My guard’s fingers dug into my skin and I yelped.
Jacy’s attention snapped back to me. This time grief lined his eyes. “Cogon’s been scheduled for execution.”
CHAPTER 13
His words slicedthrough my heart, cutting it into little pathetic pieces. I understood about being unprepared. The knowledge that the Pop Cops would recycle Cog had been trapped deep within me and ignored. I planned to deal with it later or, better yet, hoped it would disappear altogether.
“When?” I asked.
“Hour ninety-nine. They plan to walk him down to Chomper’s Lair and kill-zap him there.” Outrage filled Jacy’s voice. “They figured it would be easier than lugging his body down there. The timing is so Lieutenant Commander Karla can use his execution to lecture us during the hundred hour assembly on the consequences of disobeying the Pop Cops.”
I did the math. Fifty-eight hours left.
“If what you’re doing can help Cog, you’d better do it quick,” Jacy said.
“I can’t do anything with a broken arm.”
He nodded and the big guy released my elbow. I rubbed the joint and turned away.
“Trella,” Jacy called.
“What?” I almost growled at him.
“Let me know if you need anything. Anything at all.”
It was a generous offer, considering the last time we conversed he had called me worthless. “Got it.”
With my emotions spinning, I hurried to meet Logan. I walked right past my turn and had to stop. Distractions would be dangerous, and all our efforts would be for nothing if we were caught before accessing the computer. I squashed my fear and worries into a small metal box and dropped in the shattered remains of my heart for good measure. Locked with an obnoxiously big lock, I pushed the container into a far corner of my thoughts.
Focused and almost robotic, I marched toward corridor A2-5. Logan fidgeted and paced, trying to appear nonchalant, but failing miserably. At least he wasn’t chewing his nails.
I led him to the door of the maintenance room next to Quad A’s lift. While he watched the hall, I opened the door’s lock. Memories of Cog and I hiding Broken Man in a laundry bin in this room threatened to overwhelm me. I clamped down on the feeling. No emotions allowed. We slipped inside and re-locked the door.
Pushing the air vent open, I pulled out a bundle. “Here, put this on.” I handed Logan the coveralls Riley had given me. While he dressed, I donned the student’s uniform. The black jumpsuit with silver piping along the pants and sleeves sagged around my waist, but I cinched it tight with the belt.
When he was ready, I climbed into the air shaft and helped Logan inside.
“It’s bigger than the heating vent,” he said.
“Sounds still carry, and I’m about to show you a place only I know about. You can’t tell anyone. Not even Anne-Jade. Promise me?”
“Oooh. Sounds like fun. Of course, I promise.”
I slid through the shaft, stopped under the near-invisible hatch and pushed it open. Logan pressed a hand to his mouth tosmother his cry of surprise. Turning on my light, I climbed into the meter and a half high space and moved aside so Logan could join me. He stared at his surroundings while I closed the hatch.
“What is this place?” he asked in a whisper.
I shrugged. “I call it the Gap. There’s one between each level.”
“Wow. What’s it used for?”
I gestured around. “Space for the pipes and wires. I think everyone’s forgotten about it. I can only get in here through one near-invisible hatch on each level. Come on, but crawl quietly.” I hurried toward the lift. The easiest way to get Logan up to the fourth level was by riding on top of the lift.
A foot-high metal barrier divided the Gap from where the lift cut through the four floors of Inside. From the inside of the lift, it appeared the shaft was solid, but each level had a half meter opening into the Gap. I pulled my extendable mirror from my tool belt. Shinning the light in the shaft, I used the mirror. The lift was on the third level.
“When the lift comes down to our level, we don’t have much time but we need to quietly move onto the roof and stay there until we reach the top,” I said.
“What happens at the top?” Logan bit his thumbnail.
