by JC Cassels
“Lord Marin’s cabinet has been in closed sessions since the incident. Discussions regarding the future of Sovran Succession are currently underway. A source close to the Sovran has leaked information indicating that the First Sector Heir did, in fact, survive the attack which took the life of the Sovran Lady more than thirty years ago, and has been living in exile under an assumed name. Unconfirmed reports indicate that Janizary agents have been dispatched to locate the Heir and return him to Trisdos.”
“News off,” Chase said.
The sound system switched off, leaving only the soft hum of the anti-grav plates and propulsion.
“Hey, Dash?”
“Yes, Bapi?”
“How about we go on a trip?” Chase said. “Who knows, maybe we’ll get to see Aunt Tese.”
“Okay.”
Okay.
Just that simple.
Chase sighed. He wished it were just that simple. This was exactly the nightmare scenario he’d been worried about ever since that night four years ago when the woman he’d known as his brother’s Joy Babe had shown up unannounced at his hotel room with a brand-new baby in tow. She’d confessed that her name was really Bo Barron, and the baby her son…his brother’s son. And since that night, war orphan Chase Fossey had been raising the heir to a much-contested planet, passing him off as his own. Until now.
Now Bo was once again headline news for a capital crime. Inner Circle Agents showing up out of the blue asking questions about Dash could only mean that, somehow, someone had learned of the child’s existence. Bo had warned him that should knowledge of her child’s parentage come out, his life and the life of the child would be in danger.
Thank the Maker he’d spent the past four years preparing for this day.
Methodically, Chase ran down his mental checklist as he took the cruiser on a circuitous route. A glance in the rear display showed the black cruiser still following. It was useless to try to lose them. It was no secret where he lived. No sense tipping them off before he was ready to move.
With everything inside him screaming for him to make a break for it, Chase forced himself to maintain the posted speed and go predictably home to the superfortress his brother had built with his holofeature hero fortune. As the front gate swung shut, Chase guided the cruiser into the garage and hit the command to close the outer doors.
Dash popped his own g-locks like a big boy, and scrambled out of the cruiser ahead of him. At the door, Chase scooped the squirming child into his arms and checked the status of the security system as Dev had shown him. If anyone had tampered with it, or tried to breach the perimeter by force, the control panel would let him know before he went inside.
Everything looked normal.
Chase hastily unlocked the door and stepped into the kitchen. The security system chimed, indicating an opened door. He tapped the disarm command into the system, then re-armed it against external threats.
“I’m hungry,” Dash pouted, reaching for the cupboard.
With a sigh, Chase set the boy down. “Get some bluluberries,” he said.
Dash’s face lit up in a toothy grin at the thought of his treat. He scurried to the cooling unit and dove in, looking for the basket of small purple berries.
Chase’s eyes narrowed.
Voices drifted out from the lounge.
Something wasn’t right.
As quietly as he could manage, Chase opened the cupboard and took down the energy pistol concealed above the door frame.
“Dash, you stay here,” he whispered. “I’ll be right back.”
The boy mumbled an affirmative, his mouth already filled with a fistful of the fruit.
Every sense on high alert, Chase slowly stepped through the kitchen door into the hallway leading to the lounge. He followed the sound of voices.
The holovid, tuned to the Commonwealth News Service, displayed an advertisement encouraging viewers to consider plans for retirement.
A set of luggage lined the wall. A garment bag proclaiming itself from Second Avenue lay across the top of the cases.
“I was beginning to worry.”
The sexy, feminine voice sent his heart into a trip-hammer rhythm. As though his thoughts had conjured her, Tese, the most beautiful woman he’d ever known, descended the staircase carrying Dash’s valise. She glided down the curving steps like a goddess descending to the mortal realm. The skirt of her ice blue shimmersilk dress parted with each step, granting him tantalizing glimpses of her long, shapely legs.
It was all Chase could to do to gape at her in slack-jawed awe.
