@Timberwolf - Yes, that would have been an interesting pairing! It would have been nice to have seen how that would have played out. But alas…
Anyway, here’s the next chapter and the plot is thickening!
Chapter 29: What’s In A Name?
The journey to the mall was an awkward one. Link was glad that Spinner had seen the sense in not telling Cable about what was going on, but why did she have to insist on coming with them? Apparently she had business at the mall herself, though she wouldn’t say what it was; Ruby didn’t seem any the wiser either, though it was clearly bothering her that she didn’t know. Sometimes Link thought Spinner just enjoyed stringing people along. Hearing a sigh beside her, she turned and smiled in what she hoped was a sympathetic way at Ruby. The Mallrat was the only one of the three not encumbered by a bio-suit, since Spinner had commandeered one of the ones she had fetched from the store and had insisted on leaving at once, so there had been no time to go back for another.
‘It’s probably better that she found out,’ Link told the Mallrat. ‘She’s much better at this kind of examination than I am.’
Ruby looked unconvinced. ‘Do you trust her?’ she asked. ‘Will she keep quiet about this?’
‘Oh yes,’ Link replied. ‘She can keep a secret.’ I have no choice but to trust her. If only I hadn’t been on duty that day! Ruby gave her a questioning look but she escaped answering by joining Spinner in walking ahead. ‘Can’t we go any faster?’ she asked her fellow Technician.
‘Relax,’ Spinner said. ‘It’s best to approach these things with a clear head; rushing about won’t help matters. I doubt there’s anything to worry about anyway, if you’re going to poison a whole tribe you don’t do it in such an inefficient way.’
‘How can you be so sure?’
‘Just call it a gut instinct.’ Spinner patted her stomach with a gloved fist, then frowned as she hit something hard. Link stiffened; she had forgotten all about the disc she had taken from the store. Why did it have to be Spinner who picked that suit? Spinner’s eyes looked the closest to fear she had ever seen them as she took out the CD case. ‘Tell me this isn’t what I think it is,’ she said.
‘I can explain everything!’ she pleaded.
Spinner quickly looked back towards Ruby, then put her head closer to Link’s. ‘What is it doing here?’ she demanded in an angry whisper.
‘I had to take it out,’ Link replied, also whispering. ‘Cable’s been snooping around in Storage 12.’
‘He knows!’ Again that fear in Spinner’s eyes.
‘I don’t think he does, Spinner. I don’t think he knew why he was there, or what he was looking for.’
Spinner sighed, clearly relieved. ‘You did the right thing, Link,’ she said. ‘I’ll keep hold of this.’ She put the CD back where she had found it.
‘There’s something else,’ she said hesitantly. ‘I think for a moment he didn’t know who I was.’ She looked for a reaction from Spinner but couldn’t read the expression on the other girl’s face. ‘What do we do?’
‘ You’re not going to do anything,’ Spinner said, sounding as if she had decided on a course of action. ‘Except tell Tag to be on his guard. I’ll sort things out with Cable. Somehow.’
‘Just don’t do anything stupid,’ she warned. Spinner just looked at her, then gave a twitch of her head to signify that she should go back to Ruby. Link gave a sigh of frustration but acquiesced. I have to trust her , she thought.
‘What was all that about?’ Ruby asked.
‘Just…Technician stuff,’ she replied. Ruby looked hurt. ‘I really can’t tell you,’ she added apologetically. ‘But it has nothing to do with the trouble at the mall, I promise you.’
The Mallrat’s face softened. ‘We all have our secrets,’ she said. Link smiled, grateful that her friend understood.
‘Why are the streets so quiet?’ Spinner asked as they approached the mall. Link looked around and realised she was right. For this time of day there was hardly anyone out in Sector 10 and it had been getting worse the closer they came to the mall.
‘We had a run-in with the Skinks,’ Ruby explained. ‘They didn’t want any witnesses around.’
‘Is everyone alright?’ Link asked.
Ruby nodded. ‘It was all over by the time Ellie and I got back from…where we were.’ We do all have our secrets , Link thought wryly.
‘It seems they did you a favour,’ Spinner said. ‘Nobody’s around to see this body of yours.’
‘You wouldn’t be saying that if you’d been there,’ was all Ruby would say in reply. Link glared at Spinner’s back for her insensitivity.
