Glitch in the God Complex (AmpCore #1)

34 - Uncle Cutter

Kirk didn't know how long they'd been running for.

Guilt clawed at his guts with every step, knowing that Detective Delgado – the one person who'd actually decided to stick her neck out to help him – was probably dead now, and there was nothing he could do about it.

All they could do now was try and carry on with the time Delgado had bought them.

He kept a tight hold of Arden's hand as they blundered their way through the alleyways and side-streets, following the course of the river to the west along the docksides – away from his own family, away from Selbray and the markets, away the Cutter Jennings' goons and away from the corps.

Away from everything.

He lost all but the vaguest sense of distance and when they finally stumbled to a halt he didn't even bother trying to figure out where they were. Kirk just stopped, standing in a slender alleyway that opened out onto a grubby bankside veranda and the muck of the Hadrian River beyond.

Arden stumbled to a halt beside him and for a minute they both stood, panting for breath, the noise of the city night blurring into a dull din around them. The swell and crash of the river's powerful flow echoed through the dark, and across that impenetrable water Kirk's eyes lingered on the ruined shadow of Hadrian South.

"Do you think..." Arden stammered eventually, looked back the way they'd come. "Do you think that she made it? Do you think she got out?"

Kirk's mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. He didn't know what to say.

It was answer enough for her. Her face cracked into an expression of utter helplessness as the reality set in. Their only real ally in this mess was gone for good. He couldn't look at her, turning away and looking at the damp ground. His mind went blank for a blissful moment.

"Oh God. Kirk, what are we going to do?" Arden sobbed, her voice shrill with panic. "I mean, what the fuck are we doing to do now? We can't do this! My mum, my sister, I'm not going to see them again! And the corps – oh shit, the corps – they're going to keep hunting for me. This is... this is-,"

Twisting around, Kirk grabbed her and yanked her into a tight hug, cupping the back of her head with one hand and pulling her close. For an instant she froze, the hysterical outpouring stopped dead in her throat. Then her hands snapped tight around him, fingers digging into his back as she buried her face against his shoulder. She let out a muffled scream, all the fear and anger pouring out of her.

Her whole body shook violently, and Kirk fought to keep his own emotions from boiling up out of him. He could feel his heart battering against his chest, tears of frustrated, impotent rage threatening to escape at any moment.

They stood there. He didn't know how long for, but they just stood, clinging to each other as the last sane people left in Hadrian's hellscape. Eventually she shifted her position, exhaling a shuddering breath as she rested her cheek against his chest, fingers curling into a fist with a handful of his jacket. He leaned forward, leaning his face against the top of her head.

Exhaustion; anxiety; fear – it all made him shudder and he squeezed her tightly against him. The last person left fighting alongside him.

"You okay?" she whispered.

Kirk sniffed and pressed his eyes shut. "Not really."

"Yeah, me neither." She unfurled her fingers and patted him lightly on the chest. "I'm glad you're still here though." Arden shifted, and he lifted his head, opening his eyes to find her looking up at her. Her eyes were wide, glinting with unshed tears that she'd forced back down, and he felt her hand gently glide up the side of his neck, cupping his cheek.