Her long brown hair had been streaked with red the last time he’d seen her. It was still brown, but with more natural tones. She’d braided her hair and gathered it up at the base of her neck in a sophisticated, sexy knot. Gemstones glittered from her earrings.
The Kiara D’or Choh was famous for turning out the most beautiful Joy Babes – courtesans and companions – with their noble bloodlines noted for perfect symmetry, grace, and elegance. Tese was the quintessential Kiara.
“You’ve changed your hair,” he said.
She beamed a brilliant smile at him and his knees wobbled.
“Thank you for noticing,” she said. “I promise I’ll greet you properly later. I’ve already packed for you and Dash. Where is my sweet boy?”
Chase gestured lamely over his shoulder. “The kitchen.”
Too late, he became aware of the looming shadow behind him. A large hand wrested the pistol from his hand. Chase turned and jumped out of reach with a squawk.
His pounding heart eased when his attacker moved out of the shadows.
He was tall, broad, with a face that looked like it had been modeled from a toy soldier – square, hard, and mean. His dark hair was close cut, and he wore a non-descript dark suit with a crisp, white collared shirt, open at the throat and devoid of a cravat.
“Didn’t mean to scare you,” Ian Kendall growled. “I didn’t want to get shot by accident.”
Tese slipped between them. She gently caressed Chase’s cheek, drawing his attention. “We don’t have much time. You need to get changed.” She nodded toward the suitcases. “That suit is for you. I left a few toiletries in your lav. I want you to use them – not the ones you normally use.”
Chase nodded helplessly.
“I’ll tend to Dash.” She looked to Ian. “I leave this one to you.”
She brushed a light kiss across Chase’s lips and sauntered off toward the kitchen. Both men watched her, admiring the hypnotic sway of her hips.
Ian cleared his throat, breaking the spell. “She’s a force of nature, that one. You and Dev sure can pick ‘em.”
Chase looked to him. “Dev’s seeing someone?”
“I meant his wife,” Ian said. “Bo’s been all over the news.”
Chase nodded. “I heard about the attempt on Lord Marin. Some guys calling themselves IC came to Dash’s school asking questions, and I was followed home.”
Ian’s expression was unreadable.
“So what’s the plan? Why did you bring Tese here? Are you here to help me go underground?”
Kendall shook his head. “I’m here to bring you in.”
“I don’t understand.” Chase’s brow furrowed. “I haven’t done anything wrong. What do mean, ‘bring me in’?”
Kendall sighed. “Let me see your right hand.”
Chase hesitated, but held out his hand. Kendall turned it palm up and tapped the center of his hand three times. A yellow light flashed twice underneath his skin.
“Aw, damn,” Kendall said. “It’s true.”
“What?” Chase stammered. “What is that thing? How did you know it would do that?”
“I didn’t.” Ian caught up the garment bag and swung it over his shoulder. He dropped a companionable arm around Chase’s shoulders. “Come on,” he said. “It’s a long story and you don’t have a lot of time to get ready.”
“You’re being nice to me, Kendall,” Chase said. “That scares me, you know
.”
Ian nodded. “I know.”
Chase glanced back at the row of suitcases. “We are going somewhere, though? Not prison?”
“Did I ever tell you what I do for the IC?”
“You’re not going to kill me, are you?”
Kendall bared his teeth in a smile. “No,” he said. “I’m not going to kill you. My job is to protect you.”
“Oh. That’s a relief… I mean, why?”
Kendall was silent as they started up the stairs. After a moment, he shook his head. “I really shouldn’t be the one to tell you this. Dev should be doing it.”
“Well, Dev isn’t here,” Chase said firmly. He glanced around. “Is he?”
“No. We left him locked up on Akita.”
“What…?”
“One story at a time.”
At the top of the stairs, Kendall handed the bag to him and pushed him into his suite.
“Do you remember back when I showed up to take your brother to Trisdos after his accident?”
He waited for Chase to nod before he continued.
“Did you ever wonder how Dev could command the Overlord’s personal attention like he does?”
