by R S Penney
Anna spun around.
She punched the back of his head, causing him to double over. The man dropped his weapon, falling flat on his face and lying perfectly still. Now to collect the weapons before one of these idiots-
Green straightened, groaning his displeasure. Any hope that she might be able to talk him out of doing something stupid vanished when he ran at her.
Anna picked up the baton and threw it. The flashing stick tumbled end over end until it found a home in Mr. Green's stomach, electric current surging through his body. He spasmed for several seconds, then lost his balance and collapsed.
Anna closed her eyes, breathing deeply as a shiver went through her. “All right,” she said, nodding to the bystanders. “Let's get the police down here ASAP. Anyone who might be injured, line up against the wall. I'll have a look at you.”
Half a dozen police officers in blue uniforms stood just outside the bank, each one frowning as they conversed with one another. Of course, the media was also present, but she couldn't see them through the crowd of cops.
Anna stood with arms folded, squinting at the crowd. “Wonderful,” she said as she paced across the bank's tiled floor. “A herd of reporters standing between me and the only way out.”
A moment later, she spotted Larani Tal.
The woman wore dress pants and a thick black sweater, her dark hair tied back in a bun. “Anna,” she said, striding across the room. “I have to say I'm impressed. Three men in custody and no casualties.”
Anna felt her cheeks burn. She closed her eyes and nodded to the other woman. “I only did my job,” she insisted. “I'm just glad I was able to apprehend those three without any major complications.”
“No doubt.”
A thoughtful expression flashed across Larani's face, smothered in half a second by incredible self-control. She turned her back on Anna, standing with hands on her hips as she faced the crowd of police officers.
One of them – a tall fellow with copper skin – looked up to meet her gaze. “We've got 'em in custody downtown, ma'am,” he said, tipping his cap to Larani. “Wish I could have been here to see the show.”
I'm sure you do.
Thinking of it as a show made her a little uncomfortable. Oh sure, she had been cocky when facing down the trio, but part of that was psychological warfare. Convince your opponent that she was irrelevant, and she was likely to make a mistake.
Larani stepped back until they stood side by side.
The woman mopped a hand over her face, massaging her forehead with the tips of her fingers. “In a way, this is exactly what we needed,” she said quietly. “Confidence in the Justice Keepers has been waning lately. This will gain us some good publicity.”
Anna pursed her lips as she stared down at the floor, shaking her head in disgust. “You're thinking about publicity?” she asked. “We're talking about people's lives here. I shouldn't have to remind you that the danger is real.”
“Of course,” the other woman replied. “I shouldn't have to remind you that I would much prefer it if crimes like these simply didn't happen. But they do. My only point is that something good came out of it. You handled the situation superbly and strengthened our credibility in the process.”
Anna wasn't so sure. Credibility wasn't the sort of thing she put at the top of her list of priorities. It wasn't as if she didn't want the public's trust – she certainly did – but she wasn't willing to pander to get it. Larani on the other hand…
All her life, Anna had seen the Justice Keepers as something noble, something pure. But if playing politics was part of the job…She was beginning to understand Jack's sense of distrust after all.
Chapter 6
The door to Selena's office was firmly shut, as it so often was, and the frosted glass window made it impossible for Jack to tell if she was actually in. He had been hesitant to come down here – Gabi's advice was still bouncing around in his head – but she had sent him an e-mail, and he owed her.
Jack stood in the hallway in gray jeans and a black shirt under his brown jacket, his hair in a state of disarray. “You can do this,” he whispered to himself. “Just stay calm and be respectful when she says no.”
He knocked.
A moment later, the door swung inward and Selena poked her head out, blinking at him. “Excellent. You're on time.” She turned her back and strode back into the office. “Do you want coffee or tea before we begin?”
Tall and slim, Selena wore a black skirt that fell to her ankles and a purple blouse of some shiny material. Her blonde hair fell to her shoulder blades. “Well, let's go. We really should get started.”
Grinning with a chuckle, Jack shut his eyes tight. “Nice to see you too,” he said with a curt nod. “I'm fine; thanks for asking. Remarkably, no one has tried to beat me senseless in the last few weeks.”
“That is newsworthy!” she said, maneuvering around her desk. “The fact that you could go three weeks without annoying someone to the point where they want to kill you ought to be our front page story.”
Her office wasn't very large, but it had character. A window in the wall opposite the door allowed sunlight to fall upon a desk that faced the wall to his left. There were a few potted plants, a bookshelf and paintings of beautiful landscapes.
Jack stepped inside.
He slipped his hands into his jacket pockets and kept his eyes glued to the floor. “I guess this round goes to you,” he said. “I have to say, I'm impressed. Not many people can rival me in the irritation factor.”
When he turned, Selena stood behind the desk with arms folded, an exasperated scowl on her face. “Yes, it took quite a bit of practice,” she said. “Now, Agent Hunter, if you don't mind, I'd like to ask you some serious questions.”
“Shoot.”
Jack took a seat and prepared himself for the onslaught that would follow. Though these interviews caused him some discomfort, he had to give Selena this much credit: she was an asset to her paper. A reporter's job was to ask hard questions, to keep influential people on their toes. And much as he hated to admit it, he was one of those people now.
