Fred smiled, momentarily distracted from his brush with death.
The gang made their way to the cafeteria and poured themselves into a booth, Merry on one side and Vlad and Fred on the other. Vlad got up and instructed, “You guys stay here. I’ll take care of this, being the only one with a legitimate job and all.”
Merry smiled in reply. She turned to Fred. “How are you, man? You seem awfully distracted.”
Fred bobbed his head in acknowledgement. His eyes had glazed over and his brow furrowed. “I’m alright. I mean, Jayne calls me the friendly neighborhood arms dealer and I’m used to shit going down, but that… that was intense.”
Merry twirled a lock of her hair. “It seems to be in the air.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Fred murmured.
Merry rolled her ankles under the table. “I think it’s to be expected, given what we’re doing and all. I mean, saving a government official is pretty high stakes stuff. Not that trading guns isn’t.”
Vlad returned with their food. “Okay, I kept with the hospital theme.” He started handing them their plates and cups. “Mysteriously colored burgers, fries, kava, and whatever’s suspended in this gelatin. Eat up.”
Merry laughed gratefully and swiped a fry. “I didn’t know I was so hungry.”
Vlad nodded. “Acute stress does that to you.”
Fred stared at his burger before deciding to take a large bite. “Speaking of stress, think Burrett’s holding it together without us?”
Merry raised an eyebrow and sipped her kava. “What do you mean?”
Fred continued between bites of his burger. “Well he’ll be a blithering wreck again in an hour. Those pills don’t last long.”
Merry smiled. “That’s true. He won’t get far without—” She felt for the pills in her pocket. Then she dug through all her pockets.
Nothing.
“Oh no,” she murmured.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Tailo Building, L19, Theron Techcropolis, Armaros
The officer attempted to draw Jayne’s focus back to the conversation. “Ms. Austin, we just have to ask you a few more questions.”
Jayne looked at the officer for about five seconds before her skin crawled and she had to look away again. She exhaled, attempting to push down the tears welling in her eyes. “What do you want to know?” She looked around at the CSI officers, gathering the weapons and any unusual fibers into plastic bags.
The officer followed Jayne’s gaze. He had a rugged face with a nose that Jayne reckoned used to be straighter. He scrolled to a yellow section of his tablet. “Let’s start with the fight.”
Jayne continued to gaze at the CSI process, watching the officers place the plastic bags onto holding shelves. The light coming from the holding shelves as the cataloging machine registered and filed the objects into a locked chamber was oddly comforting to Jayne. “I… tracked the subject to this location.”
The officer wrote with his stylus. “How?”
Jayne scrolled to the tracking app on her tablet. “With this.” She handed it to the officer, allowing him to download it onto an Evidence tablet. “The search should still be on there.”
The officer smiled politely. “Thank you. What happened when you approached him?”
Jayne folded her arms to keep herself warm. Her eyes darted around the floor. “We engaged in banter. I was trying to get him to confess his intentions. It went too far.”
“How so?”
Jayne took a deep breath. “I opened a comm conversation with my cohort so she could listen in. The comm was in my pocket the whole time.” Jayne produced the comm and handed it to the officer. “Here. The conversation should be in the log. Anyway, I pushed him too far, he lost it and admitted he was going to kill Celia Wilson.”
“And you believed him?”
Jayne felt her face get warm. “I totally did! He showed me the microphone. I tore it off during the struggle and threw it over there somewhere.” Jayne indicated the general area where she tossed the mic.
“And then what?”
Jayne closed her eyes and swallowed hard, pushing the images to less accessible parts of her memory. “I lunged at him first. He was giving the order to kill the girl and I had to stop him. Then he had me in a choke hold from behind. We struggled. I dislocated his shoulder. We drew weapons on each other and he kept coming at me. I tried to warn him, that I didn’t want to hurt him. I just wanted him to stay back, maybe wound him so he had to quit attacking, but he wouldn’t stop…”
The officer smiled warmly. “It’s okay, Ms. Austin. We can guess what happened from there.” The officer looked at the outline where Chamberlain’s body was. “You know, if it were anyone else, I don’t think I would’ve believed they could get the upper hand on this Chamberlain the way you described. But I saw the way you dismantled that bomb at the school. You have skills, Ms. Austin.”
