When Good Toys Go Bad by Cairo Debbie

Author:Cairo, Debbie [Cairo, Debbie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
Published: 2012-12-24T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Marjin pounded on the door. “Get dressed, but stay here!”

I heard the loud thumps of her footfalls as she bounded down the uncarpeted stairs. Then her voice, loud and determined. “You were not supposed to be here until the morning.”

“You’re harboring two fugitives,” the unmistakable deep voice of a Consortium guard bellowed back at her.

“They were to turn themselves in tomorrow morning to the colony police. I made arrangements with the magistrate. I’m not letting them go anywhere with Consortium guards, especially under the cloak of darkness.”

“What should I do?” I heard Brynn ask.

That’s my Brynn, always in the thick of things.

“Call the police. When you’re done with that, call number three on my comm pad. Tell her we need press and lots of it.”

We heard the distinctive sound of a tussle on the stairs as the Consortium guards tried to push through Marjin and Brynn to get to their quarry—us. The confrontation ended when colony police sirens sounded in the distance.

Pounding on the door intensified.

“Well, let them in,” Marjin ordered, obviously not willing to give up her perch on the stairs.

“What’s going on here?” the much more feminine voice of a colony police officer asked.

“I have Darra Athol and the Kai unit here. I made arrangements with the magistrate to have them turn themselves in to you tomorrow morning. These Consortium goons—” she spat it out like bitter apple, “—showed up and demanded I turn them over. I refused and called you.”

“Under what authority are you taking these citizens into custody?”

“The Consortium,” the butch guard answered with conviction.

“Last time I checked, the Consortium guards didn’t have any authority off Consortium property. I suggest you leave this to the real police.”

I swore I heard the Consortium guard growl. Whatever connection that existed between The Consortium and the colony police apparently didn’t extend to the officers.

“You can come down now,” Marjin yelled up the stairs.

Kai entwined his fingers around mine. We cautiously made our way down the stairs.

To my relief, there was no sign of more Consortium guards. Two blonde, pony-tailed, colony police officers stood by the front door.

“The arrangements were—” Marjin held up her fingers as she counted off the list, “—they are not to be separated. They will remain in the same condition they are right now. Not that I don’t trust you, but half the press corps is outside to document their condition both physically and mentally. They will make a statement assuring everyone they have no intention of killing themselves or each other. They will not be running away topside. And last but not least, neither of them has any physical conditions that could lead to their untimely demise. I will have complete access to them, and Darra will be allowed two phone calls per night.”

“We’re not barbarians,” one of the officers chided.

“I’m just making sure you stay unbarbarian-like.”

Marjin’s speech went pretty far in quelling my terror, though Kai’s grip on my hand remained the only thing grounding me. The whole situation felt unreal—impossible.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be okay.

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