by LM. Preston
Chapter 6
Headquarters came into view. The paved road was back-dropped by sand, houses with rock gardens and streetlights. Cars stopped allowing Anthony to plow his way towards the Security Force Headquarters following Officer Finch’s sleek black patrol car. The facility held the main security force offices, hospital and underground training facility. It stood over thirty-eight-hundred feet tall and had been expanded within the last year to include an orphanage of sorts for the kids that had been retrieved from Monev, and who were awaiting adoption by parents on Mars or Earth. Various cars flew into and out of the rounded dome of the tall tubular building. And Anthony sped by them to park.
Shamira tapped her fingers on her knee waiting until they stopped. Interrogation was never one of the fun things that went with the job, but it was necessary. Maybe if she played her cards right, she’d find out if there were something more to this incident and Cal’s murder.
“Well, we’re here. Y’all ready for the beat down inspection from the old boys?” Anthony shut off the car and watched Officer Finch walk toward them.
Shamira started to open the door. “Ready as ever. Just tell the truth and ask some questions of your own. I want to know if something was up before now.”
“Well, I sure don’t want Finch questioning me. He never liked me, and the feeling is mutual.” Dion got out and turned to pull Hedi out by her hand.
Hedi laughed. “Dion, please, you don’t like none of the guys in authority. You’ve got serious issues with management.”
Valens smirked. “Uh, Hedi, I think that’s the pot calling the kettle black. You go rogue on your instructors all the time.”
Hedi pursed her lips, “Humph, so do you.”
Anthony leaned on the car. “Well, here he comes.”
Finch stood in front of them, his thick blond hair spiked up in a crew cut, his arms crossed, and an angry scowl on his face. “Questioning starts in five minutes. Stow your gear in your lockers and report to the Intog rooms where I’ll assign you an investigator.” With a quick once-over, he turned and walked away.
“You heard the prick. In five.” Dion shrugged, dragged his hand through his thick curly hair and walked away.
“Hedi, your man has serious attitude,” Anthony said and trailed Dion.
Hedi threw a long red curl over her shoulder, “Just like I love ’em.” She winked at Shamira before leaving with the others.
Shamira faced Valens. “You ready for the inquisition?”
Valens gave a weak smile. “I guess. Cal gone…now this.”
“Sucks, don’t it? I don’t care if they promote us or not—we’ve got to find out who did this to Cal. We were there. It was my responsibility to be his back-up.”
Valens put his arms around her and gently pulled her close. He smiled at her resistance and twitched the muscles in his chest where her fingers pushed slightly. “It wasn’t your fault. All of us were his backup. Together…We’re in this together.”
He leaned down and kissed her languorously, as if he had all the time in the world. Torn by her guilt and desire to take the comfort he offered, she hesitated. Then with a sigh, she greedily deepened the kiss, plunging into the warmth of his mouth as her arms snaked up around his neck. He gave a soft chuckle and nipped her full bottom lip, then pulled back. “I love it when you lose control and try to eat me up.”
Butterflies filled her stomach as she itched to move the wayward blond curl from over his eye. Shamira’s arms dropped and she stepped back. “It’s your fault—you’re a tease.” The flicker of guilt at the brief interlude from her guilt at Cal’s death caused her to take another step away.
“I know, but it made you feel better, didn’t it?” Sadness clouded his green eyes.
“I guess,” she grimaced and her weak smile dropped. “I better hurry up.”
“No, we better.” He grabbed her hand and they walked to the elevator.
The elevator door opened. Elite Officer Dax got off. His bulky arms folded in front of him and his usual scowl deepened on his pale face as his eyes fell to their clasped hands. “Humph, fraternizing again?” he mumbled, then curved his finger at them, standing in front of the elevator.
Shamira took a deep breath and swallowed back a retort as she pulled her hand out of Valens’. Dax was one of their trainers. One they most disliked. Disrespect to any Elite Officer would hinder their promotion, therefore they gave him some space. Besides, mouthing off wouldn’t solve anything, so they allowed him to get away with the oozing off of his dislike for them. All she wanted was to put her team on the case to track down Cal’s killers. If tolerating Dax’s crap was a way to do it—then so be it.
