Seattle Run Read online

  “Where’s the storeroom?” Hickok questioned.

  “I don’t know.”

  “You’ve been here four months and you don’t know where the storeroom is?” Hickok asked in surprise.

  “Not the storeroom where they keep the weapons,” Dale said. “They’re real secretive about that. No one knows except them.”

  “Do they use weapons much?” Hickok asked.

  “No,” Dale whispered. “They prefer to use their nails in close combat.

  The overseers use whips. But I’ve never seen them use guns. I imagine they would, in a crisis. Maybe they don’t like guns because guns were a human invention.”

  “What a passel of cow chips,” Hickok commented.

  “Do you have a plan?” Dale inquired.

  “Do birds fly?”

  “That’s not much of an answer,” Dale remarked.

  “Here’s what I’m going to do,” Hickok detailed. “I intend to create a diversion to distract the overseers. Then I plan to slip out of the factory and go find the storeroom. Once I lay my hands on my Colts, these mangy varmints are done for.”

  “There are close to three hundred of the Brethen,” Dale said. “You can’t take all of them on by yourself.”

  “I might need a little help,” Hickok acknowledged. “That’s where you and the rest of the sailors come in.”

  “What do you want us to do?”

  “After I skedaddle for the storeroom,” Hickok instructed him, “make as much of a ruckus as you can. I don’t want the overseers to know I’m gone.”

  “Why don’t some of us come with you?” Dale queried.

  “It’ll be a heap easier for one hombre to reach the storeroom,” Hickok stated. “I’ll load up on guns and hurry back here. Keep your peepers peeled. When you see me, come a runnin’. By tonight, the Brethren will be twiddlin’ their gills out in the ocean—those who survive, anyway.”

  “If any survive,” Dale amended. “We’re going to kill all of the bastards we can find.”

  “Some of them are likely out rustlin’ up whales and such,” Hickok said.

  “I doubt we’ll get all of them.”

  “Just so we get Manta!” Dale stated vehemently. “I want that bastard for myself.”

  “First come, first serve,” Hickok quipped.

  “Look busy!” Dale abruptly warned, and worked on the kelp.

  Hickok did likewise.

  An overseer was walking toward them along the walkway. The mutant came abreast of their position in the kelp beds and stopped. “You!”

  Some of the other workers looked up.

  “You!” the overseer shouted. “The one in the funny clothes.”

  “He means you!” Dale whispered to the gunman.

  Hickok straightened. “Are you talkin’ to me, Fish Lips?”

  “You’re the one in the funny clothes,” the mutant said.

  Hickok moved toward the walkway, looking down at himself. Buckskins were typical attire in the Midwest and the Rocky Mountain region, but he hadn’t seen one person wearing them in Seattle. Apparently, when it came to high fashion, the folks in Seattle were downright ignorant. He reached the walkway and looked up at the mutant. “What’s up, gruesome?”

  “Manta wants to see you.”

  Chapter Twenty

  “I apologize for my carelessness.”

  “You’ve already apologized. A dozen times.”

  “I allowed myself to be tricked,” Rikki said. “I was foolish.”

  Blade sighed and glanced over his right shoulder at the martial artist.

  “Would you feel any better if I agreed with you? You made a mistake. We all make mistakes. Now forget about it.”

  “I am not accustomed to making mistakes,” Rikki remarked.

  “I wish I could say that,” Blade said.

  “Shut up!” one of their escorts barked. “Both of you!”

  Ten Sharks were taking the Warriors to a meeting with Tiger. They had arrived at the cell minutes ago and announced that Tiger wanted the prisoners brought before him. The Sharks had prudently bound the Warriors and removed Blade’s Bowies. Four of the Sharks were walking in front of Blade, the rest behind Rikki. Six of the ten carried rifles.

  Tiger wasn’t taking any chances.

  Despite his predicament, Blade marveled at the outstanding artwork they passed in the corridors.

  They climbed a short flight of stairs and entered an enormous chamber.

