by C. R. Daems
"A woman naval officer? I don't suppose she had admiral insignia and was accompanied by a red-headed krait?" Tashia hissed quietly from the other side of the room. She didn't move, but the room froze as if she had stood and shouted.
"Dora said she was in civilian clothing but she had a snake wrapped around her neck," Stefan said.
"Jamar, have you out lived your usefulness?" Tashia smiled like one would expect from a hangman placing a noose around the condemned man's head or a serial killer after he had finished torturing his latest victim.
"The bitch has nine lives," he muttered angrily but never made eye contact.
"Well then, you have only six to go, so you had better hurry. We," she waved to include everyone in the room, "can't wait for her to die of old age."
"You bitch," Jamar said under his breath.
"I appreciate compliments as much as the next woman, but I'd prefer action to words, results to excuses. And bitch is such a lame description. I'd prefer Satan's Harlot, or Daughter of Darkness…no, make that Queen of Darkness or how about Death's Daughter." She laughed. "Go do your job—catch the mouse and kill her or bring her home for us to play with…or we'll have to get another cat. One with teeth and claws. Go. You're wearing out my good mood." Tashia closed her eyes as Jamar exited the room, anger burning in his eyes.
"What if Jamar can't kill her?" Lucio asked.
"We could put a bounty on her head," Vito said. "A hundred thousand credits should do it."
"That red-headed pet of hers is already worth over a quarter million and she still has it," Tashia said. "Maybe we need a female cat. A scalpel rather than the same old sledge hammer you men love so much." An evil smile touched her thin lips and a satisfied sigh escaped her as she closed her eyes.
CHAPTER THIRTY- FOUR
Star System: Eastar – Repercussions
"An interesting day, Daughter?" Alexa asked as we sat for dinner. She knew what I planned to do—or rather, not do—with the information we would collect from the system that the kidnapped women would pass through to get a name change.
"Next to you, Mother, I thank the space gods for Renata. Admiral Webb began with a rant about all the problems my decision would cause, including what General Guzman would think. I gave him three options—"
"You didn't… Well, of course you did. I was just having trouble imagining you giving the Secretary of the Navy options. And what were your options?"
"Give me a medical retirement, remove me as Director of NIA Stations, or say it was my decision to make. I had intentionally failed to consult Lulltrel and Webb, so they would have those options available," I said. "But before they could reply, Renata had the sense to ask why I made the decision I did. After I explained that I thought it would be what the women would want me to do, Webb gave me a fourth option."
"To revoke your order?"
"No. That he would endorse my decision."
* * *
"The Master Chief is right. You're an interesting person to work for, and I'm certain I made a wise decision applying to be your aide-de-camp," Banner said after giving me my morning coffee. "The Master Chief and I thought your decision was controversial and should have been discussed with Admirals Lulltrel and Webb to cover your…butt. But then the Master Chief pointed out that was not the way you operate, probably because you aren't focused on getting promoted, just doing your job. I shouldn't have been surprised, as it was the message you gave your stations' chiefs at each stop around the UAS. That answers a question I've had before I met you—what career path should I select? I like your philosophy, so I need to find a job I love rather than the one with the fastest track to rank."
"Now that we've gotten the excitement out of the way, how bored am I going to be today?" I asked.
"Very. I suspect that the half of your direct reports who don't know you personally are wondering when Admiral Lulltrel and Webb are going to rescind your orders or fire you," Stamm said, his voice full of amusement.
* * *
"Ma'am," Banner knocked and entered, as I had just said Come. "You have an urgent message from Commander Taber. One of the recent missing women has applied for a name change…" He hurriedly put his tablet on my desk with the decoded message.
To: Rear Admiral Paulus
Director NIA Stations
The woman named Geneva Poole from Black Water has just applied for a name change. Police Commissioner Higgins is preparing to pick up the woman and arrest the man accompanying her. Please advise.
From: Commander Taber
Fire Rock NIA Station Chief
"I can understand that Commissioner Higgins doesn't like me," I said thoughtfully. "But I didn't think he was on drugs. Oh, well. Master Chief, who is the army officer in charge of the garrison on Fire Rock?" I sat back, sipping the hot cup of coffee my every-ready aide had placed in front of me. I could almost imagine him like a puppy, sitting with his mouth open, tongue hanging out, panting, and wide-open eyes in anticipation of his master's reaction to the bone he dropped at her feet. I shook my head in an attempt not to laugh and to rid my mind of the image. I'd grown quite fond of Banner.
"Brigadier General Petrakov, ma'am."
"Thank you, Carl."
"Lieutenant Banner, send the following message, urgent, to Brigadier General Petrakov, copies to Vice Admiral Lulltrel, Commander Taber, and Police Commissioner Higgins."
General Petrakov, I've been informed that Fire Rock's Police Commissioner Higgins is preparing to ignore a direct P1A order not to contact or interfere in any way with any woman who is listed in the UAS Magic Act database or her companion(s). I've been further notified he is preparing to contact and/or to otherwise interfere with a woman listed in that database named Geneva Poole from Black Water and her companion(s).
