Trampship Wars 2

by L. D. Roberts

  “Aaa can I pick one now?”

  Surprised , Mark’s mother shrugged. “Sure you can dear if you are qualified for it. But wouldn’t you rather take your time? Never working before, you may not have a realistic idea of what any of the jobs entail. Let alone if you really will be happy doing any of them. What job did you have in mind?”

  “I want to be a patrolman.” She snapped. “I have all the required classes and I have secretly been taking every correspondence class or seminar remotely related to Criminal detection, apprehension and prosecution. My father even found out the hard way that I aced every self-defense class he kept sending me to and even ones he didn’t know about. I want to make my father and everyone else remotely responsible for my mother’s death pay . Origina lly I wanted to find out what happened to my mother but that is shit now so I want to do the next best thing and make sure o thers don’t suffer as I have had to for so many years .”

  “Wow. Now that is a mouth full.” Shaking her head as she thought for a few seconds. “You know that your father being the ship’s biggest crime boss is a big handicap that will take a lot of extra unfair work and close scrutiny to overcome? Prejudice you may never be able to get away from. Prejudice that you will have to tolerate and accept without lashing back at those that do it. Just remember that the best way to fight prejudice is to earn peoples respect by being competent at what you do.”

  With Kay nodding yes, Mark’s mother continued. “I will talk to the Captain tomorrow and get the ball rolling. In the meantime, you will report to Cadet training first thing in the morning even though you are a bit old for it. Please remember that the other younger kids will give you a bad time and say hurtful things. Just remember that they are stupid kids and do not know what they are talking about or even truly mean what they say. You are going to have to smile and act your age and ignore them. You are there to make a better life for yourself. How you act around them and their shit treatment of you, will go a long ways to opening or closing the door into the Patrol Detective work you want to do or anything else if you change your mind later . Just remember that the kids y are just putting in the time until they can find an excuse to get out of cadet class and go play and usually drop out when they t urn 18 . You are better than that and them and working to shape your and the ship’s future which is what being a cadet is all about .”

  Mark’s mother took a deep breath. “Just a few more questions Kay I am required to ask Kay before I let you go tonight . Do you or have you ever felt like or thought about committing suicide?”

  “Aaa , I don’t think so. Not that I remember. Fact is I don’t even understand why anyone would take their own life. That is just sick. If I did that, there would be no one around to kill all the persons that are responsible for killing my mother. I don’t care what has happened or will happen, I will make them pay for it in time. Even my father. ”

  “Good girl. Just make sure it is all legal but I think they have plenty of evidence to put y our father away already for that and others . ” Shaking her head Chuckling as she looked down at the sheet in front of her. “Now have you ever thought about doing violence or killing anyone, either a relative or a stranger?” Mark’s mother could not help chuckling as she shook her head at the question she already knew the answer to before Kay had a chance to answer .

  Chapter 8: Shot at again ------------------ 97

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  The Truck headed west away from the rising sun sitting a ways up from the horizon as they had left immediately after muster, headed for the first Car lot on Marks list. It was a busy lot when they arrived over it, covering several very large city blocks with a thousand cars according to the advertising. With show rooms and repair and detail garages taking up several large buildings. Dozens of people wondered around the lot with salesmen even at this early hour.

  Dropping down next to the maintenance garage on the designated truck loading zone, Mark walked into the office and after being shuffled to several offices he walked into the office of the head Car buyer and met the Bald headed buyer at the Auction from a few days before.

  The man behind the desk did a double take and stood up. “You have got a set of balls on you mister. You are an officer of that tramp ship? Do you really think you can come here and sell me your left over junk after screwing me over for so much at the auction? What kind of fool do you think I am? Now get the hell out of my sight ass hole before I show you a little appreciation for what you cost me. Hell I think I will sue you for damages.”

