Page 98 of Wild Oblivion

“Sounds like you’ve got everything figured out. Who are you selling it to?”

Slick laughed. “Clients who pay handsomely.”

“So, this isn’t about ideology. It’s about money.”

"Isn't everything when it comes down to it?”

"What are you going to do with all that money if there's nowhere to spend it?”

Slick smiled. "I see it as leveling the playing field. If everyone has the technology, mutually assured destruction creates an equilibrium. Why should just one government have access to Oblivium?”

His crew of thugs loaded Oblivium pellets, stored in polycarbonate tubes filled with argon gas, into padded, rugged transport cases. The matte gunmetal gray pellets had an iridescent quality. Each pellet, the size of a marble, weighed several pounds because of its extreme density. They loaded the heavy cases onto a pushcart.

Dugan forced JD and me onto the floor and zip-cuffed our wrists to the table legs.

From a nearby case, Slick pulled out another familiar disk—another bomb, much like the others. He set it atop the steel table we were all tied to.

“I’m so glad you could join us, Deputy Wild. I’d love to chat all day, but time is of the essence, and I have clients waiting.”

He activated the bomb.

“Hey, what about me?” Ashton said, his eyes full of panic. “We had a deal.”

“Unfortunately, the terms of our agreement have changed. You understand.”

“No, I don’t fucking understand. I did everything you asked.”

Slick smiled. “You are a cheat and a backstabber. I have no regard for people without loyalty.” It was rich coming from him.

Ashton struggled with his bonds, his wrists behind his back, secured to the leg of the table. He jerked at the restraints, jarring the table.

“Might not want to do that,” Slick said. “Once that device is armed, any motion will trigger a detonation.”

I figured there was a time interval between activating the device and when it armed itself—a buffer zone to put it in position and get out of the area without risking blowing yourself up.

“You’re a piece of shit, Newport!” Ashton grumbled.

Slick smiled. “Takes one to know one.”

Newport signaled to his men to roll out.

They loaded the last of the Oblivium onto the cart and pushed it out of the lab.

“I have to admit, there’s a part of me that’s sad our little game is over,” Newport said to me with a mock frown. “But not that sad.”

He laughed.

“Do we know each other?” I said, squinting at him.

His lips tightened, and he shook his head. “No. It’s nothing personal.”

With that, he was gone.

An ominous sensation fell over the lab upon their departure. We all remained silent for a moment, contemplating our fate. Only the hum of the equipment kept the silence from being deafening.

53

Emily was furious. Her jaw tightened, and her cheeks flushed with color. “You cloned my key card! You stole my system password!”