Galaxy Spies

by Philip R Benge

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  Luther Van Peters, who was just another member of the Lyren freedom movement, had left the strange assortment of people at the safe house operated by the freedom movement. He hoped that they would be able to rest safely from whatever ordeals that they had been going through, he didn`t know and didn`t particularly want to know what these ordeals might be, he just obeyed the request made by his friend Jonas. In the house, the friends were happy to be safely hidden from any chase that might be already on the way, or at least one that must start soon. Luther Van Peters was the owner of a small newspaper that catered for this region of rural Lyre; it gave advice on farming and acted as the local peoples` diary of upcoming events. Ray Connors wondered to himself whether it had advised its readers to pencil in the upcoming slave revolt that would make the one of ancient roman times seem trivial in comparison, certainly to the people of Lyre who would be caught up in its epicentre.

  The house was the usual two-storey design with a lounge and kitchen downstairs and two rooms and a bathroom upstairs, one of the rooms being a small box room. A door led from the kitchen directly into the garage where they had just left their car. The house was the last house in a block of five and was situated at the left hand end. It was of a simple wood construction, as were most rural houses on Lyre, and had only a few items of furniture. Three arm chairs and a coffee table in the lounge, a small table with four chairs in the kitchen and three cots upstairs. There was bedding and towels in a large walk-in cupboard at the top of the stairs, this being why the second room upstairs was so small.

  “Why don`t we all get a couple of hours rest, for I`m sure that we could all do with some, and maybe later we can finish off the last of the bread and cheese that Cassandra gave us while we can discuss our next move.” Colonel Michaels suggested, a suggestion that everyone took up.

  On the first floor, there were only enough cots for three of them to use, two in the large bedroom and another one in the small box room. The men tossed a coin for who got to use two of the cots and Ray Connors and Charles Bragg won so Colonel Michaels and Peter Summers had to make do with the armchairs downstairs. The men had decided to save the bathroom for later, although Jean decided to make use of it immediately, but then she had been able to catch some sleep in the car. The long hot bath that she enjoyed, while the others slept, confirming the wisdom of her choice, but it also made her rather drowsy. Reluctantly she got out of the warm water, and after drying herself, she settled down for a short sleep in the smaller of the bedrooms where the third of the cots had been allocated for her to use.

  It was almost midnight when they were all back downstairs and had eaten their meal, and it was now that Jean decided that she should tell her brother about Ray and her, he didn`t take it well.

  “He is far too old for you Jean, what on Earth do you see in him?” Peter Summers was really angry with his young sister, but had wisely kept his voice down to an enraged whisper so the locals didn`t hear an earthman`s voice coming from the usually empty house.

  “He is not too old for me Peter, he is only about your age and I have seen you out with girls not much older than I am. He is also the most wonderful and bravest man that I have ever met, and before you forget it, he is the reason that you are free. I would still be on New Caledonia without him, he is the one who found out where you had been taken, and he is also the one who saved my life not once but twice.” Jean raged.

  “Ok I am grateful to him and the others, and amazed at what you yourself have accomplished, but even so gratitude is all you feel for him, not love.” Peter argued politely that angered Jean even more.

  “Don`t you dare tell me what I feel Peter, I know exactly what I feel and if you don`t like it, well you will just have to put up with it.” Jean was extremely mad at her brother, how dare he tell her what it was that she felt for Ray.

  “How am I supposed to feel about an older man making a play for my sister?” Peter was slowly losing the cool exterior that he had tried to show.

  “He did not make a play for me; in fact I believe that he felt as you do, that he was too old for me, it was I who kissed him first.” Jean stated fiercely.

  “You mean you threw yourself at him Jean?” Peter Summers said angrily. Jean looked up at her brother, he could see the anger building on her face, and then she brought her right hand around to slap him loudly and painfully on his face.

  “How dare you say that to me Peter?”

  Ray had seen the heated conversation out of the corner of his eye from the armchair that he was sitting in, and he had heard some of what was said and guessed the rest. He had winced when he heard Jean slap her brother, but he had wisely kept away from it, or he had tried to because Jean stormed over to him and promptly sat on his lap and flung an arm around his neck. The look that Peter Summers flung his way was hot with rage to say the least, as he stormed out through the kitchen and into the garage where he stood and fumed. The two marines had also wisely decided to stay in the kitchen, where they were sitting at the small table drinking a hot cup of coffee that they had made after finding a small store of food in one of the cupboards.

  “You are looking lovelier than ever Jean, especially now that you have washed off your disguise.” Ray said hoping to calm Jean down a might.

