn't, after all, a large shop) inverted, rolling back into the wall itself. A piece of floor about a foot in front of it dropped away as well, revealing a black hole plummeting down into a narrow black abyss. The whole thing looked like a phenomenal safety hazard. Malcolm would have been appalled.
"Well, down you go."
The man at the counter seemed far too happy about the prospect now. Perhaps he was envisioning the sweet relief it would bestow upon him to watch her disappear down a seemingly endless hole, never to return to plague him again. Casting a final glance back at him, Skye stepped up to the hole. It was impossible to see the bottom. Had he intended on killing her all along? What if there was no waiting contact at the bottom? What if there was no bottom?!
She stepped in, her foot hovering hesitantly over the precipice, dropping inch by inch. When she was so far down, she had almost lost her balance, it landed on something. A step - stable and firm, though still invisible. Slowly, her tense muscles quivering a little, she pulled her other foot in and searched for the next step. She found it. Just as she did, a faint cackle broke out from across the room as the man ducked back underneath the counter. A moment later, the section of wall began to roll back down, unraveling so rapidly it nearly took her head with it. She stumbled hastily down the last few steps, landing with a thud at the bottom. The entrance clamped shut above her, plunging her into darkness.
Her sense of smell was the first to re-engage. A thread of breeze was swirling about her, carrying with it a faintly bittersweet scent. Where the outtake was, she couldn't yet make out, but the pit she sat in was gradually expanding now, as her eyes adjusted to the dim light. It was becoming a passageway, curling out from her immediate field of vision like a murky carpet. The several layers of mist that swirled about the space weren't helping to make sense of it, but through the sweet-smelling fog, she glimpsed a dark pair of legs. A man was approaching. She stood hurriedly, dusting herself off as he arrived to stand in front of her. They studied each other for a moment, unsure what to make of the strange meeting, but eventually, he shrugged and turned away. Evidently he had seen people fall from the ceiling several times before.
"This way." The gravelly voice mumbled ahead of her, leaving her little choice but to do as he said and follow. The scent grew in measure as they drew to the end of the short hall, exploding to a sickening pitch as they stepped out into a wide room. Skye wondered briefly if she should hold her breath, but as she contemplated the fact, she happened to catch a glimpse of a sign to her right and immediately thought better of it. "No Rebreathers Allowed", proclaimed the billboard in thick, smudged letters. Skye shoved down the impulse to question why. Probably better she didn't know.
"Sit." The man beside her muttered, then turned and strode away, leaving her to her own devices. Skye resisted the urge to twiddle her thumbs as her eyes darted around the room. It appeared to be some sort of lounge, lined with circular couches on several sides. Blankets of various descriptions were strewn about the place, and the entire floor seemed to be covered in hideously mismatched carpet. There were a few entrances set into the walls - no doors at all, but the openings were covered by a shower of beaded strings and ribbons set into the ceiling. There was a small bar at the back, manned by a thin bartender who seemed intent on wiping down one particular glass within an inch of its life.
The room was lit with old-fashioned lanterns, which hung against the wall between pieces of colourfully-patterned material. Wispy curtains of sequins and beads were draped throughout, seeming to have been thrown wherever the decorator saw fit to cast them. Where they had gotten the bits and pieces used to create the atmosphere of the place was anyone's guess, but there was something about the gleeful carelessness of the design that offered a certain warmth to it. Skye smiled a little. The strange underground club down here felt more alive than anywhere else in the city. It almost echoed faintly of the marketplace back home. At any rate, just about anything was better than the cold, numb, grey, robotic society above the floorboards.
There were a few women strewn about the furniture, appearing very relaxed, though every single female eye in the room was locked onto her with great interest. One of the women snickered as Skye met her gaze, but she didn't look away. The others didn't seem to know what to make of her at first, staring in silence for so long that Skye eventually suspected them of being holographic projections rather than real people. Finally, though, one of the two seated on the left beckoned to her with a genuine smile.