Chase nodded, and tossed the garment bag onto the bed
Kendall braced his fists on his hips. “Lord Marin himself assigned me to the Janizary, the Sovran’s personal bodyguards,” he said. “And the sole reason I got that assignment was because I could keep up with Blade Devon…well, that, and I wasn’t impressed by him.”
“So…Dev is Janizary?”
“No. Dev is Marin’s son.”
Chase shook his head. “I must be hallucinating. What?”
“Your brother is Andre Marin’s son.”
“Nope. Still not making sense,” Chase said. “I thought you said that Dev is a Sovran.”
Kendall sighed. “I was assigned to his security detail. That slippery son of a kretch has been the craziest damn assignment I’ve ever had.”
“You’re serious?”
“You don’t know the half of it.” Ian opened the garment bag and pulled out a dark blue suit, a blue shirt, and a necktie the same shade as Tese’s dress.
“Does Dev know?” As soon as he asked the question, Chase slapped his forehead with the heel of his hand. “What am I saying? Of course he knows. Cagey bastard. That’s where ‘State Secrets’ and the whole ‘it’s complicated’ thing comes from, isn’t it?”
“Afraid so.” Ian pointed toward the lav. “Go get washed up and shave.”
The whole conversation had taken a surreal turn.
Dev…a Sovran?
Chase shook his head and stripped off his shirt. He tossed it into the autovalet, and headed into the lav.
True to her word, Tese had laid out an array of high-end toiletries on the countertop. He picked up the shave items and looked them over while he switched on the tap. Chase dutifully washed his face. As the cool water splashed against his skin, his thoughts sharpened
Dev was a Sovran.
Dev was locked up on Akita.
What the hell was Ian doing on Cormoran instead of Akita?
Straightening, Chase switched off the water.
“Hey, Ian?”
Kendall grunted in response from the doorway.
“Why aren’t you with Dev?”
Ian shifted uncomfortably. “The Akita detention center was attacked. There was a massive jailbreak. A bunch of prisoners went missing. Dev was one of them.”
“Oh no…when?”
“About the same time the attempt was made on Lord Marin.”
His chest ached. It was hard to breathe.
“So you think…somebody knew about Dev being Marin’s son? So they…”
He couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence. It was one thing to know that his brother led a dangerous life. It was something else to think that he might have been killed.
“Those men asking about Dash – you think they know?”
“That he’s Andre Marin’s grandson?”
Leaning over, Chase gripped the edge of the counter to keep from falling. “This is too much. I can’t process it. It’s one thing to learn that my brother is Andre Marin’s son. I knew Dash was the Ostra Child, the Barron’s child…but you tell me that my – kid – is the Sovran Heir to the House of Marin?”
“I don’t know the exact succession,” Ian said. “But the reports I’m going by are the same ones as those guys who were following you and asking questions about Dash. They think he’s second in succession. From what I know, I’d say he’s third.”
“You’re not making sense again.”
Ian pulled a data reader from his jacket and held it up so he could see the readout. “We were ordered to take Daavin Marin and his son into protective custody and return him to Trisdos immediately.”
The readout showed a two-dee digi image of Chase holding Dash and exiting a building.
“But that’s me and Dash.”
Kendall nodded. “Yeah.”
“But you said Daavin Marin.”
“Yeah.”
“That would be Dev, wouldn’t it?”
“That’s what Lord Marin told me when he assigned me to your brother. That’s why I got here ahead of the recovery team. Just in case they had other orders. You and Dash are the two people your brother would sacrifice himself to save.”
“So what am I supposed to do? Go to Trisdos and pretend to be Dev? Even if they think I’m him, there’s got to be ways to identify the Heir.”
Ian took hold of his wrist and tapped the center of Chase’s palm. The light flashed under his skin again.
“There are.”
Chase stared at his hand as the full meaning sank in.
“Does my brother have one of these, too?”
Ian nodded.
“So we’re both…” He swallowed hard. “We can’t both be Daavin Marin.”
Ian shook his head. “No, but you can both be Andre Marin’s son.”
