Dimension Shift (Hammer's War Book 2)

by James McEwan

  Like all conferences since the beginning of conferences, a registration table ran the length of the wall. Every few feet there was a person seated and ready to help the incoming conference goers. Thad eyed each one carefully looking for the one that seemed to be the most distracted. He chose a young man who was engaged in what seemed like a rather personal comm call. He walked up to the young man. “Hi there, where do I sign in?” he asked.

  The man pointed to a list. “Hold on a second dear.” he said to the person on the other side of the comm call. “Sign next to your name and then pick up your ID next to the list here.” He pointed to the pre-made name ID’s. He noticed Thad’s rather uncomely attire. The burned and holey armor kind of stood out against the backdrop of fine suits and dresses. “Are you all right Sir? You look like you have been through it.”

  Thad looked down at his shambled appearance. “Long flight.” he paused. “And I will tell you that is the last time I fly coach.”

  “Rough flight I take it?” the man asked with a look of horror on his face.

  “You could say that it was a bit like being a sardine in a can, which was then shot through a blender, to be poured out on the floor of an alien strip club.” Thad said doing his best to describe what he had just been through.

  “Sounds awful.” The man’s nose wrinkled a bit.

  “It was.” Thad said as he looked at the list of names. Most had already been signed for, but he found one James McEwan from ABPI Medical. Thad signed next to the name and grabbed the name ID badge. As he walked away from the table, Thad said to himself. “Thank you, Mr. McEwan.”

  Thad looked around for the press center hoping the press conference was still going. Once he found it, his hopes of finding Doctor Hammer dimmed. He was too late, and for the first time in his life, he felt a sense of panic building inside of him. The press conference had already concluded and the place was empty. On a nearby table, Thad noticed a handful of discarded programs, he picked one up and flipped through it. He scanned it looking for anything that Doctor Hammer may be involved in. He was in luck, as it turned out, Doctor Hammer was scheduled as the keynote speak later in the afternoon session in the main room.

  Thad took stock of himself. The burned, damaged armor he was wearing stood out like a nudist at a tailor’s convention. Sooner than later someone would take notice of him, and even the mesmerizing carpet would not save him from questions he was not prepared to answer. He needed some new clothing, but how to get them. With no money, Thad had to do something.

  Thad leaned on the wall and waited. It was not long before he found what he was waiting for. A tall man with broad shoulders was perfect. Trailing behind the man was a small bot pushing a cart laden with bags. On top of the bags was his overcoat. Thad made his move. He passed the man and when he passed the bot with the bags, he snagged the overcoat, pulled it up in front of his chest, and held it there until he was out of the man’s sight. Thad tossed the overcoat over himself covering his battered armor, next he headed for the one place he knew that he would find what he needed next, the bar.

  Thad looked around and sizing up all the men looking for one that was his size, or close. Thad spotted a man at the bar that looked to be the best match. He watched as the man tried time after time to pick up a woman at the bar with no luck. Thad watched as he would put his room key down on the bar and slide it to the woman next to him. She would listen to his speech then slide the key back to him. This happened twice before Thad made his move.

  Picking up a half-finished drink off one of the tables Thad made his way to the bar. Once he was near his target, he played drunk. He plopped himself down next to the man at the bar. “Man it is hard to get these uptight bitches to spread some leg don’t you think?”

  The unlucky man looked over at Thad. “I hear you brother, two days I’ve been here and nothing, nada, zip, zilch. I’m sorry to say, but the fish aren’t biting at this watering hole. How about you, any better luck?”

  Thad said. “Nope, not a single one, I may just have to bite the bullet and order up a girl or maybe one of those love bots. Never been with one of them, but I hear they are pretty good.”

  “They are okay I guess, but I like the real thing if you ask me.” the unlucky man replied.

  Thad made his move. “Oh yeah.” he said with a grand gesture that just happened to knock over his drink all over the bar and the keycard. “Oh shit, I ‘m sorry buddy! Here let me.” Thad said as he plucked up the bar towel from the other side of the bar.

