by John Bowers
Then—
“Fuck off, okay? This is a private matter, so just mind your own goddamn business!”
Nick Walker dropped his napkin on the table and stood up. Victoria’s eyes widened as she saw the expression on his face.
“Nick! What are you doing?”
“You still have that badge? Give it to me.”
Victoria fumbled in her purse and produced the badge. Nick snatched it out of her hand and strode across the dining room.
The ship’s mate was still trying to calm Ted Lewis down.
“Sir, if you don’t quiet down, I will be forced to eject you from the dining room. I will also have to notify the authorities on Alpha Cent—”
“Excuse me.” Nick held the U.F. Marshal badge for the officer to see, then shouldered him aside.
Ted Lewis looked up at Nick with a sneer.
“Well, if it ain’t the asteroid cowboy! What the fuck do you want, Jones?”
Nick bent slightly forward at the waist as he leaned over the table.
“What’s the problem here?”
Linda-with-no-last-name said nothing; she was still sobbing. Ted Lewis looked more belligerent than ever.
“None of your affair, Jones. I suggest you toddle back to your rich wife and see if she’ll give you some change for a glass of milk. In other words, fuck off!”
Nick stared into his eyes from ten inches away and slowly nodded.
“That’s all you’ve got to say?”
“Yeah, unless you feel the need for a beating. Just say the word and I’ll give you one you won’t forget.”
Nick nodded again, glanced at Linda, and straightened up. Lewis smirked at him.
“That’s what I thought.” He turned to the ship’s mate. “As for you—”
He never finished. Nick grabbed him by the hair and slammed his face down onto the table hard enough to shatter the plate. Blood squirted across the table linen and two teeth ricocheted across the room.
Nick jerked his head up again and peered into his face. His nose was clearly broken, his mouth bloodied, and porcelain shards had sliced his cheek.
“What were you saying, asshole?”
Lewis blinked at him in shock, but his rage overflowed.
“You motherf—”
Nick slammed him down again, again, and a third time. Linda screamed and leaped to her feet, backing away as blood spray spattered her dress. Everything on the table cascaded to the deck and even the ship’s mate stepped back to avoid the blood droplets.
Nick jerked his head up again. Ted Lewis was barely conscious, but his eyes were still open.
“The next time I hear you use the ‘C’ word to a lady, no matter who she is, I will smash your skull like a fucking egg. Are we clear on that? Do you hear me, you worthless prick?”
Lewis, unable to speak for his broken and bloody mouth, mumbled something unintelligible. Nick shoved him back in his chair and let him sag; a moment later, he slipped to the floor and lay moaning.
Nick turned to the mate.
“I suspect you have some kind of brig on this vessel?”
“Yes, sir. But I—”
“No need to thank me. Just lock him up until we arrive at Alpha 2. And charge the damage to his account.”
He turned to Linda, who now stood with her back to the wall, hands over her face.
“I’m sorry about this,” he told her. “My best advice to you is, dump that toad now. If he treats you this way even before you’re married, he’ll only get worse afterward. He will beat you, humiliate you, and eventually kill you. I’ve seen it before, so do yourself a favor and walk away.”
Nick returned to his table and sat down. Several people clapped their hands and a few minutes later the waiter brought two bottles of wine that someone else had paid for. Victoria watched the whole thing with a sense of awe.
“What the hell did you do that for? Why did you get involved?”
“I hate bullies. I pegged that guy as an asshole back on the shuttle, and when he turned on his own fiancée, I just couldn’t let it pass.”
She smiled. “You’re an animal, Walker.”
“Yeah, I guess I just have a natural mean streak. It’s time I got back in practice.”
“Practice?”
“I need to get ready for Ken Saracen.”
Tuesday, September 4, 0447 (CC)
River Walk, Lucaston – Alpha Centauri 2
A light rain was falling when the air taxi from the spaceport arrived at the River Walk area of downtown Lucaston. The River Walk was a popular waterfront section that featured scores of restaurants, shops, and galleries. Across the street stood the skytowers that comprised the core of downtown business, including government offices located in the Federation Building. Nick and Victoria stepped out of the taxi; they had stored their luggage at the spaceport because they weren’t sure how long they would be on the planet.
As the taxi lifted off and drifted away, Nick stood in silence and stared at a spot thirty yards away, an outdoor café that was normally crowded with tourists and office workers. Thanks to the rain, even though it was a work day, the tables and patios were deserted, the customers taking their meals indoors. Victoria watched as Nick stared at the spot, then followed as he slowly walked toward it.
Nick stopped and stared at the cobbled sidewalk beneath his feet. For two years he had relived the moment that changed his life forever, the moment the love of his life had been stolen away. He could still see the shock and surprise in Suzanne’s lovely green eyes as her life blood pumped out through four bullet wounds, her attempt to speak, and her silent plea for help as her eyes began to glaze.
It happened on this very spot.
Looking down, he almost expected to find bloodstains still on the stone, but all he saw were thin rivulets of rain running between the cobblestones.
