Molly looked back at the screen, thinking.
---
Joel and Crash led the way to Jessica’s office on the ninth floor. Having gathered up three armed security guards, they had informed their contact at Framan about the turn of events and been advised to make the citizen’s arrest “with caution.” Joel suspected their caution was a function of both their client relationship and the fact that Jessica probably had big scary-ass lawyers who could take them out with the slightest misstep.
Joel felt alert as he approached her office.
They reached the end of the corridor and stepped into the assistant’s office.
Jessica was standing by her assistant’s desk holo, talking with her. Both ladies looked up, surprised to see anyone let alone a task force of security personnel in her office.
Jessica’s face turned cold. “Yes?” she asked, maintaining her authority.
Joel stepped forward. “Jessica Newld, we have reason to suspect you of corporate espionage. Would you come with us, please?” He signaled for Crash to go ahead and check her office.
Jessica looked indignant. “How does that work when it’s my company?” Her eyes glared, and her voice was harsh now.
Joel smiled politely. “We can sort out those details and your motivation when the police get her. For now, I need you to come with me.”
Jessica looked like she was going to protest, but instead she turned to her assistant. “Please call Bill and get him down here right away.”
Her assistant connected the call immediately. Joel assumed that Bill was her scary lawyer that Jones had warned him about when he called Framan.
“This way, please,” he gestured, showing her to the door. “I trust restraints won’t be necessary?”
She walked past him, fuming. He smirked once she was in front of him. This was a part of the military job he never got to do.
Damn, this is fun! he thought, following her out.
He and the security detail marched her down to the level-two meeting rooms where they could keep her secure and out of the sight of other staff members.
Eventually the police arrived, and Joel did a handover. Pieter and Crash confirmed that the device in her office was the one receiving the intel, and Pieter, with Oz’s help, was able to pull a sample of the data that had been transmitted.
Molly saw what they were doing, and despite Mr. Iace and Mr. Grimm now hovering, she quietly made a complete copy for examination later.
Oz noticed her activity.
What you up to?
Appeasing my Grindle-senses! Grab the rest of the team on their holos and have them meet on level ten when they’re done tying up loose ends. I want to congratulate them on a job well done.
Roger that, boss-lady. Roger that.
Barstucks Coffee Co., Opposite Iantrogen Offices
Paige trotted after Molly, trying to keep up as they strode across the busy road. “Why are we coming here to get mochas? You think after saving their company they would be able to hook us up with mochas from their offices?
Molly held her hand out, causing a car to slow down as they scuttled to the safety of the sidewalk. “Yeah, I’m sure they would have,” she called over her shoulder to Paige. “I just wanted to get out of there for a few minutes,” she confessed.
“Oh!” Paige shielded her eyes from the dust in the atmosphere. “How long until the others are ready?” she asked.
Molly glanced down at her holo as they made their way down the sidewalk. “Looks like we still have half an hour. They’re waiting for Newld’s lawyer to appear,” she explained. Paige had caught up, so Molly could talk more normally now. “Joel thought it was important to meet him and get a read on him, and I thought it was a good idea. You never know.”
The two ladies made it to the mocha shop and slipped through the two sets of doors out of the atmosphere.
“Phew,” exhaled Paige, shaking her hair out, and dusting off her arms. “Sandy today!”
Molly had hardly noticed. She was eyeing the board of mocha specials, trying to decide what she could reward herself with that would still allow her to get some shut-eye on the trip home.
The barista behind the counter ambled over. “Can I take your order?”
Molly nodded, then asked Paige. “You know what you want?”
Paige stepped over, having rearranged her long hair over her shoulder. “Yeah, I’ll have a mocha with cream, thanks.” The barista tapped in her order.
“You wanna read off that list for the others?” Molly asked her. Paige rummaged on her holo. “Sure.”
Molly decided to get her order in while Paige rummaged. “I’ll have a straight mocha, room for rice milk.” She tapped her holo to pay for the whole order, and Paige started listing the orders for the rest of the team.
Molly moved away from the counter and sat down at one of the tables nearby. It was going to take a while for them to make everything and pack it for transport.
She looked out the window. People were scurrying around on the street, up and down, trying to get wherever they needed to be despite the dust cloud that had hit the city. It was fast becoming evening now, and traffic had increased. Her heart sank as she thought about getting back to the Spaceport.
Just then, she became aware of someone in front of her. She jumped, then looked at the man who sat down in the chair in front of her. She began to get angry.
Then she realized who it was.
Sean Royale.
The anger increased.
“Son of a fokking bitch!” she said spontaneously. She noticed people looking at her, including the barista Paige was still talking to.
Sean grinned. “Good to see you too!”
“You fucking arsewipe of a traitorous helvítis brundskrapari!” She scowled at him. “You have some andskotans nerve showing up here.”
He was still grinning. “Anyone told you you’re pretty when you’re furious?”
“Fuck off,” she said flatly.
Sean sat back in his chair. “Hang on,” he said, standing up a little and signaling to Paige. “Grab me a mocha. Straight. No frills. No onions. I’m coming with you guys.”
