Swing Shift: Book 2 Page 21

  With a bang that made the entire truck lurch to one side, he smashed inside and blasted into the wall that separated the interior from the cab. He’d managed to tuck his shoulder just before impact and took the entirety of the blow on himself rather than Janelle.

  “The fuck!?” shouted one of the prison guards.

  Groaning slightly, Gus held on to Janelle even as the doors opened again.

  “What was it?” asked a guard.

  “Fuck if I know. Nothing in there though,” said the first. Both men stood there, staring into the interior.

  “The hell did you do?” shouted the driver from just outside of view.

  “Nothing! It wasn’t us,” said the first guard.

  “You know what? Whatever,” said the second before he slammed the door closed. “Get the fuck out of here.”

  The first guard closed the door he’d been holding. Plunging Janelle and Gus into absolute darkness.

  Sighing, Gus rolled over onto his back, with Janelle perched atop him.

  It felt like his shoulder was completely dislocated and he’d broken something in his arm as well.

  Janelle was still more or less a frozen and naked Elven maiden who was made out of fear at the moment. Which meant he wasn’t going to get any succor from her.

  Closing his eyes, Gus let out a breath.

  And promptly passed out.

  Chapter 19 - Poorly Scoped

  “Gus.”

  Groaning, Gus shook his head.

  No. Not time to wake up. Tired.

  “Gus, we stopped about an hour ago. I think it’s time for us to get out. We need to make sure to break all contact with anything relating to them, and we can’t wait any longer.”

  We stopped?

  We… stopped? I don’t… what—oh.

  Oh.

  Forcing his eyes open, Gus found he was lying on his back in the corner of the step-truck. Janelle was kneeling above him, staring down into his face.

  “Yeah,” Gus muttered. “Yeah. We do.”

  As he levered himself up to a sitting position with his left arm, Gus found he was panting already.

  “Your arm doesn’t look good,” Janelle said. “Dislocated?”

  “Think so,” Gus said, then got up to his feet.

  Which was a very bad idea. He suddenly wanted to pass out, piss himself, and throw up. Though he wasn’t sure in which order.

  Most of it was centered on the agony that was his right arm at the moment.

  “Hey, look at me,” Janelle said.

  Opening his eyes, he found the still-naked Janelle watching him. It was rather distracting.

  Apparently, that was her intention. Because before he understood it, she had his arm between hers, pulling it up and away from his body as she rotated it slightly.

  There was a strange pop, and Gus felt like his shoulder was now under extreme strain. But he could move it normally again.

  Though it was still exceptionally painful in his upper arm.

  “Pretty sure there’s a break in there.” Janelle’s thumb and forefinger squeezed at his forearm and traveled upward. “Somewhere. Not sure. And yes, I did a lot of medical training. Where you were made in the field, I was made in a classroom.”

  “Ninety-day wonder, huh?” Gus said, his teeth locked together.

  “More like five-year wonder, but close enough,” Janelle said. “Started at the bottom, worked my way up, did a lot of classroom to offset. Been a soldier for ten years now.”

  As he rotated his shoulder gently, Gus got the impression he’d have to be careful with the muscles or the whole joint would just pop out again.

  “How long I been out?” he asked.

  “It’s… been a while, honestly. No idea,” Janelle said. “I mostly just huddled atop you for warmth.”

  “Figures. First time with an Elf, and I’m unconscious and can’t remember it,” Gus said. “Didn’t go whiskey dick at least, right?”

  “You’re deflecting through humor. This isn’t good, is it?” Janelle asked.

  No. It really isn’t. This is all so much worse than I ever thought it could be. There’s so much going on that I don’t even know where to start.

  Part of the government, the Fed, and the military… blew up the Fed.

  “I think… I think that’s an understatement,” Gus said. “And also a conversation for another time.”

  “I’ll lead then,” Janelle said. She walked over to the door and pulled on the interior release. With a soft ping, the door came away from the locking mechanisms.

