UnBound - Neal Shusterman Page 0,110

reaches up and grips the biobandage that covers Argent’s faceless half. “I could rip this off you right now.”

It’s a terrifying threat—because a biobandage is more than just dressing: It grows into the surrounding tissue to protect the wound. If he rips it off, the pain will be unbearable.

Argent still remembers his martial arts moves. He could have Malik in a choke hold in an instant, cutting off his oxygen and rendering him unconscious. If he holds it long enough, Malik could be left with irreversible brain damage—which might be exactly what he needs. But who is Argent kidding? He’ll just get rewound brain bits to replace the damage. On the other hand, perhaps those brain bits will be better than the ones Malik came with.

Argent never gets the chance to find out, because Dagmara comes to the door. “Am I interrupting?” she asks.

Malik takes his hand from Argent’s bandage. “Just having a friendly chat,” Malik says, and saunters off, leaving his mother to talk business.

“I have a proposal for you, Skinner,” Dagmara says. “Listen carefully, because I’m about to make you very rich. . . .”

• • •

The instant Dagmara leaves, Argent goes to Divan’s quarters, making sure that no one sees him. He knocks urgently, and Divan lets him in.

“I take it that this is important, or you wouldn’t be disturbing me.”

“Very important, sir.”

Then Argent shows him the vial that Dagmara gave him. “She said she’d give me a million dollars to pour this into your espresso at breakfast tomorrow morning.”

Divan doesn’t seem surprised, just disappointed. “You realize she wouldn’t have given you a dime. Most likely she’d kill you.”

“Most likely she’d have Malik kill me,” Argent says. Divan doesn’t disagree.

Divan opens the vial and sniffs it, thinks for a moment, then replaces the stopper and hands the vial back to Argent. “Do it,” Divan says.

“You . . . you want me to poison you?”

“Certainly not. But I have no qualms about you putting it in someone else’s espresso. Whoever you like. I trust your judgment.”

The idea that Divan trusts him with anything—especially something as serious as this—is a surprise to Argent.

“You’re asking me to be your assassin.”

“The Eastern world calls such assassins ninjas. Many of them serve as personal aids to their masters. Is this a position you can rise to, Argent?”

It’s the first time he can remember Divan calling him Argent instead of Skinner.

“Yes I can,” says Argent. “And you don’t need to give me a million bucks, either.”

“Perhaps I will,” Divan tells him. Then adds. “In time . . . in time.”

6 • Malik

Malik has to admit the plane is as amazing as he thought it would be, and his own prospects are even more thrilling. His brother, the philosopher, wants no part of the family business. That leaves Malik first in line to inherit it all. His mother knows Malik is the strongest link in the family chain, which is why she’s brokered this deal with the Dah Zey.

If we play our cards right, you’ll be running the Dah Zey one day, she told him. Merging with them isn’t a matter of surrendering, it’s infiltrating, and these Burmese fools are too stupid to see it!

In the meantime, however, he’ll settle for the Lady Lucrezia and its airborne harvest camp. But when he’s in charge, things will be different. For one thing he’ll have a proper staff—and his first order of business will be to jettison the half-faced freak right out the Sayonara Hatch into oblivion.

Such are Malik’s musings when his uncle pays him a visit.

“Skinner tells me you have an interest in seeing UNIS in action,” Uncle Divan tells him.

Malik is cautious. “He told you that?”

“Yes—he doesn’t have access, so he asked if I could do it. I’d be happy to.”

Malik sits up, unable to hide his excitement. “Thanks, Uncle Divan.”

“Don’t mention it. But before we go into the harvest drum, you’ll need to put these on.”

He tosses Malik a one-piece garment that looks like long underwear, only heavier. As Malik examines it, he sees that it’s made of metal. A very finely woven chain mail.

“What for?”

“For your own protection, of course.”

Malik quickly dons the metallic one-piece and follows his uncle to the front of the jet, where the automated harvesting unit awaits.

“Can I watch an unwinding?”

“Of course,” says his uncle cheerily. “I think you’ll find it an eye-opening experience.”

7 • Divan

The Lady Lucrezia lands in Kamchatka at dawn. Several hundred stasis containers are unloaded—the result of twelve unwindings that took place in flight.