The Queen's Hammer

by Sean Benjamin

  Hochstadt did not let it go. “Such behavior would not be tolerated in the Aurora Empire, especially by a peer of the realm.”

  Cassidy did not let it go either. “Such behavior as slave trading would not be tolerated in the Goldenes Tor, but we are not in either the Goldenes Tor or the Aurora Empire. As to the behavior of a peer of the realm, again, not for me to say.”

  Another sound broke into the discussion. O’Hare laughed. This wasn’t her standard slightly off-kilter laugh that made everyone within hearing distance wonder about her. This was her full-on crazy laugh. It combined the cackling of the Macbeth witches, the cawing taunts from a murder of crows, and the coldness of a night wind blowing through a mausoleum. Several of the Goths glanced over their shoulders as they were sure something dark and evil was about to grab them from behind. Admiral Hochstadt looked like she had just had a flashback to her childhood and came to the certain conclusion there really had been monsters living under her bed and in the closet, too. Big ones.

  Several moments of total silence passed and then Hochstadt recovered. She was getting beat at this meeting, and she knew it. The last thing she needed was Killian Goddamn O’Hare getting involved in the discussion. She sneered at O’Hare. “I see you live down to your reputation. You are one crazy bitch.”

  O’Hare was unmoved. Insults have never had any effect on her, and that particular one was hardly new. She viewed such comments as an invitation to exchange barbs. “Thank you, Admiral. I find so many people have overblown reputations, and I am invariably disappointed when I meet them. Fortunately, I can say you match your reputation completely. A mediocre flagpole officer whose only true gift is in bedding the right men.” She paused to let her words sink in and then added. “Of course, I can’t swear as to your talent regarding the bedding part, but it must be so if such a mundane officer as you can rise so high in your military. After all, it is clear you’re just not very good at this. You met Raferty Hawkins twenty minutes ago, and he has already handed you your ass on every single topic. I think that has to be a record.” O’Hare swept the room with her arm. “Anyone here seen it done faster than that?” She paused for a moment of silence while waiting for an answer she knew would never come. “Yep, thought so. Me neither. It must be a record.” She ended her attack with a sympathetic smile, and the two women locked stares.

  Hochstadt spoke in an icy tone. “You can hardly pass judgment on me in that regard. I understand you’re not above bedding powerful men.”

  O’Hare smiled her most malicious smile. “True, but I do it for enjoyment, not career advancement.”

  Moments passed as neither woman would break eye contact. Then a completely unexpected remark assaulted the silence. “Don’t try it. You’ll be dead long before you get it clear.”

  A moment of confusion as all eyes turned to Tactical and her surprising statement. At first, it looked as if she was staring at Hochstadt. On closer examination, she was looking beyond the Admiral at the young male aide seated behind her.

  Her next statement removed any doubt as to who she was addressing. “Kid, you don’t have a prayer. You’ll be a dead man in about five seconds, and dead lasts a long time. Bring your hand out slowly and ensure it is empty.”

  Now, all gazes turned to the young officer who was the recipient of Tactical’s warning. He sat with his right arm frozen behind him. It looked as if he was reaching to scratch his lower back and stopped in mid scratch. He looked puzzled at Tactical’s certainty. “You’re not supposed to have any weapons.” His tone suggested he was the only one allowed to break the rules, and anyone else doing it was completely unacceptable.

  “We don’t have any weapons,” Tactical replied lightly.

  “But I do,” came a loud addendum to that statement. Everyone turned to see Destiny Flores standing calmly by the door in the long wall behind the pirates. Nobody had seen her enter the room or move to her current position. She now stood quietly with her hands clasped in front of her. She nodded to the room. “Let me show them to you.” Her voice rose. “Ladies and gentlemen!”

  From high on the wall behind her and the wall behind Hawkins and his group, the ventilator screens flipped down and four people leaned out with rifles at their shoulders. With two people on each wall, the group had the room in a crossfire. Immediately four red aiming dots appeared on the young aide. They were for intimidation purposes only. The marksmen didn’t need them. They were all crack shots or they wouldn’t be covering this room right now.

