The Bad Company™ Boxed Set (Books 1-4)

by Martelle, Craig

  We are JUST getting started with the Age of Expansion here at the end of 2017, and have many other series planned or in the very early stage. We even have one series with a new author where I would describe the series as a cross between Boston Legal and maybe a Judge Dredd? We are still working on it at the moment.

  DO YOU LIKE AUDIO? Or do you LOVE audio?

  On another front, we have well over fifty audiobooks published, and will be doing MORE this year. I imagine we will continue our effort of five to six books a month for the foreseeable future. If you have a particular series which you would like to hear on Audible that we don’t have yet, drop a line to Stephen Campbell at Readershelp@Kurtherianbooks.com and give him a shout to put the request in the queue!

  How do you find out about new books to listen to?

  Also, if you like audio can you let us know HOW you find out about new audiobooks? (Send to the same email as above – Readershelp.) We are struggling with our marketing in this audio arena. Further, we would love to know how you hear about, see, click on adverts, or whatever way you learn about books that are on audio and how you choose to use your credits, or purchase the books.

  German Editions

  I like to speak to some things that LMBPN Publishing has accomplished from time to time that I find cool, without sounding like a total shill for us because I’m excited with what we have done. It is beyond me that two years ago, I had just released my fourth book and I am just now seeing a $100 day of sales and thinking “Can I maybe do this as a living?”

  This time, I’m going to say WHOOP because Death Becomes Her has been published in German (the language) and is titled Mutter der Nacht. The reason we can’t use Death Becomes Her is German law about duplicating titles in the country.

  Thanks to a crack team (I’ll speak about them more, later) we have Queen Bitch heading to German release at end the of January.

  Thank you SO MUCH for coming on this adventure with us, we can’t do what we do without you.

  Ad Aeternitatem,

  Michael Anderle

  Price of Freedom

  Chapter One

  Keeg Station

  “We need more intel, Nathan,” Terry Henry Walton told the image on the monitor.

  “Life or death struggle, the security of the universe, the Queen needs it? How many different ways do I have to say that this one is non-negotiable?”

  “We’re two for two in shitstorms, and I’d like to break that streak. We want on-the-ground intelligence so we can get inside their heads before they get into ours.” Terry ran a hand through his hair—which was getting long—and shook his head, imagining a lion’s mane. He turned his attention back to the screen. “Once we’re in orbit, we’ll collect intel and plan our attack before we get thrown into the middle of someone else’s mess.”

  “It’s no one’s mess, TH.” Nathan waved at the colonel to calm him.

  “The Benitons didn’t cause this by messing around with a miniaturized Etheric power source?” Terry looked down his nose at Nathan.

  “That hasn’t been confirmed.” Nathan leaned forward, his face filling Terry’s screen.

  “Nice passive voice, Nathan. Like I said, we’ll go in before the month’s out and clean up someone else’s mess, but we’re not going to race to our own demise. I am amazed we didn’t get anyone killed out here. I know how to fight a battle—hell, a whole war—but I feel like I don’t know jack shit now that we’re in space. Micro-sized explosives, tanks that cover a city block, unmanned wars. Son of a bitch, Nathan!” Terry’s gaze swept the room, as if someone might have snuck into his and Char’s quarters when he wasn’t looking, then with his hand over his mouth, he said, “I might be in over my head.”

  “Nonsense! No one else would have had a chance on those last two missions. You made chicken salad, my friend, and you’ll do the same thing in this next engagement. These creatures need to go back to where they came from. We don’t want them in our universe. We need to keep them from establishing a foothold on Benitus Seven.”

  “They already have a foothold, so now we have to drive a determined enemy from a battlefield of their choosing.” Terry gritted his teeth. “MORE INTEL!”

  “I expect you’ll choose the battlefield. Even if you don’t think you are, you are. They won’t know what hit them. If there’s nothing else, Nathan Lowell, signing off.” The screen went dark before Terry could reply.

