by Tarah Benner
“Fuck you.”
“You know we can’t just let you go, right?” says Tripp. “I’ve spent billions making sure the Bureau can’t touch my space station. And then, instead of hacking us, you stroll off a shuttle with a bunch of evil humanoids. You see how I might find that slightly problematic?”
“I can see how you might find your security problematic,” Jade mutters.
We fall into silence, and I watch her face. I can tell Jade is frustrated — not angry, just frustrated. But whether she’s frustrated because we aren’t swallowing her story or because no one ever trusts her, I can’t tell.
“Look,” she says. “I’ve been trying to get to Mordecai for three years, but he’s barely set foot on US soil. I couldn’t fly to Russia or Turkey or anywhere else . . . The FBI would be on me instantly. But I kept an eye on him all these years. When Mordecai touched down for his father’s funeral, I planned to kill him then. But he and Ziva had a falling out, and he took off before I could make my move. When I lost him, I swore that if I ever had another chance, I would take it — no matter what.”
I take a deep breath. I actually believe her. It’s strange to find an accused terrorist trustworthy, but my gut says she’s telling the truth.
“Wow,” says Ping from across the room. “Maverick’s security really does suck if it’s easier to get out of Earth’s atmosphere than out of the country.”
Jade lets out a snort of laughter.
“You know, Mordecai murdering my father and blackmailing the rest of my board did throw a wrench into things,” says Tripp bitterly.
“How do you plan to get close to Mordecai?” I ask. “He isn’t stupid. He knows everyone in the Space Force would love to kill him. He’s probably got his bunker so fortified that nobody stands a chance.”
“I have a plan,” says Jade. “But I’m not going to tell you.”
“Why?”
“You just threatened to turn me over to the Space Force,” she says. “If you decided to execute my plan yourself and then botched it, I might never get another chance. I’ll probably never get this close to Mordecai Blum again.”
“Well, then I guess you better get pretty comfortable on my couch, because that’s where you’re staying until the Space Force comes to get you,” says Tripp.
“The Space Force?” Jade feigns a shiver. “Oh, you mean the entity that’s currently under Mordecai’s thumb because of his killer bots designed by a company which you also own?”
“Watch it,” mutters Tripp.
“Are you drunk?”
Tripp scowls.
“Why does it matter as long as I kill the guy?” asks Jade. “We all want the same thing.”
I glance at Tripp. I can tell that he, like me, is considering it. Jade claims to have a plan, which is more than we have at the moment. I have no idea how to get close enough to kill Mordecai. Having a criminal mastermind on our side might not be such a bad thing.
I give Tripp a nod, and he turns to Jade. “No civilians get hurt.”
“Agreed.”
“There’s no such thing as collateral damage.”
“Got it.”
Tripp continues to stare at her, frowning. “As long as you go after Mordecai and leave my guests alone, you have the full backing of Maverick and the Space Force.”
Jade squints and wrinkles her nose. “Pass.”
“Excuse me?” snaps Tripp. Tripp is not used to being snubbed, and drunk Tripp does not take it gracefully.
“I work better alone,” says Jade, getting to her teetering high-heeled feet and stretching her back like a cat. “Anyway, I’d rather troll your company any day than work with Big Brother. I have a reputation to protect.”
11
Jonah
It’s the middle of the night by the time we reach Vandenberg. There was no traffic on the highway, and I managed to shave half an hour off the estimated arrival time blinking on the nav system.
Jared and I have spent the drive brainstorming ways we might be able to get to Elderon. The way I see it, there’s only one solution: take the pocket rocket back to the colony.
To do that, I’ll have to convince Skinner that I’m not a terrorist and that he should trust me. That’s going to be easier said than done, assuming Skinner’s been watching the news.
The real question is whether Mordecai will allow us to dock the pocket rocket on Elderon or not. If he’s smart, he won’t want to shoot down one of the few shuttles he has at his disposal, but we’ll lose the element of surprise. Even if we come aboard stunners at the ready, we’ll be no match for Mordecai’s army.
