Carnevale and Subterfuge

by Selena Illyria

  Morrigan had been in the middle of a mission. Heat flared on her face as she remembered returning to the safe house, face bathed in blood, body in agony due to the torture she’d endured, only to find the neat and tidy cabin empty. No sign of life was evident.

  She’d managed to steal a small off-world craft and return to the main base to discover it too was empty. The last communication was the order of the program to be terminated, and all cyborgs decommissioned by the order of the Intergalactic Defense Council. She’d been abandoned and left to die without as much as a warning.

  “They’ll pay,” she breathed. “They’ll all pay, starting with the ambassador.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Ana followed close behind Diego, resisting the urge to reach out and grab his hand. They weren’t in a part of the ship she was familiar with. She knew they were near the landing bay, but this section was off limits to non-engineering crew. Any second now, she expected someone to leap out from one of the many darkened doorways and tell them to turn around. Sweat beaded on her brow and upper lip. A tingling on the back of her neck increased her unease. Heavy footsteps trailing behind them reminded her they weren’t completely alone.

  Roberto had insisted on coming with them and acting as security. When she’d pointed out the need to bring in proper guards, Diego had disagreed, explaining that they couldn’t trust security.

  That small reminder sent another bolt of nervousness through Ana. Her heartbeat raced. Her palms were damp with sweat. The walls seemed to be closing in on them. She wasn’t normally claustrophobic, but being in an unfamiliar place was bringing out a side of her she’d never known existed. Her face felt hot and itchy. She resisted the urge to scratch. She was pretty sure once they’d gotten free of the passage she’d need an allergy shot of some kind.

  “We’re almost there, tesoro,” Diego said.

  His voice was her only comfort. She latched onto it and let her pride fall away. Ana reached out and grabbed his hand, holding onto it for dear life. He stilled for a second before continuing on. A hand on her shoulder caused her to squeak aloud.

  “Sorry, but I need to bypass you and move to the front.” Roberto’s voice seemed louder. She felt him brush past her and watched his darkened form slip in front of Diego. The low voice floated over to her, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying.

  “OK. Bella, Robbie is going to move ahead of us. It’s not far, but the ambassador hasn’t been responding to Robbie’s communications. He wants to make sure it’s safe for us to continue. We need to stop here for a bit.”

  Diego turned around and pulled Ana to him. He enfolded her in his arms and pressed a kiss on the top of her head. The scent of soap and man swirled around her, soothing her nerves.

  “How are you doing? You OK? Do you want to return to the room?

  She shook her head and buried her face in his shirt. “I need answers, Diego. I have to understand.” She gazed up at him. His pale green eyes seemed to glow in the sickly overhead light.

  “I understand, Ana, I do. You shouldn’t have been pulled into this. I’m sorry.” He pressed another kiss to her forehead. Secrets drifted across his face, regret obvious in his eyes.

  She sensed that he was withholding information. “What aren’t you telling me?”

  “Once we’re there. But not out in the open.”

  “Brother, come on. He’s ready for us,” Roberto called out.

  “Come on.” Diego grabbed Ana’s hand and pulled her down along the corridor. She mourned the loss of the heat of his body. Ana hoped that soon she’d have answers.

  They arrived at their destination within a few steps. She’d expected some strange hole in the wall room with pillows and rugs strewn on the floor and boxes of food against a wall. Instead she came out at the far end of the docking bay. A small luxury transport ship sat just a few yards away. It was much smaller than some of the transport and cargo ships that were housed around the large space. The muffled sound of the engines of ships could be heard, as well as a few pings and dings, but other than that it seemed as if they were alone.

  An air lock popped and a gush of air hit Ana’s face as the door to the ship lowered to form a small plank way. A man who looked exactly like Diego stood framed in the doorway, illuminated by the golden light from within the ship.

  “Good to see you made it. Please come in.” The man called out.

  Ana blinked. He even sounded like Diego. Her step stumbled as he pulled her with him to the ship. “Don’t worry, tesoro, he won’t bite.”

  It wasn’t him biting that she was concerned about, it was how similar they looked. The closer they got, the more she saw that they looked like twins. Her world seemed to have split apart.

  They walked up the ramp and entered the ship. The interior wasn’t what she expected. Instead of the barest of utilities, there was a full-size bed, the latest food-processing unit, a bench, and the head. The living space took up the entire back of the cargo ship. Expensive silks and pillows in bright colors were everywhere.

  Ana shook her head. It all felt wasted. The man from the doorway had retreated to the bed. He sat on the edge, his body tense despite the smile on his face.

  “It’s good to see you. It’s been…lonely. I’m so used to being surrounded by people. I used to wish for a bit of quiet. Now that I have it…” Sadness flashed across his face before fading away under a sunny smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Moving on. Why did you need to see me? Are we at Veritas yet? I’ve turned off most of the instruments except for life support and, of course, food and waste management.”

  “Ambassador, I need answers.” Diego moved over to the bench and sat on the edge.

  Ana stood near the doorway, unsure of what to do.

  “We should move inside, Ms. Lavender. We need to close this hatch just in case,” Roberto said.

