Jack’s team found no one on the first level they checked. They checked around them every few seconds, the only sign was the nervousness among them.
Rena turned to Jack. “You’d think they’d have some agents up here to at least let them know how big a force is coming.”
“I don’t like this,” Jack muttered. “Rena, do you get anyone at all?”
She shook her head. “Nada. All I’m picking up is you guys. The psychic blanket around this building is intense. If I wasn’t sure before, I am now. Their armor is definitely somehow patched into the psychic shield. It would be the only way I couldn’t get any readings at all.”
“Seems like a logical conclusion,” he said.
As they descended the stairs, Rena sent a telepathic message to both teams. “This is how it was when we came for Jack. As soon as we made it to the fifth floor, agents came from everywhere. Watch yourselves.”
As soon as Jack’s team entered the fifth and final level, agents poured from the walls and attacked. Jack pulled his pistol and watched. Rena slammed the agents around with her telekinesis. From the viciousness of her attack, he could believe she’d walked the dark side.
“Keep your eyes open,” Jack told the teams. “We need to find the door to the Council’s area.”
An agent broke through and swung his gauntlet blade trying to cut Jack’s throat. Jack jerked back, the tip of the knife slicing open his cheek from nose to ear. He fired on the agent, killing him instantly.
“That’ll look good in your wedding pictures,” Rena told him.
He glanced at her. “Thanks.”
She shrugged. “Hey, what’re friends for?”
Jack’s team continued to push down the corridor. Where the bloody hell was the damn door?
Cyber-X had pushed his way farther down the hall before he stopped and stared at the wall. “Jack, over here,” he called, waving his hand in the air.
Jack blasted a path over to the mercenary. “What?”
“Look here.” Cyber-X turned to fire on agents getting a little too close.
Jack activated the scanners in his eye. This was it! The door that would take him to the conclusion of this whole thing. There would be an ending at last, finally giving him the peace he craved.
Finding the trigger, he opened the door. “Pay dirt. Follow me when you’re done here.”
“Go!” Cyber-X shouted. “We’ll see you soon.”
Jack nodded and disappeared down the dark passageway.
Chapter Thirty-Three
The low light in the narrow corridor highlighted the less than perfect condition of Jack’s armor. He watched the door slide shut and hesitated. He looked down the corridor and didn’t like the way it curved off to the right. He glanced back at the door again. He knew he should wait for the others but started walking anyway. His grip tightened on his rifle, as the feeling of being cut off from his teammates pressed in on him.
“I should’ve waited,” he muttered, as he listened to his muffled footsteps carrying him to the inevitable conclusion.
He slowed, spying a closed door at the end of the hallway. The scanners in his artificial eye picked up a figure and he stopped, readying his rifle.
The agent stepped into his path, raising his own weapon. “I can’t let you proceed.”
Jack shrugged. “You can’t stop me. I’ll kill you if I have to, but I am going through that door.”
The agent nodded. “So be it.”
He drew his sidearm, snapping off a shot, making Jack duck. In a split second, Jack aimed the rifle and squeezed the trigger. With the sonic rifle on the lowest setting, Jack knew the agent would live, but he’d have a hell of a nosebleed and ringing in his ears for at least a couple of days.
He stared down at the agent. “Stupid bastard. You should’ve just moved.”
Jack took a deep breath and pushed on the door. It swung inward, revealing a large room with an oval table near the far wall. A bright spotlight was the only illumination in the dark chamber. He holstered his rifle as he walked in.
“Talk about clichés,” he mumbled. He walked closer to the table. “So you people are the Council.”
“Yes, we are,” said the man in the center.
Jack narrowed his eyes. “I know you. You were the head of ULTRA when all this went down.”
The man nodded again.
“You were in on the whole bloody thing, weren’t you?”
