by Bob Mauldin
Due to the cloud that had fallen over the evening, the class had drifted farther apart than most small-town graduating high school classes. Not many wanted to reunite and relive that night, until this weekend. Lucy’s return as something of a celebrity helped to dispel the old cloud, and for the first time in five years, most of the old gang had been found in one place.
“So, what’s next?” Jack asked.
“Got a trailer?” Amy asked with a grin. “We’ve bought way too much stuff for Carmen’s beater.”
“Let me offer the services of my Humvee,” the ex-jock said. “Plenty of room for us and your stuff.”
“Humvee?” Lucy asked incredulously. “How did you… I mean, uh…” she finished lamely.
“Stockbroker,” Jack said simply, which answered the question adequately. Jackson Potter had eidetic memory, which he’d used ruthlessly to win more poker games than was strictly possible according to the laws of chance, earning him his nickname before his victims found out and quit letting him play. “You know, it’s just numbers and patterns, so I make money. For me, for my clients, and my boss. Everybody’s happy, and I’m well off.”
“’Well off’ is hardly how I’d put it,” Carmen said appreciatively when the olive-green monstrosity came into view. “I hear each tire costs over a grand, and there ain’t no such animal as a used Humvee tire.”
“Now there’s a scary thought,” Jack said, laughing. “I just got this baby, and the last thing on my mind was new tires.” He opened the rear and began loading packages inside. The job finished, he turned to the three women. “Well, it’s not a spaceship, that’s for sure, but it gets me where I want to go. Speaking of which, who’s riding with me and the packages?”
Lucy looked at her companions, who just looked back and shrugged. “I guess it’s just me,” she said, giving her friends a chilling glare that would have frozen any first-waver in their tracks.
Amy winked at Lucy. “We’ll stop by later to divvy up the loot, okay?” Without waiting for an answer, she turned and hurried after her cohort.
Lucy turned back from her friends’ retreating backs to the man who’d just faced down two wild and ferocious reporters for her. “Why do I get the feeling that this was a setup?” she demanded, unable to repress the hint of a smile that crept onto her face.
“Because it was,” Jack admitted as he opened the door for her. “Step up and in. Carmen and Amy wanted time alone with you, and I did, too. I agreed to help keep the curious away, and they agreed to let me have part of this evening. I figured on dinner. But not Martello’s,” he said quickly.
Lucy stared at him as he walked around the front of the vehicle and climbed into the driver’s compartment. “What?” he demanded as she continued to stare.
“You goof!” she laughed. “You could have joined us and, heaven forbid, shopped with us! Besides, there are enough undercover cops and FBI agents in the area that your help really wasn’t needed. If you hadn’t jumped in when you did, I’m sure some local Fed would have put a stop to it pretty quick.” At his stricken look she said, “Just take me out to eat and watch for cars that become familiar. Make a game out of it if you want to. This kind of thing happens to celebrities and dignitaries. They have to let the local authorities know they’re in the area for their own protection, and then they get quiet escorts. I kinda happen to be both right now, I’m sorry to say.”
Jack thought about it for a few seconds, shrugged and asked, “Are they gonna come in and eat with us, too?”
“Oh, certainly,” she said lightly. “But probably not at the same table.” At his sharp glance, she said, “I don’t know, Jack. They eat, too, and have to do something so they don’t look too conspicuous. Just pretend they aren’t there. I had actual bodyguards for a while, and you just have to put them out of your mind and do your job while they do theirs.”
Still looking unconvinced, Jack looked in his rearview mirror. “I think I spotted one.”
“That’s one point for you if you see it again. Tell me, what got you into being a stockbroker?”
“I fleeced a guy once too often, and he caught wise to my memory thing,” he said slowly. “And you know? He wasn’t even pissed. Just asked me if I wanted a job. I’d seen how much he could afford to lose and what he drove, so after a while I said I’d try it. I think he got his revenge. I’ve never been as miserable as when I have to deal with some of my clients. If the money wasn’t so good...”