  “No it’s okay, it didn’t get any on me, just the bar.” he said.

  Thad wiped the bar clean and slid the card under the towel and to his waiting hand. “There, all better. I think I’ll go see what tail I can chase in the other bar in this place.” Thad said, as he left.

  “Good luck, I think I’m going to just sit here and drink for a while longer, maybe I’ll get lucky and not have to hire a call girl.” the man said, as Thad left.

  This convention center, like most build by humans, was attached to a hotel. Next problem was how to find out which room the key card belonged too. Thad kept up the drunken act and stumbled up to the front desk. The pretty brunette that was staffing the desk smiled at him. “How can I help you, sir?”

  Thad slapped the card down on the desk. “The damn thing doesn’t work, could you be a sweetheart and recode it for me?”

  The desk clerk could smell the alcohol that Thad had purposely spilled on himself. “I can, however, sir are you sure you went to the right room? She asked as she swiped the card through the reader.

  “I went to room 215, that’s my room right?” Thad said trying to sound drunk without over doing it.

  She rolled her eyes thinking that she needed to get a better job; she was tired of dealing with drunks. “No sir that is not your room, your card is for room 450 on the fourth floor.”

  “That would explain why my card didn’t work. I guess I need to pay more attention.” Thad said as he took the card back from the clerk.

  “Or maybe drink less.” she quietly said under her breath.

  Thad caught the comment, but let it go. Instead, he turned and walked away happy that he got what he came for. Thad took the elevator up to the man’s room. Thad was heading for room 450 when a group of suited men that Thad assumed were medical professionals here for the conference, passed him in the hallway. A man trailing the group looked down to check the time on his watch and bumped into Thad. They exchanged a brief look. Neither of them spoke, but Thad a chill run up his spine as if someone had just walked over his grave.

  The face of the man he bumped into was so familiar, but he couldn’t place it at the moment. He paused trying to recall who the man was, however, he had more important things to do. He gave no more thought to it. Thad moved on to the unlucky man’s room where he had no problem getting through the door. He checked out the man’s closet. “At least this guy has good taste.” he said out loud, as he picked out an enormously expensive hand-tailored suit.

  After a quick shower, Thad was standing in front of the bathroom mirror tieing the tie when he heard the door lock click open. He hit the light switch in the bathroom plunging it into darkness. The door to the room opened, its occupant had returned, and he was not alone.

  Thad at first was worried that the man discovered that he was being robbed, and the person with him was a hotel security officer. He readied himself to take both men down when his fears were somewhat abated.

  “Look, baby, I need to freshen up a bit first. You go pour us another drink while I use your bathroom.” a female voice came from the other side of the door.

  “Okay.” the man replied.

  “Shit.” Thad said under his breath. He stood there trying to figure out a way out of this without having to kill two innocent people. Too late. The door opened and the light switched on. The woman entered and at first did not notice him standing there behind the door, however when she looked into the mirror she saw him and let out a little girlish yelp.

  The
man was too busy pouring drinks, stripping off clothing and singing “Strangers in the Night” to hear her. Thad, thinking fast, said in his best Earth English accent. “Good evening mum, I am your personal toilet attendant the John 3000. How can I attend to your toileting needs today?”

  Her face blushed red at being startled. However, she seemed to buy his clever lie. “Oh, sorry you startled me. Could you be a dear and hold this for me while I do my business.” she said.

  “Yes mum.” Thad said as she handed him her purse. The woman lifted her skirt, she was not warring any panties so she just sat down on the toilet. Thad was a little embarrassed, but he kept up the ruse. He did take advantage of her distraction to slip his hand into her purse. He quickly found her credit card, palmed it and pulled his hand back out.

  The woman finished her toilet business, flushed, and pulled her skirt back down. She turned to Thad and said. “Could you hand me that robe please.” Thad handed her a white plush robe that was hanging on the back of the door. “Thank you.” she said.

  “You’re welcome, mum.” Thad said.

