It's Hell To Choose (The Kurtherian Gambit Book 9)

by Michael Anderle

  She turned to look at the massive three hundred-meter-wide hole one of their ten-pound Puck devices had made. The bitching and yelling about that explosion on their land had taken a few days to settle down. They now owned or rented all of the lands she could see in any direction.

  That quiet filled the air now, she let that seep into her bones. Hoping it would last was unrealistic since, in all probability, it would break when someone realized the company doing all of this digging was the same one putting people into outer space.

  She gathered herself together and turned towards the group. John was beside her, and Bethany Anne nodded to her people. She walked among the caskets, pausing at each one to place her hand on the surface and say a small prayer before stepping to the next one. She stopped a total of seven times before coming to the final casket.

  All done in black with the name ‘Michael’ etched in gold filigree at the top. She lingered there for a few moments.

  TOM, hold my emotions for God’s sake! I’m about to fall apart here!

  TOM clenched a little tighter, walking a tightrope between holding them too much, and failing to allow her grief a chance to release.

  I’ll cry later, I promise, old friend. I know you are worried. After this, we will go up with ADAM and Ashur for our moment of silence… and by silence, I mean crying my head off. Ok?

  TOM tightened down on her emotions, hard.

  Thank you.

  Bethany Anne continued forward and approached the podium that had been built so she could be seen by everyone.

  The friends, the co-workers, the parents and family of those fallen. No matter where they had come from, Bethany Anne had invited them all to arrive by Pod in the dark of the night. Her team stood resolute, wearing faces of granite. Peter, Todd, and all of their teams stood to the side. Captains Thomas and Wagner, Jean Dukes and many from the Polarus and the Ad Aeternitatem were in front of her. Team BMW and all of those who were now part of her team stood among the audience. A still weak Jennifer Ericson trembled erect, tears streaming down her face.

  Nathan, Ecaterina, Gerry and many pack Alphas who had known Michael over the years stood in the audience.

  Stephen, Barnabas, Frank and Barb. Her father with Patricia holding him and Stephanie beside them. Kevin and Jakob together were manning the base in Colorado as government authorities went through it, hoping to find something, anything, incriminating.

  Fat chance, they had stripped the base of everything they didn’t want the government to have, even the railguns.

  She stepped up, a tear making its way down her cheek, but her voice was firm and carried over the distance to the many people crowded around.

  “We have lost many this week,” Bethany Anne stared into eyes, glancing to those crying, seeking to provide solace to those she could, “We are here now to honor our dead.”

  Her voice was steady, resolute, “This is not the first time we have lost loved ones while battling evil, whether that taint was focused on pushing a dictatorship across the earth, or the greed and insidious rot that permeates those who have power. Their desire for that which is not theirs knows no bounds, nor does it consider right or wrong, including the sanctity of life, as it seeks what it desires above all else.” She paused a moment, “Nor, will it be the last time that we must say goodbye to those that have sacrificed.”

  She looked at the eight coffins. “These fallen heroes are but the down payment on a future to allow humanity to stay free, free from the shackles of forced slavery from those within our culture and, more importantly, from those outside our world.”

  “These are the souls who go before us as we make our way to the stars to prepare. Their sacrifice can not and will not be forgotten.” Bethany Anne turned to Peter, Nathan and Ecaterina and nodded. The three of them formed a line in front of her. She nodded to Stephen, Barnabas, and Gabrielle, who walked up and turned to face the crowd. She nodded to Todd, Bobcat, and William, who came up and stood in the same line as the others.

  “These are those I have asked to represent us here, to honor our fallen. Present yourselves.” The intake of breaths could be heard across the group as Nathan, Ecaterina and Peter changed to their Pricolici forms. Stephen, Barnabas and Gabrielle’s visages altered as their eyes went red, and their teeth grew. The changes caused more than one in the crowd to unconsciously take a step backward. Three of the Guardians came forward and presented M-14’s to Todd, Bobcat, and William. They accepted them, chambered rounds, and aimed away from the audience.

  “There will be a day when this Earth is free from an uncertain future. It will be free because those here and those of us in the future will make damned sure the door is closed so no enemy can bother this planet without coming through us, first!”

  She spoke to the nine arrayed in front of her, “Let us honor those Guardians who stood with us, and died for the protection of all of our people.” The crack of three rifles reverberated in the air. “Let us honor the man who sought to protect children entrusted to his care unflinchingly, without hesitation, fighting to keep them from a hostage situation.” The three rifles barked again.

  Bethany Anne allowed another tear to slip down her face, “Finally, let us honor the first, the Patriarch, the created, and the creator for those of us termed ‘vampires’. He was, at times, harsh and some would say cruel. Fortunately, that was not the man I knew in my life.”

  Another tear followed the second.

