Rivka wanted to ask once more when that would be, but Ankh brushed past on his way back to Peacekeeper.
“Are you done?” she asked. Red blocked his way. The Crenellian tilted his head back to look up at the big man until it seemed like he would fall over. Red crossed his arms and pointed with his chin toward the Magistrate.
Instead, Ankh looked at the access hatch in the deck, which popped open. Two maintenance bots climbed out, and a final heavy clunk heard through the hull signaled that the bot working outside the ship had detached. The rest of the team removed their hoods and secured their ship suits from full containment.
“Now we are finished.”
“You are a miracle worker, Ankh.”
Rivka’s beaming smile and platitudes were lost on the alien. “I would say that this work was below my paygrade, but I recognize that we all do the tasks necessary to complete the mission—”
“Case,” Rivka corrected, but Ankh didn’t notice.
“I like working with Ted, Erasmus, and Plato in the development of new technologies. But I also like putting criminals away. There is a certain order in the galaxy that must be maintained. That helps free us to explore new possibilities using only our minds because we are safe. I have accepted my mission to help you in expectation of the day when the galaxy is secure enough that all of us can be at peace and free to enjoy what we choose to do.”
“Damn, little man,” Red said. “If we can accomplish that, I’ll be out of a job.”
“We’ll be out of jobs,” Lindy added. “And then we can take our honeymoon and be like a real couple. What will you do, Magistrate?”
“I... I don’t know,” Rivka stuttered. “Maybe work on AGB franchises to bring them to all corners of the galaxy.”
“The galaxy is elliptical in shape,” Ankh stated matter-of-factly.
“Of course it is.” Rivka looked past Red. “It’s time, people! I need you two,” Rivka pointed at Red and Lindy, “and Jay and Tyler to go with me on the shuttle. Ankh, you follow in the Peacekeeper.”
Ankh nodded briefly and returned to the corvette. Jay and the dentist worked their way through the umbilical and stepped aboard. Tyler looked uncomfortable, and Jay carried Floyd.
“We can’t bring Floyd.” Rivka put her foot down.
Noooo! I small, Floyd tried to explain.
“It’s not your size. It’s the danger. I would put you in danger, in addition to jeopardizing the mission. You need to watch over Ankh and Hamlet. We’ll be back together soon enough.”
Floyd started to cry. Jay blinked as well, hugging the wombat tightly as she returned to their ship and put Floyd in the passageway. They both disappeared.
“Ankh, we may have to take a shortcut. If we Gate most of the way there, can we make up the lost time?”
“I will calculate an appropriate entry point that will put you right on schedule, less than a day out from Fenek.”
“Late would be bad.” Rivka nodded and headed for the cockpit. She took the pilot’s seat and started mashing buttons to familiarize herself with the system.
“I’ll be able to fly the boat for you,” Chaz offered, speaking to her from a speaker linked into the main control panel.
“Hey, Chaz! Look at you, right in the middle of my pilot’s station.”
“Have you ever flown a spaceship before, Magistrate?”
Rivka leaned back. “I watch you do it all the time. Looks easy.”
“I assure you it is not. May I request that you let me handle it?”
“You know, so you don’t crash and kill us all?” Red interjected.
“Why do you have to be so hurtful? I mean, all of you!” Rivka shook her head and chuckled.
“Just the facts, ma’am,” Red grumbled before retiring to the main cabin.
“Go ahead, Chaz. It’s all you. Be the ship. What’s this ship’s name, anyway?”
“It has only its designation, which is LRS-4169.”
“Sixty-nine!” Red called from somewhere out of sight. It was immediately followed by the sound of an arm getting punched, which was followed by a grunt of pain.
The airlock cycled, and Peacekeeper detached. Rivka could still hear Floyd’s cries in her mind.
“What do we call her?” Rivka asked the team. She left the bridge because Chaz had things well in hand, flying both ships in tandem.
“Gate forming,” Chaz reported. “We will arrive at the edge of the gravity well a full day's travel from Fenek Eudoxius.”
“Didn’t we go through this with Peacekeeper?” Red asked.
The Magistrate smirked at the memory. It had taken a while to name her corvette. It had taken time to name their weapons.
Dr. Toofakre looked uncomfortable.
“What do you think, Doc?” Rivka asked.
“I think I have no idea what I’m doing. What will happen when we land? What happens if they’re violent? Our cover is pretty thin.”
“This is a crime ring, and those do have a tendency to be extremely violent when protecting their assets. However, we generally bring a great deal of pain, and our intent is to make a surgically precise extraction of the cancer that is the ringleader. Tomorrow this may all be over. Our perp could be in custody or dead, and their minions running for their lives. Sometimes it only takes one innocuous piece of information to break an organization’s back.”
“Spinal Tap,” Tyler replied.
The Magistrate held her hands up and shook her head. Jay looked lost but was taking more interest in the conversation now that they could no longer hear the wombat.
“Name of the ship. Spinal Tap. I think it used to be a band, too.”
Lindy was first to agree. “I like it.”
“I’m good with it.” Rivka gave two thumbs-up. “And this is us, which means that the ship probably won’t make it to the end, so a temporary name could be its forever name.”
