Page 43 of Double Take

“No.” He slung the bag over his shoulder.

In the lobby, the clerk slept in the same position, head thrown back, mouth open, dead to the world. The half cup of coffee untouched. The pieces clicked into place. “You drugged him.”

“He’ll be fine.”

But would he and Faith be fine?

* * * *

Marshall led him to a hovercar parked inconspicuously on the edge of the village.

“Where did you get this?” Bragg asked. Vehicles were few and far between on Terra Nova, and the ones that existed were relics like Faith’s. He hadn’t seen any hovercars. Terra Nova was Earth’s poor relation—receiving its hand-me-down tech-tabs, vehicles, and ancient farm equipment.

“Brought them with us. Transportation here sucks.”

The hovercar whisked them to the spaceport, landing in an area reserved for private craft. A large, nondescript ship crouched on the tarmac. Dark Ops.

“She’s on that ship?”

“Yes.”

“So, what’s the plan?”

“Grab and go.”

“That’s the plan? That’s not a plan—unless the plan is to surrender! It will never work.”

“It might if you do what I tell you to. Act like my prisoner,” Marshall said. “Follow my lead. Keep your mouth shut.”

“AmI a prisoner?” Distrust reared up again.

“Only if this fails. If that happens, we’ll both be prisoners. I have as much at stake as you do.”

Says him.“Not quite. I’m responsible for Faith.”

“That’s why we’re here. We’re going to walk her off the vessel. But for that to work, they must think I’m bringing you in.They trust me, but we won’t have more than a couple of minutes. And the longer we spend chitchatting, the less time we have.”

“Once she’s off the ship, then what happens?”

“Then we haul ass to the commercial charter. Put these on.” Marshall tossed electronic cuffs into Bragg’s lap.

“Fuck you!” He threw the cuffs at Marshall and shoved the door open.

“They’ve been deactivated. Look!” Marshall snapped them around his own wrists and then removed them. He dangled them out. “You have to trust me.”

He didn’t trust him. But he couldn’t rescue Faith without help.

Reluctantly, he cuffed himself.

“Leave your pottery here. Hopefully, we’ll be coming back,” Marshall said.

They exited the hovercar and proceeded to the ship. Upon boarding, they were met by an agent he recognized by sight but had never worked with. “Looks like he gave you a bit of trouble.” His gaze shifted from Bragg’s face to Marshall’s bruised knuckles.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle. Rogers and Glenn with Mrs. Hammond?”

“She’s in the interrogation room. They went back to town for cleanup.”

“What kind of cleanup?” Marshall asked.

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