The Terminals (22 page)

“I can't do it anymore, Cam,” she sniffed. “I can't.”

Cam moved to comfort her. He joined her on the pile of fronds and held her, trying not to think of Ari's glowing description of her goddess body as she pressed it against him, which was not easy.

“Can't do what?”

“I can't stay. I have to go home.”

“We can't go home. We're dead, remember? This is our home.” It sounded as wrong when he said it as when he'd heard it, and he hated himself for lying to her, but there was no choice. If they didn't pretend this was a home, they had no home.

“They'll let me go,” Jules insisted. “I'll tell them I sent a message. Then they'll have to.”

“A message?”

“To my sister. At the Internet kiosk at the stadium.”

“No! You didn't.”

“Cam, I had to. I just had to.”

“What did you say?”

“Just that I'm okay.”

Unbreakable
, Cam thought.

Jules frowned at him, reading his concerned expression. “I didn't tell her about Deathwing, if that's what you're worried about. Like that even matters anymore.”

“It matters to the organization. You shouldn't even tell them you contacted her.”

“It's the only way they'll send me home. Now if they keep me here it'll be kidnapping.”

“You're going to blackmail them?”

“No.” She harrumphed. “I'm just going to tell them I have to go. This is a special situation.”

Cam sensed something. He turned and jumped, startled. A figure stood in the doorway. Zara.

“Dammit, woman. Don't do that.” He wondered how long she'd been standing there.

“Jules, it's your turn to debrief,” she said.

Cam met Jules's eyes. He shook his head—one last warning. She shrugged—one last defiance. Then she stood, turned her divine body away from him, and went to meet with their personal trainer.

*   *   *

Cam's turn inevitably came. The last debriefing had been easy. Just an opportunity for him to ask questions. They hadn't grilled him about diamonds or secret notes. So when he was called this time, he felt reasonably calm.

“I hope you don't mind if Pilot sits in,” Ward began.

“I don't mind,” Cam said.
This is different
, he thought. Ward talked a lot, but Pilot
listened
. He wore sunglasses and held his head at an angle like a bird of prey. It was unnerving.

“I want to ask you about your teammates,” Ward said. “How are they doing? Anyone seem troubled?”

He obviously meant Jules. “I think Jules is upset. She really liked Ari and Calliope.”

“So did you, Cam. Are you upset?”

“No. I mean, yes, of course. But I'm not…”

“Not what?”

Ward was probing. They wanted to know what Jules was doing. Or maybe they already did know and wanted to test Cam to see if he'd lie about it. “I'm not crying like a baby about it. It's all part of the philosophy, right?”

Pilot nodded.

“Right,” Ward agreed. “Did Jules say anything to you? We're concerned about her.”

“No. Did she say anything to you?”

“She was upset, like you say.”

“Anything else?” Cam went on the offensive, asking the questions.

Ward and Pilot glanced at one another. “Details about the mission,” Ward said quickly. “It's nice to get it fleshed out. It sounds like you did well.”

“Thanks,” Cam said. It was bullshit. He'd frozen during Calliope's phone call, costing them precious seconds—they might have saved Calliope's life in spite of her intention. He'd also been ineffective in the room. Wally had to save his sorry butt. Cam hadn't even driven the car. Zara had. He was dead weight. “I think it's time to get me some TS-9, though.”

“Are you having symptoms?”

“Yeah. I'm experiencing some muscular weakness when compared to my teammates, and a relative slowness in my movement. And my mind isn't as sharp as it could be.”

Ward scowled at the sarcasm. “You want to be enhanced. Is that it?”

“I want to be an asset to the team.”

Ward's expression lightened. “That's our Wingman,” he said to Pilot, and Cam felt relieved to be moving the conversation away from Jules. “We'll let the doc know. She'll consult with you next visit.”

They had more questions. Ward asked for details of the trip to Macapá—who went where and when. How the confrontation with the bodyguards progressed, blow by blow. Who was quick or strong. Cam was honest, hoping to match his story to what Donnie and Zara and the rest had likely told them. It was best to be as accurate as possible, in case they asked about Jules again—if he was honest enough for most of it, he might earn enough credibility to pull off one lie. And, finally, Ward asked the question Cam had sensed was coming.

“Did Jules ever say anything about an Internet kiosk?”

Cam pretended to think. “There was one at the stadium,” he said vaguely. “We didn't stop at it. We got sausages. Donnie had two. He's a pig, you know.”

Ward chuckled.

Pilot nodded and spoke. “Be that as it may, we just want to make sure everything is all right with the team. If a member isn't on board, we'd like to know. You're still with us, aren't you, Cam?”

Cam forced a laugh and hoped it didn't sound too forced. “Where else would I go?”

“Home?” Ward suggested.

Cam sat back in his chair. “Naw. I'm dead. This is home now.”

*   *   *

Cam went straight to Jules's condo, where he found her gathering her things. She looked up. Her smile was as big as he'd imagined it while reading Ari's journal. It finally matched the size of her eyes nicely.

“What's going on?” Cam asked, stepping inside.

Jules peeked out the door behind him, and then ducked her head back inside and whispered. “They told me not to tell anyone. But I'll tell you. They're sending me home!”

“What?”

“I asked, and they said no. Then I demanded that they at least let me go to Scotland where I did a semester overseas. I'm sure the local family I stayed with will take me. And they said yes!”

Cam was stunned. “I can't believe it.”

“I told you, silly.”

“How will that even work? What are you going to tell people?”

“They're making up a story for me. I obviously can't tell about this place, but don't worry, I can totally keep a secret.”

