by Sean Devney
The rain had stopped. Walker got out and the boy got out as well. The other car pulled up and Edwards and Petrov got out. Walker said to the boy,
“Okay, John, I want you to find Max Thorton and bring him here. You got that?”
The boy thought for a moment and then said,
“Yes, I can see him. He’s a big man wearing a black leather jacket. I’ll be right back.”
The boy suddenly disappeared. Petrov was shaking his head. He said,
“He has enormous power. He’ll be a god when he grows up.”
Suddenly, Max Thorton was standing in front of Walker. The boy was next to him. Thorton looked around, looking very confused. He said, in a thick Australian accent,
“What – what just happened?”
“Max – I’m Detective John Walker and this is Detective Sam Edwards and that is Boris Petrov. The boy is John. And this is my android, Joe. Look, Max, I want to offer you complete immunity from prosecution in exchange for your help in nailing both Johnny Rocco and Governor Ryan. Are you interested? If not, I’ll have you sent to the Moon for life. Which is it?”
Thorton looked around nervously, trying to get his bearings. He said warily,
“Uh, you want me to testify against Rocco and Governor Ryan? If I do this, can you protect me?”
“Trust me, nothing will happen to you. Is it a deal or not?”
“Okay, what choice do I have? I’ll help you nail them both. But first, you have to understand that there’s a mole in the police department. He works in the computer center. He’s been supplying us with all kinds of information. His name is Richard Jefferson.”
“Okay, we’ll check it out. Boris, take John back to the apartment. Okay, Max – let’s go.”
Thorton got into the car, followed by the android. Walker and Edwards got into the back and the car took off for police headquarters. Edwards looked at Walker and thought,
Are you sure about this?
Walker nodded. He said to the android,
“Joe, send a message to Chief Hernandez. Have him meet us in the lobby.”
Walker said to Thorton,
“How was your trip, Max?”
“It was okay but the food was lousy.”
“Sorry to hear that.”
“Eh, what are you going to do? So, what’s going on? Did the robots attack the prison yet?”
“No, they were stopped in time. The Marines will be here by morning – if not sooner.”
“Detective, have we met before?”
“No.”
“Huh. I have the feeling that we’ve met somewhere before.”
The car pulled up to the police headquarters garage. They all got out and took an elevator up to the main entrance. Chief Hernandez was in the lobby, waiting for them. He looked exhausted. When he saw Thorton, his face grew dark. Walker put up his hand and said,
“Before you say anything, chief – he’s working for us now. He told me there’s a mole in the computer center downstairs. We’re going to check it out now. Come on.”
They walked over to a bank of elevators and took one down to the computer center. The center was large, all white and well lit. There were hundreds of rows of computer banks and several computer technicians walked round, wearing white lab coats and black pants. Walker said to Thorton,
“Do you see him?”
“I don’t know him by sight but I’m sure he’s here. He told us about the Marines coming and other things.”
Walker and the others walked down an aisle and came upon a computer technician. Walker asked the young man,
“Hi. We’re looking for Richard Jefferson. Is he here?”
“Yeah. He’s on the next aisle. Yu can’t miss him. He has red hair and glasses.”
“Thanks.”
They walked over to the next aisle and saw a middle aged man wearing black rimmed glasses checking a computer readout. When he looked up and saw Walker and the others coming towards him, his face went white. Chief Hernandez screamed,
“What the hell are you doing? How much are they paying you?”
Jefferson said weakly,
“Chief, my mother is sick! I needed the extra money!”
“That’s no excuse!”, raged Hernandez. “You’re under arrest!”
Hernandez yelled into a walkie talkie,
“Goddamn it, Charlie! I want you down here right now! I want you to arrest this on of a bitch!”
Walker said,
“Okay, we’ll let Chief Hernandez handle this. Next, I want to know who’s your contact in the Tyler Corporation?”
“His name is Robert Jordan and he’s the COO. He’s a friend of Rocco’s.”
“What’s his address?”
“24 Adams Street, apartment 16. It’s a condo.”
“Do you think he’ll be there?”
“Oh, yeah. He loves to give parties with the money Rocco gives him.”
“Okay, let’s go and pay him a visit.”
As they walked towards the elevators, an elevator opened and three police officers hurried down the aisle to arrest Jefferson. Walker and the others took an elevator upstairs and took the car to a tall condo in the middle of the city.
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE
The car pulled up to a tall building and they all got out and walked over to the entrance. A robot doorman dressed in a fancy uniform said,
“Yes? Can I help you?”
Walker took out his badge and said,
“Is Mr Jordan at home?”
“Yes. He’s giving a party. Are you on the list?”
“Yes. We’ll go upstairs and join the party.”
