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  “Her name’s Rachel,” Wraith told her. “She’s my younger sister. I haven’t seen her for two years. Rachel was living with adoptive parents when they took off with her. They haven’t contacted us since but I heard news they were in London.”

  “Are you planning a retrieval operation?” the Countess asked. “To get the girl back?”

  “No.” Wraith shook his head. “I just want to know if she’s OK.”

  “All right.” The fixer nodded. “I’ll need all the information you have on her and on the couple who adopted her. Names, pictures, bio details, the works.”

  “Right.” Wraith pulled out an unmarked computer disk from his bag and passed it to the fixer. She slotted it into the machine and Wraith watched as a blur of details flickered across the screen. When the transfer of information had been completed the fixer tapped a few keys to bring up Rachel’s image.

  “I’ll have this sent out to some contacts,” she told him. “That way we should find out something. But it’s strange that the girl doesn’t appear on the net. There should at least be school records.”

  “Yeah,” Wraith agreed. His gaze was fixed on the picture. Rachel looked like any other kid: brown hair in a neat bob, big shining brown eyes, and a crooked grin. But Wraith knew it was crucial that he find her, and not just because she was his sister.

  “When I’ve had some initial reports in we can decide whether or not to hire some people to search more actively,” the Countess told him. “That should be in a few days. But I’ll need a basic fee now.”

  “How much?”

  “Five hundred,” the fixer told him and Wraith nodded. The price might be a little high, but he needed the Countess’s support more than he needed to haggle over money.

  “OK,” he agreed and reached for a cred card.

  • • •

  It had taken Kez two minutes to get into the flitter. He hadn’t been able to catch sight of the owner’s code but the flitter was an old model and it was easy to force the hatch open. It was done before the guard further down the walkway had noticed anything untoward—and there was nothing suspicious about Kez getting into the flitter when he had arrived in it. Once inside the boy cast a practiced eye over the controls. The white-haired guy had operated it clumsily but Kez had driven this kind of craft many times before. He powered up the main drive and watched with satisfaction as the control panel lit up. Then he frowned. The console’s view screen was fizzing strangely although it had been working normally on the way to the fixer’s building. He punched a few buttons to get an image but nothing worked. Shrugging, he decided to take the flitter up without the screen; the front window showed enough without it. He reached for the controls and froze as a voice rang out of the speakers.

  “If you’re serious about stealing this flitter, prepare for the ride of your life.”

  “What?” Kez looked around quickly but there was no room for anyone to hide in the tiny craft. “Who is that?”

  “Wouldn’t you like to know?” the voice came back at him. It was a girl’s voice and she was laughing. Kez sneered.

  “Whoever you are, you ain’t gonna do nothing on the other side of a com channel,” he told it and grabbed the controls. The flitter lifted off the bridge smoothly and then Kez was thrown back in his seat as it leaped forward into the air. He was no longer holding the controls but the flitter swept easily past the buildings, faster than he’d ever seen one move before. Laughter was ringing in his ears and the voice spoke through it.

  “But I’m not on the other side of a com channel,” it said and the flitter went into a wild spin. Kez clung to the sides of his seat, clutching for the safety harness as he was whipped around by the gyrations of the craft. Once he had the clasps snapped in place he grabbed the controls again, but the entire panel was dead. He let go, recognizing the futility of the attempt, as the flitter came out of its spin and streaked upward through the city’s levels. It was the fastest ride Kez had ever taken and to his surprise he found himself enjoying it. He whooped in delight as he sped past the hazards of the metropolis.

  Then a siren went off, and, looking back, Kez saw two flitters start in pursuit.

  “Seccies,” he warned automatically.

  “I see them,” the voice told him and the flitter dived. The screen sprang into life to display the back view from the craft and Kez watched as within seconds the Security Services vehicles were left behind. As soon as they were out of sight the flitter assumed a more usual speed as it coasted through the city.

  “That was wild.” The boy grinned. “I ain’t never seen driving like that.”

