Slow Burn Dark

by A. B. Keuser

  “I know.” And she did.

  Despite everything that had happened since she’d met the eldest Monroe, she knew that… while he wasn’t a good man, he certainly wasn’t evil.

  “How is it that, even with the choices you and your sister made, he managed to keep an all-but-spotless record? Is it because he’s a master of talking his way out of legal proceedings? Or because, until now, you haven’t been around to lead him down the path that put that laser noose around your neck?”

  “I’m pretty sure Putty could have talked the Conflict into submission if he’d thought of it.” Flynn smiled, and she’d never seen one crueler. “But we’re not talking about my brother. We’re talking about yours. And your inability to accept that he needs to pay for nearly destroying this planet.”

  “Geo should be held responsible for what he’s done.” She was almost comfortable admitting that now.

  “Tell me where he is and I’ll make sure he answers for it.”

  “No.” She could imagine his brand of justice. “I’ve already contacted the Colarium and have made arrangements.”

  Flynn didn’t believe her, she could see it in the set of his jaw. And while it didn’t truly matter, it would be easier to leave if he did.

  “The transfer logs are all public information, they’ll go through in a handful of hours. You can use Susan’s login if you don’t want to trip the system with your ID.”

  “I don’t need it.”

  “No, you wouldn’t. Because like it or not, you’re a criminal too. And if the Colarium had you, they’d be just as quick to string you up as those on the planet who know about the… incident would kill my brother.

  “I don’t know. The Colarium would probably spend a year or so torturing me for information… and the hell of it.”

  That wasn’t the point and he knew it. She chose to ignore his sick sense of humor.

  “There’s no way he’d receive a fair trial here. You know the whole truth of it and are willing to throw him to the wolves, despite the fact he never intended to hurt anyone with the machine. And everyone else on the planet already hates him.”

  “So your solution is to send him away and hope everyone forgets?”

  “I’m handing him over to the Colarium. They have a vested interest in this planet. If they think his actions are tantamount to treason…” She swallowed and looked down to the fizzing liquid in her glass. “I will have to accept that.”

  “What would the sentence be for five million plus counts of involuntary manslaughter?”

  He said it so casually… she wanted to knock the beer from his hand and kick the stool out from under him. Instead, she asked. “How many people have you killed, Mr. Monroe?”

  The room went silent around them, and she didn’t bother to hide the fact she’d known they were all listening.

  “How many years would the Colarium sentence you to? Would it be hard labor? Or am I right in thinking you’ve underestimated the spectacle they’d want to make of a Lazarai general?”

  The way his mouth twisted told her he hadn’t guessed she could find that information.

  She looked at his neck, at the red-raw skin there. “Would they finish the job?”

  His jaw tensed, but he didn’t respond.

  “No one in the universe is blameless. We all have our demons, our dark sides. Never fool yourself into thinking there are any saints left.”

  “We’re born of sin and sinners we remain.” Flynn recited the verse without blinking.

  He looked down on her, as though she was to blame for everything that had happened.

  And maybe she was. “But through the Great Mother, we are more than our sins.”

  She held his glare, returned it.

  “And what can we blame you for?”

  “I’m sure you can come up with something.”

  He snorted a laugh and looked back to his drink.

  “But you’re forgetting,” She said, not caring who was still listening. “I’m not my brother. Everything I’ve done to this point was to help the planet thrive. And… when it comes right down to it, money washes away a lot of sins.”

  “You’re going to buy them off?”

  “No, I’m going to fix what my brother screwed up… and then, I’m going to go back to what I’ve been doing all this time. I still want Sukiyaki to be everything I wanted it to be last week. And I’m not going to let anyone--not even my brother--screw that up.”

  Flynn stared at her for a very long time and she stared right back.

  “I suppose,” he said when he finally looked away, “That I should wish you good luck in that endeavor.

  “Of the two of us, I doubt I’m the one who’ll need luck.” Her lips twitched as she fought back the smile that would match his own in cruelty. “How long do you think you’ll survive as a Lazarai deserter… and one of the Colarium’s most wanted?”

  She didn’t expect an answer, didn’t wait for one.

  It was time to leave.

  He caught her wrist, kept her on her stool. “I don’t forget things easily, and I rarely forgive. If I see your brother again, I will be the one who pulls the trigger, and unlike Putty, I don’t aim to maim.”

  “Then you’d better steer clear of me, because I will stop you any way I need to.” Pulling her arm from his grip, and not gently, she threw a credit chip on the counter and ignored everyone who watched her go.

  She’d never needed to come into town before this. But now she’d have to work frequent trips into her schedule. The Captains and Henri might not like her help, but they’d get it.

  Banks stared through the doors at Flynn, his gaze never wavering. “He’s going to be trouble.”

  “Probably,” She slid into the passenger seat of the RTF ground car as he triggered the ignition. “But not for a while.”

  “You sure about that?”

  “They’re going to have bigger problems.”

