by Saxon Andrew
Tal stretched and put on a bathing suit. He went down to the hotel’s pool and started swimming laps. An hour later, he called an end to it, dried off with a towel, went to the elevator, and went to his room. He stopped as he approached the door…the hostess was standing outside his room and she was wearing a blue jacket over a very small two-piece bathing suit. He shook his head, was Ka ever wrong? He walked up to her, and the hostess dazzled him with her best smile, “Mr. Sig, do you have a few minutes?”
“What’s going on?”
“I need to clarify your itinerary in order to set up your accommodations. It won’t take but a couple of minutes.”
“Sure, go ahead.”
The hostess opened her jacket and moved it to fan herself, “Could we do this inside? It’s hot out here!”
Sig nodded and opened his door. He held it open for her and she walked in, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to change out of this wet bathing suit.”
She smiled, “Go right ahead, Mr. Sig.”
Sig took a pair of shorts and a tank-top out of a drawer. He went into the bathroom and closed the door. He said sub-vocally, “Lis.”
“Yes, Sig.”
“That hostess has shown up at our room and has invited herself in. How should I handle this?”
“How do you think you should handle it?”
“Well, I’m not going to get cozy with her!”
“That would be a mistake, Sig.”
“Why!?”
“Well, that hostess knows how free couples are in the colonies and if you reject her, she will take it personally and try to make you pay for it. It could cause us to be watched a lot more closely and that wouldn’t be good.”
“But I don’t want to do this!”
“Grow a spine, Sig, and take one for the team.”
Sig was silent for a very long moment and then asked, “If you were in my position, would you do it?”
“Sig, I’d have no choice, and neither do you. Just make sure you stay in Sig’s memories and you’ll be fine.”
“Lis, I’ve never done this.”
“You’re kidding me.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Just do what you can. I’m certain Sig has done it and you can use his memories to guide you.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Lis shook her head and wondered why she had pressured him to get cozy with the hostess. She finally realized she was trying to ease her guilt. Sig was such a dichotomy, a genius, and a young boy all rolled into one. She exhaled and gazed out over the gulf.
• • •
He stepped out of the bathroom still drying his hair with a towel. The hostess had taken off her jacket and was sitting on the end of the bed next to the chair near the desk. Sig looked at her and asked, “What is this about accommodations, Miss?”
“Call me Natalie. When you make your trip to Kennedy Space Center, are you planning to make more than one day out of it?”
Tal entered Sig’s memories and felt his body change. He was instantly attracted to her, “I’m not sure. Does it matter?”
“If you intend to make it more than one-day, you’ll want to stay there, wouldn’t you.”
Sig shrugged, “I guess so. It wouldn’t make sense to come back here.”
“And the same is true for your trip to Disney World. You’ll want to do the same if you stayed there several days. I can tell you that it will take at least three-days for you to visit every park.”
Natalie leaned forward and gave Sig a clear view of her bikini top. Sig stood up and walked away. He rubbed his hair with his hand and turned back to her, “I can’t answer these questions without discussing them with my wife. Can you come back later when she gets back?”
“How long will she be gone?”
“I don’t know. She’s at the beach.”
“Which one?”
“I believe it’s called Pass-a-Grill.”
Natalie put her electronic pad beside her on the bed, “It’ll take her two-hours to get back. She stood up, walked up to Sig, and put her arms around his neck. She leaned in and kissed him hard. He leaned back and asked, “What’s going on?”
Natalie smiled, “I’ve always wanted to kiss a colonist. Sort of a bucket list, if you know what I mean.”
Tal stayed in Sig’s memories and heard himself ask, “Is there anything else on your list?”
Natalie smiled, “As a matter of fact, there is.”
• • •
Ninety-minutes later, Natalie left. Sig blew out a deep breath and said, “She’s gone.”
“How did it go?”
“Don’t ask.”
Did you find out anything?” Lis inquired.
“She’s from Georgia and joined the military six-years ago. She hates her job along with her mother. She says she has been forced to keep track of us and really hates it. She says that she can stop doing that now that she knows me. She says she’s an Aquarius and wants to see me again before we leave. Her commanding officer is constantly harassing her and…”
“That’s enough!”
“Well, you asked!” he replied defensively.
“Sorry I did. But if she’s backing off tracking us, it was worth your spending time with her.”
“I didn’t.”
“What?”
“Sig did.”
Lis was silent and then remarked, “You’re right. You make a good point.”
“That’s what she said.”
Lis burst out laughing, “I’ll be there in a few-minutes; I’ve been driving around waiting for you to give the all clear.”
“I’m going to take a bath, I feel dirty.” Lis sighed and turned into the hotel’s entrance.
• • •
The next morning, Sig sat at the desk in front of his computer, “Lis.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve just pulled up our bill on what we’ve spent so far, and it appears that the Major has paid our bill from the ship.”
“OH CRAP!!” She sat straight up, “He’s on to us, Sig!”
“No, he’s not.”
“How can you say that? You know he’s cross checking our bill against Zak and Jill’s.”
