Page 69 of The Red Woman on Mars

“Hawk. What’s their end game, do you suppose?” August asked. “And why do they need Silas, who’s clearly a wildcard, when they have all of Catena’s resources at their disposal?”

Xavier spread his hands in a noncommittal gesture.

Vivian furrowed her brow. “Delilah told me Silas wouldn’t hurt her while she was carrying a genetically enhanced fetus. But … the way she said it … I think Silas doesn’t plan for her to carry the baby to term. I think—” Vivian swallowed as she realized theimplications. “I think they plan to study the fetus so they can copy the science.”

“He pits himself against the Intelligence,” August murmured. “Bold man.”

“The word you’re looking for is ‘idiotic.’ There’s nothing for it. August, we must find a way to join with the Intelligence to rescue Delilah. Silas has likely moved her by now, and we have no tech capable of tracking her on our own. The clock is ticking.” Xavier made a moue of distaste. “Strange bedfellows.”

“How?” Vivian asked. “I thought the Intelligence had no sway here.”

And how did one go about making an alliance with a sentient AI anyway?

“We use this.” August pulled from his pack a small silver orb. “Filched it from Aunt Constance’s private collection.”

“Oh … good thinking, cousin.” Xavier’s eyes gleamed as he beheld the orb.

“What is it?” Vivan asked. The orb was the size of a baseball with a large black dot in the center and smaller dots all around. It didn’t look particularly remarkable, and Vivian couldn’t see how such a thing would aid in rescuing her sister. A memory tickled in the back of her mind. Hadn’t Ivey mentioned something?

“A physical copy of the Intelligence. This device allows the Secretary to communicate directly with the Intelligence and avoid using her reverend and other augmented humans as interpreters.” August looked to Xavier. “Ready?”

“Do it,” Xavier said, and August twisted the orb’s base.

CHAPTER THIRTY

2 Sols to Presentation Day

Without warning, the orb whirled to life and buzzed out of August’s hand to hover in the air. The small black dots opened to reveal tiny cameras, and the circle flashed a bright light. “Huh, that’s strange,” said an emotionless voice. “We can’t detect any coordinates. Where’s this device located?”

August pressed a fist to his forehead and dipped his head. “You are in the Catena dome, Intelligence. We seek your help, if you’re willing to grant it.”

“August, great to see you,” the unnaturally smooth voice said. “You probably know this already, but our data access is limited in the Catena dome. We can’t detect a network.” The orb’s white light flashed between Vivian and Xavier, and she suppressed a shiver. “Vivian, so awesome to meet you at last. Welcome to Mars. We hope you’ve been enjoying yourself so far.”

“Hello,” Vivian said uncertainly. The two Martians didn’t seem to find it odd to be carrying on a conversation with a floating ball of cameras.

“Hi, Xavier. Always a pleasure.” The circle of light swiveled. “We knew you and Vivian were headed to Catena, but you hid your purpose from us, right? Would you mind unpacking that for us?”

“We came to liberate Miss Bowen’s sister from the clutches of Silas Gatlin,” Xavier replied with a trace of impatience. “In our attempt, we have learned that Silas intends to steal the technology you granted my aunt.”

“And you brought this concern to us. Thank you, Xavier. We’re so touched by your thoughtfulness. It’s great to reconnect after so long apart, right? We’ve missed you. Have you had a chance to noodle on our last conversation?”

“I try to think of it as little as possible.”

“Xavier, the only constant is change. We know what when down with your parents was tough, but we hope you know that we’re always here to be your safe space. We only want to guide you to your optimized future.”

“I cannot do this,” Xavier muttered and stepped as far back from the orb as the room would allow.

Vivian understood Xavier’s reaction. The combination of the chummy personal commentary and the emotionless voice was just plainweird.

“Got it, got it. You know we only want to help you be the best you can be, yeah?” The circle of light moved back to her face. “Vivian, help me understand. Why does Silas want our tech?”

Vivian wasn’t sure how to answer this strange creature. She swallowed a sudden bout of nerves. What did the Intelligence care about her sister’s well-being? Xavier, it seemed, had experience conversing with the Intelligence, and he was the one who’d warned her it didn’t care about the lives of Earther women. “Silas is working with the Catena militia. I think they plan to remove the fetus Delilah is carrying to study it and copy the science.”

“Interesting.” The orb moved closer to her, and she had to resist an urge to bat it away like it was an oversized bug. “Vivian, we’ve gotta be honest. We didn’t expect to find you in a separatist dome. We didn’t peg you as a risk-taker, right? When wewere recruiting American women, we asked our representatives on Earth to find pliable women who would be content with the role of Red Mothers. We only want to make sure you’re happy.”

Vivian bit back an unexpected wave of hot anger. “I think you’ll find I’m notpliable.”

“Yeah, the more we’ve been getting to know you, the more we think we were originally off base about you. But, you know, before our agents recruited you and your sister, neither of you had left the Sumter Refugee Camp in seven years, three hundred and four days.”