  Taken back by the man's hostility even if it was kind of warranted since Mark had kept him and oth er car dealers from ripping off the Queens crew who had no choice but to sell their aircars . “What! Sue me for making you pay a barely decent price for o ur cars your own stupidity ? Don’t be a moron, idiot. You still got those cars cheap. I just did not let you steel them. Besides, you’re the one that kept raising his hand to make the stupid bids.” Mark left the office as the man pushed his chair back knocking over a plant stand as he tried to climb over the desk. “Shit Tom!” Mark used his com. “Get the fans spooled up and ready to take off. We have to leave in a hurry.”

  The man followed him down the hall and out the door into the garage. Mark easily outrunning him. “You son of a bitch not only cheated me out of some cheap cars but called me stupid. I will show you how we treat Garbage Tramp scumbags like you.” Grabbing a wrench he yelled for his mechanics to cut Mark off as he approached the outside door.

  Tapping his comm watch again. “Tom, drop the rear ramp and redline spin up the fans and hit full lift as soon as I am on the ramp , I am going to have to make a run for it.” Side stepping the mechanic that appeared in his way, Mark made it through the door and sprinted for the back of the truck. With several mechanics on his tail , Mark dove onto the ramp as the truck lunged into the air just ahead of the nearest mechanic. The mechanic throwing the adjustable wrench he was carrying at Mark. Missing him by only a foot as it flew into the cargo compartment and hit the back of the aircar chained down there.

  As old number 9 climbed up into the air Mark smiled, T t hinking that it was a damn nice expensive self-adjusting wrench with a nice fiber padded handle and auto adjusting jaws as it sailed by, Mark stood up and gave the guy thumbs up. “Great shot Bozo! Thanks for the wrench.” As the truck orbited around the lot Mark hi t s the switch to close the big rear hatch . P , p ick ing ed up the wrench thinking it was too nice to throw back Mark shook his head as he stopped the hatch from rising and hit his comm . “ , telling Tom , to swing back around and make a slow pass over where we were they had been parked. ”

  As they passed slowly over the growing group of mechanics Mark walked out onto the ramp the lowered hatch had made and dropped the wrench making sure it hit butt down to keep from damaging the jaws as the row o to the waiting f mechanic that had thrown it at him. The mechanic s looked up at Mark on in disbelief as he caught it . “It is a damn good expensive wrench and I would love to keep it but we are not thieves.” As the mechanic’s jaw dropped open Mark turned and hit the hatch close button rai s n ing the ramp and headed forward to the Copilots seat. “Take a course of 223 degrees to our next lot and keep the speed down while I think this over.”

  Mark was at a loss for several minutes and then it dawned on him a simple answer. “Tom; at the next lot, you go in and take care of selling the cars. All you have to do is talk to the buyer and show him the cars and get his offer for them.”

  “Oh aa y a , just how am I supposed to know how much to take for them?”

  “Simple ah. You can leave your wrist com open and when you get an offer I like, I can beep you twice for yes and once for no.” Happy with himself for coming up with such a simple and clean solution, Mark sat back and relaxed.

  That is until they descended onto the next lot with Tom being careful and slowing down more than he needed to. Making sure he did not make any mistakes. A bunch of mechanics came out lining up outside with pipes and wrecking bars . O and o ne
of the other buyers he had pissed off even worse at the auction when Mark had blown dust all over him with his speeder before the auction was standing at the head of the group . “Ah Maybe not so simple. ” Mark said as he looked out the window in the side hatch. “ Maybe if you talk to the fat guy that looks like he is running things down there without me around…”

  “Hey! You go down there and kiss their butts!" Tom said looking over at Mark still in the copilot’s seat as they orbited around the group of yelling , gestering mechanics. "I sure as hell am not leaving the truck with those bad asses waiting. My god what did you do to these guys to piss them off so bad?”

  “I guess they did not appreciate me bidding against them. Well let’s head for the next lot.”

  ‘Oh? You think they are going to be any different? That first guy has probably talked to all the lots by now.”

