A Sudden Departure (April Book 9)

by Mackey Chandler

  That made Heather smile. She wanted time with them, not a public appearance.

  "If we have to go out for supper let's make it somewhere fun," she requested. "Your club or the Quiet Retreat. Can you really count on anything being in the fridge? You made clear Gunny doesn't let anything sit around and have a chance to go bad."

  "He's off on ISSII, and somewhere beyond that he neglected to tell me," April said. "If he'd gotten back he'd have dropped a note to my pad."

  "And you haven't had anybody report where he went from ISSII?" Jeff asked.

  "If I had it wouldn't be polite to say," April insisted. "I'll call and see if the Fox and Hare are booked up. If they are we'll go to straight to the Quiet Retreat. I like to keep aware what sort of things the competition is offering from time to time anyway."

  They made it to April's hatch and entered. It was a full certified Mitsubishi airlock, she liked that because it meant there was no annual inspection snooping around her cubic, or rather there was an annual, but not as intrusive as checking a pressure sensing curtain lock. It required they close the outer door before they opened the inner. It was very difficult to override and get both open at once. Safety outweighed convenience. Out of ingrained habit April confirmed the pressure was up before she opened the inner.

  The lights came up automatically, and Heather went to look at April's new drawing and Jeff hurried off on a course they assumed was for the bathroom. Before Heather could really look at Lindsey's new work, or they could discuss it, the door alarm buzzed.

  "House, show corridor on big screen," April ordered.

  Not only were they not expecting anyone, they would have never guessed their visitors would be the Head of Security, Jon Davis, Gabriel, and a third officer April didn't know by name. It wouldn't have been so disquieting, but they were in full armor and armed. Not a hard suit, but as much as you could wear in pressure including full ballistic faceplates tilted back to show their faces.

  April was shocked to see Gabriel kitted out this way. She knew he'd been hired for security work, but somehow she assumed he'd be in intelligence and analysis. She'd never pictured him able to do the rough stuff, because he was so gentle and mannerly.

  "May we speak with you?" Jon asked when the external screen activated on the corridor. He had a wonderful theatrical voice, but today he spoke a little faster and clipped, suggesting an unusual urgency.

  April hesitated in shock, so Heather managed to beat her to it.

  "You are talking with us. Do you seek someone here?" she demanded. "Do you have a complaint or mandate from the Assembly?" Her expression wasn't friendly at all.

  Such a thing never occurred to April. She regarded Jon like a favorite uncle, but it wasn't lost on April that Heather hooked a thumb behind the grip of her laser. That wasn't simply an empty gesture. The armor they wore was much more effective against ballistic weapons than the expensive energy weapon. Forcing their way through the lock, unable to avoid that weapon's beam, would be a deadly choke point if they intended to breech the lock.

  "Not at all," Jon said showing his palms to Heather even thought the gesture lost some of its innocence with black gauntlets and the ballistic flap secured back off the fingers.

  Gabriel looked over his shoulder, worried. What could he possibly be concerned with coming behind them, given the way they were equipped?

  "We've intercepted com from some foreign visitors," Jon explained. "They intend to lure James Weir to your apartment. They may think it's still empty and a perfect place to ambush him. We were aware you are back and actually want to guard you, not arrest anyone. Would you please let us get out of the corridor?"

  "Sure, come on in Jon," April decided. Heather didn't look as sure.

  Jon was definitely in a different mental state than his usual laid-back self. He looked both ways coming through the inner hatch like it might be an ambush. He nodded at the nearby couches facing each other over a low table, and pointed.

  "Can I set up there?"

  April gave him permission with a wave.

  "You can always go in a full lock, not a curtain lock, as a safety feature," April reminded him. "It's in the building code. You just can't go through without the correct code."

  "I know. We intended to set up in your lock to wait for these guys, but it might have seemed unfriendly to enter after we were aware you beat us back here," Jon said. "Heather already felt that way with us still out in the corridor."