Worst case — Mordecai orders the bots to kill me on sight. Best case — I convince him that he wants to hear what I have to say. If I can get his bots to take me into Mordecai’s lair, I might have a shot at killing him.
As we draw closer to Vandenberg, Jared starts to fidget. I can see his uneasiness building the closer we get, and I start to wonder if he’s up for this.
“You’re just gonna drive up to the gate?” Jared asks as I pull a handgun out of the glovebox and chamber a round.
“Yep.”
“And if that doesn’t work?”
I don’t look over at him. I don’t say a word.
“You aren’t going to shoot them, are you?”
I shake my head. If I’m being totally honest, I don’t have an alternate plan. I’m counting on Skinner to let us through. I’m going to need his help to charter an unscheduled mission in the pocket rocket, and I’m going to need Carl.
The real sticking point is going to be Colonel Sipps. Sipps is a real hard-ass, and she didn’t like me before I was labeled a terrorist. Now that I’m an escaped fugitive and a threat to national security, I can’t imagine she’d be willing to send me into space. She’ll probably alert the authorities the second she lays eyes on me. I’m not going to have much time.
We pull up to the gate, and a very buff, very suspicious-looking officer approaches the vehicle. He’s shining a flashlight into the car, purposely blinding me while he checks us out.
“Visiting hours start at oh eight hundred,” he grumbles.
“We aren’t visiting,” I say, glaring at him through the light. “We’re here to return this vehicle to Chief Master Sergeant Skinner.”
The man furrows his eyebrows. He thinks I’m making it up — either that or he’s wondering how we plan on getting home.
“Why do you have it?”
“Took it to get washed.”
The officer eyes all the bugs on the windshield. I can tell he isn’t buying it.
He gives me half an eye roll and then returns to the booth. Squinting through the shadows, I see him speaking into a radio, eyeing me with suspicion.
Suddenly I start to feel really anxious. If he recognized me from the news, we’re screwed. Every second we idle here gives his reinforcements more time to box us in. I won’t have a chance to plead my case.
Finally, the burly officer puts down the radio and approaches the car, moving more cautiously than before. I know that body language. It’s how a soldier moves when he’s not sure whether someone is a friendly. It’s your body preparing for a fight.
“Chief Master Sergeant Skinner is in a meeting,” says the officer. “Can’t be reached.”
“Oh, okay,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady. “We can just wait for him in his office, then.”
“Negative. You can leave the vehicle. I’ll keep the keys secure until he comes to claim them.”
Shit.
“I’d rather wait to hand them over personally,” I say, trying to keep my voice light.
“He’s in a meeting.”
“You said. We can wait.”
The man takes a heavy breath. My skin is starting to itch. I have a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, and it seems to intensify every second.
Suddenly, a garble of static comes through his radio, and the officer steps away from the vehicle.
My gut is telling me to abort the mission. Ther
e’s an awful lot of radio chatter for the middle of the night. What the hell is Skinner doing in a meeting at three o’clock in the morning? Either the officer is full of shit or the air force has labeled the situation in the valley a national emergency.
Watching the officer out of the corner of my eye, I get the sudden sense that he knows who I am. He’s glanced back at the vehicle twice — not enough to give anything away, but enough to make it clear that he’s conversing with someone about us.
“Something’s not right,” I mutter, not looking at Jared.
“Why d’you say that?”
“He knows something’s up.”
“Then why are we still sitting here?”
“We don’t have a choice. We need to get inside.”
Jared opens his mouth to argue, but then the officer comes striding toward us.
“You can go in,” he says. “Pull straight through. Chief Master Sergeant Skinner will meet you inside. He’s on his way now.”
“I thought he was in a meeting,” I say. Something definitely isn’t right.
“He’ll meet you,” says the officer. “Pull on through.”