  “Well , I would think that being competitors they would not be that friendly with all of them but then they did seem all too ready to divide up the cars amongst themselves at the auction instead of bidding against each other .”

  “Ya. Want to bet on it? I can recall several tramp ships the Captain hates but we still talk to them and warn them about problems. I will bet they are all good drinking buddies.”

  Approaching the next lot Mark took the controls, they could see several cars pulling out but no one was around in sight. No customers or sales men or anyone except for one person in the big showroom window that seemed to be watching them. “Looks peaceful to me Tom. You should not have any problems here. Just show the buyer what we have and we can get rid of these cars and go shopping. Mickey has found several wholesale warehouses we can head for next.”

  Dropping down towered the marked truck landing zone, Mark noticed a couple of big vans next to it on one side with the doors to the shop open on the other side. “We will take what ever the guy offers us for the damn cars so we don’t have to waste any more time with them.” Mark said a A s they came in and Mark flared the truck to settle onto the marked landing space. Mark noticed his glasses change to infrared without asking, which was very disconcerting in the middle of landing. Starting to say something to Mickey he looked around at the vans to make sure he was clearing them and saw the infrared heat of several men with clubs inside each of them. Whipping around he looked at the open garage doors and the heat shapes of a dozen men waiting just inside and out of sight.

  Gunning the engines and fans up into the red zone as the truck slid up to the pad and was about to touch ed down. The truck leaped back into the air. “Shit! It’s a trap.” Tom was half out of his seat to head into the back cargo compartment. T om was t hrown flat on his face in the isle between the seats and half through the hatch to the cargo compartment Tom let out a few curse words and said. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Sorry Tom but looks like you win. I guess we go to plan B.” Mark reduced the throttle as he turned the truck to head out across the lot in a shallow climb across the buildings headed south west toward the big City on the horizon.

  Then they started hearing plinks from all over the fuselage as a hole opened in the hatch above his elbow and then another one in the glass above it. Laser streaks flared across the windows as the smell of burnt metal filled the cab. Gunning it again Mark turned the truck on its side and slide around and down behind the big garage out of sight of the shooters. Sliding across the small parking lot and then up Flying over across the next row of buildings and then down to skim the aircars in the lot weaving through the tall light posts . He pulled up just in time to miss the trees at the edge of the lot and finely safely out of range, he started climbing. Checking all around the truck for any pursuit as he turn toward the big City again.

  Mark still jerking his head from side to side, looked around trying to catch his breath after being shot at. His heart beating a mile a minute. Slowly Mark started calming down, not believing that they had been shot at.

  “And what is plan B?” Tom had rolled over onto his butt and sat up after having t o hold on for dear life as Mark maneuvered them out of danger . Oblivious to being shot at. Not understanding th at the plinks ec hoing around the trucks box was blaster balls and lasers and not simply dirt or thrown rocks bouncing off the truck.

  Looking around at Tom sitting across the hatch. His butt in the cargo compartment and his feet in the cab and arms wrapped around his knees. “I will tell you as soon as you can stop rooting around on the deck like a hog looking for truffles and check the truck for fire and damage.” Mark looked back checking the fan read outs again before turning to the Map screen on the dash. “And as soon as I can figure out what plan B is.” The truck climbed as they headed south west on no particular coarse.

  “Fire and damage? Why? How is a few rocks supposed to damage even thi s old piece of junk?”

  Mark looked around at Tom. “That wasn’t rocks. That was pistol fire you moron. They were shooting at us.” Mark smiled as Tom’s eyes got as big as gulf balls. “Now go back and check for damage and listen to the fans for noises. You know what an out of balance fan sounds like.”

  White faced , Tom disappeared back into the cargo box.

  Tom finely stepped climbed back through the cockpit’s hatch and hit Mark on the shoulder hard enough to hurt as he got into the copilots seat. “That is for dumping me on the deck and getting me shot at. Except for a bunch of holes in the truck and a couple of our fine cars, I think we are ok. I don’t hear any vibrations coming from the fans.” Hitting Mark on the shoulder again. “You could have gotten me killed.”

