by Gary Weston
But, if Joy had gotten wind of it, no way would he have gone. So, he’d used his position of trust with Boss to set it all up. Conned Karma Casey into flying him out here. It was just a surveillance scheme. And if he could have stuck with that game-plan, he would soon be back home with the woman he loved, putting together a plan to wipe out the bad guys. The drone had upset that particular apple cart. The drixolate runners were getting sharp. Spending money on fancy gear.
Once spotted by the drone, they had two choices. Get back home, or take them on. Fleeing the scene, he knew the planet would have been evacuated and the bad guys gone to ply their trade elsewhere. That, he couldn’t live with. His plan? Brilliant. Take them on and wipe them out. And here they were. No way home. Heavily outnumbered. Chances of survival? Not huge. Casey snuggled up to him. Just the sharing of bodily warmth. Nothing improper.
‘Tagg?’
‘Karma?’
‘Please don’t snore.’
Chapter 74
‘I feel sorry for Joyce having to put up with that snoring every night.’
Raven rubbed his eyes. ‘Joy. Her name’s Joy. Are you ok?’
‘Let’s just say those bugs are looking tasty right now. Come on.’
They washed as best they could in the freezing stream, filled their bellies with water. Pulled their boots on. They trudged on, making four miles per hour. Another day had been used up, one step at a time. Less than ten miles further on, they were close to the smashed greenhouse where runners with guns had a reason to kill the intruders. Their stomachs rumbled with hunger, their throats parched. Much further and they’d be too weak to do anything anyway. They found a safe place to rest.
Casey said, ‘We’ll need to find their radio. Call home.’
‘Assuming I didn’t trash it with the lasers.’
‘Let’s assume not. We should rest for a few hours. Tagg. I’m totally zonked.’
They found a place of shelter in a clump of dry, dead bushes. They had no water to quench their thirsts. Nightfall settled upon them, it was another cold, hungry night, wrapped up together. They survived another night.
Next morning, rested, but hungry and thirsty, they scrambled to a high point. They had a few miles left to go. Perhaps three hours of steady walking.
‘There’ll be no shortage of ways inside,’ said Raven, studying the huge smashed up greenhouse.
‘I keep thinking I should be seeing a ship of some sort,’ said Casey. ‘They have to transport the drixolate from here to other planets.’
Raven agreed. ‘That’s where their ship probably is. On a delivery run. By now, if the radio isn’t trashed, the survivors would have contacted the ship. They know they’ve been found out here, and will want to get their processed goods and get off this planet. What’s happened here is just an occupational hazard to these people.’
‘So the ship could turn up at any minute?’
‘Yes. It’ll be armed, too. Our only chance is to get inside this facility and call Boss to rescue us.’
Casey tried to laugh. ‘Sounds simple when you put it like that. Let’s go then.’
Chapter 75
Rod Scales, Tagg Raven’s assistant, was strictly non-operational. A nineteen-year-old graduate, the call to adventure in space had, thankfully passed him by. He came from four generations of clerical workers, and was proudly continuing the family tradition. He was a delicate looking young man, with long mousy hair and pinched features. His grey eyes stared nervously at Boss.
‘I never went onto Agent Raven’s terminal, Sir. I have no idea of his passwords.’
Boss frowned. ‘But you’re his clerical assistant. How the hell do you assist?’
‘Clerically, Sir. Data entry. Facts. Statistics. That sort of thing. I work on my own terminal, he uploads to his terminal what he wants, when he wants it. Besides. It isn’t just passwords. His terminal would do a retinal scan to allow him access.’
Boss took a deep breath. ‘Ok. I know that. How long have you been assigned here?’
‘Only for the last three months. This is all kinda new to me.’
It had been at Boss’s insistence that Raven had agreed to have any kind of assistant at all. Boss new it would take a lot longer than three months for Raven to trust Scales, or anyone foisted on him. With a promise to throw this one back and try another one if things didn’t work out, Raven had given all the minutia to Scales, getting on with the “real work” himself.
‘But you must know what got Tagg…Agent Raven, all fired up?’
