“The meeting will begin soon,” Kane announces. “I need to discuss something with the nurse first.”
A shiver runs down Rafael’s spine. Wren’s slipup gave him some idea of what Kane might say, but only some.
Echo hums. “I’d say be nice—Rafael, here, saved my life and all—but I don’t know if I have to anymore.”
Baron’s gaze snaps to Echo, his mouth twitching. “Let’s go.” He turns around, and Rafael jumps from his seat.
Trailing behind Kane through the bar, Rafael’s mind races. Runchu needs regular treatments. That old man from the fire will need follow-up care. Without a medic, what happens to them or anyone else who gets injured if he leaves?
Except staying means more days under guard in the slums, cut off from his family with no idea when he’ll see them again. His chest aches.
Unless he could turn this into more of a choice. What if, instead of being treated like a hostage, he could negotiate with Baron? Ask for access to his wristlink and time away from the med bay. Not to stay forever. Just until the doctorarrives.
The plan is hardly any better, but at least this one gives him hope—if Rafael can summon the courage to go through with it.
Baron ushers him through a door into a dimly lit room. A holotable waits at the center, a glowing slab of glass, surrounded by chairs and walls covered from floor to ceiling in weapons and mysterious tech. He takes a seat at the head, then gestures for Rafael to join him. When Rafael settles into the chair, their eyes meet, and his throat goes dry.
“The doctor we arranged to replace you won’t arrive for several more days,” Kane begins, his chrome fingers drumming against the table. “Unfortunately, that means—”
“I’ll stay.” The words spill out as Rafael’s heart pounds.
The leader goes still, gaze sharpening through his visor. The silence stretches, and Rafael starts to wave, thinking back to all those times he never argued at work or with his friends. This is why he stayed quiet.
But then he catches a glimpse of his dead wristlink. No messages. No way home. Not unless things change.
He forces himself to continue. “But I’d like something in return. Please.”
10
Chapter 10 - Kane
“Something in return?” Kane repeats, arching a brow.
Rafael gives a hesitant nod.
A wry smile tugs at Kane’s lips. He doesn’t get caught off guard often. Yet here he is, surprised by a corpo nurse.
Most in Rafael’s position would accept whatever terms Kane offered. Instead, he’s negotiating. Now Kane knows for certain that pushing Rafael was the right move.
Still, there’s only so much he’s willing to concede.
“All right.” Kane leans back in his chair. “What do you want?”
Brown eyes widen, as if Rafael half-expected to be told absolutely not. Kane’s jaw tightens. Typical corpo conditioning, over a century of teaching people not to ask for anything and accept what they get. Not his job to fix what’s broken.
“Um—” Rafael glances at his wristlink. “I’d like to contact my family and friends. Let them know I’m okay.” He swallows. “But, uh…don’t worry. I won’t tell them the truth. I’ll stick to the VitaCorp program story.”
Kane hums. Rafael contacting anyone could spiral intodisaster. The corps usually write off his crew as more trouble than they’re worth, but VitaCorp might use a kidnapping to rally support. Any excuse to purge what they deem insignificant.
Then there’s the Nova City Police. With the new mayor pushing anti-gang reform, they’d jump at the chance to make an example of Shreveport.
Only his HUD shows nothing suspicious. No elevated heart rate, no stress markers. And since arriving, Rafael hasn’t tried to escape once. Perhaps this is the least Kane can do.
“Done.” He taps the holotable to message Coda to reactivate the nurse’s wristlink, though with VitaCorp’s tracking still scrambled and limited access to V-link. “What else?”
Rafael’s lips twitch into an almost smile. “Thank you…But I also want to be able to leave the medical bay sometimes. See more of the neighborhood, if it’s safe enough.”
Laughter nearly escapes Kane. This Midtown nurse wants to wander the “slums?” Maybe Rafael’s curiosity has turned morbid after the past few days. Who is Kane to deny him a glimpse into the real world the corps won’t show?