by Tarah Benner
Mordecai’s sadistic smile is back. “You didn’t really think I’d allow your little friends to abscond with one of my shuttles, did you?” He laughs, turning to Jade. “Oh, dear. You didn’t really throw in your luck with these amateurs, did you? I’m expecting something better from you, Ms. Armaz. Please tell me you planned something better!”
Suddenly, I freeze. I don’t know what to do. My first instinct is to throw myself at Mordecai and take him out before the bots snap my neck, but I can’t be sure that he doesn’t have some contingency plan — an order for the bots to blow up the space station or take out Swift 9.
“That Maggie Barnes really is something,” Mordecai muses. “Where did you find her?” He smiles in a sickening way, as if he’s preparing to eat a juicy steak. “She is excellent — like a real-life Lois Lane meets the Scooby-Doo gang. So feisty and earnest.”
It’s not until Mordecai mentions Maggie that I feel my body come alive. The rage starts low in my gut and spreads until it’s charging through my bloodstream. My limbs thrum with a hateful energy, and I feel as though I could put my fist through a wall.
“Leave Maggie out of this,” I growl.
“Why?” asks Mordecai. “She is your Achilles heel, Sergeant.” He chuckles. “It really couldn’t have worked out better . . . Buford wanted to give you one from the very beginning, but I said it was a waste of time.” He clucks his tongue. “I suppose this was one instance where I was wrong. It really is a shame that I killed him. He would have been pleased.”
My head is spinning. My hands are shaking. Buford wanted to give me a weakness? A vulnerability to exploit?
“You see, Buford always thought you were too uncontrollable. You were isolated — depressed. You had no family — no real friends. You didn’t care about anyone or anything except the army. But that’s all changed now . . .”
White-hot rage unlike anything I’ve ever felt rips through my body. Buford is the reason I joined the Space Force. He wanted to give me someone for Mordecai to use against me, and now Mordecai has turned Maggie into a weapon.
“Leave her alone,” I repeat.
Mordecai’s sneer grows. “Now, why would I do that?”
“You don’t care about Maggie. You just want me.”
“I had thought of killing you both . . . I’m beginning to think it might be cleaner.”
“You won’t,” I say.
“And why not?”
“Because you need me,” I growl, sounding more confident than I feel. “It’s the only reason you haven’t killed me already.”
I can practically sense Jade’s confusion. This is not at all what we planned. I’m going off script — stupidly improvising — but I don’t know what else to do.
The plan had to change as soon as Mordecai mentioned Maggie. He won’t make her suffer to cause me pain.
“You know I could be useful to you,” I say with a shrug. “Why not use me?”
Mordecai’s eyes narrow. He thinks I’m bluffing, but he’s curious.
“Think about it,” I say. It’s scary easy to think like him. “You need the Space Force. You wanted the Space Force.”
“Why do you say that?” he asks, a note of challenge in his voice.
“Van de Graaf didn’t build an army for no reason. He did it because he’d been receiving threats.” I smirk. “He thought the Bureau might attack the colony, but you were the Bureau. You wanted him to fortify Elderon with as many bodies as possible. You planned to take control of the colony and use the same army he built to defend it.”
Mordecai just studies me in silence. I know I’m right. It wasn’t something I’d put together until now, but suddenly it all makes sense.
“Very good, Sergeant,” he says. “You are smarter than I gave you credit for.”
“Maybe you’re just not as sharp as you think.”
Mordecai ignores this little jab.
“You need the Space Force,” I continue. “Otherwise, Elderon will fold. I’ve already spoken to a colonel in the air force. She has plans to annihilate the space station and everyone on board.”
In an instant, I feel the balance of power shift. I know something Mordecai doesn’t. It unnerves him. But I just showed my hand, and I’m talking out of my ass without having my next move in place. It’s like leaping out of a plane without remembering whether you packed your parachute.
“I seriously doubt that,” says Mordecai. Though there’s something in his oily demeanor that tells me he isn’t sure.
