Hidden Enemies (Book 9 of The Empire of Bones Saga)

by Terry Mixon

  Kelsey clapped a hand to her friend’s shoulder. “You’ll do it. I have complete confidence in you. Now, let’s get our game faces on. It’s show time.”

  26

  Talbot finally relaxed when they arrived back at the hotel. He knew the odds of them having raised suspicions in someone this morning were low, but it only took one paranoid bugger to get them all into deep, deep trouble.

  He found an empty room and pulled Cain Hopwood and his security guy, Bill Smith, in with them. It only took a few minutes to run down the information they’d gathered and pass along the imagery he’d captured through his implants.

  Smith pursed his lips and slowly nodded. “The entry isn’t going to be too bad, if we can get our hands on that guy and his badge. That’ll get us into the first level of the restricted zone. From there, we’ll probably run into segregated rooms, both large and small.

  “The computers will be locked down, of course. We’ll need to bring along the research hacker just to be sure we can force our way in. The goal is going to be getting all the hardware, reports, and research notes for whatever regeneration equipment we’re looking at.

  “We’ll need to avoid suspicion moving in. Custodial coveralls would be perfect. Unless, of course, we happened to run into some real custodians.”

  “Okay,” he said after a moment. “Are you going to be able to get us into the security system, Mr. Smith? Maybe we can make sure we have exactly the right kind of uniforms and possibly even avoid the real custodians.”

  “Once we’re on site, I can physically get into whatever they have for a security system,” Smith said. “I’m not a hacker, though. Not of the class we’ll need to get in remotely.

  “But that’s actually fine. You don’t realize it, but you’re talking about two separate systems. What we need to get access to before we go in isn’t the alarms. It’s the monitoring side of the equation. That’s where our hacker friend will help us.”

  Talbot nodded. “Have you worked with this guy before?”

  Smith shook his head. “No, but Carl vouched for him. Considering how far out of my league Carl is, his word is good enough for me. Unless I miss my guess, the guy has been working on the various computer networks we have access to throughout the station already.”

  They’d go talk to the man shortly, but Talbot wasn’t ready to move on from the planning session just yet.

  “We’re going to need to find a location in the research facility to set up the large transport ring. We can take everything we steal back to the freighter with no one being the wiser. Then all we have to do is move the small ring back to the cargo shuttle and off to the freighter.”

  Hopwood shot Talbot a grin. “That thing is really handy. Since nobody knows the technology even exists, they’ll be scratching their heads wondering how the hell a big pile of boxes just vanished.”

  “Are you sure it’s going to be a large pile?” Zia asked, raising an eyebrow. “It may only be a couple of machines and some files.”

  “Have you seen Carl’s lab?” Hopwood asked with a laugh. “Scientists are like pack rats. There are going to be piles of equipment. Once we get to the lab in question, we won’t even be sure what’s important, so we’re going to have to take everything.”

  The mental image made Talbot chuckle. Carl was kind of a pack rat. There was always some kind of experiment going on and discerning what belonged to which project was never easy.

  They’d have Doctor Zoboroski on hand to help them figure that out, but he was a practicing physician rather than a research scientist. They couldn’t trust that they’d get everything without taking the whole pile.

  “With Princess Kelsey and the rest making a scouting run at the shipyard, we should know by this evening how difficult the task is going to be,” Zia said. “I wish that I’d had the chance to go with them and see things for myself, but I’ll have an opportunity to go over everything they capture with their implants.

  “And Carl knows what he’s doing. He’s more than capable of taking bold action if the need arises. He’ll get the taps put into all of the appropriate computer systems before they come back, I’m sure. That’ll give our hacker an opportunity to get us with the research center remotely.”

  Talbot sighed, rubbing the side of his head. “I wish we didn’t have to risk everything on a couple of throws of the dice. It’s going to be really easy to roll snake eyes.

  “We can start off by seeing what the hacker has been up to. With any luck, he’ll have already gotten into the research center’s network. If we can tap into the security feed, we’ll start mapping the place and devising our plan of attack. We’ll know more when Kelsey and the rest get back. Let’s hope for the best.”

  That was going to be the key, Talbot knew. They were going to need a couple of lucky breaks for things to go their way. Otherwise Rebel Empire security would come down on them like a Marine Raider drop capsule.

  Veronica waved as she walked up to Don Sommerville.

  “There you are,” he said with a smile. “Did you have any trouble?”

  Deciding it would be less trouble if she glossed over the events at the main hatch, Veronica shook her head. “Nothing we couldn’t handle. Just the usual marine nonsense.”

  His expression twisted. “I don’t get why they put those people in positions over regular people like that. Marines are nothing but trouble.”

  She considered it ironic how she’d shared her friend’s opinion until she’d met the marines of the New Terran Empire. It wasn’t the marines that were the problem. It was the Rebel Empire and how they trained them. How they conditioned them to be brutal and then used them up like expendable munitions.

  Maybe, with just a little luck, she’d be able to show Don what she’d learned. If they could figure a way to capture him as they were leaving.

  “So, what’s the plan?” she asked.

