20 Years Later (29 page)

Titus frowned. “Who were you talking to outside?”

“She probably has a radio link back to her people,” Callum said quietly.

“What does that mean?”

“It means they can hear what she says and they'll be able to talk back to her.”

Titus scowled at her. “Is that true?”

She looked at the knife point and nodded slightly. She looked away briefly, clearly thinking as fast as possible. “Look, if you want this Lyssa, you'll have to let me go back to get
her for you.”

Titus took a step forward, looking like a small child next to the suited woman. His voice, however, was far from childlike; it was cold and measured. “Don't try to trick me or I will puncture your suit and watch you die.”

“Titus!” Zane exclaimed, appalled at his friend's words.

Titus turned, fixing Zane with such a fearsome glare that he was silenced. He then looked back at the woman. “Speak to your gang. Tell them what we want–tell them if she's released, you'll be returned unhurt. She's called Lyssa, she's got violet eyes and brown hair and is a head taller than me. If you say anything else, you won't leave this room.” He watched her glance down nervously at something strapped to her wrist. “You'd better hurry,” he added, noting the dial and the one hand on it moving towards an amber segment.

She cleared her throat and said in a louder voice, “Hex? This is Radley. Do you copy, over?”

Then there was a pause, her eyes flicking up at the ceiling as she seemed to hear a response that was inaudible to anyone but her.

“No, the situation has worsened and … and they're making a demand in return for my release.” She proceeded to give the details as Titus had said and then listened intently. Zane noted how much she was sweating, how her eyes darted from a spot on the ceiling to the knife held in Titus' hand. Then she looked at him. “They're … checking on her status. It may be a few minutes.”

Titus simply stared back at her. “I'm not the one who has to worry about the time,” he replied coldly, and then went to lean against the wall.

Zane swallowed hard, his stomach twisting with tension. “Um … is your name Radley, then?” He asked in as friendly a voice as he could muster, making the question seem ridiculous in such a situation.

The woman blinked at him and then swallowed. “Yes … Dr Radley.”

“Doctor!” Zane exclaimed. “You heal people too?”

“Zane.” Titus' voice was lowered to a warning tone. “Don't talk to her.”

Zane threw an annoyed glance at his friend and then looked back at Radley.

“I … I'm a doctor of microbiology,” she replied nervously, blinking away a droplet of sweat that had slid into the corner of her eye. She then frowned at Zane. “You look familiar,” she mumbled and Zane was filled by a heady mixture of excitement and dread.

“Zane!” Titus said his name so forcefully that he moved away from Radley, shaken by her comment.

Titus moved swiftly to take his place in front of her helmet. “Why did you take her? What have you done to her?”

Radley spread her hands, looking desperately confused. “I don't know who or what you're talking about,” she said shakily. “Please believe me.”

Titus stared at her, taking in the minutiae of her face. With frustration he realised that she was actually telling the truth.

“I don't know much about what happens in the other spokes,” she continued. “That's the –”

She cut off and looked up as she attended to something else. Then her eyes shut and she let out a long sigh of relief. “They have someone that fits that description, and they're willing to make an exchange,” she paused and then a frown started to form. “I copy, Hex, stand by.”

“What is it?” Titus demanded, his tension leaking into his voice.

“They say that she'll die if she's brought up now,” she replied hesitantly. “They didn't say why.”

Titus lowered his head, frowning. Could it be true? Lyssa had looked ill in the dream, but not so ill that moving her would kill her. But then, maybe she was worse now, and what did he know about that kind of thing anyway? He considered the Giant, considered Hex. They had stolen Lyssa, presumably because they wanted her for some reason. If they wanted her then, they probably wanted to keep her now and would lie to do so. Then he remembered Zane. Hex didn't know what he could do, so even if it was true, and Lyssa was that ill, Zane would be able to help her.

“I don't believe them,” he said steadily. “They just don't want to let her go. Tell them you're running out of time.”