“Our track record would suggest you are correct,” Red noted, making his voice sound mechanical as if he were a computer delivering a simple report of the weather. Lindy started to laugh.
The dentist strolled among the group with his hands clasped behind his back. He looked from one face to another as he went back and forth.
“Danger,” he started, but was slow to continue. “You people seem to laugh at danger, but in a way that suggests you are not afraid. That the pain you bring is much greater than what the criminals have at their command. It makes me want to pity them, but I know better. They are scumbags, and the universe is better off without them.”
Tyler continued to pace. The rest of the team waited.
“Peacekeeper is remaining behind until a suitable separation has been established between them and the long-range shuttle,” Chaz reported.
“Spinal Tap,” the team said together.
“Spinal Tap it is,” Chaz confirmed.
Dr. Toofakre continued, “Is it that hard to believe that people would be so committed to making the galaxy a safer place that they would be willing to risk it all like you folks do? You get no personal enrichment from it. At least I get paid after treating a patient.”
“We have a yacht that the team has acquired,” Red admitted.
“Confiscated,” Rivka clarified.
“What did you have to do to get that?”
“Fight in a civil war,” Lindy said first.
“But we were in the middle, fighting both sides at the same time,” Jay explained.
“And then we were shot and burned by the tree guy,” Red offered.
“Did we get shot during that one?” Rivka wondered.
“We got the holy hell beat out of us.”
“I remember that part.”
“We saw the mayor. That deserves a pain-and-suffering bonus.”
“Those were grim days.” The team chuckled together.
“’Seeing the mayor?’” Tyler asked.
Red made the twig and berries motion with his hands.
The dentist blanched. “I see.” He gathered his wits. “I
am thankful that there are people like you looking out for people like me. I won’t take my peace and security for granted.”
“We have a convert! Don’t break the law. You don’t want to see us beating your door down at oh too-early thirty,” Red told him.
“I have no intention of breaking the law. Once word of your actions reaches the underworld, it should have a chilling effect on crime, I would think.”
“Unfortunately, that’s not how it works. All it does is increases the prices on our heads. We can’t advertise what we do. Perps thinking they’re safe is our best defense. Anything else and the scumbags are loaded for gorons, ready to blast the next person through their door.”
“It’s a shit show, Doc,” Red clarified.
“I understand,” the dentist said, shaking his head at Red’s description.
“Study up!” Rivka commanded. “Erasmus has uploaded the planet’s information file to your datapads. Study it and learn it. I’ll be working the lines to set up a meeting with our as-yet-unknown contact.”
“I’ll be the vic,” Lindy offered.
“Ain’t gonna work,” Rivka replied.
“Me?” Jay said meekly.
“You’re the youngest and the cutest, so you’re perfect slave material. Unfortunately. We won’t let you out of our sight, and if it becomes necessary, run for your life. No one can catch you.”
Chapter Eleven
“She’s awake,” Grainger declared from the big screen. The others listened in, since the rec room was a communal space. Rivka missed being able to have private conversations on the bridge.
I need a bigger ship, she complained in the landscape of her mind. Still, Spinal Tap made Peacekeeper seem luxurious. They had docked again after arrival in the system to attend to some details before going down to Fenek Eudoxius, although they had not originally planned to. Too bad Floyd would be upset—again—when they left—again.
“I wish you were here. She is mostly incoherent, unable to grasp where she is or how she got here. Maybe in a couple days, she’ll settle down enough to have a conversation.”
“Or maybe the drugs caused more grief than we thought. Psychotropics are bad news.”
“We’ll add that to the list of things we need to get to the bottom of. How and where? They must have their own chemist who dispenses meds for each targeted race. We’re all the same, but we’re all different.”
“I already have it on my list of questions. When we catch these people, I know we’ll have to launch an army of police to clean out the rats’ nests scattered throughout the known worlds.” Rivka slowly blew out her breath. “Did she give you anything at all?”
“We showed her pictures of her kidnappers, but she didn’t remember any of them except for Candi Matz. And she asked if she could see her. It was a little disconcerting,” Grainger admitted. “She doesn’t understand that she was a victim, and I’m not sure how much I want to play into that. If she doesn’t remember, I don’t need to convince her. I’ll leave that to the psychiatrists to unscrew.”
“That may be the extent of what you need from her. Let her recover physically, then get her on the next express cruiser home.”
“I was thinking the same thing. I’ll turn her over to a security team to escort wherever she wants to go, except back to the cruise liner where she was kidnapped—although without Candi and her people, even that is probably safe.”
“As long as she doesn’t go see that pig Callius Markmal.”
“Girls gone wild.” Grainger repeated the social media siren’s call. “She’s free to do as she pleases.”
“I know. People are responsible for their good decisions and their bad ones. He would be everyone’s bad decision. Maybe people need a few of those in their lives, so they know where the boundaries are. Without evil, what would good look like? Without making some bad decisions, how can they tell if they’re making good ones?”
“Too philosophical for my blood, Magistrate. I called to let you know that we’re not getting anything from the vic, but she is awake and on her way to a full physical recovery, at least.”