As she entered the mall, Ruby saw that Amber had not been idle while she had been gone. A rope barrier prevented any petitioner who came in from crossing the main court, instead forcing them to go the long way round to the City Leader’s office. She ducked under it and Link and Spinner followed awkwardly, their movements hampered by the suits they were wearing. Approaching the fountain they came across the body, lying under a pink blanket with only the legs visible. Gel was there too, sitting on her heels a short distance away.
‘Oh. Ruby, hi,’ she said, her cheeks colouring slightly as she stood up. ‘I know it’s silly, I just didn’t think he’d want to be alone.’
Ruby blinked in surprise. Compassion from Gel? Wonders would never cease. ‘We’ll take it from here,’ she said, putting her hand on the other girl’s arm. Gel nodded and went back to her room, looking half relieved and half embarrassed. Meanwhile the two Technicians had wasted no time in setting up their equipment and Link was in the process of removing the blanket which, it was now apparent, had been placed there by Gel. Suddenly the blonde-haired Technician froze and let out a gasp that was audible even through the hood of her bio-suit. ‘What is it?’ she asked, but Link wasn’t listening. ‘Link?’
‘Spinner?’ Link said hesitantly, then more firmly. ‘Spinner!’
The other Technician looked at the body. She showed no sign that she had seen whatever Link had, but she fixed her colleague with a stern glare. ‘Don’t,’ she warned.
‘But Spinner, it’s…’
‘It makes no difference!’ Spinner snapped. ‘Now keep quiet, I need to be able to concentrate fully if I’m going to do this.’
Link obeyed, but Ruby suspected it was more because she was still in shock than for fear of Spinner. The cogs turned in her mind; so, they knew the poor boy did they? That almost certainly made him an ex-Techno. Surely this was proof that Plague had also been behind the deaths of the girl Elsa and the two Technos she and May had found in the alleyway last week. Her thoughts turned to the man - she thought it had been a man at least - who had attacked her and Darryl the day she had gone to examine those bodies, only to find that they had gone. What if that had been Plague? What if she had disturbed him in the process of moving the bodies? ‘I could have been killed!’ she said aloud. The two Technicians looked at her. Link’s expression held sympathy, Spinner’s amusement.
‘I think not,’ the more senior Technician replied. She uncorked a small bottle and tipped a tiny amount of purple crystals into a tube filled a quarter of the way with water. She stirred the mixture until the crystals had dissolved, turning the water pink, then took a swab from the inside of the dead man’s cheek with a cotton bud and swirled it around in the tube. Almost immediately the pink faded and the mixture became clear. She stoppered the tube and set it down in a rack with another she had already done, the mixture inside having a faint yellow tinge. ‘See? He didn’t have the Virus,’ she said, removing her hood. ‘And there are no contagious elements in the body. In fact, despite being a little undernourished he’s in perfect health.’
‘Perfect health?! He’s dead!’ Link spat. ‘Don’t you care?’
‘Getting upset won’t help anybody,’ Spinner shrugged, unzipping and stepping out of her suit. ‘Least of all him. Now, I’m sure I can leave you to finish the tests. He’s safe to handle. I have other business to see to, is Ellie in the mall?’
‘She’s around somewhere,’ Ruby answered. What does Spinner want with Ellie?
Spinner nodded. ‘Good. I need to speak with her.’ She stood, then addressed Link once more. ‘Remember,’ she said. ‘It’ll be easier if you keep quiet.’ Ruby didn’t think she was talking about completing the tests.
As Spinner left to go and find Ellie, Ruby was glad of the chance to quiz Link about what she knew. ‘You recognised him, didn’t you?’ she asked.
Link didn’t look round as she set up the laptop and started to connect electrodes to various parts of the body. ‘You heard Spinner, Ruby,’ she said in reply. ‘I can’t talk right now. I’m sorry.’ Ruby sighed. Another time. As she watched Link continuing with her tests she felt someone tugging at her arm and looked down to see Bonnie staring up at her, biting her lip worriedly.
‘Bonnie, you shouldn’t be here,’ she said. ‘What’s the matter?’ She took the girl’s hand and led her a little way off from the body, so she wouldn’t have to see it.
‘That note, in the power cut,’ Bonnie said. ‘Someone gave it to me outside.’
‘That’s right,’ Ruby replied. ‘Have you remembered something about him?’ Bonnie shook her head.
