Wasteland Rules: Die Fighting (The World After Book 4) (22 page)

   “Any sign that anyone has noticed the mess
downstairs?” Derek whispered to the Voice.

   “Not yet Major.” The Voice replied smoothly.

   Good. It was likely Montoya had bribed the guards to
stay out of that area for a while and the two goons he had run off were
certainly not going to talk about it. Still, he couldn’t waste time. He needed
to complete this mission and get back.

   Derek carefully worked his legs and torso out of
the shaft, hanging on by keeping his legs wedged against the walls. He slowly
continued wiggling out until he was sitting up with his upper body outside the
shaft and his legs braced in it. Running around the building at this level was
a one inch wide ledge put in for decorative reasons. He transitioned to the
ledge, hanging by his fingertips; and began moving sideways along the wall.

   Above him he could see the barbed wire and the
lights from the upper floors. Below him guards and dogs roamed around the
grounds. There were lights on the third floor that illuminated the grounds that
should blind the guards and keep them from seeing him if they happened to look
up. Derek inched his way along that ledge until he was across from the east
tower. A small vent cover just below the ledge provided a place for Derek to
hold on with both hands as he braced his feet.

   “Derek, how are you making out?” Sterling suddenly
asked in his ear.

   “I’m busy.” Derek hissed.

   “You need to hurry up. I overheard one of the
waiters talking about a midnight lockdown.” Sterling persisted.

   “It is 11:35, Major. That means you have twenty
five minutes.” The Voice broke in.

   “Why a lockdown?” Derek whispered.

   “Because everyone is staying here tonight whether
they want to or not.” Sterling explained. “That way all of the potential buyers
are secure until the auction.”

   “Figures.” Derek muttered to himself. “Don’t worry
I’ll be back in time. Now leave me alone.”

   When the penthouse had been built they had
installed a gas fireplace. Because the hotel was already completed they had run
the piping for the fireplace from the kitchens up the outside of the building.
That pipe ran up the wall on the other side of an eight foot gap just across
from where Derek was hanging. He pulled up slightly, braced his feet and leapt.
He soared across the gap and grabbed the pipe with both hands.

   It was only four inches in diameter and was made of
thin steel. His weight pulled a few of the brackets loose and the whole pipe
was in danger of breaking or pulling away from the wall. Derek held on, but
tried to remain as still as possible. The pipe wobbled and creaked, but held.
Breathing a sigh of relief he climbed carefully up the flimsy pipe. The pipe
disappeared into the building before reaching the roof, so Derek used a series
of pipe vent covers nearby to swing hand over hand along the wall and drop onto
a small roof containing a large air conditioning unit one floor below the main
roof. The door was locked and he couldn’t pick it, but that wasn’t the plan
anyway.

   Taking a running start he planted a foot on the
wall and jumped up to grab the edge of the main roof. He hung there and
listened for any sign of the rooftop guards. The scuff of feet on the tiny
gravel that always seemed to work itself loose on rooftops alerted Derek to a
guard’s presence. Derek hung there as the guard passed and then quickly and
silently pulled himself up. He swiftly snuck up behind the guard and subdued
him with a rear naked choke hold.

   Derek froze to see if anyone else had heard the
soft grunts of the guard as Derek choked him unconscious. But no one cried out
and there were no indications he had been seen. He dragged the unconscious
guard behind a large exhaust fan and rapidly searched the man’s pockets. Bingo,
a key card that should allow access to the penthouse.

   Two minutes later he was inside the foyer of the
penthouse. He entered from a side door that provided the roof access. As he
entered he noted a high end private helicopter parked on top of the penthouse.
Brightman was definitely good at acquiring expensive tech. The foyer housed the
elevator and the entrance to the main part of the penthouse. The décor in the
foyer was opulent and expensive. He could only imagine how the penthouse itself
was decorated. Derek examined the lock leading into the main part. It was a
very sophisticated electronic lock with a palm print scanner.

   “Can you hack it?” Derek asked the Voice holding
the phone up so the camera could see the lock.

