The Lost Princess

by Richard Dee

  I hadn’t been able to liberate Rina either, I hadn’t even tried. The trouble was, nobody on Dalyster was interested in my story, they were being paid very well to look the other way. Toni had managed to get a raid organised, now that Layla had not been found, she would be in all sorts of trouble, from Igor and the locals. Which was why she was not taking my calls. No news of any of this would leak out. The Delegate was no closer to being punished, Brian was goodness knows where and Layla Balcom was still missing. I had a sudden thought, what would happen to the girls; maybe they were already back at the club, working.

  I turned on my video camera, the memory was blank. In a panic, I tried my phone, which I had been taking stills with. It too was blank; the memory chips had all been wiped.

  Everything made sense; I had got away easily because the Delegate had wanted me to escape. The flash at border control must have been linked to a short-range EMP, wiping the memory chips on any unshielded device. They had let me go and made sure that I had nothing. I felt terrible; there was no proof of any of it.

  I spent the whole trip writing it all down, I mentioned Rina’s statement and that it had gone wherever Brian was. It was highly unlikely that it would ever be seen again, which wasn’t as bad as it sounded. Although it would accuse the Delegate and expose the whole set up at the club; it probably wasn’t witnessed and was therefore worthless as evidence. I made copies, put one in the ship’s post to my apartment, sent one to the magazine and kept the originals.

  When I cleared arrival control, Gaynor was there to meet me, before I got to the public area. I hadn’t let her know, she must have been watching the manifests from the cruisers. I had been hoping to sneak in quietly and see Getaway’s legal advisor before I spoke to anyone.

  “What really happened?” she asked after we had embraced and kissed for a while. “I’ve heard nothing from you. Igor received a message from his agent a while ago. Hendrix hasn’t been talking to me. I take it Layla wasn’t in the club. And where’s Brian?”

  “It was a complete foul-up,” I replied. “Brian’s been arrested by the secret police, it was a nightmare over there. It all went wrong. My camera’s memory was wiped at the port.”

  “Tell me about it,” she said. “I know something big’s happening. The Delegate’s been stirring things up in the council. There’s a full diplomatic incident going on. I’m to get you out the back and put you in a safe house, just till the fuss dies down a little.”

  “I warned Igor that it wasn’t a sure thing. Where’s the lawyer that I saw with Igor before I went? He could see the tenuous connection and the possibility that Layla wasn’t there.”

  “Igor sacked him,” she said. “I know; it doesn’t help you. The trouble is, Igor’s spitting nails and the Delegate has you pegged on all channels as a terrorist agitator.”

  Oh great! The one person who was on my side, who had Igor’s ear and might have kept him from doing anything stupid. He was gone. And the media, the ones I had worked for, all had me down as public enemy number one. I knew what that meant. Even though I had never been a part of a character assassination, I had seen the effects of the press in full attack mode. Some might say it was Karma, I didn’t see it quite like that.

  “And you have another problem,” she said, as if she was determined to give me all the bad news at once. “While you were away, we’ve all been digging. We found that the Delegate knows Donna Markes.”

  Alarm bells went off in my head. It could explain so much. “Igor hates him, does he know?”

  “We can hardly ask. We’re still looking for the details but we have to be careful.”

  I understood that. Igor was in a bad enough mood as it was. Finding that his wife to be and his enemy were associated in some way might be problematic, to say the least. “What do you want me to do?” I asked.

  “Sit tight,” she said. “Hendrix will be along to debrief you.”

  I sat in the apartment for two days. Nobody turned up. The place was very nice; it was where we kept whistle-blowers and celebrities away from our competitors. There was a pool, great food and entertainment. Fresh clothes. Everything except freedom. I tried to call Gaynor to see what was going on, but she wasn’t answering my calls. At least there was food and beer in the fridge.