  Despite Destiny’s dynamic announcement, none of the pirates had taken their gaze from the aide. They were quite willing to let the Goth officer make his move and die in the attempt. Everyone was frozen for three seconds until one person moved. Admiral Erich Dietrich rose from his seat three chairs from the aide and moved toward him. He passed in front of the empty chair and stopped in front of the female aide and stared at the young man seated next to her. The Admiral reached down with his right hand, grabbed the junior officer by the front of his uniform shirt near his throat, and jerked him to his feet. With his left hand, he reached behind the aide to the small of his back where the young man still had his hand.

  “Let go of it,” Dietrich commanded.

  The aide did, and Dietrich slowly brought the shooter out by the barrel in his left hand. Four red dots moved from the aide to Dietrich’s head. The Admiral slowly brought the weapon up, holding it slightly above his head in plain sight. His right hand let go of the aide and Dietrich transferred the weapon to it. His left hand now took up the job of grabbing the young officer’s shirt. Dietrich slowly extended his right arm over the seated Hochstadt and dropped the weapon on the table between her and Hawkins. His right arm was extended fully by the maneuver. Now he brought it back savagely and slapped the aide hard across the face with his open palm. The youngster’s head snapped back from the blow and blood started seeping from a cut lip. Dietrich pulled the stunned man’s face close to his own. “You stupid little bastard, you could have gotten us all killed.”

  He shoved the aide backward, and he tumbled over his own chair to the floor behind it where he lay stunned. Dietrich immediately turned and looked down at the female aide as she sat motionless in her chair staring up at him. “If he had one, you have one.” He jerked her to her feet with his left hand and reached to the small of her back with his right hand. He found the weapon and repeated the transfer maneuver with that shooter. Now two weapons rested on the table between Hawkins and Hochstadt. Dietrich shoved the young woman back into her seat.

  According to the Goldenes Tor military code of conduct, Dietrich could be brought up on charges for striking the junior officer, but everyone knew it would never happen. Even the two aides knew that. Dietrich now looked down at Hochstadt still in her seat in front of the two aide’s chairs. His look said it all. Do something.

  Hochstadt needed little encouragement. She looked at Captain Bergman. “Get them out of here. When we return to Rosstrappe, they are on the first ship going to the home systems. I don’t care if it is a garbage scow going to one of the frozen planets and departing ten minutes after our return. They are on the first ship outbound!”

  Captain Bergman nodded and stood up while gathering the two junior officers together. This was not the time to bring up packing personal gear, drawing up transfer orders, or closing out their security clearances. The Admiral was very irate. Bergman understood it and wanted to get these two offenders out of sight as quickly as possible. Dietrich had not exaggerated the potential fallout from their actions. Those two officers’ stupidity really almost did get them all killed.

  Hochstadt turned back to Hawkins as Dietrich took the female aide’s seat. She spoke slowly as if she had a hard time getting the words out. “Let me apologize for the actions of those two. You must know they acted on their own without orders.” She swept the group to ensure each of them was included in the apology. That is, she swept the whole group except Killian O’Hare whom she pointedly ignored. Rafe suspected O’Hare’s comments had hit ho
me, and Hochstadt would never forget or forgive the remarks.

  Hawkins shrugged. “We know that. Those two would never be picked to be anyone’s triggermen. They couldn’t take out a sleeping koala bear.”

  Hochstadt quietly admired Hawkins’ calm. Even with the four-person gun team behind him, he must have known he would be the first target in the assassination attempt. He clearly trusted Destiny Flores and Tactical with his life. If Flores had failed, Hawkins and several of his companions would be dead now. His faith in his people and Destiny Flores must be unlimited to calmly allow the situation to develop as it did. Hochstadt reviewed her list of people she would trust that much. The review was short. There was only one name on that list. Erich Dietrich. She wouldn’t even put her husband on that list. She envied Hawkins in that regard.

  “I will have to thank Destiny for her foresight. She saved your life and the Goldenes Tor a great amount of trouble.”

