Code Noir Read online

  They stiffened like a pair of dogs who’d forgotten their alpha was back with the pack.

  Strangely I felt no curiosity about their argument. I just wanted to get far away from everything I knew. That’s when I realised that something had radically changed in me while I’d slept. Maybe it was the inhuman part taking hold?

  I’d woken from a day and half’s sleep into another kind of exhaustion - no heart for anything.

  When Jamon shape-changed, the worst of the parasite loosed itself almost immediately. Probably because he was three parts a monster already. With Io Lang it had been different. His inhumanity had been a well-guarded secret until I took his fate into my hands.

  I hadn’t felt remorse over Lang. And now suddenly I was like him! When word got out that I’d changed someone would come after me.

  I wanted to get right away from this place before I hurt someone I cared about. And if Daac and Schaum couldn’t find a cure for me, I wanted to be the one who decided when to end it, not some idiot vigilante who wanted to get famous.

  It meant I’d be walking away from all the things I should be putting right - the beliefs that had sustained me through Mo-Vay. Including the most unanswered question - who in the media was backing Ike and Tulu, and treating the Tert-siders like a bunch of inferior lab rats?

  But this morning I was heartsick. Deeply.

  Perhaps Teece was a piece of that. And Loyl. Mostly though it was about me. My life.

  ‘Parrish?’

  Ibis seemed distant, as if he were on a comm viewer - not an arm’s reach away from me.

  Teece too.

  ‘Are you all right?’ said Teece gently.

  My body gave a tiny spasm. I didn’t have a place to put his compassion any more. Or maybe too big a place. Besides, Teece had someone else to spend it on, someone who’d use it properly. I didn’t begrudge him it, but I was gut-wrenched jealous.

  ‘I want a full account of the business, Teece. Ibis, I want to see the barracks. Then we’ll meet at Hein’s. This is important and I’m in a hurry. Don’t frig me around.’ My voice sounded flat.

  They both opened their mouths to argue, then they exchanged glances and closed them again. Maybe they could sense a change too.

  ‘Business first?’ asked Teece.

  I shook my head. ‘Barracks.’

  Ibis swallowed like he had someone’s balls stuffed in his mouth.

  We barely talked on the way there, just the basics as I stopped to get breakfast from a dough vendor.

  Meat dumplings and flat scones with syrup. Heaven!

  ‘What’s been happening?’ I forced myself to ask between gorging mouthfuls.

  ‘I’ve done what I can. Just like, I suppose, you did in Dis.’ He gave me a sideways.

  ‘Teece told you what happened?’ I stopped eating and stared at him.

  ‘Some. I’m sorry about Roo, Parrish. He seemed like a reasonable . . . kid.’

  Meat caught in my throat. ‘Don’t talk about him, Ibis,’ I said harshly.

  He looked wounded and changed the subject. ‘I’m going home after this,’ he said. ‘Pat is toey.’

  I nodded, understanding. ‘I didn’t expect you to still be here. Don’t think it’s not appreciated. I’ve just got some things on my mind and they have to be dealt with quickly, otherwise—’

  ‘Otherwise?’

  I was tempted to spill the truth. But it wasn’t fair. You couldn’t dump my appalling kinda karma on someone like Ibis. ‘Forget it. I’ll make sure you get paid.’

  ‘Did you really think it was about the money?’ he snorted, and unlocked the main door.

  Inside a substantial miracle had occurred. The place had been gutted and scrubbed. The san was community-sized but clean. Cribs crammed most of the smaller rooms. The main room, however, was set up for communal eating. At one end a clutter of flatscreens flickered with games and simulacrums. In a corner sat an antiquated, rubber-cushioned pool table.

  Ibis caught my stare.

  ‘That was Teece. He had some tek connections. Called in some favours. It’s all old stuff, patched-up systems, but they work. He said he’d train them to fix their own stuff. If you wanted, and they wanted, they could maybe do some rudimentary schooling. The pool table was from the shop. It was never going to sell. We had a lot of help on the other stuff once word got around.’

  ‘From who?’ I asked, mystified.

