For a brief instant, Queen considered hauling the girl back to the basement and sticking her, bound and gagged, into the closet where she’d found her. Of course, then Armina would have no way of running if the oborot should return. Besides, Queen already knew she was not going to leave the girl behind. When she looked into Armina’s eyes, she was taken back to a time when she had not been Queen, but simply Zelda—a frightened, mistreated girl who survived by keeping the tiniest spark of determination burning inside the walls she erected between herself and the outside world. Armina had a little spark of that same determination enshrouded in a fog of fear and Queen would not extinguish that flame for anything in the world.
“All right. You can come along, but you keep up and keep quiet. Understand?” Beaming, Armina nodded. Queen looked her up and down. Her black jeans would do fine, but the bright yellow tank top and pale skin would make her stand out too much in the darkness. “We need to make a couple of changes. Put this on.” Queen unzipped her black jacket and handed it to Armina. While the girl slipped it on, Queen, now in clad only in black pants and a black t-shirt, set about rubbing dirt over her well-defined arms. She rubbed a little on her face for good measure and instructed Armina to do the same.
“I think our furry friend is gone, but stay close to me,” she instructed as they completed their preparations. “We’re going to keep to the shadows as much as possible. And if I tell you to do something, you do it immediately, with no questions asked.”
“All right.” Armina cocked her head and gave Queen a thoughtful look. “You know, you never told me your name.”
“My name doesn’t matter.” She immediately saw the hurt in Armina’s eyes and amended her statement. “It’s Zelda, but nobody calls me that.” She knew giving her real name was a breach of protocol, but since Chess Team became a black-op, she officially no longer existed. Knowing her first name wouldn’t help identify her anymore than knowing her call sign.
“You’re pretty,” Armina said. “I didn’t notice until we got into the light.” She pointed to the blue bandana covering Queen’s hair and forehead. “But you shouldn’t cover your hair.”
Queen rolled her eyes and turned her head away. Beauty wasn’t something she thought about much since the branding. She didn’t go in for that girly crap anyway, but she tried to piece together a compliment that would help soothe Armina’s mind. “Never wish for what someone else has. You’re a good looking kid. You’ll be a beautiful woman—a princess.”
“A princess.” Armina smiled. “I like that. We can be the queen and princess escaping from the lair of the evil wizard who wants me to marry him.”
Queen smirked. What were the chances she’d have come up with ‘Queen’ on her own? “Come on then, princess. Let’s make our escape.”
Chapter 6
“Sir, we’ve got movement in the area of the stadium.” Andrew kept his eyes glued to the monitor as he spoke. “Moving fast, too.”
“Is it our escaped subject?” Darius leaned down for a closer look. He was still perturbed at the carelessness of his staff. A bare-bones operation they might be, but there was no excuse for what had happened. If the escapee should make its way to civilization before regression, there was no telling what might happen. This was not the first escape, either, and still no one had discovered how the subjects were getting out. And if Manifold were to find out about it, well, Darius already had one strike against him.
“It’s difficult to say, but we appear to have two distinct heat signatures.” Andrew sighed. “We need better equipment. Our security system covers such a limited area, and we have so few cameras. If we had more…”
“You have what Manifold deems you need.” Darius’s rebuke cracked like a whip, bringing the man into line. “Need I remind you we are hiding in plain sight here? Cameras and sensors will be noticed unless they are hidden perfectly. That is why we are so limited in that area. If you feel yourself incapable of performing the duties of your position, that is another conversation entirely. Is that something you wish to discuss?”
“No sir.” Andrew’s face reddened. “If they continue on their present course, they should pass the fixed camera at the stadium. Should I send the squad out to snatch them?”
“Not just yet. We’ve already added one subject to our pool tonight. Keep an eye on them and see what they are doing. Worst case, we send one of the men out in a police uniform to warn them off for trespassing. No need to make things any more complicated than necessary.” He grimaced. Snatching the boy had been a risk, but they were in sore need of fresh subjects. The progression was still not working as it should, and regression wore on the body. Each cycle left the subject a little weaker, and a little less human.