They pulled off the road and into two spaces away from the building. “In a rig this big, you look for doubles and take what you can get,” he said, apologizing. As he handed her out of the passenger side, he asked, “Any chance I could get to fly one of those ships of yours sometime?”
Lucy looked up at him as they crossed the parking lot. The smells coming out of the Mexican restaurant made her mouth water. “One of the shuttles or even the bigger ships, sure,” she said as they walked into the diner.
The conversation continued once they got settled at their table. “I went out to the airport and looked at your ship just like about a zillion other people. The little kid in me said, ‘That’s what I’d like to get my hands on’”.
“I’m insulted!” Lucy teased. “I’m gone four years and all you want to get your hands on is my spaceship?” Louder she complained, “You don’t love me anymore!” Her eyes were drawn to two men in suits four tables away, one of whom looked quickly away when she made eye contact. “Don’t look now, but we’ve been made, Clyde,” she said with a bad imitation of a gangster’s moll. “We’ve got shadows.”
The shadows remained for the rest of the afternoon. At least the human kind were less obvious to the two high-school sweethearts as they talked about the past few years. Jack had married not long after Lucy “disappeared,” stayed that way for six months and, with no prenuptial agreement, lost half his worth in a messy divorce. No matter that he was worth ten times now than he had been then, the pain still ran too close to the surface. “I wish things had been different, Angel. Really, I do. But here I am, an ex-jock with a mind trick that lets him make money, and here you are, boss of your own space navy, about to drag the human race into the twenty-fifth century, kicking and screaming.”
Lucy thought about that for a time. “It’s not like either one of us set out to wind up where we are today. I’d say, ‘No harm, no foul,’ and try to move on. I do think we could try to see if things would work out between us, from the perspective of our new lives, of course. In the meantime, if you want to learn to fly, I can teach you, just not a Mamba. You’re... they’re built for smaller people, Jack. I’m sorry, but I just don’t see how you could fit into a cockpit.”
“That’s what the Air Force said, too,” he said, smiling. “Them, I turned down. Your invitation sounds a lot better though.”
“Good!” Lucy exclaimed. “I like to see things finish up on a positive note. And that means,” she said when his expression changed, “that I still have to have a talk with Pop and get some sleep. I have to fly back to New Mexico tomorrow. Say, in return for those flying lessons, how would you like to use your little mind trick for me?”
“How so?”
“Well, we have funds coming into our treasury now, and investing seems like the way to go.” Lucy shifted uneasily in her chair and lowered her voice. “See, if we can intertwine ourselves more deeply into Earth’s finances, it’s going to be harder for them to cause us trouble. I’ve always felt that the more money you control, the more control you have. I’ve just never had the money to test the theory.”
Jack laughed out loud. “Not a theory. Fact. And, sure I’ll help. How much are we talking about?”
“Millions, for sure. Billions, maybe. Poor Jack,” she said when his eyes glazed over. “Just take it one day at a time. I do, these days.”
Lucy and Jack pulled up in front of Lucy’s house and found Carmen’s old Futura waiting at the curb. Both women piled out and headed for the back of the bigger vehicle. Ten minut
es later, with both vehicles gone, Lucy wandered up the walk, across the porch, and into the living room. “Pretty fancy rig you pulled up in, Luce. Was that Jackpot?”
“Yeah, Pop. He’s a stockbroker now. Seems to be doing well, too, if his mode of transportation is any indication.”
Father and daughter made their way into the living room and sat down. “Your mother’s at church, so we can talk freely if you want to.”
“Actually, Pop, there’s not a lot more to talk about. You’ve let me know that you don’t disapprove of what I’m doing, and that’s enough for me. Like I told Jack earlier, I just take things one day at a time. Oh, I make plans, but...” her voice trailed off.
“So, what are your plans when you get back?” her father asked.
