Aneka Jansen 3: Steel Heart

by Niall Teasdale

  ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring back difficult memories.’

  ‘It’s the past. There’s nothing I can do about it.’

  ‘But you can go back to your home world and find out what became of it. I envy you.’

  If he was trying not to bring up difficult memories, he was doing a terrible job of it. ‘Well, if it turns out that there’s anything to see, maybe you’ll be able to go there sometime.’

  ‘True.’ He poured her another glass of wine. Maybe he was hoping she would get drunk and go to his room for the night. ‘That would be a fine thing to consider when I retire. In another century or so.’

  ‘That’s a long time to be running a company.’

  ‘I promised my grandfather that I’d have someone to take over from me when I went. A child. He wanted it kept in the family. I haven’t met the girl I’d like to do that with yet.’

  Aneka gave him a grin. ‘Stop looking for girls and find yourself a woman.’

  He tipped his glass to her. ‘Sage advice. I just might do that.’

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  The world outside the huge window of Aneka’s bedroom was almost pitch black. Her eyes caught flickers of ultraviolet from the wave crests on the lagoon; starlight only, Odanari had no moons. Still, she stood at the window and looked out, thinking.

  Teldarian had not tried anything. If he was after her then he was patient about it. They had talked about political systems and governments. He had been fascinated at the idea that the world had had no overall governing body, that politicians were elected by a popularity contest. He had said it sounded disorganised, which it was, but then that disorganisation had been the source of her work.

  She watched the sparkle of starlight on an alien ocean and tried to work out whether she missed any of it. She had been living in a different world for two years. She had adjusted to that change quickly and easily. Maybe far too easily.

  ‘You were conditioned to be more adaptable,’ Al said, his voice soft even though no one was going to be able to hear him. ‘It’s not surprising that you did adapt.’

  ‘Maybe. Or maybe I just supressed the anxiety. I mourned for, what, three or four days. I lost my whole world, my family… Four days.’

  ‘You had work to take your mind off it.’

  ‘And that helped, sure. I kept busy and that helped. But… What if I go back there and I break down?’

  ‘You won’t.’

  ‘I could get there and be no use to…’

  ‘Aneka, I’m inside your head, remember. I know you possibly better than you know yourself. Your professional pride won’t let you do that. And don’t think I won’t be watching for signs of excessive stress, just as Ella will be. You have both of us to fall back on if needed, but you won’t let it affect your work because of who you are.’

  She smiled. ‘I’m glad someone has that much confidence in me.’

  ‘I’m not the only one. Now, you should offline. I think it would be wise to be conscious when the rest of the house wakes up.’

  Aneka turned from the window, unzipping her dress. ‘Thanks, Al. For being there.’

  ‘It is not as though I have a lot of choice.’

