The Raiders catch his meaning and hurry to grab their weapons. I should give the word to attack, but something tells me that will be a mistake.
“Captain, what do we do?”
“Nothing.”
“Good call!” The mutant rises to his feet, his eyes locked on my location, even though I’m hidden.
“Come out and say hello, Defender. If I wanted to hurt you, I had sixty-seven minutes to do so.”
“Captain, I think there are more of them behind us,” Jake says. “I can hear movement.”
“Tell your men to stay back!” I yell. “I’ll come out to talk, but my squad stays safe.”
“Of course!”
I sigh. “Nobody moves.”
“It’s a trap,” Ben says.
“It was one from the get-go. Keep low and wait for my orders. If I’m compromised, you run like hell.”
I stand up, leaves falling from my black uniform. I keep my rifle next to me but aim it at the ground. The mutant smiles as I approach like I’m coming over for dinner. The other Raiders watch me with malice, but I remain composed, my heart drumming in my chest. I stop in front of him, keeping a few feet between us. He’s almost as tall as I but leaner. His tail is dark and pointy, swaying like a snake.
“Helmet off,” he says. “I’d like to see who I’m speaking with.”
My visor is raised, so he can see me just fine, but without my helmet, I’m cut off from my squad’s comm. I reluctantly remove my helmet, the evening breeze stroking my damp nape.
The man smiles, his green eyes darting up and down. “Much better. My name is Hector.”
I’ve never heard of that name. “Caden.”
“And you are the captain of the group that was about to viciously attack us.”
It’s not a question, so I don’t answer. He hasn’t yet told me to drop my weapon, maybe to give me a fake sense of control, ormaybe because he knows I can’t use it fast enough to kill him. He takes a step closer, his tail swaying toward me. I hold my breath when I feel the pointy tip brushing against my chin. I know my squad members are itching to shoot, but I pray they don’t do anything reckless.
I trained them better than that.
“Were you going to ask us to surrender?” Hector asks, raising my head with his tail beneath my chin.
Something tells me that lying won’t be smart. “No.”
“You Defenders don’t waste time on prisoners, do you?”
“No.”
“Yetwe’rethe savages.”
“You know you are. If you’re going to kill us, make it quick.” I make the request even though I know that’s not their style. They tend to torture before they kill, leaving mutilated corpses for others to find. My blood grows hot with guilt. This mess is on me, though I’ve never seen a mutant who could hide what he is.
“Steady,” Hector says, resting his palm over my heart like he can hear it beating. “We’re just talking.”
“What do you want?”
“For you to convey a message to your leadership.”
I breathe in relief. A corpse can’t convey a message. “I can do that.”
“Good. Tell your assembly to keep away from Denver’s business.”