"Well, don't just stand there all day. Come here and sit."
Skye stepped forward, hesitated, and took a seat on the empty couch opposite the two. One of them snorted disdainfully at the snub, but the woman who had spoken first continued to watch her, a twinkle in her eye.
"I'm Molly. What's your name, kid?"
Skye blinked, flicking an uncertain glance at the barkeeper across the room. He was still wiping what appeared to be the same glass.
"Don't want to say, huh? Smart." The woman's - Molly's - words drew Skye's eyes quickly back to her hazel ones. "You here to see someone?"
"Bet she's a new recruit." The other woman sneered, but there was a mischievious glint in her expression that Skye couldn't help liking.
"You think?" Molly looked Skye up and down with a quizzical air. "Bit young, isn't she?"
The dark-haired woman scoffed.
"Ha! So were you .. once."
"Don't remind me!"
Molly leaned back in the couch, twisting her wavy hair around her finger as she studied the girl with narrowed eyes. She stared for so long that Skye began to shift uncomfortably beneath the focused gaze. Finally, she looked away, calling out to arrest the attention of another woman on the far side of the room.
"Hey Rose, c'mere a minute." She waited only long enough for the other woman to stand and cross the floor before nodding at Skye again. ".. who does she remind you of?"
The woman who had been beckoned leaned on the back of the couch between the other two, staring at Skye's features critically.
".. I dunno. Who?"
"You tell me!"
"Uhh .." The dark-haired woman bit her lip, appearing to concentrate all her energy into the one task. "Wait! That woman on the hair commercials-"
"No!" Molly shouted with laughter, then leaned over and whispered something into the Rose person's ear. The other woman turned to her with a raised eyebrow, then turned back to Skye with a thoughtful expression.
"Kid, look that way for me."
Skye hesitated, but turned her head in the direction that was indicated.
"Now the other way."
Skye complied, turning back to stare at the woman. Rose narrowed her eyes, studying her for a moment, then turned back to her friend and shook her head.
"Nah, I don't see it."
Molly shouted in outrage, picking up a lumpy cushion from the couch beside her and hurling it at the other woman.
"I'm serious .." She eyed Skye intently. "You're not from here, are you? There's something about you .. Where did you come from?"
Before Skye could answer, however, the voice of her friend exclaimed loudly again.
"What's with the interrogation?!"
"I'm just asking a simple question!" Molly defended herself indignantly. "What, I can't make conversation?"
"What is it with you and this kid, huh? You that worried she's gonna take your job?"
Molly flushed and stood up, shoving the woman beside her a little in the process.
"Don't be an idiot."
Skye watched as she wandered the room for a minute or two, waiting until the other women lost interest before she returned to sit down closer to Skye. She looked her in the eye with a gentle smile, speaking to her in a low voice.
"Hey, don't mind us, okay? We're just having some fun. When you get to where we are in life, you gotta take it where you can get it."
Skye nodded slowly, glancing back at the other two women. They appeared to be engrossed in some description of game that didn't seem to have any rules whatsoever.
"Don't worry about it."
She looked back to find the woman staring at her intently again, though after a moment, she shook her head and leaned back.
"There really is something about you, you know that. I just can't quite put my finger on it yet. Kiki doesn't see it, but that doesn't mean much. Kiki sees what Kiki wants to see, and that's about it .. what?"
She must have noticed the strange look cross over the other girl's face - though Skye tried valiantly to hide it - because she laughed unexpectedly.
"What is it .. Kiki? We all have names like that. Her real name is Katherine, but that sounds too elegant for this place. Doesn't bother her. She prefers Kiki anyway."
Skye clasped her hands together and leaned thoughtfully on her knees.
"What's Molly short for then?"
Molly wasn't looking at her, however. She was exchanging a glance with the bartender. After a moment, he nodded slightly and she turned back, casting a reassuring smile down at Skye.