If he attempts to contact her in any way, direct or indirect, or interfere with her or her companion(s), you are to arrest him under my P1A authority and arrange transportation to Stonewall, where he is to be incarcerated for the rest of his life. You are authorized to use lethal force if necessary. Your contact is Commander Taber, Fire Rock NIA Station Chief.
"Banner, use my UAS Special Agent for the Magic Act Project title."
"And the commissioner went poof," Stamm choked out with a laugh.
"Yes, ma'am." Banner ran out the door smiling.
* * *
I had just returned from lunch when Teresa Hadley entered my office looking cheerful. She was interested in the Magic Act project and wanted the latest from me. Fortunately, she was authorized, as she was on the need-to-know list. She was particularly interested in the Higgins fiasco. Of course, I wouldn't know anything for a day or more, but it was a chance to chat and socialize and fill an otherwise boring day. Even by faster-than-light messaging, it took time to get an update. She had just grabbed a cup of coffee when Stamm burst through the door.
"Ma'am, I was just notified there was a shooting incident in the lobby. Nothing to worry about, but I thought you should know. Apparently, several men—the exact number is unclear—tried to enter the building. They shot up the lobby but security managed to stop them from entering. It was a miracle that no one was seriously hurt—"
I bolted out of my chair chastising myself—careful what you wish for, you may get it—as I raced by Carl.
"Sergeant Nabert, you and Master Chief Stamm are going to clear this floor. Send everyone up the stairs to the twentieth floor. You too, Teresa. There is a kill squad in this building, and the NIA personnel will be targets of opportunity," I said, trying to improvise a solution, as most navy personnel not only didn't carry a weapon, but few—if any—brought them to work. The twentieth floor would at least have several marine guards because of Webb and the other high-ranking flag officers. Banner came running up just then. "Banner, get to the sixteenth floor as fast as you can and have Damon evacuate all NIA up to the twentieth floor. That's an order. Clear?"
"Yes, ma'am," he shouted as he ran for the stairs.
"What about you, Admiral?" my marine secur
ity sergeant asked. Stamm was already shouting orders as he worked his way down the hallway. "Go; I'll call Pannell and let him know what I'm doing. Go! No, wait. Do you have any flashbangs?" I asked. He opened a pouch on his belt and handed me two. I nodded my thanks and waved him off. Back in my office, I unlocked my desk drawer and took out my Mfw, checked that the safety was off, and strapped it to my thigh. I took a deep breath and stepped into the reception area, and then found a position where I could see into the hallway. If I were right, they would be coming up both stairways. About five minutes later, the doors at both ends of the hallway opened and three men entered from each stairwell. I switched my Mfw to shards and thumbed the spread to tight as I stood waiting, partially concealed by the entrance wall. I could see them entering the area, opening doors, and I heard them shouting, "All clear."
CHAPTER THIRTY- FIVE
Star System: Eastar – More Repercussions
Jamar looked around the room, pleased with the team his contact on Eastar had assembled. Five men were dressed in regulation navy uniforms, ranging from petty officers first through third. Jamar's uniform had chief petty officer's rank. Another six men were dressed in dark combat clothing with no rank or insignia and were wearing balaclavas.
"The mission is simple. Those of us in navy uniforms will enter the lobby to the military headquarters building and join one of the three security check lines. When we are close to the security checkpoint, I will send the go signal. At that point you will rush into the lobby shooting. The idea isn't to kill anyone but to create panic and to overwhelm the security checking stations. After we are in, you can let security drive you off. You will stay in the designated waiting area to extract us after we have killed our targets." His gaze shifted to those in navy uniforms. "Our prime target is Admiral Paulus. She is located on the eighteenth floor. Secondary targets are any of the Eastar NIA group on the sixteenth floor and senior personnel on the eighteenth floor. There should be enough confusion afterward for us to join those evacuating the building. I'll lead team Alpha and Rosser will lead team Beta. Alpha will take the north and Beta the south stairs. Any questions?" He looked around the warehouse, not expecting questions, as they had been reviewing a blueprint of the headquarters building and the specific layout of the sixteenth and eighteenth floors as well as who was in each office and work area. They planned to arrive toward the end of the lunch hour, as that was when the traffic in the lobby would be the heaviest. He looked at his watch and decided it was time to go and circled his hand for everyone to enter the four waiting SUVs.
* * *
Two of the SUVs discharged their passengers who were wearing naval uniforms. They were spread among three separate spots within a five-minute walk to the building, which would make them appear as pairs of sailors rather than a group. Each carried a small duffel bag as if prepared to depart on deployment or possibly just returning from one. Inside the building, Jamar and Rosser made small talk about two women they had met yesterday at an Eastar nightclub as they shuffled along in the middle of a line waiting to enter security station two. When they were within three persons of the checkpoint, Jamar pressed the button on his comm device. Several minutes later, as the person in front of Rosser was waved through the check station, shots rang out and people began panicking. Some dropped to the floor, others crouched behind whatever cover they could find, and most ignored the security stations, running past the security police who were preparing to engage the attackers. After Jamar was sure the two kill teams were inside, he gave the signal to proceed to their assigned areas. He noted Rosser and his two men entering the north stairs. Collecting his two men, he kept going until they reached the back of the building and entered the south stairs. They took the stairs at a brisk pace. He didn't want to attract undue attention, but they had sixteen floors, two hundred fifty-six steps to climb. When they finally reached the sixteenth-floor landing, each man lowered the bag he was carrying, opened it, and retrieved the assault weapons inside and multiple magazines. Then they took out the loose-fitting black pants, sweaters, and balaclavas, which they hurriedly put on over their navy uniforms.