  Then, on day three, she turned up, bearing a take-out and an apology. “I’m sorry but mentioning your name is causing all sorts of problems at the moment,” she said. “We received your letter, it’s good but we can’t use it uncorroborated. We have found out about Brian though. He’s been sentenced to two years for antisocial activities on Dalyster.”

  That was plain crazy. “It’s a setup.”

  “That’s right, our legal team is heading there now, that’s why I’ve been keeping away. They’ve seen your letter and we’re hopeful that they can get him out, or at least transferred to complete his sentence here. It’s a good job you didn’t try to get to him before you left, you would have ended up the same.”

  It was little comfort to me, perhaps I deserved it. Poor Brian, his family would be joining the queue of people who hated me.

  And it got worse. “Sorry but we have another problem, you remember Rina?”

  Of course I did, she was the one who had started this. I had promised her that I would help her as well, that I would come back and rescue her. I’d lost her statement. I just nodded. Somehow I knew what she was going to say.

  “She’s dead; her body was found on a building site. They’re calling it murder.”

  I felt sick; this was all going from bad to worse. Rina had trusted us, we had promised to keep her safe. And when it had come to it, it had all been words. I had left her to die. It served me right that there was nobody left to stick up for me. Maybe it was time to stop hiding and go on the attack. “I’m sick of this confinement, I need to see Igor.”

  She shook her head. “That’s probably the last thing you need to do, they’ve been debating the ‘diplomatic incident’ in the federal assembly the last couple of days, all about you and what happened on Dalyster. The Delegate wants the maximum penalty applied.”

  That was death by gas; it hit me that this was a huge reaction for what had happened. I had just tried to find Layla. In doing that, I had been manoeuvred into stirring up a very powerful politician, even more, it looked like I’d been the fall guy for one man’s attempt at revenge.

  “I promised Igor, even though it was against my better judgement. Now I feel that I’ve been used, I need to hear it from him, how much he knows about Donna and the Delegate.”

  “I understand,” she said. “But you can’t ask him that, we’re not supposed to know, he might not know. Before any of that, Hendrix wants to see you. He’s waiting outside.”

  He walked in; there was no handshake, no expression of remorse, even though he knew the truth. No mention of Brian. All he said was, “You’ve really screwed up, Miles. All you had to do was go to Dalyster, sit in your hotel and come home. I’ve had Igor bending my ear.”

  “I’m sorry, boss,” I said. “But Igor expected too much. I never promised, I just said that it looked possible. You know that.”

  He never agreed with me, it was as if he was reciting a well-learned script. “I’m not angry with you, Miles. I know that sometimes these things don’t work out. Unfortunately, Igor doesn’t see it that way. He was hoping that you’d bring her back, as a bonus it would have given him a reason to shaft the Delegate. He’d been briefing the media, in anticipation, now he’s lost the plot. It’s made him look silly and given the Delegate a bigger lever. I’m afraid the magazine doesn’t want you, you’re fired. You’re on your own.”

  This was preposterous. “Because I failed?”

  He shook his head. “No, not because you failed, but because Igor Balcom is now trying to keep the peace. This has all got out of hand. It’s turned into a full-blown argument between governments. The Dalysterian’s are threatening a trade war, or worse. The Delegate has them ready to fight to protect his ‘honour’. Igor’s made
it clear to me what will happen if I stick up for you.”

  It looked like I was to be the sacrificial lamb. Was this why I had been allowed to go, to cause maximum embarrassment? “If I’m the necessary sacrifice, can I at least look him in the eye and hear it from him?”

  “You’ve got balls, I’ll see if I can arrange it,” Hendrix told me as he left, taking Gaynor with him.

  The next morning, a car arrived and took me back to the Balcom Building. Once again, I was in Igor’s presence. I’d been taken in through the underground car park, in the executive lift.

  Igor had aged in the few days since I had seen him last, he looked old and worn out. There were ‘welcome home’ banners hung up and party decorations, all ready for my triumphant arrival with Layla.

  “So, Mr Goram,” he sighed. “I sent you to do a job and you failed me. And yet you still want to see me. That takes courage.”

