Leopard Dreaming Read Online Free Page A

‘I’m here for the same reason as you, Mira. To find Matron Sanchez. The colonel’s military crimes are bad enough, but he’s crossed the line, abducting innocent civilians.’
    ‘Plenty of nasty people in the world,’ she argued. ‘I don’t see you going after any of them.’
    ‘Few have the means to weaponise you. Kitching can, and will, first chance he gets, and if that happens, it’s game over for every law enforcement agency on the planet.’
    ‘How? I’m not that valuable. Seeing history doesn’t mean I can change anything the way he wants it.’
    ‘You can see any password, reveal any secret.’
    ‘So? I’d never work for him. Bet your life on it. I’d cut out my own eyes first. Or lie. If he wants me to watch any of his enemies or agents plotting against him, I’ll just tell him something else instead. Something that will end up with him dead.’
    Lockman sighed heavily. ‘We’ve played this song before, Mira. If you try to mess him around, he’ll take your eyes, and reverse engineer them into hardware that he can sell from a production line — like all the other advanced tech he’s stolen over the years.’
    ‘That would take forever, if at all. He can’t reverse-engineer my hardware without the software that goes with it.’ She tapped her temple to remind him of the synapses that ran like wiring from her eyes to her brain. ‘He can’t even detect the slow light without thewhole kit. He might as well invent a light bulb in a world without electricity.’
    ‘Don’t underestimate him, Mira. You’re not just an opportunity to him. You’re also a huge threat. He’s already escaped one court martial where you’re the primary witness. He’s also head of a major international black market in weapons, where you can track every dirty deal he’s ever done, or point a finger at every face or name he’s ever dealt with.’
    Mira shook her head determinedly. ‘The risk is the same as it’s always been. He’s had plenty of chances to kill me. He could drop a missile on us right now from a mile offshore, if he really wanted to, and yet he’s going to such lengths to learn my strengths and weaknesses. Taking Ben, and now Matron Maddy. Therefore he wants me alive. Therefore I’m safe, relatively speaking.’ She patted his chest and mustered a brave smile. ‘You’re the one who’s expendable to him. Maybe you should hide behind me.’
    ‘Like that’s going to happen. We can’t be sure what he’s really got planned for you. We don’t even know what he’s been planning for all the advanced weaponry he’s been stockpiling. Last report I saw, he’s not only stealing and trading, he’s also expanding into production and keeping all the best stuff for his own forces.’
    Mira threw up her hands in frustration. ‘I’ll make a wish list for you and keep watch for any clues. But I’m only one person, and first I have to find Matron Maddy.’
    ‘Agreed. Only watch your step.’
    ‘I’m watching!’ She glanced from balcony to balcony on the higher storeys, and saw her first reflections of the estuary, where the muscled armatures of sailing boats bobbed at anchor, or hugged their berths along the piers.
    ‘No, really.’ Lockman grabbed her by the elbow and tugged her sharply sideways. ‘There’s broken glass right there. Watch your step.’
    ‘Oh, sorry.’ Glancing down, she saw the remains of the beer bottle too. ‘Smells stale. Fresh yesterday, though. This time yesterday, the spillage was still soaking away.’
    At least it seemed like the same time yesterday. Over the roof of the public shower block, a ghostly purple sun seemed to rise in time with the warmth she could feel from today’s invisible dawn.
    Mira turned around, and walked backwards. Easier that way to watch for movement on the upper apartments she’d passed already without straining her neck.
    ‘What are you doing?’ Lockman asked.
    ‘This place is giving me the creeps. If I’m walking into a trap, I want