by Jaleta Clegg
He spread out the floorplans. "The files I need are stored here," he said, touching the paper. "There's a safe full of data cubes."
"How do we know which ones to pinch?" Beryn asked.
"Take them all, if necessary," Lowell said. "There shouldn't be more than a few hundred."
"And smuggle them out under my shirt," I said sarcastically.
"I hadn't thought of that," Lowell said, a gleam of speculation in his eyes.
"No, I'm not going to do it," I said flatly.
He shrugged. "I'm hoping the files I'm after aren't in the main safe," he said. "Rumor has it there's a secret safe built into the floor here," he touched another corner of the same room.
"Rumor?" I asked.
"All right, I had Paltronis bribe the locksmith who installed it. The lock is a Smetherly, supposedly unpickable."
"You didn't pay him to give you the combination?"
"Don't get snide, Dace. The combination is changed weekly, usually by the Governor himself. No one else knows it exists. The locksmith did say that a number seven sonic probe might come in useful." He raised his eyebrows.
"Yes, I have one and yes, I can use it," I said, admitting something that could get me a life sentence if Lowell decided he had no further use for me.
Beryn whistled. "You can't even buy a number seven."
I kept my mouth shut. He didn't need to know how much that particular pick had cost. Jasyn had given me grief for a month after I replaced the one I'd melted picking an alien lock on Vallius. She claimed it was too much and I'd never really need it anyway. I hated knowing she was wrong.
Mart stirred on the top bunk, restless in his dreams. I felt him come awake. He lay still, listening to Lowell who was now busy instructing us on the security systems we'd have to bypass. I was no expert in what Lowell wanted. I'd picked a few locks before, but I'd never broken through twelve separate security systems. I wasn't a burglar, I was a pilot.
"Lowell, be reasonable," I said. "We don't know how to break through security."
"Martin does," Lowell said.
I felt Mart stiffen.
"He doesn't now, despite whatever he knew before," I said.
"You and Martin are going to break in and get me the information," Lowell said. "Beryn and I will keep them from looking your direction. We've already got that worked out."
"Mart," I said, rubbing my eyes. I wasn't going to win arguments with Lowell, I may as well attempt breaking into a room that made most bank vaults look unprotected. "I know you're awake."
Mart rolled over to look down at us. His eyes were bloodshot with dark circles underneath. He was still fighting his own conscience over the few intact memories he had.
"What do you know about bypassing security systems?" I asked him. We both knew he couldn't lie to me.
"I don't know what I still remember until I try," Mart admitted.
"Then both of you had better pay close attention," Lowell said.
He drilled us for hours. We reviewed the floorplans and security maps until I saw them in my sleep. Or maybe it was Mart's dream. I couldn't tell.
His plan was simple, foolproof, or so he thought. I picked holes in it wherever I could. Lowell brushed aside my objections and stayed so optimistic I wanted to hit him.
His luggage held all sorts of surprises. He had scanners and listening bugs. He even had three very small, very powerful stunners tucked in the luggage. Blasters were too noticeable and too messy, he pointed out when he saw my disappointment that they were only stunners. I had to agree, although I would have felt a lot more confident with a blast rifle, or a blast cannon, as backup.
He even had a Smetherly lock tucked in his bag. He set the combination and put it on the floor of the cabin. And then timed me as I came from the cockpit, sprawled across the floor and did my best to pick it. My first try took me almost an hour. I hadn't used my sonic probes much, I was losing my touch. Lowell looked disappointed. He waved me over to the table and reviewed the floorplans again. And then set up the lock. And did it all again, over and over, until I had bruises on my hipbones from lying on the floor fighting the blasted lock.
I finally got it down to under five minutes. Lowell still wasn't happy. He wanted me to do it in under three. I told him exactly what I thought of that idea. He looked shocked and told me I ought to wash my mouth out for using such language. Beryn laughed and told me he hadn't heard that particular combination before. Mart lay on the bunk, staring at the ceiling. He was nervous and it made me nervous and grouchy.
