Adrift (Dawson's Star Book 1)

by J. P. Larson

  “Gilbert doesn’t like to leave messes behind.”

  Alex heard his pocket comm buzz. “Go, Alicia.”

  “They’re offering to fire on the barnacle, Alex. What do I tell them? And what’s a barnacle?”

  “Ask them to kindly hold their fire, and we’re still busy. Ignore all the impolite words, if you can. I’ll explain later.”

  “Okay,” she said.

  “Gina, the Admiral is getting itchy. Where are you?”

  “Five minutes, Alex. We’re starting to find some live ones. We’re taking it slow.”

  “Let Linda and the crew have a few, if they think they’re up to it.”

  “They’re civilians!”

  “And they can fire around corners. At least, Pamela can.”

  “They’re all nodding. Moving forward.”

  Alex continued to fidget as Gina secured the other ship. His pocket comm buzzed again.

  “Alicia, tell that nasty old man I told him he should be polite.”

  “He said to remind you that you don’t have a Letter of Mark. Who’s Mark?” She paused. “And he says he won’t be happy… if you’re using his… hostage extraction team… as shocked troops.”

  Alex smiled at the relay. “Tell him we have a time constraint and couldn’t wait around for his slow horses.” He switched radios. “I was away. Where are you?”

  “Bit busy, Alex. How many are in there, Linda?”

  “I count twelve.” There was a pause. “We can’t get that many, Gina. We’re getting tired.”

  “Linda,” Alex said. “Can you show Jimbo where they all are?”

  “Maybe. It would be easier if we were married. I’ll do what I can.”

  Alex heard a surprised noise from Jimbo, then, “Okay, okay, got it, okay, right. Linda, that was pretty cool.” It was quiet for a few moments, then Alex heard the sounds of flechette guns being fired. He waited. “All secure.”

  “We have the bridge, Alex. The ship is ours.”

  “I’m worried about stragglers, Gina. Get the civilians back here. Send Jimbo and Johnson with them. I’m going to toss the other soldiers to you, then I’m out of here. Dad is here with the RWN, and he’ll send in a cleanup crew, but I have to go.”

  “They’re on their way, Alex.”

  “Jimbo, same drill on the way back. Little peeks around every corner and at every door. No chances.”

  “Shut up, Commander,” Jimbo told him.

  Alex smiled. He waited a minute, then he heard Jimbo again. “Don’t shoot us, Commander. We’re coming around the corner.”

  “Right,” Alex said. Jimbo popped his head up, verified Alex didn’t shoot it, then came around the corner with Johnson and the three Dawson Star women.

  “Toss those soldiers through the airlock, you two. Leave the woman with me. Then get back over there so I can close up.”

  Jimbo and Johnson started dragging limp bodies from storage and tossed them into the other ship, unconcerned about any resulting damage. Alex turned to the women.

  “We need to leave in five minutes. Get to the bridge. Send Alicia back to the engines. Linda, I want you on Helm. Spades, I want fastest route home. Sue, you take security. Mary, that leaves you on communications. Anyone have a problem?” They all shook their heads and ran to the bridge.

  Jimbo threw the last body through the airlock.

  “Thanks, Jimbo. See you on Dawson’s Star. Don’t let the Admiral push you around while I’m gone.”

  Jimbo nodded, and he and Johnson stepped into the other ship. Alex closed both airlocks on his side, and Jimbo closed the airlocks on the other side.

  “Gina, undock us immediately,” he said into the comm.

  “Okay, Alex. Your father is screaming at me.”

  “That’s what you get for answering his hail, Gina. You should have let me take the heat. Bottle yourselves up on the bridge and stay safe. Gina, I do have a letter. Don’t let Dad take our ship away from us. Give him the prisoners, then bring our ship to Dawson's Star.”

  Alex began limping to the bridge. He arrived and went straight to the captain’s chair and sat down.

  “Mary, let me talk to our friends.”

  Admiral Swanson appeared on the viewscreen. He noticed Alex and began a lengthy tirade.

