Lance looked to her, and then to Joel. “I suggest you take yourselves back to Gaitune, and work this case to its conclusion.”
Molly’s eyes widened as if she were about to protest, but Lance continued speaking. “If there is any change in the situation here, Arlene will make sure you are the first to know. And when things heat up, we’ll have you back here to finish what you started.” His voice was conclusive. Molly decided there was no point in arguing.
“Until then, go catch some bad guys, and make the Federation proud,” he told her.
Molly unfolded her arms and noticed that Sean had relaxed in his seat again.
He knows more than he’s letting on.
He does. I think he’s seen Giles do this before. Or at least, he knew of it. I’ll see what I can find out, if you like?
Thanks, Oz.
Molly walked over to the General and shook his hand. “Okay. Thank you for your hospitality, sir. I look forward to seeing you sooner rather than later,” she said, her eyes darting over to Arlene.
She turned and headed out of the room, waiting outside for Joel and Sean to say their goodbyes and follow her out.
Chom-X9, Shaa’s Office
“I hear you’ve been requesting an audience with me,” Shaa prompted as he sat down in his console chair behind a makeshift desk.
Giles looked around the room, taking in as much detail as he could. His eyes came to rest on the former Lord High Marshall of the Zhyn Empire. “I have information in exchange for asylum,” Giles said, monitoring his own tone to make it even and confident, without a hint of arrogance. He needed to play this guy just right.
Shaa steepled his hands. “Why do you want asylum?”
Giles was expressionless for a moment. “Because the Federation has become power hungry and corrupt. My ideologies no longer fit with their agenda.”
Shaa regarded him skeptically. “And what do you think you can tell me that I don’t already know?”
Giles lowered his chin a little. “You know who I am, right?” he ventured quietly, hoping the language chip was doing its job, and setting the right tone in his statement.
Shaa rocked gently in his chair. “I do. But that doesn’t tell me what you know that might be of strategic use to us. In case you hadn’t noticed,” he continued, waving his hands nonchalantly about him, “we have a lot of things already covered.”
A smile leered over his lips, lopsidedly showing his contempt for others, and the arrogance for what he had achieved.
Giles lowered his chin a little before answering. “I can give you all kinds of information. Like where the weak points are in their defenses, and the sequence of their runs into the base. I can also tell you all kinds of things about how their systems are built. You know I can. You know who my father is.”
Aboard ArchAngel
Several thousand kilometers away, Arlene watched and listened as Giles led Shaa into their trap.
She tutted into the empty comms room. “Oh, no, you won’t, wide boy. You will not be sharing that kind of intel.” She made a quick note of his promises in case she had to give the General a heads-up, shaking her head at how cavalier he was with secrets that she was sure other service people would defend with their lives. “He’s a law unto himself, that one,” she said to the darkened communications room.
Empty food packets were scattered around her workspace and filling the bins. She had not left the place since the meeting with the General the day before, when they returned to the ArchAngel after depositing Giles there. There was no way she was going to abandon him. She just wished he could find a way to gain Shaa’s trust without putting the Federation in jeopardy.
Chom-X9, Shaa’s Office
“Okay. I’m interested,” Shaa confessed. “Interested enough to see what you have.”
Shaa glanced down at Giles’s wrists. “I see you have no communication device, or computer on you.”
Giles rubbed at the place where his holo would have been, finding it difficult to move in his handcuffs. “Er, no, I don’t. My holo was taken from me as soon as I landed. If I could have it returned to me, I can start drawing up the information I brought for you to review…”
Shaa nodded to Davon, who was hanging back by the door, watching the whole exchange. Davon acknowledged the order with a small bow.
Shaa turned his attention back to Giles. “I’m particularly interested in anyone who might be aligning themselves with the Federation. Anyone who is having talks with them, but hasn’t been official in their intentions.”
He leaned on his desk. “That would be of value,” he added.
Giles nodded. “I can do that,” he agreed.
Aboard ArchAngel
Back in her dark room, Arlene held her headphones closer to her ear in order to hear better. She shook her head. “You’d better be making this shit up, you motherfucker,” she muttered to herself, making another note on her list.
She tapped a message onto her holo to ADAM.
I NEED TO APPRISE THE GENERAL OF DEVELOPMENTS ON CHOM-X9. MIGHT WE SET A MEETING FOR A FEW HOURS FROM NOW?
>>SEND<<
* * *
Shaa stood up. “It looks like we have a way forward, then,” he said. He pointed at the guards behind him, and signaled for them to take him back to his cell. “I look forward to reviewing your offering,” he added.
The guards grabbed Giles roughly by the upper arms, and manhandled him out of the room.
Giles nodded his head towards the Lord High Marshall before he was whisked away. There was nothing to say; he had his in.
And Arlene had her baseline.
Chom-X9
Giles was shoved back into the holding cell where he had spent the last day. He fell forward as he was shoved in, and waited for the swish and clank of the metal door closing behind him.
He took a few paces forward, his awareness on the door without turning to look at it. Once he was certain it was closed, and the footsteps were moving away, he lay down on his rack on his right hand side with his cuffed hands in front of him.
