by TR Cameron
Heh. The guards spread apart. Two of them went toward the windows, and the other two moved laterally across the room. Six sections that each contained four cubicles, three long by two deep, divided the space. He fully expected that one trooper would follow the long lane that separated the first set of three from the other, and the others would walk the cross lanes. His cubicle was positioned on the second vertical lane from his foes’ entry point, farthest from the window. They cleared methodically while announcing their progress, and he once again wished for less capable opponents.
He crouched and waited. As one angled to walk down his lane, Jax exploded from his lowered position in an uppercut with his left hand. It cracked it against the trooper’s jaw and lifted him from his feet. He fell into the opposite workstation with a crash, and Jax turned and ran the six feet to the middle of the room. He ducked and smashed the class ring down on a cubicle wall, and his glasses dimmed an instant before the blinding light shot out.
They returned to their normal state in seconds, and he saw a guard stagger back with his hands over his eyes. The other two had gotten lucky, to judge by their rather accurate weapons fire. Jax dove and rolled to avoid it, and stayed in the middle lane hidden by the cubicles. He scurried and turned as he divided his attention between his point of view and the cameras showing his enemies. He popped up behind one as the man spun and blocked the reflexive strike from the butt of the weapon that tried to connect with his face.
Jax grabbed the gun and delivered a hard kick to the man’s sternum. It knocked him off balance and blasted the wind from him through the protection of his body armor. He ducked as rounds splattered against the windows beside him, but they didn’t break. Damn it. He charged forward and took the man down in a rushing tackle, then elbowed him in the helmet to put him out. He gave the rifle a once-over and cursed at the discovery that it had no stun capability.
He drew a deep breath, gripped the weapon like a spear, and popped up over the cubicle. The last trooper standing was pointing his weapon slightly away from Jax and traversed it with the trigger down the moment he appeared. Jax hurled the rifle at him and dropped and rolled to his left, toward the opening he’d have to take to charge the man. He came to his feet and ran forward. He saw his target duck to his right in a display window, which put him directly in line with the lane containing an onrushing Jackson Reese. He blasted into the guard, shoved him backward, and slammed him into the wall. The man fell, dazed.
Only then did he realize that the man had clipped him, and he bled from a shallow wound in his right arm. Why do they always shoot the human arm? Damn bastards. He reached down to his belt buckle and yanked it, then pulled a length of the cord within it free. He wrapped it around the guard twice from crotch to shoulders and knotted it. He used the line to drag the man to the windows, then pulled over the only remaining conscious trooper, the one who’d taken the blinding light hard enough to lose his vision. He patted the man. “Should come back. Now, put one hand here.” He draped one of the man’s arms around a pillar. “And one here.” He put the roped guard’s forearm in his other hand. “If you let go, you’re both going to die. So don’t let go.”
He spooled out the rest of the line as he walked to the window. Athena, status?
“Guards in twenty-seven seconds or so. They’ve finally cleared the workers. Also, that cable probably isn’t long enough.”
Yeah, yeah, I know. He used the cufflinks to scrape a wide X in the bullet-riddled glass, tracing it several times to be sure. Then he stepped back, lifted one of the rifles he’d taken from the guards, and fired into his mark’s exact center. It cracked under the first burst, and a large section of the middle shattered a moment later. If he’d had a few more seconds, he would have broken the sharp edges free, but voices in the corner suggested his time had run out. He yanked off his jacket and wrapped it around his right hand, grabbed the line with it, and dashed for the opening.
The icy pain as one of the pieces of transparent material sliced into his left leg was shocking enough to make him gasp, but fortunately not sufficiently distracting to cause him to release the cable. The street below with people walking on it rushed at him. This is going to suck. And it did. The line ran out a dozen feet above the pavement and arced him in to slam against the second-floor windows. That must have caused the guard above to lose his grip because a jerking fall of another three feet followed. Then Jax plummeted the rest of the way as the line snapped, and barely managed to get his feet under him and roll when he hit. He yanked off the belt and ran for where his getaway vehicle was parked.
