“Don’t try to talk,” said Andre. “Where-where are the others?” he rasped.
“I said don’t try to talk! They’re all chasing the men who tried to hang you.”
“Who-who are…”
“I’m a friend of Hunter’s,” she said. “Stop trying to talk, for God’s sake. Just breathe, slowly and steadily, in- out-in-out…”
His chest rose and fell as he tried to take slow, deep, steady breaths.
“You’re going to be all right,” said Andre. “Thank God we got to you in time.”
“I–I am most grateful to you.” Macintosh said, his voice still coming out in a wheezing croak. “You-you saved my life. What is your name?”
“Never mind that,” she said. “You were just lucky my friends and I were passing by.”
He nodded. “Must warn Adams… bastards could try for him…”
“Can you walk? You need my help?”
“Thanks, friend, you’ve done enough. I’ll manage. Must hurry…”
He clapped her on the back and shambled off across the Common, his hand still holding his throat. Andre leaned back against the tree trunk for a moment and sighed with relief, then she started heading back toward the spot where she had knocked out Johnny. She got no more than ten paces when she was struck hard across the back of her head. She grunted and collapsed to the moist grass.
Lucas felt like a sitting duck. The first thing he’d done was to have Linda Craven clock to headquarters with their prisoner. She clocked back in only minutes later, though she’d actually spent hours in the future, getting Dicenzo admitted and briefing the hospital M.P. detachment and the T.I.A. interrogation unit that would question him. They had all gone without sleep and they were tired, but the razor edge of tension kept them keenly alert. It would have been pointless to try going after Moffat, by now he could be anywhere. Lucas cursed himself for not having kept a closer watch on him. He had underestimated the hominoid’s strength, something he never should have done. They had to assume he had gone back to Drakov and now their base of operations was blown. If he didn’t already know about the house on Lime Street, Drakov would know about it very soon, which meant there was a possibility they could be hit at any time.
The trouble was, they couldn’t move the base. Their people were spread out all over the place and until they reported in. there was no way of letting them know what had occurred. Lucas had considered having Craven try to clock around the city, looking for them, but that would be too dangerous and he had no way of knowing exactly where the others would be at any given time. They had discussed it briefly, and when she had insisted upon staying because it would be too risky to leave him alone and vulnerable, he was forced to agree. He was not afraid for himself, but he could not risk being taken out and leaving the people under his command vulnerable when they returned to the field base, not knowing it was blown. They armed themselves and settled down to a tense wait.
“How about some coffee?” Linda said.
“You’ve got coffee?” Lucas said.
“What’s a field base without coffee?” she said, with a smile. “Or should we go native and drink tea?”
“No, I could sure use a cup of strong black coffee.” Lucas said.
“Make that two,” said Darkness. “I’ll take mine with sugar.” Linda gasped and spun around, instinctively going for her weapon.
“All right, if it’s that much trouble, forget the sugar,” Darkness said.
She expelled her breath and put away her pistol. “Dr. Darkness! You almost gave me a heart attack,” she said. Darkness had appeared sitting on the couch beside Lucas, his legs casually crossed, his right hand resting on a silver-headed, ebony walking stick, which he held upright, its tip resting on the floor. He was dressed in his habitual Inverness coat and tweeds, a faintly bored expression on his gaunt features.
“Doc, am I ever glad to see you!” said Lucas.
“Ah, well, such an enthusiastic greeting can only mean that you’re in it up to your hips,” said Darkness. “What have you done now, boxed yourself into your usual corner or are you experiencing difficulties with the transponder?”
While Linda went to make the coffee, Lucas quickly filled him in.
“Hmm. it does seem as if you’ve bitten off a bit more than you can chew this time,” the scientist said. “Drakov and the Network. And this Hellfire Club, as well. Drakov really is becoming a considerable annoyance, isn’t he
“Doc, you have a positive genius for understatement,” Lucas said.
“I have a positive genius for everything,” Darkness said, “but that is quite beside the point. The question is, what are we going to do about this situation of yours?”
He reached into his jacket pocket for a pack of cigarettes. It was a perfectly ordinary, casual motion, but his right arm left a blurred series of afterimages as he moved, giving the effect of rapid, stop-motion photography. He removed a cigarette and lit it, inhaling deeply.
“It really is most inconvenient that your people can’t carry communicators all the time,” Darkness said. “That would have solved this entire problem, but I suppose it wouldn’t do to have voices suddenly coming out of little boxes in colonial Boston. It could tend to upset people. And miniature receivers might still have been spotted, but under the circumstances, it would have been worth taking the risk. “
“All right, so maybe I was being too cautious, but it’s too late to do anything about that now. Talking about how I screwed up isn’t going to help us. You got any ideas
“Well, part of your immediate problem can be easily solved. I can locate Steiger. Cross, and Delaney through their symbiotracers and inform them of the situation-”
“Hold it! Wait a minute!” Lucas said. You told me their symbiotracers were malfunctioning!”
“Oh. no. I solved that little problem. It turned out to be merely a minor glitch in my receiving equipment. Simply a matter of fine-tuning. I can locate them anytime I want.”
“And You didn’t tell me?”
Darkness raised his eyebrows. “Well, you didn’t ask.”
Lucas leaned back against the couch and put his hands up to his head. “ Sweet God All Mighty!” he said. “I don’t believe it! Didn’t you hear what I’ve just said? The Network’s got Steiger! And all the time, you could have told me where he was!”
“As I recall,” said Darkness, “the last time we spoke, they didn’t have him or if they did, you neglected to apprise me of the situation. Frankly, I’m not really surprised. Steiger’s knack for getting in over his head is rivaled only by your own. I suppose you’d like me to get him back for you?”
“Yes, if it wouldn’t be too much trouble.” Lucas said in an exasperated tone.
“No trouble at all,” said Darkness. ‘It’s not as if I haven’t got several dozen more important things to do. I really do wonder, Priest, how you ever managed before I came along. Every time I see you, you’re in some sort of difficulty. All things considered, it’s a miracle we haven’t got at least a dozen temporal disruptions to contend with-”
“ Doc For crying out loud!”
“Oh. I suppose you want me to leave now?”
“If you don’t mind!”
“What about my coffee?”
“Jesus, give me strength! We’ll keep the pot warm, okay’?”
“Well, all right, you don’t need to shout. You realize that I have no way of getting any sort of fix on your other people, since they’re not equipped with symbiotracers.”
“Just get Creed, Andre, and Delaney back here.” Lucas said. “Hunter’s with Delaney. Andre should be on her way hack here by now. In fact. I don’t know what’s keeping her… unless… “
“Unless what?”
“No. No. that’s crazy, she wouldn’t.”
“Can two participate in this conversation or is it a soliloquy?” said Darkness.
“Never mind,” said Lucas. “It’s not important. Just get them back here right away. Please?”
“Certainly. Don’t go away.” He disappeared.
Linda came back into the room. “Coffee’ll be ready in a min… where did he go? What’s the matter?”
Lucas was sitting hunched over, with his head in his hands. “Just once.” he said. “Just once, I’d like to catch