  He sat down on the bed with little intention of leaving his quarters on Keeg Station. After their arrival, Ted had made a beeline for Felicity and Terry had run for his life. He had not left his quarters since.

  That had been two days ago.

  He thought about taking another shower, but decided against it. He hadn’t worked out since they’d been here. He hung his head between his knees. TH did not want to leave his quarters, but he had to. Everything he wanted to do was out there, beyond the door.

  “This is crazy! It’s only Felicity.” He stood up and marched to the door, but stopped short. “Only. Felicity.”

  He looked at the door, chuckling at his conundrum. Neither he nor the door moved. “Ted might have a point. Damn. She’s going to tear me a new asshole. Come on, one foot in front of the other. Go take your medicine.”

  But I don’t have to take it alone, Terry thought. He accessed his comm chip. My lover, are you there?

  Are you? Charumati replied.

  Ouch!

  Come out to the promenade. Felicity is waiting, and she’s got Ted by the ear. I’ll make it worth your while, Char crooned.

  Terry wasn’t sure, but thought he heard purring. Is Dokken with you?

  Of course. We’re all here, waiting on you. Come on, TH. We have stuff to do. It’s only Felicity.

  I tried that argument already, and it didn’t work. But all right. I’m coming.

  Terry took a deep breath and tapped the access panel, and the door opened. He stuck his head out and looked both ways down the residential corridor as if expecting an ambush, but no one was there so he stepped out, then strode briskly toward the lift to take him to the deck with the shops. He wondered what treasures his family had acquired this trip…and he wondered how angry Felicity was.

  Maybe she could channel her angst against the red devils on Benitus Seven. He was still chuckling when the lift’s door opened.

  Felicity’s sour expression instantly turned hostile. “What’s so funny?” she demanded. Terry’s family and the pack were arrayed around her as if watching a prizefight. He gave them all the stink-eye before turning to Felicity and delivering his most winning smile.

  “You look magnificent!” TH told her, but he couldn’t help himself. “You don’t look a day over a hundred.”

  “WHAT?” she howled.

  “I don’t understand,” Ted said softly. “You are well over a hundred years old.”

  She turned on him. “You shut up.” She stabbed a finger repeatedly in his direction. He looked at it clinically, but didn’t say anything further. She swiveled her head casually and locked her eyes on the colonel.

  He pursed his lips and looked anywhere but at Felicity. Someone behind her snorted. Felicity held two fingers over her shoulder, pointer pressed against thumb. Zip it.

  Terry looked for support, but the response from the peanut gallery was less than overwhelming. At least twenty of his family and friends were in view. “Come on,” Terry pleaded. “Not a single one of you?”

  Headshakes or blank looks.

  “That should tell you all you need to know, Terry Henry Walton.” Felicity continued to glare.

  “No one will take a bullet for me. Check.”

  Felicity’s lip twitched.

  “Not a day over a hundred,” TH whispered.

  “By all that’s holy and the nine levels of Hell…”

  “It’s nine circles of Hell,” Terry interjected.

  “All the levels of Hell!” Felicity continued, face as red as if it were on fire. “You almost got my husband killed!”

  Terry
opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He couldn’t argue with her—not about that—because he thought she was right.

  Her lower lip started to tremble.

  “No… Don’t.”

  The tears started to flow, followed by sobbing. Ted looked as uncomfortable as Terry Henry felt. TH pulled her into a hug but she resisted, pounding on his chest with both hands.

  Ted started to move away, but Char grabbed his arm and held on. He pulled weakly, but she held him in place.

  Felicity gave in and let Terry embrace her. His eyes glistened, and he blinked rapidly.

  After Felicity pushed herself away, she shook one finger at TH in warning. “Don’t you ever do that again! You are responsible for him, so you keep him safe.” She wrapped her arm around Ted’s and ushered him away.

  Char hurried to Terry and put her arms around his neck. “You can handle getting shot at—even getting shot—but you break down into a blubbering mess whenever there’s a crying woman?”

  “And needles, but thank the fucking stars for the apocalypse! We don’t have any more of those.”

