Dave imagined how Phil’s face would change as he read the report. It brought a smile to Dave’s.
They would stay until tomorrow morning. Everyone was too tired anyway. Dave hadn’t the heart to order them to pack up now. Besides, the Resistance needed time to bring in more of their warriors from afar.
The only sour note out of all this was the fact that he had now to explain to Gret and Jelka that he would not be going directly to their home worlds. But he knew it would be far too risky to do so, given their losses and missile stocks.
‘Wouldn’t it be nice to go back to Polaris’ he thought thinking of Rihan. He imagined rubbing her body, teasing her and lying tucked into her.
“What are you smiling about?” said Art as he kicked Dave’s legs off the chair next to him and sat down. “And don’t try and tell me it was because of all this.”
Dave laughed. “I was just thinking about Rihan.”
“I thought so. I know that look of yours.”
“Unlike you, you lucky sod, I can only dream” said Dave. Then he noticed the change in Arts expression. “You haven’t told Sue yet have you?”
“Me tell her? No, you’re her boss. That’s your job.”
“Tell me what?” asked Sue who had entered looking for her husband.
Art looked to Dave and with a flourishing wave of his hand invited Dave to talk.
Dave knew he couldn’t get out of it. “Take a seat Sue. I’ve got some good news and some bad news.” Sue rolled her eyes as she sat and cast a reproachful eye at Art.
“OK the good news is that you and Art are getting a fully funded vacation together” continued Dave. Sue raised her left eyebrow. “The bad news is it will be here on Q2 and it may, just may, require some work.” Dave gave a poor excuse for a smile and then continued. “Part of the deal is we have to provide this place with a measure of protection till the fleet gets here. The Resolute has to go back and they need an anti-ship missile capability. The only deployable option we have is your support droids. I thought I’d leave Art with you for entertainment purposes.” Dave winked.
“That’s pretty paltry compensation don’t you think?” said Sue and she gave Art a gentle thump in the shoulder.
“I can’t disagree” said Dave with a glint in his eye. “Well actually Art will continue liaising with the locals here. I want him to do a survey of their global defences, assuming they can provide him with some transport. So he might have a bit more to do than you.”
“Oh I get it” said Art. “Why is it I always feel like the meat in the sandwich around you two.”
Sue reached over and caressed his cheek with her open hand. “My poor rissole!” Then she gently slapped his cheek a couple of times before turning back to Dave. “How long?”
“If the Admiral agrees to all of this I would imagine two months. He may send us in the other direction though to the sleth home worlds. So it might be a case of hitching a ride on a shuttle back to Chelora and we marry up after that.”
“OK sounds good to me” said Sue with an enthusiastic smile that took both Art and Dave by surprise. They each looked at the other incredulously.
“So you’re happy with this?” asked Art tentatively.
“You bet” replied Sue, sounding the most enlivened she had been for two days.
“Go figure ‘ol buddy” said Art as he rose and offered Sue a hand up.
Chapter 25. Dyritka 1400, 15 August
Aras was alerted to the media broadcast by his assistant Felex Tendriol. Felex was the son of one of the board members of the Likta Corporation. His appointment to the position was another of those ‘favours’ that kept the wheels of industry turning but the productivity dropping. Aras would have fired him if he had a say in it. He was enthusiastic and a fool. ‘The worst combination’ thought Aras.
When he had come in a few minutes earlier to draw his attention to it he had reluctantly obliged to watch it. Now you couldn’t tear him away. Aras found it fascinating. ‘What a weapon’ he thought as he watched the footage of the device activating on Q4.
His mind was already asking the questions that would dominate the rest of his day. The most prominent being ‘How can I get control of it?’
Chapter 26. Lewista 1500, 15 August
The security clamp down came late but it was conducted with speed. All flights were ordered to land at their destination and thereafter to remain on the ground. Armed security police were posted to all transport hubs within the cities. Checkpoints were established on the main arterials. Fighter combat air patrols (CAP) were conducted over the main population centres.
But more ominous were the detachments of plain clothed security personnel that arrived at designated addresses, searched them, arrested the designated suspects and moved onto the next item on their list.
As they did so the state controlled media broadcast images of suspects wanted for questioning and directed that anyone with information on their whereabouts should contact the authorities immediately. Needless to say the phones were ringing hot at the local HQ of the ISS. Some were motivated by naive citizens wishing do the right thing. Some were from scared citizens fearing for their safety. Some were from opportunists wishing to rid themselves of a competitor or to exact revenge for a myriad of reasons.
In amongst all this furtive activity one call came through to the station chief at the local ISS HQ and had nothing to do whatsoever with the roundup of local suspects. Station Chief Arkimon Fetula suffered a mild panic attack when his assistant said that Agent Torine was here to see him. He had been so focussed on the current security operation. ‘Of all the times’ he said to himself. But that name he knew. Not that he had ever laid eyes on the famous Agent Torine but he knew of her reputation and that she only ever operated on the highest authority.