  In contrast to all of the other rooms in the museum, this chamber was devoid of artistic masterpieces. It was filled with Sharks, standing room only. They were jammed into a compact mass surrounding a cleared space in the center. At the sight of the Warriors, the conversation level rose.

  “Make way!” the head of the escort bellowed.

  The throng parted to permit the escort to pass.

  Tiger was awaiting them in the middle of the chamber.

  his hands on his hips, a smile on his lips. To his right was Gar, to his left Fab, both bearing their shotguns. Fab also wore Rikki’s katana, the scabbard angled under her belt above her left hip.

  “Welcome, contestants!” Tiger called out.

  As they emerged from the crowd, Blade spied the arrangement behind Tiger and the twins. A long, narrow wooden rail had been positioned horizontally on stout upright posts. Under the 20-foot rail, and on all sides, projecting upward from the tiled floor, were dozens and dozens of sharp metal spikes.

  Tiger scanned the Sharks. “Are you ready for a little excitement?”

  “Yes!” they chorused back.

  Tiger grinned at Blade. “I trust you will not disappoint them. Try to put on a good show.”

  Blade nodded at the rail and the spikes. “What is this?”

  Tiger chuckled. “I told you I need a workout. This is how I exercise, how I keep my reflexes at their peak.”

  “What does all of this have to do with us?” Blade asked.

  “Everything,” Tiger said. “You or your friend will be the featured attraction.”

  “Doing what?” Blade inquired.

  Tiger smirked. “Staying alive, I’d imagine.” He pointed at the rail. “Do you know what that is?”

  “No,” Blade admitted.

  “That’s a balance beam,” Tiger disclosed. “The exact kind they used before the war. You or your friend will be on the balance beam with me.

  The object is to walk from one end to the other without falling off. One of us will, and one of us won’t.”

  Blade stared at the spikes under the beam and encircling it. Some of those spikes were a foot in length, others slightly shorter.

  Tiger gazed in the same direction. “Those spikes were extremely difficult for our metalworkers to construct. Imbedding them in the floor was nearly as hard.”

  Blade looked at the Shark leader. “Don’t go through with this,” he warned.

  “Why not?”

  “You might die,” Blade said.

  Tiger threw back his head and laughed. “I might die? Your fear is showing, Blade!”

  Rikki glanced at the beam, then at Blade. “Permit me.”

  “No,” Blade said.

  “I am smaller,” Rikki stated.

  “So?”

  “My feet are much smaller than yours,” Rikki noted. “To me, walking on the beam will be like walking on a fallen tree. To you, it will be like walking on a toothpick. I am more likely to retain my footing.”

  “I’ll do it,” Blade insisted.

  Tiger leaned toward them. “Gentlemen! Please! This argument is unnecessary. Each of you will have the opportunity to show your prowess on the beam. One of you will try with me tonight, the other at a later date.”

  “I will do it,” Blade declared.

  Tiger shrugged. “Suit yourself. Personally, I was hoping you would be the one.” He rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

  Blade extended his arms. “Am I supposed to do this with my wrists tied?”

  “Not at all,” Tiger said. “I s
aid I would be fair.” He stared at the burly head of the escort. “Untie him.”

  Rikki held his wrists up. “What about me?”

  “What about you?” Tiger retorted. “Your wrists stay tied.”

  Fabiana frowned.

  Blade studied the balance beam as the burly Shark untied him. When his wrists were free he rubbed them to fully restore his circulation.

  “Any questions?” Tiger asked the Warrior.

  “What are the rules?” Blade queried.

  “Rules?” Tiger repeated, and laughed. “There are no rules. The contest is simple. You climb on one end of the balance beam, I climb on the other.

  The first one to reach the opposite end alive wins.”

  “There’s not enough room for us to pass each other without falling off,” Blade mentioned.

  Tiger smirked. “Acute, aren’t you? You are permitted to do whatever is necessary to get past your opponent.”

  “And the one who falls off lands on the spikes,” Blade commented.

  “Exactly,” Tiger stated. “Only one of us will win. Only one of us will be alive when it’s all over.”

  Blade looked at the Shark leader. “Whose warped idea was this? Yours?”