  Jon took off his helmet with its visor and internal display, and put on his usual spex. He put his pad on the table, pointed at the big screen still showing the now empty corridor outside and lifted an inquiring eyebrow.

  "House, link main screen to guest. No restrictions to outside access," April ordered.

  Jon switched the feed from the corridor just outside to the elevators further away.

  The other two considered the layout of the room and acted without orders from Jon. Gabriel went as far down the bulkhead away from the entry as he could without being in the kitchen and hunkered down with one hand loosely holding his carbine in front of him. The other fellow, unnamed but with a tag on his chest that said 'Schmidt', took the other end of the couch from Jon facing directly at the entry hatch.

  None was in the others' fields of fire, and the fellow by Jon could fire into the airlock if it opened. That was to be preferred, and April hoped he was a good shot, because he carefully laid his weapon on the table to avoid scratching it. It was a 30mm grenade launcher with a rotary magazine. One shot in the airlock would clear it of anything, but likely destroy it. April just wondered if he knew how much a brand new Mitsubishi airlock would cost?

  Heather finally relaxed seeing the troopers attention totally focused on the lock and externals instead of them.

  "You said these people are luring James Weir here? How could they do that? Especially, why would they do that with us gone?" April asked.

  "I'm guessing they know you have a full airlock," Jon said. "Anybody could know that from walking by in the corridor and reading the manufacturer's plate. I suspect they were going to wait for him in the lock just like we intended, before you showed back up here."

  "But how would they lure him?" Heather asked.

  "We had them, but not Weir, under surveillance. They did a number of things since entering that convinced me they were up to no good. From the half of the communication we had it appears they asked him here to meet with Jeff," Jon said.

  "I've met Jim." April told him. "He'd all kinds of things but not stupid, not even a little. If you sent him a text when you talked face to face before he'd know something was wrong. He'd ask for video and refuse to come when it wasn't forthcoming. He might even be confident enough about Home customs to call you when it didn't look right."

  "That's possible," Jon agreed. "I interviewed James when he first arrived. He was very straight forward. I didn't bother with these other two characters, but they didn't text. It appeared they had a very sophisticated AI that could spoof Jeff real time."

  "Son-of-a bitch!" Jeff said from behind them. He'd heard most of it and was understandably upset that his computer generated avatar would be used as bait.

  "I hate those sort of constructs," April said. "But it usually only takes me a few sentences to figure out when self-important, pretentious people use them for an answering machine. If they were as rich and famous as they think they are they'd have actual flesh and blood minions."

  "The sort people buy for a few hundred bucks Australian, yeah." Jon agreed. "But the sort national intelligence agencies have written specifically to spoof real people? You might be surprised how good they can be."

  "What are you going to do?" Heather asked. "Sucker them into entering the lock? You should have brought sleepy gas if you were going to do that. They may try to shoot their way out and these bulkheads aren't armored."

  "We're here for you. I moved fast to get into position, but we have teams around the curve of the corridor both ways. We won't let them in, and we can lock the ou
ter hatch now that we are inside here. Then my two teams will swoop in from each side and arrest them in overwhelming force. I have a few questions to put to these two. I'm not sure at this point for whom they are working. It could be a government or a corporation."

  "Or a non-governmental agency," Jeff said, thinking of his dealings with the mafia.

  "If it's going to be a wait I'll make us all coffee," April offered.

  "Please, that would be nice," Jon said. "They asked James to be here in about an hour, but we have no idea how far ahead they intended to arrive."

  Chapter 16

  "We have movement," one of Jon's minions reported well into his second cup of coffee. "They have departed their hotel room with two bulky bags." He didn't say anything for another thirty of forty seconds. "They aren't wearing any sidearms. That makes them conspicuous," Jon's man reported. You could hear the amusement in his voice.

  "This was planned long ago if they could get hotel reservations," Jeff told them. "They are booked months ahead even if you will take anything and money is no object."

