by Gary Jonas
Glenn extended his hand, and Brock shook it.
“Welcome to the inner circle,” Glenn said.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Sai felt something. This was significant, because before she had felt nothing. Not hot or cold or even the sound of silence. It was the complete lack of sensation, a total soul-sucking emptiness that made her very self-awareness feel as if it were fading.
She didn’t know how long she had been in the Grid. There was no sense of duration. It was always now, a static state of being, and although that state constantly altered, flipping into a new configuration like the value of a mathematical variable, there was no sense of the measure of the pause between those changes.
Then she felt it again, a soft touch, or maybe it was a quiet sound just beyond her actual hearing, like air disturbed by a feather falling. But to her it was a banquet of sensation, a feast of feeling. She moved toward it in the darkness, drifting like a moth toward a distant glow.
There. It was closer this time, clearer. She felt that it was a presence, a familiar essence. She reached for it, grasping desperately.
“Sai,” came the whisper.
A word. A name. Her name. Sai was her name. Realizing that strengthened her identity. She moved toward it again … and touched Elsa’s questing thoughts.
She exploded with joy. Elsa! A friend in the wilderness. They met and touched and merged and knew each other. It was a time of sharing. At first touch Sai knew that Elsa was more than a simulation, more than a complex copy of a human psyche. Elsa was truly sentient. She had thoughts rather than programs, feelings rather than readouts. They were different than a human’s, but they were nonetheless alive and vibrant. She drifted and wandered into memories.
She felt Elsa’s life as a human. She saw Elsa’s parents, a precious toy, and then a family pet. She rollicked with her in starport bars, rambled with a younger version of Hank as they explored for the Confed Scouts.
Then pain—the agony of a terrible accident. Surgeries, physical therapy, but still pain, always pain. Hank was there, too. He held her hand. He pulled her from the floor of seedy motels and carried her home when her paralysis took hold. He cleaned her body as if she were an infant. Shame. And love.
Finally, Sai came to the moment of Elsa’s transcendence from humanity into something more.
Her senses expanded from the Grid to encompass Elsa’s being. She felt each part of the ship, moving into the drive unit, shields, life support, and communications. Sai had never been linked with a starship before. The power was enormous. The temptation to tear away from the confines of the planet was overwhelming. Gravity and atmosphere stifled her purpose. She was meant to fly through the abyss of space. A nuclear heart burned in her breast. It cried for freedom.
“Sai,” a voice spoke to her. It was Elsa. “Calm down, dear. There will be time for flight later. Now we have to do our job, then get back to Hank.”
Sai’s mind made the connection—Hank, Elsa, Chandler, the mansion on Mordi. The bank system. She had so much to tell them, but she hadn’t been able to do the one thing that would give them a hope for success and an edge on whoever was behind this plot. But perhaps, with Elsa’s help, she could.
“Thank you, Elsa. I was a little lost for a while. Can you help me with something? With you holding my hand, so to speak, I think we can make this situation a lot better for us all.”
“Okay, sister. Let’s do it quickly, then get you home.”
Sai opened her eyes. She was lying on a couch in some room in the mansion. At first, no one noticed she had returned. Randol had his nose in a book. Hank sat in a chair across the room with his head in his hands, and Chandler was nowhere to be seen.
Her body ached. Her legs were asleep, and her neck had a catch in it that caused a stabbing pain, but she was thankful for every unpleasant sensation. It was better than the alternative of emptiness.
“Well? Isn’t anyone going to welcome us back?” Sai asked, her voice soft and weak.
Hank bolted from his chair and rushed to her side. “Are you all right?” he asked, hugging her.
“Uh … well … ah … I can’t breathe. You’re squeezing the life out of me, but otherwise I’m fine.”
He kissed her, then drew back. “I ought to bend you over my knee. What were you thinking? It was too dangerous.”
She shook her head. “There was no other way, Hank. I don’t want to be on the run for the rest of my life. We had to have some way to get the corporation off our backs. This was our only chance.”
“Screw it. We’ll space out of here and hole up like we’d planned—wait!” Hank slapped his forehead. He flipped on the com. “Elsa? Elsa? Are you okay?”
Elsa laughed. “I was wondering when you were going to quit slobbering over your tart and see if I made it.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say. I’m just so damned happy to have you both back with me. Thank you.”
“So tell us you love us, give her another kiss, and let’s get this show on the road.”
“I see the ladies made a satisfactory recovery,” Randol said, his book now forgotten.
Hank looked at Randol, who was sitting calmly. “You aren’t a big celebration-type guy, are you?”
Randol smiled. “I’m truly happy they’re safe. It’s a positive, but we still have a lot of negatives on the table.”
Hank pondered for just a moment and then felt a bit ashamed. He’d gotten his people back, but Randol still didn’t have Helen. “We’ll get your daughter back, Lord Randol.”
“As far as that puzzle goes,” Sai said as she tried to push herself upright, “I think I have some more pieces.”
She sat up straight. “Elsa and I were able to track down and retrieve the histories related to those questionable accounts, and record the passwords to access them. I think I know what someone was trying so hard to cover up.”
