Thick Black Theory: A Symbiont Wars Book (Symbiont Wars Universe)

by Chogan Swan

  Just like Texas.

  She’d left the door open a bit, so she could hear Marlee doing something in the kitchen. “You’d better not drink all the coffee, Marls,” she said as she opened the door and stepped into the kitchen.

  “Errp!” Marlee almost choked. “Kaitlin, he’s right there.” she said pointing to Bernard still sawing logs on the recliner.

  “Who do you think usually stands guard for me when I take a bath?” Kaitlin grabbed the French press and poured the black gold into two stoneware cups. “Ah! Just right.” She padded back toward the bedroom where she and Marian had slept, taking the cups with her. “Bernard,” she yelled, nudging his leg with her toe. “Coffee.”

  Bernard, eyes still closed, held out his hand and squeezed the handle of the cup when she slid it onto his fingers. “Thanks,” he whispered, moving the cup to his lips.

  “Rise up and conquer, Maid Marian,” Kaitlin called as she opened the bedroom door. “What is this coffee, Marlee? This is GOOD!”

  “It’s Santa Catarina. Something you’d never see in the US. Mexico ships the good stuff to Europe. And now, to us, since we have a very good trade relationship.”

  “Viva el México,” Bernard croaked then sipped again gingerly.

  Kaitlin put her cup down and bounced on the bed. She inspected the jeans she’d worn yesterday, expecting at least some damage. “I was expecting some road rash on my pants, but they didn’t even get a scratch.”

  “That’s too bad,” Marlee said. “Doesn’t that make them more fashionable?”

  “Yeah, but it also lets fire ants crawl in and bite my tender legs.”

  “Yeah, we don’t buy holey jeans,” Marian said from beneath the covers. “They get holey all by themselves when real girls wear them.”

  Marlee giggled. “You are wearing off on that one, Kaitlin.”

  “We went shopping when we got to Monterrey two days ago,” Kaitlin said with a laugh. “The embassy gave us a little walking-around money.” She nudged the pile of sheets that hid Marian. “If you don’t get up, Marian, you’ll have to go to breakfast in your pajamas.”

  “But I don’t have any pajamas!”

  “Then you’d better put those jeans on fast.” Kaitlin took another sip of coffee then slung Promisekeeper around her hips. “And I suggest you be ready by the time I’m done with dry-fire practice.” She checked Promisekeeper’s cylinder then moved to the corner of the room and found a spot on the wall to use for an aiming point.

  FlickSnapSnap... Holster. FlickSnapSnap... Holster. FlickSnapSnap... Holster. FlickSnap...

  She fell into the familiar rhythm then started pushing the speed on the firing sequence. Her hands had always been quick to learn and quicker to move, but something about practice with Promisekeeper was therapeutic—like punching a heavy bag when you were frustrated. She paused to adjust the holster and glimpsed Marlee standing in the doorway.

  Marlee’s eyes were wide and her mouth had fallen open ever so little.

  “What?” said Kaitlin.

  Marlee closed her mouth and held up her phone. “Calypso just texted and said they’d be here to take us to breakfast in a minute.”

  “Gotcha. I’m ready.” She turned back to the wall.

  FlickSnapSnap...Holster.FlickSnapSnap...Holster.FlickSnapSnap...Holster.FlickSnapSnap.

  It was almost meditation.

  ∆ ∆ ∆

  When the knock came, Marian was fully dressed. Kaitlin checked the peephole and opened the door. “We’re ready. Thanks for coming to show us the ropes,” she said to Razor and Calypso, waving them inside. She turned to Razor. “What’s your take on the trouble the short lady could try to cause for me? And what’s her name and job here anyway? I’d hate to take us into a situation where we could get blindsided.” She frowned, rubbing her neck, thinking about the last time she’d been caught off guard.

  “Her name is Doris Schnelling. She was an administrative assistant, but now everyone calls her the Director. I’m not sure what she can do, but I suspect she’ll take some time getting her network together first.”