“Did you really think the US military would let you set up shop on Elderon? Other countries will see this as a threat, and every hour you’re up here makes the US look weak. They aren’t going to stand for it.”
“The United States isn’t prepared to fight a war in space. No country on Earth is. That’s what makes this so wonderful.”
That’s when it hits me: Mordecai thinks he’s invincible. Sequestering himself on Elderon with an army of bots has made him think he can’t be killed and that he’s beyond the reach of the US government.
“You tried to kill the president,” I say. “You think they’ll take that lying down?”
“Ms. Armaz took responsibility for that,” says Mordecai. “She really did me a tremendous favor.”
“I’ve contacted the air force,” I murmur. “They know Jade was bluffing.” I lower my voice even further so that Mordecai has to strain to hear. “They will take this space station to get to you. That is a guarantee.”
There’s another long stretch of silence where Mordecai’s wheels seem to be turning. I can tell he’s not sure whether or not he should believe me. Either I’m lying to save my own skin, or I have my own motives for sharing the colonel’s plan. I need to convince him that I could be useful — and give him a reason to trust me.
“The Space Force will never follow you.”
Mordecai doesn’t respond, but I can tell that the insinuation rankles him. Mordecai’s own father cut him out of his company and left BlumBot all to Ziva. He must have some deep-seated insecurities about his ability to lead.
“You killed hundreds of their men — Captain Callaghan included. And you tried to assassinate the president. You think the Space Force isn’t prepared to fight you with everything they’ve got? Most of them are ex-military. They would die before they follow you.”
Mordecai’s nostrils flare. I can tell this has been a point of stress for him, and having me say it out loud must be stoking those fears.
“Unless . . .”
Mordecai’s eyebrows rise a few millimeters. He is hanging on my every word. “Unless what?”
“Unless you had an officer willing to swear that Callaghan was a spy and Hennesy’s men were trying to ransom a terrorist for money. I can help you regain their trust so they will defend this colony.”
Mordecai frowns, studying me with hawkish eyes. I already know he’s considered this problem — that he’s done everything to alienate the men and women he needs for protection.
“I can help you lead the Space Force,” I say quietly. “I can help you defend this colony.”
22
Jonah
If looks could kill, I would be dead. I can feel Jade’s sharp eyes burning a hole through the side of my head. She thinks I’m selling her out.
For a moment, I’m not sure if my plan is going to work. I’m not sure I’ve been convincing. Mordecai isn’t stupid.
Why would I turn my back on the principles I’ve risked my life to defend? Mordecai’s read my file. He knows all about me. He can’t seriously believe that I’d join forces with a terrorist who led the very organization I tried to eradicate. I’m going to have to sell this harder.
“Don’t look so shocked,” I say. “And don’t flatter yourself . . . This isn’t about you.”
“I will say,” Mordecai muses, “I am a little surprised. A man like you can be counted upon to act on his baser instincts. I’d expected violence — not a proposal.”
I swallow down the contemptuous words threate
ning to burst out of my mouth. “I surprise myself sometimes.”
But Mordecai still looks doubtful. “A noble act of sacrifice to save a girl is one thing . . . An act of treason from an ex–army sergeant . . . Well, you can understand why I’d have trouble believing you.”
“Ex–staff sergeant,” I mutter.
“What could possibly motivate you to give up everything you believe in to join forces with my movement?” He cracks a sickening smile. “Surely one moderately attractive woman is as good as the next.”
At those words, I feel my hands curl into fists.
Mordecai’s smirk widens. He sees the effect his words have on me.
I take a deep breath. “I gave my life to the army, and the army threw me away like yesterday’s trash.”
“Come now, Sergeant,” says Mordecai, cocking his head to the side. “Let’s dispense with the games. Your pathetic sob story may have endeared you to Ms. Barnes, but you and I are men of substance. We don’t stop being what we are — we can’t. You were always a soldier. You were born a soldier. You don’t stop being a soldier any more than a dog stops being a dog. All the training in the world, and it still bites when cornered.”