Jayne smiled weakly. “Thanks.”
A familiar voice broke through the chaos. “Excuse me, coming through.” Officer Cameron Stafford smiled as soon as he saw Jayne. He hurried towards her, stepping over CSI cabinets and officers scanning for prints. “Jayne! I heard you were here.”
Jayne felt her heart skip when she heard Cameron’s voice. “Blue Eyes—umm, I mean, Cameron. Yeah, it’s me. Not exactly how I wanted us to meet again, but…”
Cameron smiled, assessing the scene. “What’s going on here?”
Jayne felt her anxiety multiply at light speed. “I was tracking a blackmailer and things got out of hand.”
Cameron looked around. “Where’s the perp?”
Jayne paused. “He… died. It was an accident.”
Cameron fixed his gaze on her. “I see…” He put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. “It happens to the best officers. You can’t always prevent it. But here’s what I don’t get…”
Jayne raised an eyebrow. “Yes…?”
He looked around the room before his questioning gaze fell on Jayne. “Why would a bomb disposal operative be chasing a blackmailer?”
“Umm, let’s call it a favor for a friend.”
Cameron smirked. “Is that the truth?”
Jayne smiled mysteriously. “More or less.”
Cameron laughed, bobbing his head. “Alright, I see you want to keep some secrets, but I have one more question for you, Ms. Austin. Once we wrap up here, would you need a ride home?”
Jayne looked around the abandoned apartment, taking in all the mildew and chaos. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
She followed Cameron out of the apartment, laughing under her breath. “Blue Eyes to the rescue.”
+++
Neareso Bar, Downtown, Avalon Space Station
Professor Levitsky seductively ran her fingertip around the rim of her martini glass. She sucked the olive off the toothpick, running her tongue around the pimento behind her closed lips. Levitsky observed a man at the other end of the bar attempting to make eye contact. She waved her hand dismissively and sighed.
The skinny bartender with the perfect smile nodded at her drink. “Another martini, Miss?”
Levitsky smiled and winked. “You know how I want it.”
The bartender laughed. “Yes, ma’am, I do.”
She laughed with him. It was a high, fae-like laugh. Levitsky smoothed out her sweater dress and leggings. She pulled her clutch closer to her, fishing for the thumb drive in one of the pockets. Levitsky smiled to herself. “This should do it.”
Levitsky could feel the stranger’s eyes on her. The mere thought of the stranger looking at her made her entire body annoyed. The bartender carefully slid Levitsky’s drink in front of her, then gave her an extra one several seconds later. The bartender pointed to the stranger. “From the gentleman over there.”
She slid the second drink away from her and dryly responded. “Send it back. Thanks, but no thanks.”
The bartender’s eyes grew wide as he took the drink away. “Ouch. You’re a tough one.”
Levitsky smir
ked. “You have no idea.” She looked around impatiently and started practicing what she would say when Alfonso got there. Not that she was worried, but any good pitch anticipates objections before they’re spoken.
Alfonso quickly sat on the stool next to Levitsky. “Sorry I’m late, Professor.”
Levitsky put a hand on his knee and looked him in the eyes for a couple seconds, long enough to either make Alfonso get the hint or feel incredibly uncomfortable. Judging by the involuntary recoil she felt from him, Levitsky guessed his feeling was more the latter. She withdrew her hand and cleared her throat. “Thanks for coming, Alfonso.”
Alfonso smiled weakly. He signaled for the bartender. “Midori sour please.” He turned towards Levitsky. He opened his mouth to speak, but instead just nodded at his former professor. He couldn’t help but feel awkward. “How have you been?”
