by TR Cameron
Yeah. Hope for the best, plan for the worst. Give me a path. A line appeared on the ground ahead in his display, showing him the quietest approach with the best footing, in the AI’s estimation. He followed it and spotted the telltale smear of Verrand’s camouflage suit as she crouched near the road. Connect me to her personal comm.
“Done.”
He raised the pistol and aimed it at Verrand’s spine. In a whisper, so he didn’t give away his position, he ordered, “Maria. You’re not going to make it. Deactivate the suit, take off your helmet, and put your hands on the back of your head. Do it now.” She jumped up and tried to run. He pulled the trigger and bathed her in a wide-beam stun blast. She fell, and he rushed to her side and removed the helmet to be sure she was still breathing. He injected her with a sedative and sighed. “Damn it, Maria. Strike three.”
The castle didn’t have anything like an interrogation cell. The prisoner holding it did have in the basement was from a time long past, and inadequate to their needs. Guards had carried the unconscious woman to the medical unit, where Juno and her team put her in a safe set of clothes. They strapped her down to one of the operating tables, and Maarsen shooed everyone out of the room other than Jax, Juno, and himself.
He instructed, “Go ahead and wake her up.” Juno tapped a button on her tablet, and a robot arm descended and injected a stim into Verrand’s neck. The woman’s eyes flew open, and she tried to sit up, only to discover that she was immobile.
Tears gathered, and she shook her head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to. I didn’t mean to.” One escaped to slide down the side of her face and drop onto the tile floor. “I had no choice.”
Jax’s voice held no sympathy. “You could have come to me.”
She shook her head again. “No. They were always watching, always listening.” She thrashed. “Wait, you talked to me over my personal comm. They’ll have heard it. They’re going to kill my sister.”
Maarsen snapped, “Name.”
“Carlie Cassel. She’s married. Lives in the United States.”
The professor stepped off to the side and spoke urgently into his comm. Juno reassured her, “We’ll find her and protect her. It’s only been twenty minutes; it will be some time before they can get the pieces in place to take action. The Intelligence Division is behind this, right?”
Maria nodded and mastered her tears with a visible effort of will. “Yes. Bastards.”
Jax urged, “What happened, Maria? Tell us all of it.”
She sniffed, but anger had replaced her moment of weakness. “After the mission where you wound up with Athena in your head, I went back to work. Things were normal for a few days. Then I was taken on the way home. There’s no other word for it. One minute I was stepping into an empty car for my commute, and the next I woke up in a bare room with bright lights everywhere.” A shiver passed through her at the memory. “They explained that they knew about my boyfriend, knew about my sister, and knew about my presence at the Academy. I was to be their inside person, and I would be watched from then on to ensure compliance. Failure would result in the deaths of those I loved. No second chances.”
Jax understood why she hadn’t spoken up. His response might have been different, but he had a far greater number of resources to throw at the problem, including at least one Special Forces unit. “So why aren’t we tracking down your boyfriend?”
She growled, “I broke up with him so they wouldn’t need to kill him. Better me hurting him than them ending his life.”
“And maybe hurting yourself felt right, too.”
She nodded. “Could be. I’m worthless.”
He reached forward and undid the top strap holding her in place. “No, you’re human, and you got played by people with more power than you. Happens a lot. That’s not on you unless you want it to be.”
Juno gave him a warning glare, and he responded with a slight shake of his head. “I believe you, Maria. Now, understand that we’ll be watching you too, from here on out. Chances are good that they’ll know you’re burnt and leave you alone, but you’ll need to take precautions until we bring them down.”
She scowled. “Bastards deserve to go down hard.”
He undid the last strap. “And they will. Count on it. Now, Dr. Cray is going to spend some time with you, and probably Professor Maarsen too, checking your story and making sure that they didn’t do anything else to you while you were in their hands that you don’t know about.” She paled a little at his words. “After that, you’re still welcome on the team, once you’ve told the others what happened.”
