by Sam Schall
“Yes, ma’am.”
With that, Talbot turned and started toward the rear of the building. As they pushed through the crush of others attempting to get to safety, Shaw thought hard, trying to remember the layout of the building. Unless things had changed since her court martial, there was a small landing area at the rear of the complex. When she’d been on active duty, it had been used for fleet officers and government officials. But was it secure enough to allow for a shuttle to land and take off without becoming easy target practice for the enemy?
They turned another corner and she saw daylight. For a moment she paused. It would be so easy to slip away into the confusion and disappear. But she was free. She had to remember that. She was free, her name cleared. The rest would come.
Assuming any of them lived out the day.
* * *
Tremayne bit back a curse as the building was rocked again. Before she could stop and look, Ashlyn’s hand closed over her arm and dragged her forward. The young woman had to be acting on instinct now. She’d not worn the Marine uniform in more than two years. It had been even longer than that since she’d been on duty. Blood from her broken nose and a fresh cut over her right eye covered most of her face and stained the front of her jumpsuit. Tremayne winced as she imagined the pain Ashlyn must be in. But you’d never guess it from the way she moved, carefully checking each corner before allowing Tremayne forward and not letting the senator stop and see what was going on.
Veteran that she was, Tremayne knew this wasn’t her kind of fight. She was a space jockey and always would be. Put her on the bridge of a ship and she was in her element. But this up close and personal sort of fight was why she’d chosen to go Navy instead of joining the Marines like her parents. At least she knew to put her trust in those who knew how to fight this sort of battle. Not that she liked it.
But if she’d had any concerns, any doubts about how Ashlyn would respond to a combat situation after all she’d been through, she no longer did. The young woman might not look like an active duty Marine in the black jumpsuit she’d been issued but she certainly acted like one. The rifle the gunny secured for her was slung across her back. The pistol she’d taken from the guard was held at the ready. Her eyes constantly scanned their surroundings, looking for danger from any source.
If that wasn’t enough to prove she was ready not only to return to duty but to trust her fellow Marines, the fact Shaw hadn’t demanded to be linked into the com-net did. She listened carefully to the reports Talbot gave from time to time, occasionally asking questions. But she didn’t demand he turn over his earbud, something Tremayne knew a number of other officers would have. Hell, she probably would have made the demand had she been in Ashlyn’s place. Maybe there really was reason to hope the last two years hadn’t turned the young woman against them.
God, let it be so.
“Any update on Fleet status, Gunny?” Tremayne asked as they slid to a halt as the corridor ended in a T.
The gunny snuck a peek around the corner and then ducked back. His expression was serious as he checked his weapon. Then he lifted his left hand to his ear, listening to the reports coming in over the combat-net.
“FleetCom says we are to make our way to the FOB, ma’am. They’d like to get you and the captain as far from the fighting as possible but there are still enemy stingers in the air. So, for the moment at least, you are stuck groundside.”
Tremayne nodded. She’d feel better with a deck beneath her feet but that wasn’t to be. Not yet, at any rate. A quick glance at Ashlyn showed she didn’t feel the same. Not that it really surprised the senator. Ashlyn was a Marine, born and bred. Despite everything that had happened to her, everything that had been done to her, the last half hour had proven that.
“Ash,” she said softly.
“I’m all right, ma’am.” The younger woman gave a lopsided smile that didn’t touch her eyes. “Right now, we need to get you to safety. So let’s get to the FOB.”
* * *
“Almost there, Senator,” the gunny said as they raced through the doors and burst into the sunlight.
They slid to a halt behind a makeshift barrier. One of the three Marines stationed there gave them a quick glance before turning her attention back to the area ahead of them. This might be the center of the security complex, but there was still a lot of open expanse to cross, too much when you considered all the buildings surrounding the complex. Buildings that could be hiding snipers, waiting to take their shot.
Ashlyn peeked around the edge of the barrier and blew out a breath. Any other time, a shuttle would have rested on the landing pad not fifty meters from them. If one had been there when the attack began, it would have taken off as soon as its engines had been brought online. No one would have wanted it left there, an easy target and nothing more than a huge bomb waiting to be detonated.
Across the clearing was a second building. A twin to the one they’d just vacated, it housed a number of governmental agencies. Civilians and easy targets. Not that whoever was behind the attack cared. It was obvious they had chosen the timing of the attack very carefully. Not only was the workday well underway but the streets of the capital would have been filled with tourists and business people going about their daily activities. God, this was a nightmare. How many would lose their lives before the attack was over?
“Where’s the FOB, Gunny?” Tremayne asked.
“Three buildings over, ma’am, in the old CapCity Bank building. Major Santiago has set up there and is in contact with FleetCom.”
“Why there?”
Ashlyn didn’t like it. The bank building had been vacant for years. She doubted it had been kept up during that time and that meant a direct hit against it could bring the building down around their ears. That assumed they even made it there. First they’d have to cross more than one hundred yards of open area. That meant the threat of snipers, not to mention the possibility of one of the enemy stinger ships zeroing in on them.
“The major will have to tell you that, ma’am. All I know is that’s where he was ordered to set up the FOB.” Talbot didn’t look any happier about than was she. In a way, that made her feel better.