He closed his eyes and tried not to feel the pain. The frozen seizure of lungs and emotions that had overcome him at the time was gone now; he tried to retrieve them, but failed. Tears brimmed his eyes and he chewed his lip, but the pain welled up inside him until they spilled down his cheeks. He lowered his head and covered his face with a hand. A sob forced its way up out of his throat, and then another. His shoulders began to shake, his knees felt weak, and he slumped into an empty chair, heedless of the water puddled in the seat. He rested his elbow on the edge of a table and bent over as the sobs wracked him for nearly a minute.
For two years he’d held it in, but now, on the very spot where she died, he wept for the first time. Victoria stood a few feet away, wanting to go to him, to comfort him, but understood that he needed this moment alone. Heedless of the light rain that beaded her blond hair, she lowered her chin and stared at the ground, fighting her own tears.
It was five minutes before Nick, through a supreme effort of will, stood up again. He wiped his face with a handkerchief, blew his nose, and adjusted his hat. He turned and walked back toward the Federation Building, Victoria at his side.
“Do you want to visit her grave?” she asked quietly. “We can take the time.”
Nick shook his head.
“Not until I can tell her and Nathan that Ken Saracen is dead.”
75th Floor, Federation Building – Alpha Centauri 2
United Federation Attorney Gary Fraites was waiting for them. Victoria had contacted him from the spaceport to tell him they were on the way. Fraites had cleared his entire afternoon of appointments. When his secretary announced them, he met them at the door.
“Marshal Walker! I am so glad to see you again.”
Fraites shook Nick’s hand and kissed Victoria on the cheek. Until two years ago, she had been his top prosecutor.
“Good job, Vic. You found him. And welcome home.”
Rather than seat them formally in front of his desk, Fraites gestured to a pair of divans at one end of his office. As they sat down facing him, he rang for coffee, then regarded them both with an expression that suggested it was, for him at least, a momentous occasio
n.
“I won’t even ask how you found him,” he said to Victoria. “I’m just glad you did.”
“Finding him was the easy part,” she said. “Convincing him to come back was the challenge.”
“That’s a lie,” Nick said. “But she is a lawyer, so…”
“Good thing for you that she’s your lawyer.” Fraites laughed.
Nick shrugged and took off his hat, placing it over his knee.
“I’m still not sure how that happened.” He glanced at Victoria. “Is all of this still pro bono? If it isn’t, I’ll be in debt for the rest of my life.”
The coffee arrived and Fraites fussed over it for a moment, making sure everyone had a cup. Then he leaned back in his chair and gazed at Nick with a satisfied grin.
“Well, Nick, I am happy to announce that the court order against you has expired and you can now carry weapons again.”
“Is that why I’m here? My attorney was pretty cryptic about this whole thing.”
“What can I say? I trained her well.” Fraites winked at Victoria.
“So what happens now? Is that it? That’s all you wanted to tell me?”
“No. We’re waiting on someone. Should be along any minute.”
“Who?”
“Sorry, I can’t spoil the surprise. But I think you’ll be pleased.”
Nick glanced at his watch but didn’t reply. Fraites reached for a leather notebook with a document clipped to the outside. He handed it to Nick with a pen.
“If you’ll sign that, my part in this drama is done.”
“What is it?”
“Just an acknowledgement that you’ve been advised of your change of status and accept the terms.”
“What terms?”
“Nothing much…just that you agree never to use excessive force again in the course of your duties as a U.F. Marshal.”
Nick pushed it back at him.
“No point in that. I’m not a U.F. Marshal anymore.”
As if on cue, the door opened and another man stepped inside. An expression of surprise crossed Nick’s face and he stood up. The new arrival was about the same age as Fraites, but fitter, with a smudge of grey at the temples. He wore a business suit with a badge attached to his left breast pocket.
“Nick Walker! Back from the dead, I swear.”
“Marshal Bridge.”
U.F. Marshal Robert Bridge strode forward and grabbed Nick’s hand, shaking it vigorously. He smiled at Victoria and took a seat next to Fraites.
“Okay,” Fraites said. “Everyone is here. Marshal Bridge, the floor is yours.”
Bridge also carried a leather notebook, which he laid on the coffee table before him. He looked Nick up and down before speaking again.
“Looks like you lost a little weight,” he observed. “Maybe a few sleepless nights as well.”
Nick nodded. “About six hundred.”
“Well, that’s all over now. I guess Mr. Fraites explained that you’re off the hook. You can have your badge back.”
For a long moment, Nick didn’t reply. Everyone looked at him, waiting. As the silence became uncomfortable, Nick sat back.
“I’m not sure I want it back. I haven’t really missed it.”
Bridge nodded, as if he had expected that response.
“I know that’s what you told me two years ago, and I’m not surprised you still feel the same way. But before you walk out of here, let me bring you up to date on a few things. Ken Saracen is still out there.”
“I know.”
“He’s alive and, although we don’t know for sure where he is, we have a pretty good idea.”
“TC 4,” Nick said.
Bridge faltered, surprise in his eyes.
“Miss Cross told me.”
“O…kay. Good. That’s right, we think he’s on TC 4. But the point is, even though he’s still alive and at large, the terror attacks have stopped. There hasn’t been a single bombing or assassination—not even an attempt—since your gunfight on the Alpha Centauri Express. Do you know what that means?”