‘It could have been a number of things, Sir. But…’
‘Go on,’ urged Boss.
‘We were finding stuff about a previously unknown drixolate operation. Three planets had been targeted by them. Agent Raven was following it up.’
‘Good. Now we’re getting somewhere. Where was the source?’
Scales looked confused. ‘Sir?’
‘You know where the stuff was going. Where was it coming from?’
‘I…I don’t know. I did ask Agent Raven that very question. He didn’t give me any real answers. Anything uploaded to Agent Raven’s terminal from mine was the only copy. He had mine wiped at the end of each day. Extra security, Sir.’
Boss was getting frustrated. ‘You’re his right-hand man, Scales. You must know something. Think, man.’
‘He said when he got back, he’d have the proof and arrange a mission to put the operation out of business. That’s all I know.’
Boss stared at the terminal. ‘I’ll be having words with Agent Raven, when he gets back. Scales. If anything comes to mind, I need to hear it, ok?’
‘Yes, Sir.’
Boss stormed out. There was more than one way of skinning a cat. He jumped in his official buggy and drove the four and a half miles to the landing stations. At the fence security gate, he allowed himself to be scanned for entry.
‘You’re clear to go, Sir,’ said the uniformed guard.
‘Any idea where I can find Commander Felix Gordon?’
‘I could page him for you, Sir? But he’s probably over at hanger fifteen. Maintenance.’
Boss thanked the officer and drove to hanger fifteen, parked outside the massive doors which were open and went inside. A cargo freighter was being gutted and upgraded. Something Gordon would keep a personal eye on. A question to a technician confirmed that. Boss walked over to the rear of the huge ship where new plasma drives were being fitted. Ducking under the barrier, Boss could see Gordon in conversation with two engineers.
‘Well. Look who it is. Come to see some real work being done?’
‘Felix. Can we talk. In private?’
‘Sure.’ Gordon gave the engineers final instructions and they returned to the engines. ‘Time for a tea-break, anyway.’
Boss knew Gordon’s ancestors were from Earth, a place called England. In confidence, Gordon had once told him it gave him the right to be eccentric and drink tea. Gordon’s office was reasonably tidy, just a large steel desk covered in plans and diagrams. Gordon was old school, preferring to work from hard copy plans, rather than computers. Gordon made tea for two and pushed the plans to one side.
‘How can you drink this stuff, Felix?’
‘It runs through my veins, apparently. Out with it. This is your first visit all year, as I recall.’
Boss sipped the tea to be polite and put the beaker on the steel table. ‘I’m concerned for one of my agents. And his pilot, of course. Raven and Casey.’
Gordon nodded. ‘Yes. I’d have thought they’d have come back by now. Where did you send them?’
Boss said, ‘I didn’t send him anywhere. He just went. Agents are like that. Well. Raven is. The ship’s radio is dead.’
‘Not responding to your calls?’
‘Dead. Not working. Any clue to where they went?’
Gordon said, ‘None. I naturally assumed you had authorised his mission.’
‘I did sign it off, true. Raven was holding his cards close to his chest. I’m pretty sure it was s
omething to do with a drixolate outfit.’
Gordon’s lips curled up in a snarl. ‘That stuff. Killing scum who run drixolate is too good for them. You must know more than I do about his whereabouts?’
‘Just a surveillance mission, Raven said. Either he’s run into trouble or decided to take things into his own hands.’
Gordon didn’t look too impressed. ‘You should keep your agents on tighter leashes. I watch my people like a hawk. Sorry. It’s your department. Nothing to do with me.’
‘On this occasion, I think you are right. I intend to tighten up when he returns. You fitted a DNA scanner to the ship, I believe?’
Gordon nodded. ‘A mark three. State of the art. Anyone scanned with it would have their details on the screen in a second. A fine piece of kit. Which I want back, by the way.’
‘Me, too. It looks like all we can do is hope they’re ok and wait for them to contact us.’ Boss got up to leave. ‘Thanks, Felix. And thanks for the…tea.’
‘Good luck.’
