Aeolus Investigations Set 2: Too Cool To Lose: The Continuing Evolution of Lexi Stevens

by Robert E Colfax

  Geena followed the voices, not encountering anyone as she carefully edged her way through the first floor and then up another, far more decorative, flight of stairs to the second floor. The voices were louder up there. Crane’s voice came occasionally. He sounded stressed but no surprise there. She could distinguish two other voices — one male, one female. The female sounded like she was in charge. There was no way of knowing how many other people were in the room with them.

  Not counting Crane, there were five adults in the room. Three of them were seated. Two were hovering around Crane. The cut over his ear looks bad. He certainly looked better this morning. She could handle five. Taking a deep breath, Geena stepped into the room and said, “That’s enough!”

  As they all turned to look at her, she saw the woman was wearing the cretalscallalite necklace. She looked to be in her early twenties, except she carried herself with the poise and assurance of a much older woman. This woman may have been one of those rare people the anti-aging medications worked extremely well on. Even if she was older than she looked, perhaps she lacked experience in this kind of a standoff or, then again, maybe she was just used to getting her way without consequence.

  The laws on Cardin’s Paradise, with only minor variation, are the same planet-wide. An officer of the law has every right to defend him or herself, fellow officers, and civilians with lethal force when threatened with lethal force. The woman drew a small automatic from the seat beside her at the same moment one of the men who had been watching Crane’s beating from far enough away to keep his weapon out of Crane’s reach began to spin toward Geena, his own gun coming up with deadly intent. Geena fired twice.

  From the chair Crane was bound to, he tried to grin, saying, “Nice shots.” Both the woman and the man had a round hole in their heads.

  “OK. Who has weapons?” Geena asked. “I expect to see them on the floor.” She used her foot to scoot the single gun that was offered up across the room before explaining that all three men should lay face down on the floor. She used her fob to release Crane. “House comm is on the desk, darling. Would you let the police know we need them here?”

  Crane detoured to pick up on of the dropped guns and stuff them in his waistband on his way to the desk.

  Chapter 6

  Samue Investigations

  Resolving the rest of the case was routine. Geena had her murderers, identified as two of the men in the house. She even had a motive. The woman the men worked for collected exotic jewelry. You couldn’t get much more exotic than a necklace made from the only naturally occurring cretalscallalite gemstone in existence. To ensure the uniqueness of her gem, the Samues and the shop jeweler had had to die.

  Crane collected the recovery fees for the jewelry from that robbery and also on a number of other pieces found on the premises. He used the money to have his ship serviced.

  The Lobarton PD was able to shut down a significant crime ring based on records found in the woman’s computer system.

  ***

  They went their separate ways. Crane still had work to do on the case he was investigating at the time of his parents’ murders. Geena had a career to get back to.

  It was three weeks later when he called, letting her know he was in town, inquiring if she could meet him for dinner. He took her to a really upscale place. Over an elegant appetizer course, Crane told her he had closed out his case with Universal and casually asked if she was in the middle of anything.

  With a frown, Geena said, “I’m almost always in the middle of something, Crane.”

  He nodded. “What I really should have asked is, would you be interested in a career change solving interstellar crimes with me? It would mean living on my starship, of course. You’d have to learn how to fly it.”

  Geena thought a moment, noticing his expectant expression. She loved excitement. She wondered if interstellar life would take care of that craving. “Are you asking me to pair-bond with you, Mr. Samue? Or just to be your cabin-mate?”

  He looked unsure of himself. “Cabin-mate. I think that we don’t know each other well enough to take the bigger step.”

  Geena frowned. “I get it. You’re asking me to closet myself for weeks at time on a small ship that looks like it could fall apart at any minute with a man I’ve only known a couple of weeks.”

  He nodded. “I understand. It would just be the two of us. The ship isn’t big enough for a larger crew. But I have to do it, Geena. Star travel is in my blood. I’ve enjoyed the last five years working dirt-side since Mom and Dad stopped taking me with them but it’s not the same. Growing up, I loved visiting other worlds. I want that again. I thought you did, too.” He paused, adding, “Besides, I fixed the old bird up.”

  “Your parents retired, what, five years ago? Why haven’t you already taken their ship and gone exploring?”

  “They were both getting old. The anti-geriatric medications stopped working for them. Their bodies were breaking down. They spent too much time out in zero-G. I wanted to be here, to spend as much time as they had left, with them. I’ll never regret doing that.”

  Geena wanted to say something consoling, but they had already had that conversation.

  After a couple of minutes eating in silence, Crane said, “It is an old ship but Dad took care of it. It’s not going to fall apart.” He paused. “I’m auctioning off Mom’s necklace. I just don’t think I can ever look at it without it bringing up bad memories. The money will be a nice cushion for us if you decide to sign on.”

