The captain stood up and had to lean back onto the chair to catch his balance. “I don’t like you, but you bring up a valid point. I’ll go do mine now.”
“Sir,” John said taking slow, deep breaths to keep his heart from racing. “I feel that if we do these in pairs, we may get through them a lot quicker.”
“Would you like to go with me?” he asked in a confused tone.
John shook his head. “No. No. I just thought maybe you should go with your wife. Then she’d be done as well.”
“Very well.” The captain wobbled out of the room.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Troubalene asked the moment the captain was gone.
“Nothing. Do you disagree?”
“No, I just don’t trust you. You’re going to search their room, aren’t you?”
John didn’t answer.
“Dammit John, you can’t do that. They’ll find out. He’ll find out.”
“I highly doubt that. This could be my only chance.”
“If you get caught this is not going to help Patricia. It’s going to make things worse.”
“We’re one week from landing. I have exactly one week and then he’ll have her executed because he won’t want to deal with a bunch of unruly passengers who didn’t know their place. There are not going to be any trials.”
“Then use the week wisely, not trying to corner the captain’s wife.”
“She’s up to something and I think it’s all connected. I just need to look at that tablet. The file disappeared after Patricia stole it, I checked.” He left the room and made his way into the elevator. Troubalene pushed her way inside with him before the doors could shut. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to make sure you don’t do anything stupid.”
“I’m a genius. Nothing I do could ever be deemed stupid.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.”
The doors opened at the sixth floor and John darted out first. He knew Troubalene was right behind, but as long as she didn’t try to stop him, he was fine with that.
“So what’s your plan?” she asked when he reached the door.
He took a deep breath, straightening his uniform and knocked on the door. There was no answer. He knocked again, a little louder. Still there was no answer. Then, with a glance in either direction to make sure they were the only ones in the hall, he activated the door. “Hello,” he said peeking inside. There was no one there. John slipped inside followed by Troubalene. Then the door shut.
“Is there a plan?”
John didn’t answer her. He had to search thoroughly without disturbing anything. “Their room is similar to ours. Patricia and I split our stuff between the two sides of the room. She has one side and I the other. I have to assume they did the same. She probably has more stuff than him. So I bet the bigger dresser is full of her stuff.” He approached the larger dresser and opened the top drawer. It was full of uniforms which were too small for the captain, so, at least, he knew she was using that one. He gently dug around looking for tablet, trying hard not disturb anything.
“Oh, move aside.” Troubalene pushed him away. “At the rate you search they’ll be done with the physical and back here before you even make it through the second drawer.”
“If you think you can do better, by all means.”
“I can and will. Feel around the bed and check the closet if you want to make yourself useful.”
John rolled his eyes and moved to the bed first. There wasn’t much to check there. It was all one piece slightly hovering above the ground. He felt around on the sheets and under the pillows. He bent down for a quick peek underneath, but everything came up empty. So, with a glance to see how far Troubalene was coming on the dresser, he made his way to the closet. It was organized with the things that they’d brought to start over on the planet. Things that they obviously thought they couldn’t live without.
“It’s not in the dresser. If you don’t see it in the closet, she either has it on her or it’s in her classroom.”
“Or she got rid of it. Either way, this was a complete waste of time. We should get out of here before they get back.”
Troubalene left the room first. Then John slipped out and made sure the door was shut behind them.
“You got lucky,” Troubalene said. “Don’t do anything that stupid again.”
“I will do what I have to.” John started to walk away. “How much longer do you think we’ve got?”
Troubalene paused. “Maybe ten minutes if Xana stalls correctly.”
“And class would be over for the day, would you not agree?” John turned around to face her.
She closed her eyes. “Yes.”
“Then do you want to help me or not?”
“John, if we get caught, just know I have no part in this.”
“He’s already looking for excuses to jettison me anyway. I don’t believe you’ll have any trouble convincing him of your innocence.” He sprinted through the hall to the elevator arriving just seconds before Troubalene. As it rapidly travelled up, John anxiously tapped his foot. Finally the doors opened and they shot out into the hall. The only people on this floor were there for food, headed right for the cafeteria. He wanted to seem inconspicuous, not an easy feat with the first mate right on his heels.
John stopped at Susanna’s room, but Troubalene kept going.
“Where are you going?” John asked.
“If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do this right. Check her classroom. You have less than five minutes before we’re risking too much.”
John nodded and entered the classroom. The desks were lower for the younger age. There wasn’t really a stage where she could teach. Instead the desks circled around a gathering area. He looked to his right and found her personal desk. He placed his hand on the first drawer and the front faded away allowing him to reach in. There wasn’t much inside. He checked the other three, digging around and pulling things out to double check, but he came up empty.
So, shoulders hunched forward in defeat, he left the classroom and ran into Troubalene in the hall.
“Follow me,” she said in a hushed tone.