  A nearby mother covered her toddler’s ears and glared at Terry Henry. He wondered for only a moment.

  “Oh, shit! I’m sorry, ma’am.” The woman picked her son up and hurried off. “That’s it. This is a family station, so I’m going to swear off swearing!”

  Terry’s voice carried. Kim and Kae looked at each other and started to laugh, then pointed at their dad and laughed even harder. Dokken appeared, wagging his tail, and looked up at Terry.

  That was the funniest shit I’ve seen all day, the dog told him.

  “Is it that unbelievable that I could go without swearing?” Terry held his hands out to the assembled group. The werewolves shook their heads, and Cordelia approached and slapped her father on his shoulder.

  “The word you’re looking for is ‘inconceivable.’ Ramses is taking bets over there on how long you’ll last.”

  Terry looked over Cory’s shoulder at her husband, who was making annotations in a small notebook.

  “I’ll be damned,” TH said.

  “See? You can’t help yourself.” Cory called, “Time!” and Ramses threw his hands up in frustration.

  “Come on, TH! No one thought you’d lose it this soon. Do over,” he declared, and started writing again.

  “It is a tall mountain you’ve set out to climb, but I’m here for you,” Char said, her purple eyes twinkling under the artificial lights of the shopping level.

  “I could ask for no better support for my journey to clean living.”

  “For shame, Terry Henry,” Christina said as she walked by with the werewolves.

  “Bullshit,” Timmons murmured from the back of the pack.

  Terry resisted the urge to give him the finger.

  “Yes, that counts,” Char declared.

  Terry curled his lip. Sometimes his wife read his mind. He was convinced she was a telepath, but in all the time they’d been together she’d never admitted it. “How about dinner? Just us. I don’t want to look at any of these turncoats!”

  “They are not turncoats.” Char waved the others away with a smile and the group broke up, each couple heading in a different direction. Only Ankh’Po’Turn and Bundin remained. Terry hadn’t noticed them before.

  Ankh looked at Terry and Char for a few moments before heading toward the lift.

  “Going to the lab, buddy?” Terry asked. The Crenellian waved over his shoulder. “What about you, Bundin? Where are Joseph and Petricia?”

  “They were supposed to meet me here. They will be disappointed that they missed the show,” the Podder replied.

  Terry clamped his mouth shut and closed his eyes.

  Joseph, are you on your way to the promenade? Char asked over her comm chip.

  “Just arriving now. No! Don’t tell me we missed it?” Joseph replied, looking at Petricia for sympathy.

  “It was epic,” Char told them. “TH has sworn off swearing, too.”

  “No kidding? Good for you, Terry Henry Walton. I always thought you were far too educated for such language. Gentlemen simply do not speak that way,” Joseph said, his natural British accent adding emphasis.

  Terry’s hand quivered. It wanted once again to dial up a middle finger, but he held it down.

  “We’re going for dinner, and you can’t come,” he said, raising his head.

  “Don’t be Dickensian,” came Joseph’s retort. “We were on our way to the Seppukarian place. They say it twists one’s stomach so much it feels like you’re committing seppuku.”

  Terry looked closely into Joseph’s eyes. “I think he’s serious.”

  Char nodded in agreement.

  “Come on, Bundin, tell us all about this epic throw-down we missed…” Joseph, Petricia, and Bundin ambled away.

  Somewhere Deep in the Etheric Federation

  Nathan stood up from his desk, pumping his fist in triumph. “R2D2 does it again!”

  He pointed to the computer screen, where a three-dimensional image of a Pepsi container rotated. The image morphed to Coke before his eyes.

  The next shipment was on its way through the core of the Federation, hidden in plain sight.

  Ecaterina strolled in, catching him mid-celebration. “Are you ready?” she asked, eyeing him critically. “What is going on here?”

  “I’d rather have Coke!” Nathan declared.

  “No, you wouldn’t,” Ecaterina replied, confused. Nathan spun the monitor around and replayed the image.