“Very good, sir. Shall I announce you?”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Walker and the others walked over to a bank of elevators and took one upstairs. The doors opened up and they walked down the hallway to the apartment door. There was loud noises and music coming from the apartment. Walker rang the doorbell and a young woman opened the door. She said, smiling,
“Hi! Do you want to come in and join the fun?”
“No. Can you call Mr Jordan to the door, please?”
“Sure.”
The woman began to close the door but Walker blocked it. He looked inside the large apartment. There were several people milling around, drinking and smoking. Robert Jordan walked over to the door, carrying a drink and wearing dark sunglasses and a colorful jacket. He smiled and said,
“Yes? Can I help you?”
Walker took out his badge and Jordan went white. He trembled and Walker said,
“Would you mind coming with me, please?”
Jordan said nervously,
“What’s this about? I don’t have time for this!”
Then he saw Thorton and started gulping air like a fish out of water. He said weakly,
“Look, I – I have to call my lawyer!”
Walker said to the android,
“Joe, grab Mr Jordan and stay with him. Come on Mr Jordan! You’re under arrest!”
“But my party! What should I do? I just can’t leave them!”
“Now, Mr Jordan. It’s over. Let’s go.”
The android grabbed Jordan’s arm and pulled him out of the apartment. Walker said to Edwards,
“Tell Chief Hernandez to get his men up here right away! I want this apartment sealed off right now! And get those people out of there!”
“Yes, sir!”
She took out
her cell phone and called Hernandez and explained the situation. Walker said to the android,
“Take him downstairs to the car. We’ll take him back with us to the apartment, all right? Get going.”
Jordan said in a weak voice,
“Just wait until Rocco hears about this! Boy, will you be in trouble!”
“I’m sure.”
Edwards walked into the apartment and began getting people to leave. She turned off the music and people began wandering out of the apartment in confusion. They saw Jordan leaning against a wall, being held by the android. Some people asked,
“Is everything all right, Jordan?”
He nodded weakly and avoided looking at them in the eye. As soon as everyone had gone, Edwards closed the door and said,
“Everyone’s gone, John.”
“Thank you, Sam. Let’s wait for the police to show up.”
An elevator opened and five cops walked out and headed down the hall. They were followed by Detective Reynolds. Reynolds asked Walker,
“So, what’s going on?”
“Mr Jordan here is under arrest. I want your men to go over this apartment with a fine toothed comb and look for anything suspicious. Report back to me.”
“Okay, you got it. Where are you taking him?”
“To my apartment.”
“Right. Talk to you later.”
They walked back to the elevators and went back down to the car. Thorton said to Walker,
“You know, Rocco and the governor are going to make a run for it.”
“I’m counting on it. Where will they go to get away?”
“They have a spaceship in a warehouse in the desert. They were always talking about going away to one of the moons of Mars if things got too crazy. They have a hideout – it’s all stocked with food and supplies.”
“Right. Well, if we make enough noise, they’ll do just that and I’ll be waiting for them.”
They got into the car and drove back to the apartment.
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
When they got back to the apartment, Petrov and the boy were playing chess. As soon as Thorton walked into the apartment, Petrov looked up and smiled. He said,
“Max! Good to see you again! How was your flight?”
“Nice to see you again, Boris. Rocco has been asking about you. He doesn’t trust you.”
“Pity. I don’t trust him either. You’re wondering why I am here? I am a secret agent for the government! I was always working for them! Ha!”
“Figures,” said Thorton.
Walker said to Thorton,
“Can you sleep on the couch? Mr Jordan will have to sleep on the chair. Boris has a room.”
“What about me, detective?,” asked the boy.
“You can sleep in our room, John. God, I’m tired. See you all in the morning. Joe, make sure no one leaves this apartment.”
“Yes, detective.”
Walker walked into his bedroom and got undressed and fell right asleep. His mind began to drift and suddenly, he was standing in Rocco’s apartment. Rocco was sitting on a couch, looking worn out and tired. He was drinking when there was a knock on his door. Rocco said,
“Come in.”
The door opened and one of his big bodyguards said,
“Hey, boss? Sorry to disturb you but there’s someone here to talk to you.”
“All right. Send him in.”
The bodyguard stepped aside and Detective Reynolds walked in. He was wearing a tan overcoat and a greasy jacket and tie. Rocco said wearily,
“Yes? What do you want, detective?”
“Good evening, Mr Rocco. Sorry to disturb you at this late hour but I have something you might be interested in. I was just at Robert Jordan’s apartment when I found this.”
He took out a computer stick from his overcoat and held it up. He said,
“This was in Jordan’s computer. I looked and saw it that it contains information about your connection with the Tyler Corporation. I thought I might bring this over and discuss a business arrangement with you.”