“Thanks, Leib...” Rivka caught herself before saying his name out loud in front of all the others. “Thanks. Leave it to us, Grainger. We’re already in the traffic pattern for Fenek Eudoxius. Next stop, the planet’s surface. Hopefully, the meeting with the locals will include someone who is expecting us to drop off a fire-haired slave girl.”
“May your travels deliver a feast for your eyes and fill your soul beyond measure. Grainger out.”
“Who’s the philosopher now?” Rivka mumbled, chewing the inside of her lip. “Ankh, do you have anything for us?”
“I do,” the alien replied. “I found the name Ch'ta'ka in the long-range shuttle’s computer. I have set up a meeting. Details have been forwarded to your pad.” He signed off.
The Magistrate removed her datapad from her jacket pocket and studied the information. “That does not instill confidence,” she said to herself before looking up to address the group. “Red, Lindy, what is your armament plan?”
Red opened his mouth, but stopped and nodded to Lindy. If she could explain the plan, he would know they were both on the same page.
“The kidnappers had no body armor and limited weapons, so that’s what we’re going with—their slugthrowers. We will remain with you, keeping Jay between us. We want the doc to bring up the rear, staying out of sight and not speaking. You don’t come across as a thug, Doc. Sorry. We’re blessed in that department.”
She waited for the snickers to stop before continuing.
“If there is an exchange, we take out any shooters on their side, preferably by disabling them. Jay will need to help us by using her speed to disarm them or ram them or whatever she needs to do, based on the situation. If they have shooters overlooking the area, Red and I will take them out. We’ll leave the head honcho to you, Magistrate.”
“What if we’re inside a building after weaving our way through a bunch of corridors or underground?” Rivka asked.
“It doesn’t change our engagement.” Lindy made a finger gun and shot imaginary bad guys. “The most important thing for everyone to remember is that when we act, we need to take control of the situation. Once in control, we can leverage that to extricate ourselves if we are within layered security. I should say when, because there is no way the exchange will take place in the open.”
“Which means we will take hostages,” the dentist said slowly, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
“Criminals take hostages. We secure suspects. There is a monumental difference, because we assume responsibility for their health and well-being once in our custody.”
“I’m good with that. Do I get a gun?” he asked. Red made a face, suggesting the answer was no.
“As with the best con jobs, it will be the appearance of being armed and not actually being armed. If there’s a firefight, get between us and get down. You’ll wear body armor under your clothes—the full set. It’ll bulk you up to where they’ll think you’re a tough guy. Please understand that the last thing you want to do is shoot someone.” Rivka gently put her hand on his shoulder. She didn’t want the dentist to become like her or Red or Lindy.
“I get it. I’ll try not to be in your way,” he replied, sounding disappointed.
Hamlet appeared and wove his way between the legs of those standing. No one moved, since everyone had taken their turn getting tripped by the cat. Floyd bounced up and tried to touch noses, but Hamlet wasn’t having any of that. He swiped a paw, but the wombat was nearly as quick, meeting his paw with her long-clawed foot. She grabbed his paw and tugged.
He yowled and jumped straight up. When he came back down, his back legs launched him toward the recliner where Rivka sat. She tried to dodge, but he was too quick, and she was trapped within the comfortable chair’s confines. He ran up one leg, claws fully extended, before vaulting to his next victim.
When Hamlet ultimately landed in the corner of the room, he sat up and
started grooming his face as if nothing had happened. There was much cursing, all of it directed at the white cat with gray spots.
Rivka waved to get everyone’s attention.
“You are instrumental for us to maintain appearances,” she told Tyler. “All of us are. Taking this ring down is the single most important effort we can make. Tomorrow, it may be something else, but for today, there are women who will never be kidnapped because Candi Matz is no more. If we eliminate the buyer on Fenek, more suppliers will be out of business. We eliminate enough suppliers, and the auction blocks on Corran will stand empty. Which reminds me, how much time until we have to be back for Seequa’s hearing?”
“Five days, Magistrate,” Chaz replied.
“Which means we have about two days to unfuck this planet. That’s not a whole lot of time. I hope everyone got enough sleep.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Tyler whispered to Jay.
“It means, we may not get a chance to sleep again until we leave Fenek Eudoxius. Do you have your running shoes, Doc? She left off that part. We generally have to run.”
“For fitness?”
“For our lives,” Jay replied evenly.
Spinal Tap settled into its parking spot, one among a thousand other ships. The spaceport bustled with activity to feed visitors into and out of a dozen major cities that catered to a broad spectrum of activities from vacations to business and everything in between.
“How have I not heard of this place before?” Rivka asked while they waited to open the hatch and meet their ride.
“It is called Mecca colloquially. Fenek Eudoxius is the official name on star maps,” Chaz replied.
“I’ve heard of Mecca. It’s supposed to be where everyone wants to go,” she intoned. It hadn’t been on her wish list of places to visit.
“It’s on our short list of places for a honeymoon,” Lindy said.
“Probably won’t be after we get done with it,” Jay muttered under her breath.
“One of these days, people are going to like us after we’ve visited their planet,” Rivka replied.
“But today is not that day!” Red declared.
Slave Trade Page 10
