"Yes, I came in six hours ago from Lunara. It was damaged in the escape attempt."
"The Protector back…it is the best news I have heard in ages."
Eamonn stood and moved across the room, turning his back to Parker. "Ty is dead…Samantha Burns killed him, but he made sure I escaped. He is the reason I made it out of Lunara with the Protector."
Parker felt a wave of grief ripple over his body. But it didn’t affect him as he thought it might. There were no tears, no shaking arms, and no anger in his heart. Instead, his eyes hardened, his muscles went rigid, and his body went numb. "What is in that datapad? Ty sacrificed himself for something else, didn’t he? Or else you wouldn’t be here with it."
Eamonn turned toward Parker. "No grief from you," he said, his eyes shallower than Parker had remembered.
Parker stepped toward Eamonn. "War allows one to compartmentalize grief. Captain Terry is in control of the Alliance, and he’ll be coming to Mars…for a final futile attack unless we find a way to stop him. And the crew, we are in danger. We have to rectify everything that we did."
Their eyes locked, but Eamonn quickly turned away from him.
Sarah stood, and Shannon got to her feet as well. Sarah spoke: "Captain Terry is claiming your squad are traitors to the Alliance."
Parker shook his head. "Nonsense. After our failed mission at Jupiter and after the MSA found the base in the asteroid belt, he suspected a traitor within us. We’re the connection to both incidents, but it was circumstance. Finally, sending him over the edge was losing the base, his haven. He is seeing shadows where there is light."
"Why are you convinced none of your squad is guilty?" Sarah said in her diplomatic tone.
A jolt of anger shot through his mind like an energy pulse. "Don’t start with me. Not after Terry accused me of it. I checked the logs. I blocked the transmissions, and I invented the security protocols for the Alliance. I picked the most loyal people. My squad is the best in the Alliance for that reason."
Sarah maintained her soft tone. "Then explain what happened after you returned to the asteroid belt."
"The MSA caught up with our operations. The morning after we arrived, they showed up, attempting to penetrate our shields and sending the entire base into chaos. Immediately, I went to the command deck to speak with Terry, to find out what was happening, and how I could help. He denied my requests to help and then, after he restricted my squad’s access, banished us to the pilots’ lobby. To observe. And then the attack started."
Sarah shook her head. "I don’t understand. What were the results of the hearing? How did you become labeled a traitor?"
"The hearing didn’t happen. He was going to execute my squad. When he ordered his guards to bring us to him, instead of allowing us to fly out in our ships, I knew he wanted us dead. There wasn’t a means for him to travel with prisoners or enough room. If I didn’t act against them, we would be dead. We had no choice."
Sarah nodded. "And that is why Red Dust was upset. You turned against the Alliance forces."
"I didn’t turn against the Alliance—"
"I didn’t mean it that way. I meant you had to act against them to save yourself."
Parker nodded. "The reason I brought you and Chloe to Delta base was to protect you against Terry and the MSA. Terry believes you are guilty by association. He has probably already ordered your arrest. Seth knows I’m still in the Alliance, so the MSA is looking for you."
"Everyone knew you were still in the Alliance."
"Well, they have proof now!"
For a long moment, they stood still, staring at each other. Seeing the pains of doubt on Sarah’s face, Parker felt the knot in his abdomen, the squeeze of his organs around each other.
Sarah’s eyes searched his face for clues, and her teeth pursed her lower lip in thought. She dropped her shoulders. "What should we do about this? Our control with the Alliance has slipped through our fingers."
"We need to strike against the MSA and undermine it. Create enough attention to dissipate the cloud shrouding the government. We’ll make the people see what it’s doing."
"But words have fallen on deaf ears. No one will listen with full stomachs and overflowing bank accounts."
"We will strike the MSA on Mars and make the people lose confidence in its ability to lead. If we stop the food, the resources, and the credits, the people will question the MSA’s overall legitimacy. For far too long, we’ve been battling the MSA away from Mars. The people never hear or see it. They don’t care anymore."
"The two of us can’t do enough."
