Sawyer watched surreptitiously for any sign of Garrick and the others as they returned to Crossness. But they were nowhere to be seen and ten minutes later they arrived back in the lower area of the pumping station. His clothes clung wet and uncomfortable to his body making his skin itch. He was seriously pissed and there was nothing he could do about it.

Darr and his men hustled them along a wooden walkway that skirted the water. Hardy glanced down at the man-made lake as they walked along, his expression unreadable. When they finally stopped close to the kitchen area the women were gone, as were the children. The pot of spicy stew had been abandoned and a spoon lay discarded on the floor.

There was no sign of Beth.

Darr held them at gunpoint while Leven secured their hands with plastic cable ties. Unreadable eyes of the darkest blue, revealed nothing while he waited for Leven to finish. Darr wore a red bandana around his upper arm, but his trousers and shirt were a filthy shade of grey, probably from repeated immersion in the rank water that surrounded the place. Sawyer realized he might find living underground at the Command Base difficult, but at least he wasn’t living in the sewers like a rat.

Leven was clumsy and took his time. He fastened the ties around Julia last. She was disheveled, her hair an unruly tangle framing her face but at least she was alive and in one piece. The rest Sawyer would sort out one-way or another. He always did.

Julia yelped when Leven restrained her hands, and Sawyer lunged, reacting to the pain in her voice. Leven punched him in the stomach without hesitation, his arm juddering from the impact. Sawyer folded to his knees, gasping for air as nausea and pain roiled in his gut. Leven grinned, thick lips drawing back over his gold front teeth as he swept Sawyer for concealed weapons.

He pocketed the knife hidden in Sawyer’s boot. “You forgot this one.”

Sawyer grunted, but kept his eyes trained on Darr.

A red haired man had shadowed them as soon as they’d entered the station, tracing their lurching steps down to the station floor. He now hovered next to Darr. “Beth’s coming.”

“No, I’m here.”

Her voice as strong and clear as ever, Beth walked around from behind Darr, long blonde curls piled on top of her head. Her eyes were dark with liner, accentuating her alabaster skin and giving her face a surreal appearance.

Darr jerked his head in Sawyer’s direction. “He killed Marks.”

Beth stopped at Darr’s side, her hand resting lightly on a pistol holstered at her hip. Her face was blank, devoid of recognition, but her voice was rich with hatred. “You want to tell us what the fuck you’re doing here before we kill you and throw you all to the rats?” Darr’s hand dropped to the small of Beth’s back as she took a step forward. Were they together?

Her voice was a cold snake down Sawyer’s spine, a direct link to his past and the man he had once been. Now she was looking at him, her gaze burning with a familiar cold fury. If she was in charge here she was their only hope of freedom, unless Garrick and the others produced something out of their hats. Sawyer desperately wanted to scan the higher walkways that rose above his head, but didn’t.

“This one’s trouble.” The red haired man turned and spat on the floor, eyeing Sawyer.

“When I want your opinion, I’ll ask you for it. Now shut the fuck up.” Darr’s tone was sharp and the red haired man lowered his head in deference.

Sawyer ground his teeth, flexing his bound hands behind his back. Unyielding hard plastic bit into his wrists.

Beth took a step closer. “I know this one’s trouble.”

Julia inched forward, her head held high. “We’re here to help.”

“You killed one of my men.” Beth’s voice was level. A statement.

Julia faltered. “It was an accident—”

Sawyer interrupted. “Your man attacked us.” There was nothing to be gained by apologizing. Besides, he wasn’t sorry.

“Your friend doesn’t say much.” Beth gestured at Hardy as she approached him. Hardy grunted and rolled his eyes, rocking on the balls of his feet as Beth walked around him, trailing her hand across the solid expanse of his abdomen.

Sawyer continued, “We wanted to warn you.”

Beth laughed and tilted her head in amusement. “Warn us?”

“There’s a new Chittrix nest. Two of them attacked our base. You should move your people.” Sawyer gestured toward the back of the station where the children huddled. “Especially the children.”

“Damn, you’ve just got so much love to share.” Beth’s eyes widened in sarcastic disbelief.