  “Thing is,” Calypso said. “We aren’t really sure how she was put in charge. I wonder if she even was put in charge. I suspect she just took charge. When the ambassador called in a bunch of her people to staff the embassy in Puerto Peñasco, somehow people just started doing what she said.”

  “That’s what my dad thinks too,” Marlee said. “He had the choice of going with all the analysts, but he chose to work from here most of the time.”

  “I didn’t even know he was part of all this. When did that happen?” Kaitlin said.

  “He was part of it through his volunteer work with SST, but he didn’t even know all the players then. He was recruited to work on a big project. That’s when he met the ambassador and learned what was going on. He texted you right before the grid went down because he was worried.”

  “Part of it got through. Enough for a heads-up.”

  “What’s for breakfast?” Marian said, taking Calypso’s hand.

  “You coming, Bernard?” Kaitlin shouted toward the bathroom.

  Bernard came out, wiping the last remnants of shaving cream from his face.

  “I’d forgotten there was a chin under all that,” Kaitlin said.

  Bernard arched an eyebrow at her. Saucy youngster, it seemed to say.

  Kaitlin nodded to Razor, who opened the door and led them out. Kaitlin handed Bernard one bullpup and slung the other on her shoulder.

  “Going hunting?” Marlee said, falling in at her side.

  “You never know. Seems like somebody’s always trying to kill me these days.”

  “Do you really need both guns? You already have the John Wayne look working for you.”

  “I have an idea about that.” She tapped Razor on the shoulder. “Razor, can you shoot?”

  “You mean like a pistol?”

  “I mean like a rifle.”

  Razor eyed the bullpup doubtfully.

  “Can you sling it on your shoulder and keep your finger off the trigger until I can teach you?”

  “That, I can manage.”

  “Good.” She transferred the bullpup to his shoulder and adjusted the sling for his larger frame.

  “They aren’t going to let me in to the dining room like this.” Razor said, grinning.

  “According to the treaty documents I read on the plane, the tribal nations are allowed open-carry in aligned states. You may be a member of a different nation, but you have the same rights. It’s all these other people around here that are the special circumstances.”

  “Like you?”

  “I’m a member of the Nii Federation’s embassy staff. They haven’t told me yet what they want me to do, but until they do... I will strive to further the good of the Nii Federation and all allied nations.” She leaned close to his ear and whispered. “They didn’t make me take the oath yet either, but I’ll still try to follow it. It’s truly inspiring.”

  “Where do I sign up?”

  “Raise your hand and say, I’m a deputy. That ought to do it.”

  “I’m a deputy,” he said, raising his hand. “You know you’re scary, right?”

  Kaitlin put her hand on his shoulder. “I’ve worked hard to become so,” she said, following the quote with a wink.

  At the door to the cafeteria, Kaitlin smiled at everyone who looked her way as she followed Marian and Calypso to the food line. Food wasn’t being served yet, but there was coffee. Kaitlin got a hot-chocolate mix for Marian and took a coffee for herself.

  Two cups in the morning? Pinch me, I’m dreaming.

  “It’s hot, Marian. Let’s sit at a table so you can drink it while we wait for the food.” She led Marian to a nearby table. Kaitlin was halfway through her coffee when a woman approached the table.

  “Hello, my name is Allison Quimby,” she said. “I’m the coordinator for the school program for the five through twelve-year age group that starts next week. I’d like to speak to this little girl’s
mother. Where can I find her?”

  I have been asking myself that same question.

  “She is my ward. You can talk to me.”

  Allison Quimby allowed a dubious expression to darken her face. “May I ask how you were appointed to care for her?”

  Kaitlin put her coffee cup down and leaned forward, keeping her eyes on the school coordinator’s face. She tapped the star on her shirt. “Not jewelry,” she said. “We have our own schooling program. It’s a modified Montessori approach and involves lots of crayons, but if you have textbooks that you can share with us, I would be glad for them if they’re of suitable material. I’ll make sure she doesn’t illustrate them too much.”

  The woman looked down at Kaitlin with a puzzled expression. “I suppose I will have to talk to the director,” she said.

  Kaitlin smiled. “Oh, does she direct the textbook distribution too? She’s a busy woman.”

