The Grid 2 Read online

  ‘It’s no problem at all, Talya – may I call you Talya?’

  If this man were not her enemy, he would be extremely charming. Talya wondered if she might warm to him if the circumstances were different.

  ‘Of course, Damien. I’d welcome a thawing in our relationship now we’re working together.’

  ‘I’m sure you would.’

  There it was, the assertion of power once again. He couldn’t stop playing the games, it seemed to be in his blood.

  ‘Enough of that, though. Let’s move on with the tour. It won’t take long, there’s not much to see.’

  Damien touched his WristCom to alert the Gridder team of his imminent arrival. Talya guessed that was only for her benefit. Just like the prison visit, she knew this would be staged once again. They were probably all clearing their screens at that moment so she didn’t see anything too informative as she toured the offices.

  ‘Before you enter the Gridder facility, you’ll need to sign some additional documentation.’

  ‘No problem, Damien. What does it cover?’

  ‘As a legal expert you’ll understand the need for confidentiality, Talya.’

  It struck her how strange it was to be using first name terms when all they both wanted to do was kill each other. All that cordiality and hate, what a potent cocktail it was.

  ‘I do,’ replied Talya. ‘What does this concern?’

  ‘The real names of Gridders must stay out of the public domain; their anonymity is a crucial part of our justice system.’

  ‘Understandably, yes.’

  ‘Should you recognize anybody among the Gridders today, you must not acknowledge your relationship inside this building, or outside it. Neither may you discuss Gridder-related matters with anyone unless it is part of closed-door Fortrillium business.’

  ‘Understood,’ said Talya. ‘I apply the same constraints to any legal work and would expect to do so for any Law Lord related business.’

  ‘Excellent, then please sign here, if you would.’

  Damien held out an electronic tablet on which was displayed the documentation they’d discussed. Talya took some time to read it. Good job she read right down to the bottom of the page – the punishment for collusion or conspiracy was imprisonment, and in extreme circumstances, trial in The Grid. Damien Hunter liked to enforce the rules, that was sure.

  She had no choice but to sign. It seemed barely relevant to her by that stage. She didn’t really care what happened to her if Lucy perished in The Grid. She was taking things to their final conclusion. She’d be cautious and diplomatic all the time Lucy was in The Grid. If she died, she’d take no prisoners. Talya had it all planned out. If Lucy lost her life, she’d seek out Damien Hunter and kill him immediately. No discussion, no warning, no long speeches. Just death, fast and final. She’d do it with a knife if she had to, but if she could get her hands on a gun that might help to get the job done better. Then she’d release a video message to the news organizations revealing everything she’d discovered.

  She wasn’t sure what would happen next. Would she kill herself before they caught her? Would she let herself become a spectacle for Fortrillium on the screens? She’d be going to the slaughter if she did. Suicide might be the preferable option. If she killed Hunter, she’d be a dead woman anyway. Talya wasn’t sure how it would play out in the end.

  Either way, she had to sign the document. It took a DNA sample as she signed too. That was standard practice with important contracts. Especially the type that could get you killed.

  ‘Step this way please,’ said Damien as he began to escort Talya towards the Gridder Complex. She wondered if he could sense that she was plotting how to kill him. She smiled to herself when she realized he was probably doing exactly the same thing.

  As they walked along the bland corridors of Fortrillium, she was astonished to see they were alone. The usual Centuria escort was nowhere to be seen. Hunter would know he was safe all the while Lucy was alive, but he was not a stupid man. If Lucy died, would she get that close to him again? Probably not. Talya wondered if she’d have been better killing him there and then, with her hands. She decided to talk instead. They’d never actually conversed like sensible human beings.

  As they entered a long, empty corridor, Talya stopped.

  ‘Can we talk a moment, Damien … confidentially?’

  He looked at her, examining her face. He hadn’t expected that.

  ‘Of course, Talya. I think it’s probably overdue, don’t you?’

