by M. V. Kallai
A half hour later, the transport was backed up to the shuttle bay. Maeve’s only shot at escape was to hop aboard the shuttle in between container transfers and creep out when everyone was gone, just before the launch. It was already 5:00 a.m., which meant this was not going to be a lingering operation. Lee’s container was the first to be loaded onto the shuttle. Then, after only seven minutes, four more were onboard. When they came to the container Maeve was hiding behind, she stayed right against it as they pulled it out from the opposite side. Once they cleared the transport entry, she climbed up to the top and lay flat just as a man came around the back to push it the rest of the way onboard. Gun at the ready, she held her breath. She lay there silently and listened to the sound of the director’s voice and another she did not recognize, but assumed to be the newly promoted General Cline. The men came through, inspected the load, and left.
Maeve hopped down from the container when the voices were gone and the transport had flown away. She peaked out of the shuttle bay ready to make her escape and found herself eye to eye with Mace Magner and his hand was on the shuttle’s mechanical controls.
“Well, what do we have here?” he asked with a snide smile. “A spy at the bottom of her game. And here, I thought you liked me.”
“Sorry, no. But, at least I get to kill you now. That makes our night together all the more special.”
Mace grabbed her by the back of the neck and she shoved the barrel of her gun in his gut. He laughed at her.
“Don’t even think about it, you worthless whore. If you shoot that thing we both die.”
Maeve gave the trigger a slight squeeze and then stopped.
“Why will we both die?” she asked.
“Ahh, never been this close to a launch before have you? The atmosphere in this dock is a volatile mix, and highly pressurized. That gunshot will cause an explosion,” Mace said and put his hand on the gun.
“I don’t believe you,” she said.
“Are you going to risk it?”
“You’re bluffing,” she said and pulled the gun away to point it at his head.
“You’re right!” Mace answered and shoved her hard. She fired off a shot that missed Mace and ricocheted off the metal walls as she tumbled backwards.
“We should rid this planet of all tramp spies like you!” Mace shouted and shut the shuttle doors. Maeve scrambled to her feet and slammed her body into the closing doors a second too late. She was trapped. Mace’s laughter penetrated the shuttle walls and she heard his boots stomp away.
“Shit!” Maeve shouted, pounding her fist on the door. The shuttle engines started up and Maeve ran around the shuttle bay, fighting against the pressure change that was now occurring inside and looking for something to secure her body during takeoff. There were doors on the far side of the bay and she ran through the one marked ‘crew passage’. She opened every door in the corridor, holding her chest and gasping for air until she found a room with space gear. The shuttle was thrusting through the air now and she knew any second they would exit the atmosphere. She sat against the wall and held on to a table bolted to the ground. Her body felt crushed. If she could just last a few more seconds, she would be okay. She saw an air supply linked to a helmet hanging on the opposite wall. She darted towards it and threw it over her head. The shuttle shook violently for a few seconds dropping her to the floor and she passed out just as the shuttle’s pressure normalized.
The next day, Mace sat in his office tracking the Myris shuttle on his computer. It was fifty miles from entering the light Myrian atmosphere when one of the engines overloaded with power and blew up. Mace held his breath and sat very still as he watched the red lights flashing on his screen. He listened to the muffled voices of the flight crew frantically calling for help from their communications contacts at the flight center. The shuttle set off at a spin and disappeared when it hit the atmosphere. Communication was lost moments later and silence filled his office. A slow smile crept across his face and he walked stiffly to General Cline’s office.
“It’s done, sir,” Mace said.
“Good work, Major. I’m sorry you had to be involved with such a dark but necessary assignment.”
“I agree with your motive, General. I’m just pleased that you trusted me with such sensitivity.”
“Right. But we won’t be speaking of this again. You’re dismissed, Major.”
Mace saluted General Cline and went back to his office to watch the explosion again.
General Cline picked up his phone and paged Sergeant Quinn.