  Geena laughed. “OK, I said ‘looks like’ it’s going to fall apart not ‘is going to’ fall apart. Still, it’s probably a good idea to make sure I enjoy space travel as much as I expect I will.” She paused. She graced him with a very sexy smile. “I still want a partnership agreement from you.”

  “Something other than a life-mate contract?”

  “Yes, darling. Samue Investigations — insurance recoveries our specialty.”

  He smiled back at her. “I like that. How would you feel about a weekend vacation while the registration is being processed?”

  “What’d you have in mind?”

  “How do you feel about skiing?”

  Chapter 7

  Starship WA32198389-18-32405

  Geena said, “I’ve been looking at the latest auction catalog from the Klonan H897 site.”

  Crane asked, “Find anything interesting?”

  Geena shrugged. “Well, interesting enough that you should take a look at it. We can make it there with a couple of days to spare before bids are closed as long as we don’t hit any major turbulence in hyperspace.”

  Crane looked at the posting. “Damn, it’s another old ship.”

  “Darling, any ship we can afford is going to be old,” she reminded him. A string of successful insurance recoveries over the last few years and one small cargo that needed to be discreetly carried to Sandlin had beefed up their account substantially. To the point where they were considering a major overhaul of the ship. Their only other option was to replace it. Major systems were wearing out, held together by Crane’s makeshift repairs. People died in this business when their ship fell apart in space between repair facilities on Accord planets. Something needed to be done.

  He laughed. “Sad, but true. At least it’s six centuries newer than this one. It’s about twice the size of ours, too. I wonder why the opening bid is so low?” He whistled. Before Geena had a chance to comment, he said, “Wait.” He fiddled with his datapad for a moment, pulling up an image of a shiny starship on their viewscreen.

  Geena read the descriptive text that appeared on the image, cited on the Wiki he was referencing. “Why are you showing me a Vankovian scout? I doubt Vankovia would give one to us and we certainly can’t afford a ship like that.”

  Crane split the image, showing the catalog listing for WA32198389-18-32405 next to the scout, rotating it so that the angle was the same as the military ship already on the screen. “They don’t know what they’ve got, love!”

  Geena
was staring at a much less shiny image of an older Vankovian scout in the auction catalog. “Do you think it’s still armed?”

  Crane shrugged. “Can’t be. That would violate Accord law. Why would Vankovia auction one of its military ships way out there on Klonan?”

  Geena answered. “They’re not. Read the rest of the listing. The prior owner was an investment firm based on Xeas. Their proximity would explain their choice of Klonan as an auction site. I know you can’t totally trust a catalog listing but it does say ‘well maintained.’ Also, that the owner is ‘ready’ to sell.”

  They were both looking at the image on the screen, thinking. Crane switched it to three-dimensional, rotating it for a virtual tour of the exterior. Then he took them inside.

  Geena said, “I know I’m the one who brought it up. Maybe I’m getting cold feet but it would still be less expensive to fix this ship up.”

  Crane nodded. “I know. But look at this beauty. I want it, Geena. This could be our future. It’s going to be faster than what we have now. That’s a huge plus. It’ll have better shields, too. And who knows what the prior owners tricked it out with?”

  “I wouldn’t expect much,” Geena cautioned. “The catalog states ‘bare bones.’ It apparently was stripped of anything valuable, other than what is needed to make a ship a ship, before being put up for auction. It does have more cargo space than we have now, though, doesn’t it? And room to carry passengers. We could be earning income even when we’re not on a case, I suppose.”

  Crane was getting more enthusiastic about the idea. “Indeed. And we can afford it without taking out a loan. Auctioning off this rust bucket should bring in seven or eight percent of what that one is going to cost us, so we’ll still have some operating funds.”

  Geena smiled affectionately at her life-mate. “You’re sold on this, aren’t you?”

  Crane nodded. “You know it.”

  She took a seat at the navigator’s console. “I like it too. Contact the port. Get us a departure window. I’ll plot us a course.” She paused, just looking at him. “We’ll do this, Crane. We’ll never see an opportunity like this come our way again. I know that. Darling, you said this is our future. I agree. But I want a child in the next year or two. That means we get a place on Cardin’s Paradise and park the ship until our child is old enough to travel.”

  Crane looked over at Geena. His eyes had a gleam in them as they met hers. “You know I’m a hundred percent on board with that plan, Ms. Samue.”

  Chapter 8

  The Rose of Light

  Geena looked up from her reading as her rambunctious four-year-old charged past her, his cape fluttering heroically behind him. He was in the superhero costume he got for his birthday three weeks ago. She smiled, “Hey, darling, what’s today’s superhero mission?”

  Ron stopped, his little face serious. With fists on his hips, he proclaimed, “I can’t stop to talk, Mom. The Empress of the Accord needs me.”

  Geena nodded. “Sounds important, love. Don’t let me stop you.”