  Faint moonlight came in at an angle.

  “Parking lot,” Janelle said. “No one around. No lights. No cameras that I can see.”

  “Great,” Gus said, moving forward. “What’s the area like?”

  “Commercial and residential.” Janelle’s head slowly turned as she opened more of the door. “Houses directly across the street. No one moving anywhere, though. Looks like midnight.”

  “Right. Need to steal you some clothes, then get to the local PID station house,” Gus said. “Call Mark.”

  “Mark? You mean Deputy Director Mark Ehrich?” Janelle asked.

  “Yeah, him,” Gus said.

  “I knew you were part of the Fed, but I didn’t realize you reported to him,” Janelle said, still scanning the outside. “He’s got a reputation already. Doesn’t let other people play in his sandbox and will happily bury someone in it for crossing him.”

  “Sounds about right. Mark isn’t someone to cross,” Gus said.

  Ever.

  “Someone just left,” Janelle said, as if Gus could see what she was looking at. Then she apparently realized her mistake. “Left their house. It’s a single-floor ranch style. No lights on, no other car in the garage. Think we can break in real quick? I’d really rather not be running around in the nude.”

  “I can probably pick the lock left-handed. Might take me a bit longer,” Gus said.

  “Then that’s what we do.” Janelle opened the door and stepped out of the truck.

  Off we go, I guess to break more laws.

  ***

  Walking into the local PID office, Gus felt rather strange. It was a foreign office, even though many resources were shared between Canada and the US, including databases. And it still felt like a PID office.

  This wouldn’t be a well-staffed location, however. The population wasn’t very heavy here and didn’t warrant much in the way of a presence.

  This far north got you a lot of very irritable, private, and non-invasive Para species. They mostly just wanted to be left alone.

  A location like this wasn’t the highlight of anyone’s career. Which meant the help he’d get here could be questionable at best.

  Moving up to the front desk, Gus realized—and not for the first time—how thankful he was that he could see through almost all magic.

  Including masks.

  He was staring at an annoyed-looking woman. Gus honestly thought she might be a spirit of knowledge, but that didn’t quite feel right. Especially considering she had a physical body. Spirits didn’t typically go in for being completely manifested.

  And she was very real, and very here. Gus knew instantly, simply by the magic wafting off her.

  The woman herself looked rather normal from the outside. Then again, creatures and spirits of knowledge tended to be bookish and rarely dealt with others. Made for great information keepers but awful customer-facing support.

  Which made it odd that she was here at the front desk. Glancing at the badge on her chest, Gus realized she was a full-fledged officer. Not someone hired to man the desk.

  Her face was dominated by huge, glowing blue eyes. Her pale skin and short black hair, pulled back in a ponytail that looked tighter than a snare drum, made her eyes stand out in alienlike way.

  “Yes?” she asked in a crisp, dry tone.

  “Good evening, Officer Serafina. My name is Gustavus Hellström. I’m an agent with the Federal Department for Paras of the United States. I need
assistance.”

  The spirit blinked very slowly and tilted her head to one side, regarding him with a slightly different air now.

  “I see,” she said, then turned partially to the computer next to her. “Badge number?”

  “Forty-two, fifty-six, Sierra, Alpha, zero, zero, one,” Gus said. “I report to Deputy Director Mark Ehrich.”

  Serafina didn’t respond to that, though her eyes flicked up to him and then back to the computer. Her fingers were going miles a minute, as if it were the most natural thing in the world for her to be behind a keyboard.

  “Your picture matches you well,” Serafina said as her hand darted over to her mouse and clicked several items.

  As if satisfied with what she saw, she spun around back to him.

  “How can I assist you, Agent Hellström?” the spirit asked.

  “I need a phone, first of all,” Gus said with a smile.

  “Of course.” Serafina immediately pulled a cell phone out of her pocket. Without a pause, she held it out to him. “What else?”

