Read Online Deathstalker 04 - Deathstalker Honor by Simon R. Green - Free Book Online

hand? I won’t do it, Owen. I’d rather stand and fight here.”
    “And die?”
    “I’m not doing it!”
    “You used to be a clonelegger!”
    “I was already planning to leave the cloneleggers even before I met you. We can’t do this, Owen. It’s freezing in there. Near zero.” “We’ve withstood worse,” said Owen. “The guards will never think to look for us among the dead.”
    “That’s because no sane person would even think of doing it. I can’t, Owen. I just can’t. It would be like crawling through the contents of the freezer units on the clonelegger ship. Just like my nightmares.”
    “No, it won’t. This time I’ll be there with you. You have to do this. Hazel.
    It’s the only way. And I can’t do it without you.” “You bastard, Deathstalker. You always did know how to fight dirty.” Hazel drew in a long, ragged breath and let it out slowly. “All right. Let’s do it. Before I get a rush of brains to the head and tell you to go to hell.” “Just follow me. I’ll lead the way.”
    “Damn right you will.”
    Owen led the way to the cave. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Hazel staring straight ahead, her face a cold mask, but her eyes were those of a frightened child. Owen had never seen her scared before, really scared. “So,” he said, searching for the right words to say, “you were already thinking of leaving the cloneleggers before we met?”
    “Yeah,” said Hazel. “They were too gross even for me. And the pay was lousy.”
    “Silly me. I thought it might have something to do with morality.”
    “Don’t you use the m-word in my presence, Deathstalker.” They stopped before the entrance to the cave. Beyond the shimmering transparent force field, dead faces looked out at them. Hazel’s hands fell to her guns, but they didn’t comfort her. “Damn you, Deathstalker. Somebody’s going to pay for this.”
    “Hang on to that attitude. It’ll come in very handy when we have to fight our way through Valentine’s private army at the other end.” Hazel snorted. “Overwhelming odds I can handle. I’m used to that. Now, shut up and open the damned door. You can do that, can’t you?” “I’m working on it.”
    Owen studied the force field thoughtfully, and an idea came to him. He accessed his AI.
    “Oz, do you still have the command overrides for the Standing?” “Of course. I have override codes for every system in the castle, and every system linked into those systems since we left. Unless David or Valentine and his people have changed them.”
    “Not likely. David wouldn’t have bothered, and Valentine hasn’t had time. Try it, Oz. Isolate this system, shut down this cave’s force field, and then raise it again after we’re in. Without setting off any alarms.” The AI sniffed. “You don’t want much, do you? It’s lucky for you that I’m such a superior model. But before I work my usual miracles, can I just point out that I have no control over the refrigeration units Valentine has installed in these caves. They’re an entirely separate system that I have no access to. The temperature in the cave you propose to enter, it’s not actually zero, but it’s as close as you’re ever likely to encounter, short of opening an airlock and stepping out into deep space. Though I wouldn’t put that past you either. I’ve known depressed lemmings on window ledges with better survival instincts than you. Suffice to say that any normal human entering this cave would freeze to death extremely quickly. Assuming the shock didn’t get him first.” “Hazel and I aren’t normal, Oz. We haven’t been for a long time. Open the cave.” There was a sudden snap of energies cancelling out, and the force field was gone. Freezing air rushed out from the cave, steaming thickly into the cavern like a thick fog.
    The bitter cold hit Owen and Hazel like a blow, and they flinched back from it despite themselves. They shuddered violently and held on to each other for