Chapter 76
One good thing about the greenhouses, was that they grew more than the drixolate plants. Even bad guys had to eat. A variety of food would be grown here, which also meant water. Keeping the remains of the greenhouses between them and the entrance to the cave dwellings, Raven and Casey peered inside. All around the rows of plants, those not destroyed by the laser cannon, were troughs of running water. It was clear the intention was to salvage what they could so their ship could take everything to another planet to work from. The faceless ones who controlled things would already have made arrangements and it was just a question of waiting for the ship.
Carefully avoiding the shattered plexiglass, they stepped inside. Casey scooped some of the water from the trough into her hands, but Raven knocked it from her.
‘Probably loaded with nutrients,’ he whispered. ‘Finish us off for good.’ He led the way along a central narrow path. ‘The plants aren’t dangerous. Only the sap once it’s been processed. Gotta be a water source about in here.’
They found more than water. A plantation of root-crops and fruit trees had survived most of the laser attack. The incoming pipe had fractured, sending a shower of fresh water in the air. A fully clothed wash-down revived them, then they drank their fill. Then they attacked the crops, apples and carrots gobbled down in a hurry.
A side entrance door suddenly opened, and they dropped low, hidden by trees. The man was unarmed, carrying a tool-bag. He went to the fractured pipe, located the nearby valve and turned the water off. Then from the bag he took a plastic fitting to wrap the break with. He tightened the fixings, then turned the valve back on. It still leaked, but nothing worth worrying about. Taking a look about the wreckage, he sighed and walked back out the door, closing it by habit, rather than necessity. With much of the plantation exposed to the elements, shutting the door was futile.
Raven remembered to breathe. ‘That was close.’
Casey was busy gathering up an assortment of fruit and vegetables to take away with them. They retraced their steps and climbed outside. Checking the coast was clear, they found a sheltered place, hidden by bushes. Raven sat, munching on a carrot.
‘We’ll wait until dark. We have the drop on them.’
Casey said, ‘Tagg. No more killing. Just the radio. We can’t take them all on, and I plan to get out of this alive.’
‘I’m thinking the same. I’ve got you into this situation. I can’t put you in more danger than necessary. But if I have no choice, I’ll have to kill.’
‘Understood. You take first watch. I’m sleeping while I can.’
Casey rolled over, her back to him. He watched her as she settled down to sleep, feeling guilty as sin. Feeling stupid. One woman was suffering for the rest of her life because of his stupidity. He silently vowed Karma Casey wasn’t going to be another victim.
Chapter 77
‘Hopefully, nobody heard your damn snoring.’
Raven stretched. He was no fan of sleeping in the great outdoors. There was no moon to light them up. ‘You don’t have to come with me,’ said Raven. ‘In fact, I rather you didn’t.’
‘Came up with that all by yourself, did you?’
‘Think about. I can sneak in, find the radio, a quick call, then out before anyone is any the wiser. If I’m looking out for you as well…’
Casey bristled. ‘Hey. I can look after myself. We go together.’
Raven grinned. ‘I knew you’d say that. I’ve a trip to the little boy’s room. Won’t be a minute.’
Raven went behind bushes. He’d planned to leave Casey where she was, out of harm’s way. He parted a couple of bushes, looked down at the greenhouse. He changed his mind, returned to Casey who was ready to go.
‘You weren’t thinking of dumping me, were you, Tagg?’
‘Not in a million years,’ he lied. ‘Come on.’
Using the trees and bushes for cover, they made their way down to the edge of open space. All they could see was the damaged silhouette of the greenhouse. It was in total darkness. Keeping low, they paused a few seconds before entering. Wasting no time, they followed the path to where the door into the quarters in the cave was. Raven opened the door slightly, checking the way was clear. This, he knew, was where it could all go horribly wrong.
The quarters were inexpensive one room units, very basic, to be abandoned if need be, re-used elsewhere if possible. A shower and toilet room was at the mouth end of the cave, waste to be crudely flushed away down a large bore pipe. Nobody was on guard, assuming the party crashers had met an untimely death in the blazing ship. The radio room was identified by the three crudely painted letters. COM. Before opening the door, Raven listened carefully. Hearing nothing, he cracked the door open. It creaked like the lid of some ancient tomb.