“I’m afraid I was.” He glanced at Jack and smiled a little. “You were one of my best operatives. I had high hopes for you until you decided you needed to poke your nose in where it didn’t belong. Then, you pushed harder, forcing us to rush things, and when things get rushed, mistakes get made. I’m sure you remember.”
Jack stared at Fenmore and Harrington, catching a glimpse of Anita Haines behind them. Oh, he knew all right. His wife dead, his team on the run, and those who sold out to the very people he was trying to stop.
“It’s over now,” Jack said. “Surrender.”
The Council leader laughed. “I don’t think so. We have our own defenses to stop you.”
Jack took two steps forward and was stopped by a force field surrounding him. “You realize how many times this has been used, right? Can’t you even do one thing original?”
“Why, when this works just as well as it ever did?”
The Council leader walked around to the front of the table. “We set up all those incredibly bad missions when a lot of agents didn’t return. You were supposed to be one of them. That way, we wouldn’t have had to take an active part in bringing you down.”
Jack turned and watched agents enter the room, training their sights on him. He pulled the sword from his back holster. “Too good to get your hands dirty?”
“You were one of my favorites. I didn’t want to have to hurt you.”
Jack shrugged. “If you’d just waited, I would’ve given you everything I had. There was no need to kill my wife and hunt my team.”
“You were getting too close,” the leader said. “If you found out I was involved, it could’ve been bad.”
“Where’s my original evidence?” Jack asked. He nodded toward Fenmore and Harrington. “The idiot twins over there said you kept it.”
The leader smiled. “Not smart enough to figure it out? It’s under the ULTRA oath in the commander’s office.”
It couldn’t have any more bloody obvious, Jack thought. He felt a familiar tugging at his mind.
“Jack, we’re here,” Rena said. “We’ll move when you do.”
“Good because I’m going to bury this sword in the man in front of me in about two seconds.”
Jack watched all the people in the room and noticed Anita slip through a concealed door. She must’ve detected his team and decided discretion was the better part of valor. Apparently, the Council didn’t hold her loyalty any more than he did.
Jack idly spun the sword between his palms, activating its hidden ability. With a loud pop, he teleported behind the council table. “Now!” he shouted to his team.
The two teams rushed through the door, surprising the agents and taking most of them out before the renegades could react. Jack vaulted over the table, swinging the sword at the former ULTRA head, slicing a deep gouge on the man’s chest. Rena and Mindspell grabbed the rest of the Council with telekinesis, holding them in their places. Fenmore and Harrington took off running through another door to their right.
“Jack, they’re getting away!” Rena yelled.
Jack saw them disappear. “Bloody hell. I’m getting tired of chasing these two,” he said then sprinted after them.
Captain Starblast watched Jack take off and turned to Misty. He nodded in the direction Jack left and smiled as she ran after him.
****
Misty desolidified to move faster. They’d all had a head start on her. She glanced down side hallways as she passed, stopping when she saw Fenmore cowering against a dead end.
“Don’t hurt me!” he shouted, snapping off two shots in quick
succession.
Misty watched the bullets pass through her. “A gun? Are you kidding me?” She walked over to him, turned solid, and knocked the gun from his hand. “I’m not Carol, Fenmore. You can’t kill me like that.” She hauled him to his feet. “You and Jack have unfinished business.”
She smiled as fear filled his face. She let her hand go desolid, stuck it in his throat, and partially let it solidify, cutting off his air. “One weasel down, one to go.”
She dragged Fenmore back to the junction, tied his hands and feet with his tie and belt, and went in search of Jack.
****
Jack backed Harrington against the wall. “What’s the matter, Donald? No smart remarks to make when you know you’re not walking out of here?”
Harrington raised his gun. “Stay away from me, McClennan.”
Jack stepped closer. “What’re you going to do? Shoot me? Try it and let’s see what happens.”
Harrington squeezed off a shot, but Jack dropped as second before he pulled the trigger. “I know what you’re going to do before you do it.”