John looked around in curiosity. She didn’t appear to be holding anything, but he couldn’t tell for sure. She was moving so fast, that John literally ran to keep up, making it to the elevator just before the doors shut. They went up to the second floor, but didn’t exit toward Xana’s office. Instead, they made their way to the nearest laboratory.
“Parallax, I have a question,” Troubalene said.
“Parallax?” John asked.
“It’s a nickname. Who invited you in here?”
“He’s with me,” Troubalene said. “I need you to determine who has touched a couple items that I’ve found. If you could exclude my own prints, that would be great.”
“Sure thing, Kitty. Anything for you,” he said with a wink.
John looked between the two, confused. From her uniform, she pulled out the tablet and a vial of something that she handed over to Parallax.
Parallax pulled out a device that he slipped onto his index finger. He activated it and pointed at various parts of the tablet first. He swiped his finger over the top and then he grabbed the vial and did the same thing. “It should just take a second.”
Troubalene smiled. “You’re a life saver. How are things coming here?”
“Good. We’re in early developments of a new drug that could help with any unknown diseases in the new world. Though I’m not entirely sure who’s going to volunteer to be first in testing it.”
“I’m sure John here would be willing.”
John shook his head. “I most certainly will not be one of the first. I’m sure the planet will be fine. There wouldn’t be anything there…”
Troubalene interrupted him by clearing her throat. “Do you have the results yet?”
“Let me see, love.” He turned in his chair and began to mess with the holographic image above his desk. “Yup. It
appears that the vial and the tablet have two sets of prints, if I exclude yours. Oh, wow. Where did you find these?”
“Never mind that. I assume the first set belongs to Susanna Creighton.”
“Right. Did you really need my help?” he asked in flirtatious tone. “The other is a Lance Fisher. Do you know him?”
“Yes, most unfortunately.” She then grabbed the two objects from him. “I will need you to send that to me and no one else. Destroy the file after.”
Parallax gave a curt nod. “You got it, Kitty.”
“Thank you for your help.” She grabbed hold of John’s arm and pulled him toward the door.
John glanced back at the lab one last time as he was dragged into the hall. “What’s in the vial?”
“Not here.”
He rolled his eyes and pulled away from her. John moved quickly through the halls past her and headed right for Xana’s office. He guessed that was where she had intended on going anyway. He entered the room first and took a seat.
Xana looked up from whatever she had been reading with a startled look on her face. “What is it? Did you find it?”
John waited for Troubalene to seal the door and take a seat. “We definitely found it.” He then turned to Troubalene. “Now what’s this all about?”
“We’ve got a major problem. Bigger than you realize and unfortunately we’re not going to be able to clear Patricia’s name.”
“What? Why?” Xana asked before John could.
Troubalene sat the tablet and the vial on the desk. “The tablet was carried by myself, Susanna, Patricia and Lance. That vial is what they’re accusing Patricia of stealing.”
John looked at the vial. “That? What’s in it?”
“I’m not going to tell you that John, but it’s bad. If Susanna and Lance have handled it, we’ve got a bigger problem. They’re working together.”
John shook his head. “I estimated that one had to do with the other, but not that they’re one and the same. I don’t see Susanna doing anything as harmful as what I could see Lance doing.”
“But this should be an easy fix, right?” Xana asked. “I mean you just have to take the evidence to the captain. He’ll see the truth and those two will get locked up and Patricia can be unfrozen.”
“I wish it were that simple. The captain may accept Lance’s blame, but he’s not going to believe his wife had anything to do with this.” Troubalene’s eyes darted between John and Xana. “And I’m not sure we should try to say anything yet.”
“Why not?” John asked, trying hard to keep his voice level.
“Because if they’ve already set their plans in motion, then freezing them will only leave us vulnerable. We have to let this happen to stop them. Whatever it is.”
“You’re crazy.” Xana put on one of her medical gloves and grabbed the vial off the desk. She held it up to the light. “But apparently there’s a lot of that going around, if this is what I think it is.”
“You might want to put it down.”
13
In Pursuit
Gerald stood in the hangar with Luna, Wallis and Wilk. They were there to meet with Zalta about the latest designs. She, however, was late and so they were wandering around the hangar, looking at the new ships with apt interest.
Gerald could see the biggest one far in the back. Shaped like a giant fish, this one would eventually be sent to the new planet as an aide. There were several smaller ones that were designed for the same type of travel, but only meant to hold groups of up to fifteen or twenty people. They were sleek with very few items on the outside of the design.
“So, which one’s mine,” Luna said.
Gerald smiled. “What makes you think you’re getting a ship? Maybe they’re giving me one. Did you consider that?”
“If they gave you a ship, you’d just crash it. They’re not going to waste good money on your dumbass.”
“Would you two stop it?” Wilk asked. “I think if anyone deserves a ship it should be me.”
They all had to laugh at that.
“Are you all admiring the beauts that I’ve designed,” Zalta said.
Gerald turned around to greet her. “What took you so long? We’ve been here for hours just waiting on you.”