“Do you think you can ever trust me again?”
He smiled. “Maria, I wouldn’t have invited you back if I didn’t already trust you. Everyone makes mistakes. Yours was big, but that’s what happens in the major leagues, and that’s where we’re playing. You deserve the chance to make it right.”
Maarsen returned. “Your sister and her family are safe. Local authorities have taken them to a secure spot, and one of our students who is also a principal in a security company will take care of them from there. The Academy will ensure their relocation and new identities, along with something equivalent to the jobs and lives they had before.”
She nodded. “Thank you. Thank you all. I’m sorry. But I’m going to make up for it. Promise.”
Athena offered, “I believe her.”
Me too. Now let’s see about finding her a target.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
An hour later, they were seated around the table in the office behind the training room’s operations station again. Only this time, Stephenson was participating as a giant head on the display behind Maarsen instead of in person.
She growled, “So, we know it was the Intelligence Division, which means we know it was Arlox.”
Maarsen lifted a hand. “Well, we know that Maria Verrand thinks it was the Intelligence Division, which if true probably means Arlox is responsible.”
Jax’s snort was only an instant before Stephenson’s. Maybe satellite delay between here and the Cronus. He said, “Let’s let the half-a-percent chance that it isn’t Arlox and the Intelligence Division go. We know it’s them. For a hundred different reasons, it has to be them. So, the question is, how do we move forward?”
Harrington shrugged. “Our computer people have a way into the Intelligence Division’s network, but we haven’t been able to access anything beyond the outermost level. That gives us virtually nothing other than a little assistance with tracking their agents.
The quartermaster, Hellene, observed, “We’ve tried on several occasions to get a physical tap into their systems, but their defenses are too good for that.” Huh. Maybe they’re the Academy’s spymasters together? That’s an interesting idea.
Jax said, “I think we have a solution there, but Athena and I wanted to be sure that everyone was okay with it.”
Maarsen replied, “Do tell, Jackson.”
He smiled. “I’ll let her explain.” An image of a woman’s head and neck appeared on one of the displays. She had long blonde hair, a sharp nose, and ears that seemed almost pointed at the top. Jax figured she’d taken the look from an ancient picture of the Greek goddess Athena and modified it to her liking. Her voice came out of the speakers as the image spoke.
“I used the surveillance connection from Maria Verrand’s comm to hook into their systems. They haven’t yet shut it down, which is to our advantage, but I cannot imagine that will hold for long. As it’s possible that they might, in turn, trace the path back to here, I would prefer permission before attempting to break into their network.”
Maarsen looked at Harrington, who looked at Hellene with a nod. She said, “You have it. We’ll deal with any fallout. It’s not like they’re filled with overwhelming goodwill toward us at the moment anyway.”
Jax nodded. “Show us what you’ve got, Athena.”
The display blanked for a moment, then a scroll of data began. She said through the speakers, “I am in the outer network.
Negotiating for access to the internal network.” After a pause, she added, “Into the internal network. Security responding.” The data on the screen flowed faster. “Disconnecting.”
In all, it took fifteen seconds. Maarsen asked, “Did you get anything? Did they backtrace it to the Academy?”
Athena’s face reappeared on the display. “No, Professor, they did not identify us. The connection routed through thirty-seven hubs, and I killed it after they reached number thirty.” She vanished, and filenames appeared where she’d been. “I was able to copy four thousand, seven hundred, and twenty-eight files.”
The humans in the room broke into applause, and Stephenson grinned from her display. Maarsen instructed, “All right. Let’s all get some sleep. Jackson, we’ll meet after the analysts have gone through the files. Well done, everyone.”
Well done, Athena. Also, I love the look you’ve chosen.
She sounded satisfied and pleased. “Thank you on both accounts, Jax.”