  “Thank you,” his companion replied, and suddenly a girl’s face appeared on the screen. She was older than him, about fifteen, with a fierce grin. She bent her head in a mocking bow as Kez stared.

  “You really are something,” Kez said, impressed.

  “Of course,” she replied.

  “But if you’re controlling this hunk of junk, where are you?” he asked suspiciously. “It’s impossible. No one can do that. It’s like magic.” Then he tensed. “You’re not some kind of freak, are you?” The screen fizzed and the image disappeared abruptly. The flitter touched down on one of the walkways and the driver’s door hissed open, obviously a sign for him to leave.

  Kez realized he had made a mistake. He looked out into the night. He wasn’t far from his usual patch and it wouldn’t take him long to get back there. But something about the mysterious ghostlike stranger and now this other ghost in the machine had caught his imagination. He stayed firmly in his seat.

  “Hey, calm down,” he told the fizzing screen, hoping no one would pass and see him talking to a flitter. “I didn’t mean to offend you, but I never met a Hex before.”

  “Are you intending to broadcast the information to the entire neighborhood?” the girl’s voice asked coldly, her words a confirmation of his suspicions.

  “You opened the door, not me,” Kez reminded her. The door stayed open and he looked hopefully at the screen. “Why don’t we start this whole thing again?” he offered. “I’m Kez,” he said leaning toward the screen hopefully. The door slid shut and after a moment the screen came to life again.

  “I’m Raven,” the girl told him, as the flitter took off. “The guy you were about to steal this flitter from is my brother, Wraith.”

  “I wouldn’t have got much for it.” Kez shrugged. “It’s a real old model.”

  “Wraith won’t be too pleased about you trying to steal it at all,” Raven said. “Especially after he gave you nearly a hundred credits.”

  “Could you maybe not tell him?” the boy suggested.

  “Maybe.” Raven grinned. “Since you survived the ride.” She winked at him. “But don’t try to cheat him again, OK?”

  “Sure thing,” Kez agreed as the flitter touched down in the same spot it had occupied before. “Hey, Raven, when do I get to meet you in person?”

  “Tonight, if you can find Wraith a safe place to stay,” she told him as the door opened again. Kez got ready to get out, but Raven’s voice called him back. “And, Kez, don’t tell him anything about this. That I spoke to you, or that you know what I am, OK?”

  “I scan.” Kez saluted the screen and Raven winked again before her image dissolved. Kez sat grinning back at the screen until he realized he had better get out of the flitter before Wraith got back.

  • • •

  When Wraith returned, Kez was leaning against the side of the flitter in the same position as when he had left, watching him with intent hazel eyes.

  “Business OK?” he asked as Wraith approached.

  “Yeah, I think so,” Wraith replied. “Anyone try to steal the flitter?”

  “Not with me here,” Kez told him but felt an unusual pang of guilt as he caught the cred coin he was tossed. “Hey, friend,” he said, as Wraith keyed open the flitter doors, “you got someplace to stay tonight?”

  “Not yet.” Wraith looked at the boy in some surprise as he got back into the car, but d
ecided he was hoping for more money.

  “I’ll show you a place,” Kez offered, “if I can hang with you a while.”

  “You will?” Wraith got into the flitter and watched as Kez swung quickly into the passenger seat. He didn’t want any additional burdens on this trip and he opened his mouth to refuse when a voice buzzed from his transceiver, too low for Kez to hear.

  “Accept the offer, brother. The sooner you find a place, the sooner I can meet you.”

  “OK,” Wraith said, in response to both his sister and Kez. “Where to?”

  • • •

  The place Kez directed him to was a shabby flophouse deep within the slum district but not part of gangland. It was a dismal area, most of the buildings derelict. The room Wraith and Kez were given was probably better than most. It possessed three beds, made up with grubby sheets, a rickety table and chairs, and a computer unit with a vidscreen. Its only window was boarded up and a second door led to a small bathroom. Wraith dumped his bag by one of the beds and Kez seated himself on another.

  “How come you asked for three beds?” he asked, and Wraith looked at him sharply.