It was her reputation that caused him such grief. She was known as the silencer. The first Consul’s go to agent. ‘What can she want with me?’ he asked. ‘Shit…am I her assignment?’ His throat tightened. He downed some water and opened the compartment in his desk, retrieving the compact pistol. He ensured it was ready to fire and pocketed the weapon. Only when he closed the compartment did he ask his assistant to let her in.
He was struck by her beauty. She was tall for a rogan, athletic and walked with assuredness. Her brown eyes were like incisors that fixed with their gaze and then probed the subject. Arkimon could see that while she had the beauty to be a femme fatale everything else about her said that this was someone who was direct and went straight to the heart of the matter. Seduction wasn’t her normal tool of trade.
“Agent Torine” said Arkimon as he partially rose from his seat and waved for her to take the seat on the other side of his big desk. He sat back down as quick as he had rose, his right hand seeking out the pistol in his pocket. “How can I be of assistance?”
Torine eyed Arkimon with all the assuredness of someone used to dealing with senior officials. She knew she was the top dog and she knew that Arkimon knew it too. She sensed his fear, an emotion she dealt in all the time. She had noticed his right hand, which was now out of sight. She felt pity for him.
“Relax director, you are not my assignment” she said with a slight smile that sent a cold shiver down Arkimon’s spine. “I want to know the current whereabouts of Bakun Lickta.”
“Bakun Likta?” asked an incredulous Arkimon.
“Yes. You don’t need to know why.” She paused for effect. “Now would be good.”
Arkimon, relieved at not being the target, withdrew his hand from his pocket and brought it up to access his terminal. He conducted a search and looked at Torine. “He left his offices an hour ago for an undisclosed destination. I can have one of my agents make some inquiries.”
Torine passed across the memory stick. “No need. Transfer the data you have on him…now.”
Arkimon resented being ordered in this manner. It was all too much like the manner he used on others and it certainly didn’t taste nice from this end. He did as he was told and slid the
stick across the desk.
She pocketed it. Then she looked sternly at him. “Carry on with your security operation but I intend to use my hopper and I won’t be hindered in anyway.”
“Of course” said Arkimon. He was about to get up but Torine beat him to it, turned her back and exited. He relaxed back into his chair and realised he was sweating profusely.
Chapter 27. Lewista 1530, 15 August
Erkum came back in and closed the door behind him. He was sweating from the heat outside under the blazing sun. There was a good reason why walking above the ground was to be avoided in summer. But the security patrols on the underground walkways were making that option too risky.
“Well?” asked Felis.
Erkum shook his head.
“Terrific. So we’re stuck here till dark then?”
Erkum nodded. Erkum was offered a drink by Evie and he downed it in one go. He sat down on one of the dining chairs in the apartment. This was definitely down market from their previous digs. “I got a fair way along under the cover of the trees but then I could see the security guards on the overpass and there was no way I could cross that stretch without being seen. I’m sorry.”
“That’s OK” said Felis. “But they will probably remain at the station till this security operation is ended and that may not be for days.” Erkum nodded.
“So how are we going to get to Alpha 1 tonight?” asked Judy. She, more so than Madge, was getting restless.
Erkum cast a look at Felis which asked ‘you or me?’ Felis turned to Judy. “Probably not tonight” said Felis. “There is no way you can walk that distance and all transport is either grounded or closely scrutinised. It’s just not going to happen.”
Judy slumped back in her chair bitterly disappointed. She bit her lip and glanced at Madge. But Madge just shrugged her shoulders. Judy shook her head resentfully.
“It’s outside our control” said Madge but it didn’t help wipe away the look on Judy’s face.
Chapter 28. Lewista 1600, 15 August
Bakun Likta was furious when he came out of the meeting with the Cheklin High Council. ‘Idiots’ he fumed under his breath. For the last hour he had been trying to convince them to lift the embargo on his fleet of transports. But the resolve of the Council was absolute. No flights, no exceptions.
He was still very much in his own thoughts when he was confronted with the tall beauty. “Mr Likta?” asked Torine with feigned pleasantness.
Bakun felt an unease he hadn’t felt for many years, a feeling he used to get on operational duty just before personal danger reared its head. “And you are?” he asked.
“Torine” she said.
“Torine who?”
“Just Torine” and she smiled weakly. “Suffice to say I work for the first consul. May I have a word in private?”
“What about?”
“Meeka Sallusam.”
Bakun’s self-discipline dampened his natural reaction. “Oh yes, what about him? Look I am busy, walk with me to my hopper.”
“I thought there was a security order against flying” quipped Torine.
“I might not be able to get my transports into the air but at least my rank entitles me to a hopper.” Likta stepped forward and Torine stepped to the side and then joined him on his left as they proceeded to the elevator. “So what do you want to know about Sallusam?”
“When’s the last you saw him?”
Bakun glanced at her. Her face was a study in passivity. He did not trust her. His mind was racing trying to think if somehow she could know. He was pretty sure there was not. But somehow she was here now. He had a pretty good idea what line of work she was in. He had to be very careful. “Ooh it must be what 17 … no 18 years ago.”