Valens lifted his eyebrow at her. He defiantly held her hand while they followed Dax onto the elevator. Shamira smiled to herself at Valens’ quiet challenge and felt comforted in his confirmation of friendship. So she gave into the challenge he initiated and tilted her chin at Dax, whose lip thinned in response.
He pushed the button and cracked his neck while the elevator rose. “Cadet Shamira, you’ll come with me for questioning. You’re my first to interrogate. Valens, Elite Officer Finch will deal with you.”
Shamira cleared her throat. “Did the others already begin?” she asked, purposely refusing to address him as an Elite Officer.
Dax tilted his head slightly and cut a harsh gaze filled with contempt at her. “Not your concern. I don’t recall you being promoted to Security Force Elite Leader. Yet. Why they would consider promoting a kid when there are other more qualified Elites available?” he grumbled quietly. “Until then, your father will take over, and you’ll be under investigation with your team until you are absolved of any negligence.”
The elevator door opened and they sauntered behind Dax down the light wood-covered walls to the interrogation rooms. Elite Officer Finch was waiting for them. He nodded at Valens to follow. Shamira took a deep breath fought to gain some composure for her session with Dax.
He pressed his fingertip to the flat silver panel on the wood door and pushed open the clouded window. She rolled her eyes at the heavy metal table and matching chairs with white walls. It was time to deal with the pinhead.
“Sit.” He pointed to the chair opposite the one he’d slid out for himself. Expelling a breath, he pulled over the small computer flashpad and said, “Create file for subject, Cadet Shamira Nobels.”
The flat, thin device beeped and responded in a computerized tone, “Cadet Shamira Nobels, Security Force Elite cadet in training for Security Force Elite Leader. Direct subordinate to Security Force Elite Leader, Cal Long. Interrogation file created by Sector Nine Security Elite Leader and investigator, Officer Manuel Dax.”
Shamira sat back in the hard chair. She folded her arms while he typed on the flashpad. By the look on Dax’s face, he planned on having her here a while. She played over what could’ve gone wrong today, but couldn’t figure out who would do this. With her team’s destruction of Monev—the crime organization that had caused the breakdown of the secure structure of peace and order on Mars—no threat to the Security Force had surfaced in a year.
The kids were saved and the crime completely halted on the planet. Since the main henchman were taken into custody or declared dead, Monev was no longer a threat. All the members of the gang that had lived were put to death on Earth. Cal’s twin brother Renu, Monev’s leader, was laid to rest in a memorial service only because he’d once been trained as an Elite Officer. Unfortunately for Cal, he had to plan the memorial service for a brother who’d been kicked out of the Security Force as a teenager for killing one of their competitors. It didn’t help matters that his reunion with his brother consisted of Renu kidnapping and torturing him last year before Shamira and her team destroyed Monev’s holdings.
“Cadet Nobels, before we start, give me your wrists. I need to inspect them for any recording devices.” Dax held out his hand.
Shamira pushed back slightly in her seat. Resting her elbows on the table she lifted her hands up for inspec
tion. “If you don’t mind, I don’t like anyone touching me.” Her stare was unwavering. “It’s a side effect of my former blindness.”
“Humph. You didn’t seem to have a problem with Cadet Valens touching you.” His cold blue eyes studied her. “For a seventeen-year-old trainee, you sure act like you’ve got a right to call the shots.” His finger jabbed the table, “Not here, and not during my interrogation. Here, I ask the questions and give the demands. This is procedure. If you don’t do it, I’ll note it in your file. ”
“Then note it, but you’re not touching me.” She put her hands on the table and folded them.
He glared at her quietly and pushed the flashpad aside. “What was the last conversation you had with Security Force Elite Leader, Cal, prior to leaving for your final training session?”