  “Shut up, Admiral,” Alex said. His father stopped in mid-sentence. “I don’t have time for this. I am leaving to let Liz know who won. I hope you’ll come to DS to continue this. I have a DS Letter of Marque. Gina and the guys, who are currently considered civilians, as they are on a walkabout, hold the ship that we just detached from. The ship is filled with some very nasty characters. Most of them, but perhaps not all, are asleep. Would the RWN be interested in a five percent share of my ship in exchange for their assistance in securing her?”

  His father smiled. “The other five all surrendered, Alex. Your mother will be pleased, but we'll give Gina whatever help she needs. God speed.”

  “Dad, which world has the harshest piracy laws?”

  The admiral looked surprised. “Alex, DS believes in rehabilitation.”

  “Take these yokels home and deal with them, Dad, if you would. I’ll be home soon. And don’t yell at Gina anymore. They did a great job.” Alex nodded at Mary, who killed the connection.

  “Status?”

  “Helm green.”

  “Navigation green. Fastest route locked and ready.”

  “Communications green.”

  “Security green.”

  “Systems green,” said Alicia.

  “Helm, get us clear of all these ships.”

  Linda began easing them away.

  “Goose it, Linda. Don’t hit anyone, but get us out of here.”

  She smiled, and the Ghost quickly pulled away from the other ships.

  “Spades, are we clear enough?”

  “Anytime.”

  “Alicia, hyper?”

  “Green.”

  “Helm, at your earliest.”

  “Hyper in ten,” Linda replied. “Three, two, one…”

  The ship slipped into hyperspace.

  “Status?”

  “Helm is green.”

  “Navigation green. We’re right on course.”

  “Mary, you can shut down. Can you rustle up some tea? Do you mind?”

  “Tea it is,” she said, dashing from the bridge.

  “Security is green.”

  “Helm, what are we at?”

  “Coming through 85% for 120%, Captain.”

  “Linda, I’m just Alex. Alicia?”

  “Green.”

  “Alicia, watch those gauges. I’m going to pour on the speed. Linda, 200% please.”

  “Coming up,” she replied. “We’re through 160% for 200.”

  “I’m green, Alex,” Alicia’s voice said.

  “200%, Alex.”

  “Go to 300, helm.” Linda looked around. “Do it, Linda. And don’t baby it so much on the way.”

  “Slamming to 300?” Alex nodded at her, and she pressed some buttons, then watched the gauges. “Slammed to 300. Green.”

  “Green,” said Spades.

  “They’re making odd noises, Alex.”

  “310 now, helm!”

  “Noises went away.” Alicia said, then paused. “I’m green again.”

  “Note, everyone, avoid 300. 350, helm.”

  “Alex? We’ll get there.”

  “We’ll get there too late. I want 350, but don’t slam it.”

  “A gentle 350….”

  At 410, Alicia spoke up. “I’m getting nervous, Alex. Needles are a little irregular and high.”

  “Spades, how long until we get home?”

  “We were still two days out, Alex.”

  “How long at this speed?” Spades checked her boards, then checked again. “Something is wrong, Alex. My boards don’t make sense.”

  “Pretend they do. What do they tell you?”

  “Three hours. Fuel could become an issue.”

  “Monitor it, if you would.
”

  Mary returned with the tea, pouring for everyone. Alex gulped his, then took a second glass. “Mary, would you run another errand?”

  “Of course.”

  Alex pulled a hypo from his pocket. “Would you go find Janice? I think she’s in her cabin. Give her this. It’ll wake her up. Have a glass of tea ready for her, then get her up here as soon as she is able. Do not wake the Captain yet.”

  “All right, Alex.” Mary took the hypo and the tea pot and quickly left the bridge.

  “Alicia?”

  “Same. I’m nervous, Alex.”

  “Helm, drop to 375. Gently.”

  “That’s a lot better, Alex,” Alicia announced as the ship slowed.

  “Spades?”

  “Four and a half. Alex, we’re going to be late.”

  “We’ll still have a Prime Minister at four and a half, Spades,” said Alex, remembering Elizabeth’s tears six weeks ago, and her words from sometime before that.