Even Justice Keepers were only human. Anyone could become complacent without the occasional reminder of public scrutiny – apathy was the path of least resistance, after all – and he wasn't going to let himself fall into that trap.
Selena lifted a tablet up in front of her face, sliding her finger along its surface. It irked him that he couldn't see her expression. “Now then…” she said, setting it down on the desk. “Your friend Agent Lenai recently foiled a bank robbery.”
Jack tilted his head back, smiling up at the ceiling. “Yeah…she did at that,” he said, eyebrows rising. “The very first time I saw Anna in action, I thought she was incredible. Brave and fierce as a tiger.”
“Was she at all concerned about civilian casualties?”
“Why don't you ask her?”
Selena watched him with an expression that might have been carved in stone, holding him pinned by the force of her stare. “Because I'm asking you,” she answered. “In case you've forgotten, you owe me for that business with Cal Breslan.”
Jack winced, shaking his head. “You're gonna keep bringing that up then?” he said. “Okay, Ms. Knowles. Go ahead and ask your questions.”
“Was she worried about civilian casualties?”
“No.”
“How do you know?”
He leaned back in his chair with arms folded, his face twisted into a grimace. “Because Keepers are trained to minimize that risk,” he snapped. “Anna would not have taken any action without assessing the situation.”
The interview continued like that for a good fifteen minutes, and he found himself surprised by every pang of irritation. It seemed Jack Hunter was perfectly comfortable subjecting himself to scrutiny, but question the integrity of his best friend and suddenly he became defensive.
In his defense, it really wasn't a fair interview. Anna should have been the one to answer these questions – if her
actions were going to be held under a magnifying glass, she should at least have the chance to speak for herself – but he supposed Selena wanted to talk to someone familiar first. Anna had already put up with plenty of media attention in the last few days.
By the time they had run through all her questions, Jack was feeling worn out. If someone had told him that bonding a Nassai would mean frequent exposure to the press, he might have reconsidered. Summer felt a pang of sadness at that, but he soothed her with a reminder that he wasn't serious.
Jack looked up with a broad smile, blinking at the woman. “So, are we done?” he asked, getting to his feet. “Because I do have other meetings. There's a cardassian who really wants to know how many lights are on the wall.”
She swiveled in her chair, turned so that she was facing the window. The sunlight on her lovely face only served to remind him that…No. Such thoughts were pointless. “We are done,” she assured him. “I'm sorry you find my presence grating.”
“I don't find your presence grating.”
She sniffed.
Jack turned to go, making his way toward the door. “I don't find your presence grating,” he said, glancing back over his shoulder. “I just don't know how to answer your questions.”
The only thing he could see was the back of her chair, but his words seemed to give her pause. “I'd say you did a fine job,” she muttered. “Don't be too hard on yourself, Jack. Not many people are used to being in the limelight.”
“Is that a little sympathy I hear?”
“Don't get used to it.”
He leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed, smiling down at himself. “You know, it's funny,” he said, shaking his head. “We actually make a pretty good team when we stop snapping at each other.”
She got out of the chair, smoothing her skirt as she walked over to the window. “A compliment from Jack Hunter?” Selena faced him again with the light silhouetting her body, framed by a golden halo. “Now I have heard everything.”
Jack pressed a palm to his forehead, sliding it upward to rake fingers through his hair. “Well, you're a formidable opponent,” he said. “I kind of like knowing that I'm not going to win every verbal sparring match.”
She chuckled.
As their amusement faded to awkward silence, he found himself recalling Gabi's advice. Should he actually go through with it? “You know, I was wondering…” It seemed his mouth had decided to press on without checking in with his brain. In other words, it was a typical Tuesday afternoon. “You wanna grab a cup of coffee some time?”
“My goodness. Are you asking me out?”
“Yeah, seems like I am,” he admitted. “If you want, we can add it to the list of reckless decisions that will likely result in my body floating face-down in the river.”
Selena strode across the room with her fists balled at her sides, her face twisted in a frustrated scowl. “I was afraid this was going to happen,” she mumbled. “You and I can't go out, Jack; it would be a conflict of interest.”
“Okay. Noted.”
“On top of that…” She sank into the chair that he had vacated, hugging herself and rubbing her arms. “On top of that, you're just not the kind of man I could see myself with. I'm sorry.”
Jack closed his eyes, leaning his head against the doorframe. He took a deep breath through his nose. “Don't be sorry,” he said. “I know you're just being courteous, but that's not the kind of thing you apologize for.”
“Thank you.”
He backed up into the hallway with his hands raised defensively. “I'm just gonna go,” Jack said softly. “Call me the next time you need a source, and if I don't see you, have a merry Christmas.”
The waves of the Pacific Ocean washed up on the sandy beach with a soft, soothing sound. The afternoon sun was sinking toward the horizon, causing the waters to glitter as though a thousand diamonds had been strewn across a dark carpet.