  Banks shot her a worried glance, “What are you planning?”

  She smiled at his sharp profile.

  “I’m going to play matchmaker. And the woman who’s perfect for our scarred friend right now, is the sort who’ll get him into more trouble than he has any hope of surviving.

  And he’d take Patrick down with him.

  Paying Putty back for what he’d done to her brother wasn’t the point. She had to make sure neither of them came for him again.

  Banks steered the car through town to the shipyard, and her pilot took off as soon as she was strapped in next to Senior Colari Harris’ folder.

  The woman was the only one smiling.

  The ship was fast and the detour for the delivery of her speech hadn’t taken long enough that they missed their rendezvous.

  But where her ship would break speed records, the one Paige had brought was a hulking mass. Bigger, possibly, than the moon Putty had destroyed… before he’d blown it up.

  “Think they’re compensating for something?” Banks glared through the window with his arms across his chest.

  “The colarium military?” Wenda asked, “Never.”

  They were cleared for docking and escorted quickly through the halls—like guests or prisoners, she couldn’t tell—and Sophia startled when they entered an over-large, relatively empty, office and Paige turned to her.

  The rank pins on her jacket were--if Sophia read them correctly--for an Admiral, and her hair and makeup almost made her into a different person.

  This, she decided, was what the Senior Colari truly used her for.

  “I’m sorry for my appearance,” Paige said, motioning for them to sit across the desk from her. “Military regulations are a little easier to adhere to with the right face.”

  “And when you’re an Admiral?”

  She smiled at Banks, not exactly agreeing and then turned her full focus on Sophia. “I understand your brother is on his way somewhere you would deem safe.”

  “He is, though I will contact my ship and deliver them wherever you require.”

 
“Necessity is a funny thing, isn’t it?” She settled back into her chair. “Harris doesn’t need your brother. You can put him wherever you want, and as long as you keep him out of any more trouble, there should be no need for us to do anything further on that particular score.”

  “The miners will call for blood.” Banks was stiff in his seat, his focus on her hands.

  She laced her fingers and moved so they were more visible on top of the desk.

  “They’ll have it. The lingering shadows of the Lazarai are to blame, and we will make sure they are the ones who receive all blame and punishment.”

  Sophia almost let herself breathe easy, but she wasn’t that foolish. “What does Harris expect in return for this generosity?”

  “He doesn’t want your businesses, or your money, if that’s what has those lines of concern tracing across your forehead. He just wants your cooperation.”

  Banks shifted uncomfortably beside her, but she ignored him.

  “We need you to set up a sale.”

  “A legal sale?” Banks asked, drawing the woman’s attention, however briefly.

  “Everything will be above board. No one within the Colarium will have any grounds to question your involvement.” She looked down at the information in front of her. “Any illegal doings will be provided by a secondary party after the fact.”

  “But the transaction statements will be falsified.”

  Paige smiled and looked to the starfield out the vast window. “No one will check into them.”

  “And I’ll have to alert a few people in my accounting divisions.” She’d have to do a bit more than that.

  Even if she’d tried to keep everything in the legal realm before, she knew how to work around the regulations if she needed to.

  “That’s why I like you.” Paige leaned back, keeping her hands visible. “You’re direct and efficient.”

  When she looked at Banks, she added. “And you come with convenient accessories.”

  Sophia didn’t see an option to extricate herself from Harris’ clutches, but she would.

  Eventually.

  Everyone had an exploitable fault. Her only regret was that he’d found hers before she’d realized she’d need to know his.

  And she’d need to stay close to do that….

  “Tell me more about the illegal aspect of the job. I might know someone… and I have a feeling bringing her on board—with her political connections—will tickle your employer.”

  And place Flynn under the Senior Colari’s boot as well.

  Forty-Eight - Kathrynn

  Kathrynn pulled the thin gloves from the bag and slipped them on while waiting for the terminal access tram to pass and let her out into the bright light of Capo’s sun and it’s million reflected versions.

  The streets were busy, crowded with travelers, commuters, and loafers pretending to have business interests worthy of lunch appointments.

  Ground cars were expensive and she didn’t have a secured credit chip. There was no reason to leave a record of the temple visiting with a Senior Colari.

  She could walk.

  It was, after all, easier to navigate metal and concrete canyons than those she usually traversed—sharp bark and crackling moss that gave way without warning.

  And while she trusted the carnivorous madris more than the lechers passing her by in glittering suits and skirts, the monsters hiding around her were easier to kill… assuming one of them was stupid enough to test her.

  And no one here who met her eye was that foolhardy,

  The Senior Colari offices were gorgeous. They were a dozen plinths of glass and metal. Opulence clawed its way up their base like the greedy fingers of an ocean.

  They were also, entirely too easy to break into.

  The Great Mother had already shown her the path, and she walked through the halls with her hands in her pockets, glancing at the random statuary—items they’d likely paid more for than Sukiyaki’s yearly food importation costs—and the breathtaking views from the glass pane walls.