  “I would cry while I was doing it, but I would throw you to the wolves,” she had told him.

  “Sue, come help me stand. I’m getting stiff. I need to teach you more about that board.”

  “It can wait.”

  “It can’t. Come help me.” Sue came over and helped Alex stand up and limp to the security boards. He sat down immediately, then began to show her the scanners.

  “I didn’t know we could do that,” she said.

  “I’m sorry, Sue. I couldn’t give away my secrets.”

  He continued to show her the rest of the capabilities. Then he showed her how to get more help.

  Janice stumbled in, followed by Mary.

  “First, are you fit?”

  She looked at him, and her eyes slowly focus. “Mr. Swanson. I should have known. You seem to be a difficult man to kill. And no, I’m not fit.”

  “I hope you will call me Alex again. Mary, go to my cabin. There should be a bag in there somewhere. Find it and bring it here.” He hit some buttons. “All doors on the ship now open to everyone, so you can get in.”

  Mary ran out.

  “Janice, take the captain’s chair, if you would.”

  “I’m not fit.”

  “You will be. Ever taken battle drugs?” She shook her head. “Well, this will be an experience for you.”

  Janice stumbled to her place and sat down.

  “Alicia?” Alex asked.

  “Green.”

  Mary returned carrying a small bag. “This one?” Alex nodded and gestured, so Mary handed the bag to him. Alex opened it, then withdrew another hypo. “Give this to Janice.”

  After a moment, Janice started to perk up. She smiled. “Oh, I could get used to that!”

  “Don’t. That’s a one-shot, and I’m not giving you any more. It’ll last until we get to orbit, but don’t you dare try to land us. The others just got a light pain killer, but you were out a lot longer. I’m sorry, but I didn’t want to argue with you.”

  “I’m going to stay up for another two days?”

  “You guys brief her, let her know everything that happened. Now, I have a request.”

  Janice looked at him.

  “I need help getting to my cabin. Then I want Mary to wake up Pamela. She’ll come here, of course. Tell her nothing about me, but that I appear to have left a message for her in my cabin. Insist she has to see it before she talks to her mother. That’s it. Make sure she comes.”

  “Don’t tell her?”

  “I need to find out if I’m still married. Let me do it my way. I think I’m owed that.”

  Janice looked at him, then nodded. “Okay, Alex.”

  “Thank you, Janice. And thank you for using Alex.”

  She nodded. Mary came over. She and Sue helped him stand, then Mary walked him slowly to his cabin Once inside, he collapsed into a chair.

  “Mary, first I want you to go find my bracelets and necklace from the captains cabin. Bring them back here.”

  “You’re already wearing them.”

  “Not exactly. These are kind of a spare I had laying around.”

  Mary dashed off and returned nearly immediately. “Mary, thank you.” He rummaged through the bag again. “First, this one will wake her up. She’ll be groggy, just like Janice. And this one will really wake her up. But you have to do them in that order.”

  “Right. Blue first, then red.”

  “Not a word to her about this, Mary.”

  “Good luck, Alex,” Mary said on her way out the door.

  Alex set Pamela’s necklace and bracelets on the table. Then, with concentration, he was able to remove the set he was wearing and set them beside the others. He turned to the computer and spoke for a while. He then levered himself to his feet and moved to a place behind the door and slumped to the floor. With a verbal order, the lights dimmed. Alex closed his eyes to rest.

  Absolution

  He woke when his cabin door opened. Pamela walked in slowly, but didn’t see him in the dim light. She tried to turn up the lights, but they were unresponsive.

  Alex’s computer came to life.

  “Hello, Pamela,” it told her. “Please sit down. I have some things to say to you.”

  “Oh, Alex,” she said. “I’m so sorry. You still saved me.”

  “Please, are you sitting? I think you should be sitting.” The computer paused. Pamela looked at it, then sat down, facing the screen, her back still to Alex from his slumped position on the floor.

  “The fact that you’re getting this means my plan must have worked. The computer was going to erase it otherwise.” The sound paused. “Your mother said you would be able to still feel me, even without the necklace on.” It paused again. “You might still be able to feel me, even now.”