Chapter Sixty-One
Transitioning
“Close the door and sit down, Sergeant,” Cline said.
“Is something wrong, General?” Quinn asked.
“Perhaps. General Pike’s classified files were released to me this morning and thumbing through I came across your name. Interesting, wouldn’t you say?”
“Perhaps. What did you find?”
“It would seem that you are much more than you appear to be, Sergeant…or should I say, Agent.”
“I was wondering if you would approach me. It’s the reason I’m still here.”
“So then, you have already been paid for reporting on Colonel Ganesh.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve done a good job. There is enough evidence in this file to arrest Ganesh for treason. Why do you suppose General Pike did nothing with this information when he paid you to collect it?”
“With all due respect, General, I’m not paid to care about motives, but if I had to guess, I’d say it was because of his ambition in the space travel division. Ganesh was necessary for controlling the Camden Riles situation. Internally and through the media.”
“There must have been another reason,” Cline said, but Quinn just shrugged his shoulders.
“What do you want to do now? he asked.
“I’ve read your contract, Quinn. It states that at anytime, Pike could order the assassination of the subject of observation.”
“Yes. But it also states that there is a significant fee associated with such an order.”
“I’m willing to pay your fee and since this contract has been transferred to me, I am ready to discuss your next move.”
“Will you be expecting any further reports on the colonel’s activities? I’ve continued making them.”
“No. I don’t require any reports. And I am not continuing General Pike’s course of action either. You work for me now, Agent. Pike may have been fine letting that traitor Ganesh live and work here, but not me. Finish the job…this week.”
Several hours later, an old and dented transport arrived at a Tyrinian training camp deep inside the borders. Davi, who’d survived the biomachine attack in Maile, inspected the cargo and then walked into a brown building that looked like it was in ruins.
“The material has just arrived. It’s time to make use of the captive,” Davi said to a man in a Tyrinian war uniform.
“I’ll wake him.”
“Good, then bring him to the main facility, office twelve.”
“Twelve? Are you sure?”
“You heard me right. Ten minutes…be there,” Davi said and shut the door to the brick cell that was holding Sergeant Bearden Leitner.
Bearden was escorted to office twelve in the main building of the camp. When he walked in, he heard the man behind the desk in the room telling someone on a portable phone about the diminishing Daxian threat.
“It’s not over,” Bearden said. “They have an army of machines. They will use them when they are able.”
“I know. Come and sit, Sergeant Bearden Leitner. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Naja Pinure.”
That name rang a bell for Bearden and he looked questionably at the man sitting behind the small beat up desk. He suddenly remembered. Naja was the government traitor that had been killed months ago.
“You’re supposed to be dead. I saw it reported.”
Naja smiled.
“And yet, here I am.”
�
��They found your body.”
“They found a body with my DNA on it. Do you believe everything you’re told?”
“I guess not. I just assumed…”
“That what? Your precious Daxian government would never lie to you? Use you?”
“I used to think that. But what makes Tyrine any better? You keep attacking us,” Bearden said.
“Let me tell you something about Tyrine and our people. We may not have your high tech labs or your scientist spewing schools, but we are not stupid and will not stand by quietly and let Daxia move into our lands and control our people. Of course we are attacking.”
“Do you really believe it will stop them? How do you plan to win this fight when Daxia launches its attack? Your military doesn’t have a chance.”
“We have hope. And we have love and respect for all people…and now, we have you. You want to survive this and gain our trust? Then work with us to stop your superior weapons. You’ve been cast out of your home by the government you trusted. We took you in.”
“And so far, I’ve been treated like a prisoner. Look at me. Locked up. Dirty and hungry. Is this what you call respect? If so, I’ll take my chances back across the border.”
“You have to show love to receive it and I believe the only person you love is yourself.”
“That’s not true,” Bearden snapped.
“Oh yeah? Then tell me about your love,” Naja said and folded his arms. Bearden didn’t say a word, but looked at his shoes and thought about how much Dana hated him, and how much that hate was deserved.