"Do it again," Lowell said when Beryn was through laughing. He picked up the lock and reprogrammed the lock sequence.
"Why?" I sat on the floor, knees up and my head in my hands. The sonic probe hung from my right hand.
"Because you aren't fast enough yet," Lowell said. "The security systems scan the lock every four minutes. You have three minutes to pick it. Mart has three minutes to convince the security system that it is still locked."
"I can do it," Mart said quietly.
"So, it will be my fault that we won't be fast enough," I grumped. "I'm tired and I hurt, Lowell. You try picking the lock."
"You have the skill, Dace. Do it again."
Arguing with Lowell was as pointless as running away with your boots nailed to the floor. I got up and went back to the cockpit, muttering nasty comments about Lowell's relationship to certain extremely stupid rodents .
"I heard that," he said. "Go."
I turned and threw myself back at the lock on the floor, sliding halfway down the cabin to it. My belly hurt. I ignored it and delicately slid the probe into the first slot. I dialed it through frequencies until it hummed. I locked the first number in and moved on to the second. The next two I got quickly, almost on the first try. The fourth one stumped me for almost too long. I had to go back and start over. I kept working on the lock, trying to ignore Lowell breathing over me, watching every move. There were fourteen separate codes that had to be entered in sequence, each one a number, letter, or color represented by a particular frequency. The probe found the resonant frequency and locked it in. When all fourteen were recorded, it played them back in sequence and, if everything went as planned, the lock popped open.
I was on frequency number twelve when the reentry alarm went off. I jumped and knocked the probe. The lock buzzed loudly, warning that someone was tampering with it. That was what made the locks so tricky. If I took too long or messed around too much, the lock itself would send an alarm. I pulled the probe out, deactivating it and sliding it back into the case tucked in my boot as I got to my feet and headed for the cockpit.
"We're done practicing," I said as I sat in the pilot's seat, "unless one of you has managed to learn piloting while I was playing with Lowell's lock."
I expected Lowell to say something rude. He leaned on the copilot's chair, grinning. "Just under two minutes, Dace. I think you would have got it that time."
I pulled the headset out and tossed it at Lowell. "You get to talk to port authority."
"What ship are we again?"
"This is insane," I muttered as we slid back into normal space.
"Just admit you're enjoying it," Lowell said.
The only thing that saved him from me smacking him and giving him bruises was the ship needing me to fly it.
Chapter 24
"You sent for me, sir?" Tayvis stepped into the private office of Roderick Medallis, Sector Governor and cousin of the Emperor.
Roderick waved a hand glittering with rings. "Have a seat, Commander. I've heard you're one of the Patrol's best. I want you to prove it to me."
Tayvis stayed standing. He clasped his hands behind his back. "How?"
"I'm hosting a party. You are in charge of security."
"You have your own security team. They're very good."
"But they don't know Commander Lowell." Roderick pulled the stopper from a glass decanter. The golden liquid inside gurgled as he filled a tumbler. "I expect him to stop by for a visit. He'll most likel
y use the party as cover."
Tayvis watched Roderick sip the golden liquid. "Why would he raid your home, if I may ask?"
Roderick set the tumbler aside before speaking. "He wants to frame me. For treason. As if I'd move against Maximillius. My loyalty is unquestionable. What about yours, Commander Tayvis? He was your commanding officer and I've heard you were rather close."
Tayvis stiffened. "I do what my duty demands, sir."
"Duty to whom?"
"I pledged loyalty to the Empire when I enlisted."
Roderick ran his finger around the rim of his glass. "How deep does your loyalty run? I wonder."
"Your property and person will be safe, sir." Tayvis hid his anger behind a stony mask. Roderick was within his rights questioning Tayvis' loyalty. It didn't take the sting out of it, though.
