Alicia pulled a cell phone out of her pocket. She listened for a moment. "Quit bitching," she snapped. "It wasn't that fucking loud." There was a slight pause. "Keep your eyes open if you don't mind. We got one, but I don't see my kid." She was glaring at Cole as she hung up.
"Chinese spy satellite," she answered Cole before he had to ask. "Logan's still pretty handy at getting into things like that. We've been following you and the other one. Where's my daughter?"
Cole recognized the tone. It was usually used right before death and destruction on a grand scale was about to erupt. It had been a while since he'd heard it to that exact degree, but he remembered it clearly. "We had to split up," he said. "What other what?"
"The other helicopter," Zack supplied when Alicia didn't answer. Her eyes were riveted onto Janice. She didn't notice Cole's eyes widen in surprise, but Zack did. "You don't know there appears to be someone else looking for my daughter?" he asked evenly. An outside observer would think him unconcerned. Anyone that knew him would know that was his way of keeping a tight reign on his self-control. He was on the edge of causing great pain to Cole's body. He didn't actively dislike Cole, but he never really trusted him like Alicia did. If anything happened to Heather because he was too busy with some woman rather than taking care of the mission, Cole was going to be a in a world of pain.
Cole glanced over at Janice. "He say anything about a second ride?"
"Probably the buyer," Janice suggested. "Maybe he had some backup troops of his own." She wasn't prepared to be off her feet in half a heartbeat, a hand wrapped around her throat lifting her up. Alicia had moved too fast to even be seen much less stopped.
"And exactly who the fuck are you really?" she hissed. Janice would have replied, but she was having a hard enough time trying to breathe. Fighting Alicia would be impossible. She wasn't injured at all, and already in a bad mood. Cole grabbed Alicia's arm fast, his fingers digging into a pressure point in the wrist making her fingers release. Alicia's hand flicked open, dropping Janice to the ground. He didn't let go of Alicia's arms. Janice was too close to death at that moment.
"She's with me!" he snapped quickly. Alicia's eyes met his, cold enough to freeze anyone in their tracks. He had sworn to her that there was nobody that he knew ever watching her kids. He'd promised to keep them below radar. Alicia felt hands on her shoulders and knew Zack was going to stop her from killing that woman until he knew why.
"Heather's gym teacher is talking about buyers," Alicia said coldly, still glaring at Cole. Cole knew Alicia had a real problem with the idea of buyers, and a bigger one about her kid being watched. Zack tightened his grip on her.
When Janice saw Heather's father glare at her, she saw red. He recognized her now. Damn it, this whole fiasco was not her fault and she was sick of it. It wasn't her kid, or her niece, or anyone else. Hell, if she hadn't thought Heather was meeting a boy last night, she wouldn't have gone after her. Janice thought that Cole might be able to temper Heather's mother, but instinct said Heather's father didn't give a damn if Cole tried to stop him. He'd go through Cole if need be.
"That's it!" Janice yelled, getting to her feet. "I've been shot, stabbed and dropped off of a helicopter for this? Next time, I won't bother to save your kid's ass!" she yelled at Alicia and Zack. She glared at all three of them. They hadn't been expecting this explosion of temper. Most people would be terrified of being outnumbered three to one by the genetically engineered. Janice wasn't most people.
"Janice," Cole tried to say, but she cut him off cold.
"Don't even try it soldier," she snarled. "I'm going to get Kevin, slap some sense into him and maybe get a shower and something to eat before going back to my pathetic little teaching job, and the rest of you can kiss my non-genetically engineered ass! Good luck finding the kids before the remnants do." She whirled around and started stalking away, not caring what direction she was going. She just wanted to get the hell away from them. Hell, her watch had a compass on it. That was all she needed. Not that it would probably matter at all. Not when two armed genetically engineered killing machines were probably going to have a shooting contest in about ten seconds. It didn't matter.
"Disavowed CIA," Cole whispered to Zack and Alicia to explain. "She didn't know until today."
"You really think he didn't send her?" Zack asked doubtfully. He may have become less vigilant with the dissolution of Manticore, but outside of Alicia he had never lost his suspicion of the X-6 group, and what their goals were. Cole was the only one they had contact with, but the others were out there.
"I know he didn't," Cole said, watching Janice leave.
Zack shrugged. "She knows too much now," he commented almost casually, and went to shoulder his rifle. Alicia grabbed his shoulder instantly to pause him for a second. Sometimes Zack just shot first and asked questions later. It was annoying, but a holdover of his being on the run for so long. She dealt with it.
"Is she still of use?" she asked Cole. You didn't kill someone until his or her usefulness was at an end. Maybe it wasn't until the tenth year at Manticore that lesson was taught. Cole didn't bother to answer. It was drag her back or she was going to die. He just ran fast to catch up to her.
"You're not going anywhere, so don't bother," he said quickly, grabbing Janice's shoulder and whipping her around. She was pissed. "The second you turn away, you might hear the rifle shot that kills you, but I doubt it." She didn't back down.
"You really think I give a damn anymore?" Her voice was flat, devoid of any emotion at all.
"Well I do, so deal with it," he snapped back, the words out of his mouth before he even knew what he was going to say. Her eyes widened slightly at the intensity of his tone and words. "I mean," he stumbled, trying to get the right words out, "I don't want to see you hurt because they're stressed." God, he sounded like an idiot. She still had that slightly wide-eyed look. "Don't go," he finally said softly.
Janice knew that a few minutes before she had been too tired to care about anything anymore. That last show of temper had sucked the remaining bits of emotion from her. Nothing really mattered. Sure, save Kevin from himself. And then? Who cared? What was left out there for her? Cyra was used to her being gone by now. She'd live with it. Well, it seemed that there was one person right there that wanted her slightly alive.
"There's only one way to help Kevin, isn't there?" she finally said. Cole was visibly relieved. He really didn't want her to get killed. That was kind of sweet in a twisted sort of way. She glanced up at Heather's parents as they started to walk back. Tracking us this whole time, she thought idly. Tracking.
The thought locked into her head, catching and not letting go. Janice knew when that happened, she paid attention. Tracking. Why was tracking so important? They had been tracked by satellite. There was another helicopter. Tracking the kids? How? Same routes going back to the lodge? No. Buyer would be more careful. Tracking. The boy had a Search and Rescue vest on. Tracking. Search and rescue always had those GPS-guided map units. Christ.
They were almost to Alicia and Zack when Janice stopped suddenly. "He's leading them right to them," she muttered, not noticing the alarm her sudden stop had caused. She was on the edge of being shot anyways, but that didn't matter for a moment as all the cross-connections were made in her mind.
"Janice?" Cole asked. He didn't need her spooking Alicia and Zack any more than she already was. Janice looked up, her eyes bright with understanding.
"The boy's leading the other helicopter right to them and he doesn't even know it," she answered quickly. The other three stiffened. "We've got to work fast. Mr. Chinese Spy Satellite a good hacker or just lucky?"
