by Jake Bible
Silence.
“Jorg?”
“I’m thinking!”
“That’s good,” Kalaka said. “If he’s thinking, then he’s calming down. If he were ratcheting up, then he’d still be yelling.”
There were some brief shouts and a cry of pain. Angie braced herself for whatever was coming at her. Then the office door opened and she could see the makeshift barricade being shoved aside as two women scrambled over the debris and out of the office. They sprinted towards Angie, but she waved them off and pointed to the Squad office doors. The women didn’t need explanation. They ran as fast as their terrified legs could, right out the office doors.
“Thank you,” Angie said. “That means a lot.”
“Come inside,” Jorg ordered, sounding slightly defeated. “Now, McDade, or this is all over.”
Angie hustled her ass inside Jorg’s office, careful not to trip over the barricade debris that still blocked most of the door. Jorg waited for her, seated behind his desk, his hands hovering around the QID which wasn’t much bigger than a large sandwich. Angie didn’t discount the device based on its size. She knew better.
“Do you mind setting your hands on the desk?” Angie asked. “It’ll help me concentrate if I’m not worried you’re gonna smack that QID because you got upset.”
“Got upset? Got? I’m past upset, McDade,” Jorg snarled.
He was sweating profusely and his neck frill was so spread out that it almost turned upward like a bowl for his head. Angie was afraid the sweat would begin pooling in the frill and eventually drown him. She shook the image from her head.
“What?” Jorg asked. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Angie said. “Stupid picture in my brain. I’m a little stressed, too, you know? Negotiating a person down from blowing everyone up isn’t what I signed up for with this op.”
“The op takes you where the op takes you,” Jorg said, stating the GV’s unofficial motto. “You don’t choose where it takes you, it—”
“Chooses you,” Angie finished for him. “Yeah, I know, Jorg. Fuck, man, do I know.”
“Man…” Jorg’s face dropped. “S’lunn was a good GVD. Nothing too brilliant, but he cared. His death is a loss for the entire Squad.”
“Then why have him killed?” Angie asked. “He could be here negotiating his own terms. Why take him out?”
“Do you think that was my choice, McDade? You’re a lieutenant in Division. An Operations Manager. How much choice do you have in how your life goes? Day to day? How much choice do you have?”
“I’m not going to argue choice, Jorg. I’m really not. I can’t begin to understand the situation you’ve been in. I haven’t been where you are. This entire mess is foreign to me. But you can help me understand. First, why have S’lunn killed?”
“They said to,” Jorg replied. “You ever met anyone from the top tier of the Willz Syndicate?”
“No,” Angie said, rather surprised at her answer. She’d been doing vice for a long time and Willz was a major syndicate. She should have crossed paths with someone high up in that outfit, but she hadn’t. “Tell me about them.”
“Jirks,” Jorg said. “Skin takers. The whole lot of them. The Willz family and extended relations. Their top lieutenants. All Jirks.”
“Hells,” Angie muttered. “Did they say they’d take your skin?”
“They said they’d take S’lunn’s, wear it proudly, and infiltrate the Squad,” Jorg said. “Then they’d take my sister’s skin and all her kids. They didn’t stop there. The list is long, McDade. The Willz Syndicate was going to bring the Seven Satans down upon my life. Unless I killed S’lunn the Willz way.”
“But you didn’t,” Angie said. “You had Mess’a do it.”
“Same thing, McDade. She was a puppet. A tool. No different than a knife or any other weapon. I wielded her through S’lunn then used her against him. That was good enough for Willz.”
Angie had an itch at the back of her head she was desperate to scratch, but knew she couldn’t get at. Then she realized the itch wasn’t real. It was a thought that was forming back there, trying to get her attention. Her subconscious was in overdrive, but her conscious mind couldn’t keep up.
“What was the Willz Syndicate’s end game? Take down the Collari hold on Jafla, right? Then why get in my way? Why go after GVD Knowles?”
Jorg shrugged.
