“Ryan, honey, we can’t just leave it. Not when you’re in danger…not when Jak’s in danger.”
The albino had accompanied Ryan, for the reason that the one-eyed man had foreseen that the Gate queen would have trouble separating her own feelings from a general view of the situation. As she spoke, he stepped forward and took her hand. Her fiery, flashing eyes met with his red yet cold orbs.
“You, me…we not important,” Jak said to her in a soft, gentle tone that Ryan had never heard him use before. “Bigger things think about. Need get this right, not rush and fall.”
The queen paused for a moment before answering.
“You’re right. I thought I’d lost you once before, so I guess I can grit my teeth and get past this one.”
But once again, fate was to step into the breach quicker than any of them could have hoped. For the very next morning, the regular recon patrol brought news to the queen as she breakfasted with Tammy and the companions.
“Two wags from the redoubt have left,” Dette said breathlessly and without preamble as she approached them. “Headed toward Crossroads and not stopping like before.”
“Any convoys leaving or entering?” the queen asked.
Dette shook her head. “Nothing planning to leave that we know of, and nothing seen in the other direction.”
“Looks like they may be going to hit the ville like they did that convoy,” Tammy said, cold fury etched in her face and her tone.
“Could be,” Ryan agreed, “but we need to be triple sure. Anyone following?”
Dette nodded. “Cat and Nita. They may be triple stupe, but even they can’t fuck this one up. As soon as they reach their destination, one of them will come.”
“What if it’s not Crossroads?” Krysty asked.
“Then I told them to follow for an hour and report back on the wag’s direction. Leave it to them and they’d follow the fuckers forever and forget where they were going. If they turn off and head past the ville, an hour puts them well out of our range anyway, and they’d probably come back the same way.”
Gloria grinned crookedly. “I’m gonna have to watch you, lady. You’re too damn full of the smarts. In the meantime, we’d better get our shit together, ’cause it looks like we’re going out to play today.”
Ryan nodded. “You need any help?”
“If you can spare J.B., then I reckon Jon’d appreciate some help,” Dean chipped in. “He’s been working on those laser blasters, and he showed me the other day what he’s been doing. He took one to pieces and studied it to see how they worked, so they could be used and maintained. But I figure he’d like you to give it a quick once over.”
J.B. agreed. “Glad to. The boy’s a natural, though, so I’ll soon be back.” With which the Armorer immediately departed, galvanized to his task.
While Gloria and Tammy raised their warriors, Ryan turned to his companions.
“So how are we doing, people?” he asked. “J.B. and me are okay, and so are Dean and Krysty—” he looked to them to check, and they affirmed this “—but it’s you three I’m concerned about. How are you gonna be in a firefight?”
“Slow,” Mildred said wryly. “But you think any of us are going to miss this?”
“No,” Ryan said slowly, “but I want to know how we’re going to handle this. If—”
But he was cut short by the arrival of Cat at the camp. She ran straight to Gloria and gasped out her message before the queen turned and approached the companions.
“It’s settled. The scum fuckers are attacking Crossroads. We can’t just let that happen. Those are good people—and shit fighters.”
Ryan shook his head. “They were good to us, too. But more than that, if there are two wags, then this may just be the break we’ve been looking for.”
“How?” the queen asked.
Ryan smiled mirthlessly. He spoke in a murmur, but with a chilling passion: “Just wait and see.”
GLORIA RALLIED the Gate warriors, who formed up for the journey to Crossroads, the companions joining them. Tammy recruited scouting parties to travel ahead and scout the ville to plot the movements of the Illuminated wags.