“It won’t do him any good, Lis. You know how many times we made purchases by both couples in the same restaurants. If he knew for certain, we’d be arrested by now.”
“But you agree he’s suspicious?” She pressed.
“That’s clear. However, he paid for our bill personally. If it were an investigation, the military would have paid for it. He’s doing this without support from his leaders. You know how Earth treats all tourists gently and they wouldn’t risk making a mistake about something like this. He’s doing this on his own.”
“So, what do we do about this?”
“He’s going to want to meet us again. We might have to eliminate him.”
Lis sat down on the bed, “I don’t want to do that, Sig.”
“I can make it look like a heart attack.”
“Even so, I don’t want to do it! I’d rather call the whole thing off.”
“Why are you so reluctant?”
“He’s a good person, Sig. He’s only doing his job.”
“Would you hesitate to do this in the colonies?”
“No, Sig. But we’ve abused Earth for centuries and they didn’t deserve it. Neither does he.”
“Have you fallen for the Major, Lis?”
Lis looked up at him, “If one must fall for someone, he wouldn’t be a bad choice.” Lis saw Sig’s instant anger and it surprised her. He glared into her eyes with anger etched in his face for a long moment, then turned and walked out the door. Lis waited a moment and then followed him out.
She found him leaning on the railing just outside their door staring out at Tampa Bay. There was a full moon shining down on the water and Sig was silently staring out at it. Lis moved beside him and stared out over the water with him. Finally, he broke the silence, “Lis, if we go back to the colonies, we’re probabl
y both going to die. I asked you before we came here where would you be safer, in the colonies or on Earth. I think you would be safer here. And you’re right about the Major, he’s a good man and I know he’d take care of you if you chose to stay.”
“Do you plan to stay, Tal?”
Tal shook his head slightly, “This is a strange place and I don’t fit.”
“If you don’t stay, neither will I.”
Tal turned to her, “Ka, I can see your days as an assassin are over. I think seeing yourself in your normal image has taken you back to the time before you joined the guild. You’ve lost the edge you need to remain in the guild.”
“What about you?”
Tal took a deep breath, “I don’t need any more credits. The Guild Master has learned that we died in the escape pod and won’t be searching for us. I’ll go back and blend in.” Ka stared at him and he finally said, “But not before I remove that scientist.”
“Why do you want to do that?”
“If I don’t, your daughter could be in danger if Earth attacked the colonies. I promised you I’d protect her.”
Ka’s eyes moistened, and she kept her eyes on the bay, as she said softly, “And that is what will get the Major killed, Tal. I don’t want to do it, but I can’t allow my daughter to be put in harm’s way. She’s the reason I joined the guild in the first place.”
Tal looked at her, “Make the call.”
“Where do we go first?”
“Disney, he’ll be waiting for us there.”
Ka took the card out of her luggage and dialed the number. She heard his voice and said, “Major Montana, this is Lis, the one you promised a VIP trip to Disney World. We’re planning to go to Orlando tomorrow and was wondering if you could set it up?” Lis listened and then replied, “We’re going to check in a hotel in the morning and then we’ll be able to meet you at the gate.” She paused, “Yes, eleven in the morning is fine.” Ka ended the call and turned to Tal, “Call your girlfriend and ask her to make arrangements for accommodations in Orlando in the morning.”
Tal looked sharply at her, “Do you think I would disrespect you if our roles were reversed?”
Ka closed her eyes and shook her head, “I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve that.”
Tal shrugged, “I’ll see what I can get her to give us in Orlando. You know how old flames want to make amends, don’t you?”
Ka said, “Ouch! But I deserved it.”
Tal nodded, “If we can’t play around with each other, then we don’t belong together.”
“Make sure you bring the clothes we purchased!” Tal nodded and made the call.
Chapter Nine
The next morning, the desk communicator buzzed, and Sig answered it, “Good morning.” He listened for a moment and then responded, “That sounds wonderful, thank you Natalie.” Sig turned around to Lis, “Natalie just informed me that the Major has booked us a room on Disney property and will meet us there.”
“You were right, the Major wants to see us again. How expensive is the room?”
“Does it matter?”
“Yes, Sig, it does. We’re supposed to be operating on a tight budget. We might have to turn the Major’s accommodations down.”
Natalie says he managed to get us the Military rate and the room is only three-hundred credits a day.”
“What is it normally?”
“Two thousand.”
“My, my, the military is highly respected around here!” Lis paused and then asked, “We’re going to have to operate out of Sig and Lis’s memories, but we may have to interject ourselves if things get stressful.”
“It is what it is. Are you ready to go?”
“Yes. Let’s carry our bags down to the transport,” Lis suggested.
“We could call the front-desk to send someone.”
“No, Sig. This way we save the tip,” Lis snapped back.
Sig agreed and opened the door; a porter was standing there staring at him. Boy these people are organized! Sig thought as he stepped aside, and the porter took their bags to their transport. Sig tipped the porter, then activated the guidance program. “Where do you wish to go?” A female voice asked.
