Red Awakening (Red Zone 2)

It was hell. She was in hell.

“Help me! Don’t just sit there. Free me!” The voice tore through the shock that had her frozen in place, and she turned to find Rueben Granger wedged behind the large wooden podium and fighting his way out from under the fallen Freedom fighter.

“Rueben.” She crawled to him.

“Help me.” His call was desperate. His eyes wide and manic with shock.

Keiko bit her lip to stop from crying as she pushed at the body of the man who’d captured and freed her. He rolled off Rueben, hitting the tile with a dull, lifeless thud.

“Free my hands,” he screeched at her, drawing her eyes from the dead man.

“Don’t shout. You’ll attract attention.” She unstrapped the EMP band first before reaching for his bound hands, careful to keep them close to the podium. It wouldn’t offer much protection from stray laser fire, but it would hide them from anyone looking for a target.

“We’re going to die,” he wailed. “We’re all going to die. Did

n’t they see me here? Didn’t Miriam know I was here? I’m too important to die. Help me. Get me out of these restraints.”

“Stop it,” Keiko snapped at him. “You have to be quiet.”

The bands around his wrists needed a thumbprint to open. Her stomach roiled at what she was about to do, but the only print she knew would do the job belonged to the dead man lying beside them.

“What are you waiting for?” Rueben shouted. “Hurry up. I’m too valuable to die here.”

“I will slap you if you don’t stop shouting. You’re going to get us both killed. Calm down and be quiet.”

His eyes went wide, and his bottom lip trembled, making Keiko feel like she’d kicked a puppy. With shaking fingers and bile burning her throat, Keiko reached for the dead man’s hand. All she had to do was hold his thumb against the release window on the cuffs. That was it. That was all she had to do. Her stomach roiled, and she felt light-headed.

Take a deep breath. Focus. You can do this. The pep talk didn’t help. The man was barely dead. She’d just been talking to him. This was wrong. So wrong.

“Help me,” Rueben shouted. “Somebody help me. She can’t do it. Help me.”

“That’s it.” She slapped the silencer that had been over her mouth over his.

He fell mercifully quiet. Keiko took a deep breath and reached for the dead man. She gagged as her fingers skimmed the back of his hand. He was still warm. Shaking, she ordered herself to take hold of him, but her body wouldn’t comply. She blinked back tears—from the smoke or the horror, she didn’t know which—and tried again.

A strong hand grasped her wrist, making her jump.

“I’ll do it,” a voice said.

Her eyes shot up, but she didn’t quite trust what they showed her. “Mace?”

“Hey, princess.” His small smile was devastating. “Miss me?”

“Mace!” She launched herself into his arms, expecting him to catch her. And he did. His strength wrapping around her like armor, protecting her from the violence all around them.

There was a thumping, and she looked down to find Rueben kicking the podium to get their attention.

“It is so tempting to leave him here,” Keiko said in disgust.

“I’ll deal with him.” Mace grabbed the dead man’s hand and pressed his thumb to the cuffs. They snapped apart. “Let me help you up.”

He reached into the pocket of his jeans, and Keiko caught a glimpse of the silver datapad. Her heart jumped when she realized what he planned, and she looked around, checking to see that no one was watching. With the injector in his hand, Mace grasped Rueben under his arm and hauled him to his feet. Once he was steady, Mace removed the silencer.

“Did you have to be so rough?” Rueben said by way of thanks, rubbing the spot where Mace had held him—and injected him.

Mace slid the injector back into his pocket. This was it. The reason he’d come on this mission—inject the scientist, get access to the data, and stop the faulty datachip from being sold. His mission was complete. And strangely, rather than feeling used, Keiko felt proud.

“You two need to get me out of here,” Rueben said. “Sato will tell you how important I am. My brain makes this company billions. I need to be saved for the sake of all mankind.”