by M. D. Cooper
Her mother’s words sounded fake and artificial—breaking Kylie’s heart.
“Momma—”
Katie sighed. “I’m sorry, baby. Sorry for the other night and how I treated you. Then David tried to keep the vids from me, but they were everywhere. When I saw them, when I realized you could be gone forever, I had nothing but regret. Big regret. Let’s not do that again, OK?”
Kylie liked the sound of that. She hugged Katie.
“I love you, Mom,” she whispered.
“And I you. You’re the only reason we’re not mindless drones flying around on warships out to destroy planet after planet. It’s not your fault how things turned out. I have to live with what I’ve done. What your father did to you kids.”
“Don’t. Don’t blame yourself. We move forward, not back. OK?”
Katie smoothed her daughter’s hair like she did when Kylie was little. “I’m going to get a seat, if you’d like to join me…”
“Soon,” Kylie promised and kissed Katie’s cheek. “I’m going to see if they’ll let me check on Paul.”
“With your testimony today?” Katie shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Kylie ignored both of them, and Katie turned and walked down the hallway toward the courtroom.
Kylie knocked on the door.
Kylie sighed in frustration. As though anyone could remove her if she didn’t want to be, but she didn’t want to go down that road. Instead, she stalked down the hall toward the courtroom, frustration running through her.
When she arrived, the courtroom was already crowded. Kylie spotted Katie and her brother and headed toward them. When David saw her, he stood.
“You look as sad as Yipper that day she lost her favorite ball.”
The family hound. Kylie hadn’t thought about her in a long time.
“I really need my big brother.”
David opened his arms. “Hope this one will do.”
Kylie nodded, finding herself unable to speak. David wrapped his arms tight around her small frame, and it was like disappearing from the world.
After a minute, he let her go and they settled into their seats, waiting the last few minutes in silence before the trial commenced.
“All rise for the honorable Judge Mitchell Turner!”
Here it went. The beginning of the end.
Kylie turned as the judge entered the room, but she didn’t look at him. Instead, her eyes were on Paul, watching as he was led to the defendant’s table. His face was healed, but his eyes were dark and withdrawn.
Kylie felt like she couldn’t even breathe. Her insides were jumping to help him, rescue him, keep him safe. But she couldn’t do that anymore. Paul was exactly where he needed to be.
And she didn’t know if she could live with herself.
David held her hand tight.
Kylie held back a sigh. That didn’t make her feel any better.
* * * * *
Lana arrived at her father’s office and walked past the front desk without slowing. The chief sitting there jumped up and rushed to stop her.
“Excuse me, you can’t just walk right in there!”
“I’m his daughter, he won’t mind.” Lana reached around the woman and knocked on the door.
“Yes? Who is it, Ginia?”
Lana opened the door as Ginia bristled.
“I’m sorry, General,” the woman called from behind her. “She—”
Samuel stood from his desk, his eyes wide. “Lana!” He strode to her, stopping half a meter away. “Well, move or say something!”
Lana waved meekly. “Hi, Dad.”
Samuel took her hands. “I can’t believe you’re really here. I’ll call your mother, tell her we’ll have a special dinner. The three of us like old times.” He nodded his head at Ginia. “You can leave us, Chief.”
Ginia nodded and backed away, quickly closing the door.
“She seems kind of scared of you. You’re not beating the servants again, are you?” Lana asked with a squinted eye.
“Lana, please,” Samuel shook his head at her apparent bad humor. “I tell you, I’ve been looking forward to this day.”
“Really?” She felt a swell of pride.
Samuel nodded. “Grayson’s reports of your field work read very favorably. Finally, my girl doesn’t meet the expectations put on her, she excels right past them. As your father, I am nothing if not proud.”
Lana felt her bubble burst.
“Here I thought you were going to ask how I was. See how I’ve been. Is my service record all that you care about?”
“No,” Samuel sputtered. “Of course not, Lana. Don’t read something that isn’t in my words. I said I was proud.”
“Of my work. But I’ve been through a lot. I’ve learned so much, with the mission in Gedri, and then working for the empress. She’s kind, but firm. Strong. I’ve learned to take care of myself. And I think I’m actually in love with someone.”
“Love? Really, Lana!”
“I probably shouldn’t be,” she admitted. “He’s not the take-home-to-daddy type.”
Samuel stroked his chin. “Maybe that’s why you like him. You always enjoyed getting a rise out of me.”
“It was the only time I ever saw you.” Lana squeezed her eyes shut. “I’m sorry. I told myself I wouldn’t fall into old habits.”
“Why don’t we start over, then? I’ll have some tea and biscuits delivered. Then you can tell me your favorite color. What scares you. Maybe what makes you happy?”
Lana smiled. “OK.”
Samuel went quiet, and Lana assumed he was speaking to Ginia, but his face dropped and flushed a deep red color. Lana thought he might be having a heart attack.