  Tiger did a mock bow. “I claim all the credit. After I became leader, after I had silenced all my opposition. I became bored with the routine.

  Without stimulation, without challenges, even a superior man languishes.”

  “How many have you murdered on this thing?” Blade asked.

  “I don’t murder anyone,” Tiger responded testily. “Everyone has a fair chance.” He paused, chuckling. “Of course, my reflexes and sense of balance are superb. Nature’s gifts, you might say. And I am not to blame if others are not so gifted.”

  “You didn’t answer me,” Blade pressed the Shark. “How many have you… killed on this beam of yours?”

  Tiger shrugged. “Who keeps count? Two or three dozen, I’d estimate.”

  Blade stared into Tiger’s eyes. “Your reign of abuse and murder ends here and now.”

  “Ohhhh! I’m trembling in my boots!” Tiger said mockingly.

  Blade took a step toward the balance beam. “Let’s get this over with.”

  “Hold it,” Tiger said. “Don’t you want your Bowies?”

  “I get to use my Bowies?” Blade asked in disbelief.

  Tiger nodding, glancing at the burly Shark. “Cover him. Then give him his knives.”

  Five Sharks trained their rifles on the Warrior.

  The burly Shark walked over to the man who had carried the Bowies from the cell, took them, and returned the knives to the giant.

  Blade hefted his prized Bowies, smiling. “You just made a mistake,” he said to Tiger.

  “Did I?” Tiger rejoined. His hands disappeared behind his back, and when they reappeared a moment later he held a gleaming dagger in each palm.

  “Good,” Blade said. “I want this to be fair too.”

  Tiger turned toward the assembled Sharks. “Are you ready?” he yelled.

  “Yes!” they thundered.

  “Then let the contest commence!” Tiger shouted. He nodded at Blade, then threaded a path between the spikes to the far end of the balance beam.

  Blade wondered how the Shark leader would mount the beam. The top of the balance beam was about five feet off the floor.

  Tiger paused, deposited his daggers on the beam, and quickly removed his boots and socks. He picked up the gold-handled daggers, took one step backwards from the end of the beam, then gave a little hop and a jump, placing his closed hands on the edge of the beam for support, the dagger blades pointing outward.

  Blade was impressed. Tiger’s motions were fluid and graceful, his strength incredible. The Shark leader sailed up over the end of the beam, his body doubling in half, his feet alighting on the narrow beam as he straightened.

  Some of the Sharks cheered.

  Blade leaned toward Rikki and lowered his voice to a whisper. “I hate to sound like a sore loser, but if this madman should win, would you do me a favor?”

  “Anything,” Rikki promised.

  “Kill him,” Blade stated.

  “Will you two quit arguing over which one is going to do this!” Tiger impatiently called out. “Blade, tell your little friend he can have his chance after I dispose of you, if he wants.”

  Rikki smiled at Blade, then looked at Tiger. “Glad to!” he responded.

  Blade nodded at Rikki, then faced the balance beam. His stomach muscles tightened as he moved to the beam. There was scarcely room to place his boots between the spikes, and he couldn’t help but notice their razor points.

  “Don’t take all day!” Tiger taunted the Warrior.

  Blade reached the near end of the balance beam. He rested his Bowies on top, then emulated Tiger’s example by stripping off his boots and black socks.

  Tiger folded his arms across his chest.

  Blade gripped the Bowies, carefully rested his wrists on the top of the beam, then bent his knees and vaulted upward. He nearly missed. His buttocks came down on the very edge of the beam, and he would have toppled backwards onto the spikes were it not for the pressure of his wrists against the beam. He righted himself with a supreme effort.

  Tiger laughed. “Inferior genes at work!”

  Blade ignored the barb. He slowly brought his feet onto the beam, then, with his arms held out from his body to increase his balance, he stood.

  “Bravo!” Tiger cried, clapping with the daggers in his hands. “Bravo!”

  Blade gazed down at the spikes. There seemed to be a sea of them forming a wide circle around and under the beam. He hadn’t realized there were so many! One slip would be fatal!

  “Shall we dance?” Tiger said to the Warrior.