Jax rounded the corner and dove into the back of the unmarked van, which turned to drive along the rear of the block toward where they’d initially broken into the building. It seemed like a lifetime before. He used the little bit of tape he had left to wrap the deepest gashes in his leg and growled the code words Lady Elle’s guard had given him to redirect the vehicle from the spaceport back to the casino. It would take a roundabout route to avoid connecting the organization with him in case he was caught. As his consciousness faded, he hoped he wouldn’t bleed out before he got there.
Chapter Thirteen
The voice sounded amused. “I know you’re awake. We’re monitoring your brainwaves. So quit goldbricking and open those pretty eyes.” It was Lady Elle in her tease mode, and it was impossible not to obey. His eyelids required several tries to unstick, but he finally got them to release their death grips upon one another.
He was on his back and looking up at a white ceiling. He inwardly groaned since it was a familiar setting: a hospital, or medical facility, or medbay, or something. His body felt distant, as if his brain had been put a few feet away from it but was still connected. Am I all here, Athena?
“Physically, yes. Mentally, no more than usual.”
With an internal sigh, he turned his head and spotted an array of medical equipment and the lovely Lady for whom the Lady’s Luck casino was named. Elle was in a simple business suit, the least revealing thing he’d ever seen her wear, and stood next to the bed looking down at him. Her hair, normally exquisitely styled to be noticed, was now pulled back into a bun and secured by thin ornamental metal rods. “Okay, I’m here. Where’s here?”
She gave a throaty laugh. “Again, when I invited you to visit the casino for some recreation time, this is not what I had in mind. We have a full medical facility on-site, and you’re currently its sole occupant.”
He nodded, and a host of aches and pains stood and shouted for attention at the movement. “Ow. What happened?”
She grinned and shook her head. “Ow is right. You jumped out a window, slammed into the side of a building, then fell and smashed yourself on the pavement—all of this after taking several impressively deep lacerations on the way out. By the time the van returned you to the casino, you were unconscious and had likely been so for a while. My medical team says that if you hadn’t taped up your leg, you’d almost certainly have died from blood loss. Oh, and there’s the matter of your hand, but I didn’t think that’s what you were asking about.”
Damaging the hand, he remembered pretty well. The jump out the window was a little hazy. Athena offered, “I can replay it for you. In slow motion, if you like.”
You can do that?
“Of course. I think you must have hit your head harder than expected. Better ask them to check and make sure your brain is still functional. Well, as functional as it’s ever been.”
Hush. Jax propped himself up on his elbows and was pleased to find only more aches, but no significant pain. “So, it seems like I owe you another one, Lady Elle.”
She lifted an eyebrow and the corners of her mouth crooked up. “Your debt is piling up, Jackson. One wonders how you intend to pay it.”
“I, uh…”
She chuckled. “It’s for the Academy. No remaining obligation. Now, rest up for a while, and when you feel strong enough, the Professor wants to speak to you. We have your room ready for you upstairs.”
He nod
ded, then realized something. “Um, where are my clothes?”
Lady Elle laughed seductively as she walked away. “They were a wreck and had to be destroyed. Really, you should have seen them.”
“You did?”
“Firsthand and up close.”
The door clicked shut behind her, and Jax sank back into the bed. I am so not that woman’s equal. Maybe no one is other than Maarsen, for whatever reason.
Athena replied, “You’re no woman’s equal, Jackson. Any evidence you might possess to the contrary is a delusion.”
He closed his eyes and let sleep take him again.
Jax spent the next twenty hours under observation before he was released and sent to his hotel room, along with an escort either for security or to ensure he didn’t collapse. Probably both. The quick heal drugs were exhausting, but he managed a brief shower before collapsing on the bed to sleep for another twelve hours. Finally, three days after his failed effort at stealth in the Confederacy administrative building, he was together enough to shower, shave, dress in something other than a t-shirt and shorts, and talk to his superiors.