"Time for you to go in. Don't worry, I'll stay with you the whole time if you like."
"I'm not worried." Skye lied. Evidently not very well. The other woman gave her a knowing grin as she led the way into the back.
The back room was exactly like a miniature version of the previous one - same dim lighting, same gaudy furnishings - only this one had a strange occupant, a lanky man in a business suit that didn't seem to suit the setting whatsoever. She watched his shiny leather shoes sink into the carpet as he approached her. They looked expensive - probably Italian, Skye thought to herself, though she wasn't sure exactly why. The bead curtain rattled into place behind her as Molly settled it, moving to hang back quietly in the shadows by the wall. The suited man paid no attention to her whatsoever, turning to Skye sharply as soon as the curtain closed.
"What have you got for me?"
Skye stared back at him, an unexpected thrill of annoyance sparking through her.
"I've been waiting for you for days."
To her surprise, the man actually looked slightly apologetic. He removed his fedora and placed it under his arm, reaching up to adjust his scarf.
"Sorry, I was .. out of town."
Skye watched him warily.
"Who are you?"
"Better for both of us if you don't know the answer to that question. I'm the Jian, that's all you need to remember."
"How can I be sure of that?" Skye persisted, a sudden thought gripping her. "I have no way of knowing you're even who you say you are."
"Then I guess you'll just have to trust me." He smiled slightly, eyeing her. "You, on the other hand .. You don't look like one of Kensinge's men. Terra Novan, aren't you? What's your name?"
As Skye hesitated, he raised his eyebrows a little.
"Quick study."
He took a step toward her then, evidently losing patience.
"I was led to believe you have a message. Give it to me."
"First .." Skye steadied her voice and folded her arms across her chest, feeling the crinkled envelope in the inner pocket of her vest poke into her unpleasantly. "She told me you could help me too."
The man known as the Jian raised an eyebrow.
"Did she?"
"She told me to specify my own demands first. Then you can have your message."
"Very well." He folded his arms to mirror her posture, peering down at her with interest. "What is it I can help you with?"
"Drugs." Skye blurted out, causing the man across from her to smile sarcastically.
"Really? How very .. modern of you."
"They're not for me." Skye responded, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks even as she tried desperately to push it back down again. "I need a case of a drug called Saihitofferten. Ten vials should be enough."
"Why?"
"That's my business."
He eyed her for a moment, sizing her up.
"You know I can make you give me the message anyway."
"I know." Skye responded calmly. "But she said you'd help me."
"And you believe her?"
"Do you?"
He continued to watch her for another few seconds, then smiled a little and pulled out a small tablet phone from his pocket.
"Saihitofferten. Never heard of it."
"It's experimental." She explained, as he typed. "But there must be a supply of it around here somewhere."
"Spell it." He commanded. Skye did so, watching his illuminated thumbs fly across the screen. One was an odd colour, she observed .. or maybe it was just the lightning.
"Here!" He suddenly barked in triumph as he located what he was searching for. His eyes flicked back up to her.
"I can't help you get it, you understand, but I can tell you where it's kept. You'll have to do the rest."
Skye nodded.
"Alright."
He turned the screen around and waited for several seconds as she studied it. Skye's heart leapt into her mouth as the information on the map began to take shape in her mind. The supply stall was only a few blocks from the dock. She could be home by morning.
"There." The man snapped, startling her a little. "Got it?"
Skye nodded slowly.
"I think so."
"You'd better." He replaced the tablet in his coat pocket and held a hand out. "I can't do anything more for you if you forget. You won't find me again. Now, the message. Give it to me."
Skye retrieved the envelope from its home inside her jacket and placed it into his waiting hand. It was only paper, but she had been carrying it for so long, she felt a little strange without its weight. As the recipient broke the seal and opened the note, scanning it quickly, Skye took the opportunity to look around again. Somehow it felt odd to stare at him while he read. After a moment, however, his eyes flicked up from the page to study her briefly before flicking back down to it.