‘You told Amber that you found it in the grille, but you didn’t. Why did you lie?’
Ruby knelt down to explain. ‘Sometimes,’ she said, then paused to think. ‘Sometimes the truth can hurt people, so you tell a small lie to protect them. Amber was very cross earlier,’ She made a mental note to have words with Amber at some point about that. ‘And if she thought you knew about the note she might have been cross with you too. It doesn’t matter who found the note, and there was no point getting you into trouble, so I said it was me.’
Bonnie frowned, thinking it over. ‘So you’re saying that sometimes it’s okay to lie?’
Ruby grimaced, trying to think of what her mother would have told her at this age. Instead all she could say was, ‘Sort of.’
Bonnie shook her head disbelievingly. ‘My brother said that too,’ she said sadly. ‘I don’t believe it.’ Ruby didn’t know much about the younger girl’s past, but she had heard that her old tribe had all been taken by the Technos; she must miss her brother terribly. She tried to give a comforting look, and abruptly Bonnie patted her on the arm. ‘Don’t worry Ruby, everything will be alright,’ she said, then skipped away happily. Ruby shook her head in confusion. Perhaps it was just as well she wasn’t having a child of her own just yet. With a sigh she straightened and dusted off her skirt, then walked back over to where Link was. The Technician had removed her protective suit and was kneeling by the body, brushing the dead boy’s unruly hair away from his face with her fingers. She had her back turned but Ruby could tell that she was crying. Going over to her, she put a hand on her shoulder, then knelt down to join her on the floor.
‘You must have known him pretty well,’ she said. Link looked at her, then at the floor, the look on her face showing she was clearly struggling between wanting to talk and following Spinner’s orders. Eventually she sighed and began to talk, but for once Ruby didn’t care about solving her puzzle. She was more concerned about Link.
‘He was a Techno,’ her friend confirmed. ‘We weren’t especially close, but we were friends. He went missing a while back, but nobody really knew why and nobody cared enough to ask questions. He just vanished.
‘What was he called?’ Ruby asked.
Link shook her head. ‘That’s the worst part!’ she replied, tears falling down her cheeks. ‘In the Technos he went by Relay, but I don’t know his real name. Isn’t that terrible? We worked together all that time and I never even asked him his name. I don’t think any of the Technicians know it.’ Ruby took her hand off Link’s shoulder, then jumped when the Technician suddenly grabbed her wrist. ‘Don’t let that happen to me!’ she pleaded. ‘I don’t want to die as a Techno. My name is Lian; remember that, Ruby! My name is Lian!’
‘It’s alright,’ Ruby said, hugging her friend. ‘It’s alright. I won’t forget.’ Plague was going to pay for this.
‘Ellie? Oh, hello Jack.’
Jack mentally tensed. Who was that? Something familiar tugged at his memory; desperately he tried to remember when he had last heard that melodious voice. That was one thing about being in this state; he had become much more adept at using his senses of smell and hearing. That voice, and the faint smell of chemicals and almost clinical cleanliness, like a hospital. His mind wandered back to the last time he had experienced those sensations. He remembered Ellie humming, and the smell of candle smoke, then a sing-song voice and that clean smell emerging through the smoke. Of course. It was Spinner.
‘Still no change I see,’ the Technician noted. He felt her fingers on his neck, checking his pulse. ‘A good strong heartbeat though.’ She must have felt it quicken, as she laughed and said, ‘Don’t worry. I’m a friend, remember?’ Are you? he thought. She must have leaned closer to him; the chemical smell was almost overpowering. ‘Everything is ready,’ she said. ‘I just need the final go-ahead from Ellie and I’ll have you right as rain again in no time. I promise.’ He heard her move towards the door. ‘Rest well!’ he heard her say, then she was gone. Inwardly he panicked, trying to open his eyes as he had before. This time, however, that solitary successful attempt did not give him hope; instead the memory of it taunted him, and after a few unsuccessful tries he gave up, no longer having the will to continue. Not for the first time he thought he would have been better off if the Zoot computer had killed him like it had Mega.