Parker stepped forward. "We have Eamonn, Shannon, and the Protector. My squad will do whatever I ask of them."
"No, not me," Eamonn said. "I’m removed from the Martian revolts."
"What about Ty? He didn’t die so you could visit us. He meant it to inspire you," Parker said. "Just as Jan died to keep the technological marvels of the Megacruiser from the MSA, I continue to fight for her. You should continue for Ty, Jan, Madelyn, Mars, or the crew. Pick one of them."
"If you haven’t noticed, two crew members are what we are fighting against. It is no more."
"Don’t say that. It isn’t right."
"No, it isn’t," Chloe said from behind them. "That is why I am going to help you take down the MSA. This has gone on long enough without my involvement. I’ve been sulking. Now, I’ll be damned if Seth’s ambitions are going to tear down this planet. I can stop him."
"You can’t," Parker said. "Your illness."
"My illness hasn’t killed me yet," she replied.
Everyone was silent.
Chloe walked fully into the room and sat on the couch. "Now, tell me what Eamonn has brought and how we will use it to bring down the MSA."
Parker looked at the datapad in Sarah’s hand. Somehow, Chloe always knew. He motioned for everyone to sit down, and surprisingly, Eamonn didn’t complain. It was a good sign to Parker that he would at least listen. After two years of MSA pursuit, fear consumed his eyes. He hoped Eamonn could overcome it.
Summarizing the datapad in her hand, Sarah explained Ty’s report concerning the metalor shipment aboard the Solarspot that was due to arrive on Mars in two days’ time. The shipment was significant, and the plans detailed for the freighter captain were extensive.
Everyone squirmed uncomfortably in their chairs as the report sunk into their minds. If they were to destroy the shipment, it would break the MSA. Unnerving everyone, the grandness of the task hit the five. It wouldn’t be easy with such a small group.
Eamonn rubbed the scar on his forehead. "The Solarspot, being a freighter, doesn’t have the defenses of an MSA war cruiser."
"No, and my squad has plenty of experience with large ships," Parker said.
Eamonn’s brows rose. "You wouldn’t last long with the convoy of MSA cruisers and fighters escorting it, the shielding, or the proximity to Mars it will come in at, which will leave you vulnerable to the orbital defenses."
Shannon sighed. "It sounds impossible."
"The metalor hull and the plasma shielding are easy to overcome with a lot of metalor-based explosives, and I mean a lot of them. A midclass cargo shipful," Parker snapped back.
Sarah sighed. "With Captain Terry hunting for us, we can’t acquire enough explosives from the Alliance. It’ll be hidden."
"Collaborating with traitors," Shannon muttered. "How can my life get any worse?"
Everyone ignored her.
"We’ll have to get it from the MSA then," Eamonn said. "Parker and I will do that."
"I can help you," Chloe said.
"No, I need you and Shannon to steal a ship. A drone ship, one we can fly by remote."
Chloe sat up in her seat. "Like the one that smashed into the communications array on Mars when Lunara was first attacked?"
"Exactly."
Shannon grunted. "That shouldn’t be too hard to find."
"And what about me?" Sarah said. "I might be a weak politician, but I can fight. I was at the
Battle of Lunara."
"I don’t need your fight for this," Eamonn said. "Your diplomatic skills are more valuable. You’ll create the distraction for the MSA forces around the Solarspot. Here’s how…"
Chapter 10
"Landing request acknowledged, Mr. Smith," the voice of the Aethpisian flight control operator radioed. "You have been cleared to land on pad C."
"Confirmed," Seth said, angling his skimmer toward Aethpis colony and looking below at the speckled lights of the early evening. Only one thought came to his mind when he thought about the peace that the MSA afforded Aethpis after the war: unwarranted mercy. He saw a waste of resources for a people who would do anything to destroy the MSA. His friends had lost.
And now, after two years of separation, he was coming to claim what was his. Chloe and Alexandria would come to Zephyria with him tonight, and then finally, Hans Bauer could cure her. Enough of the coddling and the pampering, Chloe was his to control.