Roderick set the tumbler aside then stood, brushing his hands along his coat to straighten it. "Good. I want you in regular Patrol uniform. Enforcer black is a little obvious. We don't want to advertise who we're really hunting, do we? My butler will take care of it for you. He's coordinating security for the party."
Tayvis snapped a salute then left. He didn't like Roderick, not in the least, but that didn't change his orders. Catch Lowell. Arrest him for treason. Stop him before his madness infected anyone else.
Easy enough to say, but Lowell knew how to slide between the cracks. And Lowell knew secrets deeper than anyone suspected existed. Maybe he was right.
Tayvis pushed the thought from his mind. If Lowell was right, the Empire was crumbling. From within.
Chapter 25
Drometheus was one of the inner Inner worlds. It was the capital for a sector of very rich planets. Traffic was an absolute nightmare. Beryn came to help after he put Lowell's goodies away. He knew enough to run scans and program in course coordinates. I had my hands full keeping the ship moving with the traffic flow without running into the other ships. I managed to not notice Mart while I flew.
Lowell talked to people on the headset, reaching over my shoulder to place different calls. We were now the Vishnya, another ship registered to a different company. I'd stripped out the other beacon in between Lowell's training sessions. He talked to port authority and the company we supposedly flew for and half a dozen other people I didn't have concentration to spare listening to. I don't know how he managed it, but he got us a berth on the planet itself, which simplified our running away when we finished burglarizing the Governer's mansion right under his nose.
It was morning when we landed. Bright sunshine flooded the port, reflecting off puddles from the night's programmed rains. Very little about Drometheus was still natural, including the weather. We were in the shadow of several much larger private yachts. It wouldn't be hard to have a ship bigger than ours, just about everything, up to and including shuttles, were bigger.
"The lock," Lowell said, indicating the device laying on the floor. The lights blinked across its surface.
"Now?" I asked as I finished shutting the ship down.
"We've got time, and you aren't fast enough yet." He raised his finger. "And don't waste your breath telling me about my dubious ancestry. Now," he added, starting his watch.
I had my pick out and sprawled on the floor before I thought better of it. Lowell was training me really well. And I hated it.
"Five and a half minutes," Lowell said when the lock finally popped open. "Do it again."
"I'm not going to get any faster," I complained, but I went back to the cockpit while he reset the lock.
"Now," he said.
I went after the lock again. I was losing my touch, it buzzed three times on me. Each time I backed off, slipping the probe out and adjusting the frequencies before trying again. It finally opened. I rolled onto my back.
"Almost ten minutes," Lowell said. "Maybe we should take a break."
I didn't wait for him to change his mind. I was off the floor and into the bathroom in record time. I wanted a nice long shower. We were on a planet, water shouldn't be a problem. As long as we didn't take off in a hurry before they finished servicing the ship. I took a short shower.
I was rinsing out my hair when the door to the bathroom slid open.
"Wear these, please," Lowell said. The door shut.
I used every word in my vocabulary plus a few I made up. I didn't want to be here, I didn't want to be working for Lowell. But it was the only way to help Mart and I had promised to do that. I let the shower finish cycling. The fine spray of water ended and warm, dry air blew over me.
I picked through the pile of clothes Lowell had brought in. He'd taken my others so I had no choice. It was a short, clingy dress in pale green. I might have liked it under other circumstances. I was tempted to walk out of the bathroom naked, but that would embarrass me more than them. Lowell had even included underwear, some I had never seen before. They weren't what I would have picked for myself. They were skimpy and lacy and green to match the dress. They fit perfectly. And so did the dress. I opened the door to the bathroom.
All three of them were around the table, going over notes again. All three turned to look at me. Beryn gave me an appraising look and an approving grin. Mart stared, as if noticing how I looked for the first time. Lowell pursed his lips, looking me up and down.
"Do something with your hair and you'll pass," he said.
"How about I shave it off?"
"I might have a wig," Lowell said thoughtfully. And then grinned. "Yes, shave it off, Dace. That would work even better."
