“What if I don’t reach twenty in a row?”
“Then tomorrow you try again and again and again.”
“I’m beginning to hate that word.”
“So worming is easy? You figured it out right away?”
“Shut up.”
She flashes me a smile and leaves.
I squint at the target. Okay, Mr. Orange Light, you’re mine.
After a couple hours, I hate the color orange. I can’t hit the target more than six times in a row. Now, if I had one of those energy wave guns…Mr. Orange Light would be Mr. Shattered Into A Million Pieces Light.
When I finish, Elese is doing bicep curls on one of the weight machines. Her arms flex and her muscles pop to an impressive bulge with each pull, lifting a stack of ten heavy metal plates. I can lift two. Who knew all those hours worming in the Q-net doesn’t build upper body strength, or lower body strength, or core strength? However, my butt muscles are like steel.
When she finishes, I hold out the gun. “Where should I put this?”
“In your holster, Junior Officer Lawrence.”
I stare. Did she just—
“It’s not going to do you any good in a locked armory.”
Just like that, my sour mood vanishes. Yup, I’m that easy.
The divine smell of chicken greets me when I enter my unit. If Radcliff notices the gun as I go to my room, he doesn’t say anything. After a moment to recover from the blast of colors—it’s gonna take me a while to get use it to all the paintings—I tuck the gun—no, my gun—into my leather holster on my belt. All the security officers are armed when dressed in their uniforms. The weapon is also required when wearing the combat jumpsuit—a form fitting material that resists pulse hits and reduces the impact of other lethal weapons. My jumpsuit helped save my life when Jarren shot me. And if I’m not being modest, I look good in it. Even though the black color is slimming, it still shows off my curves.
After a quick shower and change of clothes, I join my parents, Niall and Radcliff. Dinner is a rather normal affair. Well, normal for me. My mom sneaks probing glances at me and I wonder if Radcliff told her about the looters rioting last night.
It’s not until my parents leave that I learn why Mom was being extra mom-ish. Niall and I are on the couch just hanging out when Radcliff approaches.
“You’re on the schedule,” he says to me. “You have the twenty-two-hundred to oh-two-hundred shift watching the camera monitors.”
I’m uncertain whether to be excited or suspicious. “And training?”
“Ongoing. Officer Keir still expects you at oh-eight-hundred hours. You’ll have three and a half hours of training, two hours of weapon drills and you’ll report to Officer Dorey from fourteen hundred until sixteen-thirty. Understand?”
Excitement wins despite the fact I’ll only get six hours of sleep a day. “Yes, sir.”
“Good.”
Before he retreats, I ask him about the pulse kit.
He points to a small leather bag sitting on the end table. “Inside is a charger and a couple power packs. Always have at least one extra power pack with you when you’re armed.” Radcliff goes into his bedroom.
Niall doesn’t say anything, but his arm around my shoulder tenses.
“Okay, spit it out,” I say.
“Is this because of last night?”
“No, it’s—”
“It’s because I complained about the long hours,” he says.
I lean close to him and whisper, “Can I tell you a secret?”
Instantly wary—he knows me too well—he nods.
“You are not the center of the universe.” I pat his hand. “I know it’s a blow to your ego, but, despite being coddled by your father all your life—”
“Yeah, he’s such a cuddle bunny,” Niall says dryly.
“Exactly.” I hold onto my fake condescension until I imagine Radcliff as a cuddle bunny. Laughter ruins my act.
Except Niall is not amused. “Mouse.”
“All right, all right. First, you really didn’t complain. Just stating a fact. Second, what I said about the archeology techs and them feeling like a part of the team is a concept I’ve been thinking over these last couple days. I’m a security officer, but I don’t feel like part of the team. It’s time for me to do my share of the work.”
He exhales and the tightness drains from him. “You’re right, but I’m going to miss our evenings together.”
“Wait, why do you think that will stop?”
Tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear, he says, “You’re going to need to sleep before your shift.”