"Beta, are you in place?" Jamar asked into channel eight of his comm device.
"Beta is a go," came the response. Jamar nodded, and the door was opened and the three men rushed in from the north and south doors. Jamar stayed in the center of the hall as one man entered the right and the other the left work areas and offices. Jamar had expected to find forty or more people on this floor—the Eastar NIA station group. But it became immediately obvious that the entire floor was empty.
"Beta, finish checking this floor. I'm going to the eighteenth floor. Join me when you are certain no one is here," Jamar said and waved for his team to follow as he headed for the stairs. Two minutes later, he signaled for one of his men to open the door to the eighteenth hallway and he burst through with his Mfw, ready to kill everyone there. The floor was silent. He cursed. "Where the fuck are they?" He waved his two men forward. With him watching the hallway, they began working the area, examining reception rooms, offices, and conference rooms. All were empty. About a quarter of the way into the area, the door to the south stairs flew open and Rosser came charging through, Mfw swinging left and right. When he saw Jamar, he shrugged.
"The sixteenth floor was empty," he said into his mic as he waved his two men into action. They had just come through the door when someone in a navy uniform fired a burst of pellets and one of Rosser's men went down. Jamar and Rosser both swung their Mfws toward the shooter and fired, but it was too late, as the individual had disappeared. Sensing a trap, they continued clearing the rooms as they worked toward the area where the shooting had come from. Several minutes later, both teams arrived at the area the shooter had been in, judging by the shell casings on the floor. One man from Jamar's team and one from Rosser's entered the area, one from the right and one left, firing as they went. Nothing. The two approached the office door as the other four entered the area. With all six ready, one man grabbed the door handle, waited as two prepared to rush in, then yanked the door open. One man went right and the other followed left.
CHAPTER THIRTY- SIX
Star System: Eastar – More repercussions
I stood listening as the group entering from the north stairwell began working their way down the hallway, every minute or so shouting, "Clear," with increasing confusion and frustration. Then suddenly, the door from the south stairwell opened and another team entered and began working their way through the area, shouting, "Clear," as they went. I peeked out to see one man standing in the middle of the hallway and two men working the offices and rooms, one on each side. It was the same on my left and right. I stepped out and shot a man just coming out of Hadley's area on my right. I saw him stumbling backward as I ducked back. Several shots came from my left, probably from the man standing in the middle. The pellets wracked the wall near where I had been. I doubted they would rush to my position, since they would have to worry about a potential trap, so they would continue clearing the area as they approached. I backed into my office, closed the door, and moved behind my bookcase. I had moved it away from the wall at a forty-five-degree angle to use as a shield, only two steps from my bathroom door. What seemed like an eternity later, I could hear talking in my reception area—I had left the comm open and their voices were clear.
"The shooter has to be in that office," one man said, then laughed. "This is my fucking lucky day. It's the bitch Paulus, according to the sign on the door. Rear Admiral Anna Paulus." His laugh sounded maniacal. A minute later, the door was yanked open and two men rushed in, one turning right and the other intending to cover left. I engaged him first, since I was in position on the left of the door. Two hits, one to the forehead and one just below his nose. His gun clattered to the floor and he collapsed, his forward momentum and the pellets to his head canceling each other out. The man looking right swiveled to the left with his Mfw on full automatic, tearing holes in the walls, chewing through my desk, and shattering the window
behind the desk. I shot him in the head before the storm of metal reached me. As I turned my gaze back to the half-open door a flashbang came flying into the room. I stepped into the bathroom and slammed the door shut as the device exploded. Even with the door closed, the sound was deafening and my ears were ringing. I felt a moment of disorientation as the room lit from the blinding flash of light coming through the crack between the door and the floor. I pulled the pin on my flashbang and opened the door as three men rushed in, although the third stayed in the doorway. I released the lever, tossed the flashbang into the room, and slammed the door shut. This time the disorientation was worse, the cumulative effect I imagined. I opened the door and stumbled into my office, which looked like a bomb had gone off. There wasn't a piece of furniture that hadn't been partially destroyed or a wall that wasn't scarred by hundreds of pellet holes. Two men were on their knees. One was sweeping the floor feeling for his weapon while the other screamed obscenities between pukes. I shot both. Then I realized more obscenities were also coming from beyond the door. The man in the doorway must have jumped back into the reception area and avoided most, but not all of the flashbang. I heard steps running down the hallway, and later the door to the north stairs opened and closed. Then the elevator door opened and I heard the drumming of multiple footsteps thundering down the hallway. I moved back to the bathroom door, pointed my Mfw toward the door to the office, and waited.