“Not good enough,” Angie said. “My main op had targeted the Collari for sex trafficking. That would have taken down most of Gants’ outfit on this planet. That would be a help to the Willz Syndicate. So why kill Knowles?”
“They didn’t say,” Jorg replied, sounding so exhausted that Angie was worried the man would pass out. “They didn’t say anything. I was given orders, carried out the orders, and got paid a lot of chits.”
“You mean credits,” Angie said.
“What?”
“Credits. We found the deposits made to your hidden account. You certainly were paid a lot for this shit.”
“Credits?”
“Yes, Jorg. Credits. What aren’t you understanding about your own finances?”
“I wasn’t paid credits. Chits. Do you think I’m an idiot? Credits can be traced.”
“Which is what’s being done right now,” Angie replied. “GV, and probably FIS, is tracing those deposits. Credit to croissant they can be worked back to Willz. Or a Willz subsidiary, at least.”
“I didn’t take credits, McDade,” Jorg insisted. “I took chits. Handoffs directly to me. Never credits.”
Angie frowned. She didn’t think he was lying. That presented a problem.
“You still have the chits?” she asked.
“Of course. No way I could spend all that without triggering an investigation. Not with my salary.”
“We’ll need those chits.”
“You’re gonna need more than those chits.”
“Yep. And we are back to your testimony, Jorg. Only way you walk out of this alive is to offer testimony against Willz. That’s it. Play ball with me and you’ll get your immunity, you’ll get your new identity, you’ll get a life. Far away from here and well out of the reach of any syndicate.”
“They’ll find me if I testify. Too much exposure during the trial. They have fingers in everything, McDade.”
“I believe you, but the system is the system. You can’t get a new identity for free. Your family certainly can’t get anything unless you testify. Their names won’t even be considered until you’ve put down a full deposition. You know all this, so please stop telling me otherwise. We’re both pros, Jorg. We know all the next plays that can and can’t be made.”
“McDade? Folks are getting twitchy out here,” Kalaka said. “Not trying to ruin the vibe you have going, but I swear Jafla PD is about to send in the bots if you don’t hurry this up. We have a brass breathing down brass’ neck situation here. This has gone a lot higher than Woss can control. The situation is about to be pulled from his hands, you hear me?”
“FIS here?” Angie asked.
“Who are you talking to?” Jorg snapped.
“You know who,” Angie said. “I didn’t come in here deaf, Jorg. Give me a second.”
“Yeah, those two agents just arrived. They are threatening to make this Fleet and rip it out of local hands. You’re Division, at least. You can still salvage this before they get full sanction to take over.”
“Copy that,” Angie said and focused on Jorg again. “FIS is here, Jorg. I am about to lose my place in line. We have to work this out now or it may not get worked out. Make a deal with me and I can get you past FIS. We’ll keep this in-house with GV. You want that. You’ll have sympathy with GV. FIS takes you in and it is all over. You may not get a deal.”
“I’ll get a short life in a deep hole,” Jorg said quietly.
“Exactly. So, what do you say? Deactivate the QID and walk out of here with me? I’ll get you what you need, Jorg. It may not be immunity, but I will make sure your family is safe.”<
br />
“That is not on the table,” Jheral snarled in Angie’s ear. “Do not make that deal!”
“Jorg?” Angie pressed, still ignoring Jheral.
“No time in a facility,” Jorg said. “House arrest under my new identity. Put me in a facility and I’m dead.”
“Totally agree,” Angie said. “So…?”
Jorg sighed and pushed his chair back. Angie had to use all of her willpower not to jump. Jorg stared at her as he waved his wrist over the QID. There was a loud beep and the slight hum in the room that Angie hadn’t noticed before suddenly ceased. The silence that took its place was overpowering.
“We’re good?” Angie asked, holding up her hands. “Jorg?”
“We’re good,” Jorg said as he stood up and shuffled his way to Angie. “Make the restraints tight so no one thinks I can make a move to escape. I don’t want to die by accidental nervous plasma fire. Not after all this.”
“No problem,” Angie said as she tore the helmet off her head. “Eight Million Gods, I’m glad to have that off.”