   “If I had the time yes, but we don’t.” The Voice
informed him disappointedly.

   “So what do I do?” Derek said.

   “Plant a bug in here, maybe we will overhear the
guards talking and that will give us a clue.” The Voice directed him.

   “Good idea.” Derek said approvingly.

    Looking around he spotted an ashtray in the corner
full of cigarette butts. Smoking had come back into favor after the Collapse.
If your life expectancy was already short, why worry about dying of cancer?
This looked like a place the guards congregated and talked, so he planted a bug
under it. He stuck one under a painting next to the elevator and then exited
back onto the roof. In a particularly inspired move, at least Derek thought so;
he placed a listening device on the unconscious guard before jumping back down
off the main roof.

   Retracing his path, Derek carefully but quickly
made his way back across the vent covers to the pipe, down the pipe, and jumped
back across to the ledge. His arms trembling and fingers aching, Derek inched
back to the vent and crawled in. He reached the elevator and quickly redressed.
Dropping back into the elevator he instructed the Voice to take him back down.

   “You are running out of time Major.” The Voice
informed him as the elevator descended.

   “How close?” Derek asked anxiously.

   “One minute.” The Voice replied tersely.

   “Not enough time…” Derek muttered.

   The elevator opened and he hustled out, nearly
colliding with one of the guards. The man turned around in surprise and pointed
his submachine gun at Derek’s face.

   “What are you doing here?” The man asked
forcefully.

   “I was looking for a bathroom.” Derek slurred,
pretending to be drunk.

   “Where is your shirt?” The guard pressed, looking
closely at Derek.

   “Okay, I’m going to be honest with you.” Derek
lied. “I threw up on my shirt and had to throw it away. Please don’t tell my
boss.”

   “You need to get back with the others.” The man
ordered.

   “What about a bathroom?” Derek asked, keeping up
the charade.

   “Look buddy, we had a security incident. You need
to get back with the others.” The man stated angrily.

   “What kind of security incident?” Derek asked
innocently.

   “Some of your fellow bodyguards got into a fight
and killed each other.” The guard informed him.

   “Really?” Derek asked, feigning surprise.

   “Look, stop talking and get back with the others.”
The man demanded.

   “Okay, Okay.” Derek said placatingly with his hands
up.

   He allowed the guard to direct him back into the
bar area. Along the way they passed the bloody spot of the encounter with
Montoya. The bodies had been removed, but a couple guards were still inspecting
the scene. Derek paused to look as if he were a rubbernecker curious about what
happened. That earned him a gun barrel in the back to urge him to speed along.
Derek didn’t protest and was guided back to the bar.

   The bodyguards were corralled in a corner of the
lounge being guarded by several of Brightman’s security team. They were
watching the bodyguards closely and kept their weapons on them at all times.
Derek was herded over to join the others. The guard escorting him had a brief
discussion with the others and the lead security guy was eyeing Derek keenly.
Then the first guard made some gesture mimicking drinking and pointed at Derek
and they both laughed. That seemed to divert the lead security guard’s
attention and Derek blended into the crowd.

   There was another commotion fifteen minutes later
amongst the guards which sent some of them scurrying off in a panic. Derek
assumed they had found the unconscious guard and knew someone had been in the
penthouse. Unbelievably, there was no additional scrutiny of the assembled
bodyguards. Apparently the guards assumed that none of them had the skills to
break in. People always underestimate big men and pretty women. Rule #32,
always assume someone was a threat. That way, if you were wrong you weren’t in
any danger.

   Derek grabbed a drink to blend in and settled back
to wait. They wouldn’t stop the party over the intrusion since that would make
Brightman lose face. He probably wouldn’t even let the other Junk Traders know
since it would make him look weak. One of things about the World After was that
weakness invited attack. Rule #12, the weak serve the strong.

Hyatt Regency, Wichita, Kansas

September 16, 2029

   Around 3 am the guards were reunited with their
charges and escorted up to large suites on the upper floors. They were not
given their weapons back and the bodyguards were given adjoining rooms to the
suite. They weren’t prisoners, but the doors were locked and Brightman’s guards
were patrolling the hallways. It must be standard for visiting buyers because
none of the other bodyguards or buyers protested.