Suddenly he felt the presence of somebody else in the room. Was it Spinner back again? He listened carefully. Yes, those were definitely footsteps, but stealthy ones, as if whoever it was didn’t want him to know they were there. But why would anybody want to do that? The scent of Spinner still invaded his nostrils, so he couldn’t tell if it was her or somebody else, but whoever it was certainly wasn’t here to plump his pillows for him. He took back his earlier thought about the Zoot computer and hoped he hadn’t just wished death upon himself. He wasn’t ready to die yet, he knew that now. Not that he could stop anybody who tried to kill him, not in his present… Ouch! He felt a small flash of pain at his scalp and his eyes shot open. A shadow passed across his vision as a hand moved away from his head, but with his eyes fixed firmly straight ahead at the ceiling he could see no more. Had someone just…pulled his hair? His eyes slid shut again and he screamed with frustration inside his head. After a while he heard the culprit moving, cautiously at first, and then leave the room. It could have been one of the kids playing a trick , he thought, but didn’t dare believe it to be the truth. Instead he concentrated on the two things he knew for certain: that he wasn’t ready to die, and that he never wanted to wear a headset ever again. With renewed motivation he tried once again to move, and this time he kept on trying.
Trudy sat alone in the café once again, reflecting on the morning’s events. It had certainly been an eventful one. First the Skinks and now a death in the mall; it had taken ages to settle Lottie and Bonnie down, and their crying had made Brady upset as well, she had only just now managed to get her back to sleep. And if that wasn’t bad enough there was tension within the tribe itself, with May just about turning the air to ice whenever she was in the same room as Darryl, and the looks she gave Amber weren’t much better. Ordinarily she would have been thankful that Amber hadn’t noticed, but the only reason for that was that the tribe leader had been engaged in her own glaring match with Ruby! She had her suspicions as to why those two didn’t get on, but perhaps if she had a word with Amber she could smooth things over, and maybe even get her to explain things to May. That would solve both problems. She frowned; or maybe she should just bang all their heads together! It was frustrating having to play mediator in her own tribe, especially when there were more important things to worry about, such as half the tribe being away at the same time there were threats of attack from both the Skinks and this mysterious Plague. She wished Salene were here; she’d get the others to see sense in no time. But there was no-one else; Ellie had enough on her plate looking after Jack, and Gel would probably just make things worse. No, she would have to sort it out herself.
‘Mind if I join you?’ a voice asked, tearing her from her thoughts. She looked up to see Creg and motioned to the chair opposite her.
‘Be my guest,’ she replied. ‘How’s Gel?’
‘Sleeping,’ he said as he sat down. ‘She’s had a rough time, poor thing. Well we all have, I know, but she’s not hardened to it like the rest of us. Anyway I thought I’d catch a break while I could, same as you I imagine. How’s Brady?’
‘I just got her off to sleep,’ she replied. ‘She doesn’t know what’s going on, but she can see that everyone’s upset and she doesn’t like it.’
Creg shook his head. ‘This is no world to raise a child in,’ he said. ‘The little ones pick up on these things. Do you ever wonder if it’ll affect her later on? Growing up in all this?’
‘All the time,’ she said. ‘But we do what we can to make sure they feel safe and loved, and know right from wrong. Beyond that all we can do is hope.’
‘We do what we can,’ he agreed sadly.
She studied him for a while over her fingertips, then said, ‘Do you mind if I ask you a question?’
Creg spread his hands wide to show he was open to the suggestion. ‘Fire away!’ he said.
‘Okay, but please don’t take this the wrong way,’ she said defensively.
‘I’ll try not to,’ he smiled.
‘It’s just that…guys like you, well in my experience they tend to go for girls like Amber or Ebony.’ Usually both , a voice at the back of her head said, but she pushed the thought away.
‘And you think I’m going to hurt Gel,’ Creg said dryly.
‘Oh no! Nothing like that!’ she spluttered, waving her arms in protest. ‘I know you’re no Lex. It’s just…I’m curious, that’s all.’
‘Ah, you don’t know what I see in her,’ he realised. She blushed; put that way, it did sound rather rude. ‘Let me ask you something Trudy,’ he said. ‘Aren’t you tired of all this? All the fighting? All the politics?’
She nodded. ‘Of course I am. We all are.’
‘Well with Gel it’s like none of it is happening,’ he said. ‘I’m not saying she doesn’t know what’s going on, but she doesn’t let it get to her. She talks about hair and make-up and clothes, and I don’t understand a word of it but it’s so wonderfully normal! She acts her age, not twenty years older, and she trusts, Trudy! She actually still trusts!’ He shook his head in disbelief.