  “Probably some food and water, if you can spare it,” Gus said, taking the phone. “Beyond that… nothing at this moment.”

  “The break room has a vending machine that requires no currency,” Serafina said, then lifted a hand to indicate a room off behind her and to the side. “Please let me know if you have any other needs.”

  “Thank you, Officer. I appreciate it,” Gus said. He walked into the break room and immediately punched Mark’s number into the phone she had given him.

  Looking around as the call went through, he realized he was alone in the break room. Exactly what he’d been hoping for, to be honest.

  It rang several times and then went to voicemail.

  The fuck are you—oh. Oh.

  Got it.

  Moving to the woman’s messaging system, he tapped in Mark’s number and simply wrote: “Gus.”

  Ten seconds after that, the phone immediately rang.

  Picking it up with a grin, Gus couldn’t help himself.

  “Marco’s pizza, wha’ d’ya want?” he asked.

  “Oh my shit, Gussy,” Mark said and then laughed. “Where the hell are you? Trish sent me an email that said you vanished off the face of the planet while chasing Elf pussy.

  “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan—but to leave Trish high and dry?”

  Glancing up from the corner of the break room, Gus found Janelle not far away. She was using the vending machine and apparently getting them both something.

  All while stuffing her face with potato chips.

  “Well, I found that. Although now she knows everything,” Gus said. “The problem is I’m up north. Across the border, in fact. I’m at a local PID station using an officer’s cell phone.”

  “You’re… where?” Mark asked.

  “Same place I found Chloe,” Gus said. He was trying to keep things “thin” just in case the line wasn’t secure.

  Mark went silent. There was some slow keyboard tapping in the background, but nothing like Gus would expect if Mark were doing something.

  “Okay,” he said finally. “I understand. I’m going to get you out of there. Go to the airport. I’ll have a flight that can route you home, then back to your duty station while you’re on loan to the military.

  “I’ll talk to my boss before we meet. Say no more.”

  “Okay,” Gus said.

  “See you soon,” Mark said, then disconnected the line.

  So much for investigating the prison and the assistant warden.

  Walking back out to the front, Gus gave the phone back to the officer.

  “Thank you for your assistance,” Gus said. Then sighed with a smile at her. “Any chance you could do me one more favor?”

  Serafina stared at him, not responding.

  “Could you get someone to drive me and my partner out to the airport?” Gus asked, taking her silence as waiting for information.

  “Certainly.” Serafina stood up. She opened a drawer, pulled out a set of keys, and then pulled her pistol from her holster. She did a quick inspection of her chamber, safety, and magazine, then motioned to the back. “I’ll drive you myself.”

  Okay… that was… unexpected. Won’t someone need to stay to man the desk?

  Serafina spoke to no one, notified no one, and just left through the back door.

  I can see why she’s annoyed and manning the desk. Personality of a brick to the head.

  ***

  Walking off the flight with Janelle behind him, Gus felt beat. His arm still hurt, but he wasn’t going to mention it until he could get back to Trish.

  He’d become a believer in her healing arts, and he didn’t want anyone else touching him.

  That and he hadn’t been able to access much in the way of fear.

  “Ah, Agent Hellström, Captain Ries.”

  Looking toward the voice, Gus found Mark, a woman he didn’t know, and a military officer. The woman reeked of important official status.

  Gus figured she was Mark’s boss, all things considered.

  She had short, curly brown hair and steel-gray eyes, was wearing a very high-end “Fed suit,” and looked like she had the build to hold up in hand-to-hand combat for a few rounds despite being extremely pretty. She had a mind that was surprisingly human for a Siren. There apparently wasn’t a whole lot of difference, which Gus hadn’t expected.

  Most Paras that fed off others, like Gus, typically had a different kind of thought pattern.

  The military man had the rank of a two-star major general on his collar. Graying black hair, full uniform, going saggy in the middle, and hard brown eyes.

  The woman was the person who had called out to him.

  “This way, please,” said Mark before he could respond.