  “Oh it was good for you. Builds character.”

  “Ya ? R r emind me next time to be a little slower taking off when some ass hole with a wrench is chasing you. See how you like your character built. Where did you learn to run? St. Merry’s school for the incredibly retarded? Hell , any slower and he would have caught you. As it was the fans felt like they were going to come apart with them feathered in the red waiting for you to get your ass in the truck.”

  “What? I didn’t feel anything when I just had them in the red for a few seconds.”

  “Well it’s a big red zone. That mechanic looked like he would have bitten off your leg if he could have reached you before we got high enough.” Tom growled and feigned bighting at Mark. “Wuff! Wuff! Wuff!”

  “He sure was nipping at my ass wasn’t he. he? ” Mark smiled over at Tom. “You should have seen the look on old baldy when I told him he could not sue me for his own stupidity.” Mark was automatically looking around the sky for traffic and pursuit. Glancing back at Tom. “Do you think I went a little too far this time?”

  “Da! Do you think! I am sure you could have come up with something a little more insulting to make friends given time.”

  “Well, it did just pop out without thinking.”

  “No? I bet you stayed up half the night thinking up nice little flattering things like that to say to all the people you were going to try to sell the ship’s air cars to.”

  “Well that pretty much rules out all the big dealers that were at the auction that was on my list. Maybe I am thinking to too big. Most of the junk or cheap cars we have bought from planets where from small dealers or junk yards. With the owner doing the selling. Mickey , can you find me a small cheapo dealer. Someone maybe a little farther from town that Mr. Baldy wouldn’t have called? Besides if they only have a couple of sales men and a mechanic we should be a little safer.”

  “Oh haaa. Talking about chicken. Blaaak kackle kackle!”

  Mark hit him on the shoulder knocking him against his hatch as he started to bank the truck around. “I’ll tell you what, let's go back to that last lot and YOU can jump out and make them buy the cars.”

  “Na, I thought you could jump out and dodge laser beams while I took the truck up where it is safe while you convinced them what such g reat ood guys tramps we are.”

  “Ya that’s what I thought.” Putting the truck on its side as he pulled 5 Gee's to quickly loop on around, they continued west. The lit
tle vibration under his seat from the fan that was welded the week before was missed as he gave Tom a bad time while they turned pulling 5 Gee’s.

  “Mark I have several small dealers in the outlying towns south of here that fit your profile. Which one do you want me to call first?”

  “No! Don’t call. I don’t want them to have the time to set up something or bring in reinforcements just in case they are familiar with our friendly acquaintances . Just pick one and we will head for it. With surprise we should be in and out before they know who we are.”

  “Very well Mark, I have entered the course in the navigation computer and it is on your heads up display and the CRT.”

  “Thanks Mickey.”

  The dealer was a good hundred miles and a half hour away as Mark settled on the course headed south east . Telling Tom to take the con, Mark pulled out his torch from the tool bag he had brought in case he had trouble with any of the cars. Looking at it closely he grimaced. “Damn he was right proud of the way he had converted this one to a Laser pistol to shoot out somewhat over 50 feet maximum instead of miles. It was not only safer, but much more powerful as well as much more efficient with the six beams streaking out making for a very deadly shot gun effect at close range. He was hoping to get a chance to do some target practicing with it while they were out and running around in some deserted parking lot or field .

  “Damn Mark.” Tom said looking around out the windows with glances over at Mark. “You look like Jolleen with and that stupid torch you gave her last night. I swear she is acting like it’s the day after Christmas when I met her at breakfast this morning. I still don’t understand why you have to eat down there with the officers?”

  “Well. Would you believe I would starve to death by the time I got all the way up to the mess deck?” Mark smiled. Having the junior officers officer’s mess just around the corner from his cabin was damn nice early in the morning. “As for Jolleen. I just gave her something to protect herself with since that seemed to help Kay so much with her problem.”