He turned his head downwards so his lips would be hidden from the camera. “Did you get all that?” he whispered.
Arlene opened up the connection on his earpiece. “Yes, every word, you scoundrel. You realize I’ll be reporting this in to the General so that he can have reinforcements sent to wherever they’re needed?”
Giles breathed in exasperation at the woman. “I’m in a holding cell at ground zero to the biggest terrorist operation the Federation has seen in our extended lifetimes, and you’re giving me shit about a few little ‘secrets’ that the guy probably already has?”
Arlene frowned though Giles couldn’t see it. “Well, at the very least, it’s generating more work for me, mopping up after you.”
Giles fidgeted, trying to get comfortable on the thin mattress, in his handcuffs. The metal bracelets were digging into his wrists horribly, but he couldn’t risk sitting up and having their conversation detected.
“Did you get the baseline for a profile?” he asked again.
Arlene huffed over the line. “Yes. Of course I did. You’re the last person I should need to remind that this is not my first rodeo.”
Giles smiled. “Yes, I’m well aware of this. And, hey, if this works out, maybe I can convince you that it won’t be your last either.”
Arlene’s lips, unable to be restrained by her brain, spread into a small smile. She was grateful that Giles wasn’t able to see her, because he would certainly have counted that as a point. “Are you sitting comfortably? There’s a lot to cover for this one.”
Arlene pulled up a dashboard from the video footage of Shaa she’d used to analyze his reactions: facial expressions, choice of words, tone of voice, speed of speech in different points. “And remind me to circle back to the hot spots I noticed when he made his counter-offer of the intel he really wants. I have a theory I want to run past you.”
Giles shuffled on his
side again, his back aching already. “Okay. Go ahead. I’m listening.”
Arlene began the rundown as if it were just last week they had worked as a pair, infiltrating a high-stakes game.
Aboard The Empress, En route back to Gaitune-67
Paige chattered away excitedly to Maya. “I can’t believe that all this time, Arlene has been some super-spy!” Her eyes were wide as she tried to contain her excitement and keep her voice down.
Pieter poked his head up from behind their seats, joining the conversation. “Of all the people I have known, she’d be the least likely to be a super spy. I mean, Sean… he’s all dark and mysterious when he’s being serious. He’s got skeletons. And closets by the shed load, for sure.”
Sean yelled from the cockpit, “Yeah, and you’ll show more respect, unless you want to be a skeleton in said closet!”
Paige, Maya, and Pieter looked at each other. Pieter lowered his voice to a whisper. “Yeah, and ears like a fjandi bat!” he added.
Paige had clamped her hand over her mouth, but she didn’t really want to suppress her ability to speak. “Yeah, I mean, Arlene - I thought she was just some dear old lady, and then she had all these Estarian super powers. And then this!” Her voice had accidentally gotten louder, and she returned her hand to her mouth and subconsciously ducked her head down.
Maya glanced around seeing if someone else might overhear them. “Yeah, and Giles! The doddering professor. Who’d have thought?”
The sound of their voices carried through the cabin. Molly reclined in her seat and reviewed the files that Paige and Maya had pulled together for her.
Joel sat on the other side of the aisle, going through the material at the same time. “So, you think we should get Chaakwa involved at all? I mean, it’s a little risky for someone in her position. Not to mention… emotional.”
Molly pulled her eyes from her holo. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. But when we first talked about it, it was clear she needed closure. She needs to be in on this.”
Joel’s face softened. “Yeah, I can understand that,” he said, his eyes taking on a distant feel.
Molly dropped the holoscreen down and rested her arm. She looked thoughtful, and her eyes glazed over a little. She turned her head against the headrest. “Joel?” she asked, looking in his general direction.
Joel looked over again. “Mmm,” he said.
“What do you do for fun these days?” she asked, her eyes still a little distant.
Joel looked out across the cabin, contemplating his answer. “Well, I use the gym, I guess.”
Molly pulled her gaze up to meet his. “No, I mean fun. Not for health. Not for training. Not for work. Just… fun.”
Joel folded his holo screens away. “Well, I guess I don’t do anything. Not really.”
Molly shifted in her seat and brought her eyes forward. “Yeah. Me neither,” she agreed with a small sigh and a hint of resignation.
Joel twisted in his seat to look at her, crossing one leg over the other. “We should do something. Something fun; when we get back to Sark. Either on Gaitune, or even Estaria.”
Molly frowned a little. “Something? Like what?”
Joel’s eyes lit up. “Laser tag!”
Molly smiled and flicked her eyes upwards briefly. “That sounds like either a team building exercise, or a training disguised as fun.” She grinned and nodded in the direction of the gang. “Though, it might be an idea for them, one weekend.”
Joel’s face was brighter now. “Yes, that’s a point,” he said, mentally filing it away.
There was a pause in the conversation.
“How about we go for a beer?” he suggested.
Molly shrugged. “Sure. Why not,” she agreed simply. “In fact, I need to go to Estaria to see Chaakwa, once we’ve put together a plan. We could head down together.”
Joel bobbed his head. “You’re not worried about being seen? You are supposed to be dead, remember.”
