The Pyramid Chronicles: Fortuna Guard (#2)

Chapter Forty-Six: Truce

It was hard to get news while trapped in solitary confinement, but Malcolm was able to glean information from some of the sleeping altered the night after the battle.

They'd managed to kill the Apex. He had to admit he was impressed. And given that the altered now knew about Zodiac, he had no need to worry about coming up with a new escape plan. He couldn't have asked for things to play out better.

They waited a full day to come visit him in the cell block. But he knew the morning they came down exactly what they were going to do. Free him. Ask for his help.

And with the Fortuna Guard on his side, he could finally get his revenge on Andrew Hale and hunt down the pyramid fragments.

~

It was a challenge for Sam to hide his uncertainty as he and Eric walked to the cell block. He resisted the urge to hesitate at the top of the stairs. The urge to linger in front of the doors before they stepped through.

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" Eric asked.

Sam wanted to reassure him, but he couldn't bring himself to lie. "Not really. I can't believe the Newmans are letting us do this." He cast a quick glance back at the three members of the ship crew who accompanied them. Raveena trailed behind, reading something on her phone. She planned to stay back and only come in if something went wrong.

"I can't believe we were dumb enough to think Scorpion was just some dumb little army we could take down ourselves," Eric said.

"Hey, how were we supposed to know otherwise?" Sam asked. "It seems like even the altered didn't know." Truth be told, he was mentally kicking himself, too. If he were any good with his telepathy, he could have figured this out...somehow. Maybe he could have read Claudia at the warehouse and found the truth.

Sam off his frustrations. No point obsessing over that now. They had a much bigger issue to deal with. A problem that could hopefully help them solve their other problem.

The Newmans had initially insisted on coming along, too, but they had a lot of work to wrap up in the lab. And the sooner the Fortuna Guard figured out if Malcolm was really willing to help them, the better. It wasn't as if the Newmans would be able to do much if Malcolm turned on them, anyway. Sam volunteered to go, figuring he had a decent shot at fighting the guy if he was well-rested. Raveena offered too, of course, and Eric said he would tag along as 'emotional support.'

Sam still couldn't help feeling on edge as they entered the cell block.

Malcolm watched them approach his cell with a grin on his face. He didn't speak until they were standing directly in front of him.

"Well, what brings you all here today?" he asked. The smug tone made it clear he already knew.

"If you turn on us, you will not make it off this ship," Sam said. He had no idea if that was true, and looking into Malcolm's eyes, he wasn't sure that Malcolm knew either.

"I have no intentions of harming any of you," Malcolm said.

"Good." Sam glanced at the crew member to his right, who stepped forward with a key to unlock the cell. "Of course, you're going to tell us everything you said you would."

Malcolm lifted an eyebrow as the door swung open. "All right. Where would you like me to start?"

"What do you know about Zodiac?"