  Bethany Anne continued, “In the end, he was offered a new chance, the proverbial new lease on life and he took it. But his future wasn’t to be. He sacrificed his life, removing a nuclear weapon intended to afflict our people.”

  Bethany Anne looked across the group in front of her, “Many of you know the story, many might not, but Michael chose to change me in a way that had not been done in over a thousand years because he felt a new type of authority was needed for the UnknownWorld. In the end, he did not quit, he did not falter, and his honor ran true. He will be greatly missed by those who knew the new Michael. I will miss him the most…”

  Bethany Anne squared her shoulders and spoke to the empty black coffin. “I’ll admit this in front of all of you as it is fitting. It is proper, and it needs to be said.”

  TOM, Bring it to me.

  Michael’s casket lifted gently into the air and hovered to a place in front of the nine.

  Bethany Anne spoke calmly, “Michael, Patriarch of the Vampires, I love you. I love the man you were. I love the man you became. I accepted your love in return, and I shall forever love you.”

  Her voice hitched a second before she could continue, “Your time with me was too God Damned short!” Tears were streaming down her face. Bethany Anne tried to compose herself.

  You bastard, why did you leave me?

  She looked back over those assembled. “Life is about choices. What you do for those who are near you, and those who are far away. Whenever I need to know what honor means? I’ll remember my love and how he lived his honor throughout his life.”

  She turned back to the coffin, “I’ll never forget you, I’ll never forsake your love, I’ll never dishonor the choice you made.”

  The other seven coffins lifted slowly from the ground, all of them rising to twenty feet and the rifles barked again.

  Then, they swept into the sky, heading across the land towards the sun, their final destination.

  While everyone watched the coffins disappear into the distance, Bethany Anne surreptitiously wiped her face.

  As the grieving audience turned back to Bethany Anne, the marked contrast in her visage was apparent. Gone was the sadness. Gone was the open emotion.

  Red eyes inflamed, teeth needle sharp, she spoke, “Now, I have something else to say…”

  Downtown Denver, Colorado - USA

  “Are we agreed then?” Mark asked Sia and then turned to Giannini, “Nothing but the truth?”

  “We will need protection,” Sia spoke up. “If you want to do this, we are going to upset a lot of very influent
ial people.”

  Giannini thought back a long time, to a night on a deserted street as she ran from Nosferatu. Darryl had admitted what was chasing her that night on their one date. Giannini enjoyed their parting kiss, but another woman had his heart, and there was no way Giannini was going to capture it.

  Nor would it be right to try.

  Giannini looked around the small breakfast restaurant and coffee bar in downtown Denver. It was a big location, and not very busy at the moment, so they had privacy. “What are your feelings about Bethany Anne and TQB Enterprises?”

  Mark shrugged his shoulders, “She seems on the up and up. Anytime I asked her a question, she answered it readily enough. Perhaps I didn’t know the right questions to ask?” He paused, “Why, do you know something?”

  “Something relevant to my question about protection?” Sia asked.

  “This is a private story, a personal story. It is not for distribution, and I will hold you to your sworn word that you will never breathe anything of this without my permission, or I shall not share it with you now.”

  Mark looked over to Sia, who shrugged then nodded her head, and he turned back to Giannini, “Ok, you have our word.”

  Giannini turned to Sia, who said, “Yes, mine too.”

  Giannini then told the story of the first time she met Bethany Anne, and the fight in the park, of being rescued by Gabrielle and the jump across buildings.

  “Are you saying” Sia whispered as she tried to make sure that no one could hear her, that the CEO of TQB Enterprises is a Vampire?”

  “I’m telling you she is a modified human, who is working to save the planet. Do her eyes go red and fangs come out? Yes. However, if you want to know what she does in the dark of the night? Well, then pay attention to Chechnya.” Giannini told them.

  Mark was caught off guard by the Chechnya comment, “Wait, are you saying that the terrorists slaughtered over there was her?”

  Giannini shrugged, “Yes, and whoever she had with her.”

  “Why?” Sia asked.

  Mark turned to Sia, “Why what?”

  “Why does she do it?” Sia continued, “She has the power of over a thousand companies and all the wealth for which a person could ever ask. Why would she want to do this?”

  Giannini considered the question, “That is a fair question. I’ve been around her too much to challenge her motives, now. The best way to get that information is to ask her yourself.”

  “What, now?” Sia asked and looked around, “Is she here or up at the base?”

  Giannini grinned, “No! She is out of the…city, right now.” She temporized, “Actually, with Bethany Anne you never know exactly when she will show up or where she is. I can say that she isn’t in America, as they desperately want to ask her questions. She would get back in the faces of any arrogant people, so that it wouldn’t be a good situation.”

  “I don't know” Mark began, “Bethany Anne would be a very pretty face to get into - ouch!” Mark jerked back looking at Sia, “Why the hell did you step on my foot?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I thought that was the table leg.” Sia smiled.