  She did something that Thad did not expect, she stripped off her clothes. She was not bad looking and her body was fair, nothing to compare to the twins, though. She brushed her hair then checked her makeup. She then looked at herself in the mirror and pulled at the skin covering her midsection. “Not bad, but I could use with another tummy tuck I think, this one is starting to sag a little don’t you think?”

  “I think you look, fine mum, no need for improvement.” Thad lied.

  “Aren’t you just the sweetest robot I have ever met.” she said. “You are handsome too, too bad you aren’t more than just a bathroom bot, or this afternoon might be a whole lot different.”

  “Mum?” Thad said.

  “Oh never mind, here help me with the robe.” she said as she handed it back to him. Thad helped her into the robe. “Oh you can set that down on the sink I guess.” Thad placed the purse on the counter. “Wish me luck.” she said.

  “Good luck mum.” he said.

  Much to Thad’s relief she left the bathroom in the robe. He took the opportunity to make his exit. He slipped from the room unnoticed. Meanwhile, the woman had opened the robe, and climbed on top of the man in the bed. “I just love your bathroom attendant bot, I need to get one of those.” she said.

  “What bathroom attendant?” He asked confused. She was going to explain, but he said “Never mind, come here you sexy beauty.”

  Thad had made it out clean and with the parties otherwise occupied, he figured he had plenty of time before his deceptions were discovered and reported. He had one thing left to do. He found the gift shop in the hotel and purchased a prepaid credit card. He maxed out the woman’s credit loading it. He felt bad about it and made a mental note to remember to send her replacement credits once he sorted out his problems. The credits on the card were not as much as he had hoped for, but it would have to do. On his way out of the store, he wiped down her card and tossed into the trash.

  Thad made his way to the main room with a few minutes to spare. Doctor Hammer just happened to be standing near the stage at the front of the room. He seemed to be in a heated conversation when Thad approached him. “Excuse me Doctor Hammer, but can I have a word with you?”

  Hammer turned to him. “I’m sorry son, but I’m about to give a presentation.” He turned away from Thad.

  Frustrated, Thad gently grabbed his arm. “This is extremely important, I need to talk to you right now.”

  The man that Doctor Hammer had been arguing with took a step closer and his hand reached into his coat. “You need to back off, Sir!”

  Thad noticed the large and not well-hidden bulge under the man’s arm. Thad knew this man must be one of Doctor Hammer’s handlers and most likely a bodyguard. Thad figured the bodyguard was reaching for his gun. Thad was ready, but Doctor Hammer held up his other hand, and the bodyguard relaxed some. “You have to excuse Christian. He tends to get a little jumpy at these things. Now as I told you I don’t have time to talk right now. Also, I would ask you to take your hands off me.” he said.

  Thad let him go. “I am sorry, Doctor Hammer, however, it is really important that I speak with you as soon as possible.”

  “Fine.” Doctor Hammer pursed his lips and puffed out his cheeks. “But after my presentation.” He paused to look Thad up and down, trying to get a read on him. “And I must warn you if you are another company rep trying to court, bribe, or threaten me for my next invention. You should know I never work that way. I choose who gets my inventions based on which companies Ithink would do the most good with it, not with the ones who throw bundles of money at me. Now, if you will excuse me.” he said as he stormed off, annoyed at Thad’s persistence.

  Thad realized that his choice of an expensive suit might have just backfired. Thad needed to think of a way to convince Doctor Hammer he was not a corporate toady trying to court him for his business. He started with pulling the name tag off his suit and stuffed it in his pocket.

  There was nothing for Thad to do, but sit and wait for Doctor Hammer to finish his talk. He found a seat open in the front row. He sat down and listened to Doctor Hammer speak about his Nano protein and how it will change the course of human history. As he listened to him speak, Thad could not help wonder why that chance encounter in the hallway was bugging him so deeply. It was the man’s face that just seemed to be frozen in his mind. Then it hit him like a Mack truck. “Holy shit.” he said under his breath.

  Thad knew who that man was now, and he knew that if he was here someone was going to die, but who was the question. He started to scan the program and the topics, but nothing jumped out except for Doctor Hammer’s talk. That must be it, he thought. There are many people in this universe that would kill to get their hands on Doctor Hammer’s secrets or kill to keep them quiet. Thad switched the sight mode in his robotic replacement eye to infrared and started to scan all the spots in rafters for a sniper.