“I don’t need that much time. We can still hang out a few hours, then I’ll nap until my shift. Plus this way you’ll get more sleep.”
“I’d rather fall asleep here with you on the couch than in my bed.”
“Okay, then we’ll nap on the couch together. It’s only six hundred and thirty-nine more days.”
He groans. “I’d rather think about the one hundred and twenty-two days until you’re eighteen.”
“How about during our couple hours together, we don’t think about work at all?”
He straightens. “Do you have something else in mind?”
Once again, I whisper in his ear, “Yes. Come to my room so you can…” I run my fingers through his hair.
Sucking in a breath, he closes his eyes.
“…tell me about your mother’s paintings and why you choose those for my walls.”
Now he’s glaring at me. “You’re evil, Mouse. And you can’t do that without paying a price.”
“What price?”
“A kiss.”
I oblige. A chaste kiss turns into…more. When we break for air, I tug him into my room. My hormones spike, sending heat to a number of unexpected places, but I leave the door wide open and avoid skin contact to allow my pulse return to normal.
Niall explains the various paintings. The Cat’s Eye Nebula, the jungle on Planet Jieshou, the capital city on Planet Omega, an Earth leopard, Planet Anqing—
“I didn’t know Anqing has so many rings,” I say, marveling over the red spirals.
“It’s beautiful.”
But I don’t think he’s referring to the painting. “You’ve seen it?” I ask. It’s over a hundred E-years from Yulin.
“Yes.”
That surprises me. “When?”
“I think it was around twenty-one ninety. When they closed Anqing, we transported the scientists to another Warrior planet…Heshan, I think.”
Once the assessment of a Warrior planet is finished and the statues have all been cataloged, there’s nothing more to do. Not until DES decides if they want to colonize the planet or leave it as a historical site. In the meantime, there’s no reason to stay. Except…
“What about the looters?” I ask. “Those closed planets are just ripe for the picking.”
“The Protectorate deployed a bunch of military satellites in orbit around the planet. If a ship doesn’t have the right clearance codes, they won’t allow it to get close.”
Oh. “Why don’t they do that to the active Warrior planets?”
“They are, it just takes time.”
Of course. Stupid time dilation.
Now I’m curious about how many Warrior planets are empty. Anqing was the second exoplanet discovered with the Warriors. Xi’an was the first, then DES named the rest after cities in China in alphabetical order. Heshan was the eighth and Yulin is the twenty-second, unless you consider Earth as a Warrior planet, then it’s the twenty-third—my parents are still debating over that even though DES didn’t give another Warrior planet a name starting with the letter E.
I study the paintings and am struck by how many different places are represented. Plus these are just a fraction of what Niall’s mother created. And then the significance of the date he mentioned—twenty-one ninety—finally hits me.
“How old are you in E-years?” I ask.
He avoids my gaze. Instead he moves to
the next painting. That’s concerning. I do the math…he has to be at least over three hundred and thirty some E-years. The first Explorer Class ships went out in twenty-eighty-two and he said he was born on a ship… It’s quite possible that he’s four hundred and forty E-years old. Oh my stars.
Niall glances at me. “You have that look.”
“What look?”
“The pained one that says you’re trying to do math.”
“I can do math, you know. And I already figured you have to be older than three hundred and thirty.” When he doesn’t say anything, I add, “Why don’t you want to tell me? I’m a hundred and eighty-four and don’t look a day over a hundred.” My joke falls flat.
“It’s just…some people act…weird about it.” He fidgets with his sleeve.
I’m a little hurt—well, more than a little—to be classed with “some people,” but I don’t want to make him uncomfortable. “Don’t worry about it.” I point to a picture of a dark green Chinese male guardian lion. Its massive right paw rests on an orb. “Was this carved from jade?”
“I think so. One of the archeologists we met had two of them on her desk. They were only about eight centimeters tall, but my mom was fascinated. She painted both. I have the female guardian lion in my unit.” He stands behind me. “They represent yin and yang, male and female. I thought it’s appropriate for us to each have one.” A pause. “I think of us—the security officers—as guardian lions. Silly, I know.”