  Giannini looked over to Sia, “You're going to have to get over feeling jealous, or you need to decide not to be around her.”

  Sia tried to look clueless first, but when that failed, she tried irritated, and finally fell back on resigned. “I’ll try, but some heads are rocks.”

  “Yes, they are.” Giannini agreed, “You usually have to kick them higher, not lower.”

  “What are you two ladies talking about?” Mark asked, “Weren’t we on Bethany Anne?”

  Giannini caught Sia’s look of exasperation and winked at her before returning to the subject of Bethany Anne. “Yes, the issue is whether you want to go down the rabbit hole and have your protection, too.”

  “Why, does she want additional pet reporters?” Mark asked and this time, it was Sia who put a calming hand on Giannini’s arm. It was apparently going to take two women to wrangle one male reporter.

  Fortunately, even Mark was capable of figuring when foot-in-mouth was a problem, “Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean that as a slam, but …aw, hell. Let’s try this again. Why would she allow another two reporters to be granted preferred access?”

  This time, he even smiled at the appropriate time.

  “She tends to push the responsibilities down to those closer to the action.”

  “Oh?” Mark perked up, “Who do we have to schmooze?” He turned to see Sia hiding her face with her hands. “What?”

  One of Sia’s hands peeled off of her face, and she used it to point at Giannini, “Her, you idiot!”

  Mark turned back to Giannini and rolled his eyes before looking back at Sia again. “Sorry. I’m starting to understand just who has been carrying whom this whole time.”

  Sia pulled both hands down and looked over at Mark, “Damn, you can learn.” She turned to Giannini, “Assuming our roving reporter didn’t offend you too much, why is Bethany Anne leaving this to you?”

  “Because she wants more actual reporting but it means risking more lives, specifically your lives. Yes, you will probably get the stories of the decade, but it can be dangerous, too.”

  “Isn’t that where we started this conversation?” Mark interrupted.

  “Yes, which is where …oh.” Sia stopped, “She can offer us protection, but we have to be cool with coming on board, which means you have been checking us out since France, huh?” Giannini nodded her head. “Wow, even I didn’t see that one coming.”

  “That’s a hell of an extended job interview” Mark said thoughtfully, “you take this stuff pretty seriously.”

  Giannini responded, “I keep my reporter neutrality, but I also recognize that the ‘good side’ saved my life multiple times. I’ve talked with Cheryl Lynn…”

  “The PR Rep?” Mark interrupted then looked between the two exasperated women. “Ok, in ‘non-interrupt’ mode now.”

  Sia laughed and spoke to Giannini, “That setting is broken, so don’t fall for his promise.”

  “Wasn’t planning on it” Giannini agreed, “anyway, Bethany Anne might require something to be held back for a while, but she will usually have a good reason.”

  “Why, bad PR?” Mark asked.

  “No, usually it is ‘the world will go up in flames if they know this’ type of news” she replied.

  “Yeah, ok” Mark said.

  “So, she wants us to take on the ‘heavyweights’ that are on the other side?”

  “No, Cheryl Lynn does. Bethany Anne would just as soon deal with it a different way. Cheryl Lynn realizes that ‘there is truth, there is the full truth, and there is what we put on TV’.”

  “Snippets, sound bites and juicy nuggets” Mark answered. “We, however, are the roving trio made famous by our astute on-the-spot reporting from the most recent battle with our smiling faces plastered all around the world and Oh My God!” Mark stopped talking for a moment. “She placed us all there, didn’t she?”

  “Who she?” Sia asked, “Cheryl Lynn or Bethany Anne?”

  “Yes? No? I don’t know?” Giannini answered, “She probably considered it a good PR opportunity and knew I shouldn’t be the only face in front of the camera all of the time.”

  “Which…she…” Sia ground out, “No one is answering my question!”

  “Both” Giannini answered her. “If Bethany Anne did anything, it was probably a comment to Cheryl Lynn that went something like, ‘You know, we should probably provide another viewpoint besides just Giannini’s you think?’ and next thing I know, I receive a phone call from Cheryl Lynn with an offer to bring on board another team if I vet them.”

  “Us.” Mark mused.

  “Will she fund us?” Sia asked.

  “Only if we want to share the income stream” Giannini answered. “That’s a business relationship.”

  “So, she will help protect us and allow access but other than that we just have to run stories by her from time to time to confirm
they aren’t sensitive?” Mark asked.

  “No, we will know to ask her, or Cheryl Lynn. So, the decision is left with us pretty much on what we do.”

  “Oh.” Mark said, “That tends to make one feel all grown up, doesn’t it?”

  “You are ‘all grown up’.” Sia commented. “You even get to pay the bills from our portion of the video licensing money.”

  “I’ll get that.” Giannini said, “My license income was much larger.”

  “Good point” Sia said, “the newsroom was a little particular about our contracts…Good thing all the video was done on your equipment.”