Darr gave a low throaty growl. “Convenient. You see all this here. Space, light, plants growing, none of it above ground where all the giant insects are crawling around. It’d be mighty handy if we just moved out.” Darr widened his stance. “Just exactly where is this nest?” He tapped the nose of his rifle on Sawyer’s chest armor. Sawyer glanced down at the weapon touching him. He’d let this one pass. He could be different. Be the man Julia thought he was.

“We’ve seen mutated Chittrix, adapted for the water. Two of them attacked our base, and we tracked them here.” Sawyer inclined his head to the pumping station around him.

Darr shook his head, bemused. “So where is this base of yours?”

Sawyer remained silent. Why did doing a good deed have to be so damn difficult?

“Thought so.” Darr grimaced, his tone dry.

“You have children and women here. We’re telling you so you can take them somewhere safe,” Julia repeated.

“I have better things to do than risk my life coming here for a chat.” Sawyer added.

“Yeah, that’s the whole point, pretty boy. We don’t believe you. No one does anything for nothing anymore. Everyone’s out to get one over on everyone else while trying to stay alive. The only people surviving anymore are those who’ve learned the hard way.”

Sawyer’s gaze slid involuntarily to Beth. Darr clocked him.

“You like what you see? Wondering if it’s up for grabs?”

This was a waste of time. Sawyer shifted his feet, exasperated. It was going even worse than he’d anticipated.

Leven poked him in the side with the nose of his pulse rifle. “Don’t look like you’re risking your life. Just looks like you’re snooping around here where you don’t belong.”

“I’m not the threat. The Chittrix are.”

“Chittrix are mostly dead around here. Didn’t you see the primary hive go boom?”

Sawyer stared at Beth, ignoring Leven. “My people destroyed the primary hive, so we’re well aware of that, thanks. There are different ones, swimming in the sewers. We’re sure there is a new hive or nest.”

“He’s lying.” Beth’s voice was slick like honey.

She slid around Darr’s front, running her hand up his bicep. On tiptoe, she whispered in his ear. Sawyer strained, but they were too far away, and the rush of water obscured her words.

His jaw tightened with annoyance, frustration pulsing through him. “Fine. If you don’t want to listen to me, don’t. Give us our weapons, and we’ll go.”

Red haired, freckled-man laughed a wet, throaty rumble.

Darr stared at him. “You think we’re going to let you walk out of here now? Go running back to your people? You’re even more stupid than I thought.” He poked Sawyer in the chest with a calloused finger.

“Maybe you people have things we need?” He fingered the thick, flexible material of Sawyer’s body armor. “What is this shit anyway?” He raised an eyebrow.

Sawyer ignored him. “We already know what you have here. If we wanted what you have, we would have taken it.”

Darr let go of the body armor, his face dark. He jerked his head toward the far corner. “Get them out my sight until we decide what to do with them.”

Leven reached for Sawyer’s restrained arms but Sawyer lunged sideways, toppling the man. He dropped to his knees, his fingers stretching behind him for his knife lodged in Leven’s belt, but Beth was faster, her gun cracking down on the bones of his forearm. Pain lanced up Sawyer’s arm in teeth jarring pulses and he collapsed to his knees, grey flashes blurring his vision.

Iron hands grabbed his shoulders and hauled him to his feet.

Darr.

As soon as Sawyer’s soles connected with the dirty concrete, Darr catapulted him back to the ground with an effortless blow to the jaw.

Sawyer plummeted. Without the protection of his hands, he landed head first, his teeth piercing his tongue. He rolled, sucking in air and swallowing blood, the rough concrete crushing the soft flesh of his ear. Fuck. “There’s a certain irony in this,” Sawyer finally gasped as the pain subsided.

A solid knee connected with the space between his shoulders, pinning him to the ground while soft, female hands locked metal handcuffs around his wrists.

“Just to be on the safe side,” she murmured, her lips hot on his ear.

Beth stepped away and Darr hooked his waistband, dragging him to his feet.

Sawyer heaved in a breath composing himself and spat coppery blood into the dust. He addressed Beth directly. “You’re making a mistake.”

“Enough.” Darr shoved him toward Hardy and Julia, who were being frog-marched in the direction of some crates.

Leven kicked the back of Sawyer’s knees, forcing him to stagger forward to join the others. Sawyer risked a glance over his shoulder at Beth but she already had her back to him, following Darr.

The woman he had known was gone. He just didn’t know if it was his doing or the Chittrix.