Jack grabbed him by his jacket and rammed his fist into Harrington’s stomach, letting him fall limply to the floor. He watched Harrington lay cringing at his feet and drew his pistol.
Taking deliberate aim, he said, “I don’t think you’re going to see a trial, Donald.”
Harrington scurried away from him. “Don’t, please.”
“Carol and I said the same thing to you, but you didn’t show us any mercy.” Jack scowled at the man on the floor. “How’s it feel to know the next few minutes are going to be your last?”
“Jack,” said a soft voice. “Don’t do it.”
“Stay out of this, Misty.” He stiffened his arm, cocking the gun.
She laid a hand on his arm. “I know what he did to you. I know he destroyed your life, and you’re itching to end it now, but you can’t.”
“Why not?” he snarled, never taking his eyes from the sight. “Don’t tell me it’ll bring me down to his level or that everyone deserves a fair trial.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything like that,” she said. “I was going to tell you it’s a shame to waste good ammunition.”
His head snapped in her direction, and he saw her smile. He turned back to Harrington and felt years of fatigue hit him all at once. The Council had ruled his past. They wouldn’t take his future.
He yanked Harrington to his feet. “Let’s go.” Jack dragged him to where Misty had left Fenmore. Grabbing the other man’s ankle, he took the two of them back to the main chamber.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jack and Misty dragged their prisoners to the main room, making their way to where Captain Starblast was rounding up the remaining agents. The former ULTRA head was being tended to by the agency’s medical team while being covered by three agents. No chances were being taken at this point. The whole ugly mess was finally coming to an end.
Jack dumped the two men at Starblast’s feet. “Captain, I ask you to place these men under arrest for conspiracy, extortion, murder, treason, and black market arms dealing.”
Cap gave him a tight smile. “My pleasure, field commander.” He shoved Harrington and Fenmore in line with the rest of the Council members. “I still can’t believe how badly we’d all been fooled. I wish I’d trusted my instincts and listened to you all those years ago.”
Jack laid his hand on Starblast’s shoulder and nodded. “It’s over and done with, Cap. Don’t let it worry you anymore.”
As Captain Starblast lined the criminals up against the wall and read them their rights, Jack turned to Cyber-X. “Glad you were here to lend a hand. Now that I’ve paid you, are you going to call the contract closed?”
“I think so. You’ve got my number if you need me.”
“You don’t want to be here for the epilogue?”
Cyber-X looked around and shook his head. “Nah. Too many ULTRA agents. They tend to make me a little jittery.”
Jack nodded. “I understand.” He shook Cyber-X’s hand. “Maybe you could work as an undercover agent for Mike when everything is settled.”
Cyber-X laughed. “I don’t think so. I like being freelance. See you around, Renegade.”
Jack watched him leave then walked to over to his teams, glad to see they weren’t badly hurt. He pulled Misty into his arms. “How’re you holding up, beautiful?”
She turned his head, examining the cut on his cheek. “Better than you, apparently. You getting old?”
Jack just smiled and pulled her close. “I’ll never tell.”
Mike entered with a squad who escorted the prisoners out. “Well done, people. The team outside is picking up the strays. I think we’ve finally gotten them all.”
They could almost taste the relief at his words. They headed outside and Jack watched the Gravediggers doing what they did best. Council agents were bleeding, not moving, and cowering away from the team.
Just like the old days, he thought as he approached the commander. “We have to go to your office.”
Mike stared at him. “Why?”
“I’ll show you when we get there.”
Not looking to see if the rest followed, Jack hurried into the main ULTRA building. The agents at the door aimed their weapons, but Mike waved them aside as he followed Jack up to his office. Jack took down the huge framed oath and ripped the backing off.
Papers and photos fluttered to the desk. Jack picked them up and read through the information and glanced at the pictures. He smiled grimly as he turned to Mike.
“This is it,” he murmured. “This is my original evidence. This is what got a lot of good people killed.” He handed it to Mike and watched the commander’s face as he read through the papers.
