In an instant, the man’s face filled her field of view. It appeared to be just as sharp and bright as before. She concentrated on the man’s facial movements. When she had first regained her sight, she’d been fascinated by the interplay of lips, tongue, and teeth to form the words she’d been hearing her entire life. Soon, without even trying, she’d become an expert lip-reader.
“A lot of ‘yes sirs,’ ” she said, staring at the man. “He’s talking to a person of authority.”
“Vlad Korkil,” Lynch whispered.
“He just said there’s still no sign of Arnold, Brode, or Tomlinson. He says he can’t find them.”
“And he won’t,” Lynch whispered. “I made sure to get rid of those bodies.”
Jessie tapped Stevie on the shoulder. “Can I see?” Stevie took off her goggles and handed them to Jessie, who slid them on. Jessie nodded with approval. “Now, that’s cool.”
“I can’t take credit for Archie’s optical system,” Stevie whispered. “I got that pretty much off the shelf.” She took back the goggles.
Kendra was still focused on the gunman’s conversation. “He says he’s going to take one more look around, but he doesn’t have much hope. He wants to know when the replacements will arrive.”
“That lip-reading is a good trick,” Stevie said. “Maybe something else for Archie two point oh.”
Kendra half smiled. “Why do I feel like you want to replace me?” She squinted into the goggles. “He says he’ll be coming back for guard duty as soon as he’s done here.”
“Guarding who?” Stevie asked.
“We’re all thinking the same thing,” Lynch said. “Your father, hopefully.” He lowered his binoculars. “Okay, they’re on the move.”
Archie stood, and the others followed his lead. But he was still for such a long moment that it made Kendra nervous.
“Why aren’t we moving?” she asked.
“To avoid detection, it’s best to maintain a greater distance behind them,” Archie said. “Which means we should wait another eight seconds.”
Exactly eight seconds later, Archie ducked low and ran across the clearing to the gully on the far side, and the others followed.
“Sticker burrs,” Jessie said as she brushed the offending vegetation from her pant legs.
“I believe I mentioned that possibility,” Kendra murmured.
“See anything?” Stevie whispered to Archie.
“Quiet, please.” Archie raised his right hand in a motion that Kendra found more humanlike than almost anything she’d seen from him yet. The robot’s head slowly moved from left to right, and Kendra assumed he was scanning the surrounding area for signs of the guards or any other threat.
She glanced around. There appeared to be no lights and no structures for miles. Where had those men come from?
Stevie adjusted her goggles. “What do you see, Archie?”
“I am zoomed in on a long strip of weeds and grass that appears to have been stepped on repeatedly for at least a few days, possibly longer.”
“I think I see what you’re talking about.” Stevie turned to Lynch. “It’s straight ahead.”
Lynch was already trained on the site with his night-vision binoculars. “Good. Archie, lead the way.”
Still ducking low, Archie sprinted toward the trampled weeds. The others followed, trying to keep the same low profile. But none of them could match the speed and grace of the robot’s movements, Kendra noticed. Amazing.
With Archie as their guide, they followed the trail through a small forest and finally through a patch of foliage that abruptly ended at a rock wall.
Then they abruptly stopped.
“This is it?” Jessie asked. “The path just . . . ends?”
“Yes,” Archie said. “I see nothing more.”