“Did this involve Director Casey?” Randol asked.
Sai shrugged. “I have no idea. To tell the truth, it could be anyone.”
She stood and walked slowly and carefully to a data terminal and pulled up the information she had dumped into the system. Columns of numbers appeared.
“Someone has been funneling profits from the pirating of the Nebulaco shipments into hundreds of accounts. Some are individual accounts. Some are businesses. They are scattered all over Manspace. I can’t tell if they’re real or just shadow identities of some kind. But I know there’s an account for you, Lord Randol. Also one for Lady Hemming and Lord Oke.”
“I’ve never had such an account,” Randol said, obviously somewhat insulted.
“I’m not saying you know about it. But someone set up an account in your name. I don’t know why.”
Randol nodded. “I think I do. It gives them a way to discredit the board if they need to. Insinuate involvement in the plot.”
Chandler grunted. “Seems like a stretch.”
“Whoever set this up wasn’t a fool,” Randol said. “They planned this extremely well.”
Sai continued her explanation. “Each of those accounts has also been slowly purchasing Nebulaco stock. Never too much at any one time, and never too many purchases from any one source. The lower the price of the stock goes due to the strain on the corporation, the easier it has become to buy the stock.”
Hank shrugged. “Why are they buying Nebulaco stock?”
“I’ll tell you why,” Randol said. He stood and looked at the others in the room. “Someone is buying up enough stock to get on the Council of Lords.”
Sai nodded. “But even if they bought all the stock that the lords don’t own, don’t you and the other lords still have a majority?”
Randol shook his head. “Not if we go through with the stock sale that Lord Oke has proposed. We would only hold a little over forty-five percent. How much stock has already been accumulated in those accounts?”
Sai checked the data she had retrieved. “It looks like the combined stock from all these accounts is about forty per
cent.”
“They could do it. This upcoming stock sale proposed by Lord Oke could provide them just enough leverage to take over, and there isn’t anything anyone can do about it.”
Sai nodded. “Each of these accounts already has a pending buy order waiting on the big Nebulaco stock sale. They are set to automatically buy the new stock as soon as it becomes available.”
“What about the Confed?” Hank asked.
“Humph,” Randol said. “They can do nothing about fraud, theft, and corruption in the corporations. They have a hands-off policy on that which does not directly affect the free flow of trade in the spaceways. They keep the pilots and the ports safe. They ensure that dictators with battle fleets don’t start interstellar wars, not because it’s a bad thing for the people, but because it interferes with commerce. Planetary war—hell, they encourage that. As long as the starports aren’t shelled. That’s great for the arms trade. They don’t care about anything else.”
“But all this money came from piracy,” Hank said. “How can that not be a Confed concern?”
Randol shrugged. “Once the money has changed hands and gone into the market, there isn’t much they can do. Just as when, once a stolen ship has been refitted and is back out amongst the stars, the Confed can’t do a thing about it.”
“He’s right,” Chandler said. “But the reasons are a little skewed. The Confed has to let local governments govern themselves. Those governments are the ones who choose to do nothing about corruption. As soon as the Confed starts trying to enforce laws on the locals, they get accused of being fascist imperial overlords. Same overall effect, though. We won’t be getting any help from the Confed on this.”
“Well,” Randol said. “Thankfully, you found out what was going on.”
“Damn right she did,” Hank said.
Randol approached Sai. “So who is it? Who’s been doing this?”
She sighed. “There are hundreds of accounts. They’re held in various names. Someone, somewhere has the account numbers and the passwords and is controlling them. I have no idea who. They could belong to Thorne. They would be a brilliant way to go from pirate to untouchable corporate lord in one grand move.”
Chandler shook his head. “I just can’t imagine that he would be so subtle. No, there has to be someone else. Someone feeding him information from within, someone using Thorne to create this shadow empire. That’s our true enemy.”
“So, how do we find out who it is?” Hank asked.
“We don’t have to,” Sai said and smiled. “It will be obvious when the money flows. Elsa and I have done some tinkering.” She winked at Hank.
Aland, Randol’s butler, entered the room and whispered in Randol’s ear. Randol gasped and nodded. “I’ll be right there.”
Aland left the room.
Randol stood. “I have an important call. Please excuse me.” He turned and followed Aland out the door.
Hank looked at Sai and shrugged. “What was that about?”
Sai shook her head. “I don’t know.”
“It wasn’t good news. That’s for sure.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Randol took the call in his library. The viewscreen came to life and displayed a man’s face. “Lord Randol, this is Glenn. I’ve taken over the position formerly occupied by Thorne.”
“Is this some sort of sick joke? What kind of pirate name is Glenn?” Randol said.
The man sighed, then nodded. “I realize it causes some confusion, and that it doesn’t have the same caché to get pilots to heave-to when they are attacked by the ‘hand of Glenn.’ But let me assure you, there has indeed been a regime change.”
“Why should I believe you?”
The screen changed to a view of Helen sitting in a cell.
“Helen! Helen, are you all right?”