  "Coming up on the elevator," he reported. "There were others getting on so they hung back and one acted like he was dealing with something on his pad. They are looking for some privacy I'd say. As soon as the door closes on them I'll inform you. Are you going to pull your teams in to the elevators when they start up?" the voice inquired.

  "Probably," Jon told him. "Give me your elevator view." He split April's screen and showed the elevator down at the full G level. "I should have had them plant a camera in the elevator," he complained. "I wasn't sure we had time."

  "They might have seen it," Jeff said.

  "They're Earthies," Jon reminded him. "They'd probably expect it."

  On camera the two walked casually across the corridor and in the elevator.

  "No, no. . . go away!" Jon's man on the lower level said out loud.

  Gunny Mac appeared on camera speeding up to catch the elevator and called out to hold it. The two men didn't make a move to keep the doors from shutting but Gunny reached them in time, pushing his own bag forward to catch the opening at the last minute and force the doors back open. He turned around once inside and gave the two a look that should have dropped them dead to the deck for ignoring his request. Then the doors closed.

  "Everybody stay put," Jon ordered. "We have a civilian in the elevator. Let them enter the corridor up here and maybe they will separate. If it were me doing the operation I'd exit and turn whichever way Gunny didn't to be rid of him and then double back."

  "Or just walk all the way around the ring," April said. "Give him time to go in somewhere."

  "Harrison," Jon said to the team leader past the elevators. "If they turn your way you'll be in sight too easily. Pull back down the corridor to the maintenance spaces and be prepared to duck inside and let them pass if they come your way."

  "Roger, withdrawing," Harrison acknowledged.

  "What I really don't want is a hostage situation here," Jon said.

  April looked at him, faintly surprised, then amused. "Did you bring body bags?"

  "Of course, but we'll try not to need them," Jon said.

  "Those two are dead men walking," April assured him. "They won't walk away from Gunny or anything so bright. He's death in both hands and enhanced in both reflexes and strength. They'll try to assert control, and for sure they'll do something stupid. It's what Earthies do."

  * * *

  Inside the elevator the taller of the two men pointed to the elevator buttons and lifted an eyebrow to ask if Gunny wanted him to punch another level.

  "That's good for me," Gunny said since the half G level light was lit. What he didn't expect was the exasperated sigh, and both of them stepping as far away from him as possible and drawing pistols on him.

  "On the other hand, I'll take any other level you want to pick for me," Gunny decided. But no, he saw right away, that train had left the station already.

  "Put your hands deep in your pockets and make fists," the tall one commanded. "Close your eyes, and if you open them before I tell you to I'm going to shoot you."

  Gunny was sure he could take either of them, but not both at the same time, so he complied. There was after all no rush until one of them started shooting. He felt them relieve him of his pistol.

  "OK, you can open your eyes."

  The shorter fellow had laid his pistol on the deck in the far corner, and was sliding the magazine in his own pocket. Gunny hadn't heard him work the action, so there was still one up the snout if he could recover it. The man probably hadn't wanted to chase the round around the elevator floor if he didn't catch it. Gunny wasn't sure what he'd do in the same situation.

  "Now, very slowly reach and drop your pants around your ankles." The tall on said.

  Gunny did as he was told.

  "I want you to reach to the back of the hand rail there and grasp it, no, not the far back one, the short one on the side, yeah. Now back flat to the wall, stretch you other arm out straight and grab the rail towards the front."

  That left Gunny without an arm cocked to strike and in a position where he had no leverage to launch off the wall. This guy had handled prisoners before, dangerous ones.

  "Gerald, go against the back wall and sidle over and cuff him, not on the rail where he can slide it, but on the stand-off spacer at the back, so he can't reach the controls. Then back off to the other rear corner."

  Gerald frowned at being named, but said nothing. He was definitely the subordinate.

