by John Bowers
He swayed for a moment, blinked away his double vision, and sighed.
“Okay. Just this one time, FIA outranks the U.F. Marshal.”
“You’re damn right we do. Come on, let’s get you into a bed.”
Chapter 30
Tuesday, April 7, 0448 (CC)
Department 9, Lucaston Colonial Court – Lucaston – Alpha Centauri 2
“The defendant will rise and face the jury.”
The Honorable Douglas Becker peered over his old-fashioned glasses at the defense table, then turned to the jury. Two men and ten women of various ages and social classes, seven of them Spanic, were gazing around the courtroom as if waiting for the start of a ball game. Two were looking directly at the defendant.
Victoria Cross and Ricardo Guzman got to their feet; to their left, the prosecutor followed suit. Victoria felt a buzz of adrenaline; it had been a long time since she stood for a jury’s verdict, and this was her first time as a defense attorney. This was not a career case, far from it—she had volunteered for court appointments just to get back in the game, and the pay was rock bottom. She wasn’t worried about the pay at this point, she just needed a win. After Nick’s trial, which had ended in fiasco, her name was out there and she needed to prove, to herself as much as anyone, that she could do this.
For Ricardo it was almost life or death. He had been charged not only with robbery, but also battery. The combined charges carried a maximum penalty of almost twenty years. If he were found guilty, his life would be shattered. As he stared at the jury with something akin to terror, Victoria squeezed his hand.
“Has the jury reached a verdict?”
“We have.”
“On the charge of third-degree battery, what is your verdict?”
“We find the defendant Not Guilty.”
Ricardo caught his breath, but that was only half the battle. Victoria squeezed his hand harder.
“On the charge of robbery in the first degree, what is your verdict?”
“We find the defendant…Not Guilty.”
Ricardo Guzman sagged against his attorney. She put an arm around him and gave him a squeeze.
“This Court thanks the jury for their service. You are dismissed. Mr. Guzman, good luck. You are free to go.
“We are adjourned.”
Ricardo grabbed Victoria’s hand and pumped it.
“Thank you, Miss Cross. Thank you! I wish I could pay you back somehow.”
Victoria laughed and patted him on the shoulder.
“You can. Just keep on being a good citizen and don’t let this experience prevent you from doing that.”
He nodded and wiped his eyes, then turned to accept a hug from his mother, who had been present for the entire trial. Victoria watched with a smile as mother and son hugged each other and exchanged tears. Mrs. Guzman also thanked her, then they turned to leave.
“Oh!” Ricardo turned back. “What about the suit? You have to return it.”
“You know what? Keep it. I’ll settle up with the rental shop.”
“But—”
She shook her head. “This is my first win as a defense attorney. I want you to keep the suit. After what you’ve been through, you’ve earned it.”
He smiled. “Thank you. I’ll take good care of it.”
“I know you will.”
Victoria turned to collect her papers and laptop. She sensed a presence at her elbow and looked up. Gavin Whetstone offered his hand. He was smiling.
“Congratulations, Miss Cross, and welcome to Colonial Court. You won fair and square, and I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other.”
Victoria accepted his hand.
“I’m sure we will, and I look forward to it.”
Whetstone, six feet two, gazed down at her with obvious approval. But he couldn’t resist a competitive dig.
“You won today, but don’t get used to it. I have a ninety-four percent conviction rate.” He was still holding her hand.
She smiled. “Treasure that, Mr. Whetstone—”
“Gavin, please. And what should I call you?”
“You can call me Miss Cross. As I was about to say, you’d better treasure that conviction rate, because it’s going to drop. But since most defendants are guilty, you should still be able to maintain, oh, maybe seventy, seventy-five percent—if you’re lucky.”
“Ah, a challenge! I love a challenge.”
“I’m glad you feel that way, but that’s today. A year from now? You’re going to hate me.”
Whetstone laughed.
“Don’t count your chickens, counselor.”
“I won’t. That was just a friendly warning. Now if you’d like some sisterly advice, lawyer to lawyer, I’ll offer it for free.”
He shrugged.
“Why not? You’re today’s lucky winner, so go ahead.”
She pulled her hand free and turned to face him.
“I didn’t win because I was lucky. I won because you didn’t do your job.”
“Okay…” He was still grinning.
“Because I used to work in Federation court, I haven’t been involved much with the local police department, so what I saw here really surprised me. Your arresting officers were lazy, sloppy, and didn’t investigate. They grabbed the first Spanic kid who fit the suspect’s description and hauled him in, along with three others, then let the victim pick a number, and called it a day. Meanwhile, Mr. Clinton’s robber, and his stolen possessions, are still out there somewhere.”
Whetstone’s grin began to fade.
“Look, counselor, if you want to trade jabs with me, go ahead. But don’t pick on my police officers.”
She leaned closer and lowered her voice.
“They were lazy. They were sloppy. My client had an iron-clad alibi, but they didn’t even check it out. They could have cleared him an hour after the arrest, but they didn’t try. Rich white man fingers a brown boy and their case was solved. Hell, they didn’t even get my client’s age right!”