Still it was so close and yet so far away.
She leaned against the barrier and closed her eyes, catching her breath. The sounds of fighting at the front of the building reached her. Screams of agony mixed with the unmistakable sounds of gunfire. This wasn’t supposed to happen in the capital. Hell, it wasn’t supposed to happen planetside. It had been more than a two centuries since there’d been a real battle on Fuercon and that had been civil war. Even during the last war, the Navy had been able to keep the enemy out of the home system. How the hell had they managed to get through now?
That was a very good question, one she didn’t have time to worry about. The fighting hadn’t reached this part of the complex yet, but it would before long, especially if the enemy ground troops continued to press forward. If the enemy actually coordinated their efforts with their air support, Ashlyn knew they’d be overrun. That meant they had to move, snipers or not.
Ash glanced skyward and frowned. Smoke billowed from the side of the building in the general area of where she thought her cell had been. A few minutes more and both she and Tremayne would have died. Wouldn’t that have sucked? Brought back to the capital to be offered a full pardon only to be killed in a sneak attack on the planet.
“Gunny, we need to get the senator out of here. We can’t stay here any longer on the off-chance FleetCom will decide our best bet is the shuttle.”
“I’m just waiting for the word, ma’am,” he said and cocked his head as he listened to something coming in over his earbud.
“Any word on enemy air support?” She looked up again, relieved to see only their own fighters in the air for the moment.
Damn, it felt like she was fighting blind. She didn’t know who the enemy was, what they wanted or what their current position happened to be. She’d been in this position too often during th
e war but she’d thought those days were behind her. Of course, she’d also thought she’d be spending the next three years at the penal colony which, just now, sounded pretty damned good. But she was a Marine and she’d be damned if she let anything happen to the woman next to her.
“Looks like their birds have withdrawn, at least for the moment, Captain. But there’s no guarantee they won’t make another run against us soon.”
“How in the hell did they get troops on-planet, much less air support?” Tremayne demanded.
“A damned good question, ma’am, and one I’d love to know the answer to,” Ashlyn replied, once more peeking around the barricade.
As she did, she felt Tremayne shift restlessly at her side. Her hand flashed out, grabbing the senator before she could move forward. That was always the problem with Navy types. They thought about battle in terms of thousands of kilometers of space, not in terms of someone being close enough to put a projectile between your eyes or a knife in your back.
“Gunny, recommendations?” Ashlyn looked at the man, nodding as she did. She’d learned early in her career to trust her gunnys, especially on the battlefield. Talbot had proven himself one of the best, at least in her opinion. She’d trusted him during the war and she’d trust him now.
“We don’t dare wait any longer, Cap. When I say go, you get the senator across the clearing. Duck into the walkway between the two buildings at the northwest corner. Wait there for me. I’ll cover you until you get there. Then we’ll regroup and make the last run for the FOB,” he said, his eyes raking the open area before them.
“You’d better be right on our heels, Gunny. We don’t leave anyone behind.” Even as she said it, she thought about her people back on Tarsus and prayed she’d not imagined the notice of their pardons.
“Understood, ma’am. Believe me, I’ll be on so close behind you that you’ll think I’m your shadow.” An explosion followed by a fresh burst of gunfire sounded behind them. “I recommend you get moving if you don’t want to be smack in the middle of the fighting.”
Ashlyn glance around, her mouth tight. How in the world had she gone from military prisoner to active duty Marine in the middle of a firefight in less than an hour?
“Senator, you’re going to do exactly as I say.” She turned to Tremayne. “When I tell you to run, you’re going to run like the hounds of Hell are on our heels. You don’t stop until you’re in the walkway, no matter what happens. Do you understand?”
“As long as you understand you’d better be right there with me,” Tremayne replied.
“Gunny, stand ready.” She checked her weapons one last time.
“Now, Captain. Go!”
Shaw nodded and, grabbing Tremayne’s arm with her left hand, raced out from behind the barricade. They hadn’t gone three steps when the shots she’d been expecting rang out. The staccato of projectiles hitting the pavement at their feet filled the air. Pain like the sting of hundreds of insects registered. One part of her mind identified it as shrapnel and slivers of pavement, possibly even ricochets. Not that it made the pain go away. However, one thing her time at the penal colony had done was given her the ability to ignore such things. She’d have time to worry about it later.
She hoped.
Two armed and armored Marines appeared from the shadows of the walkway as they neared. Their covering fire joined that of the gunny and the others at the barricade. Shaw all but threw Tremayne at the nearest Marine before turning to lay down cover fire for the gunny.
“Keep the senator back and comm the major that we’re on our way!” she yelled as she fired in the direction of the last shot to hit the ground near her.
“Captain, get your ass back against that building!” the gunny ordered as he ran across the open area. “Get her back!” he added to the Marines covering her.
Snarling, Shaw jerked against the hands that reached for her. She was damned if she’d run before she knew the gunny was safe. She’d had to leave the others behind. She wouldn’t do that here. She couldn’t.