"You're wondering why I would choose to meet you in a place like this."
Skye looked back at him quickly.
"No, not really."
"It's because the people here are used to looking in the other direction." He murmured. "No one expects real names or identities. You can come and go as you like. Ghosts inhabit these places, and their keepers can be paid to overlook just about anything."
"If you say so."
He suddenly looked up again, his eyes boring into hers.
"Have you read this?"
Skye's heart leaped into her throat.
"What?"
"This note. Have you read it?"
Skye blinked, shaking her head slowly.
"No."
She hadn't read it. In truth, she had been sorely tempted to many times, but once the old-fashioned wax seal had been broken, it would be nearly impossible to replace. To take the chance and read the letter would put her entire mission in danger, and that was something she would never risk doing, not even for the valuable intel contained inside.
The Jian was staring at it once more, pursing his lips as he re-read it.
"If she suspected so much already, why wouldn't she have said something .. what made her reconsider .. unless .." He looked up, biting the inside of his cheek as his eyes drifted. He appeared to be miles away.
Finally, he folded it slowly and put it in an inner pocket of his own jacket, eyeing her grimly.
"Kensinge thinks there's a spy in her camp. She's a very suspicious person. Hence the antique method of communication."
"Oh." Skye wasn't sure what else to say to this. The man, however, didn't seem to be expecting a response. He went on, sounding a little more suspicious himself.
"What I want to know is why she sent a Terra Novan of all people to deliver a highly confidential message if she already believed someone was going behind her back." He folded his arms again, staring at Skye. "Perhaps you can help me work that one out."
She shrugged a little, gazing around the room once more and trying not to cough as another wave of odor hit her nostrils.
"Kensinge knew I wouldn't do anything against her. She has my loyalty for as long as it takes to get those meds." She looked back to him. He was watching her with thinly veiled mistrust. "They're for my mother. Kensinge has my mother's life in her hands. It's the highest assurance of loyalty I could give .."
Her voice trailed away as it suddenly struck her how similar this situation was to the arrangement she had had with Mira in the Sixer camp. History really did have a way of repeating itself. The whole game had a bitter sting to it.
Her listener was still watching her closely.
"I see." He eventually muttered. "But why you .. why not send that big lug she keeps on hand? Unless .. he's the one she doesn't trust .."
A small smile touched his face, but when he looked sharply up at her in the next moment, it was gone. He nodded.
"Very well. You've done your job. Tell Kensinge I'll be in touch."
As he said this, he frowned, his eyes leaving hers to trail over the doorway leading to the front of the building. Skye followed his gaze, listening. A series of growing voices was rapidly building into a commotion as it drew closer. As an enraged scream rang out from one room to the next, she turned back to where the Jian had been standing. He was gone.
Skye had almost forgotten about Molly, but now the hazel-eyed woman raced across the room, pushing back a beaded curtain to reveal a narrow entrance sunken into the back of the wall. She gestured to Skye urgently.
"Come on, quick. We have to get you out of here."
Skye had no objections to this plan. She followed the other woman down a short hallway, almost running into the back of her as she stopped beneath a small window set at an angle, halfway between the wall and the roof. Molly gripped the edge of it, sliding it open with a bang as she turned to Skye sharply.
"Give me your foot. I'll boost you up."
"But-"
"Your foot!"
A moment later, Skye found herself sitting on the pavement outside, staring back down into the woman's face. The commotion in the front of the building was growing louder by the second.
"Wait! Why are you helping me?"
"Is it that unusual these days? .. I guess it is." Molly smiled, leaning on the wall with one shoulder. "Let's just say I owe it to someone."
She looked up at the sagging roof, but the only answer was the pounding of boots overhead and a light trickling of dust as the corridor vibrated.
"If she's watching, I hope this makes us even."
Skye frowned. She was almost afraid to ask the question, but it came spilling out of her mouth anyway.