“Is that so? How much do you want?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Enough to get me set up for life maybe. How do you put a price on something this important? Say ten thousand dollars to start?”
“Hmmm….I see. An old fashioned shakedown, eh? What if I just shoot you instead and dump your body in the desert?”
“Well, you see, I’m not stupid. I already made a copy of the information and if I get bumped off, it goes right to Detective Walker and the Feds.”
“Hmmmm….him again. You know, he’s been causing me lots of problems ever since he came to Mars! He’s ruining everything! Goddamn it!”
“Yes, he thinks he’s running the whole show. So, what are you going to do about it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You haven’t heard? He alive! I take you tried to leave him in the desert but he’s back! I don’t know how he did it!”
“What? That’s impossible! My guys told me they left him miles into the desert! How did he get back?”
“I don’t know. He had help. That’s all I know.”
“Shit! How does he do it?”
“There’s a rumor going around about a young boy with incredible powers. I don’t how true this is. I haven’t seen him, so I don’t know.”
“Well, thank you, detective. You’ve been most helpful. Now, let me have the computer stick and give me your bank account information. Okay?”
“All right. I’ll write it down for you.”
Reynolds walked over to Rocco and handed him the stick. Rocco took an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Reynolds. He said,
“Here’s a little something extra. Thanks again for your help.”
Reynolds said,
“Thank you, sir! Call on me anytime!”
He walked out of the apartment. Walker woke up with a start and shook his head and then he went back to sleep.
CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE
Walker woke up with the smell of coffee and breakfast. He took a shower, got dressed and walked into the living room. Both Petrov and Thorton were playing chess, with the boy watching carefully. Jordan was sitting on a chair, reading a book. Walker walked into the kitchen and watched Edwards make bacon and eggs. They kissed and she said to him,
“So, what are we going to do about Jordan and Thorton?”
“Well, don’t worry about Thorton. If he evens spits on the sidewalk, he’ll go to the Moon. As for Jordan, we’ll have to keep him alive long enough so he can testify. As soon as the new DA shows up, we’ll give him both.”
“What about Rocco?”
“What about him? It’s over for him and he knows it. He and the governor will try to get off the planet and head for one of the moons. I’ll get to him before he goes. Oh, and there’s one other thing. I saw Reynolds giving Rocco a computer stick with the information about the corporation. Look, he’s a dirty cop. He sold us out for money.”
Edwards was silent for a moment. She finally said,
“It doesn’t surprise me. He was always known to be a dirty cop but no one had any proof of it until now. Thanks for telling me.”
“You can’t trust him anymore.”
“I understand.”
Walker grabbed a piece of bacon and walked back into the living room and walked over to the android. He said,
“Good morning, Joe. What’s going on? Have you heard from Captain Parker yet?”
“Yes. The transpo
rt ship is about to land. They have the Marines and the commando robots ready.”
“Good. Can you connect me with Captain Parker on the monitor?”
“Yes. Just give me a moment.”
The android looked at the monitor and it came to life. There was a shot of the interior of the ship, with Marines walking around in their robosuits and checking their equipment. A flight deck officer came into view and said into the camera,
“Oh, good morning! You must be Detective Walker! Just hang on a minute!”
A moment later, Captain Parker came into view, wearing a robosuit. He smiled and said,
“Well, good morning, John! We’re about to land! What’s going on?”
“I have Max Thorton and Robert Jordan here. I’ve given Thorton complete immunity in exchange for his help. Mr Jordan here was the COO of the Tyler Corporation. He was the one who was helping Rocco and Governor Ryan. I’ll hand him over once your ship arrives.”
“Well, that won’t take long. What are you doing now?”
“I’m going to Rocco’s apartment and arrest him. Sam will stay here with Jordan.”
“Okay. See you soon.”
The connection was cut off. Walker said,
“Okay. Let’s eat. Max, you come with me and the android after we’re done.”
They all sat down at the table and ate their breakfast.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
After they ate, Walker, Thorton and the android left the apartment and went downstairs to the garage where the car was waiting for them. Both Walker and Thorton got into the backseat and the android sat in the driver’s seat. Walker said,
“Okay, let’s go to Rocco’s apartment.”
The car put itself into gear and took off. Walker asked Thorton,
“Where would Rocco go if he’s not in?”
“Probably to his casino. That’s where he keeps his money.”
“Okay. Let’s see what happens.”
The car drove to Rocco’s apartment building and parked itself on the street. Walker, Thorton and the android all got out and walked across the street and entered the building’s entrance. Walker showed the robot doorman his badge and said,