The trove of information had revealed several important clues, and Stephenson had made the trip to Earth to take part in the planning session that they inspired, which delayed their meeting until the afternoon. That was fine by Jax since he used the time to stock up on sleep. When he arrived at the office, a third chair had been pulled up on the far side of Maarsen’s desk, and Cia walked into the room after him. She quipped, “Wow, you can almost smell the burning of the big brains at work.”
Maarsen chuckled. “Indeed, and one hopes they are more adequate to the task ahead than they have been to the ones behind.”
Jax grinned at his teammate. “Now that Cia’s here, nothing can stop us from coming up with the best ideas in the universe.”
She stuck out her tongue at him as she took the center seat. On her right, Stephenson nodded a greeting. “Pilot.”
Cia replied, “Boss lady,” and everyone laughed.
The Professor said, “Okay. Here’s where we stand. First, we’ve confirmed that there is a second traitor, this time to the UCCA rather than directly to the Academy.” He lifted his chin a little and spoke to the air. “Activate display.” A holographic image of some of the data Athena had stolen appeared over his desk. “As you can see, the Intelligence Division is after this individual as well. However, they’re hampered by their methods, which focus on direct action, interrogation, and the like.”
Stephenson interjected, “Well, to be fair, those are usually pretty effective.”
Maarsen nodded. “Of course, of course. But for this situation, where we’re having problems finding the right haystack to look in, much less tracking down the proper needle, the Academy’s resources are more appropriate. We put out a quiet word and got back a plethora of rumors and observations, most of which led nowhere. But a few of them pointed in the same direction. One more question to the right people gave us a potential location for the person feeding information about Jackson to the Confederacy.”
The older man paused dramatically, and Jax sighed. “Don’t keep us in suspense, Professor.”
Stephenson growled, “Out with it, Nikolai.”
Cia laughed. “Oh, torture them both some more. This is fun.”
A chuckle preceded the revelation. “Tortuga.”
Stephenson and Jax shook their heads at the name, but Cia groaned. “Not Tortuga. Why did it have to be Tortuga?” He couldn’t tell if she was joking or not, which probably meant she was serious since subtlety wasn’t exactly her thing.
Athena offered, “I can tell you all about Tortuga.”
Later. Let’s see what Maarsen has to say. “I presume you’re going to give us more than a name, Professor?”
He nodded. “Display the Quni system.” A bright sun appeared first, then four planets with lines representing their elliptical orbits around it faded into existence. They moved slowly along their gravitationally bound paths and spun in place as they inched ahead. “Zoom in on the fourth planet.” The display complied and revealed a world covered in white, its distance from the star rendering it frozen and uninhabitable. Three moons hung above its surface, and one of them had another object hovering over it that seemed to hold a geosynchronous position relative to the larger body.
Jax observed, “I take it that thing is Tortuga?”
Cia nodded. “Yes. It is not a nice place. Not at all. On the one hand, you have the kind of pirates who are out to make a living by skirting the law a little. Like those we ran into on Sapphire station. These aren’t them. These are the real baddies, who delight in extreme mayhem. When they take a break from all the murdering and plundering, they stay aboard the Tortuga.”
The image zoomed in again to show that what he’d thought was a medium-sized ship was actually one of the biggest the UCCA had. “How the hell did pirates get their hands on a freaking battleship?”
Stephenson explained, “I remember something about this. I think the decision had been made to scuttle it, but a particularly motivated pirate clan killed the demolition team and took their places. They managed to get it stable enough to tow to the nearest defensible position, then added weapons to protect it. The whole system is supposed to be mined, as I recall.” She shook her head. “I’ll pull the relevant information for you. But the ship isn’t viable now as anything other than a base of operations, so we tend not to care too much about it.”
Cia scowled. “Well, while you’ve been not caring, the pirates turned it into one of the worst places in the universe. And you’re telling me we have to go there?”
Maarsen gave an apologetic shrug. “That’s where the evidence is leading us. Whatever the UCCA traitor is up to, it’s somehow connected to the Tortuga.”