“This is amazing. What I knew about the case didn’t even scratch the surface of what they were doing. I didn’t realize they were in so deep.” He finally looked up, and Jack read the concern on his face. “You know what to do, Jack.”
Jack nodded once and held his arms out. “I surrender myself to the custody of ULTRA.”
“What are you doing?” Misty cried. “You can’t just give yourself up!”
“I have to,” he said quietly. “Now that Mike has the real evidence, it’s only right I turn myself in. Mike said it would make things easier on me.” He gazed at her. “I can’t run forever.”
Mike nodded to the two guards who had come in to stand quietly in the background before leading Jack away. “I’m in talks right now with a judge who specializes in these kind of cases,” he told her. “There’s a solution. Trust me.”
“You said you were going to help him,” Misty said. “How could you make him turn himself in?”
He laid his hand on her shoulder. “Everything is going to work out. I wouldn’t have let him do this if I thought there wasn’t a chance I could make things right.”
She sank down in the chair in front of his desk. “I know. But for him to go through all this again…”
“It will be all right,” Mike said. “I promise.”
Misty watched Jack disappear down the hall and nodded. “You know, I fought against renegade agents, my best friend, and even Jack himself to prove how much I love him.” She looked up at Mike. “You’d better know what you’re doing.”
“I do,” he said and gave her a small smile.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Misty sat behind Jack and Harrison in the small courtroom and watched as Rena, in her hero persona took her place by the judge’s bench. The High Court, which had been put together specifically to deal with villains, not only allowed telepaths to monitor the questioning, they depended on it.
The entire council had broken and confessed when they saw Rena standing nearby. Knowing she’d pick up any lie, they all told the truth from the beginning. The leader said he ordered the execution of Jack’s team and the frame up of Jack himself. Fenmore confessed to murder. Harrington confessed to torture. And that was just the beginning of the crimes they’d committed. They
were going to be locked away for the rest of their lives.
On the final day of testimony, Misty listened to Jack recount everything he’d been through. She winced every time he confessed to a new crime. Her hands shook, and she tried to keep her thoughts to herself, knowing Rena had to concentrate on the trial. A large hand covered hers. She turned and saw Captain Starblast smile at her.
Jack finished speaking and faced the small judge. Misty watched the two of them stare at each other, jumping a little when the woman finally spoke.
“Field Commander McClennan, while you’ve been testifying, the other two judges have been observing you.”
“I’m aware of that, Your Honor.” He pointed to his left eye. “There isn’t much this mechanical eye misses.”
The judge narrowed her eyes. “Don’t be impertinent. We will discuss this at length and let you know our decision. Until that time, you will remain in ULTRA’s custody.”
Misty shook as she watched Jack be led away by two armed ULTRA agents.
****
“Two days,” Misty said as she paced in the living room. “Two days and the judges still haven’t come to a decision.”
Rena glanced at her, shook her head, and went back to the magazine in her lap.
“Do you think he’s all right?” Misty stopped and looked at Rena. “There’re a lot of criminals held at ULTRA who’d love to hurt him.”
“Jack’s a big boy,” Rena said and flipped another page. “He can take care of himself.”
Misty started pacing again. “Maybe I should go see him.”
“Maybe you should trust Mike and stop wearing a hole in the carpet.”
Misty folded her arms, staring hard at Rena. “I don’t think you really care what happens to him.”
“Have a little faith. That’s all I ask.”
Misty watched Rena flip the pages. “You know something, Red.”
Rena just smiled and continued to look at the magazine.
****
Three days after his final testimony, Jack returned to the courtroom to receive his sentence. Harrison was already at the table, with papers lined up in three small stacks. Misty, Rena, Captain Starblast, and Mike Frailer were all in attendance when he was brought in and led to his lawyer. Harrison just smiled and went back to reading the middle stack as the judge looked over the papers on her desk.
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