He plugged in his comm and waited for the connection to establish. Again he was asked who he was contacting, and again he had to wait, but only for about a minute. Maarsen’s voice sounded concerned. “Jackson, are you healing up well?”
He nodded, then remembered they couldn’t see him. “Yes, mostly. The cuts were deep enough to leave some scars, despite the quick heal drugs. Not that it matters.”
Stephenson rumbled, “Except that they’re identifying marks. When you get back here, you should have them grafted over.”
“Right on, boss.”
The other two laughed. Maarsen observed, “At least your spirits are still strong. So, what have you discovered?”
Athena had passed the hours Jax was awake working to decrypt and organize the information they’d stolen from the Confederacy building. It had surprised him to learn that she couldn’t operate while he was unconscious, and could only work in a limited way while he was sleeping. It had something to do with his mental state and need for rest, but she hadn’t explained it in small enough words, and he’d lost it quickly after that. They’d spent an hour or so before the call talking it over since the demand for a report was guaranteed.
“Athena hasn’t done all her second-level investigations yet. But it seems clear that someone working in UCCA intelligence is crossing a lot of lines, either under orders or freelance. Interestingly, the signs point to a single person connected to both the pirates and the Confederacy. I’d expected two.”
The sound of Maarsen tapping his knuckles on the desk came over the line before he spoke. “That is interesting. Increases the possibility that this is off the books, of course, but also sets up that individual as the scapegoat if something goes wrong with either thing. I don’t think they’re likely to survive a misstep.”
Stephenson added, “Anything to connect it to that bastard Arlox?”
“Nothing in this material. Basically, all we have is some mentions from multiple secret servers that all point to the same person. Athena’s opinion is that the Confederacy people probably didn’t know that others were also working with our mysterious intelligence agent.”
Maarsen sounded surprised, which was notable. “Really? That makes it more likely that it’s not a freelancer. Someone who could accomplish that, given the internal surveillance the Confederacy places on its people, has to have significant resources.”
His superior officer growled, “It also increases the danger exponentially. Oh, and Jax, you’ll be happy to know that you’re officially dead. We received some discreet inquiries seeking confirmation, and they found what they were looking for.”
He frowned. “How did my parents take it?”
“Your actual parents are on vacation at an undisclosed location, very much enjoying themselves. The stand-ins we put in their places are total wrecks.”
Jax chuckled. “How good are they?”
“The best we have. The disguises will fool anyone. Only a genetic test would reveal the deception. And we’ve put a visible presence around their home to prevent someone so inclined from getting near them, ostensibly to honor their desire for solitude. They do make themselves available for comm sessions, and there have been many, some with authentic reporters, some with people we’re back-tracing to see if they’re legit.”
“Okay.” That was his biggest concern with the plan to kill him off, and although Stephenson had promised it was under control, he’d still worried. One problem to check off the list.
Athena snarked, “Leaving only nine hundred and ninety-nine. I am so glad it’s your head I wound up in.”
Truth was, he enjoyed bantering with the AI. The problem was that since she was inside his brain, she knew that, so his protestations were more or less useless. Shut it, robot. Her equivalent of a snort of derision sounded in reply.
Maarsen remarked, “So, it’s clear that your next step will need to be tracking down this agent.”
“I thought I could come back to the Academy instead, maybe spend a couple of weeks relaxing and resting up for the challenges ahead. You know, that sort of thing.”
Stephenson covered a laugh with a cough. “Yes, and I’m sure Dr. Cray misses you, too, Jackson. Get your hormones under control and focus on the job. What are you, twelve?”
“I totally wasn’t thinking that.” I totally was thinking that, but I wasn’t serious about doing it. “All right, what support can you give me?”