Molly smiled dryly. “I’ll wear a hat,” she said flippantly.
Joel chuckled. “You’ve already had Oz deal with that, haven’t you?”
Molly avoided making eye contact. “Let’s just say Oz is an excellent team player, who more and more is working under his own steam.” Her smile widened, and Joel laughed.
“Well, it sounds like you have him well-trained,” he remarked, pulling up his holos again, and settling in to get some work knocked out.
Chapter 12
Gaitune-67, Base conference room
“Okay, any last questions?” Joel prompted. He looked around the conference table. The team was looking rested and back on the case, but the usual joviality was absent. “Don’t all talk at once,” he teased.
Brock grinned. “I got nothing. This one looks like a slam dunk.”
Joel closed his holos. “Let’s hope so,” he said, the memory of their ‘failed’ and ‘unresolved’ missions still lingering. The details of this cop’s mission were intricate and detailed, and they had to follow them to a ‘T’ to make sure they got the six culprits all to the same location at the same time.
Paige stuck her hand in the air. “If we’re done, I have an announcement,” she said brightly. A few of the team members around the table sat up a little, pleased for the change of pace.
Joel nodded, giving her the floor.
Paige glanced around the table, a little like a politician running for office. “Well, it’s real short. Because everyone was so tired when we got back here last night, we are pushing our pizza dinner to tonight.”
Maya leaned in. “We’re also going to have a beer for Giles,” she added.
There were approving grunts and affirmative sounds around the table. Brock sat up straighter in his chair, ready to be dismissed.
Joel looked to Molly, who acknowledged it was time to wrap up. He did the honors. “Okay, folks, there we have it. Pizza dinner tonight, and we’ll give you an update on the Chaakwa mission as soon as we get intel confirmation from Pieter – who, remember, is your point person on this one. So, any questions, direct them to him. Any decisions,” he looked at Pieter, “you run them up the chain to me. Got it?”
Pieter nodded once. He had slipped so low in his seat it was a wonder he hadn’t fallen on the floor. Paige wanted to reach over and slap him.
Joel brought it to a close. “Okay, peeps. Let’s call it a day,” he said, circling his finger in the air in his normal ‘move out’ sign.
The weary participants were glad to see the end of a three-hour briefing. Each and every one of them loved their job, and adored the people they worked with; but three hours in a non-stop operations planning and briefing was just grueling.
Brock leaned over to Pieter before they stood up. “Makes you wonder whether Giles has the better option!” he chortled, looking at the time on his holo.
Pieter snickered, managing, through some kind of weird agility, to pull himself up onto his seat properly, and then stand.
Paige had already made her escape from the conference room, her high heels clipping along the corridor, heading to get changed so she could do the pizza run.
Gradually, the room emptied out but for Sean, Joel, Jack, and Molly. Sean had surreptitiously made sure that Jack knew to stick around.
When all the others were gone and out of earshot, Jack made sure the door was closed, and wandered back over to the side of the conference room table where Molly still remained.
“This about the tango number six?” Jack asked.
Molly nodded. “Yes. And thank you for your message about that one. It was well worth us taking a proper look at.”
Jack bobbed her head. “So, what’s the verdict?” she asked bluntly, then glanced at Joel and Sean.
Molly pushed back in her seat to better see everyone. Sean had perched on the desk next to her, and Joel sat on her other side. Jack stood leaning against the wall.
“Well, we’ve all seen the file. I just want to make sure we ar
e all in agreement.” She looked at each of them in turn.
Joel was the first to answer. “Yes. I’m sure we are,” he said, looking at the others to make sure he was accurate.
Jack shook her head. “In agreement about what?”
Sean and Joel exchanged looks, obviously having spoken about it together before they walked into the meeting.
“We’ll take care of it,” Sean said simply. “Once we leave the warehouse, we’ll give the signal to Chaakwa and her team, and they will find the five. As far as they’re concerned, the sixth guy was never there, and he’ll never be found.”
His tone was as straightforward as if he had been reading off a shopping list.
Molly wasn’t disagreeing, but she had a look of curiosity in her eyes. “What will you do with him?” she asked.
Sean shook his head. “You don’t need to know,” he said in response to Molly, and then looked back at Jack, recognizing the pain and anger in her eyes. “Just know that it will be handled.”
He and Joel exchanged another look; a look of agreement, sealing the bond of what they had volunteered to do.
Jack’s shoulders relaxed as she witnessed this. She realized in that moment that they were willing to handle this; not just because they thought it was the right thing to do, but also so that she and Molly didn’t have to. She was grateful for that - despite the fury that boiled in her blood whenever she thought of the heinous things the tango had done.
Estaria, Downtown Spire
“Okay, so just message me when you’re done,” Joel said as Molly slipped out of the pod in the middle of the alley.
“Cool. See you soon,” she called back to him.
The door slid closed and then the pod shot back up into the sky. She checked her holo. Lunchtime.
She stepped out of the alley, looking left, then right. The precinct was just one block to her right, and Chaakwa took her lunch at the place just a few blocks up to her left. Molly started off down the street, noticing how surreal it felt to be back in this world. After all she had seen. All she had done. All the places she had visited, so far away.
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