“Well, I have to go over the training reports, pick captains for two ships sitting in orbit, and pick the crews if we have enough qualified to go out on their training cruises. Follow that with another wave of volunteers and another after that. It won’t be long before that kind of decision is out of my hands though. I trying to get a personnel department set up to handle things like evaluations, promotions, transfers, and such. It’s finding the right people to do the job, you know?”
“I do,” he agreed. “I have an idea for you. I know a man who’s retiring soon, and he’d be perfect to head up a department like that. He could take a pre-retirement vacation, come down there, and test the waters. What do you say?”
Lucy picked up a piece of paper and started writing. “I’ll take help wherever I can find it. Anyone recommended by you will be welcome anytime, Pop. This number will get you through to my private secretary.” Seeing his eyes widen slightly at her statement, she smiled. “I have a little trouble with it, too. I was always able to juggle everything in my life, but now I have a secretary, support staff, gofers, aides, personal pilots and drivers. I have department heads, ship captains, base commanders, three embassies, and headaches out the wazoo. Some of the load is picked up by Diana, of course, but I have to make the final decisions.”
“I have one piece of advice, Luce. Any CEO of any major corporation learns it early or he burns out—learn to delegate. Once you pick someone, let them do the job you set them. If they don’t do it well enough, replace them. But let them try! Otherwise, you’ll get bogged down in minutia and never get the overall plan accomplished, whatever that plan may be.”
Father and daughter sat in companionable silence for a time until Lucy looked at her watch. “I think I should get to bed, Pop. Long day tomorrow. Tell Mom goodnight and I’ll see her for breakfast. Besides, I need to check in with Diana before she has kittens.” She heaved herself up out of her chair and headed for the stairs. Halfway there, she turned back and walked to where her father sat, bending to hug him. “Thanks, Pop. You don’t know how much I needed this vacation.”
Lucy made her way upstairs, got undressed, and picked up her comm unit. After a short talk with Diana to let her know all was still well, she signed off and lay down to sleep. The process was complicated that night, for some reason, by the sounds the old house made. Sounds that should have soothed her to sleep kept her jumping. An hour after she lay down, she heard her mother coming in from church. A few minutes after that, she heard steps on the stairs that padded into her parents’ bedroom.
Drifting in that half-awake state just before sleep finally comes, she heard a door open, another close, and a few seconds later water began running in the bathroom sink. This set of sounds ended, and the bathroom door opened. Lucy was listening for the sounds that would tell her that whoever was up had gone back to bed when her door opened. She reached over and touched the base of the lamp once, bringing the light on to its lowest setting.
A short, slender figure stepped into the dim light, resolving itself into the form of her mother. “Did I wake you up, honey?”
Lucy sat up and slid over, patting the side of the bed. “Sit down, Mom. No, I was just kinda drifting in and out.”
Wringing a handkerchief in her hands, the elder woman sat slowly on the edge of the bed. “I remember buying this bed for you,” she said incongruously. Lucy groped for a response, and her mother continued. “But I can’t remember my own address or phone number.”
“Mom...”
“It’s okay, honey,” Darla Grimes rushed on. “I have your father. He tries to protect me, shield me, but I know what’s happening to me. They say it’s controllable, but will I know if it isn’t? I’m not looking for pity, baby,” she said, reaching out to stroke Lucy’s cheek. “I just want you to know that no matter what, somewhere down deep, I will always love you.”
Lucy squirmed uncomfortably on the bed. “Mom, you’re going to be fine.”
Legs crossed under her, Darla looked her daughter in the eyes. “Don’t patronize me, young lady. Your father and I have always taught you to look trouble squarely in the face. What kind of example would I be if I folded at the first hint of trouble in my own life?” She laid her hand on top of Lucy’s. “Like I said, I have your father. I think that sooner rather than later, he’s going to have his hands full with... me. You and Bruce are going to have to look out for each other from now on. You’ve flown the nest, and your brother isn’t far behind. That’s as it should be, but I know what he’s going to do, and I want you to see that he’s safe. You have to promise me that, Lucy.”
