Scarecrow had brought a set of binoculars from the air car, and now he brought them to his eyes. He looked at the distant city and then swung them to the right in a slow scan. He came to the hills on his far right and looked them over carefully and quickly so as not to appear to take too deep an interest. He brought the binoculars down and handed the instrument to his companion. Whitlock repeated the maneuver and then lowered the binoculars.
“I saw a roof, third hill back, just above the trees,” said Whitlock.
“Me too. Only one that I did see,” confirmed Scarecrow. He glanced casually to the hills. He could see the roof unaided now that he knew the location. “Good a guess as any. The Baron strikes me as a guy who would insist on a view and there would be a great one from there. Probably the whole city could be seen.”
“Aye. Probably owns a cabin in the middle of a good-sized parcel. He or his family, whoever owns it, wouldn’t like nearby neighbors mucking up their view or solitude,” Whitlock reasoned.
“We can’t be certain it’s his place but we gotta start somewhere,” Scarecrow suggested.
Whitlock nodded. “Let’s look at the map and see if there is a way to the hills further up behind the roof. It will give us a good view if we can get there.
The two men returned to their air car. Whitlock reached behind his seat and took out a case before entering the car and settling behind the wheel. There was a series of old-fashioned paper maps of the city and its surroundings. Whitlock could have done an electronic recon using his comm device, but he wanted to be safe. Such a maneuver could set off alarms if anyone was monitoring the electronic webs as a protective measure for the royal family. The odds were long that such a thing would happen, but it was best to be safe. The two men found their location on the map. The road the Baron had turned onto was not depicted. Neither man was surprised, and it gave credence to the idea of the road being a private entrance to a residence. However, there was a road depicted further back down the road they had come up. Both air cars had passed it about three kilometers before Hochstadt had turned off. That road ran up north through a narrow valley with the hills that interested the two men on the left side.
“I think the roof is about here,” Scarecrow said as he pointed to the third hill shown on the map above the road they had traveled on. He now pointed to a bend in the northbound road. “That looks about as close as we’re going to get to the roof.”
Whitlock frowned. “Agreed. About a two klick hike back to the south to a spot above the roof location. Most of it uphill. It will give us a nice look-down if the map is accurate. It will be a helluva hike though.”
Scarecrow nodded agreement. “If we have to carry equipment and then make a quick, undetected getaway after the deed, it won’t be easy or fast.”
“No way around it. Might as well take a look now.”
The two men secured themselves in the air car, and Whitlock drove back down the road to the junction with the northbound road. He turned left onto the road and moved up it as Scarecrow navigated using the map. They drove slowly north. After six minutes, Scarecrow said, “I think the next bend.”
As they navigated the bend, Whitlock looked for a place to put the air car that would be level for setting the car down but also out of sight of the road. There was no place in the bend and they had passed nothing just before the bend. They continued north and found a ghost of a trail headed west off the left side of the road. They followed it for fifty meters through trees until it began to curve. Whitlock stopped the air car and let it hover as they surveyed the area.
“Best we can do,” announced Scarecrow. “At least we are on the same side of the road as the roof.”
Whitlock agreed and gently set the air car down on the terrain. It settled on its four posts at a slight left tilt but was stable. The two men climbed out and looked around. Whitlock looked back up the trail to ensure they were far enough along the curve to be hidden from the northbound road. All was good.
Scarecrow pointed to the southwest. “I figure about a bit over two klicks.” Whitlock nodded. They could have gotten an accurate distance on their electronic devices, but operational security came before convenience. Their gut reactions and the paper map would have to do. To some extent, it didn’t matter. They were going to make the hike no matter how long it was.
Both of them looked in the direction Scarecrow had pointed. Fifty meters away, the climb started. They looked at each other, exchanged shrugs, and started out. Thirty sweaty minutes later they were on a hill just north of a large log structure. If the word “cabin” was applied to this building, it would be an injustice. Clearly, a product of much money and fine craftsmanship, chateau might be a better description. It was small by such a standard, but that did nothing to detract from the impression.
“Nice place,” Scarecrow commented in a knowing understatement.
“Yeah,” Dylan agreed, and then added, “With the main entrance on the south end.”
The duo would have to move around to their left and circle the building from north to along the east side of the structure until they could get a view of the front door on the south wall.
“Just great,” growled Scarecrow.
They started out by moving slightly back down the hill to ensure they would remain out of sight from the chateau. They moved to the east and circled around the building, occasionally climbing back up to look at the building to see if they had come far enough to see the southern side. Eventually, the southern end came into view, and the intruders laid on the hillside with just their heads peering around trees at their target. Hochstadt’s air car had been hidden from their initial view by the building itself but now was seen parked in front of the long covered porch that ran along the entire south side of the building.
“Thank God,” gasped Scarecrow when he saw the vehicle. “I would not have been happy if that car hadn’t been there.”
“You and me both—we have got to do something about getting back in shape,” said Dylan.
“I think we are doing that something right now,” observed Scarecrow.