  Ron puffed out his chest. “It’s a big job, Mom. Pirates got her. Can I call on you for help?”

  Ron fought a lot of pirates. He was always so serious about it, as he was now. He and his friends had a cardboard spaceship in the basement, armed with plastic weapons that usually fired beams so powerful, they weren’t scientifically possible. This was the first she had heard of the “Empress” of the Accord, though. The Accord doesn’t have one. She wondered where he got that notion from? Like that could ever even come about, she thought. Geena schooled her features to match the seriousness of his. “Always.”

  Crane came out of their shared office a half hour later. He smiled, asking, “More coffee?”

  “Sure, thanks.”

  As he poured, he asked, grinning, “What’s today’s mission?”

  Geena said, “We’re rescuing the princess, no, excuse me, the empress of the Accord. From pirates, of course.”

  Crane laughed. “Of course. I’m surprised our little superhero hasn’t wiped them out already.” He sat down in the chair across from hers. “I found two intriguing cases.”

  Geena felt the familiar thrill of excitement. “Tell me.”

  He grinned. “Last night, a figurine was stolen from a mansion in Lackonia. We have first dibs on the recovery before Universal Underwriters starts shopping it around. The fee is relatively modest but enough to keep us going for another six or seven months.”

  “That’s great, darling! We’ll want to take the ship instead of commercial transport. We can file a flight plan for sub-orbital and let Ron play in zero-G for a little while. He loves that. What’s the other job?”

  Crane’s eyes lit up. “Just the most famous gemstone in the Accord. The Ackalonian Rose of Light.”

  Geena’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding!”

  With a shake of his head, Crane said, “Not about something like this. It was stolen about six months ago. The recovery fee is astronomical.”

  Her son had stopped his antics and was listening to them now with four-year-old seriousness. “Six months?” Geena repeated. “That means the trail will have already gone cold.”

  “Back before we settled down on Cardin,” her life-partner pointed out, “all of our cases involved cold trails. Interstellar investigators can’t expect anything else. You know that.”

  Geena looked at her very serious son. Star travel, due to extended periods in the zero-g environment of hyperspace, impacted the development of children. A trip to Ackalon should be OK, but they would have to come back. And, it was hardly likely that the jewel was still on Ackalon. Tracking it down would require yet more time in hyperspace. Long-term, zero-G wasn’t great for adults, either. She sighed. “I think we should stick with dirt-side jobs — for the next few years, at least. Besides, the Rose could be literally anywhere, right, Ron?”

  “Right, Mom. We’ll find it someday.”

  Crane said, “You’ve got that right, son.”

  ***

  That night, after reading a few more chapters in a story to his son, Crane rejoined Geena in the common area. As he sat, she said, “I worry about Ron growing up on a starship every time we talk about another off-planet case. He needs friends his own age to interact with.”

  “I know. But understand, that’s how I grew up, honey. Yes, it was kind of lonely with just Mom and Dad, but it was exciting too. We spent a lot of time on the other Accord worlds, so I got to meet people and usually socialize with kids my own age. They made sure of that. I think he’ll do fine. And, it’s still what you want, right?”

  “I hope you’re right, darling. And yes, it is definitely what I want. Sometimes I do think I’d like to have another child and just settle here, you know, and be a parent. Then I think of all we’re missing and I want to be out there among the stars again. It’s strange, I’m the only one in my group of friends who has ever left Cardin.” Geena paused. “What about girls, Crane? Did you meet girls when you were a teenager?”

  He laughed, but Geena was being serious, so he gave her a serious answer. “I can’t believe you’re thinking about that already. Yes, I did, but we were never grounded on Cardin long enough to form any type of relationship. Just a few dates, here and there.” He chuckled. “Anyway, our noble son is planning on rescuing the Empress of the Accord, right? Maybe they’ll hit it off.”

  Geena laughed. “Maybe she’ll put us in charge of a world. I want Ostrieachia. Those people are cute.”

  Crane shook his head. “Nah. They have a reputation of being too much trouble. Some of the Level-Two civilizations are nice. Too bad they’re off limits.” He laughed. “I suppose the Empress could change that if she wanted to.”

  Author’s Note:

  First, and most importantly, thanks for reading.

  I don’t have much more than that to say, this time. Well, that and the de rigueur plea for you to leave a review. While I do appreciate just a star rating, it is much more helpful to put down your thoughts. One of my novels
had all four star and five star ratings. Someone left a two with no explanation. OK, that person didn’t like it, I guess. Maybe it was a mistake? Maybe due to something I should be doing differently? I have no way of knowing.

  Amazon.com - please leave a review. You’ve heard this before. Reviews are SUPER HELPFUL for authors. You know that, right?

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  RobertEColfax.com - my website (always working on it). Here you’ll find information, and preview chapters, on existing and planned books.

  February 2021