“Why are you asking me how I’ve been? You don’t care, and I’m not going to ask you the same question. “
The response put Alfonso to ease. “So, what did you need to see me about?”
Levitsky gave Alfonso a once-over. She watched him look at anyone but her and felt a wave of jealousy. “Maybe a booth would be more private.”
Alfonso continued to avoid eye contact. “I don’t know. I’m fine here.”
She put a hand on his wrist. “Not after you hear what I have to say. Trust me, Alfonso, it’s big.”
He continued to scan the room before looking just past Levitsky. She felt tension in her shoulders and her brow furrowed. He graciously accepted his drink from the bartender.
“Look.” Levitsky stared into her drink. “I know there have been a few misunderstandings between us, and I was hoping this meeting could signal us starting over.”
Alfonso eyed her suspiciously as he took his first sip of the green drink. “Okay,” he said slowly. He cased the bar for all available exits and anyone he thought looked out of place. Nothing set off any intuitive red flags for him.
Except Levitsky.
“I’ll listen. There are no guarantees for the future, but I will hear you out.”
Levitsky gave a half smile that somehow made her look submissive, a nearly impossible feat. “That’s fair.” She motioned with her head and picked up her drink. “Follow me.” She was three martinis in, but didn’t spill any of her drink as she walked toward a booth at the back of the bar. She glanced over her shoulder at the halfway point to make sure Alfonso was following her.
She noticed with no small measure of irritation that Alfonso was following her but didn’t seem interested in looking at her directly. He appeared more preoccupied with not running into chairs, billiard tables, or the other patrons. Levitsky slithered her way into the maroon and black booth. Alfonso took one more quick glance around the bar before sitting across from Levitsky. He gently placed his drink on a napkin and swirled the ice. “So… What’s on your mind?” he asked.
Levitsky daintily put her French manicured hand out on the table, reaching halfway to Alfonso.
“Maybe I have been approaching this completely wrong. The lack of trust between us hurts.”
Alfonso narrowed his eyes at her and took a sip of his drink. The pit of his stomach made him feel as though her words and candid thoughts were wildly incongruent. “Again, I’m sorry. But I’m not sure what to say to that, Professor Levitsky.”
Levitsky sighed deeply and appeared to contemplate the table for a few seconds. She looked up at Alfonso. “Look, Alfonso, can I ask you a question?”
Alfonso shrugged. “Sure.”
She sat up straight. “Where do you see yourself after the Academy? What do you want your life to look like?”
Alfonso grimaced, wondering what he could say that would get at the truth without leading him into a trap. “I… I guess I want what every cadet wants: travel, adventure, satisfy my need for adrenaline, to serve the Federation, and do something good. But I don’t see what-”
Levitsky stared Alfonso right in the eye as she took a long, deliberate sip of her martini. “You want a life of adventure and service, right?”
Alfonso shifted in his seat. “Yes, but I don’t see where you’re going with this.”
Levitsky broke eye contact, briefly staring into the distance. She set her elbows on the table and intertwined her fingers in front of her lower lip. “I know what the wholesome cadets like you want. To be a virtuous, but bad ass agent.”
Alfonso’s creeping sense of shame left him breathless, like he was trying to shove plaster into his lungs. He felt himself blush. “More or less, I suppose. Maybe?”
Levitsky’s predatory, analytical gaze fell on him again. “Maybe retire and write your own ticket doing something with intel or security-related in the private sector?”
He didn’t even bother to control the quizzical expression he felt on his face. “I mean, yeah. We’ve talked about this before. What does this have to do with anything?”
Levitsky mustered up her best concerned smile, making sure not to show any teeth. “Have you given any thought to who you’re going to surround yourself with when you make these dreams a reality?”
Alfonso exhaled sharply and took a sip of his drink. The sour melon taste clung to the inside of his mouth. “I have friends, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”
She chuckled. “I know you have friends, Alfonso. I’m more concerned with whom you’re choosing to surround yourself.”
“What do you mean?”