“Really?”
“We served together back then. But I left for the family business and have not seen him since.”
“It’s a nice family business, isn’t it? It would be a shame to risk all that for the likes of Sallusam.”
Bakun stopped and turned to face her. They were short of the elevator by only a couple of paces. “Look I have not seen or heard from Sallusam and I don’t care for your threats. I have a transport crisis to deal with.” The elevator opened and Oscren Mila’s frame appeared when the doors opened. “Ah good fellow Mila” said Likta. He glanced back to Torine. “We’re done here.” He stepped into the elevator and it closed leaving Torine with a bemused smile on her face.
Chapter 29. Resolute over Q2 1805, 15 August
Dave entered the officers’ mess late but he wasn’t thinking about dinner just yet. He spied Crystal at a table, again with John. He came over. “Excuse me Crystal” he said pulling up a chair alongside.
“Sir” she replied.
“It appears we were pretty effective at destroying the battle systems down there and well they need some to be able to detect enemy craft coming in till the relief force arrives, which may be two months from now. I said we would leave one of our deployable BMSs (Battle Management Systems).” Dave paused and then added “along with a battle systems team to run it. I’ve lined up Chad Preston but I need an officer in charge.”
Crystal swallowed hard. She didn’t like the sound of spending two months or who knows how long on a rogan planet all by herself. Her feelings manifested on her face in a frown. It wasn’t missed by John.
“I’ll do it Sir” piped up John. Dave turned to John, glanced back to Crystal whose expression had changed to one of shock. But guilt was making a late rush onto her face. He returned to face John and said “OK thanks John. You will need to set things up tomorrow morning, both of you, before we warp away. Don’t worry you won’t be alone Art and Sue are staying too.”
Guilt won out on Crystal’s face. She blurted out “No I should do it.”
Dave turned to her and smiled “Next time.” He got up and headed back up to his office. As he paced out he had a smile on his face.”
Chapter 30. Phantom over Cheklin 1920, 15 August
They had bounced around the system’s outer planets all afternoon and now had come out on far side of Cheklin where no sunlight could assist the enemy laser scanners. This time it was 1st Lt Tola Puchanski in the back of Whiskey 8 as it launched out into the night.
The warthog would take the shallow glide in via the pole and make its way to Alpha 1. Amanda was still quite tense though and Guillaume hadn’t said a word all afternoon. He nodded his way through the pre-flight briefing and wherever possible had avoided eye contact with everyone.
So no one said a word as Amanda aimed for the pole. Her eyes were on the glide path and the threat analyser. There were four enemy fighters on cap in two pairs. One pair was in a race track over the northern hemisphere and another over the south. They had active radar and ladar scans going but neither was going to be in a position to make a visual detection of Whiskey 8 as it headed for the pole in the dark.
Tola adjusted her position in her seat. She was in her combat fatigues. She tugged on her shirt which was pulling at the back. She recalled all those years back when she had just started high school and her older brother said she looked stocky in her new school uniform. A growth spurt the next year put a lie to the moniker but she was hurt by the remark at the time and even to this day hated wearing anything which tended to emphasise her fulsome breasts. Right now though, the fatigues didn’t emphasise anything. The word sack and fatigues were virtually interchangeable.
She finally wrested the shirt free and eased back into the chair. She thought about how close to dying she had come today and here she was now going into danger again – though hopefully this would be just a brief in and out. Like so many times during the last couple of weeks, she found herself explaining in her mind what had happened to her today to her Tom. She missed him, his touch, his warm heartedness, his tenderness and his humour. ‘Ten weeks, almost ten weeks’ she said to herself.
“Just detected their beacon” hailed Amanda.
‘Oh’ thought Tola. She checked the time. It was 2130. She real
ised she had been back on Polaris the whole ride from the pole. “Right” she acknowledged.
They had landed in the small field, amongst the forest, where the beacon was. Guillaume was in the turret scanning the area. They waited. Ten minutes passed before the lone figure emerged at the tree line and flashed the required signal.
Chapter 31. Lewista 2000, 15 August
Meelanda had been grateful her name had not appeared on the list of suspects being broadcast. Only one of her group was wanted publicly. He was now in hiding. But that didn’t mean they were above suspicion or that they were not under surveillance.
The five people gathered in the conference room of the Likta Corporation’s HQ were all second tier aristocrats, all in key positions in important corporations. Meelanda had known them professionally and personally for twenty years or more. She trusted them and they trusted her. That was evident by their presence here tonight.
“Thank you all for coming” she said. “Time is of the essence. I have a proposal for your consideration….”
An hour and a half passed with much discussion, not on the broad objectives or on the overall course of action, but on the detailed resourcing and timing of each task within the plan.
Three floors above them Bakun Likta had finished with his crisis for the day. He pecked at some of the food that had been brought in to him earlier. But he had no appetite. His stomach was still churning from the encounter earlier with that Agent Torine.
Audacity (Warner's World Book 5) Page 25