She smiled and brushed some imaginary dandruff from his shoulder.
“As I said, sisterly advice. You’d better sharpen your game, Gavin. Next time we meet, I may not be nearly so nice.”
Whetstone’s grin had vanished. He took a step back.
“You were right about one thing, Miss Cross…I’m starting to hate you already.”
Victoria laughed. “Until next time, counselor.”
*
Victoria was in a mellow mood as she left the courtroom. She wasn’t exactly gloating, but it felt really good to score a win on her very first outing in Colonial Court. Her euphoria was due in no small part to the fact that she had carried a nagging doubt—after more than two years, did she still have the knack?
Obviously, she did.
She wished Nick were here to share it with.
She wondered when he was coming home.
The main lobby outside the courtroom was virtually empty, with only a bailiff and one or two courthouse employees in view. She started for the main door, but changed her mind; the walk back to her office would take ten or fifteen minutes, and she needed to visit the ladies’ room first. Her heels clicked on the marble floor as she headed in that direction.
The ladies’ room looked empty. She checked her face in the mirror, then went into a stall to relieve herself. Just as she was finishing up, she thought she heard a faint click, but it barely registered. She pushed open the stall door and returned to the mirror, where she washed her hands in the sink. She shoved her hands into the dryer for ten seconds, then picked up her purse and turned for the door, which was around the corner from the sink.
Kiko was waiting just inside the door, blocking her way. The light here was dim, but there was no mistaking the gun in her hand. Victoria stopped with a jolt of fear. She glanced past the young woman and saw the lock had been turned, which explained the click she’d heard.
In spite of her fear, Victoria maintained her composure. Her features tightened in anger.
&n
bsp; “Well-well, here you are again. What do you want?”
Kiko was no longer wearing the sun blinders, and Victoria was struck by how beautiful she was. But her eyes glittered with hatred.
“What do you think I want, bitch? I’ve been looking for your boyfriend.”
“My boyfriend? You clearly have me confused with somebody else. I’m a lesbian.”
“Like hell you are! I’ve seen you with him. You defended him in court and now you’re fucking him.”
“What the hell are you talking about? I’d rather fuck you than any man.”
“Cut the shit, lady! You’re Nick Walker’s woman, and I need to find him. So where the hell is he?”
Victoria grimaced. Deception wasn’t going to work.
“What do you want with him?”
“That’s between me and him. Where is he?”
“I have no idea. He left the planet a few days ago, but he never told me where he was going.”
“Bullshit! I’m not going to ask you again. Tell me where he is, or I’ll kill you.”
“I think you’re going to do that anyway, so what’s in it for me if I tell you?”
“Tell me where he is and I won’t shoot.”
“Of course not. You trust me not to warn him, so you won’t do a thing to me.”
“I’m losing patience with you!”
“Tell me why you want him, and I might tell you. Otherwise, you can just go ahead and shoot; then you might get out of this courthouse alive—or you might not. Either way, you still won’t know where he is.”
Kiko heaved a deep breath. Her gun hand was trembling slightly.
“Your boyfriend murdered Ken Saracen. Ken was like a father to me.”
“A father?” Victoria laughed. “Don’t you mean puppet master?”
“Shut your mouth! You don’t know a thing about him.”
“Well, I know that Nick Walker didn’t kill him.”
“You’re lying!”
“I’m not lying. Nick didn’t do it.”
“Then who did?”
“I did. He had Nick pinned down, and I shot him in the back. And you know what?” Victoria leaned forward slightly. “It felt really good!”
Kiko began to pant as her rage built up. Her gun hand trembled harder.
“You’re lying! But even if that’s true, Nick Walker still has to die. We were going to save the galaxy, but Walker—”
Victoria was four inches taller than Kiko, and only two feet separated them. Before Kiko could complete her diatribe, Victoria put her Star Marine training to work. In a lightning move, she batted the gun aside with her left hand; at the same moment, she drove the heel of her right hand into Kiko’s chin and slammed her head against the door. The gun fired and jumped out of Kiko’s hand; it clattered across the stone floor. Before Kiko could regain her balance, Victoria slammed her head back into the door three more times.
Kiko’s knees collapsed. Victoria took a step back to let her fall, then bent over and retrieved the gun, which was still smoking. It was a compact .30 calibre defensive weapon. Victoria pressed a hand against the wall to keep from falling as, with adrenaline pumping, she tried to regain her breath. The next thing she heard was pounding on the door.
“Is everything all right? Open up in there!”
Victoria held the gun by the barrel as she unlocked the door and stepped back. The same bailiff she’d seen in the lobby stepped inside, his own weapon drawn. He looked down at Kiko, who lay at his feet.
“I heard a gunshot. What the hell happened?”
Victoria, with her arms half raised, handed him the weapon.
“She was going to kill me.”
He took the gun, then frowned at her.
“Did you shoot her?”
“No. It went off when we struggled.”
The bailiff eyed her closely. “You’re an attorney, aren’t you? I saw you come out of courtroom six.”
“That’s right. I just finished my case and stopped in here to freshen up. She was waiting for me.”