Levitsky maintained partial eye contact as she spun the stem of her glass between her fingers. “I think you know who I mean.”
“How is bashing one of my dearest friends from the Academy supposed to get me to trust you, Professor? I thought you were on Jayne’s side!”
Levitsky polished off her martini in one gulp. “What little idealism I have left is on Jayne’s side. What the Academy did to Jayne was wrong, but that doesn’t mean I like her. Look, I’m only saying this because I see a lot of potential in you. Jayne is bad news. Do you know what it would do to your career if the top brass knew you were involved with a rental spy?”
Alfonso slammed his fist onto the table. “Don’t you mean a rental spy who disarmed a bomb and saved our precious Academy from a sinister operative? Is that the rental spy you’re talking about? Jayne was top of her class at the Academy and she’s a damn good spy on her own.”
Levitsky hovered her hands above the table as if to tell Alfonso to calm down. “I’m not saying she doesn’t have talent,” she said with a smirk, “but associating yourself with her is career suicide. She’s already dragging you down.”
Alfonso started to scoot himself to the edge of the booth. “Thank you, Professor, but I’ve heard enough.”
Levitsky gingerly placed a hand on Alfonso’s arm. He froze, then returned to his seat. Levitsky had already dropped the bomb; now to see how big the explosion would be.
She sat back in the booth and smiled. “I see I’ve hit a nerve. Alfonso, I think you’re the one who hacked into the Academy this week.”
“How…?”
Levitsky shook her head and waved her hand as if to strike it from the record. “That’s neither here nor there. What is important is I know you did it to help Jayne. You did it because you’re a loyal friend, a team player, and one hell of an operative.”
Alfonso’s shoulders felt clenched all the way down to his deltoids. “So what do you want?”
She compressed a smug smile and drew the thumb drive from her clutch. “I have a job for you. It’s important, but you can handle it.”
Alfonso narrowed his eyes. “What is it?”
Levitsky leaned in slightly. “I would like you to go undercover and observe your friend Jayne.”
Alfonso shook his head. “No way. I’m not doing it.”
Levitsky intertwined her fingers in front of her lower lip again. “You said you’d hear me out. I need you to do that now.”
“Alright. Goodbye, Professor. Thanks for the drink.” Alfonso moved toward the edge of the booth
again.
Levitsky licked her lips and then pressed them together. “You’re one of the best, Alfonso.” Again, she had Alfonso’s attention. “It goes back to what I see in you and what you could become. You are an exceptionally intelligent, loyal, dedicated, and intuitive operative. I can see your career going one of two ways. The first, you get looked at with prejudice because of your association with her. You will still be a good operative but will never be able to prove you’re worth more than the ho-hum normal placements and jobs. Perhaps a secretary to a rental spy.”
Alfonso folded his arms across his chest. “I get it, I get it. What’s the second way?”
She smirked and slithered forward. “The second way this could go is you could work with me on more intense cases. More important.” Levitsky slid the thumb drive across the table with one finger. “For you.”
Alfonso stared at the thumb drive but kept his hands to his sides. “What’s this?”
Levitsky winked and sat back. “A little good faith intel.” She pushed the thumb drive closer to Alfonso. “No strings.”
“Why do you want me to have this?”
Levitsky pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Consider it… an investment in your future.” Her overall expression intensified as she went for the kill. “You might decide that I can be very useful to you, and your friends. Plus, do you want to get a normal placement? Or one working with me on some of the most top-secret cases the Academy has to offer?”
Alfonso sighed and picked up the thumb drive, his own personal version of 30 pieces of silver. He felt like it was the most repugnant thing he had ever touched. He reluctantly put it in his pocket. “Like I said before, there are no guarantees.”
Levitsky nodded matter-of-factly. “Absolutely. No strings and no guarantees.”
Alfonso slid out of the booth. “Good night, Professor.”
She caught his arm as he was leaving and looked in his eyes. “Just think about it, Alfonso.”
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