A moment later, she sank to her heels, breathing hard. The so-called walkway they huddled in was nothing more than a tunnel hollowed out between the two buildings. Barely six feet wide and seven feet tall, it offered them at least temporary cover from an aerial attack. But that limited safety wouldn’t last for long if the enemy ground troops managed to close in on them.
“Are you all right?”
She heard the worry in Tremayne’s voice and nodded. If this felt a bit too close to what happened on her last mission, she couldn’t dwell on it. No, she had to focus on the here and now. Otherwise, she might as well just walk out into the open and let the enemy put a bullet in her skull.
“Yeah.” She blew out a breath and then coughed. Smoke was filling the air, bringing with it all the smells of battle. “Ma’am, you’d better make sure those folks at the FOB know I’m supposed to be with you. It would really suck to get there and then to be shot as an escaping prisoner.” She tried to make it a joke but failed. It was just too close to the truth.
“Don’t worry, Ash. They know.” Tremayne’s hand reached over and gave hers a quick squeeze.
“They do, ma’am,” Talbot assured her. “Besides, that’s why I’m here. I’m your bodyguard right now even more than the senator’s and, as you know, I’m very good at what I do.”
She couldn’t help it. She smiled slightly and nodded. Talbot was good and he’d proven time and again over the years that he would do exactly whatever was necessary to get the job done. It might not keep a sniper from getting off a lucky shot but hopefully it would keep one of her own side from doing something she’d regret, assuming she lived.
Without a word, she climbed to her feet and moved to the end of the “tunnel” before crouching again. Her right palm rested against the side of the building as she leaned forward. She took a quick look around the corner in the direction of the old CapBank building before ducking back into the walkway. The sounds of fighting here were a bit more sporadic than at the security complex but she wasn’t about to let her guard down yet.
“One more time, Senator.” She drew a deep breath, held it and then released it. God, the last thing she’d expected when she’d been escorted from her cell was to be fighting for her life and the life of her mentor. “You will stick with me. You will not stop for anything. If I go down, you will keep running until you are safe inside. Do you understand?”
“I’ll repeat what I told you earlier. I’ll do it as long as you remember to stick with me as well.”
“And I’ll kick both of your asses, ma’ams, if either of you do anything stupid. Respectfully, of course,” the gunny added, grinning slightly. “Cap, when you’re ready, give the word and I’ll let them know at the FOB to cover you.”
“Let’s do this.” She stood and checked her pistol one last time. Then she said a quick prayer and nodded. “Go!”
She stepped into the street, gun ready and waved for Tremayne to move. As the senator broke into the open, gunfire erupted around them. Ashlyn’s hand closed over the senator’s arm and together they raced in a zigzag across the street. Marines appeared from the FOB to lay down cover fire. The sounds of the battle echoed off the sides of the buildings, masking Ashlyn’s thundering pulse and the sounds of Tremayne gasping for breath as they ran.
“Go, go, go!” Ashlyn yelled as she raced through the door of the bank building a moment later, the gunny on her heels.
One of the Marines pulled the door closed behind them and then pounded his gloved fist against a panel next to the doorway. Almost instantly a heavy security door slid into place. Ashlyn bent, hands on her thighs, and fought for breath. It was one thing to do several hundred pushup and sit-ups in her cell each day, but it was something very different to be running for your life in the middle of a firefight. Her heart pounded, sweat covered her and her breath hitched. But they’d made it and, so far at least, no one had shot her. That had to count for something.
“Senator, Captain, if you’ll fo
llow me, I’ll take you to the major,” Talbot said a moment later.
As she followed the gunny and Tremayne deeper into the building, Ashlyn couldn’t help wondering what was going to happen next.
Chapter Five
Major Rico Santiago stood before a small table, carefully studying a holo display. As Talbot escorted Tremayne and Ashlyn into the room deep inside the building, he looked up. Relief lit his expression and he stepped around the table to greet them. As he did, Ashlyn felt the years of training forcing her body to snap to attention even as her mind suddenly decided to stop working.
Reaction. She knew that’s what it was. She’d been operating on instinct and training alone since first realizing the security building was under attack. But now, deep inside the old bank building, inside what had once been the vault, the danger was over, at least for the moment. The need to fight to survive was gone. Now came the waiting and the wondering.
God, she hated the unknown.
“Well done, Gunny,” Santiago said. “Any problems?”
“Nothing we didn’t expect, sir,” Talbot replied. “However, there is a matter the senator needs to brief you on. She had me take the two Marines escorting her and the captain down from the security block into custody.”
Santiago frowned and turned his attention to Tremayne. “I know you too well than to think you’d do it without good cause, ma’am.”
“A very good cause,” she assured him, her voice cold. “Who ordered them to escort us down?”
That was a question Ash wanted answered as well. Just as she wanted to be the one to deal with the person issuing the order.
“I’d have to check but I would assume the Officer of the Day. Why?”
“Because, before we were off the security floor, I was told that one of the Marines would escort me to safety and the other would deal with the captain.”
Talbot’s reaction almost mirrored Santiago’s. Both stiffened, their expressions turning thunderous. Watching them, realizing they had nothing to do with the order, Ashlyn relaxed a little. She wasn’t ready to completely drop her guard, but seeing how angry they were helped.
