The Bar Code Prophecy by Suzanne Weyn Read Free Book Online Page A

explaining that Drakians were an offshoot of Decode, a much more violent group whose illegal tactics violated the law and made its members subject to arrest.
    “I know which show you saw,” Katie said with a bitter smile that rose up a little higher on the right side of her face than on the left. “It was a batch of lies. We like to mess up Global-1 any chance we get because they keep trying to ruin our lives. But we don’t hurt anyone. They didn’t even get my name right.”
    “Your name isn’t really Dusa?” Grace asked.
    “I called myself Medusa for a while, just to seem scarier to Global-1. It got shortened to Dusa. Then when I thought the bar code tattoo threat was over, I went back to my own name.”
    Grace clutched the bar code tattoo on her wrist. The lines still tingled and burned slightly. “How is it not over?” she asked. She knew that the events of her own life were somehow tied to this question, even though she couldn’t say how.
    Eric, Mfumbe, and Katie exchanged anxious glances. “We’re not sure, but we think they might be up to something again,” Katie answered.
    This didn’t satisfy Grace at all. But she had more important questions to ask. “What’s happened to my family?” Her voice rose with fear. “Why were the police after me?”
    “We’re not certain of that, either,” Katie answered.
    “But how did you know to get me?”
    “There are people in Global-1 who are sympathetic to our cause,” Mfumbe said. “Eric had told us about you, so when your name came up, we knew we had to act decisively.”
    Every answer was only leading to more questions.
    “Who was it?” Grace asked. “On the inside.”
    Mfumbe shook his head. “We can’t tell you. It wouldn’t be safe. Not for you. Not for our informants.”
    As if he could sense her frustration, Eric said gently, “We’re still trying to figure most of it out ourselves. The information we got was … vague. We need to know your story, too. Why don’t you tell us what you know?”
    This was a different kind of trust he was asking for now, because it was clear that it would have to be, for the time being, an unequal trust. There were things they couldn’t tell her. But at the same time, they needed to know everything.
    “Please,” Eric said. “We’re on your side.”
    Grace decided to trust him.
     
     
    “This has to do with it being your birthday,” Katie said once Grace had finished her story about Dr. Harriman and about the police coming to her house. When Grace had said Dr. Harriman’s name, she had hoped there would be a flash of recognition, a confirmation that he was the one who’d tipped them off. But they hadn’t betrayed a thing.
    “My birthday?” Grace echoed. “Why should that matter?”
    “You’d better come with us,” Eric suggested. “There are some people you should meet.”
    “Eric, I’m really scared. What’s this about?” Grace asked.
    “There’s no reason to be scared,” Eric assured her. “For what it’s worth, I won’t leave your side. Unless, of course, you ask me to.”
    Katie disappeared into the back of the tractor trailer and came back wheeling a motorcycle with two helmets strapped to it. “I have to get this rig out of here,” she explained. “It’s not exactly easy to hide this thing. In case I get stopped, I don’t want them to find you. Eric, take her to the garage.”
    “Sure,” Eric agreed as Katie and Mfumbe put down the truck’s back ramp and wheeled the motorcycle down. “Ever ridden on one of these?” he asked Grace.
    She shook her head. She was nervous but excited to try it. With the way her day was going, what harm was a motorcycle ride going to do?
    Eric handed her one of the helmets. “Climb on behind me and hang on tight to my waist,” he advised.
    “See ya back at the ranch,” Katie said as she and Mfumbe returned to the truck’s cab.
    “The ranch?” Grace asked. “For real?”
    “She’s kidding,” Eric explained. “You’ll