I turn around. “Not really. After all, you and your father were quite growly when I first met you, roaring out orders.” I tease.
“Which you didn’t listen to.”
“Of course not. I didn’t speak lion.”
“And now that you do?”
“Ara, shouldn’t you be resting before your shift?” Radcliff asks. He’s standing at the threshold of my room, the familiar crease of annoyance on his forehead.
I wonder if he panicked when Niall and I weren’t on the couch. “I will soon.”
He stabs Niall with a stare then walks away.
“Speaking of guardian lions…” I mutter.
Niall laughs. “I better get going.” But he pauses. “I’m sorry about…earlier. I know I haven’t told you much about my life before. It’s just all my good memories include my mom and it’s…still hard to talk about her.”
“That’s understandable. When you’re ready, I’ll be here to listen. In the meantime, you’ll just have to suffer through some of my stories.”
“Some?”
“I’m not going to tell you all of them.”
“Why not?”
“’Cause you’d arrest me.”
He stills. “It’s probably best I don’t know.”
“No probably about it.” I wink.
Ugh. Waking up at twenty-one-thirty hours after only sleeping for ninety minutes sucks. I change into my uniform, French braid my hair, and strap on my weapon belt.
Flashlight, check.
Pulse gun, check.
A bit of pride swells when I rest my hand on the weapon. I’m armed and dangerous…well, more like a mild threat, but some day, baby, watch out.
I make a cup of coffee. Normally, I don’t indulge, but I suspect it might be the difference between me being awake when Niall shows up at oh-two-hundred hours and me drooling on the counter.
The halls are empty and quiet, the light dimmed for night time. No one is in Radcliff’s office as I cross to the door into the monitor room.
When I enter, Officer Tora turns to me. “At least you’re early and not out causing more trouble.” Her disgusted tone suggests we’re not about to have a bonding moment.
A brief thought—too bad I can’t shoot her—flashes through my mind. I do the mature thing and keep my mouth shut.
The woman is about thirty A-years old and always smells like roses. Her bobbed brown hair bounces when she moves her head. After the first looter attack, Radcliff assigned two officers to monitor the camera feeds, but with the shadow-blobs and prisoners, there aren’t enough people so the shift is down to one person. Tora sits in the narrow walkway between Radcliff’s office and Beau’s office. “Just don’t stand there, come closer so I can show you what to do and be out of here on time for once.” She sweeps her hands out, indicating to the two long side walls filled with screens on either side of her. Views of empty hallways, labs, the canteen, the port, and about ten meters of the ground outside the base fill them.
“It’s easy. Watch the feeds. If you see anyone who doesn’t belong or anyone doing something illegal or harming another or rioting, then press this button. That will alert Officers Radcliff, Morgan, and the officer on call.” She glances at the mug in my hand. “If you need to use the washroom, there’s a small one in Radcliff’s office. Be quick and make sure you rewind the feed and watch what you’ve missed. You can speed it up. Since you are here, I doubt you’ll see anything at this time of night. Questions?”
Yeah, like why are you being such a bitch? “How do you know if anyone tries to tamper with the feeds?” I ask instead.
“Unless they flash black or ripple you can’t know for sure, but Dorey has secured them.”
Her answer fails to reassure me. “Can you stay another couple of minutes so I can make sure they’re showing live feed?” And that no one has altered the special security loop.
She glares. “Dorey—”
“Is very good, but worming into camera feeds is super easy and I’d feel better knowing they were secure.”
Tora folds her arms and huffs. “I’m sure if I refuse, you’ll run to Radcliff and whine about it. Make it quick.”