“Yeah, he needs time to replace the people he lost.”
“It means a lot more than that. Nick, by gutting his organization, you saved countless lives! In the four years before that shootout, Saracen’s organization murdered at least three thousand people that we know of, and probably more. If you hadn’t stopped him, at that rate, another fifteen hundred would have died by now, and since he was accelerating his attacks, probably twice that number. That is a Big—Deal.”
Nick shook his head.
“That’s great, sir, but I didn’t stop him. He won’t be stopped until he’s in custody or in a body bag.”
“Okay, I’ll grant you that. But I assume you would like to be the one to bring him down once and for all, wouldn’t you?”
“Sure.”
“Then you need your badge back.”
Nick shook his head again. “No, I don’t.”
“Of course you do! You can’t—”
“Because I don’t plan to arrest him.”
Bridge frowned for the first time.
“What?”
“I’m not going to arrest him. I’m going to kill him. Slowly, one body part at a time. I plan to do it over several days. I plan to use sharp instruments, and fire, and maybe even a little acid. I want it to hurt. I want him to suffer. I can’t do any of that under the authority of the Federation Marshal’s Office.”
Bridge and Fraites stared at him as if he had rabies.
“You’re not serious!” Fraites said.
Nick turned to him.
“Do I look like I’m joking? You might want to alert your Mr. Godney to dust off his law books again, because this time I’m going to give him something he can really prosecute.”
Nick stood up abruptly and put on his hat.
“Thank you both for your concern, but I’m way past saving.”
Both men also rose, looking perplexed. Victoria stared at Nick as if he were crazy.
“At least sign this document,” Fraites insisted. “It allows you to carry weapons legally, even if you don’t accept your old job back.”
Nick took the paper and signed it, then handed it back. He started for the door.
Bridge grabbed his arm.
“Nick, come to my office. Let’s talk this thing out.”
“Nothing to talk about, sir. I’m going to TC 4 and we can talk when I get back…if you still want to.”
“There is one more thing.”
“Make it quick. I have travel arrangements to make.”
“I had a call from a young lady who was asking after you. Name of Kristina Green.”
Nick stopped, his expression frozen.
“Kristina? Why did she call you?”
“She wanted to know where you were. Said she needed to see you.”
“Christ, she’s on Vega 3. I’m going the other direction.”
“No, she’s right here on Alpha 2. Trimmer Springs, to be exact. She said if I heard from you, that I should ask you to contact her.” Bridge handed him a comm number. “It sounded important.”
Chapter 6
Trimmer Springs – Alpha Centauri 2
Twenty-six months.
Nick hadn’t ridden a maglev train since May of 0445, the day after the big shootout that broke Ken Saracen’s grip on Alpha Centauri. He sat in the center car and stared out the window as the evening train from Lucaston streaked toward Trimmer Springs, stopping occasionally at stations along the way. He was sitting alone. Victoria had offered to come with him but he declined. If he was to meet Kristina, he wanted no distractions, and had no idea how Kristina might react to Victoria’s presence. The last thing he wanted was for her to conclude that he had replaced Suzanne with another woman.
He both dreaded and welcomed the meeting with Kristina. He’d left her on Vega 3 almost two years ago and hadn’t heard from her since. She would be twenty-one now, but had already lived a lifetime in two short decades. Born on Sirius of a Vegan moth
er, she had inherited the fabled beauty of all Vegan women, who had been genetically engineered for physical perfection, making them the most exotic women in the galaxy. Nick was only ten years her senior, but she seemed almost like his daughter—and would have been if his engagement to Suzanne had not been cut short by murder.
Kristina had lost her mother and her husband in two short days, leaving her alone in the universe…except for Nick.
He stepped off the train at Trimmer Springs a few minutes after five in the evening. Bridge had told him that Kristina was running the boutique Suzanne had co-owned with Mildred Trimmer, so he headed there first. The shop was closed but he saw a light behind the window and rapped on the glass with a metal key, making a ringing sound that carried far more clearly than any tap of the knuckles.
Mildred Trimmer opened the door and stood staring at him in surprise.
“Marshal Walker! I-I didn’t know you were back in town.”
“Just call me Nick. I’m not a U.F. Marshal anymore.”
“Well…come in! Gosh, it’s great to see you!”
She stepped aside, looking undecided whether to hug him or just get out of his way. Nick stepped into the shop and she locked the door. The interior was a blizzard of elegant women’s fashions, highlighted by some of the most exotic perfumes on the planet.
“I heard Kristina was working here,” he said, feeling awkward in the brunette’s presence.
“Yes, she is. She came back about a year ago. She inherited her mother’s half of the store and…” Mildred stopped and waved her hand. “She’s in the office. Go on back.”
Kristina was seated at the computer in the rear office, peering at the display projection with her golden hair piled in a swirl on top of her head. As Nick stepped into the doorway, she glanced up, then leaped to her feet in shock.
“Nick! You got my message!”
He nodded, not trusting himself to speak. She ran around the desk, almost tripping over her chair, and threw her arms around him. He returned the hug.
“Nick! Oh, goddess, Nick! I was so worried about you!”