Paige nodded, smiling. She glanced at Molly, amused at her reaction to him. She repeated Sean’s request to the barista.
Sean sat back down and leaned back in the chair again. “So, looks like you missed me.”
Molly turned in her chair, crossing her legs toward the window. “What are you doing here?”
Sean folded his arms. “Came to talk to you.”
Molly didn’t have anything to say. She just kept looking out the window.
Sean tried to catch her eye. “Heard you met the General,” he ventured.
Molly just looked at him, eyebrows raised.
“And ADAM,” he tried again.
Molly shook her head and shrugged nonchalantly.
Sean sighed. In all his years of dealing with women, he knew there was only one way to get out of this. “Ok. I’m sorry I misled your team and didn’t tell you about the second device.”
Molly relaxed her face a little, but kept her arms and legs crossed.
He sat up a little. “I had to,” he tried to justify.
Molly raised one eyebrow.
Sean glanced out across the empty tables and chairs, and ruffled the back of his head. “Look, I’m sure you have questions. How about I try and answer them, and if you still don’t want to talk to me by the time you’ve finished your mocha, I’ll go away again.”
Molly eyed him cautiously.
“Deal?” he pressed.
She unfolded her arms. “Ok.”
Paige had finished putting the order in and was now waiting for the mochas to be deposited on the counter at the end. She had a carrier ready, and napkins in hand.
Molly asked her first question. “Did you know about the base under our safe house?”
Sean nodded. “Yes. But I’ve never been there. I thought I could—”
Molly cut him off. “How long have you
worked for Reynolds?”
Sean responded without missing a beat. “Can’t tell you that.”
Molly blinked. “Why not?”
“Classified,” he said bluntly.
Molly fired her next question. “Do you really work for Garet?”
Sean nodded once. “Yes.”
Molly barely moved between questions. She asked the next one. “Were you sent to work for Garet by Reynolds?”
“Yes.”
She reeled off her next question. “Does Garet know?”
“No.”
“Does Garet know anything about the General and the operation, or our involvement?”
Sean’s expression was blank as he rapidly responded to each question. “No.”
“But he’s important to the political stage here in Sark?”
“Exactly.”
Molly paused, musing about what else she needed to ask him.
Sean leaned forward and interrupted her thinking . “So now can I come and see your space base?”
Molly scowled.
Sean leaned back a bit. “Ok. Too soon.”
Paige had managed to pack the mochas into two carriers. She called Molly over, and together they manhandled the carriers out of the mocha shop, Sean Royale in tow.
---
Sitting out of view but within earshot of the table where Sean and Molly had talked, a lone reporter on her umpteenth cup of mocha waited quietly. She cautiously poked her head around the column that had separated them and watched as Sean Royale left behind the two girls. Though she hadn’t been able to get a good look of their faces, she could tell from the conversation exactly who they were.
She smiled.
Maya Johnstone had finally “met” Molly Bates.
And what an enlightening conversation it had been! She was right about the base on the asteroid. She was right about the Beaufort connection to all of this. She was right about Sean being in league with the good guys, though it sounded like that little stunt he’d pulled with the second device had caused a tiff.
Maya glanced back over the notes she’d been making throughout the interaction. She quickly started jotting down the questions she was going to pose and answer in her next Whistleblown article.
CHAPTER TEN
Iantrogen Offices, Tenth floor Offices, Spire
“Honestly! Only you, girl.” Brock eyed the muscular hulk who had followed Paige and Molly onto the tenth floor. “You go out to get mochas, and you come back with a goddamn meat-feast of a marine in tow.”
Molly had to correct Brock. “Don’t get too excited. He’s an asshole.”
Sean stepped into the room and hovered by the workspace where Brock, Crash, and Pieter were kicking their heels waiting for Joel to get done.
Molly put her carrier of mochas on the table with Paige’s, who set about handing them out.
Molly got out of her way and sat down. She made the introductions in her pretend-professional voice. “Most of you already know this double-crossing jerk from our last mission.” She counted the folks at the table. “In fact, the only team member you haven’t fucked over, I mean, met, is Brock.”
Brock stood up and walked around to shake Sean’s hand.
Molly kept talking. “Brock, this is Asshole. Asshole, Brock.”
Brock shook his hand, and did a little curtsy at the same time. “Nice to meet you, Asshole!” he said, smiling.
Sean gave him a strong handshake in return. Brock blushed a little.
Molly had planned to thank her team then and there, but Iace and Grimm both walked onto the floor and came over to join them. She was confined to the bondage of small talk instead, until Joel finally arrived.
“Sorry,” Joel announced. “Got held up waiting for the lawyer.”
Molly smiled at him.
Grimm was the first to speak. “I just wanted to say thank you for your hard work and the swift results.” His face was fraught with concern, though. “As you know, this outcome puts us in a delicate position. Jessica Newld is the majority shareholder and CEO of this company. I’m not quite sure how this is going to play out.”
Molly reassured him. “Well this doesn’t reflect badly on anyone here. You were doing your job, and you have a duty of care to protect the company and its research. You were correct in bringing her actions to light.”