  ‘Yes you do,’ she told him, ‘and thank you for making it.’

  ~~~

  The brunette maid slipped into the bedroom, a tray in her hands, and gave Aneka a smile. ‘Would ma’am like some breakfast?’

  Actually, Aneka neither needed nor wanted the food, but she said, ‘That would be great,’ and the tray was placed across her legs. She was still in bed, not really sure what she should do with herself and rather enjoying the view through the huge window. She had been out once, when the light first showed in the sky, to check for a reply to her message to Ella. There had been one, but it had been as short as the one she had sent out.

  ‘Mister Teldarian suggested you might like to meet him in his office when you’re done,’ the maid added. ‘It’s the right-hand door off the main corridor?’

  ‘Thank you…?’

  ‘I’m Melissa, ma’am,’ the maid told her, smiling brightly.

  ‘Thank you, Melissa. I’ll be out to see him soon.’

  The girl bowed her head and left, and Aneka picked up the glass of banana-flavoured orange juice and took a sip. One of these days she was going to have to find out whether the fruit looked like a banana or an orange, or maybe an apple. The rest of the meal was light, designed for giving a burst of energy in a hot climate. Fruit, yoghurt, and something like honey which Aneka happened to know came from a berry, and coffee. The coffee was about as good as anything she had ever tasted. Sleeping with the man for money was one thing, but Aneka had thought about sexual bribery to get some of that coffee into the supplies for the flight. Food consumed, she slipped out of bed and wandered over to the window, coffee in hand.

  Edge recognition and motion detection software drew her attention to the shape in the water a couple of hundred metres off the beach, and her eyes focussed on it, narrowing her view field and zooming in. It was a head; she had seen the long black hair. As it turned she managed to make out a tanned, young face, probably female. So there was another woman on the island… Of course it could have been another servant; Teldarian did not seem the kind to deny them access to the lagoon on their off periods. Aneka watched her upend herself, hips and then legs flipping up above the water line as she dived; there was no sign of a swimsuit.

  Aneka sipped coffee and waited for the black-haired girl to reappear. Fifteen seconds passed; the girl had pretty good lungs. At thirty seconds Aneka put her coffee cup down on a table and pulled open the window. She was about to step into the water when the girl broke the surface, gasping for breath. Her eyes fell on Aneka, standing on the beach, though her expression was unreadable at this distance. Then she tilted her head back and began to float away, further out towards the middle of the lagoon. It seemed like a stupid idea, but the Little Mermaid was not Aneka’s problem. Turning, she headed back into her room.

  Today, she had decided, called for casual. Walking into the closet, she put on her bikini, making sure the tie sides were pulled up high on her hips, and then put her shorts on over that. Footwear was more difficult. She had some heeled sandals which would be fine around the house and for walking short distances, and some running shoes which would be better for a hike. Either would work with her sporty-cum-sexy look, but she concluded that taking a leaf from Teldarian’s book was the best bet until she knew what they would be doing. She was barefoot as she padded out of the closet and headed for where Melissa had said the office was.

  An identity request pulse hit her as she touched the access button on the door mid-way down the psychedelic corridor, and then the door opened without comment, sliding sideways and allowing her into the room beyond. It was big, though it did not quite occupy the entire space Al had plotted out between the front and back rooms and the corridor. Just inside the door, the floor dropped down three steps to a lowered central area which allowed for a slightly taller ceiling. There were no windows, but the video walls and ceiling currently gave the impression that they were standing in a bubble under enough water that the surface was invisible, but light still shone through. Aneka guessed it was showing a view taken somewhere in the lagoon.

  Teldarian was sitting in the middle section, the sunken floor, surrounded by Polyglass desks and screens all displaying images which Aneka largely failed to understand. One of them, however, looked a lot like an exploded view of a spaceship. He was dressed in a cream T-shirt and slacks again, and concentrating hard on something.

  Across the room, suspended on a Polyglass partition, were a number of models. Aneka recognised the yacht she had flown in on, an Admiral-class battleship, the type of shuttle used to ferry people up and down from the transit stations above New Earth, and one other one.

  ‘That’s the Pegasus.’

  He glanced around at her, giving a quick smile before returning to the view on his desk. ‘The warp engine was designed by Abraham Wallace
and his team, everything else was me. I understand you got to fly her.’

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘How was she?’

  ‘I’m not exactly a skilled pilot, but she handled beautifully.’

  ‘Thank you. She was done quickly. They wanted a prototype ready as fast as I could manage and we pulled out all the stops to get it done.’

  ‘You did a good job. Without her… things might have gone differently.’

  ‘As I understand it, you came back from Negral and then flew straight out to Eshebbon to rescue your partner.’ He straightened, dismissing the displays hanging around the room with a button press, and turned to face her. ‘She must be quite a woman.’

  ‘She is. She’s beautiful, intelligent, very open. Her thoughts are almost written on her face. She’s terrible at cards, but fantastic in bed. And when she smiles, the world lights up.’

  ‘She’s a lucky woman to have someone who loves her so much.’ There was a bittersweet quality to his voice as he said it.

  Aneka shrugged. ‘I’m lucky to have her. Do you need to work? I’m sure I can find things to do.’

  ‘I’m told I need to relax more. If you were back on New Earth you’d be on mid-week break, so I think we should honour that. Perhaps I could take you around the island?’

  ‘Barefoot?’ Aneka asked, smiling.

  ‘Walking that distance? I’ll be putting something on my feet, I suggest you do too. The rest of your outfit should do nicely.’

