AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Earlier Luke had built a fire in the lobby. It provided some reassuring energy and warmth, but Octavia was right, Talia thought. The ominous feeling that settled on the island after dark had grown more intense just in the short time she and Luke had been there.
“We’ll use fire to get the attention of a passing boat,” Luke said.
Octavia stiffened. “Of course. I totally forgot.”
“What did you forget?” Luke asked.
“About the emergency flares,” Octavia said. “The kind that are carried on boats. Gill had some on board his cabin cruiser.”
“The cruiser is gone,” Talia pointed out gently.
Octavia snorted. “But the flare guns are still here. I went down to the dock and stole a couple of them a month ago while Gill was in the tunnels. He never missed them.”
“Why did you take the flare guns?” Phoebe asked.
“I was getting more and more nervous about Gill,” Octavia said. “There was no way to get a real gun, because we weren’t allowed to leave the island. I thought that the flares might serve as weapons if my worst fears came true.”
“Where are they?” Luke asked.
“I hid them in one of the kitchen cupboards,” Octavia said. “Gill never went into the kitchen. But yesterday when I panicked and decided to run I forgot about the flare guns. I grabbed a knife instead.”
Talia nodded approvingly. “The instinctive action of a smart chef.”
“That settles it,” Luke said. “The flares will grab someone’s attention. Getting off the island is not going to be the hard part. Making sure we all get our story straight is what we need to work on.”
“What is the big picture of your plan?” Talia asked.
“The primary objective is to dump the problem of Night Island into the lap of the government contractor that is responsible for it,” Luke said.
“What about the four of us?” Octavia asked.
“We are going to keep a very low profile,” Luke said.
Phoebe set her fork aside. “I know people on the dark net. For a price I can get new identities for each of us.”
Talia looked at her, intrigued. “Really? You can do that?”
“I told you, I’m a broker,” Phoebe said. “In spite of appearances, I’m pretty damn good at it. I put deals together. You’d be amazed how many people want to buy new identities.”
“That is impressive,” Talia said. “It sounds slick, but it won’t work for me, because I am not going to vanish. I’ve got friends. Also family. Okay, maybe we’re not the closest family in the history of the world, but my relatives would definitely notice if I disappeared. Also, I’m part of theLost Night Filespodcast team. We are going to stick together until we find the people responsible for stealing a night of our lives and running experiments on us.”
Phoebe’s expression tightened. “I’m with you. I’m not going back into hiding. I want to find those creeps as much as you do.”
Talia smiled. “Want to join the team? We could use the help of someone who knows her way around the dark net.”
Phoebe looked startled by the offer. But in the next moment she got a thoughtful expression. “That sounds... interesting.”
Octavia cleared her throat. “Personally, I like the idea of getting a new identity. I want nothing more than to leave my old life behind and start fresh.”
“No problem,” Phoebe said. “But it will take cash.”
Octavia nodded. “I’ve got some money hidden away in a bank account that I never told Clive about. I’ve been saving up to open a place of my own, but buying a new identity is more important. Once I have that I can get a job in a good restaurant.”
“Okay,” Phoebe said. “I’ll order the package as soon as I can get online. My preferred vendor can deliver within forty-eight hours.”
Talia was truly awed. “That is amazing.”
Phoebe blushed. “Thanks.”