‘Trust can be dangerous these days,’ she said, far too quickly, and blushed again. There was really no need to be so defensive.
‘I can protect her,’ he said simply. She fought back the urge to tell him how lucky Gel was to have him; she didn’t want to give him the wrong idea. Sure he was good-looking and strong and…she stopped herself from carrying on the list. There was no point. For one thing he seemed perfectly happy with Gel, and for another…well, he never seemed completely comfortable around the little ones, and she didn’t think she could ever love a man who wouldn’t get on with Brady. Love? Where did that come from?
‘I should be going,’ he said, his chair scraping on the floor as he rose. ‘I want to be there when she wakes up. Thanks for talking.’ She smiled and mumbled something noncommittal, then watched as he made his way back to Gel’s room.
‘What do you make of him?’
Trudy felt as if she had jumped a foot in the air; she hadn’t noticed anybody else approach. What was wrong with her today? The body. It must be that, or the Skinks earlier. She must still be feeling jumpy from them. Looking up she smiled at Amber as the other girl sat down. ‘Well Gel certainly seems to like him,’ she replied. ‘And I’m glad he was here when the Skinks showed up. Beyond that I don’t really know that much about him.’
Amber frowned thoughtfully. ‘I’ve been thinking about security in the mall,’ she said. ‘With Lex and the others gone we’re weak, we saw that today. If the Skinks decide to attack after all, or Plague…’ Her mouth tightened; clearly she hadn’t yet forgiven Ellie and Ruby for keeping Plague a secret. ‘I’m going to suggest to the others that we invite Creg to stay, to help with security. He’s here most of the time anyway, and we could use the extra muscle. What do you think? Can we trust him?’
‘I don’t think he particularly cares about the tribe,’ she replied. ‘But he might stay for Gel.’
Amber nodded. ‘I suppose that’s the best we can hope for,’ she said. ‘Best to keep an eye on him then. We can make May head of security until Lex gets back, and Creg can be her deputy.’
‘May? Do you think that’s wise? She does tend to do her own thing.’
‘We’ll make sure she gives regular reports,’ Amber replied. ‘To Darryl I think, and he can pass on the important stuff to me.’ Trudy winced. She didn’t think Darryl or May would like that, but she could see the sense in it. ‘Of course we’ll have to make Creg a Mallrat,’ her friend continued. ‘Lex will have a fit when he finds out we’ve voted on it without him but it has to be done.’
‘Creg wasn’t the only one to stand up to the Skinks,’ a small voice suddenly said. Trudy wished people would stop sneaking up on her today. At least Amber had also been startled this time. Bonnie looked up at them both expectantly.
‘You and Lottie were very brave too,’ the tribe leader smiled. Bonnie looked at her as if she were stupid.
‘I wasn’t talking about myself,’ the little girl sulked. ‘I was talking about Darryl. He tried to stop the Skinks from getting through to your office. Creg only got here at the end.’
Trudy refrained from telling her that it was only the end because Creg had made it the end. Amber, however, looked thoughtful. ‘He did?’ she said, presumably referring to Darryl. ‘I’ll have to thank him. Thank you for telling me, Bonnie.’ Bonnie just stood there, biting her lip.
‘Was there something else you wanted to tell us?’ Trudy asked, trying to coax whatever was on her mind out of her.
Bonnie hesitated for a moment then said to Amber, ‘You shouldn’t have been so mean to Ruby and Ellie!’
Amber scrunched up her face in distaste. ‘They shouldn’t have kept something so important from…the rest of us,’ she said.
‘But they were only trying to help!’ the younger Mallrat persisted. ‘You won’t really throw them out, will you?’ The poor girl looked distraught.
‘Not if they’ve told me everything,’ Amber replied, after a hesitation that confirmed to Trudy that it was an idle threat. ‘Now I won’t hear any more on the subject, is that clear? This is between me and Ruby.’ Trudy gave a small cough. ‘And Ellie,’ Amber added with a blush. Bonnie narrowed her eyes and began to stalk off, then turned back.
‘Would you have told me and Lottie what was going on if we hadn’t been there when it happened?’ she asked. Receiving no reply she gave a satisfied nod, seeming confident that she had proven her point about Ruby, then left the café.
‘Well she’s certainly got a bee in her bonnet about something,’ Amber muttered sulkily.
Trudy hid a smile. ‘That makes two of you then,’ she said.