I let out a deep exhale. Mordecai’s words have a way of finding my deepest nerves. He knows exactly how to push my buttons.
“You’re right.” I shake my head. “I can’t stop being a soldier. But I can choose who I fight for.”
Mordecai’s eyes narrow. I can tell he’s still skeptical, but my story is starting to work on him. As much as he doesn’t want to admit it, Mordecai knows he needs me. I see him thinking through all the possible scenarios — imagining how much easier it would be for him to manipulate the Space Force with a dirty sergeant on his side.
“Imagine for one moment that I believe in this new you,” says Mordecai. “You’re saying that you’d be willing to go up against your own people? Fight the very country you swore to protect? Fight the air force, the army, the marines . . . the navy. You’d kill the commander in chief if I asked?”
I swallow. This is it — my last chance to sell my story.
“How is one evil despot any worse than another?” I look around the room. “This space station wasn’t built by the US government. It was built by a private corporation. The government isn’t in control anymore, and they know it. All they’re doing is defending the companies that control everyone on the planet. Democracy is dead. We live in the Van de Graafs’ America.”
At first I think I blew it — that I might have gone too far. But Mordecai cracks a sadistic smile, and I know I’ve said the magic words.
He turns to Jade. “This must come as quite the shock.”
Jade doesn’t respond, but I can sense her fuming. I must have been convincing if she bought my story. She thinks I’ve gone and sold her out.
“Come now, Ms. Armaz. Give us a smile.”
Mordecai’s words make my stomach clench.
“Isn’t this what you set out to prove? That corporations wield too much power?”
“I started the Bureau to raise awareness,” says Jade. “I wanted to give agency back to the American people — not to dismantle everything this country was built on.”
“My dear woman,” says Mordecai. “That is not my intention at all.” He shakes his head. “Don’t you understand? This was foreseen. The founding fathers knew this day would come and that it would be up to us to right the course of history. When a long train of abuses leads to absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government and to provide new guards for their future security. We are the new guard.”
“I never wanted to go to war with the government.”
“You see . . . that was the weakness in your vision. You were too blind to realize that challenging the status quo is to declare war on existing institutions and all they represent.”
A chilling silence settles over the room, and I sense movement behind me. I whip around — bracing for an assault — when one of the bots slips out of the office.
Suddenly the undercurrent of panic that has been simmering in my gut rises to the surface. My hand goes automatically for my stunner before remembering that my weapons are gone.
“Now, Sergeant,” Mordecai tuts. “I thought we had reached a new level of trust.”
I glare at him, still on high alert. I don’t trust him as far as I can throw him. He’s planning something. I just know it.
A moment later, the bot reappears pushing a cart, and the tension in the room seems to mount. The cart is laden with highball glasses, a bucket of ice, and a shimmering crystal decanter.
“I know this may strike you as a bit presumptuous,” says Mordecai. “But it’s only fitting that we celebrate this momentous occasion.”
The bot wheels the cart in between us, removes the lid to the ice bucket, and places two cubes in each glass. The bot pours the scotch and hands one to me. I stare at Mordecai. He’s out of his mind.
“I had hoped it would be Ms. Armaz and I toasting to our new alliance,” he says. “But this is better.”
The bot tries to hand a glass to Jade, but she crosses her arms over her chest.
“Oh, come now, Ms. Armaz,” says Mordecai, taking his own glass and raising it overhead. “We must toast. You are going to go on the air and retract your confession, and I’ll tell the world that you had nothing to do with the attacks. You’ll be a free woman again.”
Jade is still watching Mordecai, completely stoic, but I know this offer is tempting. As much as Jade craves revenge, she wants her life back more than anything. Given the choice, most people will take it — the promise of a life over their principles.