“That’s what I thought,” Naja said. “See, I know all about you, young Sergeant. And what you did to the last people who cared about you.”
“Fine. You’re right. I don’t deserve your compassion or your trust, but I have nothing left. Isn’t that enough? I’ll do your science, make your virus code, just please, stop treating me like a prisoner.”
“Will you choose your government again? If they will take you back?” Naja leaned over his desk toward Bearden, who took a step back and averted his eyes. “Of course you will, because you are weak! And you don’t know what you believe in. But you have to figure it out. Find some loyalty that you can stand behind. Fight for what you think is right! Otherwise you are wasting life and spoiling those around you.”
“I did not join the government ranks to fight. I am just a scientist and I will do what you ask. Isn’t that enough?”
“Oh, no, Bearden Leitner, you are much more than a scientist. You just don’t know it yet. Davi, take him to the lab and keep him guarded,” Naja said and waved his hand to dismiss them. “Oh, and give him something to eat.”
After they left, Naja plugged a data file into his computer that had saved his life four months ago. He sat back in his chair as Maeve’s face appeared on the screen and her voice filled the room.
“Naja, my love, remember what I am about to tell you and then destroy this recording. If you are found with it, you and I may both end up dead. First of all, please know that I am sorry from the bottom of my soul for what is about to happen to you. So many times I’ve wanted to tell you who I am, especially after you were so honest with me.”
“My name is Maeve Daire and I work for a special division of the government. Espionage and assassination missions mostly, but all top secret.” Maeve hesitated and looked around before continuing. “I came into your life because you are a target. I’m your hired assassin. Don’t worry. You are safe, for now. I submitted your assignment as completed without incident. This means that the Daxian government thinks you are dead, by a chemical accident during your last traitorous trip to Tyrine. They’ve suspected you for a while, which was why I was called in to deal with you. The official story is that you illegally transported an unstable chemical weapon across the border and the accident left your body severely burned. The body that the government received was covered with your DNA, so there was no question of your identity.”
“Listen carefully now, Naja. I know you are probably shocked by all of this, but it is important that you do what I say. You must leave, now. Take nothing with you and flee to Tyrine. Go underground when you get there or we will both be hunted down and killed, and my betrayal will have been for nothing. Be careful, and know that I truly love you. And even though I know that you will never be able to think of me in the beautiful way that you did, you will be alive, and that is enough. Because of you, I was able to experience joy and love in my lifetime and I thank you for that. You’ve changed me, Naja and I will continue your fight. Now, go.”
The screen scrambled and Maeve’s beautiful face disappeared. Naja locked his precious data file away and went to check on Bearden Leitner in the lab.
Back at the TRU building, Ganesh sat slumped at his desk with the devastation from recent events coursing through him. The classified report of the shuttle loss sat on his desk and he was clenching the paper’s edges with both hands. He’d been trying to reach Maeve since the Myris shuttle left yesterday morning. He wanted so badly to hope she’d made it out, but his gut told him that she was gone.
The sound of his office door opening brought him momentarily out of his stupor until he saw that it was Quinn.
“Are you okay, sir?” he asked.
“I’m fine. Grab me an ice cream, would you?”
“Whoa, that bad, huh?”
Ganesh looked again at the report in his hands, crumpled it in a ball and tossed it in the trash. Quinn was still standing there obviously ignoring his request.
“What is it, Quinn?” Ganesh asked, seeing that Quinn obviously had something to say that was more important than ice cream. “Make it quick. I’d like to be alone right now.”
“I’m being re-assigned, Colonel,” Quinn said, adding to the sorrow in Ganesh’s face. “Can you believe it? You’re finally rid of me.”
Ganesh’s body momentarily stiffened. One new thought cleared the others from his mind. His time was up.