  ~~~

  The view was, indeed, spectacular. The cliff on the eastern side of the island was maybe two hundred metres in height, sheer on the side facing the island and with a steep slope into the ocean. You could, however, walk up either side of it if you were fit. Teldarian obviously was, and Aneka was basically a robot. He had taken her around the northern side of the island and then up, the trees fading quickly away, then the brush, until they were climbing bare rock. And now they were reaping the rewards.

  ‘It’s bigger than Hunter’s island,’ Aneka commented.

  Teldarian laughed. ‘I’m richer.’

  ‘Maybe if he hadn’t been funding a terrorist organisation…’

  ‘I doubt it. Superluminal supplies ships to the Navy, the Administration, and more or less every commercial user of spacecraft. If it flies through space, we built it, or part of it.’

  ‘Are you trying to impress me, Stephen?’

  ‘Is it working?’

  ‘A little.’ It was Aneka’s turn to laugh. The view was actually more impressive than his company’s accomplishments. The island below them was about two kilometres north to south, a little more east to west, but the lagoon cut into that for almost a kilometre. Much of the middle of the island was forest. The trees were native to the planet, looking more like palms than anything else, but with a denser bark. Towards the south, but around from the landing platform and under the shadow of the arête, was a lake which looked moderately shallow, but was probably fresh water. Beside that was another building.

  ‘Another house?’ Aneka asked, pointing down towards the lake.

  ‘Ah, yes. My youngest sister lives there.’

  ‘Tanned with long, black hair?’

  ‘Yes, that would be her. You’ve seen her?’

  ‘She was swimming in the lagoon this morning. She likes taking risks. I almost went out to pull her in after she was under water for over half a minute.’

  ‘She does, yes,’ Teldarian said, his tone carrying a hint of annoyance. ‘However, she is an excellent diver. Her lung capacity is quite amazing.’ He smiled. ‘She’s a sweet girl, but a little disturbed. She rarely leaves the island and she’s not used to strangers. If you meet her, just act normally. It’s not like she’s dangerous or anything, but she will be wary.’

  Aneka nodded. ‘What’s her name?’

  ‘Daniella, Daniella Bishop.’

  ~~~

  Aneka opened her eyes to see Daniella standing nearby, beside the circular pool at the back of the house. She had come out to sunbathe while Teldarian was handling a message that had come in just after lunch needing an urgent reply. The girl was quiet, but Aneka’s hearing was very good.

  She was not tall, and very slim. And she looked young. Aneka guessed she was in her very early twenties, but there was something in her blue eyes that spoke of experience, and not especially pleasant experience at that. She was wearing tiny, white bikini briefs and her small, high breasts were on display. Her blue-black hair fell down over them, stopping just short of her nipples. She was pretty, but she looked like she never smiled and could really do with trying it.

  ‘Hello,’ Aneka said. ‘I’m Aneka. You must be Daniella.’

  ‘You’re the visitor Stephen said was coming. You’re very pretty.’

  ‘Thank you. So are you.’

  ‘Stephen likes pretty women. All the women he brings here are pretty. He said you were special though.’

  ‘I was born over a thousand years ago, on Old Earth.’

  Daniella’s lips shifted slightly; a hint of a smile. ‘He’s loved Old Earth history since I’ve known him. That would make you the first woman he’s ever brought here for a reason other than the obvious one.’

  Aneka smiled. ‘He brings a lot of women here then?’

  ‘Yes.’ Aneka saw the micro-changes in expression, the flickers of disgust and anger around the mouth and nose. Daniella was good at hiding her feelings, very good. But she did not like her brother bringing home his conquests.

  ‘Daniella.’ Teldarian’s voice came from behind Aneka, the direction of the rear door of the house. ‘We don’t normally see you out here.’ Al popped up a voice stress analysis: Teldarian was worried. But worried about what? Was his sister actually dangerous?

  ‘I wanted to meet Aneka.’ Her expression turned plaintive.

  ‘I would estimate that her danger lies in that kind of expression,’ Al commented.

  ‘Of course,’ Teldarian replied, his tone softening. ‘Now you’ve met her.’

  ‘Yes.’ She half-turned towards the forest. ‘Have fun talking about Old Earth.’ Then she was padding back towards the trees at the end of the pool.

  ‘She’s pretty good at getting what she wants,’ Aneka said as Teldarian sat down on the lounger beside her.

  ‘I can never say no to her.’

  ‘I have the same problem with Ella.’

  ‘I suspect Ella can be reasoned with.’

  ‘Except when it’s “just one more time before bed,” yes.’

  Teldarian laughed, but the strain was back in his voice.