I let out a breath through my nostrils and look through the gate to where the man is pointing. All there is is road. There’s no meeting spot — no buildings, no pull-offs. I’m not sure why Skinner would want to meet down here.
Still, inside the base is one step closer to securing the pocket rocket for our launch. Deep down I know that it’s a trap, but that’s a chance I’m willing to take.
I glance back at the officer one more time as he returns to his booth. He raises the arm of the boom gate, and I pull on through.
Every cell in my body is screaming, but I pull off the side of the road and wait.
Several minutes pass in silence, apart from the sound of our breathing. This is it. They’re coming. I can feel it in the air.
“What’s going on?” asks Jared, his voice wavering with nerves.
I don’t say anything. It would just freak him out. But I tuck the handgun into my ankle holster anyway.
In the distance, I see headlights approaching. They’re so stunningly bright that I’m instantly blinded, but I keep my eyes locked straight ahead. I know how this goes. I’ve done it myself. I’ve just never been on the receiving end of it.
I ignore Jared’s questions and step out of the Camry. I already know what’s coming.
The vehicle is a tan Humvee. Sitting in the passenger seat is Colonel Sipps — the woman in charge of this entire base. She’s thin and tall with graying dark hair and very serious eyebrows.
Even though it’s the middle of the night, Sipps doesn’t look as though she just woke up. I’m not sure she ever sleeps.
Skinner is in the driver’s seat. He’s pale and serious and looks like he’s in trouble. I’m not surprised. Maggie and I left the base against the colonel’s orders when we drove up to Silicon Valley. The entire base had been on lockdown, but Skinner helped us leave. I’m guessing Sipps just learned what happened and that she’s not too happy.
Skinner parks the Humvee on the side of the road, headlights still blazing straight into our eyes. They both get out of the vehicle stiffly, one of Sipps’s hands hovering over her sidearm.
“Sergeant Wyatt?”
“Evening, Colonel.”
Jared is still stumbling out of the vehicle, holding his hands above his head.
“Who is this?”
“Jared Coleman. He works for Zephyr Morgan.”
Sipps throws a suspicious glance over at Jared before reaching for her weapon. She removes the handgun from its holster and points it at my chest.
“Put your hands over your head and then turn and face the vehicle.”
I lift my hands above my head, but I don’t turn around to be cuffed. My heart is hammering like a war drum, but inside I feel a sense of calm. “I can explain.”
“You were arrested on suspicion of detonating an explosive device, Wyatt. You drugged two officers and escaped police custody. The time for explanations is over.”
“Technically, he was discharged,” says Jared.
“Please,” I say, ignoring him and taking a step toward the colonel.
“Don’t test me, Sergeant,” says Sipps. “Turn around.”
I can hear the sound of more Humvees approaching and see their headlights in the distance. Any minute now, Sipps is going to cuff me and turn me over to one of her underlings. She’ll send me to holding until someone from Homeland Security comes to pick me up. I’ll be held prisoner and interrogated — useless to Maggie and the Space Force.
“You have to listen —”
“Don’t fuck with me, Sergeant,” Sipps growls. “I could shoot you right here, and I’d get a fucking medal. You’d go down in history as a traitor — a terrorist. Is that really what you want?”
“You and I both know I’m not a terrorist,” I say.
Sipps is still glaring at me with an expression that says she means business, but she’s allowing me to talk. That’s something.
“Mordecai Blum had rigged that room to blow,” I explain. “All those founders would have died.”
“One of them did die, Sergeant. Teegan Henley was taken to the hospital with serious injuries, and Si Damm is still missing. Are you trying to tell me that you saved them by detonating those explosives?”
“Yes,” I say calmly. “I reconfigured the explosives to bring the building down on the bots. I told the founders to wait in the stairwell, which was the safest place to be.”
“The safest place would have been nowhere near that building.”
“The goal was to take out as many humanoids as possible, Colonel. The founders had to stay put, or Mordecai would have triggered the explosion before they were safe.”