  Where would she begin? There was so much that she wanted to scream at him. She needed to think of Lucy.

  ‘How did it come to this, Damien? I’m not so dangerous to you, am I?’

  Once again, Damien had not expected her to go directly to the main issue.

  ‘We are where we are, Talya. Unfortunately, we’re all subject to different pressures and we have to make the best decisions.’

  ‘But did you have to involve Lucy? Did you really have to get the youngsters involved?’

  ‘They got themselves involved, Talya. They were hacking into Fortrillium’s systems, and you know we can’t allow that.’

  ‘I know, I understand, but couldn’t you have talked to me then, before you arrested Lucy? We could have come to an arrangement; it didn’t have to play out like this.’

  Damien looked carefully at her again. He was attempting to work out what kind of a person he was dealing with. She was right, it might have served him better to have talked. If he’d been a little less keen to hurt her, Lucy and Joe Parsons might have been more useful to him. It was too late, though. He’d managed to salvage their data and equipment, though it hadn’t been a tremendous amount of help to him so far.

  ‘I agree, Talya. Maybe we both could have been a little more friendly towards each other. But you made an enemy of Fortrillium a long time ago. You really could have helped us a bit more when you gave your interviews on the screens. You’re a very influential woman you know, and influence can be used in a number of different ways.’

  He was right, of course. In her rush to annoy and antagonize him, she’d been very negative about Fortrillium. Her anger was so great after Tom’s disappearance, she’d never really thought about working alongside Fortrillium, rather than fighting them all the way.

  ‘Is there anything I can do to help Lucy? You do understand how important this is, don’t you? Do you have children of your own Mr Hunter? Damien?’

  His face looked suddenly pale and drawn. She’d never heard his family mentioned, and she’d hit a sensitive spot by the look of him.

  ‘I did have a family, Talya, but like you my work in The City comes with many obligations, some of them tough to bear.’

  He hadn’t given her a straight answer. She decided to push him a bit more.

  ‘Do you have children, Damien? Surely you can understand what I’m going through?’

  ‘I understand exactly what you’re going through, Law Lord Slater, but you and your daughter brought it upon yourselves!’

  He snapped at her. His face was red and he looked flustered. She’d never seen him that way before. He was on the defensive, she’d rattled him. There was a way to hurt Damien Hunter and it was through his family.

  Talya resolved to get Wiz and Mitchell working on some research. She would talk to Delman about it too. Surely he would be able to tell her more about Hunter’s family?

  ‘I’m sorry if I touched on a sensitive matter, Damien. I didn’t mean to. But if there’s some way you can think of that would help us to resolve this issue, I want you to know that I am receptive to it.’

  Hunter was struggling to regain his composure. He realized he’d given something away to Talya. He’d been taken by surprise when she asked him about his family – he never had conversations which dealt with personal matters. There was not much room in Fortrillium business to accommodate a family life.

  ‘You of all people know the law of The City, Talya. Perhaps we should have had this conversation earlier, but
our courses are fixed now, and there’s nothing I can do to save your daughter. She may yet step out of The Grid and win her Justice Walk, but once she enters there is only one way out.’

  Talya nodded. She’d just seen a glimpse of humanity in a man she’d believed to be inhuman. It could be they were both at fault, they’d both been in a rush to hurt each other. She thought about the couples she dealt with when handling marital disputes. It was always the same: rage, anger and pride prevented any reasonable discourse. Perhaps she had been guilty of doing exactly what she counselled her clients to avoid.

  But then the anger surged through her once again. Hunter’s was the original sin; it was he who had killed Tom and Matt. If Hunter had shown more mercy, maybe none of the events that followed would have taken place.

  Talya and Damien stood in silence. Each had experienced an unguarded moment with the enemy, but it changed nothing.

  They were both set on a course and it would have to play out in full. There was no turning back for either of them; it would inevitably end in death. But which of them would be left standing?