“To new beginnings,” says Mordecai, ignoring Jade’s contempt. “And new alliances.”
I raise my glass because I have to — because not doing it would contradict everything I just said. It goes against every fiber of my being to toast to Mordecai, and the glass feels extremely heavy. It’s as though my entire body is fighting my surrender — fighting against everything Mordecai represents.
Mordecai takes a healthy sip of his scotch, but I just stare down at my drink.
“Come now, Sergeant,” says Mordecai. “Why would I poison you? We’re on the same team, and I have big plans for you.”
Even though it doesn’t make sense, every cell in my body is fighting it. Mordecai has no reason to poison me. His bots could have killed me at any time. The only reason I’m not dead is because he knows he needs me.
“Don’t you trust me?” asks Mordecai.
“Not really,” I admit.
“Sergeant, I’m offended,” says Mordecai, taking another sip and sighing. “It really is a cowardly thing to do — refusing to toast an ally. But don’t worry. Even if I wanted to kill you, poison isn’t really my style.”
Slowly, reluctantly, I raise it to my lips. My stomach, my muscles — my whole body is refusing. But I open my mouth and take a sip.
Mordecai’s sneer makes my stomach turn over, and I get a bitter taste in my mouth.
“Come now, Jade . . . May I call you Jade? It would be so much more festive if you would join us. This is a new beginning.”
“Oh, you have no idea,” growls Jade. “I’ve been waiting for this day for years.”
Suddenly the room goes quiet. Jade glares at Mordecai, and Mordecai stares back.
“And why is that?” Mordecai asks, draining his glass with a clink of ice. “You’ve just been waiting to kill me?”
Jade’s rugged hatred seems to waver, and I sense that something is wrong. Her gaze flickers from Mordecai’s face to the empty glass in his hand.
“I know you’re clever, Jade,” says Mordecai. “So do you. That has always been your problem. You can’t resist showing off.”
Mordecai hands his glass to the bot. Jade doesn’t say a word. I can almost hear her heart hammering, though I don’t understand what’s happening.
“Showing off has always been your undoing,” says Mordecai. “It’s how I foun
d you in the first place. It’s how I knew you wanted to come here — your little show on the air.”
I sense the storm clouds rolling in. I sense it all falling apart. Jade wouldn’t let me in on her plan, and I trusted that she had her reasons. She didn’t want me to give it away. Surely this wasn’t it.
“Did you really think you could reprogram one of my own bots to poison me? Me?” Mordecai lets out a cruel burst of laughter. “You’ve got a pair on you. I’ll give you that.”
I don’t have to look over at Jade to know that she is panicking.
“Did you forget my sister created these machines?” His face is stretched in a contemptuous grin. “They are just as easily manipulated as she is.”
This time I chance a glance at Jade. Her expression is one of naked fear. This was her plan? To poison Mordecai when he inevitably started to gloat? I thought maybe she had another weapon hidden on her person or that she’d rigged the BlumBot offices to explode.
“You’re good,” Mordecai chides. “I have to admit . . . I almost missed it. But then I saw Ms. Barnes remove one of the bots’ tracking chips, and I knew she got that from you. That’s when I realized why you aren’t afraid of my bots. It’s because you understand how they work. But the bots have one advantage over humans: They can’t be blinded by arrogance.”
As Mordecai’s words disappear on the air, I’m left with an icy feeling of dread. It starts in my fingertips and spreads through my body. Something is very, very wrong.
23
Maggie
I hear Tripp yelling after me as I storm down the jet bridge. He’s desperate — frustrated. He wants me to stay. That’s what they both want: me safely out of the way.
Jonah never had any intention of coming. He decided to risk his own life without bothering to tell me. But I can’t just run away when he’s still fighting. This isn’t just his fight. I have to stay and finish this — regardless of the risk.
“Maggie!” I hear Tripp’s footsteps thundering behind me, but I quicken my pace and head for the docking zone, ripping my helmet off. “Maggie!”