  He gestured toward the cutter. “This is our ride. It’s going directly to the Fleet section of the shipyard and from there I’ve got about two hours to give you as much of a tour as I can manage. We should be able to see just about everything interesting.”

  Without further ado, they trooped into the cutter. It was about half filled with Fleet officers of low to middle rank. The highest ranking officer present was a lieutenant sitting in front, reading something on his tablet. He paid them no mind as they sat across from him.

  As they sat down and secured themselves, Don turned to Princess Kelsey. “I realize you need to be circumspect in what you say, but I’m wondering if you could tell me anything about what you’re doing traveling through here? Does it have anything to do with the Ghost incursion?”

  Princess Kelsey, in the guise of the woman she was pretending to be, Veronica thought, scowled. “Tangentially. As I said before, I really can’t discuss details. Now in a hypocritical twist, I’m going to ask you what you can tell me about the incursion. All I’ve heard is public gossip. Can you shed some light on the subject, Commander?”

  Don shrugged. “Everything is still pretty confused. Word arrived by fast courier that Balladur was under attack yesterday. It’s three flips from here, so we’re on alert, but we should get word if there’s a force moving toward us.

  “Fleet had to withdraw from the system because there were too many ships coming against them. The funny thing is, no one knows where those ships came from. Balladur is a cul-de-sac. One flip point leads in and out. Units in the next system over didn’t see anything until the few Fleet ships stationed in Balladur came running through the flip point, screaming for help.”

  “I don’t understand that,” Veronica said. “Ships just don’t appear from nowhere. Where could they have come from? And if it is the Ghosts, how could they have so many ships?

  “Frankly, I kind of thought they were a myth. Every once in a while you’d hear a story about some strange ship being cornered and blown up. Or about supply ships that vanished without a trace. Or even small warships like destroyers disappearing. I really never gave the
rumors much credence.”

  Don nodded. “That’s about how I felt, too. I guess we can definitely put their existence into the confirmed category at this point. Weirdly, the reports on the kind of ships being used doesn’t match up with the few cases Fleet was rumored to have engaged in the past.

  “Some of these new vessels are larger than a heavy cruiser and with commensurate weapons. That’s scary and it really has the higher ups freaked out.”

  “Is it just Balladur under attack?” Carl asked. “Are other systems being hit, too?”

  Don shrugged. “We haven’t heard of any, but word might come in at any time. The contingency invasion plans that Fleet maintains for each system are being dusted off and we’ll figure out something if they come here.

  “We don’t have a lot of offensive force, other than the battle stations. If the Ghosts get into the system, we’ll evacuate what we can and probably destroy the shipyard. Based on the positioning of the flip points, and the fact that we have scout ships in the adjacent systems, we’ll have at least a day’s warning.”

  A tone sounded announcing they were close to docking. Everyone on the cutter began making certain they’d gathered their possessions. None of Veronica’s group had taken anything out for the trip so they’d be able to depart quickly once docking was complete.

  A few minutes later, the cutter docked and people began streaming out into the shipyard. Veronica walked with Don out onto the Fleet section of the shipyard.

  A trio of people in fleet security uniforms stood near the only hatch leading out of the room. Two large enlisted men with sidearms stood behind a slender woman with strawberry blonde hair and lieutenant’s tabs.

  Since Veronica wasn’t in uniform and expected to have her ID checked, she made certain to look relaxed. In fact, she might as well be proactive.

  Smiling, she stepped over to the woman and pulled out her identification. “Commander Veronica Giguere.”

  The woman took her ID and examined it closely. She then looked up and directly into Veronica’s eyes. Moments later, Veronica’s implants informed her that they’d just been queried for her identification.

  That surprised her. Thankfully it wasn’t going to be a problem, but it hinted at a somewhat higher state of readiness than she’d expected.

  The woman handed Veronica’s ID card back to her. “Thank you, Commander. I’ll need to see everyone’s identification, please.”

  Princess Kelsey handed over her ID next.

  The woman spent an equal amount of time examining it before looking up at the princess. This time, the woman’s gaze seemed a little sharper.

  “You might want to see someone about updating your identification photo, Captain. It seems a little out of date.”

  Princess Kelsey scowled a little. “Did you just say that I’m getting old?”

  The security officer smiled without a hint of humor. “Age catches up with us all, Captain. In your case, it’s the opposite. Whatever treatments you’re getting for your skin and the work you had done on your nose have made you look younger and somewhat different than your photo. My congratulations on finding an excellent cosmetic surgeon.”

  The woman turned her attention to Carl, her expression showing a little more interest than before. “Identification.”

  The young scientist handed over his card and waited, his nervousness apparent to Veronica. She hoped it didn’t trigger more attention from the security officer.

  This time the woman’s examination of the ID took almost twice as long and she looked up at Carl twice.

  “There may be an irregularity with your identification, Mr. Owlet,” she said at last. “I’m going to have to ask you to step aside for enhanced screening.” She gestured toward a hatch set off to the side of the compartment.

  Dammit.

