CHAPTER 81
LET THAT SIT on the air for a moment. “Mind explaining?”
“Yeah.” Christopher came over to where I was. So did the other guys. Meaning Kozlow was surrounded. Therefore, I could look at Christopher. It was nice to move my neck. “I took a hit when I touched the doorknob and woke up just like you found me. The others arrived pretty much as I was coming to.”
“Why were all three of them zapped? Only takes one to open the door.”
“They were all holding hands,” Kozlow said. “The current traveled. The A-C and the human, they just dropped. But the other one . . . he’s an android, right?”
“Yeah, he is.”
“I hadn’t intended to use suspended animation, but he was shorting out, herking and jerking everywhere. So, I gave it a try to see if I could get him to stop short-circuiting. It seemed to help. So, I put the others in suspended animation, too. In part so Nerida couldn’t tie them up to more equipment. One set up that way was more than enough.”
“So, let me be sure I understand this, but you did what you could to save the android?” He nodded. “Why?”
He eyed Jeff. “I’d lie, but why bother? The boss wants hostages, and an android is a great addition to any crew. I figured if things went badly, I could offer him to Mister Gadhavi.”
Jeff was growling. “How noble.”
“Look, I’m not on your side, okay? Stop acting like this is some sort of surprise, that I might not be doing everything for altruistic reasons.” He shot me a look similar to the ones I’d given him when talking about Nerida as “Another Version Of The Truth” by Nine Inch Nails came on my airwaves. “Is it only clear to you?”
“Potentially. Let’s wake up the human and the A-C and make sure they’re feeling extremely well. If they’re not, we’ll need Tito to gate it over here faster than fast.”
“I already have him ready and waiting,” Tim said.
“I need to stand up,” Kozlow said. “I need to concentrate to not release all three of them at once.”
We let him stand and moved en masse with him as he stepped over to the bodies. It was clear he was concentrating. Jeremy lowered to the ground and the glow around him disappeared. His eyes fluttered, then opened. “Where am I?”
Jeff helped him up. “Who am I?”
“Ah, the President? Jeff Martini? Don’t you remember?” Jeremy sounded worried.
“How are you feeling?” I asked him.
“Like I’ve been trampled by elephants. What happened?”
“Tell you in a minute. Russell, well done. On to the next.”
Kozlow concentrated again and Buchanan was lowered. The glow left him. But his eyes didn’t flutter. “Time for CPR?” Jeff asked worriedly. Kozlow stepped closer and Jeff stepped in front of him. “Just what do you think you’re doing?”
“I think he might need more than CPR.” He looked at me. “I’m clear I die if he does.”
I nodded. “Give him his chance.”
Kozlow knelt down and put his hands on Buchanan’s chest, in the same places a doctor would put the defibrillators. The way Buchanan’s body bucked it was clear that Kozlow was acting as a human defibrillator, too.
But it worked. Buchanan coughed and opened his eyes. “What the hell?” He grabbed Kozlow by the neck. Siler pried Buchanan’s hand off and I pulled Kozlow out of the way. “Let me at him,” Buchanan growled.
“It’s okay,” Siler said soothingly. “We’re in control of the situation.”
“Malcolm, he just saved your life.”
“After almost killing us? I think, at any rate.” Siler and Jeff helped Buchanan up. He looked around. “Damn it. We got hit with electric current, didn’t we?”
“Yeah.”
“How’s Butler?”
“As to that . . . Russell, how long can you keep him in suspended animation and what’s your range?”
“I can keep him like that as long as I’m conscious, but my range isn’t far.”
“Call Dulce, we need a crash team here that can deal with John’s situation. Not sure that’s Tito.”
“It’s not,” Tim said. “But I have that team standing by, too, and I’ve described the situation. When do you want them?”
“Russell, any issues with us using a gate of our own?”
“No. I’m the only one who can prevent it. And I won’t,” he added quickly.
“Smart man. Tim, right about now would be peachy, then.”
A floater gate appeared and a set of Dazzlers with a gurney exited. There was just enough room for them in this area, but only just. Christopher and Jeff each took hold of one of Kozlow’s arms.