  “I’m meeting my sister,” he said shortly.

  “You going to call her and tell her where you are?” Kez asked, and Wraith shook his head quickly.

  “No need. I have a tracking device so she can find me.” He pulled out a cred card from his jacket and held it out to Kez. “Why don’t you go get something for us to eat?” he suggested, hoping to be able to avoid the boy’s questions for a while. “Get enough for three.”

  “OK.” Kez took the card. “What do you want?”

  “Anything.” Wraith shrugged. “No, wait a minute.” He thought for a second. “My sister likes Chinese food.”

  “Sure thing.” Kez grinned and was gone. Wraith wondered for a moment if he had been wise to give the boy the card, which had about eight hundred credits on it. But since Kez seemed so eager to hang around with him, he was unlikely to do a flit. He lay back on his bed to wait.

  • • •

  Twenty minutes later there was a knock at the door, and without waiting for an answer, someone swung it open. Wraith sat up and then leaped to his feet as he saw his sister. She was carrying a duffel bag and dressed in black combat gear and a fringed suede jacket. Her black hair was wet and straggled into her dark eyes but she was grinning as she hugged him. Wraith hadn’t seen her since they had arrived in England three days ago. They had separated then, nominally in order to attract less attention but in actuality because Raven was used to independence.

  Wraith, Raven, and Rachel had been placed in an asylum blockhouse when their parents died. Wraith had been fifteen, Raven nine, and Rachel five. Blockhouses were safe but dreary and unpleasant, and those children unfortunate enough to end up in one dedicated all their energies to escaping. Wraith had achieved this by joining a gang, the Kali, as an enforcer. Shortly afterward Raven had also escaped. Her determination to do so had become a necessity when Raven had discovered that she was a Hex. Mutants who possessed the Hex gene were no more welcome in Denver than anywhere else in the world. Regular sweeps were made of the asylums to detect anyone who showed signs of mutant abilities. If Raven had been discovered she would have been turned over to the government for extermination. At the first opportunity Raven had made herself scarce and entered the ganglands, working as a highly efficient computer hacker.

  But neither of them was able to take care of Rachel. According to Raven she had never shown any signs of being a Hex and was therefore safe enough in the asylum for the time being. Later Wraith was relieved when a couple had requested to adopt her. He hadn’t imagined that they would abscond with Rachel. Their disappearance had impelled Wraith to take action to find them. If Rachel did turn out to be a Hex she would be in danger and he considered himself responsible for her safety. But it was not until she had been gone for two years that Wraith had had any leads about her whereabouts.

  Raven had been uninterested in his search. The fact that her life had been in danger since she was a child had affected her personality. Wraith saw her very rarely as she had become increasingly difficult to communicate with. Her moods ranged from paranoid depression to reckless hyperactivity. It had been so long since they had been close that Wraith could not be sure why Raven had agreed to accompany him to London. But he appreciated her presence. Not only was it useful to have a Hex with him, he also had a deep affection for his sister. The fact that Raven rarely appeared to reciprocate his affection worried and angered him.

  Now Raven pulled back from the hug awkwardly and ruffled her hair to cover up her reaction.

  “It’s raining really heavily out there,” she told him.

  “Here,” Wraith offered, throwing her a blanket from his bed. “Use this.”

  “Thanks.” Raven wrinkled her nose. “It’s not very clean, is it?” She glanced round at the room dismissively.

  “The Hilton was booked up,” Wraith replied wryly as Raven started to rough-towel her hair.

  “So I see,” she said, her voice muffled by the blanket. “What happened to your friend?”

  “I sent him to get something to eat—he was asking too many questions.”

  “Oh.” Raven’s head re-emerged and she began to comb her hair absently with her fingers.

  “We should get rid of him,” Wraith urged. “He’s the most mercenary child I’ve ever met and completely amoral. He’d sell his own soul for a few credits.”