“But that would make us – brothers.”
Ian squared his shoulders. “Look. I don’t understand it any more than you. The old man told me to my face that Dev was his son and Heir. The orders come in identifying you as Daavin Marin, and they say Dev is your decoy, that he’s some kind of clone. But I know that no clone would ever have the Sovran chip embedded in their hand. Only a real, honest to goodness Marin could ever carry one. You’ve got one. Dev’s got one. Dev doesn’t need a bodyguard. You do. Here I am.”
“Here you are.” Chase repeated. He was numb with shock. He’d wake up any moment to find this was all a bad dream.
“Tese?”
“She’s a Kiara,” Ian said.
“I know that,” Chase said. “Why is she here? I was going to take Dash to Altair and hide out with her there until I heard from Dev.”
“Altair destabilized. It’s not safe anymore.” Ian folded his arms across his chest. “Look, your brother and I have been fighting these bastards in the shadows for the past five years. There have been factions maneuvering to take down the House of Marin and seize power since before you were born. Blade miscalculated how close they were, and now they’ve started the final takeover bid. The First Sector succession has never been more vulnerable. I don’t know why they’re naming you instead of Dev. Maybe they don’t know about him, or maybe they see you as the easier son to manipulate. Hell, for all I know, maybe you’re a decoy and Marin set it all up to protect Dev. What I do know is that he’s the hardest, meanest, scariest son-of-a-kretch I know and they ain’t gonna have an easy time killing him. You, on the other hand… You’re smart. You’re tough. But you’re not used to palace intrigue or politics.”
“I read a lot of thrillers. Does that count?”
Ian bared his teeth. “Your instincts were good about going to Tese,” he said. “The Sovran Court is her arena. Having her on your arm will give you credibility as a Marin. She’ll help you navigate the etiquette and protocol. Just follow her lead. You don’t have to say a word to anyone. Le
t me or her do the talking.” He smiled. “You’re a Sovran. Nobody talks directly to a Sovran unless the Sovran addresses them first. You just take care of the kid. If Dev is alive, once he gets wind of what’s going on, he’ll make contact. If I don’t have eyes on you when he does, he’ll kill me.” He turned to leave. “Don’t forget to shave. Tese was very clear about that.”
Chase returned to his ablutions with more care, his head spinning. He studied his reflection as he shaved.
Had the answers been there all along? Had Dev known they were really brothers?
The one and only time he’d met the Overlord, had Marin known?
Of course he had. He was the Overlord.
Why hadn’t anyone said anything?
His thoughts still raced in circles as he dressed in the very expensive, finely tailored suit. He couldn’t recall ever wearing anything so…
Where was his brother when he needed him?
What would Dev do?
Chase stilled, lowering his hands to his sides.
What did Dev do?
Sudden understand him hit him like a chunk of fuseform. He sank slowly onto the bed.
What had Dev done? He’d armed himself. He’d become Blade Devon, a…what had Kendall called him? The hardest, meanest, scariest son-of-a-kretch he’d ever known.
Dev had wrapped himself in secrets and lies to protect Chase from all the intrigue and danger.
The door chime echoed through the house.
He leaped to his feet, heart pounding.
Voices drifted up from downstairs.
Ian and Tese would take care of it.
Chase set his jaw. He would take care of Dash.
Before he could talk himself out of it, he headed for his brother’s suite. In the back of the dressing room, he opened the wardrobe. Pressing his hand against the scanner at the back of the wardrobe, it hummed, flashed and then the hidden panel slid open, revealing an array of boxes and drawers.
Fitted neatly into shaped hollows in the drawers sat an array of weaponry that would have supplied a small tactical team for a week. Ignoring the bladed weapons, Chase picked a selection of energy weapons, boot blasters, palm gun, stinger and a Mergent Arms TJ-64.
Chase quickly shrugged out of his jacket and pulled on a shoulder holster. He adjusted it for fit, and slid the compact Mergent blaster pistol into the holster underneath his left arm.