  Chapter 39 — Here Be Vipers

  Kaitlin leaned back in her deck chair, watching Marlee and Marian splashing in the saltwater pool. Kaitlin would have loved to join them, but as far as she could tell, she was in enemy territory. Razor and Calypso had positioned a poolside table with an umbrella where they could sit out of the sun. Calypso had a tiny mist sprayer for cooling skin. In the arid heat, it felt a bit like relaxing on the beach near an ocean spray. At breakfast this morning, a group of Razor’s and Calypso’s friends had joined them, and Kaitlin had found out where they were from and how they’d gotten there.

  She’d felt like cheering when she’d learned they were almost all from the same martial arts group and Kest had been their mestre for years. If they had the warrior spirit and fighting experience, learning to navigate the larger scale battles they needed to be ready for was just a matter of instruction, and Bernard would help with that... if she could ever dig him back out of his exploration of the facilities.

  But, Kaitlin decided to wait and see how good they actually were before getting too excited. Still though, she’d been impressed with Kest during the short time when he’d been part of the rescue, but that might have just been because he was a musical genius and deadly handsome.

  Kaitlin reached for her water bottle and took a sip. “So, the security people Doris threatened us with yesterday... how many are there and where are they keeping themselves?”

  Calypso snorted. “The donut patrol? Mostly part-time dudes that like carryin’ sidearms and tazers.”

  “Tazers? What for? You have violent crime problems here?”

  Razor laughed. “No, but they like to rest their hands on them when they’re telling people that martial arts are not to be practiced in the gymnasium and stupid shit like that. We gave up on telling them the roda was a folk-dance game. Kest was always better at selling that line than the rest of us.”

  “What about the numbers?”

  “Well,” Calypso said. “I think they maybe have four on duty at any one time. Their head of security stays inside his office with the swamp cooler running and talks to the others on the radio. The others take turns checking the perimeter in the air-conditioned SUV.”

  “They do that often?”

  “Morning, before it gets hot, and dusk.”

  “Let me guess. The same route every day?”

  “Yeah,” Calypso said. “They have this technology for the perimeter. They call it the-”

  “AA,” Kaitlin finished for her.

  “Oh, you know ‘bout that?”

  “Damn thing almost got me killed.” Kaitlin took another drink of water.

  Razor, who’d been quiet for some time, letting Calypso carry the conversation, sat forward and turned to Kaitlin. “Why do you think she calls you mommy?”

  Kaitlin paused for a minute, even though she knew the answer. But, if she was going to trust Razor and Calypso, she knew she had to include them in her new role as mommy too.

  “The easy answer is that she needs a mommy right now. But it’s more than that. I rescued her from a kidnapper who sexually abused her. She needed someone she thought could protect her, and it couldn’t be a man. She probably won’t be able to trust men for a long time. But, by adopting a mommy who could protect her from them, she has some time to breathe while she heals.”

  Kaitlin held up a finger. “It’s important that you don’t share this with anyone. The reason I told you is that—if we are going to work together—you needed to know. Razor, she’ll probably need you to give her space, but stand up for her too. Calypso, another strong woman in her life wouldn’t be a bad thing.”

  Calypso laughed. “Girl, you a whole squad of strong woman by yourself.”

  Razor chuckled. “Yeah, baddest mother on the street.”

  Kaitlin shook her head. “Mommy you mean. Big difference.”

  “Yeah, but baddest mommy on the street doesn’t have the same ring to it.”

  Kaitlin heard a noise and looked over her shoulder to see Brian approaching with a stack of big, thin, white boxes.

  Pizza!

  “I brought lunch,” he said as Kaitlin took the box off the top. She walked next to him back to the table, pulling out a huge slice and digging her teeth into the crisp wood-fired crust.

  “Brian, you are the bomb,” she said through the cheese. “Not the one that brought the grid down. The good one that brings pizza.”

  She put the box on the table and waited long enough to whistle for Marian before taking another bite. After that bite was under control, she turned to Brian again. “Is Daniels okay?”

