Free Web NovelChapter 211: Chapter 210 - Help
The low rumble grew louder.
Malcolm moved first.
He grabbed the man by the collar and yanked him up, pulling him in close and turning him into a shield as he pressed the gun hard against his side.
The man let out a breath that almost sounded like a laugh. "Relax," he said. "We’re not your enemies."
Iyisha didn’t lower her weapon. She glanced at Marybeth and Lance.
Marybeth was already scanning the surroundings, gun up, eyes moving, while Lance stayed low, breathing still uneven but steady enough to hold his aim.
The car rolled to a stop.
The door opened.
Boots hit the ground.
Iyisha’s grip tightened.
A head leaned out.
"Guys."
Iyisha let out the breath she didn’t realize she had been holding.
Aljun.
Malcolm didn’t ease.
He pressed the gun harder into the man and leaned closer.
"What do you want from us?" he growled into his ear.
"Ease up, soldier boy," the man said, his voice calm despite the gun pressed into him. "You need us."
Aljun ran up to them, breath still uneven. "Hey," he said, pointing at Malcolm. "Let Phillip go."
Iyisha frowned. "What’s happening, Aljun?"
Marybeth and Lance kept their guns up.
Aljun looked between them. "We need to go. Now. They could be watching us already."
The man jerked his chin toward the street. "Cameras. Everywhere," he said. "You got into that hospital because they let you."
Iyisha’s chest tightened.
She reached for Malcolm’s arm as headlights appeared in the distance.
More than one.
Malcolm held for a second longer, then shoved the man forward and let him go.
They moved fast.
The car door was already open.
They climbed in without speaking, one after another, squeezing into the back as the man slid into the driver’s seat.
Iyisha ended up on Malcolm’s lap, barely settling before the door shut. The car smelled clean, leather and something expensive, nothing like what they had been used to.
"Everyone in?" the man asked.
Iyisha looked back.
Lights were getting closer.
"Go," she said.
The engine roared and the car shot forward.
Iyisha grabbed onto Malcolm, her hands gripping tight as the speed pushed them back into the seats.
The car took off hard, the engine roaring as the driver pushed it like a race car, cutting through the road and leaving the others behind.
He didn’t turn on the headlights, and they moved through the dark fast and sharp, weaving past turns like he already knew every corner.
"Yeah... turning right," he muttered.
Iyisha leaned forward slightly and caught the small earpiece in his ear.
"Daddy’s coming home," he added with a low chuckle, like he was talking to someone on the other end.
She pulled back and glanced at Malcolm, cramped under her, pressed into the corner with barely any space to move.
Iyisha held on to him tighter as the car jerked right, her body shifting with the turn while her legs still felt weak from the run. Every turn came too fast, every movement too sharp, and she kept her head low while the world outside blurred past them.
The driver didn’t slow until they turned into a building, and a gate slid open just in time for them to pass through. They went in, and the gate closed behind them before anyone outside could follow.
Only then did the car slow.
They rolled forward into a wide garage, and the space opened around them as lights came on overhead.
Rows of cars lined the place, polished and clean, untouched by the outside. Nothing rusted. Nothing broken. Luxury models sat side by side, their surfaces reflecting the light like they were still part of the old world.
Iyisha lifted her head slightly, taking it in.
"Damn," Lance muttered as he stepped away from them and moved toward a silver car. "Is this a Rimac Nevera?" he said, reaching out to touch it.
"It is."
A voice came from the corner.
Iyisha raised her gun at once.
A man stepped into the light, dressed in a tennis outfit, grinning like he had been expecting them.
"Lance," she said under her breath, her voice tight as she motioned for him to come back.
Lance barely looked at her. "Did you know this hits sixty in two seconds?"
"In 1.78," the man corrected. "But who’s counting."
Iyisha stepped back until she felt Malcolm behind her as the man walked closer, calm, like the guns pointed at him meant nothing.
"Dennis," he said, nodding toward the driver as he got out. "That’s a new record."
The younger man grinned and ran a hand over the hood of the car. "My baby did that."
The man turned back to them. "Welcome to my humble abode," he said, gesturing lightly for them to lower their weapons.
Aljun stepped forward quickly. "Hey, come on," he said, putting himself between them. "Put the guns down. If you want to find what you’re looking for, you’re going to need them."
Iyisha looked at Malcolm.
Malcolm didn’t lower his gun. "What do you want from us?"
The man smiled wider and nodded, like he approved. "That’s a good instinct," he said.
He paused, then tilted his head slightly.
"But..."
He tapped his chin once.
"It’s easier to show you."
He turned and started walking. "Come."
Iyisha grabbed Aljun by the arm before he could follow. "What’s happening?" she asked, her voice low and tight as the men disappeared deeper into the building and left them alone in the garage.
Aljun scratched his head, his face still flushed. "Turns out you can’t just blend in here," he said. "Everything’s scanned. Cameras, checkpoints. I only got out because one of them pulled me out."
Marybeth stepped in and grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer. "Then why do they know about us?"
"Wait, wait," Aljun said, prying her hand off. "It’s easier if you just go inside and see. But listen, they’re the only reason you’re not floating in the river right now."
Iyisha looked at Malcolm.
Aljun glanced between them. "They’re not government. Not ERF either."
Iyisha pressed her lips together.
She didn’t trust them.
But they got them out.
She looked back toward the exit.
Go back out there and do what?
They had already searched the admin floor. The only thing they got was that Cena had been transferred and that something was being tested on people.
Nothing else.
She reached out and touched Malcolm’s arm. "Let’s hear them out," she said.
Malcolm’s jaw tightened as he looked toward the door, then back at her.
After a moment, he gave a small nod.
Marybeth grabbed Aljun again and pulled him closer, her grip tight on his shirt. "If something happens," she said, her voice low and sharp, "you’re the next body they’ll be fishing out in Jersey."
Aljun just grinned at her. "Yeah. Good to see you too, Marybeth."
"Hey," Lance cut in, still looking around the garage, his eyes moving from car to car. "These people still got money?" he asked, confusion clear in his voice.
Aljun nodded. "Yeah. They don’t use cash here. It’s all credits. Those cards you saw? That’s how everything runs."
He glanced toward the door the men disappeared into. "Arnulf... that guy’s still part of the elite."
Iyisha stayed quiet.
Her eyes moved from the cars to the door.
They saved them.
She knew that.
But something about it didn’t sit right.
Nothing in this place felt accidental.
"They saved us," she said softly, more to herself than anyone else.
Then she looked at Aljun. "That doesn’t mean we trust them."
Aljun let out a breath. "What, is it a sin to be thankful?" he said, rolling his eyes.
Iyisha didn’t answer.
Her hand found Malcolm’s arm again without thinking.
She could still feel how close they were earlier.
Too close.
"Come on," Malcolm said. "Stay alert."
He looked at each of them.
"If they try anything..."
He didn’t finish it.
He didn’t have to.
They all nodded.
Iyisha took one last look at the door, then followed Malcolm inside.