  “I’m not here to dance!” Blade snapped.

  “Pity.” Tiger took a casual step forward and performed a remarkable maneuver. He leaped into the air, a good two feet above the beam, executed a 360-degree turn, and landed lightly on his feet, grinning.

  Blade’s astonishment showed.

  Tiger strolled toward the center of the beam. “Tell you what I’ll do. I’ll meet you halfway. If you can make it.” He walked to the middle and halted.

  Blade shuffled toward the center. His feet felt slippery and he wobbled as he moved.

  Rikki was watching with worry in his eyes.

  Fabiana sidled next to the man in black.

  Gar edged closer to the balance beam, his finger on the trigger of his shotgun.

  The Sharks were vociferously encouraging their leader.

  Blade took all of this in out of the corner of his eyes. He concentrated on maintaining his balance as he neared Tiger.

  The Shark leader was waiting with an amused expression.

  Blade stopped when he was three feet away. He held the Bowies in front of him.

  “Finally,” Tiger said sarcastically. “I was beginning to believe you might have become lost!” He cackled.

  “Do you fight with your daggers or your mouth?” Blade retorted.

  Tiger scowled and crouched.

  Just as a commotion erupted at the entrance to the chamber. There was a lot of yelling and shoving.

  A lean, bedraggled figure burst through the crowd and raced toward the beam. He halted, inhaling deeply, out of breath from his strenuous exertion.

  Tiger straightened. “Collins! What are you doing back? I sent you to investigate that fire.”

  “We did!” Collins mumbled, having difficulty in speaking. “We’re under attack!”

  “What? By the Brethren?”

  “No,” Collins said, doubling over.

  “Look at me, you fool!” Tiger roared.

  Collins unfolded with a grunt. Sweat caked his face.

  “If it’s not the Brethren, then who?” Tiger inquired angrily.

  “Don’t know,” Collins replied breathily.

  “How many are there?” Tiger questioned urgently.

  “One,” Collins said.
>
  Tiger’s slanted blue eyes narrowed. “One? Did you say one?”

  Collins nodded.

  “How dare you! You violate the sanctity of the contest because of one man!”

  “You don’t understand!” Collins exclaimed. “We can’t stop him!”

  “Tell me everything!” Tiger commanded.

  “We went to north Seattle,” Collins detailed. “And we found the cause of the fire. Someone had piled paper and a lot of other flammable junk in the street, then lit it. That’s when we saw him.”

  “Who?” Tiger queried.

  “The big guy in the dark blue clothes,” Collins said. “He came out of an alley and told us to take him to our leader.”

  “You refused?”

  “Yeah. He said he was looking for his friends, and he suspected we knew where they were,” Collins detailed.

  “What happened then?” Tiger inquired.

  “I told him he was coming with us and to drop his weapons,” Collins answered.

  “And?”

  “He refused,” Collins said. “We tried to take him! We did! But he killed all the others!”

  Tiger’s eyes widened. “I sent fifteen Sharks with you. He killed them all?”

  Collins nodded, looking as if he wanted to cry.

  “How is it you are alive?” Tiger asked.

  “He… he stuck his machine gun to my head and made me bring him here!” Collins declared. “I didn’t want to do it! Honest!”

  Tiger’s jaw muscles twitched. “If I wasn’t on this beam…” He glanced toward the doorway. “Where is this man in blue now?”

  “Outside. Can’t you hear it?”

  Tiger raised his head.

  Man in blue? There was only one man in Seattle answering that description. Blade cocked his head, listening. From the distance arose the faint chatter of automatic gunfire.

  “The guards tried to stop him from entering,” Collins went on. “He blew them away. Reinforcements showed up, but I don’t know how long we’ll be able to hold him! I got away when he was fighting the others.”

  “This is only one guy!” Tiger remarked.

  “You haven’t seen him!” Collins responded. “He’s not human! He just wades into us like we don’t even exist! He’s not afraid of anything! And he’s even taking guns from those he kills and using them against us!”

  “Calm down!” Tiger directed. “I’m certain you are exaggerating to cover your miserable failure.”