  Visit

  Hannah was working furiously at her console when the alert came around. She and Linwood had taken two of the creatures each. They were making them as fearsome as they could and allowing their imaginations to run free.

  Hannah found the work incredibly absorbing, and she had to continually remind herself they were creating monsters which would be slaughtering human beings. Fortrillium had been clever disassociating the Gridders from the human element of the operation. At every turn, she was striving to make the gameplay better, and if she became too absorbed in her console work she forgot they were creating killing machines.

  They’d been instructed to clean up their consoles and conceal any paperwork. A Law Lord was making a spot-check visit. They were not to discuss any details of the trial or their plans for the different Modes. They were reminded of the clause in their contracts which dealt with what they were – and were not – permitted to discuss. Their memories were also refreshed on the consequences if they were to disobey.

  Hannah ensured her console was showing nothing confidential, then walked over to Linwood.

  ‘I’ve had an idea for the creatures. How about we give them tusks so they can wound as well as tear apart?’

  Linwood saw the theatre of that option immediately.

  ‘I love it. Darn, you’re good at this. I was thinking, we must give the Justice Seekers weapons too, or it’ll be slaughter. If we kill too many, Fortrillium won’t be happy.’

  ‘Agreed,’ said Hannah. ‘But let’s keep them basic to force close-up combat.’

  All heads turned to see who was walking into the room. It was Damien Hunter with a woman following behind him. Hannah couldn’t quite see her.

  ‘Get that image off your console. Don’t let the Law Lord see it!’ she warned.

  ‘And you remember to use only your Gridder name.’

  Hannah returned to her terminal and waited for her turn to chat to the Law Lord. There was something about the tone of her voice she recognized as she made her way through the office, talking first to the Head Gridder. That voice was familiar, but she didn’t want to turn around and stare.

  She could sense Damien Hunter and the Law Lord making their way up to her work area. She would be next in line.

  ‘Good morning, Janexx2. This is Law Lord Slater.’

  A massive rush of adrenalin surged through Hannah’s body. Lucy’s mum. What should she do? They weren’t supposed to acknowledge outside relationships. Did Hunter know? Was he testing her? She pretended to finish her typing to buy a delay of few seconds. How would she greet Talya?

  Hannah turned to face Talya. She saw it in her eyes for a split second. Talya had apparently made the same decision. Don’t let on.

  ‘Good morning, Law Lord Slater. I’m very pleased to meet you!’

  Hannah almost forgot to extend her hand to shake Talya’s, which was outstretched. She was so used to not embarrassing her friends in The Climbs, she occasionally forgot how to behave on Silk Road.

  Talya asked a few routine questions and moved on to the next Gridder. Hunter asked her how she was settling in, congratulated her on the excellent trial by fire, then rejoined Talya. Hannah felt Talya’s eyes gesture momentarily as they parted. She wanted to get a message to her.

  Hannah stood up to leave the room. She needed a moment to compose herself, and she headed to the restroom.

  Her face was red when she examined herself in the mirror. Had she turned red when they were talking, or had it just happened out of relief?

  Talya walked in moments later. She’d spotted her opportunity to speak.

  ‘Hannah, we’ve got to be fast. I need to tell you something.

  Lucy and Joe are in The Grid. They got caught doing whatever it is you were all up to. The authorities don’t seem to know you’re involved yet, but be careful, Hannah. They’re watching us all.’

  If Hannah’s face had been red before, it was now completely white. She felt her stomach tighten – the nausea was back with a vengeance. She didn’t know what to say.

  ‘Lucy and Joe are in The Grid? Oh, my God. What have I done?’

  Talya put her hand on Hannah’s arm. She looked as if she was about to faint. Instead, she vomited into the sink. Talya helped her to clean up.

  ‘That’s Lucy who’s caught in the labyrinth, isn’t it? I know it, we’ve trapped Lucy, haven’t we?’

  Hannah’s eyes were red with tears, she was distraught.