  “It’s something they developed on R2D2—a chip-controlled paint that arranges itself into images. This is a container vessel of Pepsi, but it’ll look like Coke in transit.” Nathan smiled broadly, showing his straight white teeth.

  “I love it! A lifetime supply delivered uninterrupted…but what if someone drinks some?”

  “Pretenders wouldn’t know the difference, only the true connoisseurs.”

  “All this to sneak in some damn Pepsi?” Ecaterina cocked one hip and looked sideways at her husband. You know that BA lifted the ban on Pepsi and allocated all profits to support the Direct Action Branch, so why the feigned subterfuge?”

  “Yes. I think the Queen is onto me.”

  “She’s not here and there’s nothing to be onto!” Ecaterina crossed her arms.

  Nathan tapped the side of his nose. “That damn woman has eyes and ears everywhere.”

  Ecaterina rolled her eyes. “It’s time to go. There’s a play in the station theater— a real play—and you agreed to go!”

  “Pepsi with a Coke label. It’s genius, but you know me. Subterfuge is my thing. I’m sorry. I did notice that you look great! Let me grab my…” He looked for something to take. “I guess I don’t need anything, do I?”

  She shook her head.

  “Did you see that? Pepsi, coming right in under their Coke-loving noses.”

  “That could be misinterpreted,” Ecaterina replied.

  “Yes, yes, of course,” Nathan conceded. “You’ll have your Pepsi, and you can drink it too.”

  Nathan could get a Coke anytime he wanted, but there were advantages to Ecaterina thinking he was converting. And the market could use a little encouragement, to bump up the profits in both areas. He had to fund the next Direct Action Branch operation from Pepsi and other Bad Company sources, just until they could incorporate the miniaturized Etheric power supply. Then the cost of Direct Action Branch operations would be irrelevant.

  He shut his computer down, walked around his desk, and offered his arm, then Nathan and Ecaterina strolled casually from his office.

  Chapter Two

  Kaeden looked over the new suits. Only four again, but the Direct Action Branch had not been gone that long. To Kae, each mission was a lifetime. The colonel wanted powered, armored suits for everyone.

  The value of the suits had been proven in the first missions. Unfortunately, there was no operational pause in which to improve their weaponry. There wouldn’t be any new Jean Dukes Specials,
either. Those took far longer than a week to manufacture, and the process didn’t take place on Keeg Station.

  Kae shook his head.

  “What’s wrong?” Daniel asked with concern. He followed Kaeden’s eyes to the joints of one of the suits and hurried to it, looking for whatever defect Kae was seeing.

  “Only four suits, that’s what’s wrong. These things are incredible. Make us feel invincible against every enemy, but the power ran out and that bit us on the dark planet. We weren’t engaged long enough for that to be a problem in the last op. And now we’re going to a place where we may find a power source for these things that is infinite. Can you imagine that?”

  Daniel, who was the station’s logistics chief, leaned against the suit. “I can imagine that. If you bring the power supply back, the engineers here will adapt it and we’ll upgrade the suits when we get some time. Your deployment schedule is killer!”

  Auburn appeared from the armory area of the logistics center and handed a pad to Daniel.

  “That’s what we’ll need delivered to the War Axe.” Auburn tapped the screen. “Got any more rockets?”

  “What you see is what we have. We made sure to stock everything that cleared production, so we’ll get your reloads moving.”

  Auburn smirked when he looked at Kae.

  “That bad, huh?” Kae asked.

  “Yup. I think we may have had it better on Earth.”

  Kae vigorously shook his head and pointed with both hands at the suits. “Look at these babies! We may not be maxed on our loadouts, but these things know no fear.”

  “Just because you’ve been successful so far doesn’t mean the next enemy won’t jack you up.”

  “That cuts me, brother.” Kae laughed. “I know what you’re saying. Just when I embrace my immortality someone will drop a nuke on our heads—but I won’t know I’m gone.”

  “What nonsense are you spewing?” Marcie asked from the doorway.

  “Nothing!” Kae replied quickly.

  “Listen, Major, it’s not my job to put you into a hopeless situation. Trust me.”