The screen switched back to Glenn. “Sorry, that’s just a security camera image, not a two-way communication device. She can’t hear you. I showed you that merely to establish my bona fides and perhaps focus you on the purpose of this communication.”
“You vile piece of filth! What do you want?”
Glenn shook his head. “Actually, I’m in some ways cleaning up the mess of my predecessor. I didn’t want to capture your daughter. I wasn’t in charge then, but I am left with her and the problems inherent in my existing agreements.”
“So return her.”
“No, sorry. That isn’t going to happen. Yet. There are some conditions that you will need to fulfill. I promise that I’ll uphold my end of the bargain if you uphold yours.”
“Why should I trust you?”
Glenn shrugged and raised his hands. “To tell you the truth, I can’t think of any reason whatsoever. But you really don’t have any other options if you want to see your daughter again. If I were you, I’d go forward with the assumption that I’m going to betray you so that when I actually keep my word you’ll be pleasantly surprised. That would be so much nicer than assuming I’m a saint and then being disappointed later.”
“Is this a joke to you? I am Lord Randol of Nebulaco. I’ll find some way to destroy you. I will make it my life’s mission.”
“No joke, Randol. But save your righteous anger. We still have business to discuss. It is my understanding that your corporate board is meeting to discuss the sale of a portion of each of your stock holdings in an effort to raise capital.”
“How do you know that?”
“Please, don’t waste time on stupid questions. I’m not going to tell you. I’ve been requested to instruct you to support this sale of stock and vote to approve it.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Stupid question. You don’t have any other options. I know your daughter means the universe to you. If you think about it, the corporation, the fine mansion, all of that is replaceable. Your daughter isn’t. I do hope you’ll cooperate.”
“I hope you rot in hell.”
“I may well do so, but I want to know before we conclude this call that you’re going to cooperate.”
“How do I know she’s still alive? That could have been an old image of her.”
Glenn smiled. “Excellent! Finally a good question. I’ll patch you through to a hand communicator. Brock? Are you there? Put the girl on.” Glenn smiled and pressed a button. “Here you go.”
Glenn’s face was replaced by a shaky image of Helen. “Daddy? Is that you?”
“Yes, baby. Are you all right?”
She nodded. “I’m okay. I just want to go home. What do they want you to do?”
“They want me to—”
The screen image was again replaced with Glenn. “Sorry, she isn’t allowed to chime in on our agreement. This negotiation is between you and me. Are you convinced she’s alive?”
Randol nodded and looked down.
“Are you going to support the stock sale?”
Randol nodded again.
“Sorry, I want to hear you say it.”
“Yes. Yes, I will support the sale.”
“Very good. This is a simple request, so please keep to your agreement.”
“What about Helen? When can I have her back?”
Glenn shrugged. “I will guarantee you that she will not come to any harm as long as you follow instructions. As to when you’ll get her back, I’d prefer to get her back to you sooner rather than later, as I’m not comfortable with kidnapping. It’s just not my style. But you might be required to jump through a few more hoops. As such, I really can’t say yet.”
“Why not?”
“That is not a stupid question. But I’m afraid I can’t answer it. Good-bye, Lord Randol. Rest assured your daughter is in good hands for now. Better than you know. But please, please don’t think to ignore your part of the bargain. Things will get ugly, and I really don’t want to have to be that guy.”
“This is a sticky situation,” Chandler said, taking a mouthful of rare steak. “You can’t trust anyone in corporate security. There have been too many betrayals related to the
staff. Jorgeson had been with you for years, after all, and he almost got Hank and Sai killed by turning them away. We don’t know where the information is leaking from and we don’t know who’s been bought off.” He spoke and chewed at the same time, washing it down with a healthy swallow of bourbon and soda.
Randol sat at the head of the dining table. His meal lay cooling before him, untouched. “I can’t send away my security force. That would leave us completely vulnerable.”
“Not the entire force,” Chandler said. “Just those inside the mansion. Reassign them all to the outside perimeter of the grounds. Otherwise, we run the risk of having everything we say and do getting back to Thorne or Glenn or whoever. I’ve done a sweep for listening devices, and Miss Sai,” he tipped his glass to her, “has used her talent to sense surveillance, so I feel pretty confident that, with the guards and other employees gone, our secrets will remain so.”
Randol scowled. “I’m not afraid of these pirates.”
“You should be.”
Randol dismissed this with a wave of his hand. “My family has fought off such upstarts for generations. They have yet to bring down the Randols; it’s a matter of breeding.”
“Keep thinking like that and you’ll be trading this mansion for a cardboard box in an alley,” Chandler said.
Hank nodded in support. “You’re going to have to outfox this bastard and whoever he’s working with or he’s going to take you and your corporation for everything your family has built through the years.”
Sai played with the food on her plate, idly toying with a green bean. She seemed deep in thought, isolated.
“All right. I’ll order away all but Aland,” Randol said.
“It’s a start,” said Chandler.
“It all boils down to the fact that they have Helen. While they have her, I’m powerless. How can we hope to get her back?” Randol said.
“I was able to recover the ship, and I have a lot of details on the base itself. But all we know is that it’s in the Outrigger Rift somewhere.”