Inch by inch, he opened it just wide enough to enter. Once both were inside, he closed it, the noise sounding ten times louder in their heads than in reality. Finding the light sensor, Casey lit up the room. Like the rest of the quarters, it was “fit and function” only. Raven smiled at the radio, simple, old school, and according to a few cheerfully red lights, it was still working.
Raven flicked a switch. ‘Code red. Foregone. Code red, Foregone.’ That was enough. Turning the set off again, he went to the door. Beads of sweat formed on his upper lip as the un-lubricated hinges groaned as he eased open the door. Still clear. Through the greenhouse they went, pausing just seconds for a drink of water. Then they followed the path and climbed outside, deciding where they had been before was good enough to spend the night.
‘I can’t believe we got away with that,’ said Casey.
Raven replied, ‘We were damn lucky. That was the easy bit. Now, all we have to do is survive on this rock until the cavalry turns up.’
‘The what?’
‘The good guys. That could take anything up to two weeks.’
Casey said, ‘That’s if they got our message.’
‘Positive mental attitude, Karma. And plenty of it. First light, we should move away from here. Stay hidden and wait for help.’
Instinctively, they both looked up at a distant star.
Chapter 78
‘Forgive the late hour. I seldom leave my home in daylight.’
Joy Dainty had been about to go to bed, when the visitor had arrived. She had hesitated before opening, not keen on ending the day feeling even lower than she already felt. She opened the door and Tilly Jordan entered. As before, Joy admired the way Tilly glided across the floor; the woman carried herself with such poise, it was hard for Joy to reconcile the woman with being a former agent with DSI. Undoubtedly, the disfigured woman, in a previous life, had killed. It had been her job to do just that, should the need arise. Tilly sat in a chair before being invited to do so. The scarf was a red one, patterned with dragons.
‘I have no booze to offer you,’ said Joy, apologetically.
‘I’ve already had more than is good for me. Tagg hasn’t returned.’ It wasn’t a question.
> Joy knew Tilly would have a good idea of what was going on, perhaps a former agent friend had advised her.
‘No. I keep asking Boss. He has no idea what’s happened.’
Tilly said, ‘Just typical of Tagg. Oh. I’m not having a go at him. Just stating facts.’
‘Impetuous?’
‘On occasions. Especially anything to do with drixolate runners. I’m not surprised at him being impulsive.’
Joy said, ‘To the point of recklessness?’
Tilly shrugged. ‘Possibly they found themselves cornered. It happens, even with the most carefully planned missions.’
‘You went on many?’
The electronic voice managed an ironic laugh. ‘One too many, obviously. Yes. I had a few adventures. Even before I teamed up with Tagg. We were a great team.’
‘Unfortunate what happened to you. Sorry. A poor choice of words.’
There was a pause. ‘I’ve paid a visit to the hospital. Spoken to the reconstruction surgeons. I’ve decided to have more surgery.’
This surprised Joy. ‘You have? After all this time?’
‘I needed that time. I was sick of being patched up tiny bit at a time. Even in just a few years, there have been some quite remarkable progress. I’m not naïve enough to think I’d ever be as I was. It could take a year. Possibly more. But I’ve decided to take a chance at a life before it’s too late.’
Joy said, ‘Good for you, Tilly. I’m so pleased for you.’
‘I just needed to tell somebody. A woman who would understand what…’
They were interrupted by a knocking at the door. Joy saw the horrified look in Tilly’s eyes. Meeting anyone, even people she knew well, required mental preparation.
Joy said, ‘I’ll get rid of whomever it is.’ It was another surprise. ‘It’s Boss.’
‘Let him in,’ said Tilly.
Joy opened the door, and a beaming Boss walked in. He stopped at the sight of Tilly Jordan.
‘Is this a bad time?’
Tilly said, ‘I’m just a casual visitor, Boss. I should be going.’