The intensity in her mother’s voice shut all else out of Lucy’s awareness. “Mom, I can’t make that kind of promise! I have no way to keep it. Sure, I could keep him out of the Alliance, but would that keep him safe? Not in this day and age. Besides, my baby brother is stronger than you imagine. I think he’ll grow up just fine. Trust me, Mom.”
The older woman squeezed the hand of her daughter. “The world belongs to the young, Lucy, and one of the jobs of the elders is to know when to step aside. The future belongs to you, and all your father and I can hope for is that we’ve trained you well enough to cope with it. I wish it hadn’t landed on you as hard as it has, but fate deals us our hands and we have to play ‘em. At least that’s what your father says.” She leaned over, kissed her firstborn on the forehead, and stood up. “I should get back to bed. If he wakes up and finds me gone, he frets.” Darla Grimes walked over to the door and looked back at her daughter. “I want you to remember, even if I forget—I love you and am as proud of you as any parent could possibly be.” The door closed, leaving Lucy alone with her thoughts.
FUGUE
From another plane, a presence looked down on the tortured, writhing mind it held in Its grasp and chose to grant her Peace. The distant, benevolent entity watched in satisfaction as Oblivion wrapped her arms around the mangled remains of Kitty Hawke’s psyche and separated her from Pain.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The seasons came and went, finally becoming a full turning at the matriarch’s estate. Rentec had succumbed to temptation and moved onto the estate to facilitate the language lessons he’d suggested should be given. The matriarch, in her infinite wisdom, had declared that since he was the only one astute enough to see the necessity, he should be the one to learn the alien’s language. Everyone agreed that their sounds could be made by a Shiravan mouth, so it remained to be seen if complex concepts could be conveyed between the two species.
Rentec made slow progress with the two aliens during the first turning he spent at the des Harras summer estate, although some things had become obvious from the outset. One was that the two aliens actually were members of the same species. They were male and female, Derek Carter and Maggie Spencer. Rentec had a bit of trouble there as the male would sometimes refer to the female as “Margaret,” until he realized that “Maggie” was a nickname, much like his mother calling him “Rennie.” Some concepts, such as “walk” and “sit” were easy. It was the abstract that caused all the problems. And getting to the concepts of good versus evil and right versus wrong was going to be a headache.
Right, now. Wrong, later. A little bit wrong. What’s wrong for one pe
rson isn’t necessarily wrong for another. The concepts made Rentec’s head spin even without trying to describe them to someone whose frame of cultural reference was so different from his. He called Parlo and talked at length with him. The result was an addition to the matriarch’s extended family—a bewildered Parlo. “You just waved your hand here I am. Just how much power do you really wield in this new age, cousin?” Parlo gazed about himself as he was escorted to the waiting transport.
“Power? None to speak of, cousin. I make recommendations, and sometimes they’re heeded, but sometimes they’re not. In this case...”
Minister Foran, on loan to the Ministry for Spatial Affairs, graciously agreed to fill the Spatial Ministry post until Rentec’s return. His exceptional administrative skill had turned a minor post, the Ministry for Colonization, into a major cabinet post over the years. Now that his own ministry had been relegated to the shadows for the duration of the crisis, he was happy to lend his not-inconsiderable skills to the now-prominent cabinet post Rentec enjoyed.
The turning Rentec had spent at Cho-An, the jewel of the Stala Mountains, invalidated Maratai’s prediction that he would see less of her. Almost from the moment he agreed to move to Cho-An, Maratai was there, hinting at the proper form for this function or that, helping him get settled into life in the home of the matriarch, and working to see that he wasn’t disturbed during his sessions with the humans. This, of itself, was a help all the way up until she told him Ramannie was on the grounds.
“She just showed up on the suborbital, so I put her in your quarters until you decide what to do.”