Storm of Lightning (16 page)

“I would recommend that. The Admiral-General mentioned something to me about a rank change.”

“There's no need to threaten us, sir,” the first guard said. “We will follow orders.”

The two guards took Welch by the arms and hurried him down the corridor, while Tara, Quentin, and Torstyn followed from a distance. The guards led Welch to the second floor, where the staff was completing the loading of food. When the group reached the loading ramp, Quentin said, “Give me your weapons. You won't need them.” The men disarmed. To the guards' surprise, Quentin handed one of the pistols to Welch.

“Be quick,” Quentin said to the guards. “The Taiwanese officials will meet you on An Ping Road near the front of the mall. That's two miles due east. I recommend you take a cab.”

“Yes, sir.”

They hurried off. “How far can you hold the illusion?” Quentin asked Tara.

“I'm not sure. No more than a few blocks.”

“Won't they be surprised.”

“What if they try to return him?”

“They won't. Welch is armed; they're not. And they just broke three Elgen protocols and are now guilty of aiding an Elgen fugitive. Discipline will be execution. I guarantee we won't ever see either of them again. At least not alive.”

“What about EGG Welch?”

“I don't know,” he said. “I don't know.” He turned back. “Let's get back to our room before anyone discovers that the prisoner's missing.”

T
he
Faraday
set sail from Kaohsiung that evening a little after ten o'clock. The captain of the ship, Captain Bradshaw, set a course southeast to Tuvalu, through the Philippine Sea, and docked four days later in Papua New Guinea to join up with the other Elgen ships.

Three days later the two new Elgen ships, the
Franklin
and the
Edison
, arrived, completing the fleet. It would take just thirty-six more hours to reach Tuvalu.

The night before their final voyage to Tuvalu, Quentin was lying on his bed reading a book when someone rapped on his door. “Come in,” he shouted.

Tara walked into his room. “Hey, Q.”

“Hey,” he said, looking up. “Where you been?”

“Just hanging out on top with Kylee. What are you reading?”

Quentin held up his book.

“
The Once and Future King
,” Tara said, nodding. “Good book. Though, I disagree with the premise. Might
is
right.”

Quentin looked at her quizzically. “So what's up? You look upset.”

“Dr. Hatch is back.”

Quentin was quiet a moment, then said, “Good. I heard he might be coming back tonight.”

“He's already back on the ship. EGG Smythe said he wants to meet with you ASAP.”

Quentin's brow furrowed. “Meet with me about what?”

“I'm not supposed to know this, but he said Welch's escape. I'm sure he wants to know if we had any involvement in it.”

Quentin didn't flinch. “Why would he wonder that?”

“Why wouldn't he? Who else could have gotten him off the ship?”

“The guards helped him off.”

Tara looked at him quizzically. “But what if he thinks you were involved? Welch was like a father to you.”

“He
was
like a father,” Quentin said. “But now he's a deserter and a traitor. No Elgen leaves their post without Admiral-General Hatch's permission. No one. Not even us. Friend or not, Welch knew the consequences when he made his decision. And anyone who helped Welch is a traitor and deserves the same punishment.” Quentin went back to his book. “Don't worry. Dr. Hatch will find him. He'll find all of them. And we'll see them in the rat bowl.”

“I'm so relieved to hear you say that,” Tara said. She suddenly turned back toward the door. “All right. Let it go.”

Quentin looked back up as Tara transformed into Dr. Hatch.

“I'm not Tara,” Hatch said. “I'm sorry for the ruse. I just needed to be sure.”

“Dr. Hatch,” Quentin said, setting down his book and sitting up. He still looked puzzled. “Sure of what?”

“That you weren't involved in Welch's escape.”

“You thought I would betray you?”

“I knew how close you were to Welch. I wanted to make sure your friendship hadn't clouded your judgment. Especially on the eve of battle.”

“I know where I stand, sir.”

“So you do.” Hatch walked over to Quentin's wall and read a quote.

Mankind will only perish through eternal peace.

—Adolf Hitler

He smiled as he turned back. “So, matters at hand. The overthrow of Tuvalu will happen quickly. The Tuvalu defense, if you can call it that, will offer about as much resistance as a tree does to lightning. We will strike them hard and splinter them into shavings.”

“How can I help, sir?”

“I want you to accompany the first squadron's landing on Funafuti. It is your mission to take out all possible communication devices in the area. Captain Steele has the coordinates; he and his men will lead the advance and protect you and the other youths.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You will take control of the Tuvalu radio station before they can broadcast an emergency message to the world. We are jamming frequencies from the plant, but there is still danger of word getting out. Take out their computers, but do not do too much damage to their broadcasting equipment. We will need to use the radio to broadcast the next morning.”

“Yes, sir. I'll focus on tech wiring.”

“Very good. By dawn our forces will have secured all communication and all weaponry, and crushed all rebellion, if there is any. Their tiny police force will be locked up in their own jails.”

