Starfire

by B. V. Larson

  “Brandt,” he said, “I’m going to level with you. This won’t work.”

  “What do you mean, it won't work?”

  “Because I came here yesterday. I already did this. They won’t take the story of two ‘surprise inspections’ in a row.”

  Brandt nodded. “I’m glad you told me.”

  “What are friends for? What are you going to do now? I would suggest retreating and rethinking the approach—”

  “You misunderstand,” Brandt said. “I’m glad you told me about yesterday, but I already knew that. Here’s plan B.”

  Sandeep listened, but he didn’t enjoy it.

  “Why…why did you get me to tell you something you already knew?” Sandeep asked.

  “I wanted to know where you stood. Cheer up, your odds of surviving this have just increased. Now, roll down that window and smile like you mean it.”

  Sandeep played the part. He told the guards he’d been contacted by higher authorities and sent back to oversee a critical step in the project. He asked to talk to Clark again. Reluctantly, the guards went into the booth, staring at the two men in the car with obvious suspicion.

  “You could have at least given them a smile,” Sandeep said.

  “I’m in a bad mood.”

  “Sir?” asked the guard, tapping on the roof of the car. “Major Clark would like to talk to you.”

  Sandeep took the offered phone. “Clark?”

  “Sandeep? What are you doing back here so soon?”

  “There’s been a change in the plan. Clayworth asked me to come back—” he lied.

  “I know about the change. She doesn’t need to watchdog my every step—you being that watchdog, Sandeep.”

  Sandeep froze. He’d had no communication with Clayworth. That was a fabrication. Now there seemed to be some substance in this plan. Could Brandt have known about it? Or was it a coincidence?

  He turned to glance at Brandt. The guard watched them both closely, his face almost inside the car with them.

  Sandeep ignored the nosy guard and put his hand over the phone. “He’s talked to Clayworth,” he told Brandt, trying to stay calm.

  “Good. Tell him we’ll be right there.”

  Sandeep turned back to the phone. “I’m aware of the change in the situation. I have an assistant with me from Homeland.”

  “You’re overstepping the authority of your office, Sandeep,” Clark said. “Give the phone back to the guard.”

  Sandeep was amazed at Clark’s attitude. He seemed mildly annoyed, which coming from Clark was akin to a homicidal frenzy.

  Sandeep returned the phone to the guard, and tried to look calm. He knew Brandt’s gun was out of sight, but ready to fire just in case they asked for an inspection.

  The guard took their IDs, ran them through and handed them back. Sandeep was surprised that Brandt’s ID as a Homeland agent had passed the database. He must have an excellent man making him fake papers and fake online records. If he survived the day, he’d have to look into the security breach personally.

  “Sorry about the delay, sir,” the guard said. “You’re all clear. Head on in.”

  Sandeep let his foot off the brake and rolled into the compound serenely.

  “Told you it would work,” Brandt said.

  “You’ll never get past the interior security lines. They use iris scans, thumbprints—you can’t fool these things.”

  Brandt’s face was stone. “Let me worry about that.”

  “They’ll disarm you at the gate.”

  “I don’t need a gun. I don’t need to make a fuss here, either. I just want my daughter back. You can understand that, can’t you?”

  Sandeep looked at him, frowning, then heaved another sigh. He could understand Brandt, which was yet another problem nagging at him. The man was on a suicide mission, and Sandeep was involved now.

  At this point, he wasn’t entirely sure how he wanted this to end.

  Chapter 38

  Area 51, Gamma Level

  Underground

  Brandt left his gun in the car and followed Sandeep into the hangar at a leisurely pace.

  Brandt knew this place, and he hated it. He’d spent much of his childhood here. His father had bargained to get him out—but then changed his mind later. That’s when Brandt had begun to get orders to come back here and gone AWOL.

  He’d known the score from the start. His father had changed his mind—that was his only explanation. Maybe he’d gotten old and wanted to retire. Whatever. Brandt had Jenna to take care of, and he had never wanted to chance coming near this place again. He’d dropped off the grid to become invisible to these people.