  “I’m sorry, sir,” I said. “I wanted her to be there, but I did tell you she might not be.”

  He nodded. “You did, and I didn’t listen. I was reminded of that when I started to speak out, to arrange Layla’s homecoming and the Delegate’s humiliation. I was presumptive, I didn’t want to hear reason. I sacked my lawyer. Things have got out of hand, Mr Goram, there’s little I can do to change the way things are.”

  ‘You could admit you were wrong’, I thought, but I said nothing. What did he mean, was he hanging me out to dry? We looked at each other in silence for a moment.

  I broke first. “I guess I’m in trouble then, can’t you help me, tell your side of the story?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “It’s gone beyond that now. I won’t apologise or backtrack, it’s never been my way. I’m trying to prevent a war now, I’ve no time for individuals. I’d say that we’re even. You’ve let me down, now it’s my turn. I said before, don’t come back unless you have her with you. And I meant it. I’m only seeing you now because you wanted to face me. My previous comment still stands. I never want to see you again or have anything to do with you. Unless or until you’re bringing my daughter back to me.” He pushed a button on his desk, the door opened behind me.

  I might have guessed, when it came right down to it, I wasn’t one of the gang. I was expendable. The secretary escorted me back to the car park and into a limo. Instead of taking me back to the house I had been living in, I was deposited on the street outside my apartment block. It seemed like nobody wanted me now. Then I saw Gaynor, waiting in the lobby. She threw her arms around me, led me to the lift. Perhaps there was one who did. If I kept my head down, maybe this would all blow over.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The hammering on my door woke me; I looked at my watch, four a.m. The hammering continued, it sounded like they were trying to break in. “Police,” they shouted. “Open the door.”

  “Alright, I’m coming,” I replied, beside me, Gaynor looked worried.

  “Miles Goram?” they asked in unison as I opened the door, tying my dressing gown around my waist. There were two of them, an officer and a trooper in dark, unfamiliar uniforms and body armour. Hard-faced, armed and serious.

  “Yes,” I replied. “What do you want?”

  “You’re under arrest,” the officer said. “You’re to come with us, now.”

  “Why?” said Gaynor, who had put on a gown and come to stand beside me. “You’re not the police.”

  “State security, ma’am,” one of them replied. He showed her a card. “You’ll have to apply to the federal prosecutor for details. Now do we need to cuff you or will you come quietly.”

  “Can I get dressed?”

  “No,” the officer said. “We have clothes for you in our vehicle.”

  “I’ll call some people,” Gaynor said. “Don’t worry, Miles.”

  I was taken down in the lift, marched onto the street and put in the back of a plain van, in front of a small crowd. Where had they come from at four in the morning? There was the flashing and clicking of cameras, the press had got a tip-off and had come to watch my arrest. It would be all over the feed before breakfast. I ducked into the back of the van, there was another trooper sat inside. He handed me a grey boiler suit with a red band around the chest, a tee shirt and a pair of shoes. It was like being back on Dalyster, with Brev handing me a disguise. Except that, this time, there was probably no ticket out waiting for me.

  “Put them on,” said the trooper, who sat in the back with me on a short journey. I had only just got dressed when we arrived. Surely we couldn’t be at the Fed’s headquarters already, they were way across town.

  When the door opened, I was greeted with more cameras. I wasn’t at the police building, I had gone straight to the army base near the Rock.

  I was taken into an empty room, told to sit in a chair. After five minutes’ wait, three men in uniform came in and sat opposite me, behind a large desk. A general, an admiral and a pilot. They opened folders and spread papers about.

  One of them, the general, spoke. “Miles Goram, you’re charged with offences against the state, this trial is…”

  “Hang on,” I shouted. “I was asleep in my bed an hour ago. I’m a journalist, not a criminal. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Be silent,” shouted the admiral. “This is a military court, convened to discuss matters of state security. We have information that you’ve been attempting to whip up unrest on a federated planet, to destroy the reputation of a Delegate to the Federal administration.”