  “Thank you Ray, at least you see me as a woman and not as a silly school girl still, Peter is worse than a father.” Jean said sulkily.

  “He is your big brother and so he feels bound to look after you now that your parents are gone, it is just that you are not the little girl he knows, you have grown up while he was busy working away from home, he just didn`t realise it.” Ray said trying to explain her brother`s attitude in a way more acceptable to Jean.

  “I know Ray but it is so annoying, I wanted him to be happy for us, to see us as a new family for him to be part of, with Harry as our favourite Uncle.” Jean said dejectedly.

  Colonel Michaels had found a radio when he had searched through the cupboards in search of food, and he now turned it on just in time for the news. It told the Lyren people about the attack on their outpost in the Malan system, which was the outermost of the planets enslaved by the Lyren Federation. It also told of a further attack on the Rigel system. It also said that their own space fleet had suffered a setback but had given the space fleet of Earth a bloody nose that it wouldn`t forget, but it didn`t say why the Lyren ships weren`t defending the Malan or the Rigel systems. The newsreader said that no information was coming out of either system, but the authorities were sure that the settlers on the two planets were safe as they were protected by experienced troops. The announcer then went on to say that many Lyrens were panic buying, it was because they feared that an attack must be imminent on the home world. The government has issued a bulletin stating that this would not happen because Earth didn`t possess a land force big enough to win a battle on the surface of Lyre, and it asked for everyone to calm down and await further news bulletins.

  Peter Summers had come back into the kitchen to listen to the new broadcast, and Ray said the he would speak to him, and so Jean moved over to another armchair with an anxious look upon her face while Ray took her brother back out to the garage to try and calm things down.

  “Peter I can appreciate your point of view, which is one that I worried over and why I didn`t make a pass at your sister. I want to assure you that I don`t intend to take our relationship to the next level until I am sure that Jean is really in love with me.” Ray said, quietly trying to reassure the man who might soon become his brother in law.

  “Thank you, I appreciate that Ray, and I know that you are a good and certainly a brave man. The way that you have risked your life for Jean by coming to Lyre just to rescue me proves that. It is just that Jean is still so young, and I didn`t anticipate her getting romantically involved with a man who is my age.” Peter explained his reaction to his sister`s revelation.

  “You missed the last two or three weeks Peter, because Jean grew up a lot while she travelled around the galaxy
looking for you. She is no longer your baby sister; she is a young woman who knows what she wants.” Ray said trying to explain the new Jean.

  “And she wants you, is that what you are saying Ray?” Peter said getting angry again.

  “No Peter I didn`t mean that, I meant that you missed a vital time in her life, the part where she was forced to grow up fast because of the life that you chose to lead, and before you explode I think that you are one hell of a guy risking all for Earth. However, Peter, it meant that due to circumstances beyond your control Jean was propelled into your world as well.”

  Peter Summers hadn`t thought that his life style, something that he did more for himself rather than for the people of Earth, could have endangered all that he held dear, his baby sister and her innocence. He now recognised that what Ray said could in fact be true.

  “You may well be correct Ray, and if you will agree to take things slowly then I am happy for you and Jean to see one another romantically. You can tell Jean that a peace treaty has been signed, I don`t want to be on the receiving end of another of her slaps.” He said ruefully.

  When Ray and Peter left the garage smiling, the others and especially Jean were amazed, Jean had thought that the two men could come to blows and here they were the best of friends. When Ray came across to her, she had to ask.

  “I heard the sound of Peter`s voice in there and thought that I would have to go in there and stop a fight between you, but you come out the best of friends, what did you say to change his mind about us?”

  “Just a bit of understanding and a little male bonding, and just in case your suspicious female mind dreams up anything else, I should tell you that Peter is feeling a little bad about leaving you all alone on New Caledonia, so don`t question him about what was said out there. Anyway the good news is that Peter has given me permission to see you romantically, as long as we move ahead slowly so as to give you a chance to prove to yourself that you are in love with me, ok?” Ray said smiling down at Jean.

  “I already know how I feel about you Ray, I don`t need time to prove it to myself, or to anyone else.” Jean protested.

  “I know Jean but just go along with your brother for the moment; we will have plenty of time to take things further once we have returned safely home to New Caledonia and you are back amongst your normal surroundings.” Ray reasoned.

  “My normal surroundings will not change the way that I feel about you Ray, but I agree that we do have plenty of time to get to know each other a little better.” Jean said by way of agreement. Colonel Michaels brought their minds back to the real problems in their world.

  “Well there was nothing about us on the news, you would have thought that they would have found out about Peter`s escape by now.” Colonel Michaels said just a little surprised.