She moved her index finger on the table. “He was in a good mood, you know, like always. He’d joked about the surprise he had for our last day of training. He mentioned how proud he was of me and how far the team had come in their training. Then he said he had to check out the landmines at Olympus Mons to make sure that they were still dormant.”
“You didn’t think that comment strange? Having to check out landmines for activity?”
“No, I trusted Elite Officer Cal to be honest about his purpose for our trip.” Although, she admitted to herself that she’d wondered at his strange reasons for wanting to check out his brother’s sadistic haunts. She’d known from experience not to press Cal further. He’d made it clear he was her boss and if it was anything he thought she should know, he’d tell her. His main rule was not to question him—ever. Because, she’d desired to be a Security Elite Officer her entire life, she complied with his request.
“After you got to the Mons, what happened?”
Shamira told him how they were attacked. That Kurt took off after a possible attacker and Cal appeared to be following him to either assist him or bring him back in to safety.
“Did you think it was odd that no Senior Elite Officer besides Elite Officer Cal, accompanied you on your final training session?”
“No. Since everyone is busy with their duties in addition to the rebuilding of Mar’s infrastructure after the cleanup of Monev, no one had paired up when training the team.”
The earlink on Dax’s ear beeped. The small computerized phone fit snugly in his ear and would have remained unnoticed if not for the faint blue light that flickered from within his ear cavity. He gave her a look that said, don’t move, and waved a finger over the device. “Elite Officer Dax here.” He paused, apparently irritated. “I’ll be right there. I’m just finishing up. I’ll take the cadet named Anthony next.”
Shamira made a silent prayer that she wouldn’t have to be questioned by Dax again, and felt sorry for Anthony who’d suffer the fate next. He pretty much felt the same as she did toward the man.
He ended his call and turned his steely gaze on her. “This session is over. For now. But let me make this clear. Real clear. I don’t see why they would select you and your subpar team to lead up any division of the Mars Security Force Elite. None of you have been trained with the rigors equaling the current Security Force Elite. My opinion, your team and Cal’s carelessness is the reason our Leader is dead today. You don’t have what it takes to lead them, and you and your pretty boy spend too much time smashing faces. I’m not recommending you or any of your team for promotion. None of you are worthy. Get out.” Dax hit the table.
Shamira sat there, dumfounded at the hate and venom that spewed out of Dax. She knew he was close to Cal. Friends with him since before they came to Mars. Her heart sank. How many other officers felt the same way, or would after they’ve heard about Cal’s death? He blamed her for Cal’s death, blamed her and her team—her friends. Heck, if she were honest with herself, she felt the same way. With a gulp, she choked on her guilt. She fixed an unaffected look of stern rebuttal on her face, then stood up and walked out the door.
Chapter 7
Shamira stormed into the training gym, then to the locker room in the back. The dim lighting on the wall did nothing to calm her. Breathing hard, tears welled up in her eyes and she let out a scream. A year ago, her life was never this complicated. Sure, she’d been the butt of jokes at school. Had no friends and set out to save a few missing kids by taking out her frustrations on the lowlifes who sold drugs and kids into slavery. But that was in the past. Now, her life had changed. She’d been taught to suppress the urge, the hunger within her for a fight—to take revenge. Friends, she had friends now. A boyfriend who loved her even when she was blind, and she loved being with him, even though she wouldn’t admit it out loud.
Now with Cal gone, she had to get her head straight. Had to bring these killers in and she was afraid that having friends—having Valens, softened her. She kicked the wall with a right foot and punched it with a left hook. Dents, then cracks in the metal and wood planks appeared with each punch.
Hedi waltzed in the room, her uniform discarded. “Tsk, tsk. Girl, you are going to get in trouble, big trouble if you keep punching that wall. Gross misuse of your technosuit’s power.” She’d changed into a black miniskirt that complemented her red nails, pink lips and hair. Her long red hair was tucked behind her ear as her saucy smile fell.
Shamira slouched on a nearby bench and let out a deep breath. Part of her wished she could be like Hedi and smile or giggle when stressed. “Why? Who…oh, Cal. I should have…” she bit her lip, trying to force back her jumbled words and loss of focus.