  27

  Zia walked down the hall and knocked on the door where the research hacker was working. The man’s response was muffled, but she assumed it was an invitation to come in. Hopefully she wasn’t about to catch him just coming out of the shower.

  To her relief, she found him sitting at the desk, working on a portable computer. It was more substantial than a tablet by a significant margin and there were extra drives and equipment scattered around the room, probably providing additional resources for his work.

  The man bore a striking resemblance to Carl in the fact that he was somewhat scrawny and extremely nerdy. He was also about thirty years older than her friend and wore anachronistic glasses perched on the end of his nose.

  He was turned in his seat, facing her as she came in. “Commodore Anderson,” he said as he slicked back what was left of the hair on his balding head. “What can I do for you?”

  “Doctor Rehnquist, right?”

  The man nodded with a slight smile. “That’s right. Andy Rehnquist.”

  “Excellent. You mind if I take a seat?”

  Without waiting for his answer, she sat on the edge of his bed. “We’ve made some progress on identifying potential ingress points at the research facility as well as identifying potential sources for access to the building. I just dropped by to see how you were progressing on getting into their network.”

  The man smiled widely. “I think I’m ahead of schedule. I’ve penetrated the outermost layers of the onion, so to speak. In fact, I believe I now have complete access to the nonclassified systems used by them for interfacing with the public.”

  “That’s good news, Doctor. Can you break down exactly what that means for us?”

  He nodded briskly. “In effect, I’ve accessed the systems used by their administrative personnel. That system does interface with more secure areas, but I’m going very slowly. I don’t want to trigger any kind of unexpected security response by poking around in a haphazard manner.”

  “I’m all for caution, Doctor,” Zia said with a smile. “In fact, the work you’ve done thus far might be able to help us get into the building. Do you have access to the service files for the receptionists?”

  “As a matter of fact, I’ve managed to access their version of human resources. Never really liked that term. It makes it sound as if people are property. Of course, in my particular case, that wasn’t very far from the truth.”

  “Well here’s a chance for you to strike a blow against people like that. I’m looking to identify one of the receptionists I met today. A young man with dark, curly hair. His name tag indicated that he was Ralph.

  “I’d like to know where he lives, what his schedule is, and any other juicy details his file might be able to provide for us. The more we know, the better chance we can take him without causing problems.”

  The scientist spun on his chair and typed on the physical keyboard at what to her was a blinding pace. Data began scrolling up the screen and what was obviously a file image of the man she’d spoken to appeared.

  “Ralph Halstead,” the scientist intoned. “He’s been with their company for two years. According to HR, he’s a diligent worker with no marks against him. His supervisor indicates that he’s ‘a personable, dedicated young man with a true desire to help people.’ I’d say the young man is going to go far in his profession.”

  “Does it list an address for him?”

  “Indeed it does.” He rattled off an address that she’d be able to parse later and locate where the man lived.

  “There’s one more piece of useful information that I think you’ll want,” the scientist said. “Mr. Halstead is related to one of the research scientists, a Doctor Adriana Lipp. She’s listed as his maternal aunt.”

  That might be useful. If they could use the receptionist to get to his aunt and subvert her access, that might get them very close to their goal when the time came.

  “Do you have any idea how long it might take you to find a list of their research projects?” Zia asked.

  “In a perfect world, I’d prefer to do that over the next twenty-four hours. I believe with that amount of time I can gain access with no one being the wiser. Better yet, I sho
uld be able to access the video from the security feeds at that point. I might not be able to override anything, but I should be able to at least see it in read-only mode.”

  “What about twelve hours?” Zia countered. “That would put us in the overnight hours. Otherwise, we’ll be working during daylight tomorrow and that’s not really the way we want to do this. A late night heist is exactly the kind of thing we’re wanting.”

  He scratched his chin thoughtfully. “If nighttime is your goal, I suggest that you aim for thirty-six hours as opposed to twelve. That would give us the largest margin for success, in my considered opinion.”

  She rose to her feet, satisfied. “That sounds good, Doctor. If we can put it off until tomorrow night, we will. The problem is that we don’t know what our timeframe is going to be. Honestly, if things go poorly enough for Princess Kelsey, we might have to abort this part of the operation entirely. Or we might have to rush it through tonight.

  “I suggest you do what you can to gain access without being too overt. Perhaps you’ll catch a lucky break and get what we need without having to take too many risks.”

  He didn’t look pleased, but nodded. “I’ll do what I can and keep you informed of my progress.”

  That was the best one could ask for.

  “In the meantime, Colonel Talbot and I will see if we can get into the young man’s apartment. If we can compromise his security system, we’ll be able slip in and get his ID card tonight with him none the wiser.

  “I’ll need an address for his aunt as well. It sounds like she’s someone that we need to take captive and question.”

  The balding man nodded. “You’re going to need to be careful. According to her file, she has a husband. If you’re expecting to take her, you’re going to have to deal with him, too.”

  Zia grunted. “Perfect. I suppose we should also assume the worst about our young man. He’s a handsome and polite boy. He might just have a live-in of his own. And pets.