   Derek joined Rora and Sterling in the suite to
discuss the night’s endeavors and plan for the next day. When he entered, Rora
started regaling him with descriptions of the other women’s attire and all the
fancy food. Sterling rolled his eyes at Derek, but let her talk. It was the
highlight of her young life and she had never experienced anything remotely
like it. He was going to cut her off, but Sterling held up a hand at him to let
her go.

   While she talked, Sterling walked around the room
using some sort of frequency detector to scan the room. Using the device he
scanned every inch of the suite, and Derek’s adjoining room. He found and
disabled several bugs before giving Derek a thumbs up. At that point Derek cut
Rora off.

   “Did you learn anything at the party?” Derek asked.
“Besides everyone’s fashion style.”

  Sterling laughed. “As expected everyone is represented.
The U.S.T.G., the C.C.A., the N.R.T., Aztlan, the Cartel, the Order…”

   “It was all I could do to keep from stabbing that
little Hitler wannabe!” Rora interjected venomously.

   “He was rather pompous, wasn’t he?” Sterling agreed
before continuing. “Even G-21, Deseret, and the Canadians have representatives
here. And there are rich private buyers from Vegas and the Wasteland too.”

   “Sounds like everyone is interested.” Derek noted. “I’m
surprised they all know its value.”

   “I think some of them are just here for the party
and there are other things up for sale.” Sterling offered. “The rumor seems to
be that the auction is for show and the U.S.T.G. will get the core because the
Traders are afraid to offend them.”

   “That makes sense.” Derek agreed. “You don’t want
to piss the U.S.T.G. off, but you don’t want to burn bridges with anyone else
either.”

   “That General Lucas from the U.S.T.G. was
insufferable also, so arrogant.” Rora interjected.

   “Wait.” Derek said suddenly. “General Alan Lucas?”

   “You know him?” Rora asked.

   “Yes, he was a political appointee with no previous
military experience. There was a lot of bitterness when he was made general and
put in charge of the ‘Readmission Program’. He is the military administrator
for new regions being brought into the U.S.T.G.” Derek replied, slightly
disturbed. “This isn’t good.”

   “Why?” Sterling asked.

   “Because if he is here it can only mean that they
plan to take the city regardless of the auction’s outcome. The Readmission
Program is a euphemism for Annexation Program, usually done at gunpoint.” Derek
said ominously. “They have been trying to peacefully convince Wichita to join
the U.S.T.G. but they must have gotten tired of Brightman’s stalling. Lucas
must have cut a deal with some of the Junk Traders to switch sides in return
for Party membership and control of the city. That will make it much harder for
us to escape.”

   “This just means we need to get the core and get
out of here fast. Did you get the bugs planted?” Sterling asked anxiously.

   “I got into the penthouse lobby but didn’t have
time to get past the lock on the entrance door.” Derek explained regretfully.
“But I did plant bugs in the lobby and on one of the guards.”

   “Hopefully that will be good enough.” Sterling replied
neutrally. “Let’s hear what we got.”

   “The bugs aren’t picking up anything now.” The
Voice broke in suddenly via speakerphone. “But earlier I recorded something
interesting. I will play it for you now.”

  
Rustling noises followed by groaning preceded
the recording. “What happened?” A voice said groggily.

   “Were you drinking and passed out? You
know Brightman will have you killed for that.” Another voice replied, sounding
annoyed.

   “I wasn’t drinking.” The first voice
insisted. “Someone must have knocked me out.”

   That declaration was followed by
cursing and a lot of heavy breathing. It sounded like both of the men were
running. A door slammed and their voices began to echo slightly indicating they
were inside.

   “The door doesn’t look like it was
breached.” The second voice said with obvious relief.

   “Check the log just in case.” The first
voice said impatiently.

   “Okay, okay.” The second voice replied.
“No record of anyone entering. But we need to call it in.”