Jax chuckled darkly. “I don’t suppose you can whip up a dozen assault teams on short notice, Major?”
“You have no idea how much I’d like to. But no, I can’t. At best, I can probably provide a diversion. A show of force to get them looking away from you. Although that carries the risk of amping up their defenses right when you’re making a play.”
Cia added, “Speaking of which, how the hell are we going to get in there and find what we need?”
Three heads swiveled toward Jax. He shrugged. “I guess it’s time for us to become pirates.”
They’d spent hours working out the plan’s details, took a break for dinner, then gathered again to poke holes in it. Everyone agreed that the timetable required at least three days of preparation before they made their move, and that was pushing it right up to the limit. None of them argued against the need to act quickly.
Another night’s sleep and Jax was ready for what lay ahead. He and Athena had dispatched a message to the quartermaster the night before to ensure the items his team required for the operation were sent on to the Grace. The van ride up to the airfield was quiet, his people clearly injured by Verrand’s communications with the Intelligence Division despite the fact that she’d been in a situation with no good options. He let it cook while they boarded the ship and allowed it to simmer a little more as they took off and headed for the jump point.
When Cia could leave the piloting duties to Trianna, he summoned them all to the galley. Time to lance the wound. He cleared his throat to capture their attention. “There’s no denying that all of this sucks. Arlox managing to blackmail Maria into leaking information? Sucks. Having to go up against pirates on their home turf? Sucks. Knowing that the government most of us have trusted to a greater or lesser extent is fallible to the machinations of evil people within it? Sucks.” He shook his head. “Having to fly on the gods-damned Jigsaw again? Totally sucks.”
He got the laugh he expected, although it was far less mirthful than it would have been in just about any other situation. Baby steps. “But we have some things working in our favor, too. Things that will tip the balance in our direction. We’ve protected Maria’s family, so she’s back with us. More, we were able to use the Intelligence idiots’ play against them and get a line on the next piece of the puzzle.”
He paced slowly, wanting them to
stay focused on him. “We have the backing of the Special Forces, and they’re ready to cause a distraction to help us if we need it. Sure, they probably have an angle, but as long as it works out right for everyone except the pirates, it’s all good. Plus, they’ll be there to pull us out of the fire if things go wrong.”
Cia nodded in response to his words, instinctively knowing the others would look at her for confirmation. Pilots always had power, even when they weren’t also shipmasters like Cia was. Athena said, “She’s very good.”
She is. We’re fortunate to have her on our side. Imagine if she had gone pirate? He snorted inwardly. I bet she’d be one of the most flamboyant and fierce buccaneers the universe has ever seen. “Finally, we have each other. We’re going to have to breach the ship’s physical security, and Marshall and I are pretty proficient in that area. We’ll need to compromise their systems and look for clues, and all of you have talents there. Plus, we have a wild card.” He tapped his temple. “Those pirates won’t know what hit them.”
He sensed the mood shifting from negative to slightly positive and knew he’d accomplished all he could at the moment. “Now, rest up, review the plans for the Tortuga, and get ready. When we finish, we’ll be on the trail of the traitor. If we’re lucky, he’ll lead us back to Zavian bloody Arlox, and we’ll get the chance to put his face in the dirt too. Either way, we’ll have taken one more step toward freeing the UCCA from those who would do us harm.”
He grinned. “Now I’m going to go try to convince Trianna to talk to me. I mean, how can she resist this charm?” This time, the laughter was real, and he headed for the pilot’s compartment to convince the woman to break her silence.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Two days later, aboard the Jigsaw, Jax brought his team together for a final briefing. They’d abandoned anything that could tie them to the UCCA on the Grace and now looked like a passably ragtag crew of miscreants. The ship’s hold was filled with items purportedly stolen during raids. In fact, they’d “pirated” the cargo from a Rearden trade vessel after the Professor had paid for it in full.