The gurney had a metal pod-coffin-type thing on it, one with the top half of the lid made of glass, so you could see the head and torso of whoever was inside. It was blinking in various places on the inside as well. Hadn’t seen something like this before, but assumed it had been created for Butler and probably our other in-control android, Mrs. Maurer’s son, Cameron.
“We need to get him into the containment pod,” the Head Dazzler said to Reader. Who looked at Kozlow.
“I can concentrate better when two big guys aren’t trying to rip my arms off.”
My music changed to Billy Joel’s “A Matter of Trust.” “Let him go,” I said. Jeff and Christopher both shot me suspicious and worried looks, but they did let go.
Kozlow stepped forward. “Thanks.” His brow furrowed and Butler lifted up slowly. The Dazzler opened the pod’s lid. It totally made the swooshing sound I was expecting, too.
Kozlow lowered Butler into the pod. “Take him out now or wait?” he asked the Head Dazzler.
“Wait, if you can.”
“Not sure if the pod will block me, but I’ll do my best.”
She closed the lid. Could tell that the suspended animation thing was still going on. The Dazzlers hit some sleek buttons on the outer part of the pod. “Now, please,” the Head Dazzler said.
Kozlow nodded and the suspended animation went away. Held my breath as the lights inside the pod started blinking at a furious rate.
“If he dies . . .” Jeff growled.
“I know, I know,” Kozlow said. “I die. Got it. Look I’m still concentrating, okay?”
“On what?” Reader asked him.
“On helping.”
Could tell that most of the guys wanted to make a sarcastic remark of some kind, but Kozlow was ignoring them, and I could tell he was focused. Finally, the lights stopped flashing frantically and started going on and off in unison, and at a much slower rate. They seemed timed like breaths, lighting up when breathing in, fading out when exhaling.
The Dazzlers all relaxed. “Thank you,” the Head Dazzler said to Kozlow. “He needed the extra boost.”
“Will John be okay?” I asked.
She nodded. “We have to get him home and rebooted. But he should be himself soon.”
“If any of his circuits,” pointed to Kozlow, “will be useful, he’ll gladly donate them.”
This earned me a dirty look from Kozlow, chuckles from the four human guys, and blank looks from the A-Cs. “Ah, thank you,” the Head Dazzler said, sounding confused. “We’ll let you know.”
“Check these two,” Jeff indicated Buchanan and Jeremy, “before you go. Electric shock.”
“Christopher, too. He was not only electric shocked but soaking in water for far too long.”
The Dazzlers checked them all over, including using an OVS, which, under the circumstances, was wise. Once all three guys were given a reasonably clean bill of health, and they sprayed something on Christopher’s feet and lower legs to presumably get him de-pruned, the Dazzlers took their android patient back through the floater gate, which then shimmered out of view.
My music changed to “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” by the Pet Shop Boys, proving that Algar and I were on the same wavelength.
“Well, that was fun, and I’m hella relieved that John’s going to be okay. Speaking of which . . . Russell, I have a question for you, keeping in mind that all that’s gone on with John, Malcolm, and Jeremy just now merely means I don’t kill you ugly and leave you for the maintenance crew to clean up.”
“Okay.”
“What do you think you can give me that would make me not want to kill you at all?”
“Huh?”
“Okay, it’s more of a riddle. What would you think I’d want?”
Saw what I hoped was the light dawn for Kozlow. “What will you give me if I tell you? Going back to the supermax under the Pentagon isn’t going to make me want to give you anything.”
“It would mean you’re still alive.”
“It would mean they give me back to Israel, because with what I assume you want, I won’t have any value left. They’ll get what they can out of me about G-Company, and then I’ll be tossed back to Mossad to be their new chew toy. If that’s what you’re offering, I’ll choose you shooting me in the head right now.”
“Oh my God,” Christopher muttered, “this guy speaks Kitty.”
“He might, he might indeed. Tell you what, Russell. You give me what you think I want to know, and if it’s what I do want, then I’ll tell you what’s behind Door Number Three. Could be an all expenses paid trip to a luxury prison, or it could be death. Time to play Let’s Make a Deal.”