Maarsen offered, “Elle has a set of new identities for you to use, and a line of credit to buy you passage to wherever you need to go. Since Ezora has the regional Confederacy capital, there shouldn’t be a lack of transport options. Feel free to travel first class, to compensate for your delayed reunion with Dr. Cray.”
The Academy leader’s humor was always subtle but effective. Jax laughed. “Thanks, Professor. That won’t even begin to make up for it, but I’ll enjoy it anyway. And be sure to tell Juno I said that.”
Stephenson asked, “Where are you headed?”
“We’re still unsure. Athena is working on identifying the intelligence agents who were in the right places at the right times to have been the ones referenced in the Confederacy records. Once we know who’s on that list, I guess we’ll pick the nearest one and go from there.”
The Professor sounded thoughtful. “I think we can improve your odds. Talk to Elle about her friend Jana.”
Jax frowned, “Uh, okay. Will do.”
Maarsen must have heard his frustration at being not fully informed about potential assets in his voice, and he laughed. “Jackson, as much as we value you, the Academy has secrets inside secrets. Some of those are cellular in nature. Only Elle knows who Jana is, for her protection, but I know she can probably get you access to some useful information.”
Stephenson added, “You’re spikier than usual, Jackson. Maybe you need to avail yourself of the R&R Lady Elle keeps offering you.”
He blinked. “You know about that?”
They both laughed, and Maarsen said, “Good luck, Jackson. Once you determine a destination, have Elle connect you to a local with a secure comm. We look forward to hearing from you.”
The line dropped, and Jax shook his head. “One of these days, I’m going to push back on this nonsense.”
Athena laughed. “No, you’re not.”
He sighed. “Yeah. No, I’m not. So, I guess we need to call Lady Elle. And get some food. I’m famished.”
The elegant woman sitting across the restaurant table from him gave a soft sigh. “So, he wants Jana, does he?” Lady Elle’s dark wavy hair was at its most styled for the occasion, swerving perfectly to frame her face and draw attention to her eyes. Her dress enticed the gaze elsewhere, but he was careful to keep his locked on her above-the-neck portions.
Jax nodded. His closet had yielded a black suit appropriate for the venue, an expensive eatery on the fourth floor of the Lady’s Luck. The déco
r was a bordello theme with heavy fabrics, dark colors, and male and female servers wearing somewhat less than servers ordinarily wore. The outfits left a little to the imagination—but only a little. “He believes she’ll be able to do something Athena can’t, I guess, although I can’t imagine what that is. My passenger is highly skilled.”
Athena offered, “Understatement.”
Hush.
His dining companion took a slow bite before responding and somehow made the act of chewing look seductive. She plays her role to the maximum. Admirable. Probably tiring. In another lifetime, where he didn’t have designs on a certain Earth-bound doctor, he might have enjoyed figuring out her fictional character’s boundaries and discovering the real person hiding behind it. She explained, “It’s not so much that she’s a natural savant, although she might be since she’s been at this for a long while and knows all the tricks. I do hate to bother her, though.”
Jax shrugged. “If it’s not doable, then it’s not doable.”
She offered a thin smile, and the flirting left her voice. “For Maarsen, anything is doable. But we should probably get a move on. She goes to bed early.”
He checked his comm to make sure he wasn’t wrong about the time, but it was indeed only seven in the evening. “Whatever you say. Lead on.”
They headed up to Elle’s apartment, and she disappeared into the back, leaving him in the sunken living room. He sat on the couch and waited uncomfortably. What he wanted to do was put his feet up and lie down, but the stark purity of the white fabric would allow no such thing. Outside the windows, the city’s lights twinkled, and neon glowed. He made to rise as she returned, but she waved him back into his seat and sat on the couch set at a right angle to his.
Lady Elle placed a small disc on the table and commanded, “Activate. Connect to Jana.” He’d expected a hologram to appear, but it was audio-only when the device responded a minute later. A voice gravelly with age called up a mental image of his grandmother when the person on the other end spoke.