She fished out restraints and secured Jorg’s wrists then she slapped a belt around his waist and bolted the wrist restraints to the belt.
“That should be enough,” Angie said. “Stay close to me and do not make any sudden moves.”
“Copy that,” Jorg said as Angie took hold of his elbow.
“You’re not going to pass out on me, are you?”
“No.”
“Then here we go.”
Angie steered him around the debris and out of the office. The bots were already rushing into the Squad office, headed to disarm the QID for good. Two dozen Jafla PD officers stood or knelt at the Squad office doors, carbines and plasma rifles to their shoulders, all aimed at Jorg.
“I got this,” Angie said as she walked Jorg right through them. “This is Division business only.”
There was some argument from the Jafla PD brass as she passed by them. But no one made a move to take Jorg out of Angie’s grip. Waiting at the lift was Kalaka, framed by the two FIS agents.
“We’ll ride down with you,” Agent Rom’Tal said.
“We’ll also ride with you in the transport to a waiting ship,” Agent Quorp added. “An FIS ship.”
“That didn’t take long,” Angie said.
“Oh, they’ve been busy,” Kalaka said.
“You promised,” Jorg spat at Angie.
“I’ll try, Jorg. I’ll try.”
36.
The transport ride to the docking hangar was more than tense. Only Angie, the two FIS agents, and Jorg were allowed in the back.
Kalaka had been informed that he was on suspension until further notice and would remain at the scene until it was determined he did not pose an immediate threat to the ongoing investigation into Jafla Squad corruption.
His response had been, “Yeah, good luck with all that.”
Angie didn’t have a chance to thank him for his help before the transport doors had slammed closed and the vehicle was on its way.
“I did make him a promise,” Angie said to Agent Quorp.
“We know,” Agent Quorp replied. “We were listening. You said what had to be said to end the situation. It was good work.”
“Yeah, but I meant it,” Angie said. “There’s something else going on. We’ll need Jorg’s testimony. And he won’t give it to us unless you honor the deal I made.”
Jorg’s head had been enclosed in a sensory deprivation helmet so he couldn’t overhear Angie and the agents talk, but Angie still gave him a sideways glance and lowered her voice.
“Unless having him testify is not part of the plan,” Angie said. “You going to prove him right and dump him in a hole where he’ll be interrogated until his body can’t take any more?”
“What happens to former Captain Jorg is up to him,” Agent Quorp said. “And it is up to the Galactic Fleet prosecutor that will be assigned to this case. We are simply here to make sure the witness makes it back to GF headquarters alive.”
“Witness? That’s a good sign,” Angie replied. “If you’d said prisoner, then I’d know you’re full of shit.”
“You need to be worrying less about a piece of crap like Jorg and more about yourself, Lt. McDade,” Agent Rom’Tal said. “I’d be surprised if you stay a lieutenant after this mess. You have no idea how badly you’ve screwed everything. No one survives this kind of fuck up, McDade. So a little less sympathy for this murderer and traitor would be wise.”
“You are mistaking understanding for sympathy,” Angie said. “I get why he did what he did. I disagree with all of it, but I understand. I’d have to or I’d be no good at my job.”
“Your words, not mine,” Agent Rom’Tal scoffed.
“Don’t be cute, asshole. I work for a living. I’m out in the field, making this galaxy a better place. I’m not some Galactic Fleet flunky looking to kiss ass up the ladder to a cushy desk job and nice office. Screw that.”
Agent Rom’Tal looked like he was going to jump at Angie, but he stayed seated after a head shake from Agent Quorp.
“The fact remains that any deal you made with Jorg is unenforceable, Lt. McDade,” Agent Quorp said. “No matter how much you argue, you know this.”
Angie opened her mouth then closed it. She shook her head and leaned back against the transport’s wall. Glancing at Jorg, she wondered if it wouldn’t have been better on him if he’d died back in that office. She didn’t want the QID to have detonated, but what she feared the man had in store for his future was going to be a thousand times worse than death.
“Try,” Angie said.
“What was that?” Agent Quorp asked.