Just then, Pilot called for her to come to the Zodiac.

“I have to go before they change their mind. They don't want me shaking up the team—the whole ‘stay focused' thing, you know.” She suddenly leaped at him and gave him a huge hug. “I'm glad I knew you, Cam.”

Jules exited, and Cam stepped out of the condo to watch her skip down the beach to the waiting boat. Pilot glanced up and saw Cam in the doorway. He frowned until Jules arrived at the boat, and then smiled and helped her in. Pilot waded into the surf to push off, hopped in after her, and they headed to sea. Then she was gone.

 

CAM'S PLAYLIST

25. MY HEART OR YOURS
  

by Love-n-Stuff

26. DICE

by One Shoe Magoo

27. OH YEAH, MAKE ME

by So It Begins

“My heart, your heart, torn apart, fresh start. Oh-oh-oh!”

“Where are they going?” It was Tegan. He sat nearby, far enough away that Cam was sure he hadn't heard the conversation, but close enough to see Jules depart.

“I don't know,” Cam said. It was partially true and partially a lie. “I'm sure they'll tell us at our next meeting.”

“Yeah,” Tegan agreed. “They'll tell us what they tell us.”

“What do you mean?” Cam said.

“You're a snotty college boy. You figure it out.”

“College boy?”

“Aren't you?”

“Yes, but…”

“You all are. Not all boys, but all rich school kids.”

“We're all on the same team.”

“Kind of. But it's no different here than anywhere else. The brainy kid, the athlete, and the good-looking girl argue over who they think is running the show, but they don't realize it's the people with the real money who pull the strings. They tell us what's what and where to go and what to do. We fight their battles. We die for them. They don't teach you that in college, do they?”

“Is there someone you'd rather be dying for?”

“Naw. One boss is as good as another. Mill operator. Mine owner. Army sergeant. Prison supervisor. Personal trainer. Makes no difference. We work for them, and then we die. It's just quicker for us here.”

“Coming here was our choice.”

“We didn't have much choice. You wouldn't have come if they hadn't told you that you were dying.”

Cam cocked his head. He hadn't heard more than a sentence from Tegan the entire time he'd been here. But it was the same amount that he'd heard anyone say
to
Tegan, he realized. Cam sat down in the sand to join him.

“What's your story, man?” he asked.

“We ain't got stories, do we? We checked those at the door. Just first names here. Not supposed to talk about where we're from or what we did before. I thought it might be a kind of fresh start. But I was wrong. People are still who they are.”

Cam nodded. “How is it rooming with Wally?”

“He's crazy.”

Cam laughed.

“Not a bad guy,” Tegan added. “But pretty much a mental case.”

“Maybe it's his way of dealing with all this.”

“Maybe.”

“Sorry I haven't been friendly,” Cam offered.

“It's okay. You've been taking sides and chasing skirt. I'm just doing my time.”

“Your time?”

“I'm the farthest along.”

Tegan set his jaw, and his eyes narrowed. It was tough for him to say. He meant the disease. His diagnosis was worse than the rest. He had less time to live.

“I'm sorry,” Cam said.

“Not your fault. I blame the docs.” Tegan grinned. It was the first time Cam had seen him smile.

“I'm thinking I'm ready for the TS-9 myself,” Cam said suddenly.

Tegan thought for a moment. “Naw. I get these headaches. They suck. You don't want them.”

“But you're strong and fast.”

“Yeah, that part's fun. But it's unnatural. It's not me. I feel wrong, and when my head starts thumping like it's gonna burst out of my skull, I feel
really
wrong. I think when the end comes you'd rather be you than TS-Cam.”

Cam nodded and rose. “Thanks for the chat, man. I'll try to be less snotty from now on.”

Tegan smirked, and Cam saw that, if he hadn't completely won over the big guy, he'd at least made a sort of peace with him.

*   *   *

Cam carried the split half of a roast fowl to the rear of his condo. The plastic wrap stretched over its surface kept the sand off as he slid it underneath. Then he headed inside.

Owen showed up ten minutes later. “Hey,” the Donnie imitator said in greeting. He stood in the doorway carrying a large canvas bag.

“What's that?”

“They're rearranging the roommate situation.”

“And…?”

“And I'm here now.” Owen didn't look confident. He lingered at the entrance, not bold enough to step inside yet.

“They've assigned you to me?”

“To this condo, yeah.”

“I thought I'd get it to myself after…”

“I guess not.”

Cam puzzled over it. “There are five condos and six of us left. Who's Donnie bunking with?”

“I think he's alone now.”

“Wally?”

“Alone.”

“Zara's alone, obviously. Tegan?”

“Alone.”

“So we're the only roommates.”

“I guess so.”

Cam frowned. It made no sense, unless …
They're watching me
, he thought. Owen had been sent to spy on him. He remembered what the skinny girl from the jungle had said.
That's what we're all here for.

Cam forced his frown into a smile. “Throw your stuff over there. Welcome to château Cameron.”

Owen looked relieved. He ambled in and began to set up shop. Cam began to climb up to his bunk. Then he saw Owen reach for Ari's diary.

“Dude!” Cam barked.

“What?”

“Toss me my notebook, would ya?”

Owen picked up the diary. He turned it over in his hands, and Cam was certain he'd open it. “Sure,” Owen said finally, and he threw it up to Cam, who shoved it into his pocket.

Cam laid back and let himself slide into sleep. Owen couldn't find out anything about him if he didn't do anything. Besides, the diamonds were gone. If Owen went poking around, all he'd find was half a cooked bird.

 

CAM'S PLAYLIST