The more he thought about it, pacing his cell with the frantic circlings of his thoughts, the more he wondered if the situation were quite as clear-cut as it appeared. After all, the pirates could have withdrawn into the hills, perhaps forced enough of a stalemate to negotiate for better terms. And just what was going to happen to those of Hendrik's men who'd surrendered? Somehow, he didn't think they'd have surrendered so easily if they believed they were going to be shot or sold as slaves on some market world of the Combine's dominions.
The whole package seemed entirely too neat. And it was too great a coincidence that Duke Ricol should land here NOW... just NOW... of all possible times and places.
The plot was smelling larger and deeper, making Grayson wish desperately that there were some way he could check up on the Red Duke. The computers at the Castle would have the records he needed, unless Hendrik's men had done a full program dump, which was unlikely. Computer records of any kind were precious as military intelligence. Hendrik's men would be going through those records, but they wouldn't have destroyed them yet
He slapped his hand against a dank stone wall, letting the sudden stinging pain steady his mind. It did no good thinking in circles like that. He would not be able to think about checking records until he got out of here. Besides, if this whole thing WERE some kind of monstrous plot, it was very unlikely that he would ever get out again. A walk down that corridor... a pistol shot behind his ear... that was a far more likely fate for the Deliverer of Sarghad.
He thought of Mara. Just when he'd been wondering if Claydon was going to betray him, all along it had been Mara, Mara and her father. A number of puzzle pieces were coming together. The trap the night he had led 50 men against the supposedly damaged Shadow Hawk had it been Stannic who had given the attack away, set them up to be ambushed? THAT suggested some sort of three-way tie between Duke Ricol, Stannic, and the pirates. Or had Stannic been cooperating with both pirates and Combine in order to ensure backing the winner?
And there was the destruction of Berenir's house, his death in that flaming ruin. It might have been chance, but Berenir had been speaking with Stannic
moments before, telling him about Grayson. Three Royal Guards had tried to take Grayson prisoner within the hour, and Berenir's house had been singled out for attack not long after that. Perhaps Mara was the connection?
They wouldn't keep him here long, Grayson decided, not now that he had become inconvenient. That stroll down the passageway could come very soon. He slumped back down on the bunk, eyes burning, face wet with tears. Well, he had certainly managed to make a mess of things.
24
Grayson awoke to a sound of thunder, distant but growing nearer. Somewhere beyond the darkened corridors of the cell area, he heard men running, and shouts. Fully awake now, he sat up, as a fine spray of plaster dust sifted down onto him from the ceiling.
The thunder came closer, a rock-splintering crash that thudded repeatedly and seemed to pound even at the wall. There was a pause in the bombardment, and then Grayson heard the harsh rattle of heavy machine guns being fired close by perhaps just outside the building. With a start, he realized that there was a battle going on out there!
There were more thundering crashes, much closer this time. Rock and shattered stone burst through the passageway outside his cell, and the lights suddenly went out In the dark, the racket seemed even more infernal, with shouts, screams, and gunshots echoing through the corridors. Then a pair of soldiers were outside his cell, dazzling his eyes with the beam from a handtorch that probed the dust-thick air.
"Lieutenant, sir! Are you all right?"
He recognized the men. Corporal Yee and a private named Thorel. Yee used an electronic key on the lock. "Quickly, sir! The Sarge is parked illegally upstairs!" Dazed, Grayson let himself be led out of the cell, past rubble and shattered walls, and up a short flight of stairs to the building's main level.
The front wall had been smashed in, and was now draped around the hull of the Locust, which squatted in the rubble approximately where the watch sergeant's desk had been until very recendy.
Lori was there, an MP-20 cradled in her arms, waving him on.
"Lori! How..."
"Later! We've got to get out of here." She turned to the corporal. "Yee! Take your squad and head back to HQ. Ill cover your withdrawal."
Grayson looked at Yee, and nodded. With things happening so quickly, he'd been letting himself be swept along by them. He knew he had to pull himself together now, take charge again of himself and then of his command. First, they needed a rendezvous, somewhere to gather the unit. "You'll get there ahead of us, Corporal. Give Sergeant Ramage a message from me. Tell him to saddle up. Pull in the perimeter, load what he can on every available vehicle, and pull out We'll assemble at Thunder Rift."