“You mentioned the other youths.”

“Actually, just Bryan will be traveling with you. In the event that the radio operators try to lock you out, Bryan will cut through the locks.”

“Yes, sir. What about Torstyn?”

“He and Tara will assist me inside the Starxource facility. We'll be flying out in the morning. Kylee will serve with the fourth division. Her gifts will be valuable in disarming their police force. Once you have taken the station, Captain Steele will cordon off the facility.
I want you and Bryan to maintain possession of the station until I arrive in the morning for the first broadcast.”

“Yes, sir.”

“There's another reason I want you at the radio station.”

“What is that, sir?”

“I want to introduce the citizens of the Hatch Islands to their new king.”

“You, sir?”

“No,
you
.”

Quentin looked at him in surprise. “Me?”

“This is what I've been grooming you for since the beginning. Someday you will rule the world in my stead. I want you to begin your apprenticeship by overseeing this island nation. You will be the king of Tuvalu.”

For a moment Quentin was speechless. “I don't know what to say. Thank you, sir.”

“I'm pleased that I can count on you. You have no idea how pleased I am that you had nothing to do with this Welch business.”

“Me too, sir. So, what do we know about Welch and the guards?”

“We're tracking their RFIDs right now. We've already found one of the guards.”

Quentin hid his fear. “You have?”

“At least his body. It would appear that his companions turned on him.”

“It's just a matter of time before we find the others, sir.”

“Yes, it is. And you have my word, Welch will have company in the rat bowl.”

A
round one in the morning Tara snuck into Quentin's room. Quentin had been asleep for more than an hour. “Quentin.” She knelt next to his bed and shook him. “Q.”

Quentin's eyes opened. He jumped when he saw the shadow next to him. “It's just me. Tara.”

“Tara,” Quentin said, rubbing his eyes.

“How did it go with Dr. Hatch?”

Quentin just stared at her.

“Did it go all right?”

He hesitated a moment more, then asked, “What were we doing when Torstyn told us about Welch?”

“What?”

“You heard me. What were we doing?”

“We were playing chess. And it was Bryan who told us, not Torstyn.”

Quentin breathed out. “It
is
you.” He rolled away from her. “Now get out of here. I have nothing to say to you.”

“Quentin.”

“Leave. Now.”

“Look, I don't blame you for being mad. But he made me do it. I had no choice.”

Quentin rolled back over. “That could have been my death.”

“No, I did it for us. If I had refused, he would have known we were involved. That includes you. Did you say anything in, incrim . . .”

“Incriminating,” Quentin said. “No. I knew it was Hatch.”

Tara looked both relieved and surprised. “How did you know?”

“He quoted from
The Once and Future King
. The day you read a book, let alone quote from it, is the day I eat it.”

“So basically my illiteracy saved you,” she said, trying to soften Quentin's anger.

“Your illiteracy saved
us
,” Quentin said. “You would have been on the rat chute right next to me.”

Tara swallowed. “It's a good thing he didn't go to Torstyn. He's not as smart as you.”

“Did you tell Torstyn?”

“Yes. I told him that if anyone, including us, says anything to him about it, he knows nothing.”

“Good,” Quentin said. “We need to come up with a sign so that never happens again. A handshake or something.”

“Torstyn and I leave in the morning,” Tara said. “We're flying to the island.”

“Yeah, Hatch told me. Did he tell you that he's making me the king of Tuvalu?”

“No. Congratulations, I guess. How does that make you feel?”

“Elagabalus was only fifteen when he became Roman emperor, and Ptolemy XIII was only twelve when he became Egypt's thirteenth pharaoh.”

“I've never heard of either of them.”

“Ptolemy was Cleopatra's brother.”

“I've heard of Cleopatra.”

“Unfortunately, things didn't work out for either of them. Elagabalus was assassinated when he was eighteen. And Ptolemy's forces were defeated by Caesar, and he drowned in the Nile while trying to escape.”

“Then let's hope you have better luck,” Tara said.

“You know I'm just a puppet dictator,” Quentin said. “Dr. Hatch will still be in charge.”

“I know. For now. But someday you will run all of this. And I'll be there with you.” She leaned forward and they kissed. “I am loyal to you,” she said. “Don't forget that.”

“Thank you. Now you better go back to bed.”

Tara stood. “All right.” At the doorway she breathed out slowly. “If something had happened to you, I wouldn't have been able to live with myself.”

Quentin looked at her for a moment, then said, “Come back.”

She walked back over and knelt down next to the bed. “Yes?”

“I understand that you did what you had to do. I forgive you.”

“Thank you.”

He clasped her hand in a peculiar handshake, the middle and index finger out, the other two pointed in, like a gun. “That's our handshake. That's how I'll know it's really you and vice versa. Can you remember that?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Because our lives may depend on it.”

She nodded and stood.

“One more thing,” he said.

“Yes?”

“I'm loyal to you, too.”

Tara smiled, then turned and walked out of his room.