SLAM by Tash McAdam Page B

casting ghostly shadows that hide
his eyes.
    “As far as we can figure it, our
best shot is to wait and find out where the soldiers are heading
next, and then get there first. Knowing where they might be heading is all
well and good, and if we had a whole crew we could hit up each
joint at the same time, but we don’t have that. So we have to beat
the bad guys to wherever they’re going. And then we should be
golden.
    “We’re working on the assumption that someone
has stolen something, and that the Institute wants it back pretty
badly, which means it could be something that damages them. It
could be equipment, but it could also be intelligence. Anyway, the
plan is that we lend whoever they’re chasing a hand, if we can and
should, and then get them out of the City. Quick as we can. Without
getting killed.
    “Of course if they don’t want to cooperate, we
might have to rethink our aims.”
    Her face is hard in the cold lighting, and
Serena twists her mouth unhappily. They just don’t have a lot of
good options, but kidnapping sounds a little too much like the
methods the Institute uses. Whoever they’re after might not welcome
their help, and it’s all too possible that he or she won’t want to
go back to ARC at all.
    In which case Serena and Abial will have to
relieve them of information and possible items. And she’s not
exactly comfortable with that.
    But it would be irresponsible to leave a
weapon that could help ARC behind, no matter the cost. War brings
impossible circumstances with it, and sometimes all the choices are
bad, but she truly hopes it doesn’t come down to hurting someone
that they could, instead, form an alliance with.
    Whatever happens, she’ll have to deal with it.
This is the hand they’ve been dealt, and combat training has
prepared them for high-risk situations like this. If they leave the
person behind to be captured, it could compromise their chances of
getting out of the City safely. And if Serena or Abial is caught –
because the person they’re chasing refuses to come with them, and
knows too much – their minds will be plundered; the chances of them
being able to resist for very long are low. That’s why ‘Ways to
Commit Suicide’ is a class she’s been taking since she was
fourteen. If they’re out of touch for more than a day, the rotating
entrances to the ARC headquarters will be destroyed, presumed
compromised by their capture. Of course, they’re not privy to
everything; ARC, by necessity, keeps information as
compartmentalized as possible. In the hands of a skilled Reader, a
captured operative could spell the end of the entire
resistance.
    Taking her own life, if it comes
to it, is something she thinks she’s accepted. But murder? She
pushes away the unwelcome thought that they may have to kill
someone who could be an ally. There’s no point in worrying about
that before they even manage to catch up. Besides, she can’t
imagine being alone and hounded by the Watch and Institute alike
and not wanting
help.
    Everything will be fine. That’s the idea for
right now, and she’s sticking to it.
    She clears her throat, wanting to
pull Abial’s thoughts away from killing. “They’ll probably be happy
to cooperate with anyone that can keep them alive. By the looks of
the track so far, they’re only one step ahead of the soldiers,
which means they’re either hacking comms or the cameras, to see
where the bad guys are headed. If the Institute goes dark and turns off the city
cams, whoever it is will be flying blind. He or she could end up
surrounded without even realizing it. So we don’t have much time.
If it was me in charge, it would already be a dark op, just because
it’s so obvious that the body they’re after is tuned in to their
approach.”
    A strange rumbling noise abruptly fills the
room, interrupting her, and the girls react like the soldiers they
are, immediately ducking and covering, hands up and looking for the
source. Leaf balances, crouched on the