  ‘People around here.’

  Part of me wanted to whoop at what had been achieved in such a short time but I just couldn’t share it with Ibis. My emotions were like a ghost limb: I felt they were there, but when I reached out I couldn’t touch them.

  I settled for, ‘Great!’

  Ibis looked hesitant. ‘Are you sure?’

  I put my hand on his shoulder. ‘I’m sure. Don’t ask me to say it better than that at the moment. Just accept that it’s more than I hoped for. Way more.’

  His face cleared of doubt. Now he just looked beat. His plump face had thinned and greyed in a few short days. I suspected he’d done more of the cleaning than Larry Hein’s ’bots.

  ‘I want them in here tomorrow - get Larry to send word to Link. I’ve got some extras as well.’

  ‘Extras?’

  ‘More lab rats from Dis. I’ll tell you about it when I have time.’

  ‘Sure. And I suppose you’ll tell me you’re going to start wearing skirts as well?’ he observed dryly.

  I tried to locate some real warmth to put in my smile but there was none.

  ‘I’ll find Teece now. See you in Hein’s when I’ve finished. ’

  He nodded and left as if he couldn’t get away from me quickly enough.

  Teece was waiting for me back in my rooms, his arms folded belligerently. Jamon’s lips-and-torso accountant was up on the screen counting pixel cred.

  I dropped on to the couch, feet up.

  ‘What’s the score, Teece?’

  ‘The score is . . . you’re loaded. Most of the income’s from Lark and Speed, though some of your kickbacks have dropped away since Jamon—’

  ‘What else?’

  ‘You owe the Cure their increment for the Sensil trade, and the tek wholesalers are getting toey as well. Apart from that most of the local bars are behind on protection payments.’

  ‘Pay up the Cure and the teks and then tell them we’re finished with them.’

  His eyes bulged. ‘You can’t do that.’

  ‘I am doing that.’

  ‘You kill the Sensil trade and someone else will run with it. You ruin yourself and nothing will change.’

  I sighed. He was right. Just like Roo had been on the same matter. And I needed the income to take care of the ferals.

  ‘OK,’ I allowed. ‘For the moment.’

  He looked relieved. ‘What’s on your mind, Parrish?’

  If you knew, Teece, you’d probably be the first to shoot me. ‘I’ve got some more ferals waiting over on the edge of Torley’s. I need them brought to the barracks and watched over. There’ll be trouble, though. They look like . . .’

  ‘They look like what?’

  I sighed. ‘Animals.’

  He wrinkled his nose. ‘That’s a tough one.’

  I climbed to my feet and stood closer to him. ‘I’ve got two more things to ask of you. Nothing else. I want you to stay on a bit longer minding the business.’ Actually it’s yours, but you don’t need to know that yet. ‘And I want you to make it work for these new kids. Get them accepted. Make sure they get fed. Buy some immersion sims too, if you can get them to agree to soak.’

  ‘You mean school?’ He whistled. ‘You don’t ask much, do you Parrish?’

  ‘Only of my real friends.’

  He took a breath and I knew what was coming. ‘About Honey and me—’

  I stopped him. ‘You don’t owe me any explanations, Teece. I think it’s the right move.’

  ‘Do you?’

  Was he disappointed? I couldn’t tell.

  He stood up so we were almost
touching. The warmth of his body sent my head spinning. If I could just lean against him for a minute or two things would feel so much better.

  His blue eyes were torn and I knew what I was thinking . . . wanting.

  A tiny ripple of satisfaction swept me. He cared still, but Teece believed in monogamy. Unlike Loyl he would never be with two women at once. I respected that and stepped away from him.

  ‘And what are you planning while I’m doing your job?’ he demanded, not letting me off the hook that easily.

  ‘Er . . . I’m going down the . . . er coast a bit, working up some new business contacts.’

  ‘You can’t leave here safely. You’re still a murder suspect. ’

  ‘I’ll just have to be smart about it.’

  Teece flushed with an instant attack of blood pressure. ‘Smart? It’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard you say. I know you, Parrish. You’re not going to do business. You’re bailing! What about these media voyeurs? Who’s going to stop them?’