Joel nodded, impressed by Molly’s bizarre sensitivity to the situation.
She noticed him watching her, and promptly ignored it.
Grimm nodded solemnly. “Yes. Thank you. And thank you for your discretion on this. I’m assuming we can count on you to keep this confidential?”
Joel spoke up. “We have to report back to Framan, since they’re the folks who hired us. But beyond that, yes—of course.”
Brock leaned over to Crash. “Not like the rest of us have anyone to tell anyway,” he whispered. Crash glanced at him sideways through narrowed eyes and shook his head, remembering the last time he’d made that comment.
Mr. Grimm stepped forward to shake Molly’s hand. “Well, thank you again. We’ll of course be releasing the full bonus to the company, and we’ll be giving Mr. Jones a glowing report of your work here.” He then turned to Joel and shook his hand before opening his palms to the whole group. “Really, thank you. Your efforts are much appreciated.”
The group responded with mutters of “You’re welcome” and the like, and then Grimm made his way to the door. “I’ll leave you with Mr. Iace to see you out. Again, thank you, and perhaps we’ll meet again.”
And he was gone.
Mr. Iace, with all the attention now on him, muttered something about getting a car to take them to the Spaceport. He pulled up his holo, spoke to someone, and then suggested he take them down to the parking lot.
Sean leaned over to Molly. “You gonna let me do my job and come to the base to show you how your toys work?”
Molly glanced down at her empty mocha cup. “I’ve fulfilled my part of the deal,” she said, showing him it was empty.
Brock overheard. “So Sean knows about the base?” he asked excitedly.
Sean nodded. “The General has put me at your disposal, but your boss here,” he glanced at Molly, who was still looking into her empty paper cup, “has trust issues.”
She glared at him. “It’s not called trust issues when you’re dealing with lying bastards. It’s called boundaries.”
“Po-tay-toes, po-tah-toes,” Sean replied. “I told you I’m sorry. And I was operating under orders not to inform you until the General decided you were ready.”
Joel was watching the interaction. Molly glanced up at him.
He nodded.
She rolled her eyes and relented. “Short leash. If you so much as omit the truth once or make me suspect you of anything, you’re going to be off that asteroid faster than Crash can take the Phoenix beyond the short atmosphere.
Sean smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”
Brock grinned. Paige glanced over, realizing that something had just happened and she’d missed it.
Mr. Iace had finished his holo call and invited the group to follow him down to the parking lot. There they were met by Grey-suits One and Two again and piled back into the transport, this time with one additional passenger.
Sitting in the people carrier once more, Joel started to relax.
Molly looked at him. “Not like in the Space Marines, eh?”
He leaned his head into the headrest. “No, it is not.” He smiled across at her. “I think I could get used to this.”
Sean was sitting a row behind him, looking at Molly. “Me too,” he said. “Me too.”
Molly glared at his presumptiveness. Not on my team, you’re not, asshole.
Spaceport, Hangar 08771A, Outskirts of Uptarlung
The car pulled up at the hangar. The team, and Sean, piled out.
Joel threw his gear down on the grassy area next to their hangar, and signaled to Molly. “Going to give Framan a call to check in.”
Molly nodded.
Joel opened his holo and connected with them after a few moments. “Hi, yeah. This is Joel Dunham. Yes, that’s right. Ok. Sure. If you just let him know that everything was resolved and that the client has agreed to release the bonus too, that would be great. Yes. Yes. That’s perfect. I’ll look forward to that. Yes. We’re ready when you are.”
Crash had gotten the hangar open and the team was traipsing in, gathering gear and getting ready to depart.
Molly ambled over to Joel’s position as he hung up.
“All good?” she checked.
Joel grinned. “Yep. Sounds like the money will be in our account just as soon as they’ve reviewed the reports. So anytime in the next day or so.”
Molly put her hand up to high-five Joel. He slapped her hand hard. “Owwww!”
He rolled his eyes. “You’re such a girl!”
She laughed and slapped him on his chest. “So anyway, how much is that?”
Joel notice Sean watching out of the corner of his eye. Sean picked up his pack and headed inside.
Joel looked up, remembering the figures. “Well it was a hundred and fifty thousand for the job, and then an additional one hundred thousand for the successful apprehension of the perpetrator. So that’s two hundred fifty thousand.”
Molly beamed. “We’re quarter of the way there!” She paused for a moment, having a thought. “Hey, did you want to mention our suspicions to them?”
Joel shook his head. “No. Norm thinks it’s a bad idea in case they’re in on it.”
Joel picked up his gear, and they ambled into the hangar with the others.
Molly looked confused. “What, wait? Who the fuck is Norm?” she asked.
Brock was walking past, checking something under the ship. “It’s his alter ego!” he chipped in. “His inner conspiracy-theorist!”
Molly laughed out loud. Joel couldn’t resist chuckling either.
Brock was chortling away, fiddling with something on the ship. “See, there was me thinking he was all normal and sane, and then in the middle of an op, we get a whiff that he might just be as cray-cray as the rest of us! Woot!”
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