  “He’s a streetrat, Wraith,” his sister said flatly. “Money’s all that stands between them and the abyss. You’re mercenary too, you’ve just become inured to it.” Finishing with her hair she walked over to the wall terminal and started punching buttons. “This is really ancient,” she protested.

  “It’s operative,” Wraith said shortly, not allowing her to change the subject. “What about the kid?”

  “We’ll discuss it later,” Raven replied. Then she smiled and pulled out a flat package from her jacket. “Here, this is for you. Your new identity.”

  “Thank you.” Wraith took the package and opened it. Inside was a neat stack of cards. Three bank cred cards and an ID card. The ID card had the name Ryan Donahue printed neatly under an image of Wraith; the same was on the three certified cred cards. Wraith examined the ID card carefully. “What else is coded into this?”

  “You’re an American freelance holovid producer,” Raven told him. “Media people always look like gangers.”

  “What about you?” Wraith asked.

  “I’m Elizabeth Black, a researcher for a fictional US vidchannel,” she told him. “We can use the IDs together or separately.”

  “Clever,” Wraith commented.

  “I’m glad you approve,” Raven was saying when they heard footsteps outside the door and a knock.

  “Come in,” Wraith called and Kez entered.

  It was obviously still raining outside as Kez was soaking wet, but he was carrying two large paper bags, which he held out triumphantly as he came in. Raven swooped on them before Kez had even shut the door. He watched as she unpacked the plastic cartons of Chinese food quickly. She looked older than her computer image and less approachable. But she had the same mocking smile and her black hair fanned out in a silky cloud around her face. She and Wraith were like the positive and negative versions of the same photograph; their features were almost identical but the colors were reversed.

  Raven made no mention of their earlier meeting, introducing herself only as Wraith’s sister. Wraith seemed unwilling to discuss anything with Kez but Kez’s questioning eventually elicited the information from Raven that they were trying to hunt down their younger sister.

  “But I’m going to make some contacts while I’m here,” she added, chasing a grain of rice with her chopsticks. “I might come with you the next time you visit the Countess, Wraith.”

  “I told her you were a hacker,” Wraith said diffidently. “She might offer you work.”

  “That’s not a problem.” Raven
shrugged. “I could use the credits.”

  “Are you going to log on again now?” Wraith asked as Raven got up from the table.

  “Later,” she told him. “I’ve got to get some rest first.” She unlaced her large black army boots and lay down on the bed fully dressed. She was asleep in under a minute and Kez looked at Wraith in surprise.

  “She’s a heavy sleeper,” he explained. “Don’t worry, you won’t wake her.” He got up and headed toward the bathroom. “I’m going to take a shower—don’t steal anything.”

  “Hey!” Kez began, but Wraith had already left. He grimaced at the closed door. Wraith had obviously decided that he wasn’t to be trusted without even knowing about his attempt to make off with the flitter and despite the fact that Kez had returned the cred card. Sullenly he pulled a chair in front of the computer unit and idly punched buttons to operate the vidscreen. He could get only a few channels and he flipped through them several times before switching the unit off again. Raven was still out of it and Kez decided to follow her example. He didn’t bother to take off his boots, crawling under the covers and wrapping himself tightly in the thin blankets. By the time Wraith returned from the bathroom Kez was already half asleep.

  2

  PROPHETIC GREETING

  Raven had slept dreamlessly for two hours when the sound of an alarm going off somewhere outside jerked her awake. Kez and Wraith were still fast asleep, the boy wrapped in a cocoon of blankets, Wraith tossing uneasily on top of his bed. Raven got out of bed and crossed to the computer unit. The alarm had already ceased its wail but since she was awake she might as well take the opportunity to hack in privately. She wasn’t solitary by nature, although she knew that was what her brother believed, but she was wary about being observed in the symbiotic connection she had with computers. No one could mistake Raven for an ordinary hacker when she was working for real. She could, if she chose, act like an ordinary user, her fingers flying soundlessly across the keypad to perform the necessary operations. But she found it a tedious and distasteful method. Now she let her hands rest lightly on the keypad and closed her eyes as her consciousness entered the computer.