Read Online Apex: Nexus Arc Book 3 by Ramez Naam - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Ramez Naam
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overpass, then slowed and took them down an embankment instead of continuing on the road they’d been on.
Lights appeared ahead, moving lights, and Earl pulled them off the side of the road again, and behind a row of trees, until a different pickup passed their hiding spot, heading away from town, out towards where they’d come from.
Finally, more than an hour after they’d left the farm, they crawled slowly, carefully, into Madison, taking the smallest roads possible, until finally Earl pulled them into an alley a block from St Mark’s.
The wind was still fierce in town, but weaker. It had grown weaker even out in the countryside in the hour it had taken them to drive this circuitous loop around the town. Zoe was dying, bit by bit.
Earl Miller pulled out his phone, dialed, said a few words into it, listened, and hung up.
“They’re gonna open up the side door for us.”
“Won’t the cops trace your call?” Rangan asked.
“If they want you bad enough,” Earl said, nodding. “They’ll pull all the calls from all the houses.”
“What then?”
Miller shrugged. “My grandson, Jamie,” he said. “That stuff you made. The Nexus. It changed him. He and his daddy took it. He got so much better… Lookin’ you in the eye, listenin’, talkin’, huggin’ .”
Rangan looked over at the farmer.
“Sons of bitches took him away. Got him locked up somewhere.”
Miller turned his head, returned Rangan’s gaze.
“Levi told me that you had a chance to get outa lockup. But you wouldn’t leave without the kids. That true?”
Rangan choked. He nodded. “Mr Miller… Your grandson, Jamie…”
“I know he’s not one of the boys you got out, son,” Miller said. “But he coulda been.”
Miller’s phone buzzed. He looked down. Tapped it. Then took control of the car.
“Seems to me,” the farmer went on, “you took a bigger risk than I am.”
Rangan leaned back, not at all sure what to say. Earl drove them out of the alley, back into the wind, made the corner, and there was the back of the church. Then they were pulling up to a side door, and it was opening.
“Stay safe, son. Stay free. There’s more the Lord wants you to do.”
Rangan leaned over, despite the pain, and hugged Earl Miller. “You stay free too, Mr Miller. There’s more left for you to do too.”
And then the truck door opened, and Levi was there, and another man he didn’t recognize. The belt came off, and they helped him down from the truck. The first motion hurt. The second hurt worse. Then agony shoved itself through him as his body contorted in new ways. He collapsed onto the two men as they dragged him in through the door of the church.
Rangan was suddenly so deeply cold. His vision was growing so very dim.
Then the world receded into nothing at all.
9
Transit and Debriefing
S aturday 2040.11.03
Kade verified his last upload, then streamed the last of the files down from Shiva’s satellite constellation, through the plane’s directional link, and into the NexusOS in his mind. That was it. There was no more time. Either this was going to work or it wasn’t.
It has to work, he told himself. It will work.
Sam’s voice came through the plane’s cabin, amplified over the plane’s speakers, in Thai, for the kids. He could only parse some of what she said, but he understood enough. They were landing.
The plan they’d agreed on was going to be put to the test.
He felt the children react, twenty-five of them crammed into this private jet meant to transport a dozen adults in luxury. They tightened seat belts and huddled together and curled up in the crash position taken from Feng’s mind. The nerves were back. Fear. Uncertainty. They were amazing beyond anything Kade had ever known, but they were still children.
Kade reached out with his thoughts and open arms and the one called Kit – seven years old? – came to him. He wrapped his arms around the boy, braced them both as well as he could on the floor of the
Lights appeared ahead, moving lights, and Earl pulled them off the side of the road again, and behind a row of trees, until a different pickup passed their hiding spot, heading away from town, out towards where they’d come from.
Finally, more than an hour after they’d left the farm, they crawled slowly, carefully, into Madison, taking the smallest roads possible, until finally Earl pulled them into an alley a block from St Mark’s.
The wind was still fierce in town, but weaker. It had grown weaker even out in the countryside in the hour it had taken them to drive this circuitous loop around the town. Zoe was dying, bit by bit.
Earl Miller pulled out his phone, dialed, said a few words into it, listened, and hung up.
“They’re gonna open up the side door for us.”
“Won’t the cops trace your call?” Rangan asked.
“If they want you bad enough,” Earl said, nodding. “They’ll pull all the calls from all the houses.”
“What then?”
Miller shrugged. “My grandson, Jamie,” he said. “That stuff you made. The Nexus. It changed him. He and his daddy took it. He got so much better… Lookin’ you in the eye, listenin’, talkin’, huggin’ .”
Rangan looked over at the farmer.
“Sons of bitches took him away. Got him locked up somewhere.”
Miller turned his head, returned Rangan’s gaze.
“Levi told me that you had a chance to get outa lockup. But you wouldn’t leave without the kids. That true?”
Rangan choked. He nodded. “Mr Miller… Your grandson, Jamie…”
“I know he’s not one of the boys you got out, son,” Miller said. “But he coulda been.”
Miller’s phone buzzed. He looked down. Tapped it. Then took control of the car.
“Seems to me,” the farmer went on, “you took a bigger risk than I am.”
Rangan leaned back, not at all sure what to say. Earl drove them out of the alley, back into the wind, made the corner, and there was the back of the church. Then they were pulling up to a side door, and it was opening.
“Stay safe, son. Stay free. There’s more the Lord wants you to do.”
Rangan leaned over, despite the pain, and hugged Earl Miller. “You stay free too, Mr Miller. There’s more left for you to do too.”
And then the truck door opened, and Levi was there, and another man he didn’t recognize. The belt came off, and they helped him down from the truck. The first motion hurt. The second hurt worse. Then agony shoved itself through him as his body contorted in new ways. He collapsed onto the two men as they dragged him in through the door of the church.
Rangan was suddenly so deeply cold. His vision was growing so very dim.
Then the world receded into nothing at all.
9
Transit and Debriefing
S aturday 2040.11.03
Kade verified his last upload, then streamed the last of the files down from Shiva’s satellite constellation, through the plane’s directional link, and into the NexusOS in his mind. That was it. There was no more time. Either this was going to work or it wasn’t.
It has to work, he told himself. It will work.
Sam’s voice came through the plane’s cabin, amplified over the plane’s speakers, in Thai, for the kids. He could only parse some of what she said, but he understood enough. They were landing.
The plan they’d agreed on was going to be put to the test.
He felt the children react, twenty-five of them crammed into this private jet meant to transport a dozen adults in luxury. They tightened seat belts and huddled together and curled up in the crash position taken from Feng’s mind. The nerves were back. Fear. Uncertainty. They were amazing beyond anything Kade had ever known, but they were still children.
Kade reached out with his thoughts and open arms and the one called Kit – seven years old? – came to him. He wrapped his arms around the boy, braced them both as well as he could on the floor of the
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