  Hawkins shook his head. “Perhaps, or maybe, she saved your life, not mine.”

  Hochstadt was taken back. “How so?”

  “If we had no backup, once Tactical had called the gun, I might have grabbed you by your uniform front and pulled you up so you would be between me and your aides. Those two have no training at this work and would be very nervous. They would just start shooting. The shots would go wild or hit you in the back while aiming to get me. Maybe it would have happened that way.” Hawkins kept a straight face. “Maybe.”

  Admiral Hochstadt stared at him. Maybe he would do that. Maybe not. She didn’t know which way it would have gone. Regardless, it was clear the meeting was at an end and Hochstadt was quite happy to make the first move to confirm that. She stood up. Hawkins rose in response. Neither offered to shake hands. She turned to leave but paused and looked back at him.

  “You’ve been lucky for a long time but luck always runs out. I suspect it will run out for you soon enough.”

  Rafe smiled slightly. “Luck is how people explain the success of other people they don’t like. I was lucky in the beginning but not in several years. Point of fact is, we are better than you are and you will have to be lucky to get us.” He paused but then continued. “Whether you get me or not is somewhat irrelevant. The OrCons screwed up their chance to win the war. It will take a couple of years, but the Aurora Empire will win outright or get a favorable negotiated settlement. After that, they will be back here. At least three squadrons. New ships with veteran captains and combat hardened crews. Probably pissed off because many of their comrades are getting out of the Navy or going on hero cruises around the Empire while they have to come to this far-off hellhole. The Zekes haven’t forgotten that your Empire let an OrCon squadron pass through your space to hit Skyler Mallory’s squadron at the beginning of the war. After the war, they will be sure to inconvenience you for that move. Until that time, I represent the Zekes’ displeasure with you, and they will support me in any way possible as I make their displeasure manifest by being a pain in your ass.”

  “If that is your intention, then your future will be dangerous, indeed.”

  “The future is always dangerous. That’s its job.”

  Hawkins turned and walked along the wall to the door at its end near where Destiny had stood. She was no longer there, having quietly vanished without being noticed. His people followed in his wake. O’Hare was the last to pass by Hochstadt on the other side of the table. The pirate squadron leader smiled at the Admiral. “We didn’t even get a chance to swap recipes… or discuss favorite sexual positions.” She blew a bubble and let it pop.

  Hochstadt ignored her as she watched Hawkins depart with a neutral expression. She knew his prediction about killing him was correct. Killing Hawkins would be a momentary success unless the Zekes lost their war. Hawkins was also correct that the attack on Mallory’s squadron would not be forgotten by the Zekes. Killing Raferty Hawkins, a peer of the realm and a war hero would only add to the reasons for the Zekes to return here if they won their war. Of course, if she killed Killian O’Hare she would do cartwheels around the room, consequences be damned.

  It occurred to Hochstadt that she had had no idea about Hawkins’ early life or how he got started in his current path until the reports from the Aurora Empire media on Hawkins’ life story and his new peerage had filled in those gaps. The Goldenes Tor military intelligence service could hardly take credit for that information. For many years, there had been that large hole in the Goldenes Tor information banks about the life of Raferty Hawkins and nobody had bothered to find out why or try to fill in the missing information. She supposed it was because nobody took him seriously despite his years of being that pain in the ass. She took him very seriously from the beginning. She hoped that difference would aid her in bringing him down. The sound of her people rising from their seats and milling about behind her brought her back to the present.

  “Let’s go,” she said to nobody in particular. She turned and moved directly to the door as her officers moved to get out of her way. She was lost in thought and did not notice. As she exited the room into the lobby, she noticed Destiny Flores was at the front door. The owner stood quietly with her hands folded in front of her and a smile on her face.

  “Admiral,” Destiny said as Hochstadt closed the distance between them. Her staff halted a respectful distance away as they waited for their commander to say her good byes.

  Admiral Hochstadt stopped in front of the shorter woman. She offered her hand and Destiny took it.