Gabrina Valtez stood on the beach in a white sundress with pink flowers along the skirt and a short denim jacket, her long hair streaming in the wind. After weeks cooped up on that space station, she needed a little fresh air, but Canada was out of the question. There was no way she was going to endure another blizzard.
Ten years of working for an intelligence agency taught you a thing or two: not the least of which was a tendency to mind your surroundings. Justice Keepers had the luxury of being able to sense when someone was coming up behind them; everyone else wasn't so lucky. She had to learn to rely on her ears, and right now, her ears detected footsteps.
She turned.
Jack came striding through the sand in gray pants and a black shirt under his coat, a forced smile on his face. “I don't see why we couldn't do this in Ottawa,” he said. “This is a bit much, don't you think?”
Gabi wrinkled her nose. “Not a chance,” she insisted. “Sorry, hon, but I'm not willing to shiver through our entire conversation, and Los Angeles seems as good a place as any.”
“If you say so.”
“So you said you asked her out?”
He stared off into the distance with a blank expression, blinking slowly. “Were you looking out a window?” he asked in a quiet voice. “'Cause I'm pretty sure you could see the fireball from space.”
She turned back to the ocean.
Turning her face up to the sky, Gabi closed her eyes and let the wind caress her skin. “I'm sorry to hear that,” she murmured. “But look at it this way: at least you won't always be wondering what might have happened.”
Jack stepped up beside her with hands in his pockets, his eyes downcast. “Oh, I'm not sure about that, Gabs,” he grumbled. “I think moments like this might be good PR for the Ignorance is Bliss community.”
Gabi crossed her arms, backing away from the water's edge. She turned her face away from him. “Don't be like that,” she said. “Melodrama doesn't suit you, Jack. We all have to deal with rejection sometimes.”
Of course, it didn't help that she had pressured him into it. As a young woman, she had learned the hard way that sometimes you just had to leave well enough alone. As a rule, people didn't like it when you meddled in their personal lives, even if you did it with the best of intentions. Worst of all…
Worst of all, she was happy the reporter had turned him down. That wasn't a very noble thought, and now she had to reexamine her own motivations in doing this. Had she pushed him toward this woman just to shoot down any chance that something might happen between the two of them?
He sighed.
Jack turned around, walking through the sand toward the strip that overlooked the beach. “Come on,” he said, gesturing into the distance. “I think it's time you learned a bit about Earth culture.”
Gabi followed along with her arms folded, shaking her head ever so slowly. “I'm not sure I really want to learn anything more,” she teased. “Besides, we had a perfectly nice view of the ocean.”
“Would you just trust me?”
A broad walkway lined with palm trees ran in front of a series of small apartment buildings with chairs on their front porches. A bright orange truck was positioned at the very spot where sand met concrete, and she noticed pictures of several different elaborate confections on the side.
Jack approached with hands clasped behind his back, speaking to the man in the truck's open window. “Two swirl cones, please,” he said, standing up on his toes. So, it seemed she was going to be having an early dessert.
“Oh dear…”
A moment later, Jack spun on his heel and made his way toward her with a huge smile on his face. “This is called ice cream,” he said, offering one of the cones he held. “Kind of a tradition when you go to the beach.”
Gabi closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. “Thank you,” she said with a quick bob of her head. “You know, we have ice cream back on Leyria. Your planet hasn't exactly cornered the market on dairy-based dessert.”
“Oh, well that's a relief.”
“Oh?”
He looked up t
o gaze with wonder at the clear blue sky. “Yeah,” he said. “I'd like to go to Leyria one day; hell, with my job, I might even end up stationed there, and it's nice to know I'll find something familiar.”
She couldn't really argue with that.
They sat on a bench next to the walkway, enjoying the shade offered by the palm trees. At this time of year, California wasn't precisely hot, but Jack was still dressed for winter. That was something of a necessity as he would have to return to a city that was currently suffering from sub-zero temperatures. In a way, it would be easier for him if he simply chose to live aboard Station Twelve, but she supposed she couldn't blame him. In his place, she would insist on a home where opening a window was an option.
For a short while, they made pleasant conversation, and she found herself sharing the details of some of her previous assignments. The other day, she and Anna had spent over an hour discussing the other woman's assignment on Alios, and Gabi realized that she very much wished she herself could have such an assignment. Warm weather and infrequent crime? Who wouldn't want that? Then again, Anna was still young enough for ambition to trump everything else. Not that Gabrina Valtez had let go of her ambitions, mind you, but she was at an age where proving herself wasn't always her first priority. After a little while, Jack decided to change the subject.
He sat bent over with his arms folded, smiling down at the pavement. “So, you really think it was a good idea?” he asked with a shrug. “Coming clean like that probably strained my working relationship with Selena.”
Gabi threw her head back, rolling her eyes as she considered the question. “Was it a working relationship that you valued?” she inquired. “Correct me if I'm wrong here, but I believe I've heard you voice your distaste for media attention.”
“You heard right.”
“Well, then what's the difference?” She popped the last piece of her waffle cone into her mouth and chewed thoroughly before continuing. “It was a relationship that primarily benefited Selena Knowles.”