  Recently, they’d been coming after him non-stop. Small teams of agents that were smiling and cajoling at first. When he’d rejected their offered bribes and refused to talk to his father on the phone, they’d become more aggressive. Brandt had done his best to vanish, but somehow, they kept finding him.

  Now they’d grabbed Jenna, and he was walking right into their lair. There was a good chance he’d been recognized by the AI behind the cameras already. But it didn’t matter. This whole thing was coming to a conclusion today—one way or another.

  The elevator opened. Unexpectedly, Clark himself greeted them. His eyes shifted from Sandeep to Brandt and back again.

  “Welcome gentlemen,” he said. “If you would follow me, I’ll escort you down.”

  Sandeep froze. His eyes slid to watch Brandt. He looked as if he expected all hell to break loose.

  Brandt smiled tightly. “Don’t worry, Sandeep. I’m not going to do anything crazy. I’m glad you came to see us in person, Clark. Someone obviously recognized me.”

  Clark nodded.

  “No guards?” Brandt asked. “Have I lost my mystique?”

  “Far from it,” Clark said. “This way, please.”

  Clark stepped into the elevator first. Brandt followed. The two men looked expectantly at Sandeep.

  “Well, if you two have this matter in hand—” the agent began turning away.

  “Come along, Sandeep,” Clark said in an uncompromising tone.

  Regretfully, Sandeep followed them into the elevator, and the three of them rode down into the earth.

  The moment the elevator was in motion, Brandt put Sandeep down first. It was almost too easy—an elbow to the face, a cracking blow to the temple. Sandeep sagged against the elevator wall and slid to the floor. For the first time in a long while, Brandt felt a pang of regret. The man would recover, but he knew that he’d just attacked the only ally he’d had since Old Bill had been shot.

  “Was that display entirely necessary?” Clark asked in a flat voice.

  Brandt turned, knees bent and arms raised in an aggressive stance. “I didn’t want him to make a move on me. I want this to stay one-on-one.”

  “You broke his nose, if I’m not mistaken,” Clark chided.

  “You’re the coldest fish in the sea, Clark. Always in control. But you’re not in control today. I want to talk to you.”

  “By all means.”

  The elevator doors dinged and slid open. Neither of them stepped off. Brandt looked down the long corridor. Gamma level. He hadn’t been here in years. They knew he was coming, that was obvious. There wasn’t a soul in sight, just those damned roving cameras.

  “I’m here to make a deal,” Brandt said. “My life for my daughter’s.”

  “Is that all? You could have done that with a phone call.”

  “I’ve found that deals are best done by surprise, not while I wait in some public place twiddling my thumbs.”

  “Do you really think you’re in control of this situation?”

  “I could kill you right now. Before anyone else can move.”

  Even as he said this, Brandt noticed that the elevator doors leading into the long corridor remained open. The elevator wasn’t closing again. There were no sounds of habitation down here. Nothing at all.

  Clark shook his head. “I can’t do it, Brandt,” he said. �
�I’m sorry.”

  “What do you mean you can’t do it? You held my father here for years—you still have him for all I know.”

  “No, he’s escaped us.”

  Brandt was stunned. “Escaped? What about all those phone calls asking for my return?”

  “I’ll explain that in time. Let’s get through the crisis of the moment, shall we?”

  “If you’re refusing my deal, I’m going to have to kill you. Do you get that Clark?”

  Brandt grabbed Clark in one swift move. He half-expected a sniper’s bullet to pierce his flesh—but nothing happened.

  “Yes,” Clark said, “I get it. Death was a risk I was willing to take when I stepped out of this elevator to greet you. Aren’t you curious as to why?”

  Brandt shook the smaller man and growled in frustration.

  “I have to be more useful to you than a six year old girl! I’m fully attuned. I can open that ship, every level of it. Just let her go!”

  “What you say is true. If you’ll let me explain the situation, I’ll try to help you understand my actions.”