The two men adjusted their position to get the best view of the front door and waited for the Baron’s date to show. Thirty minutes later, an expensive air car moved into the clearing occupied by the small chateau and parked next to the Baron’s transportation. A beautiful brunette got out and moved toward the building. As she climbed the three steps to the porch, the door opened, and Hochstadt emerged. The two met at the top of the stairs and grasped each other in a long embrace. They then moved into the cabin.
The men looked at each other and smiled. “This is the place,” declared Whitlock.
Scarecrow nodded and asked, “How do you see this happening? Gabby does it?”
Dylan shook his head. “I’ll do it. We’ll get to know his operation first and then set it up for when he brings Gabby up here.” He stopped as details came to him. “How about this? We will come one more time with Jasmine to get her input on this place and our plan. We will tape the Baron’s activities so Gabby has an idea of what she is walking into. Gabby will have to ensure the door is left unlocked when they enter. We follow them in, kill him in the cabin, and leave him where he falls. We have to check the place for recording devices or alarms. I’m sure there is some sort of security on the outside of the place. I don’t think he would have them for security inside, but he might have them in there for capturing the good times. Afterward, Gabby hikes out with us. We’ll have to bring clothes and shoes for her to change into.
“I doubt Hochstadt tells people when he is coming here so, hopefully, nobody finds him for several days. I think a jealous husband or slighted lover will be the main suspects, at least in the beginning. The delay in finding the body and that assumption by investigators should give us time to get off planet.”
“Gabby will do it if you think that would simplify the plan.” Scarecrow had sensed Dylan’s reluctance to use her.
“I know,” Whitlock conceded. “I just think it would be better if
it were me with you as backup.”
Scarecrow nodded. He wasn’t too keen on putting that on Gabby either. She would do it, but why give her the memory when there were other options available. “How will we know when to come back here for our recon with Jazz?”
“We’ll keep track of the movements of that air car the Baron is using, and next time it heads in this direction, we will move out to get here.”
Scarecrow thought for a moment. He said, “Sounds good, as long as he is using the same car.” He paused and then asked, “You want to wait here until he leaves and put a recorder in his cabin?”
Whitlock shook his head. “There has to be some form of security on the outside of that place. Don’t want to risk it.”
Dylan started to slide down the hill to ensure he would be out of sight when he rose. He stood up, and Scarecrow followed suit. They made their way back to their air car and returned to Jasmine’s apartment. Planning began among the four.
Chapter 32
“Attention on deck!”
The many officers rose from their seats as Admiral of the Union Grayson Volney led his staff down the aisle in the center of the room to the long, raised dais in front. He looked quite resplendent in his crisp, tailored uniform and moved with a grace and fluidity of a much younger, physically fit man. The senior officer vaulted up the stairs and moved to the center chair behind a long table facing the audience. He flashed a confident smile at the gathering below him as his staff officers took their positions along the table. Volney’s Fleet Operations Officer, Admiral Benton Castellaw, took up the microphone at the briefer’s position at the end of the dais.
“Seats, please.” The order was followed by the scraping of chairs and rustling of uniforms as dozens of officers sat down. Captain Skyler Mallory glanced around once again. This was supposedly a mission briefing for squadron commanders, their OpsOs, and a few other key billet holders. As a ship’s captain, there was no reason she should have been there, but her additional scan of the room confirmed her original conclusion. She was not there as a Royal Navy captain and ship commanding officer, but because she was the Duchess of Albithor. She noticed several other peers whose military duties and billets did not rate a seat at this briefing. Hell, there were a half dozen junior officers seated along the side of the room who were heirs to peer titles. Sky knew why they were there. Admiral Volney did not hold a peerage but clearly wanted to. He was currying favor with the peer class. Sky knew how this was all supposed to unfold. Volney wins the first major victory of the war and puts himself in position to be a key contributor to the march toward final victory over the OrCons. He includes all the peers in his force in the briefings and planning sessions so they get to see his genius close-up and personal. When the war ends or, maybe, before that, Defense Minister Cunningham puts Volney up for a lifetime peerage due to his great work and skilled leadership. The peers under Volney’s command can testify to his accomplishments as they were there to see them firsthand. The Upper House nominates Volney for a title and the Queen would sign off on granting a peerage to Grayson Volney as a small token of the Empire’s gratitude for his victories.
Skyler allowed herself a wry smile. She had seen this scheme or variations of it since childhood. Of course, the accomplishments and victories had to happen first. That was always the rub in these grand plans for personal glory. Somewhere along the line, you actually had to achieve something. If Volney pulled it off, Sky might actually support his bid for a lifetime peer title. A small price to pay to win the war. There were already plenty of fools in the Upper House. One more would hardly be noticed. Besides that, it would only be for Volney’s lifetime. His family would not inherit his title once he passed.
The problem was she had seen these plans fail much more often than they succeeded. She had concluded a long time ago that people who did this sort of thing were not that confident in their own abilities so enlisted the support of others to raise up. A great commander would not worry about it. He or she would do the job and let the accolades go to the people within the command. Rewards would follow accomplishments. There was no reason to try to stage manage it. Mallory had never met Volney but did know his reputation. This stunt was right in line with what she had heard, and it did not ease her mind about him.