“Dad? Are you OK?”
“I’m afraid we’ll have to cut our visit short. Stop by the house tonight and then we’ll have a chat, all right?”
Lana nodded. “Sure. Sorry if I came at a bad time.”
“You didn’t.” Samuel stepped up to her and took her hands. “You may hear bad things soon. Very bad things. About me and my position here at the SSF.”
She leered. “About you? Who would talk about you that way?”
“Don’t believe a word of it. Just remember who I am. Your father, despite all the bad choices I made for you, I…can you remember the good times?”
Lana remembered very few good times, but he was scaring her. She stared at him with an open mouth.
“I remember, Dad. We both made bad decisions.”
“I only want to do what’s best for you, for Silstrand, and all that live here. Remember that.”
Behind her, the door opened, and Lana turned to see Grayson in full uniform, his hat in his hand.
“Colonel,” she greeted.
Shock widened his eyes. “Lana, I hadn’t realized you were planetside. Hope you had a safe journey.”
He’s being more wooden than usual. And he spoke to me last night….
“I did. What’s going on?”
“You’ll have to excuse us. The general and I have a lot to discuss.”
Lana glanced between them. “Whatever it is, maybe I should stay.”
Samuel glanced at the floor. “Go now. This conversation won’t be for you.”
Grayson nodded in agreement. “I’m sorry, but
I’m going to have to insist.”
“Fine, Colonel.”
Lana took a deep breath and walked out of the office, closing the door.
she said.
She expected Grayson to answer, but it was Alice instead.
Like that matters?
Lana was worried about her dad. Everything he’d said and how business-like Grayson was being. And he had his AI answering messages as if he was unable to multitask.
Whatever her dad was mixed up in, Lana was going to get to the bottom of it.
* * * * *
On the bridge of the Uprising-II, Alberta paced back and forth, working to keep her mind sharp and her body alert, ready to strike.
The captain directed a calming look her way. “So far, we have no reason to believe they suspect our numbers. Seems Paul was right. Silstrand’s forces can’t detect us when we’re stealthed.”
“Naturally. He’s always been right about everything,” Alberta said. “Except when it came to trusting his wife.”
The captain didn’t respond, and Alberta stood in silence as the ships approached Silstrand, closing until the world filled the forward display. They’d finally arrived, and Alberta was fully prepared to rescue Paul and recover with what was left of the Revolution.
It wouldn’t be much, but they could fight their way back. Their mission wasn’t dead. It had just been sidetracked for a while. Now, Alberta would see to it that what Peter had started was finished.
“Captain,” she said, looking over her shoulder. “Send the word. All pilots to their fighters.”
The captain nodded. “And you’d best get to your shuttle.”
“Now we’ll see if Orion’s stealth tech works when adapted to something so small.”
Alberta held a confident smile on her face as she walked toward the lift. It would be a short trip if Silstrand could detect the fighters, but it was worth the risk.
For Peter Rhoads and the Revolution.
DEAL
STELLAR DATE: 02.23.8948 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Samuel’s Office, Delphin Reach, Silstrand City
REGION: Silstrand System, Silstrand Alliance
“If you were answering your messages, we could’ve avoided any unpleasantness with your daughter, sir,” Grayson said, working hard to keep the judgment from his voice. It wasn’t easy, and he wasn’t successful.
“She arrived out of the blue. If I had known you were on your way, I would’ve found a way to get rid of her sooner.” Samuel gestured to the chairs in front of his desk.
“I’d rather stand,” Grayson said.
“So, you’re ready to do this, then?” Samuel asked as he walked around to the other side of the desk.
“I’m afraid I am. I’ve uncovered surveillance footage and logs of your encounters with Smithers over the last few weeks. Some nearly daily.”
“That’s not true. I may have met with him, but not as often as all that. You found what you were meant to.”
Grayson raised an eyebrow. “Through his interrogation, he’s admitted you’ve been working with him. Giving him SSF data, allowing military resources to be used in the illegal pursuit of Captain Kylie Rhoads.”
“Not true!” Samuel raised a finger. “I would never give codes to someone without the authority to use them. As for any illegal transfer of hardware, you know me better than that.”
“I wish that was true, sir, but I think Smithers is telling the truth. I think you couldn’t let go of your grudge against Rhoads, even after all this time. I am proposing that you retire early, turn in your resignation. Otherwise, I will move for your arrest.”
Samuel’s eyes bulged, the vein on the side of his head throbbing. “After the years we’ve served together? The passes I’ve given you? The special treatment? You would brandish me as traitor to Silstrand?”
“That’s what the evidence suggests.”
“I nearly killed my own daughter for Silstrand! I would never, not while I still breathe, betray our people. I thought my word with you had some meaning. You’ll listen, Colonel, and you’ll listen good!”
Grayson took a deep breath. “Yes, sir.”