  Nodding his head, Gus simply fell in line.

  Something happened.

  Something big happened.

  Mark led everyone into a security-only area of the airport, through several hallways, and into a hall with some very obvious interviewing rooms.

  “Agent Hellström, please take room one; Captain Ries, room two,” Mark said. “We’ll speak with Agent Hellström first.”

  Fuck.

  Moving into the room, Gus took the single seat on one side of the only table in the room. On the other side were three chairs.

  Sighing, Gus stuck his hands in his pockets. He wasn’t about to try any mind reading now. The last thing he needed was to look non-human at the moment.

  As soon as the door closed, Mark cleared his throat.

  “This isn’t a formal interview; this is more the opposite,” Mark said. “We need to know what happened.”

  Frowning, Gus quickly tried to figure out a way he could tell them without revealing himself.

  “They’re aware of your telepathic abilities,” Mark said.

  Durh… I’d actually give you the benefit of a reach-around, you beautifully stupid man you.

  Keeping the details brief and the story somewhat lacking, he told them about his chase of Captain Ries. His telepathy was the base for everything he did and how he achieved it. Even opening the portal.

  When he finished, Gus could only sigh and lean back in his chair. On top of his broken arm, being physically drained, and extremely tired, he was now emotionally wrung out.

  Mark turned to the other two persons next to him.

  “We fucked up when we let you two retire out,” said the general, looking at Mark and Gus. “Should have recruited you into the Para Forces.”

  “We weren’t mentally fit, sir,” Mark said with a half-smile. “Which is to say, Gus was on the back end of crazy, Olsen couldn’t hold it together, and I hit every addiction known to man before getting back on track.”

  Shaking his head at that, the general seemed to disagree.

  “Would have been worth it to hold on to you two and take care of it,” he said.

  “I’m sorry,” Gus said, feeling beyond at a loss. “Did something happen?”
/>   Clearing her throat, the woman took control of the situation.

  “My name’s Fin Dresch,” she said. “I’m the director of the Fed. All of the Fed.”

  Mark’s boss. Yep.

  “Last night, that prison you visited went dark for three hours. Right after you escaped, if I don’t miss my guess,” Fin said. “And when it came back online, a number of corpses were present. Mostly unidentified right now, but… we’ll figure that out soon enough.

  “Good part of the staff was missing as well, another part was simply dead, the assistant warden was found with his throat cut in his office, and the warden is just gone.”

  Gus opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say. Then he frowned and shook his head, dropping his eyes to the table.

  “In other words,” the general said. “They did the same thing they did at the yard. The same thing that happened after the bombing, and the same thing that happened after the bowl incident.

  “This isn’t isolated, it isn’t unconnected, and it isn’t over.”

  “No, it would seem it isn’t,” Fin said, leaning back in her chair. Her fingernails lightly tapped along the table in front of her. “Except… we have to act like it is. If we tip our hand any further, it’s more likely they’ll dive deeper. We’ve been fortunate to have as many hints and glimpses as we have. Mostly seeming to be around wherever you go, Agent Hellström.”

  “He—”

  “I—”

  Fin held up a single finger, a smile on her face. Both Gus and Mark instantly fell silent.

  “I know. I actually don’t doubt Agent Hellström for an instant,” she said. “In fact, he’s probably the one person I trust in this. He’s been publicly flogged for his attempts to shut this group down.

  “No, I’m not foolish enough to doubt you or your intentions. Nor will I believe for an instant that our enemy hasn’t noticed you by this point. They’ll target you. And I’ll use that to my advantage.”

  Fin turned to look at the general, and then at Mark. Finally, she turned back to Gus.

  “We’ll plan accordingly. For now, Agent, you’ll go work that drug ring we put you on,” Fin said. “Though I want Janelle, General McArthur.”

  “She’s yours,” the general said with a sharp nod. “I’ll promote her to a full bird colonel, give her a Fed liaison role as her official duty, and assign her to Agent Hellström.”