  “I don’t want to understand shit,” Brandt said. “I want my daughter!”

  Clark’s smile had faded slightly during the shaking and growling, but now it returned.

  “That much I can do for you.”

  Clark’s hand reached out of the elevator and made a beckoning gesture. The big door at the far end of the hall opened. It was the door, with all the booby traps and cameras on it.

  Brandt’s heart fluttered when he saw Jenna rush forward, her hair streaming behind her.

  “Daddy!”

  For a horrible moment, he thought maybe they’d set off the traps. He feared they might kill her right in front of him, even if it made no sense to do so.

  She ran thunderously down the long hallway to Brandt, who felt a rush of conflicting emotions.

  Jenna reached the elevator and slowed down, her eyes widening. She looked down at Sandeep and then up at her father reproachfully. His fist was still wound up with a wad of Clark’s shirt.

  “Why do you always have to do that, Daddy?” she scolded, sounding like her mother. She pointed at Sandeep. “Is that man dead? He was nice to me.”

  “No, he’s fine. He’s sleeping.”

  Brandt waved for her to approach, and she did, hesitating only slightly. That hesitation made him feel a guilty pang in his gut. He reached out and touched Jenna, almost unable to believe he had her.

  Once Clark had exposed himself, none of Brandt's planning had gone the way he’d thought it would. He’d thought he would be met with guards. Overpowered, they’d provide his weaponry. Maybe with a few hostages—

  But no. Clark had come into reach on his own, and that had somehow changed the game. Clark—the man was so damned manipulative. He’d purposefully brought Jenna into this mess. He’d known how the girl would react, and how Brandt would react in turn. He never did anything that wasn’t carefully planned and plotted.

  “Let her go, Clark,” Brandt said. “I’ll wake up Sandeep and put him into his car. He can take Jenna to Vegas—”

  “No, Daddy! I’m not going anywhere without you.”

  “Don’t worry, Jenna,” Major Clark said soothingly. “Your daddy isn’t going anywhere.”

  Brandt mashed buttons, but the elevator didn’t budge.

  “I could kill you right now,” Brandt repeated. “You know that, don’t you?”

  “What would be the point?”

  “I’d never have to look at that insufferable smile, at the very least.”

  Clark shook his head sadly. “I would let you leave. Really I would, but I can’t. Come, let’s talk about it. If you give me half an hour, I think you’ll understand.”

  Brandt was breathing through his teeth now like a trapped animal. He looked down the long corridor. There, at the far end, were faces peeping out at him. Nerds in lab coats. Behind them sat the ship, misted with ice as always.

  “Let me talk to my father,” he said. “He’s got to be here.”

  “If you’ll only accompany me, we’ll sort that out.”

  He let go of Clark’s shirt. Not killing him was difficult. Maybe one of the hardest things he’d ever done. But to beat him to death while his daughter stood at his feet, watching—she wouldn’t understand. Killing strangers with guns she comprehended, but Clark was Jenna’s friend in her eyes. Clark had had plenty of time to work his magic. By this time, she probably thought he was her best friend in the world.

  Taking Jenna’s hand, he walked out of the elevator and took several steps into the corridor. His eyes crawled over the walls, looking for a way out. He didn’t see one.

  “I don’t understand why you need all three of us,” Brandt said, breathing hard. “You’re a psychologist. You must understand your hold is stronger if one or two of us remain free. With luck, I’ll make a new kid for you at some point.”

  Clark chuckled. “The odds of that have been factored in. But we just can’t take the chance. You’re so aggressive and difficult to track. It gives our operators fits, you know.”

  “I’m so sorry for them.”

  Brandt stopped walking when they got to the floor with the holes in it. “I’m not going in there, Clark. Not willingly. You’ve got my father, he can open—”

  Clark sighed and shook his head. He stood on the holes—the steel holes that looked like a cheese grater to Brandt. They were deadly, and there had to be some security hack somewhere watching with trembling fingers, looking for an excuse to activate the defense systems. Clark had to know that, but he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  “We don’t have your father, Brandt,” Major Clark said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “He’s dead, Brandt.”

