Bearard wiggled in my grip, and I realized how tightly I’d started holding him. With a whispered apology, I set him on the desk next to the computer. Ani prowled over, wrapping his tail around my leg as I checked on the status of the red dots. They didn’t get tired or have pesky standard eyes, so it wouldn’t take them as long as it did us.

With some time left to kill before they arrived, I browsed through the other programs on the computer, able to figure most of them out by their descriptive titles. Bored, I looked at the source code of one titled ‘order_to_location.’

I tapped my fingernail against the mouse as I considered the possibilities.

“It’s going to get crowded in here quickly. Should I send some up to help Mattie?”

“Good idea, Hayden,” Bearard agreed.

Cove, who’d found spare wires and used them as cat toys, had to ask me to repeat the question. “Might as well.”

Rather than a few, I ordered them all to stop here before heading to stand guard outside the Mayor's house, doing my best to replicate the original storyline.

With that done, there was nothing else to do on the computer, and I settled over by Cove, taking a wire of my own. Ani lunged at it, and I turned my attention between him and the red dots on the far screen as we waited. Bearard, not wanting to get torn to shreds by the cats, perched up on Cove’s shoulder this time.

Cove’s hand stilled. Ranch pried the wire from his hand, darting off with it. Ani followed close behind, tackling her to the ground. My spine tingled.

“He doesn’t see you hiding behind the stalagmite,” he warned as footsteps collided against the stone in the hallway. Cove snatched Bearard off his shoulder, shoving him into my arms and pushing me toward the work desk.

Taking his prediction at face value, I crouched down, placing my feet as quietly as I could as I moved to hide behind them and tucking myself against the one that stretched above my head and ducking down to peer between it and another stalagmite.

Polished new leather shoes and pressed black pants punched out of the shadows, stopping close enough that I dared not breathe in their direction, less my breath brushing against his skin revealed my position. The Mayor’s voice boomed through the cavern. “So, he was right. You did come back.”

“I had something I needed to do.” I couldn’t see Cove from where Bearard and I hid, but he didn’t sound concerned. He was indeed in his element without the need to lie and a foolproof plan.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

The Mayor took another couple of steps forward, his feet disappearing behind the stalagmite. I shoved my face further into the rock, straining to see him better.

“And that something involves recalling my robots?” The Mayor sounded furious.

“Yes.”

I set Bearard on the ground, where he’d stay hidden, and slowly rose from my crouch, peering out at the scene. The Mayor’s ears turned purple with rage, and he pulled something metallic out of his pocket. A gun.

He aimed the gun at Cove’s chest, and a terrible sense of unease befell me. I wasn’t sure when, but he was going to shoot. I rummaged in my pocket and along the floor, searching for some kind of weapon. Nothing. I’d left them all in my bookbag.

“I can’t let you do that,” the Mayor said, his finger hovering above the trigger.

From behind the stalagmite, I caught Cove’s eye. He held my gaze for a second, faith shining through. Faith in what, I wasn’t sure. Me?

He turned his attention back to the Mayor, who hesitated. “Where’s your friend? Gale said you both had returned.”

So that coward had sold us out. I wasn’t sure if I was disappointed or disgusted.

Sweat dripped down my palms. Would Cove be able to dodge or block the bullet? I didn’t know. I slid around the side, creeping out from where I hid. I moved forward, sneaking up behind the unaware Mayor.

Cove, facing me, smiled.

The Mayor snarled, resting his finger on the trigger as he turned his head. “Where is he?”

Low on options, I tackled him. Cove dodged to the side as the deafening gun went off. The bullet bit into the wall, ricocheting off to slice through my arm. It stung.

Cove cried out, his voice muffled by the ringing in our ears.

I sat up and grasped for the gun, reaching over the grappling Mayor. I gripped the first metallic object I could find, lifting it from the floor.

It wasn’t the gun–it was Mattie’s flashlight.

The Mayor roared and adjusted underneath me. He pulled back the hammer and reached the gun up, aiming for my face. I leaned back and slammed the flashlight into his head.

He shouted something unintelligible, and the gun flashed near my cheek. Panicked, I brought the flashlight up to his hand, knocking into the weapon. There was another BANG as the impact caused him to tap the trigger, and the gun skied to the side.

The Mayor roared. Lifting with all his strength, he grabbed and flung me to the floor. Leaning over me, he used his huge, meaty hands to push my own to the ground and pry away the flashlight. His hand went up, and then the flashlight went careening down toward my cranium.

I closed my eyes, pushing against his hulking chest uselessly with my free hand. I braced myself for impact.

Nothing.

The Mayor’s grip on my left hand loosened. Taking the opportunity, I scrambled back to see Cove gripping the Mayor’s raised wrist from behind, his face furious. Single-handedly, he lifted the Mayor above his head. The Mayor’s toes scratched against the floor, searching for support.

My hand brushed against a metal object.

The Mayor kicked at Cove’s face, breaking his grip and sprawling to the ground as Cove stumbled backward. Cove and the Mayor recovered quickly, rising tall, watching and waiting for the other to make the first move. Their legs were mere feet from my face.

Not turning away from the danger before me, I wrapped my hand around the object.

The Mayor spotted me, his eyes shining with cruelty. On the floor, I was a much easier target than Cove.

The Mayor took a single step forward, closing the distance between us. The flashlight glimmered as he raised it in the light. My finger slid onto the trigger as he swung the flashlight at my head. I lifted the gun up, pointing it at him.

Panicked, I did the only thing I could think of.

BANG.

I pulled the trigger.