“Try to get his deal made,” Angie said. “You’re going to get better intel and also save his family.”
The two agents shared a look.
“What?” Angie asked quickly. “What have I missed?”
“Every member of Jorg’s immediate and extended family has been found dead,” Agent Quorp said. “Close to twenty people. Children too. Skinned alive and left to die from exposure.”
“What?” Angie shouted. “How could it happen so fast?”
“It didn’t happen fast, Lieutenant,” Agent Quorp replied. “Most of them have been dead for several days. A couple of the more distant relations have been dead for weeks. The report came in as you were bringing Jorg out of the office. He’s never going to testify. He won’t want to once he finds out.”
“Which will be a long time from now. Then the hard part will be keeping him from killing himself,” Agent Rom’Tal said. “The FIS interrogators are going to have a tough time stalling him about his family as they get useable intel out of him. They’ll have a couple days before he clams up and the truth comes out.”
“Fuck,” Angie muttered then roared, “Fuck!”
“Do you agree now that this mess is well beyond Galactic Vice, Lt. McDade?” Agent Quorp asked. “Do you see why we’re here and why FIS will be handling all aspects of the remainder of this investigation?”
“I guess.”
“You guess?” Agent Quorp leaned forward. “Why would you even want to still be attached to any of this?”
“Because Etch Knowles was a good GVD and he was a friend,” Angie said. “And he’s not going to get justice. Not anymore. I had a shot at making his death worth something. With the FIS taking over, he’ll only be a footnote.”
Agent Quorp leaned back and shrugged. “You’re probably right. Sorry about that. I am. None of us were born FIS agents. We worked other jobs in other agencies. We both fought in the War. We get the pain you feel.”
“And the disappointment?” Angie asked. “Because pain fades, but that disappointment will always be there.”
“That too,” Agent Quorp said.
Angie shook her head and stared at Jorg. The man was doomed. No other way to put it. Doomed.
They stayed quiet the rest of the ride to the docking hangar. When the transport slowed and stopped, Agent Quorp was first out. She was greete
d by half a dozen heavily armed, heavily armored shock troops. Angie raised her eyebrows at the sight.
“FIS is bringing the big guns,” Angie said as she stepped out of the transport and turned around to watch Agent Rom’Tal escort Jorg down the steps and into the hangar. “At least you take the threat seriously.”
There was a cough and one of the shock troopers grunted then dropped to a knee. Three of the others turned to look at him, but three more coughs sent them to a knee. Then four heads exploded as heavy armor helmets were cracked and sent shattering across the hangar’s floor.
“Down!” Agent Quorp screamed as she dove for Jorg and Agent Rom’Tal.
Too late.
Agent Rom’Tal’s chest bloomed bright with fresh blood. Then ribs, cartilage, and flesh went flying in every direction as his torso exploded. He wasn’t wearing heavy armor like the shock troopers. There was nothing to contain the gore that sprayed everyone within two meters of him.
Angie wiped blood from her eyes as she dove under the transport. She felt the round hit her right calf and screamed as the lower half of that leg was obliterated by a micro-explosion a second later. She scrambled to drag herself as far under the transport as she could get, praying she was under enough cover to avoid a second hit.
“Here! Take him!” Agent Quorp screamed as she tried to shove Jorg under the transport at Angie. “Grab him, Eight Million—!”
Her head was turned to mist before she could finish the curse.
Angie grabbed at Jorg’s shoulders, hoping to haul him to her, but when she pulled, the weight was too light and Angie realized that Jorg’s upper half was no longer connected to his lower half. In fact, his lower half was nowhere to be seen.
The two shock troopers still alive were gone. Angie hoped they found cover. But a couple seconds later, there were four consecutive coughs followed by the muffled explosions of bodies bursting inside heavy armor.
She knew she was all that was left. Maybe the transport driver still lived, but protocol would have meant he’d have driven off as fast as possible. She was collapsed under a still vehicle, so the fate of the driver was probably sealed. Any hangar personnel had either fled immediately or had been killed earlier so the assassin could set up.
