Page 129 of Conform
“Why are you here?” I asked Barrett.
“I have an unending affinity for bad decisions,” Barrett teased, his eyes finding the art once more.
“We have to go,” Hal interrupted.
“But you just got here.”
“I mean all of us,” Hal clarified as he strode toward the door.
“What? Why?”
“Because our plans are moving forward. We are about to shut down the grid.”
“I think the termwefeels a bit wasted. It’smyass that’s shimmying up that chute,” Barrett interrupted.
“You volunteered,” Hal said, rolling his eyes.
“I’m the only one who can fit. Wouldn’t call that volunteering,” Barrett retorted, his weight shifting from one foot to the other—a restlessness to him.
“Bri would have fit,” Hal countered.
Barrett froze. “Like I said, I’m the only one who can fit.”
“Suit yourself. We need to go. I don’t want you above the surface.” Hal took my hand.
“Wait, why are you shutting it down?” I asked, looking at Barrett.
His gear resembled the gear the Elite Force wore. Thick plates lined his chest and, like always, he had weapons strapped up and down his muscular body. His hair was pulled back tightly. No necklaces were visible today.
“You’re in Elite Force green,” I stated.
“Guilty. The grid is going black because the Reaper is ready for justice.”
I whipped my head toward Hal.
“We have to go,” Hal repeated, pulling me from the room. “Leave your bag.”
Our footsteps echoed down the hall as I stayed close to Hal. Questions fought to break free. The sound of metal on metal reverberated in the hall. Barrett grinned at me from behind, his gun at the ready.
Hal began to jog as we rounded the corner, heading to the right. I kept his pace, my heart gaining speed with each step. We approached a hallway door and Hal pulled me through the doorway. Barrett ran to the corner of the room, grabbed a bag and helmet, and checked his watch.
“Thirty seconds go, Hal,” Barrett urged. “Wait until you hear the sound. If you don’t hear it”—he looked between the two of us—“it’s your call.”
“Come back,” Hal told Barrett. They grasped hands quickly, their foreheads meeting for a moment.
“I will,” Barrett answered. “Or I’ll wait for you on the other side.”
They broke apart. Barrett donned his helmet and left the way we had come without a backward glance.
Hal pulled me away, knocking on the far wall of the room. A door opened and we slipped in, leaving the surface behind.
“Damn it, Hal, when you two asked for my help, you didn’t say it involved the pet.” My eyes adjusted to the dark. Bri stood there in all black, her hair in braids. “Kane is going to lose it.”
“Tell me something I don’t know. You should go.” Hal paused, then said roughly, “And come back.”
She shot us both a glare. “I will so I can yell at you, or I’ll wait on the other side to fucking yell at you there. Either way, I’m fucking yelling.” Bri shook out her braids before she pulled on her helmet. She grabbed a gun strapped to her leg.
“I’ll be waiting,” Hal told her, his palm sweaty in mine. They nodded to each other before she turned and took off down the hall, the darkness swallowing her.