  ~~~

  ‘What was your home like?’

  Aneka glanced across the hot tub to where Teldarian was sitting. They had retired there after dinner and more conversation about Old Earth, following on from an afternoon which had been about walking, swimming in the lagoon, and random chatting. There had been silence for the last five minutes as they both relaxed into the hot water with glasses of cold wine. The question had come as something of a surprise.

  ‘Where I was born? Or where I spent most of my time? I was kind of an itinerant for a lot of my life.’

  ‘Any of it. I’m just interested in hearing what you have to say about the place.’

  ‘Not tired of the sound of my voice yet then… Okay… Well I was born in a town called Aldershot. It’s in Hampshire about… sixty, sixty-five kilometres west-south-west of London. My parents lived in Aldershot and, since I didn’t really have a place of my own, I used to have a room in their house. It wasn’t much, but it had all my stuff in it.’

  ‘Stuff?’

  ‘Yeah… stuff. The teddy bear I had as a kid. Uh, that’s a stuffed toy in the shape of a highly dangerous mammal. Not sure why kids were supposed to find them cuddly. My first Sindy doll. I got her because she was blonde. Barbie was the brunette. Sindy was dressed in the army uniform I altered to fit her from my Action Man. Not easy ’cos Sindy had the same problem as me and even if Action Man had a barrel chest…’

  ‘It stre
tched your sewing skills to the limit?’

  Aneka giggled. ‘Yeah. There were a few photographs. A couple of family ones, and one of me with my team taken in Afghanistan. We look like a real bunch of badasses. Took us twenty minutes to stop laughing before we could take the picture. I’d spend Christmas there… That’s a festival at the end of the year with presents and food. And I’d get back there when I could, which was less often than I’d have liked. My brother lived there too, when he was home from college. They, my parents, had a fairly big house. Nothing too fancy, but spacious. They were out on the edge of the town and we would go for walks on the common land to the west.’

  ‘And when you were not there?’

  ‘Army barracks at first, then either in the field, hotels, or my company had a few flats in London that we could use between ops.’

  ‘And London was a city? I recall mention of it as the seat of government in your United Kingdom.’

  ‘Not as big as Yorkbridge, say, but a city, a pretty big one. It was the main political centre of the UK, and England before that going back to the Romans, I think. That’s a couple of thousand years.’

  ‘Four times the length of the Lorenti Federation.’

  ‘So far. And it was not one country all that time. I’ve no doubt the Federation will last a long time.’

  ‘No doubt?’

  ‘Little doubt,’ Aneka conceded. ‘The Herosians worry me. I think the only reason they’re part of the Federation is that it keeps everyone else from attacking them. If they ever manage to get the upper hand somehow…’

  ‘It’s probably a good thing, then, that they seem to lack the scientific aptitude of Jenlay or Torem. The culture back then was a lot different, wasn’t it?’

  ‘Uh-huh.’ The change of subject was a little jarring.

  ‘From what I read, it’s unlikely you’d be comfortable sitting naked in a hot tub with a strange man, for one thing.’

  Aneka laughed, genuinely amused. ‘That rather depends. It wasn’t exactly common, but there were people who were into that kind of thing. And if I were invited to the private island of a very rich, attractive man I’d be expecting him to be after exactly one thing.’