  The Delegate had been busy; this proved that he was sanctioned by his government. They would never have backed him up this far if he was the thorn in their side he had always claimed to be.

  “Well, do you deny accusing the Delegate of kidnapping? Or of being involved in the murder of one Rina Camari, a known drug addict?”

  Were they pinning her death on me as well? “Yes, I do. I want to speak to my magazine’s legal team.”

  “This is a trial in camera, to protect the state and also because minors are involved. There is no right to representation.”

  “You were seen with Ms Camari, at Doppel Club on Dalyster,” said the pilot. “We have video evidence. Her DNA was found on your clothes, retrieved from a house in west Centra City.”

  That must have been from where she had touched my knee, in the club. Where I had hugged her and promised to come back for her. They must have searched the safe house, where I had left them.

  “There’s an explanation,” I said. “Yes, I was with her, I was following her story. She came to us on Centra when she escaped. She was being held against her will in that club. My editor and I met her on the Rock. She told us that a famous person was being kidnapped and was to be taken to the club. Before we could find out any more, we were arrested. She was recaptured and taken back to the club, although I didn’t know it at the time. On my editor’s instructions, I went to Dalyster, following the story. To my surprise, I found her there, in the club. She was frightened for her life, she put her hand on my knee, repeated the story, gave me a statement. She begged me to help her.”

  As I spoke, the three grew more impatient. “We know nothing about a statement,” the general said as I finished.

  “It was with Mr Brian Hopkins, the man who came with me. He was arrested on Dalyster.”

  The three looked at each other, they whispered for a few moments, behind their hands.

  “Mr Hopkins, your accomplice,” the pilot said. “He is imprisoned on Dalyster, we have no record of any statement. We have no proof that this statement existed.”

  “What can I tell you?” I asked. “I saw it, I wrote about it in a letter to my editor.”

  I felt my shoulders sag; I was getting desperate. They were right, I had nothing. With Brian in prison and Rina dead, no access to Gaynor or a legal team, my future looked bleak. The delegate had covered all the angles. I had a lot more to say, about Nat, what I had heard from Cyn, from Brev even. It was clear that I wasn’t going to get much of a chance as the general resumed the interrogation
.

  “Returning to Miss Camari, she asked you for help, yet you repaid her by killing her and dumping her body.”

  “No,” I said. I remembered the club, the man with the suit squeezing her shoulder. “It must have been the man in the suit, at the club, a man called Flynt. I witnessed him bruise her shoulder, I suspect he was the man sent from Dalyster to Centra to bring her back after she escaped.”

  The admiral raised an eyebrow. “A man at the club? Called Flynt? How convenient. All this escaping and Galactic travel, from a known drug addict. Really, Mr Goram? We know you’re a journalist, this sounds like a story in one of the worst rags.”

  I could see where this was heading. “Did Flynt ever come to Centra?”

  “We’re not concerned with some mythical man who you’ve invented to blame for this.” The comment was dismissive. It was obvious that no-one was listening.

  “Then it seems as if you’ve decided my verdict already,” I said. “Or are you just getting the Delegate and our government out of a hole? Does it matter what I say?” They gave me blank looks. I shrugged my shoulders. “Get on with it.” They conferred behind their hands again; I hoped this was the point where I would wake up. It never happened.

  “Guilty,” they all spoke in turn. “You are sentenced to five years solitary confinement in the orbiting prison,” said the general. “Take him away.” I was grabbed from behind and dragged out of the room. I was so stunned at the speed at which things had happened that I didn’t even struggle as I was put back in the van.

  “Wait,” I shouted. “I haven’t told you everything, there’s another girl.” If they heard me, they chose to ignore it.

  It wasn’t even breakfast time. I wondered what Gaynor was doing. Would she even know my fate? She might spend the next five years wondering where I had been taken. I knew all about orbiting prisons, had written about them. They were not nice places.