Zalta laughed. “I highly doubt that. All these ships are done, completely ready for travel whenever the time comes.”
Wallis nodded. “Very well. How much time will one of these save us on our Earth trips?”
“I’d estimate that you could travel from Mars to Earth in a couple hours, with the right pilot of course.”
Gerald threw up his hands in protest. “Why did you look at Luna when you said that? I’m obviously the better choice for the job.”
“You’d obviously crash it, like the last three ships you were allowed to fly.”
“That’s not fair. That first one, the navigational system failed,” Gerald said with a smile.
“And what happened on the other two?” Wilk asked.
“Whose side are you on?”
“I think I remember,” Wallis said. “The ground looked further away than it was.”
Gerald scowled for a minute before they all burst out laughing. “Fine. Luna can fly it.”
“I just have two questions. Which one’s mine? And when can we leave?” Luna asked.
Zalta ran her hand through her spiked up hair. “As far as I’m concerned they’re ready for flight. We’re going to put you in my favorite. It’s capable of making it to the new planet in a far quicker amount of time. The jump speed is ridiculous, the fastest that we’ve ever been able to produce. Do not use the jump speed when traveling between Mars and Earth, that could cause the inner planets to be moved out of orbit, maybe even send us into the sun. Just a friendly reminder. As far as when, that’s up to Wallis.”
Wallis shook Zalta’s hand. “Thank you. We’ll return for a launch later this afternoon.” Wallis left the hangar.
“Make sure it is fully fueled,” Luna said. “The max capacity.”
“I will, but you won’t use that much for an hour trip there and back.”
Luna smiled. “I get that, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“Whatever you want.” Zalta stared at Gerald a moment. “If I find out you’ve flown this ship at all, I will personally end you.”
“No problem,” Gerald said. He, Wilk, and Luna left the hangar. “Do you think she knows?”
“No one knows. Just be completely ready this afternoon. We’re going to Earth first.”
“I need to say goodbye to someone,” Gerald said waving to the other two. “I’ll be ready.” He left Capena for Second Earth. The walk always seemed to take longer than it should, especially if he had something on his mind. He walked past the people in the settlement trying not to make eye contact with any of them. He wasn’t there to chat or know how things were going. He was there to see his mother.
He rounded the corner into city hall and was met with the receptionist. “Good morning, Gerald. How can I help you?”
“I just need to speak with my mother.”
“She’s a very busy woman. Maybe you could come back later.”
“She’s got ten minutes. Just make it happen.”
The receptionist did not appear to be happy, but she swiped at the schedule and said, with a sigh, “You can go back now. She’ll just have to meet with the builders later.”
“Thank you.” Gerald headed to the left and followed the hall around to the conference room where his mother was seated at the head of the table alone, clearly waiting for other people. “Hey, mom.”
She leapt up from the table, practically suffocating him with a hug. “I wasn’t expecting to see you.”
“I wasn’t expecting to be here. But Wallis wants to launch this afternoon so I thought it would be better to come say goodbye.” He pushed her away. “How are things going?”
“Very well. I never thought I would be able to be responsible for so many lives.”
“No one
thought you would have to.” He shifted slightly from foot to foot.
“It wasn’t your fault. You’ve got to let it go.”
“I have.”
He could tell from the look on her face that she didn’t believe him. “Fine. I hate to be pushy, but I did have a meeting planned for right now. They should’ve been here by now.”
“They’re not coming. I had them push back your meeting so that I could say goodbye.”
“Are you okay, Gerald honey?”
He smiled as large and wide as he could. “I’m fine. Your receptionist has a little bit of an attitude.”
“She doesn’t if you’re nice to her.”
“I was nice.” Gerald took a seat. “Mom, you know that I love you, right?”
“I don’t know where you’re going with this, but I’m not sure I like it.”
“If I didn’t come back from this mission, just know that it’s okay. That I’m good with that. And that even though I didn’t want to help guide Second Earth, doesn’t mean I don’t care about how it ends up.”
“Gerald, if you’re about to do something stupid, just don’t do it alone.” She sat down beside him and patted his back. “Would you like me to help you?”
“You can’t. Besides, you’re needed here to help them. I’ll be back. I promise to come back.”
“Gerald,” she said with a worried tone. He hated that tone. “If this has anything to do with him, he’s not worth it. If we’d known he was still alive, we would have taken extra precautions. It shouldn’t have happened, but it did and it’s been twenty years. You’ve got to move on.”
Gerald didn’t answer. “I just came to say goodbye. Good luck with the builders this afternoon. I hear they’re a tough bunch to please.”
“Honey, for an amateur maybe. I know what I’m doing.”
Gerald hugged his mother and then left. He knew she knew and it didn’t seem to matter. He was going to go through with it anyway.
As the afternoon approached, Gerald found himself back in the hangar. He was the first one there. Even Zalta seemed to have disappeared. He reached out, grazing the silky smooth side of the ship they would be taking.
The Oceans of Mars Page 17
