Laura Jo Phillips Read Online Free Page A

on one condition,” Summer said.
    “What’s that?”
    “You have to do what I say, Darleen.”
    Darleen’s eyes narrowed.
    “If we have twenty women to free, and you decide to go after the person in charge of the compound instead of helping me to free them, then I don’t want, or need, you with me,” Summer said flatly.  “I need someone who will help me free the women.  After that, I will gladly help you destroy those holding them.”
    Darleen nodded.  “It’s a deal.”
    Summer nodded as well, then took a deep breath.  “Now, how about you tell me how we make this guy cooperative.”
    Darleen smiled again, a feral expression that made Summer glad that the woman was on her side. 
    “Lio always bragged about having been given two Prime Controllers .  One for me, and another for back-up.”  Darleen lowered herself carefully to the floor in front of Lio’s chair and felt around until she found a raised switch.  She pressed it and a hidden drawer slid out from the side of the chair.  Darleen reached in and removed a silver case which she quickly opened.  Inside, lying in a bed of protective foam, was a silver object that looked like an injector of the type med-techs used to give vaccinations.  Only this was much larger, with a thick needle and a metal reservoir instead of the usual clear plastic.
    Darleen pulled the injector out of the case and held it out for Summer to see.  Summer knew what it was.  She hadn’t seen one before, but she still knew.  She looked Darleen in the eye for a long moment, then nodded slowly.
    “Yes, if that’s what it takes, then that’s what we must do,” she said firmly, though her lips felt numb with shock at her decision. 
    Darleen crawled over to Lio, grasped his head by the hair and roughly turned it until the back of his neck was exposed.  She placed the end of the thick needle against his flesh and pushed hard until it penetrated the skin, then she depressed the plunger and injected the Controller nano-bots into him.  She withdrew the needle with a little grunt of satisfaction.
    “How long does that take to start working?” Summer asked, still holding the baton against Lio’s shoulder, though it was on the lowest setting now.
    “I don’t really know,” Darleen said as she struggled painfully back to her feet.  “I’ve seen a lot of women come through here over the past year, but I don’t think any of them had the same Controller you and I have.  Besides which, they already had their Controllers by the time they got here.”
    “Then how did you know how to do that?”
    “Lio likes to talk.”
    Taking the hint, Summer didn’t ask more about it.  She really didn’t need to know the details of what had been done to Darleen.  The condition of the woman’s body was more than enough information.
    Summer felt torn.  She didn’t want to continue to subject the man to the torture of the pain baton but at the same time, she could take no chance that he would do anything to interrupt their escape. 
    “I suppose we should call for help now,” Summer said. 
    “Yes, I think that would be a good idea,” Darleen agreed.  “I don’t think anyone will come in here without Lio’s permission, but you never know.”
    “I have the vox, but I don’t even know where we are, let alone who to call,” Summer said. 
    “We are in Badia, I know that much for certain,” Darleen replied.  “I think we are close to the spaceport because I hear shuttles coming and going sometimes when Lio leaves the window open, but I don’t know the address, or even how big the building is that we are standing in.”
    “Do you know of anyone specific we can call for help?” Summer asked hopefully.
    Darleen hesitated.  She knew who the best people were to call, and she knew they had the power to get help to them faster than anyone else on Jasan.  At the same time, she knew that those people had reason to want her either dead, or in prison for the remainder of her