“Really, Quinn? When?” Ganesh asked, not letting his fear show. He couldn’t help thinking of the cup of coffee Quinn had served him this morning, or the sandwich for lunch. He could already be poisoned…if that was the method of choice. Or maybe there was a bomb planted in his home, or…”
“Tomorrow. I just wanted you to know how much fun I’ve had working for you, sir. You and your colleagues are amusing, to say the least. It hasn’t been dull for a second. Not like my usual office work,” Quinn smiled.
“Well, I’ll be damn sorry to see you go, Son,” Ganesh said without lying. He would miss Quinn… if he survived. Quinn looked at him with a hint of regret.
“Is there something else?” Ganesh asked.
“Sir, I just want to tell you how much it means to me that you saved my life. The way you got to Rhys before he could…and at your age,” he grinned. “Well, it’s what I imagine a parent would have done. Not mine of course, my dad hated me, threw me out when I was fourteen.”
“Sergeant Quinn. I had no idea. I don’t know what to say.”
“I think that’s a first for you, Colonel,” Quinn smiled again. “It all worked out in the end. The military found me soon after, took me in till I was old enough to join.”
Ganesh knew at least the last part of this story, if not the whole thing, was a lie. He must have been in the ‘early riser’ sector of the ‘Special Unit’. The military found him all right, but he’d been trained young…too young in Ganesh’s opinion. But, why was Quinn telling him all this?
“Well, anyway,” Quinn held his hand out. “Goodbye, Colonel.”
“Good luck, Sergeant,” Ganesh said, shaking his hand and privately wishing Quinn anything but luck on his attempt to assassinate him.
When Ganesh got home that night, he went straight to his wife.
“It’s time to go underground,” he said, “Quinn is going to kill me if we don’t and I’d hate for him to have to live with that.”
“You are too good a man, Samuel,” she said and kissed him. “How do you know he’s going to k
ill you?”
“He, pretty much, just told me. Can you believe that?”
“Actually, I can. Don’t worry, I’ve been ready for days, let’s go.”
“What would I do without you, Natty?”
She squeezed his hand and smiled at him. Then, she turned to take one last look at her comfortable home and walked out. Ganesh looked straight through his house into the kitchen, imagining he saw Maeve sitting at his table. He blinked his watery eyes realizing it was just his mind playing tricks on him. He sighed with sadness for all he’d lost today. He had to put Maeve out of his mind, at least for a while. His only job now was to protect his wife and hide from Quinn. He’d contact the resistance in a week or two.
Chapter Sixty-Two
Adapting
Lee and Dana were beginning to establish a suitable work environment at Maeve’s beach home. They’d been there just over a month. Media reports told them that ground war had broken out in most areas along the border. This worried Dana, but Lee was pre-occupied with organizing his new space and studying Rhys Krell’s brain. The lady at the desk was also with them, by Lee’s invitation. She’d arrived only a few days ago and Dana was happy for the company. She found out that her name was Ina and that she’d stayed behind in the lab at the request of Lee. She was needed to handle the termination of all the technicians in Tripple Laboratories. Then, she ended up being put through hours of questioning by government officials, who now walked freely in and out of the lab. Lee’s disappearance was causing quite a stir, especially so soon after Ganesh’s disappearance. After three weeks of getting nothing out her, they’d let Ina go. She’d waited a few more days to be sure they truly were finished with her before making the journey north to join Lee and Dana, traveling only by night.
Camden had also been questioned, but was able to tell them the truth; he had no idea where Ganesh or Lee was or what was missing from the lab. All equipment, specimen, and chemicals left behind had been confiscated and brought to the atrium lab, now empty, at the TRU Building. Camden laughed at their efforts when he suffered through the questions about each and every item found in Tripple Laboratories. He explained the things he recognized…all outdated and useless. Finally, it seemed that General Cline and the others believed Camden, when he said he knew Lee well enough to know that he wouldn’t have left behind anything profound. General Cline cleared him to return to the space travel project, but continued his own line of questioning each day about Lee’s work.