Renegade

Chapter sixteen

The sun was up by the time Blaise and Olivia reached Carytown. It was a small city whose inhabitants had been evacuated long ago when the CS had built the Bocholt Facility further down in the valley. The abandoned town now served as a refuge for small-time criminals and runaway AWs in need of a pit stop.

Blaise slowly drove down the deserted road, gaze jumping from building to building. Most of their windows were broken in, the outer walls covered in dirt and rust, a few sporting hastily sprayed tags. The rays of the sun were relentlessly beating down on his old Jeep, yet they seemed unable to penetrate the darkness inside the buildings.

The town was the closest thing to civilization in the facility's vicinity, so he had figured they would have a better chance of finding the pair's trail here.

Olivia was drumming her fingers on her plump thigh, nonchalantly scanning the area. Blaise frowned at her detachment, briskly wiping away the sweat accumulating on his upper lip.

"Anything?" he asked, steadily growing impatient.

"Not yet," she answered breezily, her tone grating on his nerves.

They continued driving until they reached the other side of the small town. Olivia abruptly raised a hand, signaling for him to stop. She was out of the car in the blink of an eye, crossing over to what used to be a clothing store. Blaise hopped out as well, breaking into a jog to catch up with her while cursing at the growing heat.

Entering the store, he immediately caught sight of her long, black braid in the back of the shop. She was kneeling next to a heap of white clothing, similar to the ones Gale had been wearing when they broke him out.

She raised her head, thick eyebrows lowering into a concentrated frown as her soulful green eyes stared at something he couldn't see. He remained quiet as he realized that she had caught onto their trail.

"They stopped here to get changed," she informed him, heading back out where they came from.

She crossed the street and entered a bar that had seen better days. Her fingers grazed the smooth wooden counter as she slowly circled it in order to crouch on the other side. Her eyes widened.

Olivia's ability was psychometry, which meant she could perceive residual information of objects or people. It normally manifested like a flashback or a hazy memory, but in cases like this one, where she was actively tracking people, their actual figures manifested and she could retrace their steps. She had once told them it was like watching ghosts walking about.

"They were ambushed by three people here," she explained, voice barely above a whisper. "The girl killed one."

Olivia walked away, stopping at the exit to stare at the deserted road. She absentmindedly wiped away the sweat gathering at her hairline. A pinched expression etched across her round face as she tried to sort through the multitude of information she was perceiving. She tilted her head, cherry-colored lips forming a moue of distaste.

"There was a struggle here. She killed another one, I think, then the third caught the boy," Olivia said, eyes narrowing as she approached the center of the road and crouched to place her palm on the ground. "Someone else showed up and threatened them... A woman? She... shot the third man."

Blaise saw a glowing circle appear further down the road, quickly growing into a passage that let two vehicles through. Noelani, Wake, Diana, and Howard stepped out, walking up to him. He had contacted them as soon as Olivia had locked onto their target.

They stopped beside him to observe their companion's actions, Diana absentmindedly fanning herself.

The heat was getting more and more oppressing and Blaise was seriously considering shedding the top layers of his uniform. There was the sound of distant shuffling as curious onlookers gathered in the shadows to observe the unusual sextet.

"They seem to have left with her," Olivia finished, throwing a glance over her shoulder at her companion. Surprise colored her features at the sight of the whole group. "Oh! Hey guys."

"Which way did they go?" Noelani asked.

Their youngest vaguely motioned towards the north. They all turned to look at Wake expectantly. The blond shifted until his whole body was facing the direction Olivia had pointed to and opened his mouth, releasing a high-pitched sound only audible to him.

He closed his eyes and listened to the answering reverberations that painted a detailed image of the area in the darkness behind his eyelids. He got a good grasp of the buildings surrounding them as well as the many lurkers hidden amidst them, but none corresponded to the people they were seeking.

Widening his search radius, Wake tried again. Sky-blue eyes snapped open and he shook his head.

"They're out of my reach," he said in a low voice.

A dejected look crossed Diana's features, while Noelani turned back to Olivia.

"Do you know how far they are?" she asked.

The younger woman tilted her head again, concentrating on the ghostly figures re-enacting their previous motions.

"A day's advance on us, maybe? I can't be completely sure."

Blaise lifted the white shirt he had collected from the clothing store, handing it over to Howard.

"Can you find them with this?"

The other man raised an incredulous eyebrow from behind his dark glasses.

"I'm not a dog," he answered.

"Didn't say you were," Blaise hissed impatiently, his annoyance exacerbated by the rivulets of sweat trickling down his back. "Can you or not?"

"Not with that," Howard reiterated, pulling out a device from his pocket and turning it on.

Removing his glasses, he took a close look at the image of their targets displayed on the small screen. His eyes glazed over, gradually turning white the further away he had to search.

The group patiently waited for him to finish, save for Blaise, whose mood had worsened to the point where he incinerated the piece of clothing clutched between his fingers.

Olivia gratefully accepted the bottle of water Diana handed her, taking a few gulps as she herself was still reading the figures in the hopes of finding some more useful information. Her peachy skin was covered in a sheen of sweat that wasn't exclusively due to the exertion of her abilities.

The sun was still climbing higher, the temperatures rising alongside it. Their navy uniforms were excellent for mobility, offered decent protection against firearms and were pretty effective against the cold. Heat, however, was a different story.

The three women had pulled the zipper of their vest halfway down, while Blaise had removed it entirely. Wake of the Iron Discipline seemed to be the only one willing to pretend the heat wasn't getting to him as well.

Howard's eyes suddenly turned back to their original brown.

"Found them. They're headed north-east," he said, eyeing them each in turn. "A day's advance, as Will-o'-wisp said."

Noelani glanced at Diana.

"Can you tunnel us?" she asked the Amber, who shook her head.

"I'm not familiar with the area beyond this town and it's too risky without a proper visual," the blonde answered.

Noelani heaved a frustrated sigh, addressing the Technopath she knew had been listening in since the beginning. "Gremlin?"

"It's Eros," Gale's voice spoke in all of their ears. "And I'm working on it."

"Engage in pursuit regardless," Brad said over the comm.

"Roger that," Noelani said, turning to her teammates. "You heard the man, let's go!"

They rejoined their vehicles, speeding off in the direction given by Howard, Noelani's SUV in the lead of their small procession.

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There are a lot of characters in this story and almost as many different POVs. Does it get confusing at times or am I managing to make the differences clear?