Her friend gave her a questioning look. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Oh come on Amber, you and Ruby? Bonnie’s right, you were far too hard on her earlier, and now you’ve gone and got Ellie caught up in the middle of it, as if she didn’t have enough to worry about with Jack lying up there.’
‘They put us all in danger, Trudy. They shouldn’t have kept this to themselves.’
‘One day wouldn’t have made much of a difference,’ Trudy sighed. ‘Do you know what I think? I think you and Ruby are very similar, and that’s why you’re getting on each other’s nerves. She’s used to being independent, that’s all. Just give her time to settle into the tribe and everything will sort itself out, I’m sure of it.’ Amber looked unconvinced. ‘And while I see your point about them keeping quiet I do think Ellie and Ruby made the right decision. Can you honestly say that you could have coped with the news at the time, with Lex and the others gone and city business coming out of your ears? You’ve been so much happier since Darryl’s started helping you out with that.’
‘Darryl,’ Amber mused. ‘I still need to thank him for today.’ Trudy opened her mouth to speak but Amber cut her off. ‘Alright, I’ll talk to Ruby as well,’ she said in a suffering tone, but the smile at the end told Trudy it was meant in jest, and that Amber really would try and sort things out with Ruby.
‘Before you go,’ she said as Amber made ready to move. ‘There’s something I should probably tell you about Darryl. And May.’
‘What about them?’
‘Well…it’s complicated. They’re not really together as such, but May’s upset because she thinks you and Darryl are having an affair, and…’
‘But they’re not together?’ Amber interrupted.
‘Well, no, but…’
‘Then there’s no problem, is there?’ she said defensively. ‘It’s none of May’s business what Darryl and I are or aren’t doing.’ Rising, she pushed the chair under the table angrily and Trudy grimaced as it scraped noisily against the floor. ‘And it’s none of yours either!’
‘Amber, wait!’ Trudy called to her friend apologetically, but she had already gone. She buried her head in her arms on the tabletop and groaned. She thought she had done well, persuading her to talk to Ruby, but she had made a serious error in telling her about May. She should have realised sooner. Darryl’s help and friendship had certainly cheered Amber up over the last day or two; it was no wonder she had developed feelings for him, and now that she knew about May she was determined to fight for him. She considered saying something to May, or perhaps Darryl, but decided against it. She didn’t want to make things any worse than she already had.
‘Ah, there you are!’
Ellie winced as she noticed Spinner walking towards her and half considered turning back, even though there was no way to pass it off as anything but avoidance. After the tongue-lashing Amber had just given her she was in no mood to talk to anybody, least of all one of the Technicians, but since it was too late to escape…
‘Hello Spinner,’ she said, forcing a smile. ‘Have you been looking for me?’
‘Bad day?’ the Technician asked. Ellie pulled a face at not being able to hide her mood. ‘Well, no wonder,’ Spinner continued. ‘I hear it’s been a rather eventful day here at the mall. I’ve just seen Jack, such a shame he hasn’t shown any sign of improvement yet.’
Ellie blinked at the sudden change of subject. Clearly Spinner wasn’t one for pleasantries.
‘You’re not making me feel any better,’ she said dryly. ‘What was it you wanted?’
Spinner looked confused for a moment. ‘Why, for Jack to get better of course!’ she smiled. ‘Have you forgotten my offer already? I have all the equipment ready now, all you have to do is say the word.’
‘Oh,’ Ellie mumbled. ‘I guess with everything that’s happened today it slipped my mind.’
‘You don’t sound convinced anymore,’ Spinner said. ‘Are you having second thoughts? It’s perfectly natural of course, but…’
‘I just don’t want to do anything to harm him,’ she interrupted. ‘Is it going to work?’
‘I can’t give you any guarantees,’ the Technician admitted. ‘But for what it’s worth I think there’s a very good chance. Since his condition was brought on by using a headset it should be easier to reverse it the same way than if it had happened to him by some natural means, and given his lack of response to the exercises I prescribed I really do think this is our best option.’
Ellie nodded slowly. ‘Alright then,’ she said. ‘You’ve convinced me. Besides, I want him back.’ I need him back! a voice in her head echoed.
Spinner nodded graciously. ‘I’ll bring everything over tomorrow morning,’ she said.
‘What…what exactly will it involve?’ Ellie asked tentatively, not sure if she really wanted to know.