The briefed plan did not ease her mind either. Her trepidation started with the announced goal of the operation. Their mission was to retake the Royal Navy base at Excandor. The OrCons had captured the base in the war’s first hours after overwhelming a spirited defense by the forces stationed there. Due to the damage sustained in that attack, the base was not rebuilt to full capacity by the OrCons, but they were using it as a staging area for further operations against the Empire.
Now the Royal Navy’s first large-scale offensive of the war was to recapture this lost base. Sky Mallory never fancied herself a grand strategist, but she had a difficult time seeing the point to this. If they successfully retook the base, the Royal Navy would be in the same position as the OrCons. The base, with no intact permanent facilities, would still be useless except as a staging area. It would take months of repairs to get it back to its prewar status. That’s assuming the Empire could keep it once they had retaken it.
Sky could see some value in grabbing the base as a symbol of a shifting of fortunes in the war. Also, this first offensive operation would be taking place on the edge of the Aurora Empire’s territory so if something went wrong it would not happen deep in Orion space. Still, she could not see the loss of the base as a severe blow to the OrCon military, their strategic position, or to their pride. She could think of a dozen targets she would hit before Excandor. She held the view that risking the gathered force to retake a destroyed base was a waste of people and resources. Of course, that was assuming everything went well. If it went badly, there was no way to justify the casualties or the wasted offensive opportunity.
Her unease increased as the tactical scheme was laid out. They were dividing their forces into two parts, labeled Task Forces 1 and 2, and attacking from opposite directions, timed to arrive at Excandor at the same time. This would give the defenders no place to hide, but it would mean the attackers could not support each other if that became necessary. It also required timing and coordination between two forces that had never worked together before. The KISS principle of Keep It Simple, Stupid was being broken here. Sky had never seen that work out well for the violators.
As the briefing was handed off to other ops officers and they droned on, Mallory felt eyes on her and glanced to her right. Several meters away, Jack Wilson, CO of Destroyer Squadron 22, was looking at her. He was easy to read, and it was clear he was thinking exactly what she was thinking. There was a lot not to like here and both of them were doing their share of not liking it. The problem was, there wasn’t a damn thing either of them could do about it. Sky gave a slight shrug. Wilson acknowledged it with a nod. Sky looked around the seated officers. They were dutifully paying attention, but one could sense the unease. This was a needlessly complicated plan designed to seize a target of dubious value. These veteran officers saw that. They had to be thinking along the same lines as she was. Sky found herself hoping that Excandor was garrisoned by a small detachment who would run when the two Royal Navy maneuvering elements showed up on their sensors. She really didn’t believe that would happen. The universe didn’t work that way. Neither did the OrCons.
The briefing ended, and it was time for questions. There were none. The audience wanted to get out of there. Admiral Grayson added some final words of praise and a pep talk. The briefing ended. As the gathering broke up, Mallory and Wilson found each other.
“Sky, this can’t be happening,” Wilson whispered as they walked out together.
“If the OrCons have any idea we are coming and concentrate on one task force…,” Mallory let the sentence trail off so imagination could take over. It didn’t take much conjuring to see what would happen to an isolated force if it was caught unsupported by a superior enemy. The second task for
ce would speed to support their comrades, but that would take time. Probably too much time.
“Lots can happen here, and ninety percent of it is bad,” Wilson agreed.
As they split up to return to their ships, Sky said, “See you after the win.”
He nodded and smiled, “I’ll happily buy the first round.” Sky returned the smile.
Chapter 33
Mia Wo couldn’t suppress a smile as she sat in the copilot’s seat of the shuttle. It had been an eventful few days. She had served as the ops officer aboard Vindictive during the fight at Libellule. She thought she had done a good job, and Shane Delacruz confirmed it after the battle. She then transferred to Cottonmouth for the trip to Hranice and accepting Habu from the shipyard there. Llewellyn Terrant, as squadron CO, could review the transfer to ensure the shipyard did not take advantage of the young captain. Hranice was a border planet between the Badlands and New Brittany. The planetary government played both sides of this imaginary fence, and all their businesses operated the same way. Their commitment to secrecy made them desirable partners, but they had to be watched.
Now Cottonmouth’s shuttle was carrying Mia and fourteen crewmembers to the Hranice shipyard’s office to pay for services rendered. After dropping them at the office, the shuttle would return to Cottonmouth to retrieve Terrant and more crewmembers.
Mia was happy to get her ship back. She was sure the final bill would be higher than agreed upon, but that was Senior Captain Terrant’s problem. She would do the haggling if required. Everyone was sure it would be required.
As the shuttle moved through the shipyard, Mia scanned the activity surrounding her. Semi-organized chaos reigned supreme in all directions. Ships were in various stages of repair and many more were tied up to floating decks while waiting their turn. Business was good. A ship waiting in the floating decks caught her attention. She picked up the binoculars always kept in the cockpit and brought them to her eyes. It only took a few seconds. She lowered the glasses and reached for the comm. She knew Captain Terrant would be on her bridge until the shuttle returned to pick her up. Mia called her.
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