Hedi put a finger to her mouth. “We didn’t know what to expect. Gosh, none of us even knew he planned on taking us there…to that…hell. The truth is, when I saw the Mons standing there, still in one piece after we blew it up. I wanted to vomit. That place—Monev, still makes me sick. Sometimes, I can’t even believe that we made it out. Free, because of you.”
“Yeah, well what good am I if I can’t even do my job and keep my team safe? My mentor safe? Freak, I should’ve ridden my motorcycle…not sat in the car to be with Valens.”
“C’mon, none of us could have guessed we’d be ambushed. Stop blaming yourself.”
Shamira pulled it together. Funny, Hedi, was the only one to ever catch her losing it. Leave it to Hedi to put her back on the right track, and to stop beating up on herself. “It’s just that being promoted is so important to me. But I’m done. Over that. Whether they put us on the team or not, I’ll get to the bottom of this. I didn’t let anything stop me before I became a cadet, and I’m not starting now.”
Hedi gave her a mischievous smile. “I like the way you’re talking.”
Dion came up behind them and hugged Hedi from behind. “Man, you’re hot. Your house or mine.” Dion kissed Hedi on the curve of her neck.
Anthony followed with a scowl on his usually smiling face as he scratched his wrist. “Dax is a prick. I swear if he tells me one more time why he doesn’t think I should be a cadet I’m gonna punch him in the face. Not to mention, I think the bastard knows every sin I ever attempted and heaped on about twenty more just to piss me off.” He shrugged, “But I held it together and didn’t give the sadistic, power-hungry snot the satisfaction of breaking me. And man, I was itching to punch that cocky smile off his face.”
Mitch came in and went to his locker. “You should’ve, but you would’ve had to get in line behind me.”
Anthony glanced at Dion who was mauling on Hedi. “Man, get a room. Hell, now is so not the time for that.”
Dion smirked. “Hater. Not my fault Alisha broke up with you.”
Anthony pushed Dion’s shoulder.
“Hey, stop it, Anthony. I was liking that,” Hedi teased and slapped Anthony’s hand.
“Fighting over Hedi again?” Valens chuckled as he came in the room. Then he turned to Shamira and pulled her into a hug.
Feeling edgy and uncomfortable, she pushed him away. He gave her a concerned look, but didn’t let go.
“Excuse me. I have to check on Kurt, then go to my office.” Shamira
looked up at Valens, her body tense. She warred with her desire to kiss him or get him out of her way.
Reluctantly, he dropped his hands, then stepped aside. “I just came back from the infirmary. Kurt’s awake now. They are questioning him and posting a guard at his door tonight.”
Shamira put her hands on her hips. “Great. That means they won’t let us in and we can’t ask him what happened.”
“What now?” Mitch asked.
Shamira leaned her back on the locker. “Meet at my house tomorrow night. I’ll tell my mom we’re training. Hedi, check on any of the former contacts, business partners or any recovering dream addicts that we can question to find out if there is a new bunch of creeps trying to take over where Monev left off. Download it and send it to my home account.”
Anthony grinned.
Mitch winked. “We’re back.”
Dion rested his chin on Hedi’s shoulder. “Kurt’s so gonna be ticked he’s not in on this.”
“Who says he won’t be?” Hedi laughed. “I’ll break into the computer system and release him to my care tomorrow. We live next door to each other and our parents are dating. We’re practically sister and brother.”
“Hedi, you are so sneaky. Just like I love you,” Anthony winked.
“I know. Old skills die hard. Years as a hacker with Monev at least gave me this one itty bitty skill.”
Shamira sighed. “Alright guys, I got to go check my email and get out of here. I want to beat my dad home so I can tell my mom about Cal myself.”
Valens followed her to the door. “Wait.”
She stopped and slid around to face him.
“You forgot to kiss me goodbye.”
Her hand came up to stop his descending lips. “Valens. I’m sorry but we can’t do this at work anymore. You want a kiss, I’ll give you a big one when you and the guys come over tomorrow.”