I was in a perverse mood. Since he told me to shave my head, I combed my hair instead. It was getting long enough to begin to curl at the ends. The purple dye was almost completely faded.
"How would you like to be blond?" Lowell held up a fistful of long blond hair.
"How would you like a black eye?" I shot back.
"You really need to work on your attitude." Lowell settled the wig on my head. "Brush your hair back from your face then get the wig in place."
I pulled it off and set it in the sink. Blond hair cascaded in shining waves over the edge.
"This way," Lowell said as he took the comb from me. His fingers nimbly pulled my hair back. He rubbed some goopy stuff in it that made it stay. And then he settled the wig back on my head, this time making sure it was the right way around. He flicked the blond hairs into place, a loosely curling mass framing my face. I looked completely different.
"Turn around," Lowell said, "and close your eyes."
"Why?" I asked as I turned around.
"Now for something completely different. Close your eyes, Dace. Trust me."
I don't know why, but I did. I closed my eyes and let him paint my face. I looked in the mirror when he finished. He was very good. I looked nothing like myself. I looked young and rich.
"Sit," Lowell said when I was done staring at the stranger in the mirror. "Grease under your fingernails will be a dead giveaway."
"You're full of surprises, Lowell," I said as he turned my nails pale peach.
"You have no idea, Dace."
"How is all this going to help me break into the mansion? Am I supposed to be on the guest list?"
"Not possible," Lowell said. "I tried. No, this is just to get you into the city unnoticed so we can meet up with Paltronis. You and Beryn are going to check into a hotel. There are reservations, Beryn knows."
Beryn picked at a corner of a mem sheet. "Lowell's idea, Dace. Don't hurt me. We're supposed to be on our honeymoon."
"You're enjoying this, Lowell," I said.
"Making you look like a person instead of something that crawled out of the engine? Of course. Shoes," he ordered Mart.
I was handed a pair of shoes that reminded me of Jasyn's sandals. The thought of Jasyn sobered me. Was she sitting in jail on Shamustel or worse? Had they lifted the Phoenix in time? I looked up from the shoes and met Lowell's silver eyes.
"Did the Phoenix lift in time?" I asked.
"I don't know."
"But you know everything."
"There hasn't been any word about them, but it's only been a few days. I'll see what news I can get from Shamustel."
"You act like this is just a game, but it isn't."
"You think I don't know that?"
I read the truth in his eyes. He'd sent people to die before, and he knew they would die and still he'd done it. I didn't want to know what else he'd done. I lifted a hand to rub my face.
Lowell caught my hand. "You'll smear your makeup. You and Beryn need to catch your ride now."
I bent over and slipped the shoes on, fighting to hide my emotions. I was supposed to be happy and smiling, as if nothing were wrong. I felt naked. The last thing I wanted was to walk into a hotel with Beryn and pretend. I didn't have much choice. I sat back up, smiling at Beryn as I brushed long strands of blond hair away from my face.
"Shall we go, sweetheart?" I said as brightly as I could. It sounded brittle.
"I'll get the luggage, shall I?" Beryn picked up a bag, one of Lowell's.
"What if they search it?" I asked Lowell.
"Unless they're exceptionally good, all they'll find is clothing and toiletries."
I nodded, accepting his word.
Beryn and I stepped out into the fresh air of late morning. The puddles were gone. We walked over to a yacht and stood near the hatch, as if we'd just come out of the ship. A ground car rolled up and stopped. It was sleek and black and very expensive. It wasn't quite so expensive as to have a live driver, though. Beryn opened the door and slid the luggage inside and then waited while I climbed in after the luggage. He squeezed in beside me and draped his arm over my shoulder. I pushed it off.
"We have to play the part," he said and put his arm back. He leaned forward and gave the car our destination and a handful of credits. It purred smoothly away. He leaned back beside me.
"You don't have to enjoy it quite so much," I said.
"Who said I'm enjoying it? You're such a crab I doubt anyone can enjoy being around you for long."