‘I really have to get back to the power station,’ Spinner replied apologetically. ‘But if you walk with me to the exit I’ll try and explain as much as I can.’
Ellie nodded, and tried to walk as slowly as possible as they made their way to the stairs.
Ruby smiled as Link dried her eyes again with a self-deprecating laugh. ‘Look at me,’ the Technician joked. ‘I came here to help you and now you’re the one comforting me.’
‘You’ve had a shock,’ she said warmly. ‘Probably an even bigger one than the rest of us. You weren’t expecting to see your friend again. Certainly not like this.’
Link glanced at Relay’s body and shivered, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath to regain her composure. ‘Whoever did this is going to be sorry,’ she said when she opened her eyes again.
‘We’ll make sure of it,’ Ruby agreed.
‘If you find anything out, let me know,’ Link pleaded. ‘And if there’s anything I can do to help track this monster down.’
‘Well actually,’ Ruby said slowly. ‘There might be something.’
‘Anything,’ Link reiterated. ‘Just tell me.’
‘I think whatever Plague’s up to, he’s using captured Technos to do it. Relay hasn’t been the first but hopefully he can be the last. If you can find out anything about Technos who disappeared, maybe we can find some sort of pattern.’
Link looked suddenly uneasy. ‘I don’t think I can do that Ruby,’ she said. ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t have access to that kind of information.’
‘I would never ask you to put yourself in danger, Link,’ Ruby pointed out. ‘But if you could just…’
‘I’m sorry,’ Link repeated. ‘I can’t help you.’
Ruby opened her mouth to ask why her friend had suddenly changed her mind - there must be more to it, she thought - but she was cut off by the return of Spinner, followed by Ellie.
‘And that’s the simplest explanation I can give you,’ Spinner was saying. ‘It’s more complicated than that, but it gives you the general idea. Do you understand?’
‘I think so,’ Ellie replied. ‘Well, more than I did before at least. Thank you.’
‘So I’ll see you tomorrow then?’ the Technician asked; Ellie nodded. ‘Good! Then I think it’s time for us to leave. Are you ready Link?’
‘Yes,’ Link replied tersely. ‘What kept you?’ Spinner raised an eyebrow but said nothing, and before long the two Technicians had packed up their stuff and were heading out of the mall.
‘What was that all about?’ Ellie asked. ‘Link looked really upset.’
‘It’s a long story,’ Ruby frowned. ‘And I haven’t quite got to the bottom of it yet. Do you fancy a coffee?’
‘Absolutely!’ Ellie smiled. ‘You can fill me in on everything.’
‘And you can tell me what Spinner wanted from you,’ Ruby said. Ellie grimaced, but nodded.
A knock on the doorframe drew Darryl’s attention away from the papers he was studying.
‘Yeah?’ he called idly, tossing the papers onto his bed.
‘Ah, good,’ Amber said as she stepped inside. ‘I was hoping to catch you on your own.’
Darryl leapt up from where he was sitting and grabbed the discarded papers in an effort to look busy. ‘Amber!’ he said, startled. ‘I haven’t finished going through them yet, but I’ll have them to you as soon as…’
Amber laughed, cutting him off. ‘Forget about those for now,’ she said. ‘That’s not why I’m here.’ She pulled the curtain over the door and he frowned in confusion. Then she started moving towards him. She came so close that he instinctively took a step back, and it was only her hand on his arm that prevented him from retreating further. He could smell her soap.
‘What…’ he gulped. ‘What was it that you wanted?’
‘Bonnie told me what you did today,’ she said, looking up at him intently. He looked away and tried not to think of the rise and fall of her chest a few centimetres away from his own.
‘Wh-what did I do?’ he asked. And what did Bonnie have to do with it? ‘If I’ve done something wrong I’ll make it up to you, I promise!’ May would never respect him if he lost this job so soon after starting it.
Amber’s lips - he tried to stop himself thinking about them - twitched in a smile. ‘You haven’t done anything wrong,’ she reassured him. ‘Far from it. Bonnie said that when the Skinks arrived you tried to protect me, tried to block their way.’