  I stuck my hands on my hips, flaring at his attack. ‘I’m not running away! I’ve just had enough, Teece. So what if I managed to stop them? You’re the one that said there’ll always be others. ‘

  ‘Parrish, some bastard is playing with your life. And mine. All of us. And you’re just going to roll over.’

  I felt like my brain had been shaken. A day ago we’d each been on the other side of this same argument.

  I knew why I’d changed, but what about him?

  I turned and walked to the door. ‘Take care of the biz, Teece, and . . . take care. I’ll be in touch.’

  He punched the wall as I left.

  I found Ibis in Hein’s defending a table full of shot glasses.

  ‘Teece won’t be joining us.’

  He eyed me and swallowed another. ‘Totally piss him off as well?’

  I shrugged and picked my split and chipped fingernails. ‘Yeah. A rare but beautiful talent.’

  He laughed, tears gathering in the corner of his eyes.

  I waved to Larry to bring some shot glasses for me and downed one immediately.

  Ibis slumped in his tactile. It grunted in protest and tipped, trying to even up the weight distribution.

  ‘You’ve had enough,’ I said.

  He stuck out his bottom lip and skulled one more. ‘I’m taking a holiday,’ I continued conversationally.

  He sat bolt upright. ‘You can’t do that!’

  I downed another. And another. ‘Can. Will.’

  We scowled at each other like a pair of kids about to bloody each other’s noses until Link’s shadow fell across the table. I hadn’t seen him since I left for Mo-Vay. He looked taller than I remembered. The mask slung around his neck seemed tiny.

  ‘Can you speak with me outside?’ he asked.

  No! Go Away! ‘I guess.’ I got up slowly, my hand dropping automatically to my pistol. ‘Why outside?’

  ‘Please.’

  I glanced back at Ibis. He was resting his forehead in his hands and groaning about needing mockoff.

  I followed Link out of the bar and down into the closest alley. I’d been in this one before when the Prier pilot had contacted me for the first time. It sent a prickle of remembrance across my skin, but there was no ’Terro waiting for me, only Glida.

  ‘Glida?’ I stared between them. ‘You two know each other?’

  Link spoke. ‘Everyone knows you brought more of us back from Dis. I - I figured we should get acquainted.’

  I blinked in surprise. The boy had intelligence stamped on his face. It impressed me. Maybe Teece’s job wouldn’t be so hard after all. I would have been pleased if Glida’s face wasn’t swollen from crying.

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘They’ve taken Wombebe.’

  My frozen heart cracked. ‘Who?’

  She held out an audio bung like it was a bomb. ‘They left this for you.’

  I stuck it into my ear and with a shaking finger pressed hard. The device was meant for messages only. When the crackle cleared I recognised the thin, now familiar voice of the Prier pilot.

  ‘What you saw in there, what you know now - it’s called Code Noir - designer slavery. I can’t stop it by myself. I need you. I’ve got the kid. Stay in the game and you’ll get her back.’

  The recording crackled again in pause.

  ‘. . . you should know. You haven’t changed. He was lying. I know because I was there.’

  The bung shrivelled and fell from my ear to the ground.

  Loyl Daac had lied?

  Why had Loyl lied?

  I stared at Link and Glida absorbing what I had just learnt. If he had, that meant I still had some control over myself, and a chance to change things.

  Even better, I discovered I still wanted to.

  My life crashed back at me like a reboot. With it I felt the Eskaalim’s stranglehold loosen and my emotions thaw in a white-hot flash of hope. I could almost hear its long, anguished howl.

  I picked up Glida and whirled her around me.

  I wasn’t just back in the game.

  I could still win.

  Acknowledgements

  Code Noir is the darkest hour in this series and owes much to the ROR-ettes, Lyn Uhlmann, Launz Burch, Tara Wynne and Ben Sharpe (I hope we get to do this again one day, Ben!).

  And as always, to Rose, Nicci and Paul.

  Code Noir

  MARIANNE DE PIERRES

  Hachette Digital

  www.littlebrown.co.uk