The radio twittered. He tapped his finger against his control stick, activating the radio. "Go ahead."
"Seth Smith, I didn’t think your leash was long enough to extend this far from Zephyria," Samantha Burns’s arrogant voice whined in his ear. Still, she denied Seth’s role in Gwen’s life, insulting him at every chance. Seth didn’t like it or her. He shut off his CommUn, quieting her ploy to infuriate him. Samantha was always a complication, and tonight was no exception.
His teeth gnashed, and he felt the dread billow in his head as the thought of dealing with Samantha Burns entered his mind. When she deceived him into falling into Chancellor Damon Arwell’s trap, she had sealed his hatred of her. She, above anyone else on the planet, had put Chloe in danger. If it wasn’t for Samantha Burns, none of it might have ever happened. and maybe Chloe wouldn’t be so terrified of him—
He cleared his mind of what could have been.
The present moment should be his only concern, and he wouldn’t have the power he had today without Samantha Burns. Gwen complained about their differences with one another. Trying to unite them, Gwen appealed to their union within the MSA. It should be enough to make them friends, but stomaching the vice chancellor was hard enough, let alone being civil with her.
More urgent than his hatred, was the question, why was she in Aethpis, waiting for him on the same night he was to rescue his family?
Supposedly, by chance, she may have arrived to investigate the disappearance of the McClouds. It didn’t make sense to him though. Two days had passed since his return to Mars, and the physical investigation would be over. Right away, he alerted MSA security to the McClouds’ deception and their involvement in the Alliance. Gwen had no further recourse but to end the charade and allow security to capture the humiliated Sarah McCloud. Immediately, the MSA security force stormed Aethpis colony and the McClouds’ home, where they found nothing in the former minister’s apartment. Sarah had fled, leaving no trace they had ever been in the home.
Clearly, Parker had warned them. In the time it took to rescue Seth’s fighter, fly back to the MSA cruiser Victory, dump the recorder logs, and send the information to MSA security on Mars, Parker ordered his family to exit the colony, without a trace.
Overhead, the clouds darkened as an increasingly violent storm crept into the area, creating violent winds, shifting dust clouds, and funneling unpredictable tornadoes around the colony’s exterior. Seth’s skimmer rocked. Tension tingled in the back of his neck; his nerves told him to get down as quickly as possible. He pressed the throttle forward and thrust toward the landing pad.
The gusts were significant, higher than advised for safe travel. The computer chirped warnings and updates on tolerance status. He ignored them, propelled the skimmer downward, and braced for the landing. With a booming, teeth-jolting halt, the skimmer settled on the ground. He tightened his breathing mask over his face and released the canopy.
The flight crews were already locking his skimmer down by the time he climbed down the access ladder. Fighting the bite of the Martian night, he staggered against the wind and dust to the doorway and into the control dome.
Once inside, he removed his breathing mask and started toward the sign marked "Transportation Center," hoping to slip past Samantha Burns, who without a doubt, lurked nearby.
Around the next corner, Samantha caught him. He swore under his breath. She and her guards rounded the opposite corner in front of him and waited for him to come to them. Seth swiveled his head but couldn’t find a natural turn to avoid the entourage. He bit his lip and headed toward them.
Her scent, airy and sweet, hit his nose before he arrived. His lungs tightened and his stomach twisted, his body wanting him to wretch in order to get rid of the foul stench.
"Samantha, you look concerned. No children for you to eat?" he said dryly, hoping one of her cronies would see the humor. But typical of her guards, they remained stolid.
She smirked. "You read too many fairy tales as a child."
"Why are you here?" he shot back. "Your investigation into the McCloud disappearance wrapped up two days ago."
"I came to greet you."
"And you knew I would be here?"
"I know everything."
He bristled. "What do you want?"
She rubbed her hands together. "Perhaps you relate to this: your Cinderella has left the ball, and she didn’t leave a slipper for you to find her with."
He clenched his teeth. "Chloe is no longer on Aethpis?"