‘Oh,’ he said, finally realising what she was talking about. ‘Well, I…that is to say, I was…erm…it was my job. I was just…’
She put a finger over his lips to silence him and he trailed off. ‘It was very brave of you,’ she said. ‘And I just wanted to say…Well, I just wanted to…’ She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. ‘Thank you,’ she smiled, the twinkle in her eye as she turned to leave confirming, if he had had any doubts, that this was anything but a simple thank you. ‘Let me see those petitions when you’ve finished reading through them,’ she added on her way out, as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. Darryl just stood there, wide-eyed, wondering if he was dreaming, and hoping that May never found out about what had just happened.
As they left the mall, Link found herself being grabbed by Spinner and hurried into an alleyway. ‘What did you tell her?’ the other Technician spat. ‘I thought I told you to keep quiet!’
‘I didn’t tell her anything she didn’t already know,’ she said. ‘They’ve found others, Spinner. Ruby told me, and I’d bet my life they’re all Unit 12.’
‘Don’t you ever say that name again!’ Spinner hissed, and Link felt the grip on her arm tightening. ‘I’m not having everything I’ve worked for - everything we’ve worked for - ruined by careless talk!
Link narrowed her eyes. ‘You’re not surprised!’ she accused. ‘You knew! You knew there’d been other murders and you said nothing! That’s why you wanted to come, isn’t it? Don’t you think Tag and I have a right to know what’s going on? If Cable…’
‘I will deal with Cable,’ Spinner said slowly. ‘But the fewer who know about this, the easier it is to keep it quiet. I don’t want Ruby on my back because you and Tag have a new best friend.’
‘I’m not stupid!’ Link fumed. ‘And what do you think Tag would say? You can’t get more than a few words out of him at the best of times! You got us into this mess in the first place, Spinner. You should have included us, you owe us that much. Who was it? Who did they find?’
‘What difference would it make if you knew?’ Spinner asked, frustrated. ‘You’re in enough of a state already.’
‘And you don’t seem to be in enough of one!’ she cried. ‘These were supposed to be our teammates, Spinner, our friends! And I couldn’t even tell you Relay’s real name! It’s like the Technos turned us into these emotionless robots, and I don’t like it! I won’t be like that anymore!’
Spinner just stood there silently, unable to reply.
‘Ruaridh,’ she said after a while.
‘What?’
‘Ruaridh. Relay’s real name. It was Ruaridh. See? I’m not as cold as everyone seems to think I am, Link. But I’m not going to risk everything now, not when we’re starting to put it all behind us.’
‘Thank you,’ Link said, tearfully throwing her arms around Spinner, and receiving a hesitant pat on the back in return.
‘I’m scared, Link,’ Spinner whispered. ‘Whoever’s doing this, what if he knows?’
‘We don’t know that,’ she said, stepping back to face Spinner. ‘Everything seems to be concentrated on the Mallrats at the minute. Maybe it’s all just a coincidence?’
‘Maybe,’ Spinner said. ‘But I’m not going to bank on it.’
‘Ruby can help, Spinner. I’m sure of it.’
‘No.’ Spinner shook her head. ‘If she knows, the whole tribe will know, and that’s too many people who can talk.’
‘But…’
‘No, Link. We handle this ourselves. Now, let’s get back to the power station before Cable gets even more suspicious.’
As Spinner stalked off, Link sighed in frustration, with no choice but to follow.
Awww Ruby really did like Ram 
you are so mean @MallRatMatt taking Ram from her and us! MWAH. Oh and then I read Trudy is enjoying a man but noooo that just couldn’t last could it. All these feelings and emotions you make me feel from your writing is just excellent. 
Crazy vegetable lady sounds perfect. Oh what a surprise Amber is city leader, let the chaos begin, HAHAHA.
So he’s definitely a favourite. Also I like the idea of taking minor characters and giving them extra depth. I was disappointed with their storylines in the books.
I am very happy Salene has her fire back. I like intense, so I am pumped.
The ex Technos have a lot of issues there… My gut tells me I wouldn’t trust a bread to them 
Can I slap her? Or can May do please? I am starting to dislike her… 
and comforting Bonnie, just brilliant!!! And then sprinting in for a shower. You managed to capture sadness and comedy all in one swoop, love it. Oh, you are good, the conversation May overhead of Amber and Darryl was just perfect! 
I think… A bit of light relief with Gel thank goodness all those harder hitting scenes and mind boggling plot thank goodness. I am loving it though! Another note, oh crap! Bonnie and Lottie running into danger and Jack!!! What are you trying to do to me? I’m exhausted.
Too good hearted for May and too less of Alpha male for Amber…