I’m torn between calling her out for her nasty comment and not upsetting her further—she might just be exhausted. With no time for drama, I hurry. Beau’s office is unlocked. No surprise since the camera room is the only way into his domain, and it’s always monitored. I insert my tangs, sit at his desk and access the Q-net. Worming through all the security Beau heaped around the cameras, I check to ensure they are indeed showing our base at the current time and date. They are. And just to be on the safe side, I ensure the closed loop is still inaccessible to everyone except me, Radcliff, and Beau. It is. Then I hurry to set up an alarm in case a worm tries to alter any of our cameras.
“Happy now?” Tora leaves before I can answer another snide question.
I am happier, thanks for asking. Scanning the screens, I watch a few dedicated scientists—probably techs—still working. A couple people are in the halls. Most are heading back to their units. Nothing moves outside the base. Not even a breeze stirs the sand. All is quiet in the security area.
After an hour of nothing, I’m bored. I wonder why there’s no terminal in here. Keeping an eye out for intruders would be easier through the Q-net. In fact, the Q-net could do this job.
To keep awake as I scan the feeds, I consider how to make it work. My parents have pictures of everyone who has been assigned to the planet. The Q-net could sound an alarm if an unfamiliar face appeared. But what about fights or crimes? That’s extremely rare in a research base, but sometimes when the chemists mix up a batch of hooch they can get rowdy. I puzzle out how to set up a protocol for the Q-net for those cases. Maybe I could convince Radcliff to let the Q-net monitor the feeds so the officers would get a break. But what about the closed loop? Hmmm. I could write a standard plug and chug program to check the loop.
The best part of my shift is when Niall arrives. Freshly showered, his wet hair is combed back and he smells like shampoo and sage grass. The desire to hug him pushes on my body, but even though no one can see us, we’re in uniform and we made a promise.
“How did your first shift go?” he asks.
“Uneventful.” I gesture at the monitors. “Not even an inappropriate liaison that I could gossip about.”
“Pity. But that’s how it goes for most of security. Long periods of boredom, followed by intense action, then back to boredom.”
“Similar to archeology. Lots of grunt work wi
th discoveries few and far between.”
“Then you should be used to this.”
I yawn.
“Go to bed, Mouse. I’ve got this.”
I tell him about the Q-net alarm I set up.
“You don’t think Beau’s measures are enough?”
“I bypassed them in a few minutes without using my security clearance. Jarren could do it faster.”
“Wow. I’m wide awake now. Could Jarren slip by your alarm?”
“It’s subtle. I wove it through a few layers, but we didn’t call him the super worm for nothing.”
“Not helping.”
“Jarren won’t be looking for it. Not with all of Beau’s safeguards. And not if he believes I’m dead.”
“Better.”
I say good night and head back to my unit. My conversation with Niall replays in my mind and I wonder just how…integrated Jarren is in our communications to DES. I assume he’s been monitoring them, deleting the ones that report on his attack and activities. Perhaps there’s a way to bypass him or to hide the information so he doesn’t stop that file. I’m sure he has a list of words that will trigger his attention. Then those files will be rerouted to a cluster where he could review them. If it was me I’d— Oh my stars!
I almost trip over my feet at the thought. But I stay upright by sheer will because I don’t want Niall to abandon his post to rush to my side. After a few steps, I steady my nerves. I’m probably overreacting. And if not, there isn’t anything I could do about it at this time. Tomorrow when I’m working with Beau, I’ll ask him.
When I reach the door to my unit, I press my hand on the pad to unlock it. Before going inside, I turn to the closest camera and wave good night to Niall.
Due to my overactive imagination, it takes me longer to fall asleep than I planned so it’s an effort to leave my warm comfortable bed in the morning. At least I’m waking up surrounded by beauty and calm. Is it weird to feel that a part of Niall’s mother’s soul is watching over me? In a good way—not a creepy way. The paintings remind me of the Terracotta Warriors. When I stand near an intact Warrior, I sense a part of the craftsman’s soul was worked into the clay thousands of years ago. I guess that is weird. Must be the start of sleep deprivation.
Chasing the Shadows Page 5