  “Destiny, let me apologize to you for the action of my two junior officers. As I assured Captain Hawkins, they were acting on their own.”

  Destiny nodded in acceptance of the apology. “The exasperation of youth. Immediate gratification with no regard as to the larger situation or to the ramifications of their actions.”

  Hochstadt was thankful that accusations and demands were being avoided as she departed. “Thank you, Destiny. I hope to return here under less formal circumstances.”

  “You are always welcome, Admiral.”

  “Thank you,” Hochstadt said again as she turned to the door. The other Goth Officers followed the Admiral out into the street. Admiral Dietrich moved to Hochstadt’s side as the staff kept a respectful distance behind them to allow for some privacy.

  “Since apologies are going all around, I owe you one,” he said. “I should have seen the Letters of Marque and Reprisal coming. No way the Zekes let one of their peers of the realm run around committing acts of piracy. As soon as he requested the meeting, I should have seen it.”

  “My staff didn’t see it either.”

  “Your staff hasn’t spent years in the Badlands watching Hawkins like I have. I should have seen it.” He didn’t add that her staff were idiots. A true statement in his opinion but not productive at the moment.

  Chapter 29

  A shuttle waited on the roof. This was the transportation that had brought Killian O’Hare to the meeting and was now prepared to transport her back to her business in Baseline. O’Hare threw her gum in a nearby trash can and moved quickly from the meeting room to the roof. Five of her seven-man team were waiting at the door to the roof. O’Hare moved past Dallas Keitel and opened that door. As they moved across the roof to the shuttle, Killian quizzed her. “Any changes?”

  “No,” replied Corsair’s OpsO and leader of their death squad. “I talked to them three minutes ago, and all is well at the HQ and the surrounding area.” Two team members had been left as lookouts at the Sunrise Regional Headquarters in Baseline. They were covering the front and rear of the building.

  O’Hare nodded. “Keep on the comm. Plan remains the same.”

  The six people moved into the shuttle and took seats. They were strapping in as the engines wound up and the shuttle lifted. It was a thirty-minute flight to Baseline. The shuttle flew over Westrose and headed across the open plain to their destination. As soon as she sat down, Killian began donning her gear and weapon.

  Ten minutes out from the regional headquarters of Sunrise Corp
oration, Dallas Keitel spoke on the team’s comm net, “Equipment!” The four people of her squad checked their various loads and ammunition pouches. They then checked each other to ensure nothing was overlooked.

  Two minutes out, Keitel said, “Weapons!” The squad loaded their pulse rifles and strapped them to their bodies.

  Keitel looked out the side portholes and estimated closure rate to the roof top landing pad of the headquarters. She turned back to her charges. “Thirty seconds.” She spoke with less volume as she deliberately willed herself to be calm. O’Hare watched it all from the edge of the group. She detected the nervousness of first timers but thought they were doing fine. Keitel was so involved with the landing she overlooked comm with her two lookouts. O’Hare took it upon herself to check. She spoke through her headset. “Anything to report?”

  “Nothing to report. All normal.” The two reports came back quickly as the lookouts were keyed to give it and had probably been wondering why the call hadn’t come. Keitel looked stricken as she heard the question go out over her own headset and realized she had screwed up by not making the call herself. She deliberately did not look at O’Hare.

  O’Hare did look at her. “Hey!” Keitel looked over reluctantly and O’Hare continued. “Don’t worry about it. The lookouts could see us coming and would have called if there had been a problem. You’re doing fine.”

  Keitel gave her a tentative smile as the shuttle set up on short final to arrive at a smooth touchdown. The force quickly moved out of the shuttle to the door to the interior of the building. In their earlier observation period, they had seen two shuttles come and go. They had dropped off well-dressed people and O’Hare concluded some of the system managers were here for a meeting with the head of the region. So much the better. Killian smiled to herself. She suspected it was highly likely the coming of a Royal Navy squadron to the Badlands and the return of Pirate Flotilla One would be topics of conversation. Instead of a dry presentation, they would now get to meet the threat in person. Breaks up an otherwise dreary meeting.