“An innocent woman is dead,” says Sipps.
“I made a call.”
“A call that wasn’t yours to make.”
“What was I supposed to do?” I ask. “Let them all die?”
“You never should have been there to begin with. They’re holding you responsible for Zuni Monroe’s death.”
“If I hadn’t acted, she and everyone else in that building would be dead,” I snap. “She could have lived if she’d followed orders. She chose not to. That is why she’s dead.”
Sipps is still searching my face with a critical eye. The groan of the Humvees is growing louder. We’re running out of time.
“Get in,” she says suddenly, jerking her head toward the vehicle.
I can hardly believe it. She’s giving me a chance. I can tell it goes against her better judgment, but deep down she knows I’m right.
I climb into the back of the Humvee, and Jared stumbles after me. He’s still in shock. I feel bad for the kid.
Sipps climbs into the vehicle, and Skinner backs up to drive up to the base. Sipps gets on her radio, glancing at me in the rearview mirror. “All clear. Cancel all units. He’s not the one we’re after.”
She sets the radio on the console, and everything is silent apart from the rush of wind outside the vehicle.
As we approach the administrative buildings, the momentary relief I’d been feeling starts to melt into panic. If I can’t convince Sipps to trust me, we’re screwed. I won’t have a way to get back to Elderon. I might even end up in jail.
I think of Maggie, and my stomach twists. Why did she go up there alone? If she’d just waited and done what I’d told her, she wouldn’t be in danger, and I wouldn’t be so desperate.
Desperate — that’s a good word for how I’m feeling. It’s the only reason I’m taking a chance on Sipps. I literally have no other options.
Skinner parks the Humvee and opens the door for Sipps. The colonel doesn’t say a word. She strides straight into the admin building, and Jared and I follow behind. I get a few wide-eyed looks from the men and women we pass in the hallways, but Sipps still doesn’t offer an explanation.
Jared and I follow her into her office and close the door. Colonel Sipps hover
s behind her desk, pacing back and forth and looking uneasy.
“Maverick Enterprises launched a space mission from our base earlier this evening,” says Sipps. “I just received word from one of the board members that this mission was not authorized by the company. There was no flight plan filed. None of our normal launch procedures were engaged. I’ve been receiving inquiries all night long, but I can’t explain how this happened.”
“The Impetus was one of Mordecai’s demands,” I say. “That’s why he kidnapped the founders.”
The colonel looks shocked.
“The attacks on Silicon Valley were just a smokescreen. Mordecai wanted the founders’ technology. He had a list of demands for each of them. Zephyr Morgan gave Mordecai everything he asked for.”
“And Strom Van de Graaf refused.”
I shrug. “He tried. But Mordecai was one step ahead. He blackmailed the rest of the board into giving him administrative access. He’s taken control of the Optix network.”
“God help us,” Sipps whispers.
“All due respect, Colonel, but I don’t think God had much to do with this. Mordecai is blocking communication between Earth and Elderon because he’s using Elderon as his own personal fortress. I’m guessing Mordecai is preparing for war.”
At those words, all the color drains from Sipps’s face. Even Skinner looks paler than usual.
“Mordecai is on Elderon?” she whispers.
I nod.
“How did he —”
“He has another shuttle,” I say. “His sister Ziva is under his thumb. Mordecai is controlling her.”
“Controlling her how?”
In this moment, I realize just how much Sipps’s panic over Mordecai has changed the situation in our favor. I’ve gone from being a delinquent ex-army grunt to being almost an equal. It’s a mark of how desperately she needs information that she’s talking to me at all.
“Ziva Blum created a humanoid that looks and acts exactly like their father. Apparently, she used his entire digital portfolio to build the AI.” I glance at Jared. “She thinks the bot is her father, and Mordecai is threatening to destroy it.”
“A humanoid version of Benjamin Blum?” Sipps sounds more enthralled than disgusted.
