She tried to shut out the images; the penthouse, the balcony, her brother sitting on the rails, standing, believing that he could fly. She would not believe it. But more images came. The room full of balloons. Radir’s reports. The horses, always the horses. Axel, on the balcony, his red hair bright on a dull day. Axel, aged sixteen, leaping from a boat, his arms wide to embrace the unknown shock of the sea.
Vikram was speaking.
“If you ever get out of here, go to Branch 18 of the Silk Vault. There’s a deposit box under the name of Mikkeli, only you and I have access to it. I put a copy of the letter there. There was something with it. A necklace, with a shark tooth. It’s in the deposit box.”
“Axel,” she whispered.
Her dream came back to her, looking for him, not finding him. She was bad luck. She knew the truth about Axel in the same moment as she knew the truth about herself. Even the sting of humiliation attached to his suicide gave way to incredulity-not at Axel’s actions, but at her own blindness. Axel had skipped out of life. That had been her twin’s final stunt.
She thought of the argument in Feodor’s office months ago, demanding the keys, convinced that her father’s refusal was proof of complicity. He had known something after all: he had known the truth, and if there had been any evidence of suicide in Axel’s penthouse, she could be sure he would have erased it before anyone else got there. The Rechnov name always came first.
She felt hollow.
“I should have told you before,” said Vikram. “I tried to, so many times. I meant to. I just…”
The tears that had fallen dried on her cheeks. She did not know who they were for. She thought of her brother’s body sinking to the ocean floor and she knew the fish had stripped it to the bone.
“I wouldn’t have believed you,” she said.
A dull thud, as though something had struck the tower deep underwater, resonated through the walls. The floor shook beneath them.
She froze.
“What…?”
They stood, motionless. The second shake knocked them sideways. The torch went out. Plaster tumbled down the walls, clouds of dust rising in the aftermath. She heard Vikram scrabbling for the torch. The light flicked on, illuminating their dust-coated faces.
“A quake…?” Her uncertain response failed to convince even herself. Vikram shook his head. His face was grim.
“Skadi,” he said. “They’ve found us.”
She stared at him. Her brain, as numb as ice, gave way to a dawning comprehension.
“They’re tracking you,” she said.
Vikram’s hand went to the back of his neck.
“No, Ilona found it, she dampened it…”
“That doesn’t do anything, Vik, the tracker’s in your blood. It’s a classic security bluff-I’m so sorry.”
He turned very pale. They stared at each other. She did not question what his original intent had been. In this moment, everything was changing. She wiped the moisture from her cheeks. He helped her to her feet.
The door blasted open.
“Vik, get back to the other room, they’ve found us.” It was Nils. He grabbed her arm. She saw a look pass between him and Vikram, but neither of them had time for words. “She’s coming too.”
With Nils’s hand gripping her upper arm she hobbled through the corridor. Pain shot up her legs, her bad leg throbbed. She held onto the sensation. For now, at least, she was alive. Vikram grabbed her elbow, supporting her. Nils pulled her into the room where they had first arrived. Breaking daylight filtered inside, illuminating the dishevelled bedding, the broken benches and grow-boxes, the guns. Drake had torn away part of the boarding and was stationed at a gap in the window-wall. The large-barrelled gun in her arms angled downwards. Rikard was on the other side in an identical pose. Ilona was checking her weapon. Pekko barked into a scarab. When he saw them, he dropped the scarab and launched himself at Vikram, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him violently.
“This is your fault! You brought them here!”
Vikram landed a fist into Pekko’s stomach. Adelaide jerked forward but Nils held her fast. Pekko let go of Vikram. A cold rage locked in his eyes. The next second his gun was pointing at Vikram’s head.
“Traitor,” he spat.
“Don’t you dare!” yelled Drake. Ilona’s head jerked up and her hands stilled. Rikard’s eyes glanced away from the window-wall only for a second.
“I had no idea they would find us,” Vikram snarled. His face was contorted with equal rage. His hands dropped at his sides, fists clenched but helpless. The gun pushed into Vikram’s temple. The two men were inches apart. Blood rushed to Adelaide’s face.
“Pekko he’s telling the truth! He didn’t know. The tracker’s not on his neck, it’s in his blood. That’s how they always find people.”
“And why didn’t you say something before, Citizen?” The gun did not move. Pekko’s voice was quiet now, quiet and cold. “Instead of playing mad and half-dead.”
“I’d hardly tell you anything if I thought I was going to be rescued, would I?”
Pekko’s grip on the gun tightened.
“Would I?” she shouted.
Nils spoke with forced calmness. “Pekko, there’s no time for this now. They’re sending skadi into the building. We’re going to have to defend the floor. We need posts. Vikram’s with us. If he’s not, the skadi will kill him anyway.”
The tension between Pekko and Vikram was electric. Adelaide’s heart thumped in her chest. She did not dare to say anything further.
It was none of them, but a voice from outside that made Pekko lower the gun. The skadi spoke through a tannoy. Travelling up from the surface, the words sounded distorted.
“You are surrounded. You have ten minutes to release the hostage, or we will send enforcements in. No prisoners will be taken. I repeat, you are surrounded…”
Releasing Vikram, Pekko moved with sudden speed. She saw his intent and ducked a fraction too late to avoid him altogether; the barrel of the gun struck her shoulder. She fell against the wall, winded by the strength of the blow.
“Tie her up!” yelled Pekko.
Nils secured her wrists, but loosely.
“Keep your head down or you’ll get killed,” he muttered. “The tower’s surrounded by skadi. I don’t think they’re here to negotiate.”
Over Nils’s shoulder she met Vikram’s eyes, bright with anguish and fury.
Pekko scooped up the scarab and pressed it hard to his ear. His face was taut with tension.
“Sorren, what’s going on? How long until you get here?”
All eyes were on Pekko now.
“We’ve got at least a dozen skadi vehicles down there, I’ve got zero contact with the plant. What the fuck d’you mean you can’t-Sorren?”
Pekko paused, took the scarab from his ear, shook it.
“Sorren? Sorren. I can’t hear you. Get Maak on for me. You got that? Get Maak. Sorren-”
He lowered the scarab. Tinny pops came out of its speaker. Static mingled with raised voices, with shouts. Nobody said anything. Pekko, facing away from them all, seemed to have frozen. Then he switched off the scarab and slid it into a pocket. He did not spare Adelaide another glance.
The ten minutes passed slowly. Adelaide knew that there was no point in asking if the skadi would negotiate. There were no further announcements. Finally Drake said that the skadi were moving in. Rikard was allocated to guard Adelaide. None of it felt real. She watched the others leave the room, and was conscious only of a quiet disbelief.