  When that was accomplished the leader reached in his pocket without looking and got a card. He stepped closer to the controls and stuck it in the control panel with hardly a glance. He was very familiar with the layout. Where he got a fire and rescue card was another good question. He twisted the knob that would keep the alarm from ringing when he took the car out of service. When it stopped at the half G level he locked the car there and set the doors locked to the call button so the car was out of service to anyone without a card.

  "OK, gear up," he said to his companion and looked over his shoulder at the shorter fellow, Gerald, in the corner. Gerald was already leaning over to open his bag.

  The aluminum rail was a bulky flat extrusion to fit your hand and it only had six millimeter bolts holding it off the wall through short stanchions at three places. Gunny ripped it off the wall and swung it as hard as he could. It hit right on the tall fellow's Adam's apple crushing it before the man could even look back at Gunny. The end third of the soft bar whipped clear around his neck until it crossed over the long end slightly. With it pulled off the wall, he was free from the rail, just the cuff hanging loose on his wrist.

  The other man was only half way erect when Gunny kicked his face with the top of his foot and flipped him backwards so hard his head hit in the corner and he bounced back on his face. Gunny stepped back, opened the doors and removed the elevator card.

  The kicked fellow was still squirming on the floor, so Gunny grabbed him around the neck with one hand and the other gathered the seat of his pants in his grip. He took two steps and threw him across the corridor. Where he hit head first it drove a depression in the corridor wall a good hundred millimeters deep. He fell in a pile unmoving. Gunny dragged the fellow in the car out into the corridor, then he came across and went through the other man's pockets until he found the cuff key and recovered his magazine.

  Jon didn't have time to order anything. When the doors opened one man was laying with a massive piece of metal wrapped around his neck. The other came flying through the door three seconds later and seemed to gain altitude crossing the corridor. It was only a half G.

  "Both teams, you can stand down," Jon ordered. "The situation is. . . uh. . . under control."

  "Told you," April said.

  By the time the first team arrived Gunny had already dragged the fellow in the elevator out into the corridor, had his cuff off, his pistol back in its holster and the dead men's weapons one in each pocket. He had one bag open and was checkin
g the contents out.

  Harrison's team showed up and checked the man in the corridor for signs of life. That was a lost cause. Harrison walked over pulling on surgeon's gloves and made to pick up the other bag Gunny was ignoring. Jon and his men arrived too.

  "Keep your mitts off that," Gunny told him.

  "It's evidence at a crime scene. I need to secure it and send it for analysis," he insisted.

  "It's my trophy by right of combat," Gunny insisted. "Anything these two have I can lay claim to, right down to their socks if I want them."

  "I, respectfully disagree," Harrison said.

  "I call you out on it," Gunny said. "You can meet me in the North Hub corridor bright and early tomorrow morning, and if you can kill me the bag. . . all of it actually, is yours."

  "You would meet me over pistols?" Harrison asked, shocked.

  "I challenged," Gunny reminded him. "You can pick any damn thing you want. For all I care we can go at it buck naked with nails and teeth. You might consider how much good pistols did these two." Gunny made a dismissive wave at his handiwork.

  Harrison looked at the fellow with the rail wrapped around his neck, the other with his neck bent at an impossible angle, and thought about it. When he looked at his boss, Jon, he got no support at all. The man looked back at him with a poker face that said it wasn't any affair of his. That said a great deal right there. Nobody was stepping forward to be his second.

  "I withdraw my assertion. You are correct on the custom sir, and I will publish it."

  Gunny just nodded like it wasn't of any particular consequence, and gathered his stuff, including his prizes, checking the men's pockets.

  Jeff and his ladies arrived from down corridor, Jon and his men trailing behind after his attempts to keep them at April's apartment fell on deaf ears. April was terribly concerned for Gunny and had to see up close he was unharmed.

  Jon told Harrison to dismiss his men and run an after action in the morning. He was about to turn away hoping Gunny and the three fresh from the moon would let him return with them to April's apartment, when the elevator arrived again and the doors opened.