  It did not take long for him to find what he was looking for. High in the back on a catwalk there was the heat signature of a man with a rifle. It looked as if he was sighting in on the target so that Thad only had a few seconds to act.

  Thad leaped out of his seat and ran to the stage. Christian, who was standing next to the stage, saw Thad bolting for Doctor Hammer and tried to stop him, but he ended up on his back with a broken nose for his trouble. Thad lunged at the Doctor, who was not paying any attention to what was going on next to him. Thad hit him hard in the mid-section and took him to the ground, just as the glass reader that the Doctor had been reading from exploded.

  Someone in the crowd screamed, and then mass panic ensued. Another shot was fired from the assassin’s rifle, and it would have hit the Doctor in the head if it weren’t for the poor soul who jumped up in front of the stage at that exact moment. The man’s head exploded into a pink mist.

  Thad was back on his feet in an instant, pulling Hammer to his feet. “What the hell is going on?” Hammer demanded, but Thad did not say anything, just grabbed him and ran. More shots were fired, but by some divine luck, each one missed.

  Christian fought through the pain, drew his weapon, and returned fire. The firefight was short lived and ended in Christian’s death. However, it served as a diversion that gave Thad and Doctor Hammer a few precious seconds to get away.

  Once they were safely out into the hallway Thad said “Doctor Hammer, someone is trying to kill you.”

  “You think! Please tell me something I don’t know.” Hammer said.

  Thad rolled his eyes. “Not now, and not here. We have to move. I have a cab waiting.”

  At least Doctor Hammer had enough sense to listen to the man who had just saved his life. Out the front doors and down the steps to the cab they went. Thad threw open the cab door and pushed Doctor Hammer inside.

  “Well, it’s about time mon! You know how long I have been waiting here?”

  “Shut up and drive!” Thad screamed, as the back window o
f the cab exploded in a shower of safety glass. The bullet pancaked on the armored window right behind Quincy’s head.

  Quincy uttered a high pitch scream that made him sound like a little girl. “What the hell was that?” Strangely, the Jamaican accent was gone.

  “Drive, dammit!” Thad yelled again as the cab erupted in dozens of little angry bees that tore up the seats sending bits of foam sailing through the air. “Quincy get us out of here, or we’re dead!”

  Quincy, just let out another girlish scream and jammed the accelerator to the floor. The cab rocketed away. As soon as the shooting stopped, Thad let Doctor Hammer off the floor. “Now will someone tell me what the hell is going on?” Doctor Hammer said.

  “Yeah, I would like to know who you people are and why some maniac is shooting up my cab!” Quincy demanded, again without the accent.

  Surprised by Quincy’s lack of accent Thad asked “Hey! Where did the accent go?”

  “Jesus, someone is shooting at us and you are worried about my accent! What is wrong with you?” Quincy screamed over his shoulder.

  Thad acted nonchalantly. “It seems to happen to me a lot, don’t worry about it.”

  “Don’t worry about it, he says, I get shot at a lot, he says. Do you have any idea how crazy you sound?”

  “I’m sure I sound like a mad man, but you have to trust me ... all of our lives depend on it.”

  “Yeah, sure!” Quincy grumbled “I should have listened to my mother and gone to college, got a degree, but no I just had to go out and see the galaxy. Now I’m getting my ass shot off, New Dallas of all places.” Quincy was rambling on.

  Thad thought he better find a way to calm him down before his driving got them killed long before the assassin could. “So Quincy, not from Jamaica then?”

  “What? No, I’m just a kid from the Bronx. The whole Rastafarian thing just gets me better tips.” Quincy said, not realizing he was a little less scared.

  “As much as I appreciate you saving my life I would like to know what the hell is going on.” Doctor Hammer insisted. However, before Thad could answer, Doctor Hammer noticed that Thad was bleeding. “Looks like you have been hit. Here, let me take a look at it.”