“This is her gun?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do you know her?”
“I’ve seen her a couple of times recently. I think she’s been stalking me.”
The bailiff knelt and checked Kiko’s pulse, then straightened up again.
“I don’t see any wounds on her. How did she end up like this?”
Victoria sighed. “I slammed her head against the door.”
“Who is she?”
“She said her name is Kiko, but I don’t know if that’s accurate.”
“No, I mean who is she? Why did she target you?”
“She said she was looking for Nick Walker. She wants to kill him.”
“Nick Walker? The U.F. Marshal? Why does she want to kill him?”
“You remember the terrorist, Ken Saracen?”
“Yeah, of course. He raised a lot of hell around here a few years back.”
Victoria nodded. “Well, as far as I know, all of his followers have been killed or captured except for one. This is the one that got away.”
Diana Stepurin’s Penthouse, Periscope Harbor – Beta Centauri
Nick and Connie arrived at Diana’s penthouse a few minutes before seven in the morning. Nick’s right wrist was in a cast but he didn’t need a sling. The pain had been severe when he first woke, but a couple of cannabis pills dulled it to the point he barely noticed it.
Sasha opened the lift door for them with a gun in his hand, but at sight of Nick he relaxed a little. He looked Connie over with some curiosity, as if he recognized her, but made no comment. He nodded at Nick’s wrist.
“Wot happen?”
“Had a little accident. I’ll tell you later. How’s Diana?”
“Good. She took pills to sleep, just wake up.”
Sasha stepped aside to let them pass and Nick walked into the main living area. Aleksandr was seated against the wall facing the lift, a cup of coffee in his hand. He nodded a greeting.
Nicola appeared from a hallway.
“I thought I heard voices. Is everything okay?”
“For the moment,” Nick told her. “I need to speak privately with Diana. Can you guys take Nicola down for breakfast? We’ll catch up with you later.”
Both men nodded. Nicola gave Nick a hug and followed them into the lift. Diana emerged just as the door closed, wearing a bathrobe and toweling her hair.
“Sasha said you got some sleep,” Nick said. “You look a little better than you did yesterday.”
She nodded listlessly.
“I’m sorry about Kozel,” he said. “That really fucked up our plans.”
She settled into the same chair Aleksandr had just vacated, but didn’t reply. Her gaze rested on Connie.
“Who is this?”
“This is Connie. She’s a friend of mine.”
“Why is she here?”
“I’m going to explain that, but first I need to give you some other news.”
“What news?”
“Sam Turner is dead.”
“Sam? What happened?”
“I went to his hotel to confront him about Kozel, and he opened fire on me.” Nick lifted his wrist. “He gave me this.”
“But you killed him?”
“I did.” It was close enough to the truth, and all she needed to know.
“What about Vasily?”
“He got away. Connie here saw him heading north toward Molograd.”
Diana’s cheeks pinked as she stared at Connie again.
“And who is Connie?”
“A friend. She was at the casino when they came for Kozel; she was able to hide and didn’t see what happened, but she heard the gunfire, and after they left she followed them back to the city. She led me to Sam Turner.”
Diana stared at the floor.
“Well, that’s one down. We’ll have to move on Vasily as soon as we can.”
“The sooner the better, but I won’t be able to help you.”
Sh
e looked up again, surprised. “Why not?”
“Because I’m leaving.”
“What! Where are you going?”
“Back to the Federation.”
She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
Nick heaved a deep sigh. Here we go.
“Diana, I’m not going to marry you.”
Her eyes expanded in surprise.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m not who you think I am.”
Her cheeks flushed with anger.
“You lied to me?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“What else did you lie about?”
“Pretty much everything. My name isn’t really Russo, for one thing, and I’m not a fugitive from the Federation.”
“Then who are you? Who are you working for?”
“You don’t need to know that. What you do need to know is that I came here to put you out of business.”
Diana’s eyes blazed.
“You were going to kill us?”
“That was my intent.”
She was silent for a long moment, her mind working. He saw pain in her eyes.
“Why, Nick? Why would you do that?”
“Because I’m a dedicated opponent of slavery.”
“What does that have to do with me? Kozel was the one who dealt in slaves.”
“And the whole family shared in the revenue. Maybe you didn’t deal with it directly, but you knew about it, you condoned it, and you’re as guilty as Kozel. It has become clear to me that you are the real brains in this family, maybe always have been. You could have stopped it at any time.”
She shook her head, but didn’t reply. Instead, she asked,
“Are you going to kill me now?”
Nick gazed at her for a moment.
“You certainly have it coming, don’t you? Slaves aside, it was your idea to bring down that airliner. Nearly two hundred people died so you could eliminate a single man. That’s about as cold-blooded as it gets.
“And…you masterminded the execution of your brother and cousins.”
“Don’t forget who killed two of them.”
“I haven’t forgotten. You and I did the galaxy a favor, so you get a pass on that.
“But, to answer your question—no, I’m not going to kill you.”
Her expression never wavered, but Nick was certain he detected an involuntary sigh of relief.