Chapter 9
CHAPTER 9
Scorpio felt a little guilty at leaving Rebecca to her own devices. However, she’d made it clear she didn’t want to help him retrieve the orb. He could only hope Sage was wrong when she’d stated he needed the doc for his mission to be successful. Maybe Rebecca would come around. In the meantime, might as well figure out what he faced. He went to the administration level where Aries had his office but there was also a meeting room, along with a computer lab.
He walked in to find Aquarius sitting in his usual chair surrounded by three monitors, each displaying a different thing. Random videos to his left, more of them to his right, and, in the center, Rebecca’s face.
“Why do you have Doc’s face on your screen?” Scorpio barked, a little more harshly than intended.
“Aries told me to look into her and the company that commissioned her services. You’ll be glad to know your lady friend is squeaky clean. Not even a speeding ticket to her name. Single. Lives alone. Parents deceased in the past few years. No siblings. Works as a college professor when she’s not in the field studying glaciers or hunks of rock and dirt.” Aquarius glanced at him. “I hear you brought her to the tower.”
“Yeah, kind of had no choice. It was that or let the company she worked for kidnap her.”
“Aries mentioned something about you being ambushed.” Aquarius smirked. “Not like you to run away.”
The remark brought a grimace. “I’m not bulletproof. They came prepared. Dozen dudes, all armed with rifles. While I might have prevailed with a few holes, Doc most likely wouldn’t have.”
“Damn, they really wanted that thing you guys found.”
“No shit. What did you find out about the company she works for?”
“Not much, yet, but I just started digging. I can tell you they’ve got a lot of donors for a small niche company. Most of them anonymous, which is odd. Not sure why you’d hide the fact you support climate research.”
“Doc says they only have one building as headquarters.”
“Publicly, yes, but it wasn’t hard to find a second location that they’ve been trying to keep quiet. It’s out in the Nevada desert.”
“Let me guess, Area 51,” he joked.
“Yup.”
“Wait, seriously?”
Aquarius nodded. “I was surprised too, but it seems they were given one of the old military facilities to use.”
“Are you saying their work is government-backed?”
“Not officially. On paper, they’re leasing it via a shell company.”
“What are they doing there?”
“No idea, but I intend to find out.”
“I’ll need everything you find. I’m supposed to retrieve the object they took from me. Any way of figuring out which location it went to?”
“Maybe. Depends on if they’re logging its existence online or keeping it completely off the record. I won’t know until I get into their server. I’ve got a few hacks running, trying to find a way in. Until I get access, I won’t have much to give you.”
“How long until you crack it?”
Aquarius shrugged. “Minutes, hours, days. No way of knowing.”
Which meant waiting. Not something Scorpio excelled at.
“I don’t suppose their public office has blueprints.”
“Those should be registered, as the city would have had to approve them. Hold on while I pull them up.”
Scorpio got the floorplans of their main building. A basic structure with twelve stories, thirteen if you counted the basement. The lowest level held the utilities running the place. First floor reception and a mini museum for the public showing what they did. Top was for the CEO and the top-level employees. The other floors in between were for research, six of them in total, accounting and PR, private offices for scientists on two floors, as well as one entire level for supplies.
There were no air ducts large enough for him to use to move around. All access past the first floor required authorization, and not the kind with a keycard.
“Facial recognition?” Scorpio murmured. “Seems kind of extreme for a lab dealing in chunks of ice, sand, rock, and shit.”
“Most companies are moving to those kinds of safeguards since it’s more secure than using keycards. Anyone can steal the latter, but someone’s face is unique.”
“Any way you can add me to their database?”
“Will do, once I get access.”
Meaning more of that tedious waiting bullshit.
Usually when faced with that kind of permission boredom, Scorpio gamed, but this time, he had something—make that someone—more interesting to keep him occupied.
He spent more time than he’d planned away from Doc. Hours as it turned out. She didn’t prove hard to locate. He found in the library. No big surprise. She sat in a chair by the window, a book in her lap. The setting sun framed her in a soft pink glow.
“Hey, Doc, whatcha reading?”
Rebecca startled. “Oh, hey.” She closed the tome and placed her hands over the cover to no avail. He recognized it.
“I see you found the most interesting book in this place.”
Her cheeks turned pink as she removed her hands to show the gold-leaf-lettered title, Legend of Scorpio . ““I’ll admit, I was curious and ended up reading a good chunk of it. Is everything in here about you?”
“Not all of it. Just the last few chapters. I took over when the last Scorpio retired. As we accomplish things, our exploits get added to the story.”
“You write?”
He recoiled. “Oh, fuck no. I don’t know who the author is.”
“Surely they’ve interviewed you. How else would they relay your experience?”
He shrugged. “No idea, but last time I checked, it seemed accurate.”
Her lips pinched as she flipped to the back. Her brow arched as she pointed at the last chapter title: Scorpio Takes on Antarctica. “How is it possible it’s already written? We only just arrived.”
“The tower works in mysterious ways.” And he meant that. No one understood the tower, how it knew what each occupant needed and provided it.
A frown creased her brow as she read. “It’s exactly what happened. It even has the kiss in the chamber.” A flush spread across her face.
“Does it mention the words epic?”
She slammed the book shut. “No. Because it was just a kiss.”
