Page 155 of The Vigilante's Lover

“What did you find?” I ask. I know how high this goes, but I’m curious if Carter does. Probably so, if he felt the need to knock out the power to the room to avoid Vigilante higher-ups from listening in.

“I know that Klaus isn’t dead. I know he’s working with Sutherland and a special.” He rubs his thumbs against his eyebrows. “And I know they are recruiting people for something big, something technology driven.”

“What sort of thing?” I ask. This last part is new.

“Sutherland is gathering Phase Tens and taking them off grid.” He lifts his Identipad as if to show me, then thinks better of it and sets it down again. “Better not tip them off that I’m working in here,” he says.

“Who?” I ask.

“Gabriella Soto from Mexico, a poison specialist. She allegedly diedin a shootout four months ago. Jason Ferro from Detroit, a technology guy, like Klaus. His death record was cleaned a little better, so I’m not sure what his cause was.”

“How do you know they’re involved?” I ask.

“Their cars.” He grins. “When a Vigilante car is transferred to a new owner, there’s a record. Their cars seem to be driven by ghosts.”

“Nice,” I say. “So what do you think this team is for?”

“I was hoping you would know,” he says.

The lights flicker overhead. “We’re out of time,” he says. “I’m going to fake your death just like they’ve been doing, and get you to that car you stole from Paulson. Stand up for me.”

I rise from the chair. “Where am I going?”

“To Washington. To Sutherland. A couple ghost cars were headed that direction. So will you.” He claps me on the shoulder. “I’m going to be watching you. You’ll have an ID assigned to you, one I’ve set aside for a while for a Vigilante who disappeared in the Sahara but that I’ve kept active.”

I nod.

“As the power comes up, I’m going to knock you out. When you come to, you’ll be in the car with the new ID. I can’t guarantee you’ll be able to stay off grid. But I can get you started, and I’ll send people to help you as I can.”

He turns grimly to the jacket covering the dome. “The whole network is at risk now. Nobody can trust anybody, with things going on like they are.”

“I’ll get to the bottom of it. I’m a dead man anyway,” I tell him.

He yanks the jacket off the dome. “Power’s back. Now that we can document things, it’s time to go off grid for good.” He clicks an invisible button on the table. A panel slides open, and he lifts a silver case from a hidden compartment.

“You going to fight or can I do this with just us?” he asks.

“I don’t need an audience,” I say bitterly.

He pulls the syringe out, a yellow one for the snuff dart. My eyes follow Carter’s hand as he moves toward me.

“I’d ask for last words, but I don’t really give a shit,” Carter says.

“Do what you’ve got to do,” I say.

He pricks my arm. I’ve seen a snuff dart used a dozen times, and I’ve administered them myself. I know what it looks like to go down with one. It’s clean and easy, a crumple to the ground.

I plan to emulate that look so that the dart is convincing, but then I realize it’s happening without my trying.

Suddenly I wonder if this was all a double cross, a ploy to make me an easy mark. They kept me from putting up a fight.

The room starts to swirl, and I lose feeling in my legs. My knees hit the ground in a bruising crash.

My body starts to fall forward. I think my head is going to bash the floor but mercifully, before that can happen, everything goes black.

4: Mia

We pass six more gas stations, and I can feel Jovana’s concern growing. Maybe there’s too many people at them. Maybe she’s forgotten civilian cars aren’t always electric like Vigilante ones.