As Radley responded Callum went to the doorway and looked out into the corridor. “I think the others are looking for us,” he said to Zane. “Wait here.” He hurried out of the room and within moments returned with Jay and Erin.

“What the hell is going on!” Jay yelled.

“They're bringing Lyssa for the exchange,” Titus replied.

“She'll be at the end of the street outside in eight minutes,” Radley said in a tremulous voice.

“There are other ones, wearing black, that have the lightning,” Erin reported rapidly. “We've killed three, and we think there are more coming but they're hard to see.”

Titus flicked his eyes back to Radley after taking this in. “Tell them that we can kill these ‘Guardians' and we'll kill you if they send any more.”

Radley obeyed as Jay nodded respectfully at Titus.

“Erin, Jay, can you keep an eye on her?” Titus asked. When they nodded, Jay drew one of his knives while Titus beckoned to Callum and Zane to step outside the room with him.

“You're playing a dangerous game, Titus,” Callum said softly but Titus didn't respond.

“Will they really bring Lyssa?” Zane asked, the fear evident on his pale face.

Titus looked at him, sharing his concern. “We have to hope so. But I don't think they'll want us to get away. I think we need to have Radley in view, with one of the Hunters aimed at her so that if the Unders, or Hex–or whatever they're called– know that if they try anything, we can take her down.”

Zane grimaced. “I don't like this,” he muttered.

Titus ignored that. “I think we should tell them to leave Lyssa where Radley is, then we collect her and go.”

Callum rubbed his chin. “I think we should exchange them near this building, seeing as we're committed to this now. I know this block–there are routes between the offices that I've made that they won't know about.” Titus nodded and Callum continued. “I'll wait nearby to collect Lyssa. I don't think you or Zane should be too close, and I think Jay should be with you.” When Titus looked as if he were about to object, Callum held up a hand to stop him. “No arguments, Titus. I know the fastest ways to get out of the area without going into the street any more than necessary. I'll get her into Jay's territory and you can meet me there.”

Titus frowned as he considered Callum's words. “I could send Erin back up to Luthor and David to let them know the plan. They'll be able to defend you against those Guardians from up there, won't they?” At Callum's nod Titus added, “I need to stay long enough to make sure it's Lyssa, then I'll go with Zane.”

Callum exhaled with relief. “Good. I won't leave her behind, Titus, don't worry.”

Titus read Callum's face and was satisfied. “I'll go and tell Erin and Jay the plan, then I'll give Radley instructions.”

As he went back into the room, Zane leant towards Callum and whispered, “I'm so glad you're here.”

Minutes later, Titus stood with Radley and Callum outside of the building they had hidden within, with Zane and Jay waiting further down the street. Occasionally he could hear the creaks
of bows being readied on the roof above Callum but no arrows were loosed. There was a brittle tension in the air, the only other noise being the mechanical wheeze and click of Radley's oxygen supply. The hand on the dial worn on her wrist was now reaching the end of the amber segment and he could see from her face how terrified she was.

Titus strained his eyes looking into the darkness in the direction Radley said they would approach from. When two figures came into view, one being half carried, half dragged by the other, he took a step forward.

“It's Lyssa!” he said to Callum after only a moment.

Callum nodded and watched their approach.

Lyssa looked barely conscious. The figure supporting her seemed to be male and one of the Guardians, judging by his black clothing that did indeed camouflage him almost perfectly in the darkness. He too appeared to be wearing some kind of helmet, but much less cumbersome than Radley's.

“Go now,” Callum whispered to Titus.

Titus reluctantly backed off before forcing himself to turn away from his sister and run down the road to Zane and Jay. As soon as he reached them, the three of them increased their pace, Jay leading them back to safer territory.

When they reached the first crossroads, Titus paused to look behind him, noting that Radley was walking away from Callum who was now holding Lyssa and moving slowly backwards towards the door of the building. Just as Titus was about to continue, there was a yell from up on the roof, and then a volley of arrows loosed in the direction of the Guardian whom Titus could no longer see.

