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Out the other side, he turned and knelt When the first invader’s head appeared above the sloped bank, Skyler fired, killing the person instantly

He spun and ran up the far bank, diving over the top and rolling in the tall grass beyond as etation around him

In any other scenario he would have fired wildly in return, hoping to send the ene for cover But with the colony as a backdrop, the risk was too great Instead he flipped the holo-sight on and took aier and sent the person sprawling, clutching their leg

The others took cover as their second coan to crawl through theto a bent-over run as soon as he thought it safe to do so Twice he tripped in the darkness On the second fall his head s his forehead He bit back a groan and ran on as blood began to trickle frorass fields and rainforest for an hour before Skyler happened upon a flies blurred before his eyes He swayed on his feet and needed every ounce of concentration to keep his legs under hi caution to the wind, he kicked his way into the feeble structure and turned his flashlight on again, finding the single room empty A concrete channel full of black water held a tiny, two-le nylon rope

The water went out through the wide-open fourth wall, ten rove cathedral to the swift Gualers used this place in the past hid it well fro from his forehead, Skyler lu in stagnant water that had pooled in the hull He ignored the foul srab the yellow rope, which swam and blurred in front of hi the searing pain in his skull, he reached over the side of the boat and probed with his hand until he found concrete Using just his fingertips, he pushed with all the strength he had left After what felt like an eternity, he cracked his eyes open enough to see the roof of the hidden boathouse pass above hiroves and dark sky beyond The pain soon became unbearable and he let his eyes close

Voices nearby Shouting The door of the feeble shack being kicked in again Brittle wood shattering this tiued at the water’s edge, their words a less jumble They had not fired at hi the auras behind The thought flickered in a corner of his , Skyler felt rather than saw the transition into the swift and churning waters of the wide river As the light of dawn began to touch the sky above, he lapsed into unconsciousness

Chapter 11

Darwin, Australia

1MAY2283

VAUGHN SHIFTED IN his sleep He rolled away, hisfro a banana

One sweaty arm still draped across Samantha’s stomach She lay on her back, on the floor of her cell, naked and glistening from their roll in the hay Despite his hn perfor, and otherwise bored proved a goodHe wouldn’t win any awards for originality, but she didn’t care He slept now; that’s all that mattered

She lay there in the humid air and musky smell until he did not stir when she lifted his wrist from her sto his ar and rapid eye movement This time she lifted his arm and dropped it back to her stomach in a wet slap Satisfied, Saoose buertips brushed across her waistline

In any other circuhn, my boy He’d declined to tell her his first na about how they shouldn’t get to know each other too well "We just fucked," Sarunted, considered for a moment, and said, "Fine, it’s Bruce"

Sam had never met an actual Australian man named Bruce, but she didn’t press it

The tinyon her cell door cast a square of diuard’s clothing into the beahtstick, Taser, and red utility knife she set by the exit, on top of her discarded clothing

In one pocket she found a set of old-fashionedapparently failed a year earlier, soriped about every tiled fro She clasped her fist around them, pulled theear, her ears tuned to the sound of his breathing

The door squeaked when she slipped out Not enough to stir the guard, but plenty to send her pulse racing She left her clothing behind If Vaughn stirred she thought she could return to his side and raise no suspicion Now out of the cell, she figured her naked state would give her a brief advantage to anyone co across her

Samantha padded down the hall and poked her head into the office the guards used In the hn appeared to be the only person on duty

She set the nightstick on the desk there and checked all the drawers for proper weapons, a futile effort One of the keys she’d taken , but a search could take awhile

A clipboard on the wall caught her eye A stack of stained papers was tucked under the metal fastener, rows of na the weak light coe two, she found it: Adelaide, cell listed as "Royal 004" Samantha’s own nauessed, but the words held nofor her

"Royal 004," she whispered to herself over and over Near the door an idea struck her, and she snatched up a half-empty bottle of some alcohol or another Fermented cider, Darwin’s poison, if the shtstick behind, she held the bottle loosely in one hand and clutched Vaughn’s keys in the other, and stumbled out the door in what she hoped looked like a drunken swagger

Her bare feet splashed in puddles on the cracked sidewalk outside A half second later a spray of warm rain dappled her bare skin She paused aof freedom, both physical and metaphorical

"We have a dress code within the walls," sohted herself Liquid sloshed in the bottle, a splash of it clapping onto the ground The clumsy move fed into her ploy "Thass a new rule!" she barked

The man stood between her and a yellow LED bulb otten behind her, she had no idea He wore an overcoat, and had slick hair Shadows hid his face

"True," he said "However, a rule is a rule"

"Can’t make an exception in my case, sweetheart?" she said, and tried to strike a flattering pose, deliberately off balance

"You may be the worst actress I’ve ever seen, Samantha Rinn"

She dropped the façade and whipped the bottle around in her hand, holding it like a club The alcohol poured down her leg in a noisy gurgle "Who are you?" she asked "How do you know ht

"Grillo …," she said

He tilted his head to one side "It’s been awhile since you declined h a tight smile He’d tried to hire everyone on Skyler’s crew, after Skyler declined to join his operation He even tried to pay poor Jake to assassinate their leader, clai an accident Jake said no, of course, and told Sa at Woon’s

Her hand tightened around the keys, and she set her feet wider, ready to pounce or run "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I cahtcliff regulars caht of Samantha they pulled up One hooted at her nakedness; the other froze in wide-eyed recognition of a captive on the loose

"Move along, gentlelance in their direction