   “Come on man, I don’t want to die.” The
first voice pleaded.

   “No one got in, so you’ll probably just
catch a beating.” The second voice argued. “Besides, if anyone finds out what
happened and we didn’t report it; we are both dead.”

   “Fine.” The first voice agreed
reluctantly.

   There was a click of a radio turning
on. “Hey boss, we had an incident up here.” The second voice said nervously.

   “What kind of incident?” The annoyed
voice of a third man asked.

   “Did anyone access the elevator in the
last couple of hours?” The second voice asked.

   “Why?” The third voice demanded.
“Aren’t YOU supposed to be watching it?”

   “Well, there may have been a small
period of time where one of us was unavailable.” The second voice said
cautiously.

   “Just tell me what happened Varka!” The
third man ordered.

   “We think someone knocked Jacobs out.”
Varka replied quickly. “But no one breached the door.”

   “Are you sure?” The third man demanded
angrily.

   “Pretty sure. The logs don’t show any
access.” Varka said defensively.

   “Unbelievable! You two idiots can’t do
anything right!” The third man exclaimed irately. “How am I going to explain
this to the boss?”

   “I don’t know. We still don’t know how
anyone got on the roof if the elevator wasn’t used.” Varka replied.

   “Or where he went.” Jacobs added.

   “We did search the entire roof and
lobby, Grazi. Nothing.” Varka continued.

   “I’m sending up more guys.” Grazi
informed them. “Search the roof again and the penthouse.”

   “That’s it.” Derek asked disappointedly.

   “No, I have one more from ten minutes later.” The
Voice replied evenly. “Listen to this one.”

   “There’s no one here and no sign they
got in.” Varka insisted. “Maybe you just slipped and fell.”

   “I’m telling you, someone knocked me
out.” Jacobs insisted.

   “Well, if they did then they left
without accessing the penthouse.” Varka said, confused.

   “What were they after then?” Jacobs
asked, equally confused.

   “If they were looking to steal the core
they would have been SOL, that’s locked down securely at the Market.” Varka
replied contemplatively. “But maybe they were just trying to get into the
penthouse and failed?”

   “Seems like a lot of work to get here
and then just leave.” Jacobs agreed. “We still have no idea how they even got
up here.”

   “It is baffling.” Varka agreed.

   “There’s more, but none of it is relevant.” The
Voice informed them.

   “So where does that leave us?” Derek asked
disappointedly. “If the core is already at the auction site, they aren’t going
to move it.”

   “That is true.” Sterling agreed slowly, pondering
their next action.

   “Can we break into the auction site and retrieve
it?” Rora asked.

   “No. They will have dozens of men guarding it and
I’m sure it’s in a vault that would be too heavy to take and take too long to
crack.” Derek replied unhappily.

   “We will just have to win the auction and then
hightail it out of here before the U.S.T.G. swoops in.” Sterling said
cheerfully.

   “Be serious.” Derek said scornfully. “We don’t have
the money and even if we did, you know the U.S.T.G. will win the bidding. And
on the off chance they lose, they have at least a division of elite troops
waiting to move in and take the city.”

   “Then that leaves us with only one option.” Sterling
said seriously. “We steal it during the auction.”

   “And how do we do that?” Derek asked, shaking his
head in amusement.

   “We create a distraction, or two, which gives us
enough cover to steal the core.” Sterling explained.

   “Even if you can create a distraction, how will we
get out with the core?” Derek pressed.

   “I’m thinking of some really big distractions that
will throw the entire city into chaos.” Sterling said with a chuckle. “Everyone
will be so busy dealing with them they will forget all about us.”

   Derek groaned. “If you are thinking what I think
you are thinking, it’s going to be like throwing gasoline on a fire and we are
all likely to get burned.”

   “What’s the matter Derek, I thought you lived for
this?” Sterling mocked.

   “I only have so many lives, and I’ve been running
through them pretty quickly since I met you two.” Derek replied half-jokingly.
“But let’s do it. Make the calls.”