"Who? Did you .. do something to someone?"
"Do me a favour, kid." The woman's hazel eyes stared up into hers, her large hoop earrings swaying gently and catching the warm yellow light spilling out from the next room. "Get out while you still can. Run, and never look back. This life, it grips you, it twists you until you can't make out up from down. This place .."
Her lip curled in distaste.
".. it's evil. It sinks into you so gradually that you don't even notice it happening, but it's just like the air that fills it .. it's poison. Don't stay here any longer than you absolutely have to. It isn't worth it."
Skye stared at her in confusion.
"I don't-"
The woman's slender hand reached out and gripped Skye's forearm.
"Listen to me, kid. I started out just like you, running errands, doing odd jobs. I promised my own sister I could leave any time I wanted. I thought I could get out too. I was wrong." Her large eyes met Skye's seriously. "Before I knew it, I was stuck here."
Skye frowned in bewilderment.
"But .. you can leave!"
The woman shook her head quickly.
"No, it's too late for me. Trust me. But you - you get out while you can. Promise me you will. Promise me you'll never come back."
"Okay. I promise." Skye held up a hand solemnly. "This is my last time working for the wrong side. No more compromises. No more deception. Once this mission is over, I'm done. I'll walk away. Forever. I promise."
"Good." The woman smiled a little, squeezed her arm again, then released her. She hugged herself, looking around the corridor nervously, then turned back to look up at Skye.
"You remind me of myself, you know. My brother-in-law told me once that I was standing on the precipice, that I had to get out now or I'd never be free."
"Sounds kind of overbearing." Skye grinned. The woman smiled as well, but shook her head.
"Oh, he was .. but you know what .. he was right."
Skye looked down at her sadly for a moment, but then the woman seemed to shake off the cloud of depression that had settled on them both, smiling as she reached up and gave Skye a little push.
"They'll be charging in here any second. Go. And remember what I said."
"I won't forget." Skye stood to go, then turned back again, crouching on the windowsill and holding out a hand. "Come with me! You said you couldn't get out! Now's your chance!"
But the woman was already shaking her head.
"I can't. You wouldn't understand, but there are reasons I can't leave." She cast a hurried look over her shoulder as a series of heavy footsteps sounded in the next room. "I may not be able to save myself, but I can save you if you go now. Go .. Go!"
She gave another little shove, and Skye turned and backed away into the street, peering back into the little yellow window as she pulled her hood over her head.
"Thank you. I won't forget you."
The woman smiled up at her.
"I won't forget you either. Go."
As the face in the window disappeared, the shower of beads was blown aside, smashing against the wall like a hundred tiny hailstones. The woman in the corridor turned calmly, greeting the uninvited detective with a smile.
"Hello there."
He glared at her, sweeping his hat off his head and slapping it against the nearby wall in profound annoyance.
"Malaikah." He muttered, his voice sounding like it had been squeezed through a meat dispenser. "What are you doing back here?"
"Just getting some air .." She took a deep breath, waving a careless hand as she flicked the hair off her neck. "It gets so hot in there."
"Where's your boss?"
"No idea." She responded, staring at him in mild surprise. "Is he not in the back? You know how he wanders around. Nobody can ever keep track of him."
She met the officer's eyes with a thin smile. He returned it, though his version looked considerably more pained.
"One of these days .." He never finished, ending instead with a small, helpless shrug as he shoved his hat back down onto his head. He shot her a knowing look as he turned back into the room. "Guess I'll see you next week then."
"Sorry." She flashed him a quick grin. "Try again next time, Davis."
As he trailed out the door, she threw a last glance back up at the dark window. If she really listened, she could almost swear she heard the light patter of footsteps, fading as they carried their owner far away, to a waiting home and a freedom she would never know. She was solemn and quiet for several seconds before she gave up the exercise, laughing at herself as she turned away. Wrapping her thin shawl back around her, she followed the detective inside, leaving the open window to fend for itself.