“I was meeting with Smithers, but I was stringing him along, trying to find out what his angle was. I know he wanted to sell Kylie’s tech, but I didn’t know who he was working for. He’d hinted that he was making a deal with the Hegemony, but I still haven’t found out who the point of contact is.”
The Hegemony of Worlds? “Go on.”
“Smithers made it sound as if his contact was close by. Communications happened too quickly to suggest anything but. I was hoping to get more when I had my next meeting, but I suppose that’ll never happen. Not since you launched your little undercover operation and grabbed him.”
“And her little sting operation the other night? Don’t pretend that she really was kidnapped, or that you weren’t providing SSF support without going through the proper channels. That’s another act of insubordination against you.”
Grayson drew his mouth closed. “There is a mole in the SSF, sir. I didn’t know who to trust.”
“Convenient for you. Perhaps you’ll do whatever Kylie Rhoads asks. Maybe Fallon is right. Maybe you have lain with criminals for too long to be an effective officer. Maybe I put my neck on the line for you one too many times.”
“Neither of those statements are true. Captain Rhoads has done a great service to Silstrand at personal cost. I’d remind the general to have some respect.”
Samuel’s eyebrow twitched and his cheeks turned red. “And I’d remind you, Colonel Grayson, we’re on the same side. Take your evidence to Admiral Baker, to the president, if you wish, but I won’t be retiring. But if you think there’s even an off-chance that I’m telling the truth, then you’d better help me weed out the Hegemony of Worlds agent, because Lana is on Silstrand, and that means she’ll be a target too.”
“Her nano was stabilized and controlled in ways Kylie’s isn’t,” Grayson argued as he wondered if the general was telling the truth, or if this was just another layer in the onion of lies.
Samuel nodded. “Right. But the Hegemony has no way of knowing that, do they?”
“OK, then.” Grayson sighed, deciding that whether Samuel was telling the truth or not, his best way forward was to play the man’s game. “What do you suggest we do?”
“Number one, we trust each other. Two, we start out by finding the mole in the SSF. Those codes and hardware came from somewhere. I know it’s not me. Nor you, which means whoever our enemy is, they’re still operational. Where would you suggest we start looking?”
* * * * *
Bubbs sat in the command seat of the ever-gorgeous Isolation, her legs draped over the armrest as she relaxed at the helm of her ship.
Except it wasn’t her ship anymore. The SSF wanted the stealth tech, and Bubbs had promised Kylie she wouldn’t make a stink.
Except she really wanted to make a stink.
“Good ship you have here, Bubbs,” Admiral Matilda said as she stepped aboard the bridge. “It’ll make a real difference for the SSF to have this vessel’s capabilities. We’re in your debt.”
Bubbs sneered. “Glad to have helped.”
Matilda’s eyes widened. “Er…you’re welcome.”
“What’s the matter? Don’t like my smile?”
“That was a smile?”
Bubbs rolled her eye and turned her head away, noticing an alert flashing on the scan cons
ole. She slaved it to her display and took a look at the readings.
“Well, that’s not good.”
“What’s not good?” Matilda asked and leaned over to take a look.
Bubbs pointed to three icons. “Those are stealth ships easing toward Silstrand’s atmosphere. If I can read them, then we share the same stealth technology, which means two things. One, it’s time to fight, and two, I should’ve had that second sandwich at breakfast.”
Admiral Matilda didn’t miss a beat. She reached across and opened an encrypted channel to the planetary defense command. “This is Admiral Matilda. I’m on the Isolation, and it can see those stealthed Revolution ships you’ve been looking for. I’m sending you its scan data.”
Bubbs sat up straighter. “They’re deploying fighters and dropships…shoot, the three warships are breaking away. We only have so long to stop them, Admiral. What would you like us to do?”
Matilda made eye contact and then sent another message. “We’re in pursuit of the Revolution ships, ready the Ninth Fleet.” She stepped back and put a hand on the back of Bubbs’ seat. “We’ve got ships to catch. Hope you’re good in a fight….”
“Only the best.”
* * * * *
Time was running out for Ginia, and she knew it. The look in Grayson’s eyes as he approached General Samuel’s office meant that he had found the logs and vids she’d planted in the surveillance archive.
With Smithers arrested, Ginia couldn’t take the chance anymore that she wouldn’t be caught. So as soon as the general’s daughter left, she did too.
Ginia took the central city hoverbus to platform twenty-six. While in route, she purchased a one-way ticket to one of Silstrand’s orbital stations. From there, she’d catch a liner outsystem for good.
When the bus arrived at the platform, Ginia worked her way through the crowd and hustled past the ticketing booth, her token automatically allowing her through the gate.
She stood on the platform amongst the other passengers, her carryall slung over her shoulder. A sigh of relief escaped her lips when she finally spied the shuttle on approach. She stepped to the side to make room for disembarking passengers as the shuttle docked with the platform.
