EMP Catastrophe by Hamilton, Grace (best ebook reader for pc .txt) 📕

stood behind Colin and loomed over Max. Max noticed the matching tattoos on their knuckles. Some were precise and done by a professional. Others were ragged as though given in prison. Cartel. These men probably hated Max just as much as Colin did.

“There you are, little bird,” Colin said. Tattoos ringed his bald head. He grinned, showing off a gold tooth in the back, and his dark eyes crinkled as if Max were a birthday present all wrapped up and waiting for him. His grin widened to the point of looking manic.

“What are you doing here?” Max asked. He mentally slapped himself. He needed to think before he spoke.

“What am I doing here?” Colin roared with laughter. “I’m here listening to your song, little bird.”

“You should be in solitary for what you did to me,” Max said. Even as he spoke, he could feel the lingering effects of Colin’s last beating prior to Max’s escape. His ribs still ached. His eyes were still tender to the touch.

“I was,” Colin said with a shrug, “but they let me out. No one gets punished long for beating up a piece of crap like you. It was a slap on the wrist. Probably would’ve gotten the same punishment if I’d just killed you.”

One of the men behind Colin tittered with laughter. Max dug deep inside himself trying to find the steel constitution he’d cultivated during his imprisonment. “You’re a liar,” Max said. “Tell me how you really got out.”

And make it a long story, he thought. If he could keep Colin talking, it would give Max the chance to get his head on straight and make up a plan to escape. He had to get away from Colin or he was a dead man.

“You set quite the example with your escapade,” Colin sneered. “That takes guts, escaping the way you did, I’ll give you that. Leaving that poor guard hollering for help and looking like an idiot. We all figured that if a stupid bird-boy like you could do it, why were the rest of us hanging out in our jumpsuits for? With the whole cartel on my side, we were able to take the prison. It was even easier when the warden decided to shut the whole place down.”

“You caused a revolt,” Max said and felt grateful that he’d listened to his instincts. If he had stuck around, Colin would have killed him already for sure.

“Easiest thing I’ve done in my whole life.” Colin winked at him. “I got friends who helped me out. It’s really something when you have the full cartel backing you. Imagine. You could’ve had that too if you hadn’t turned on us.”

“I had to,” Max said. “I would’ve been locked up for half of my life if I didn’t.”

“Wrong!” Colin made a sound like a buzzer being hit. “No one thought you’d sing, but you did. Now, you can sing all the way to Galena.”

Max’s stomach dropped. For a moment, he couldn’t breathe. “What did you say?” he asked.

“That’s where we’re heading,” Colin said. “My boys and me. We’re looking for a nice vacation spot. Someplace high in the mountains where we can enjoy the fresh air. I hear a friend of yours owns a hotel and might be willing to give us a discount if we persuade her.”

“How do you know about the hotel?” Max’s world was spinning too fast around him. His fear threatened to overwhelm him.

“The guards keep records about us, you know,” Colin said. “Since a bird like you had flown the coop, we were curious where you might be heading to. If there was someone out there who’d take you in. I hope this Kathleen won’t mind if you never show up.”

“You stay away from my family,” Max said. His fear felt like a match that had been struck, and now it burned hot and had transformed into anger. “You don’t go anywhere near Galena.”

“Not so smart, are you?” Colin said and tutted at Max. “It wasn’t hard for me to figure out you’d take the fastest route home. The easiest route. Always one for the easy way out, aren’t you? Not just here, but with the cartel too.” Colin knelt in front of Max. “Did you ever think what your life might have been like if you hadn’t betrayed us? If you’d kept your mouth shut, you’d be taken care of right now. No one would ever come after your family. Come to think of it, they’d probably be better off! The cartel takes care of their own. Too bad it’s time for you to pay the piper.”

Max waved his hands around to encompass the quiet, empty world around them. “What does that matter anymore? There’s no point in making an example out of me. There are no more guards or prisons or even laws! The cartel can take whatever they want. Why are they so determined to end my life when I was just a lowly drug mule?”

“Like I said, the cartel takes care of their own.” Colin’s smile had faltered, and he watched Max with disgust. “I’ll be taken care of. My family will have everything they’ve ever needed. A spot is waiting for me at their compound, but they told me I have to take care of you first. This is how I earn my way and prove my loyalty. By taking out the bird who sang so you can’t betray us again.”

Max’s heart thundered in his ears. His hands balled up into fists on the asphalt. Colin stepped back and snapped his fingers. The four men set upon Max like a pack of wolves.

15

Matthew felt as though he were underwater. He heard his father ask him a slew of questions, but his voice was muffled to Matthew’s ears. For a moment, guilt crushed him like the pressure of the deep sea as he studied the note tied around the rock.

How could I doubt her? He’d thought that perhaps Kathleen was paranoid and making things up. Yet