  A person could get used to the luxury around her. She imagined that was why only a slim fraction of the population ever actually left.

  Harris’ offices were tucked away. The meandering corridors required to reach them would form a perfect gauntlet… if they’d been guarded.

  A man like Tyrone Harris would need to worry about those things. He was the biggest threat to… all of the other Colari combined.

  Having held his seat the longest, and having the least investor backing, his vote was the hardest to sway. His intentions, the hardest to guess.

  His guardian angel made sense after Kathrynn had discovered the rest of his story.

  The lack of security now could only be attributed to the Great Mother’s will.

  The Senior Colari was in.

  Alone, he was vulnerable.

  His staff was gone for the day. Paige was on her way back, but wouldn’t arrive for a half an hour more.

  No one was close enough to stop her if she wanted to kill him and slip back into the streets.

  But she didn’t want that. And she suspected he had other measures in place. Measures she couldn’t see because neither of them would force him to use them.

  She slipped into the comfortable offices, pausing outside the halo of the single lit lamp before moving to the door left ajar.

  He spoke in low, dulcet tones that were at odds with what she knew of him.

  “Double her funding. If either of the projects work out, the military applications will be innumerable.”

  Kathrynn glanced at the barely visible stars and saw flashes of dark stones and wild brown hair. A future too fluid to understand.

  She stood on the threshold of his office, watching the man as he sorted through a holo display of schematics. She couldn’t see the facility name, but wherever it was, it was cold… and heavily guarded.

  He glanced up from his work, deeply set eyes met hers, and then turned back to the information.

  He didn’t move to hide the plans.

  Didn’t disconnect the call.

  “We’ll discuss both projects at year end. Until then, give her whatever she needs.”

  The woman on the other end spoke quietly, her half heard words unsure, but accepting, and Kathrynn saw a flicker of Harris’ face as his screen flared bright a moment before the call disconnected and they were alone.

  Silence stretched, and she let it stagnate a moment before she strolled to the chair across from him and sank into its plush cushions.

  Without the computer’s lights, Harris was shrouded in shadow.

  “Did you send for anyone yet?”

  “Do I need to?” Bony fingers tapped out a rhythm on the hard surface between them. “If you were here to kill me, I’d already be dead.”

  “That’s not true. The Great Mother gives everyone a chance to repent and atone.”

  Harris’ crimes were not yet severe enough to incur her wrath.

  He laughed, the low sound more air than reverberation.

  “How are your children?” She glanced at the screen where he’d just been discussing his daughter’s scientific endeavors.

  With a long sigh, he said, “One is thriving, the other seems intent on driving me insane. But you’re not here to talk about them. You’re stalling. And unlike you, I don’t have the foresight to understand why.”

  It should have set her on edge that he knew that much about her. But it settled her instead. If he knew… he wouldn’t ask as many questions.

  “It’s generally polite to inquire about another person before getting to the meat of the business… progeny and recent atmospheric conditions are the acceptable norm.”

  “True, but the only people who mention my children in negotiations are the ones who want to imply a threat to them. And you’re not that stupid.”

  “In what little of their future is set, I can assure you, I pose them no physical harm.”

  Tyrone’s fingers stopped. “What interesting qualifiers.” />
  “I can make no promise as to financial or occupational harm incurred by anyone at this point in time.”

  “Perhaps I should employ you in my legal department.”

  “That is a job I wouldn’t accept.” She smiled darkly. “I can’t abide lies.”

  He nodded in an odd sort of agreement. Whether acknowledging his department’s prolific deceptions, or her vaguely known gift, she didn’t know.

  “To what do I owe the pleasure of Serbal’s executioner’s company? Does Holzen want to make a deal?” Another less composed man might have snorted along with that question. “He can’t possibly think we still recognize him as a threat. Even with his poor attempt to destroy a planet.”

  “No. He quite handily ruined his chances of overthrowing your government with actions that preceded that.”

  She smiled, knowing he would read it as enjoyment...not the forced restraint of a woman who wanted to vomit at the mere thought of it.

  “What I want, Senior Colari, is your protection.”

  His stillness was confirmation enough that she’d surprised him.

  Tyrone laced his bony fingers together. “You’re possibly the last person in the universe who needs my protection.”

  “Your bodyguard is my only competition for the top spot, I suppose?”

  “Something like that. So if it’s not for you… your brothers?”

  Dipping her head in agreement, she added. “My family. Extended as well as adopted, though we both know my brothers will be the two that need more than your political reach.”

  “And how do I explain my protection?”

  “How do you ever explain it? Putty will be easy.” She leaned back in the chair, propping an angle over her knee. “He just blew up a moon and assaulted the younger brother of a prominent member of Capo society. Along with that, we both know he’s been skating true sentencing since he was fourteen… and you may have hidden your interest in him, but your data wipes aren’t perfect. Blackmail him into service. Use him however you deem necessary. I’d suggest contract commissions when you need problem child machinery worked on… and data mining.”