"She left with the Alliance traitors—"
Samantha continued speaking, but Seth ignored her unwanted rant about the Alliance. He already knew what she would say. Instead, he absorbed the strength of the rage beginning to gather at the back of his mind and the fires of lust growing angrily in his heart. Chloe had left, maybe forever. Parker had warned her about him. Parker had betrayed not only Mars but him, too.
He hated Parker. He wished he was back at the asteroid belt and had known it was him earlier. He would have rammed his ship. Jinx him; jinx the Protector; jinx to anyone who thinks the Alliance is worth a damn.
He narrowed his eyes at Samantha. Interrupting her rant, he said: "Your intelligence, what have they found?"
"There has been no chatter on any of the Alliance frequencies, even encrypted."
"They bugged out. They are using new frequencies and new bases."
"Knowing that doesn’t make it easier to find them. Their fleet hasn’t shown up at any of our outposts or on Mars. All is too quiet," she said. "They are in space, orbiting the sun like a bunch of wayward asteroids."
"If that is the case and they haven’t gone to Saturn or Jupiter’s stations, they’ll come to Mars."
"Mars is the worst place for them," she replied. "You’re a fool to think they’ll attack us here. Our orbital defenses are fully operational."
"I assume they haven’t passed the black widow grid, or you would have detected them."
"The black widow has holes in it. It is no longer as reliable."
"The holes aren’t big enough for an entire fleet. Lunara is not their target, especially when there is minimal metalor on it. It has to be Mars."
"It is too risky for them to come to Mars."
"The Solarspot left Lunara and is headed to Mars. They can’t hit it while it has its quickdrives engaged. If they did, it would destroy the shipment. You know they want to take it and not destroy it?"
"Come now. A resource like that would give the Alliance an advantage over us. They will strike when it arrives at Mars," she said. "Our security will be immense when the Solarspot arrives. There will be no way for them to even get to it."
"I will remind you of your defeat in the Battle of Lunara, against all odds. Destruction of Martian property will feed the Alliance morale—"
Samantha put her hand up. "Come to your wife’s apartment," she replied, waving for him to go. "We must talk."
After a short train ride and a hurried walk into the government’s domestic building, Seth stood at the doorway of Chloe’s apartment. H
e followed Samantha in.
"It is empty," she said. "Just as the report said about the McClouds’ place."
The apartment caused an ominous feeling to pass over him. The welcoming table was gone, the closets were empty, and his daughter’s room was bare. They had left nothing.
He moved into Chloe’s room. He stopped at the door. On the floor to the far side of the room was the candle Chloe lit for him each night. She used it to wish him back. The prod she poked against his heart.
"You see the only thing left in either apartment was this candle," Samantha said. "You know why?"
By the grin on her face, Samantha apparently had figured Chloe had left it for him. A message that he was no longer wanted. Seth didn’t oblige her. "I don’t know. There is nothing for me here. I’ll return to Zephyria."
He pivoted and stalked out of the room. He was halfway down the hallway when he heard Samantha’s footsteps behind him. Long, deep, and echoing, her high heels pounded in rapid succession, and then they stopped. "You don’t want to find her?"
Seth stopped, craned his neck, and nodded.
"We can find her together," she said, her voice sounding needy. It strained to stay even.
"And are you looking for her?" He turned fully toward her. "Gwen has ordered everyone to stay away. She won’t compromise it."
"No. I’m looking for the rest of your crew. She’ll be there."
"Rest of my crew? Eamonn is with them?"
"I assume. He stole the Protector from Lunara. We tracked him to Mars, lost his signal in the atmosphere, but we know he hasn’t left. His only friends are your wife and Parker McCloud."
"Yes, he would go to them." Seth stepped up to her. "They are too well hidden. If rumor of their hideaway hasn’t been revealed, it is impossible to find them in the caves. They have cut off contact."
"I want them to locate you. More succinctly, I want Chloe to come to you."
"She hates me now. She’ll stay hidden. She thinks I’ll use my daughter against her."
Her face begged him like a puppy. "Your help, can I count on it?"
"And how do you propose we find them? Advertise where I will be?"
Lunara: The Original Trilogy Page 74