The night was illuminated by three arcs of lightning ripping through the air towards the roof. Titus cried out in despair as chaos erupted, blinking rapidly to try to see past the glowing afterimages left by the lightning. Jay grabbed his collar and yanked Titus round the corner, pulling him along roughly.

“C'mon, c'mon!” he was yelling, Zane sprinting alongside him.

At first Titus was dragged, but then he regained his senses and ran too, the three of them hurtling through alleyways and shadowy side streets lit by sporadic blue flashes in the distance.

Sometimes they heard shouting but it quickly faded, the loudest noise becoming that of their panting breaths. Soon they were back at Jay's territory, a line of Boys armed with makeshift weapons and knives waiting for them. When Jay was sighted a loud cheer went up and they closed around their returned hero.

“Stay smart-sharp, lads,” Jay panted, bracing his hands on his knees to try to catch his breath. “May be more from the Unders comin' our way. And watch out for Callum. He'll be carrying someone–make sure he gets here safe.”

The Boys dispersed to pre-arranged positions along the edge of the territory. Jay turned to Zane, who was shaking violently, and clapped him on the back. “Safe now, Zane, s'alright now.”

Zane only nodded, also panting hard, and then noticed Titus' face, wracked with worry as he stared out in the direction they'd just run from, desperate for any sign of Callum. Zane went over and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Callum will bring her, Titus, he will,” he said softly but Titus didn't answer.

When they had caught their breath, Jay insisted that they moved away from the border, but Titus would only move to the end of the street they were on, eyes still scanning the darkness.

Like a distant storm, the sky was lit intermittently by flashes of bright blue, but gradually it became less frequent and didn't seem to move much closer to where they waited.

The minutes ticked by and Titus started to pace. Zane sat on the edge of the kerb whilst Jay stayed nearby to direct wayward Boys to places where they could form a more useful defence. But none of the Guardians were sighted, and Jay began to relax.

“I reckon they've given up,” he said and Zane nodded.

A familiar figure emerged from the end of a row of houses across the street and Titus ran over calling “Lyssa!” to the person cradled in Callum's arms.

Lyssa appeared to have the fragility of china, her face gaunt and white, her body painfully thin, making her skull seem larger, especially with her hair now cut very short. She was unconscious, and it was hard to make out her shallow breaths through the pale blue pyjamas that she wore. Titus took in her image wide-eyed. Even though he'd seen her in the dream, it hadn't fully prepared him for how she looked now.

“Let's get her into the warm,” Callum said softly and Titus merely nodded.

Lyssa was soon laid on Miri's sofa with the fire built up and candles lit around the room. Jay hovered near the door, dividing his attention between looking out onto the garden cautiously and seeing how Lyssa fared.

Miri was boiling water for tea, leaving Zane to inspect the patient whilst Titus held his sister's hand as if it were a delicate piece of fine crystal. Callum watched from the corner near the window, also keeping an eye outside.

“Is any of that stuff in her?” Titus asked nervously.

Zane nodded, staring intently at Lyssa's left arm. “Not much, though. And it's in her arm, not her lungs.”

Titus swallowed hard. “Is she going to die?”

The timorous quality of his friend's normally calm voice made Zane look at him and smile. “No, Titus, but she needs lots of looking after. She's not very well.”

Titus allowed himself to relax just a fraction, watching as Zane moved the sleeve up Lyssa's arm, revealing a cluster of pinpricks and bruising at the inside of her elbow. He quickly lowered the sleeve again.

“There's Erin!” Jay cried and opened the front door as Erin stumbled in, immediately followed by Luthor, who had barely broken into a sweat.

“We did it!” she cried, seeing Titus holding Lyssa's hand. She punched the air triumphantly. “Yes! Oh Titus, you should've seen us. They sent loads more of those people, and there was lightning all over the place, and I got one of them right in the face, didn't I, Dad?”

Luthor nodded, patting her shoulder. “You did well,” he said and she looked as if she might burst.

It was only then that Erin detected the sombre atmosphere in the room. “Will she be alright?” she asked quietly, trying to contain her exuberance.