“Just?” he huffed in mock chagrin. “Perhaps we should try it again, because I’m pretty sure it was more than that.”
She stood. “To you maybe, but I found it rather ordinary. I’m surprised it passed the muster enough to give us the relic.”
He gaped.
She smirked. “Is it dinner time yet? I’m famished. I wonder what your alien space fairies have in store.”
“Space fairies?” he repeated incredulously as she sauntered away. A grin spread across his face. What a woman.
He followed and caught up to her going down to the dining level, where they found Sage and Aries already seated at a table set for four.
His friend and boss stood and waved them over. “Join us, please.” The empty chairs had plates covered in domes waiting.
Rebecca strode to meet them and held out her hand. “Hello, I’m Rebecca Guthrie.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Aries, and this is my wife, Sage.”
Rebecca arched a brow. “The lady who predicts the future.”
Sage grinned. “More like relays what I’m shown. Nice to meet you in person.”
A statement that only slightly jarred Rebecca. She covered it by sitting down and uncovering her meal. Roast beef, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, and a crusty bun with a small pitcher of gravy for dipping and pouring.
“How are you finding the tower?” Aries asked to start the conversation.
“Interesting, if improbable. I was hoping to find a book on its origin in your library, but it has a daunting amount of literature,” Rebecca stated, placing a napkin in her lap.
“Which is always increasing,” Aries added. “I’m sure there’s something in there on the tower’s beginning, but the library tends to direct people to the books it thinks most apt for the moment.”
“More magic,” Rebecca stated, dipping her bread.
“Yes,” Aries confirmed, to be countered by Sage, who said, “The librarian is shy but good at his job. He has a knack for knowing what people need.”
“Pretty sure the Legend of Scorpio wasn’t something I required,” was Rebecca’s dry reply.
It sent Sage into peals of laughter. “Oh my. Did he really direct you to that?”
“I don’t know if directed is the right word. The titles I browsed weren’t in languages I understood, so it kind of stood out.”
Sage nodded. “That’s how he works. You’ll notice each time you return that different books will be available in a language you can grasp.”
“You live in the tower?” Rebecca inquired as Scorpio tucked into his meal.
“Yes. Ever since I was a young girl. The world has no use for a strange child who would try and warn them of upcoming events. I was almost burned at the stake when Scorpio rescued me.”
Rebecca glanced at him, and he shook his head. “Not me, the previous one.”
“Wouldn’t that make you…” Rebecca paused, and Sage giggled. “Old? Yes. Coming up on the big two-five-oh.”
“But you look like you’re not even thirty yet,” Rebecca blurted out.
“The tower keeps me young, and some of us age better than others.” Sage glanced fondly at Aries. “My husband is a paltry one seventy-five and yet has a touch of gray.”
Aries grimaced. “All the men in my family turned gray young. At least I kept my hair, unlike my father and brother. They were bald by thirty.”
“Our daughter won’t have to worry,” Sage declared, patting her belly.
“You’re pregnant?” Rebecca didn’t hide her shock. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound rude.”
“Understandable. You’ve discovered much about our world that must have discomfited.”
“I’ll admit the existence of magic threw me for a loop. And this whole Zodiac and star thing…” Rebecca waved a hand. “It’s like I’m living in some kind of sci-fi book.”
“Over time you’ll get used to it.”
“You’re assuming I’ll be here that long.”
Aries glanced at Scorpio, who shrugged. “I’ve explained that leaving the tower might not be feasible for the next while. At least until we sort out the issue with Cetus.”
“I’m still having a hard time understanding how they’re involved,” Rebecca added as she took a bite of carrots.
“So are we,” Aries flat response. “We keep our secrets tight, so the fact they knew about us and the relic we sought is disturbing. We assumed Sage was the only seer. To find out they’ve got one of their own is of great concern.”
“Especially since I’ve seen nothing of them,” Sage replied.
“But they knew of you,” Aries’ dark addition.
“Should we be thinking of mounting a mission to take this other seer into custody?” Scorpio didn’t like the idea of another one running around, foiling future missions.
“Maybe, but first we’d have to find out where they’re located and then hope they don’t have a vision that allows them to escape any attempt.” Aries sipped from his wine glass. “Whatever we do, we’ll have to be careful. Cetus wanted to capture you. If we try to nab this other seer, they could end up seeing it and warning them so they can lay a trap,” Aries cautioned.
“I do enjoy a challenge,” Scorpio quipped.
“I’d rather not have to save your ass because you moved too quickly,” was Aries’ dry retort.
“Me, rush in?” Scorpio chuckled. “I think best on the fly and on my feet.”
“Don’t do anything without running it by me first.”
“Yes, boss.”
“In other news, the tower’s been doing some upgrades,” Aries threw out casually.
Scorpio frowned. “What kind of upgrades?”
“When you get a chance, pop outside and take a look. The exterior of it seems to have grown an extra layer, and there’s now a moat.”
“A moat?” Scorpio exclaimed.
Aries nodded. “And I don’t recommend going for a swim. It’s not water, but some kind of acid. Very corrosive.”
Scorpio whistled. “Damn. What’s the tower know that we don’t?”
“Strife is coming,” Sage murmured. “And if we don’t prevail, then everything is lost.”