Sig thought furiously, “We going to Disney World in Orlando. We’re registered at one of the hotels on Disney property, but I don’t know the name.” Lis looked at him with her mouth twisted and he raised his hands, “I forgot to ask! Give me a break, there’s a lot going on!” he said defensively.
Lis rolled her eyes and the guidance program stated, “You have reservations at the Disney Floridian Hotel. Travel time is twenty-minutes.”
“What can you tell me about the hotel?” Lis inquired.
The program replied, “It’s considered one of the finest hotels in Florida. Please sit back and enjoy your trip.”
The transport pulled out of the hotel and quickly moved out on the Veteran’s Expressway. It left the expressway two miles later and took the ramp to I-275, quickly accelerating to 100-miles-per-hour until it moved out of Old Tampa. The highway grew to twenty-lanes when they moved on to I-4 and the transport accelerated to 250-miles-per-hour. “The ground transport system here is superior to the travel lanes in the colonies,” Lis observed.
“That’s true of surface travel, Lis. Most of the transports in the colonies fly to their destinations.”
“But they don’t fly this fast, Sig!”
“They’ll probably convert to air-transports eventually.”
Lis looked out the window and said in her throat, “Sig, think about how long it would take Earth’s military to move convoys to various sites.”
Sig heard her and flinched slightly at the realization. He asked the guidance program, “What’s the fastest speed on the highway we’re currently traveling on?”
“Speeds of fifteen-hundred miles per hour can be used in the outside four lanes. Those lanes are used by larger transports to move commercial cargos long distances and the gravity is controlled by underground units.”
Sig heard Lis say over his internal communicator, “Or large military vehicles and armored tracks. They could move an entire army from coast-to-coast on this continent in less than two-hours.” Sig nodded slightly and knew any invader would be hard pressed to do the same, even with air-transport. Lis added, “By traveling on the roads, they aren’t in danger of missiles knocking them out of the sky.”
“No, but they could be bombed, Lis.”
“Do you know any technology that would allow a vehicle moving at fifteen-hundred miles per hour to be accurately attacked from the air. And remember, the ship targeting them would not be immune to ground-to-air missiles that could be launched from their convoys.”
Sig’s brow furrowed, “I wonder if the Council knows about this?”
“How can they not, Sig? That’s why they would do everything possible to prevent Earth from getting a stardrive. Attacking Earth is the last thing they’d want to do.”
“I haven’t seen any military forces, Lis.”
“That doesn’t mean they’re not here!” Lis countered. “If their military arsenal is as advanced as these highways…” Lis’s statement trailed off.
“If they attacked the colonies and managed to land an army, the colonies would be devastated.” Sig completed her thought. After a few moments of silence, Sig said over the communicator, “The Guild Master was right about one thing.”
Lis turned to him, “What is that?”
“He said weapon development in the colonies has never been a high priority. The military is large enough to control the populations on the colonies, but that’s about all. The Council uses the Guild to do most of its dirty work.”
After a few minutes of silence, Lis said softly, “That is what would protect the colonies against an invasion.”
“What do you mean, Lis.”
“I think you and I have figured out that the number of assassins in the colonies is in the millions. Any army that attacked the colonies would be targeted by the guild and all the ad
vanced weapons in the universe wouldn’t protect them from a determined assassin.”
“Possibly.”
“What do you mean, Sig! You know how dangerous the members of the guild are.”
“I do. However, most of the assassins I’ve met over the years are only out for themselves. They wouldn’t put themselves in danger to defend the colonies.”
Lis’s brow furrowed and she had to admit Sig was right. Development of a stardrive on Earth had to be stopped. She began to fear for her daughter’s future.
• • •
They arrived at the Floridian and the service was extraordinary. The porters had their luggage sent to their rooms instantly. They were given bracelets that would verbally guide them to their quarters and automatically billed any expenses. Sig looked at his watch and smiled, “Good! The Major isn’t due for another forty-five minutes. We missed breakfast, so let’s go get something to eat before we go.”
“Good idea, Sig. How do we get to the restaurant?”
Sig barely shrugged before hearing his bracelet announce, “I notice you mentioned restaurant. Do you require directions?”
Sig’s heard jerked around to Lis and saw she recognized they would have to be careful what they said. “Yes, I’d like to have breakfast,” Sir answered.
A line of flashing green lights appeared in the floor and they heard, “Follow the green lights to the restaurant.” They followed the lights to a waiter, who greeted them at the entrance, “Please follow me; I have your table ready.” They kept their faces neutral but knew that things had just gotten much more difficult. These bracelets had to go.
• • •
Duncan arrived, and the staff gave him a bracelet to find Lis and Sig. He followed the green lights and found them finishing their meal. He looked at Sig and noticed numerous plates in front of him. That’s a rather large meal, Mr. Sig.”
They both looked up and smiled, “Major, are we late?” Lis asked.
“No, I’m a little early. Do you need to go to the room before we go to the park?”
Lis nodded, “We bought some clothing, so we won’t stand out so much and I’d like to change.”
“I think that may be wasted effort; your hair and skin color will give you away,” Duncan chuckled.