  “What?” wailed Jenna. “Are you talking about Grandpa?”

  “I’m so sorry,” Clark said to her. “I hadn’t meant to bring you this devastating news in such a callous manner.”

  Brandt let go of Jenna and grabbed hold of Clark again. He squeezed the man’s throat, making him cough.

  “That’s it, isn’t it? He wouldn’t do something, so you killed him? Or maybe you pushed too hard, went down into the lower compartments, forced him to—”

  “No, he died of natural causes. He was in his sixties. It happens.”

  “Well, you look like you’re in your fifties, so how about I kill you right here, right now?”

  “I can’t stop you, but it would be a pointless act. You and Jenna can’t leave here. Not even if you kill everyone else on Gamma level.”

  At these words, the gaggle of scientists who’d been gathered around gasped and backed away. All except for two of them.

  One of those who stood her ground was a woman in a lab coat. She had that natural beauty that was simple yet alluring. She stepped forward and put her arms around Jenna.

  “Can I take her off the grate at least?” she asked Brandt.

  Brandt, somewhat at a loss, nodded. The woman gently guided Jenna back down the corridor instead of into the chamber with the ship.

  Brandt didn’t trust her fully, but something in her eyes told him she was only thinking of Jenna.

  Another man stepped forward, staring at him. He looked capable and relaxed.

  “Don’t do anything, man,” Brandt told him.

  “Wouldn’t think of it,” the man said. He gestured, making a circular motion with his forefinger as if suggesting Brandt should get on with the show.

  Brandt smiled at Clark. “You’re not as loved around here as you thought.”

  Clark tossed a reproachful look at the new man, who still hovered near. “Apparently not. I’m going to have to report your lack of dedication to Clayworth, Mr. Perez.”

  “Oh, right,” Perez said. “I’m supposed to be security around here, aren’t I?”

  Brandt sized him up. He didn’t look like much, but he also seemed extremely confident. There were other guards around, men with guns and uniforms. But Clark had wa
ved them back, letting Brandt move freely.

  “Tell me how my father died,” Brandt asked Clark.

  “Of natural causes, as I said.”

  “I don’t believe you. He called me several times recently. He’s—”

  “No,” Clark said, “he didn’t call. That was…well, we call it an anagram.”

  “Are you saying an AI called me? That a computer tried to talk me into coming back?”

  “Yes. Your father has been gone for months. That’s why we had to get you back—at least one of you.”

  “Can you prove this?”

  “Yes. He wore an implant. We recorded everything.”

  Brandt felt sickened. “A polyp? In his neck? You sick bastards. I tore mine out years ago. I can’t believe—”

  “He wore it willingly. He knew his country was depending on him.”

  “A death-cam, hmm?” Perez said as if talking about a cool new gadget. “Seems like everyone in this outfit has one of those.”

  Brandt glanced at him again, frowning, then turned his attention back to Clark.

  He wanted to kill Clark. That would have made him feel good. But Clark was right—if Clark was willing to die, it was pointless. Killing him wouldn’t help himself or Jenna. They weren’t going to get out that way.

  He let go of the man at last.

  Clark made no show of shaking himself or glaring. He didn’t even rub at his reddened neck. “I’m sorry for your loss, Brandt,” he said.

  “Save it. Just tell me the story. And you,” he said to the woman in the white lab coat. “Could you bring Jenna along?”

  The woman nodded.

  “The scary part is all over honey,” he said to Jenna. “For now.”

  “Let me introduce you,” Clark said. “This is Dr. Jackie Linscott. She’s new here.”

  “So I gathered. She’s not one of your robots—not yet.”

  “Dr. Linscott specializes in propulsion. If any further violent urges overtake you, please don’t indulge yourself upon her person. I need her more than anyone else on this project, with the exception of you and your daughter.”

  “That’s right,” Perez said, falling into step behind them as Clark led the way to his offices. “Take your rages out on me, big guy. I’m expendable.”