  ‘Hannah, listen to me. You’ve got to calm down. You need to walk out of here and go back to your desk. They mustn’t know we talked, you’ve got to pull yourself together.

  Wiz, Mitchell and I will be working on the outside. There’s a WristCom in The Grid somewhere, see if you locate it and get it to them. If you can do that, I think we can do the rest.’

  Hannah dried her eyes and composed herself. If she’d only known it was Joe and Lucy in there. Could she have done anything differently? They were planning to sacrifice Lucy next. She had to do something about that. How could she have been so callous?

  The restroom door opened and instinctively they walked away from each other as if they’d just been passing by. It was a Centuria, hurrying things along, dispatched by Hunter no doubt. Hannah kept her head down and walked towards the door, as if she’d been doing exactly that when the door opened. She needed to make sure nobody saw she’d been crying.

  Talya moved towards the sink to wash her hands. She didn’t look at Hannah, but continued as if they hadn’t been talking at all. The Centuria accompanied her back to Hunter’s side, then slid out of the room, back to his post, wherever that was.

  ‘I think we’re done here,’ Hunter announced. ‘Have you seen everything you wanted to see, Law Lord Slater?’

  ‘Yes, thank you. It’s been very helpful.’

  It had been useless and completely uninformative, of course. But at last Talya had seen a shaft of light in the darkness. They had an insider. If they could get Max’s help to locate the WristCom concealed in The Grid, Hannah could manoeuvre Joe and Lucy towards it. If Wiz and Mitchell were able to make some progress with their own investigations, perhaps – just perhaps – they might get them out of there alive.

  As Talya exited the room with Damien Hunter, she put her hand to rest on Hannah’s desk in passing, as if guiding or steadying herself. Hannah got the message, though it would not have been noticed by anybody else in the room.

  Talya was telling her she wasn’t on her own; they were all fighting together. But Hannah had more pressing matters on her mind. Later that evening they’d be releasing four terrible beasts into the labyrinth. The first of those creatures would be heading directly for Lucy. She had sentenced her best friend to death.

  Isolation

  Lucy’s voice was going hoarse. She decided to stop screaming out for help. She’d been terrified when the Mode changed in The Grid. It had shaken her out of her sleep, and her head
was sore and painful. Her arm was red raw.

  She thought back to what had happened in the woodland. She’d woken up and seen that everybody else was asleep. Chris was still, so she decided to head out and look for food. He’d needed her reassurance, but she’d felt a bit useless. Unable to leave Chris, she’d been more passive than she would have liked. She figured that if Chris was being looked after at least he wasn’t putting himself in harm’s way. But she felt tied down and she wanted to contribute. Finding some food would be the most useful contribution she could make.

  It was still dark when she left the camp area – there was just enough light to see where she was going. With no experience of foraging for survival on Silk Road, she didn’t know where to begin, but she set off anyway. They’d eaten berries as children; there had to be berries in the woodland.

  Lucy had walked towards the water first. She was anxious to freshen up and get a drink before she moved deeper into the trees. As she cupped her hands to collect water, a twig broke to her side. She stopped and looked. There was nothing there, she was certain. She continued to drink, plunging her hands in several times to quench her thirst. As she started to splash water onto her face, she became aware of a noise immediately behind her. She jumped, but was too late.

  Whatever – or whoever – it was, they were fast. She felt a blow to her head before she lost consciousness and fell to the ground.

  She was vaguely aware of someone – a man – talking. It was Schälen’s voice. He was carrying her. She couldn’t focus on what he was saying, the words just drifted in and out, she could only pick out fragments.

  ‘You’re my first trophy … should have stayed with your friends … where they can’t find you … hope you enjoy what I’ve got planned for you …’

  Lucy knew it wasn’t good, but she couldn’t stay conscious long enough to catch a full sentence. Then he threw her on the ground and she felt intense pain in her arm. He held his hand over her mouth so she couldn’t cry out. The pain was searing, she’d never known anything like it. She passed out again, the pain was too much.