Hacker by Camille Picott

Author:Camille Picott
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Dystopia, dystopian, Action & Adventure, YA, Parental Issues, Genetic Engineering, science fiction, young adult, Cyberpunk, Metaphysical & Visionary
Publisher: Camille Picott
Published: 2018-04-25T16:00:00+00:00

6

Hunted

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Heart pounding, Hank dashes back up to the third floor. The worn-out sneakers she’d cursed just that very morning are soundless on the floor.

“No time to play around today,” Ace says. The beam of a flashlight bounces up the stairwell as the two boys start up the steps. “Logan is already pissed that Gordo and George failed to nab her this afternoon. If we waste time, he’ll know.”

“Aww, come on,” Jacob wheedles. “Just five minutes. He won’t miss us for an extra five minutes.”

“No,” Ace says.

Hank doesn’t wait to hear more. She winces at the loud squeak of the door as she rushes back down the hallway.

Just as the door closes behind her, she sees the flashlight click off. She’s bought herself thirty, maybe sixty seconds at most.

She needs a window. A fire escape. Something. Her eyes frantically scan her surroundings.

Nothing. This hallway is like the interior of a cocoon. No wonder it smells so bad.

Hank weighs her options of trying to break into another apartment or going back to Lydia’s. She decides to go back to Lydia’s. She doesn’t have enough time to pick another lock.

She taps on the door with one fingernail, hoping to draw the other girl’s attention.

“Lydia!” she hisses, face close to the door. “It’s me! Please open up!”

The door cracks open. The chain is back in place. Dark eyes glare out at her.

“Go away,” she says.

“They’re here,” Hank rasps. “Please let me in. They’ll kill me if they find me out here.”

Worse than kill her, most likely. She has no illusions about what Jacob wants to do to her.

Maybe it’s the panic vibrating in her voice. Maybe it’s the naked terror in her eyes. Whatever, the reason, Lydia sees something that makes her stop cold. In a flash, the other girl opens the door, pulls her inside, then resecures the locks.

“Get something in front of the door!” Hank hisses. She lunges across the small apartment, positioning herself on the far side of a ratty sofa that smells suspiciously like cat pee. The fabric—a shiny burgundy that might be real velvet—is soft to the touch. What’s a little smell of cat pee in exchange for nice fabric?

Hank leans into the sofa, pushing as hard as she can. Lydia grabs a small table beside the door and moves it into the kitchenette, clearing the way. Hank gathers momentum as she slides the sofa, moving until the furniture slam up against the door with a solid thunk.

“They’re here?” Lydia whispers, face pale.

“Yeah. Is there another way out of this place?”

“I have a rope ladder.” Lydia rushes into her bedroom, Hank on her heels.

“Under the bed.” Lydia waves for Hank to retrieve the ladder while she grabs a pair of sneakers out of her closet. She jams her bare feet into them. “Do I have time to pack food and a few things to wear?”

Hank opens her mouth to tell her no, but a distinct rattling at the front door cuts her off. Jacob and Ace are here. Hank

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