  Brian smiled. “Yes. The ambassador herself came instead of handing it off to an ambulance. He had a pretty severe concussion, but she brought him around pretty fast.”

  “Was she upset about my refusing to hand over the guns?”

  “After I explained what happened, not at all. In fact she told me to commend you on your protective instincts. I guess that’s a high virtue among the nii... as long as it stays under control. She said you showed commendable restraint not shooting him.”

  “I was tempted,” Kaitlin said. “But then, I’ve been tempted since I’ve gotten here too. Where is this utopia you are supposed to be building? I hadn’t even gotten out of the car before I was attacked by a bureaucrat.” She shuddered. “I thought you were trying to change the way the world worked, and here—in the very heart of your bosom—be vipers.”

  Brian turned to Calypso and Razor. “Don’t mind her when she gets like this. She’s just blowing off steam.” He smiled and turned back to Kaitlin. “I was going to wait to give you this, but here.” He pulled an envelope out of his pocket and handed it to her.

  Kaitlin shook it, then opened the flap and straightened out the paper...

  The handwriting was clear and precise.

  My dear Sheriff Sannhetsdottir,

  Thank you for delivering these packages for my younger branch sister. I assure you both are none the worse for wear.

  I have heard reports from your tenure in Wet Gulch Territory. I have every confidence your deportment at Sun Sea Farm will be in keeping with the same tradition of excellence. Sincerely,

  Riniana Tiana, Nii Federation Ambassador-at-Large to the people of Earth

  “What does it say?” said Brian.

  “Yeah, give it,” said Marlee who had come out of the pool as Kaitlin read.

  Kaitlin shrugged and put the letter back in the envelope. “My take on it is that she’s giving me permission to do what I was planning on doing anyway.”

  “What’s that?” Razor widened his eyes in an expression of mock terror.

  “Keeping people I care about safe.”

  “I just hope I make the cut,” Razor said with a grin. “It seems kinda dangerous on the outside of that group.”

  Chapter 40 — Cheers

  Kaitlin left the security chief’s office without slamming the door on her way out, considering at least that aspect of the conversation a success.

  Never let them know they got under your skin. Maybe I should have brought Bernard.

&nbs
p; Her boots squealed on the tile floor, making little protests that echoed her own irritation as she powered down the corridor.

  Josh Roundston. Even his name was annoying.

  She’d come by, once again, to try reasoning with him, explaining her intentions to remain here only until the Nii Embassy found Marian’s parents. His only response was a demand that she turn over all weapons in her possession immediately. Pointing out that he had no jurisdiction over her had not deterred him from repeating his demand at a louder volume. Managing to extricate herself without drawing Promisekeeper had been the best compromise she could manage.

  At the door, she stopped for a minute and texted Bernard to warn him to be ready for similar stupidity and asked him to meet her when he could to discuss how they should respond. The idiots might try to ambush them and get themselves hurt or killed... not to mention putting Bernard at risk. The man could get so distracted in an engineering problem that he wouldn’t notice an elephant charging into the room.

  She checked her watch as she went out the door. It was time to pick up Marian from Marlee. Marlee had her own work to do too.

  Marlee worked as Brian’s administrative aide while still doing her own art. Marlee was working in electronic media now, and there was still a market for her work, though the world economy was still staggering from the fall of the US. The world’s biggest customer group and debtor had just disappeared. The military was still in business though; people around the globe were understandably concerned.

  The sun was well above the hills to the east when Kaitlin stepped outside. It looked like another hot day. Maybe after they met Razor and Calypso at the spot north of the farm that she’d picked for a watch post, she could take Marian swimming. Razor or Calypso would have to stand guard of course.

  Kaitlin frowned, tugged her hat a bit more snugly onto her head and strode across the dirt compound to the residential section. She nodded and greeted the people she passed. In the three days she’d been here now, she’d been making it a point to get acquainted with as many people as she could. As she crossed to the residency, she’d known the names of seven out of nine people. The rest she’d greeted with a sunny how-d’you-do and a smile. It was probably easier to protect people if you’d been nice to them first. That way, they might take cover when you said duck.