  Pamela buried her face in her hands.

  “I love you, Pamela,” the computer said. “I want to live with you forever.” Pamela started to cry quietly. “Pamela, please don’t cry. I made a promise to your mother. I told her I would bring you back to her. I’m keeping my promise. My methods are a bit extreme, but I’m keeping my promise.

  “Do you remember that night when we talked? You offered to live on Random Walk. I quizzed you and Liz. I asked her if she would ever throw me to the wolves. She said yes, but that she would be crying when she did it. Now, do you remember what she was doing when we left six weeks ago?

  “She wouldn’t resign to save me, Pamela.

  “Do you remember when you couldn’t feel me anymore? It was only a few hours ago. But now, you can feel me again? Look on the table. Please, Pamela, look at what I left on the table.”

  Pamela pulled her face from her hands. For the first time, she noticed the two sets of jewelry.

  “The second one is your mother’s. She taught me how to use it myself. I was wearing it when I climbed into the airlock. I was wearing it when I climbed into a maintenance suit. And I was still wearing it about fifteen minutes ago.”

  Pamela sat up straight.

 

 

 

 

  Pamela finally saw him in the gloom of the floor. She threw herself at him. He couldn’t breath for a time, but decided that was okay.

  “I thought you were dead.”

  “I’m sorry. My plan needed time. I wasn’t sure that woman would even let me live.” He paused. “And I couldn’t risk you deciding to interfere. I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t risk another stunt like the last time.”

  “On the bridge, you said…”

  “I said a lot of things. I was very angry with you. I knew I had driven you to it, and you were reacting the way I knew you would. But I guess I just hoped you would have faith in me. I didn’t mean them, Pamela. I was angry enough to hurt you, but… I’m sorry.”

  She hugged him again.

  “We’re still married?” Pamela asked him.

  “If you’ll have me?”

  “No more secrets?”

&nbs
p; He shook his head, and she smiled mischievously. “We have unfinished business.” She pulled him to his feet, then pushed him towards the bed. Off balance, he fell across it.

  “Ms. Grey!” he said in feigned shock. “I am certainly not dressed properly for this sort of behavior from you.”

  She looked at him, and her smile grew even larger. She turned to the table. “Get the right ones,” he told her. She giggled.

  * * *

  Nearly eight hours after the Grey Ghost surrendered to Susan Borman, the ship dropped from hyper over the world of Dawson’s Star. A very disheaveled-looking captain sat in her chair.

  “Communications, get me the capital immediately!”

  “Yes, Captain,” Mary said. She looked at the board. “Space port is hailing us.”

  “Tell them we have a high priority message for the Prime Minister and we’ll get back to them.”

  Mary spoke quietly.

  “They say they’ve been told to watch for us. They urgently want to talk with you, Captain.”

  “Put them on.”

  A face familiar to Pamela appeared on the view screen. “Hello, Kris,” Pamela said. “Good to see you. I need to talk to Mother.”

  “Pamela! I’m so glad to see you. Your mother is frantic. I can patch you through from here.” Pamela nodded. There was a pause, a flicker, then her mother’s anxious face turned to the screen.

  “Oh, thank god! Pamela, you’re alive.”

  “Yes, Mother. How are you?”

  “Alex got you free?”

  “Mother, do you still have a job?”

  Elizabeth looked down briefly. “Yes, Pamela.”

  “Alex knew you would.”

  “He saw me crying when you left, didn’t he?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is he okay?”

  “He has a message for you, Mother. He actually made me write it out so I could get it right.” Pamela pulled out a sheet of paper and waved it. “I’ll read it word-for-word.”

  Liz,

  I’m giving you a little gift. Susan Borman was kind enough to turn herself in. She’s having a nice, long nap.

  I kept my promises. Your daughter is safe and sound.

  Liz, I appreciate your faith in me. You’re the only one who didn’t underestimate me.

  Alex

  Pamela watched her mother cry for a moment. “He’s okay, Mother. Exhausted and sleeping, but he’s okay.”

  “He’s still calling me ‘Liz’, Pamela.”