  Heat flushed her cheeks and neck in embarrassment. “Sorry.”

  A warm, firm hand on her lower back pushed her forward. She stumbled, tripping over a rug and crashing into the opposite wall. Diego was off his seat in an instant. His body crowded hers as he pulled her to him.

  “Are you all right, bella?” His arms wrapped around her making her feel safe and calm.

  “Yeah, just tripped.” Heat flashed through her face.

  “I’m so sorry.” Roberto apologized, mortification clear on his face.

  Out of the corner of her eye she saw the ambassador get up, concern etched on his face.

  “No, no. It’s OK.” Diego guided her to bench. She sat down, feeling more embarrassed than ever.

  Diego wrapped an arm around her and began to talk. “We’re here because I believe we’ve been set up: Officer Lavender and I. We want answers.” He told them all about what conclusions he’d come to. With each word that came out, Anarrae became ever more worried. To think that she’d been marked and Diego had been set up horrified her, and the thought that they were pawns in someone’s game to kill the ambassador sent a chill through her. By the time he was done speaking, Ana shivered as her gaze flitted to all the shadowed spots in the room.

  Diego hugged her tight against him, his fingers gripping her arm in what she assumed was a reassuring squeeze. It didn’t do much. The ambassador settled farther back on the bed. It was odd seeing him like this, so casual, as if Diego hadn’t just told him of the elaborate plot to kill him and the extent to which the perpetrators had gone.

  “It’s a good theory but what if you two hadn’t met? Or hadn’t hit it off? Not that your theory isn’t a good one, but those things have to be considered. I suppose that’s why they brought in the Chameleon Cyborg, to ensure there was a contingency. All things considered, yes, you do make sense.

  “Now, as for who would kill me or go to so much trouble, I’d say my brother. We’ve been trying to end each other since we were infants. That’s the way of the house of Tauranious. I’m the eldest and must fight for dominance, but my mission is to reveal the corruption in the senate and the political structure. You
r mother recommended you for the mission, and I hadn’t really told very many people about it. My office could have been bugged, though. I’ll order a sweep once I’m on Veritas.”

  “That’s it? Our lives are in danger, and this is all for a family feud?” A peek at Diego showed his rage. Despite her own anger, Ana could understand it and had seen these types of family feuds before.

  “Surely in your travels, you’ve seen this type of thing between families and houses?” The ambassador raised a golden-brown eyebrow. His blue eyes sparkled with intensity. Something lurked beyond the azure depths, something dark and frightening.

  “Yes, but—” Diego started.

  “So you understand. It’s like a tide pool, drawing in anything that gets too close. Even innocent bystanders aren’t immune. I apologize for everyone getting hurt on my account, but it’s the way of things and has been since the founding of our house.” He shrugged nonchalantly.

  That small movement angered Ana. The heat of banked rage pierced and cracked the chill of fear. She shrugged off Diego’s arm and stood up.

  “That’s bullshit.” Shaking with a newfound confidence, she moved closer to the ambassador, no longer caring about decorum. Her ship, her friends, and her lover were all in danger and she refused to stand by and allow this politician to act as if everything was status quo. “You and your brother can battle each other all you damn well want but not on my fucking ship. You damn well better figure out a way to fix it before someone dies and that, sir, will be all your fault.”

  Predatory interest glittered in the ambassador’s eyes, making her very aware of their positions. Sometime during her speech, she’d climbed on the bed to get in the man’s face.

  A smile quirked on his lips. He moved his face a few millimeters toward her. His breath fanned her lips.

  “What an interesting person you are.” He regarded her the way a predator looks at prey.

  She felt a tug on her hand. A glance back showed a very upset Diego. Ana quickly rejoined him, more embarrassed than angry now.

  “Sorry.” She ducked her head.

  “I’ll figure something out. If you’ll excuse us, ambassador?” Diego’s face was unreadable as he pulled her out of the shuttle with Roberto at their heels.

  “What the hell was that?” he said, once outside of the ship. Ana opened her mouth to respond only to be cut off. “We were pulled into a family feud? Our lives are in danger because they want to kill each other? And here I thought he was involved with mother. He was flirting with Ana. What the fuck? Roberto, explain this to me before I turn around and hurt him myself.”

  Roberto chuckled. “Worried, brother?”

  Diego reached out and grabbed Ana’s hand. “No.”

  Ana hid a smile and moved closer to him.

  “Bugiardo. Anyway, you are familiar with Rico, the ambassador’s father?”

  Diego gave a tight nod. “Yes.”

  “He and mother were lovers before he married the countess to take his place in society. It was a directive of his father. Mother was very much in love with him. It was with great reluctance that she married father. She was pregnant, you see, and needed someone who was willing to be a father to the child.”

  “Wait, what?” Diego stopped and Ana crashed into him.

  “We must keep moving, remember? Assassin on the loose?” Roberto continued ahead of Diego and with Ana hot on his heels. She wasn’t sure what was going on but she felt it was important.

  “Mother lost the baby,” Roberto went on. “That boy was the last connection she had with Rico. When she looks at the ambassador, she sees her old lover, now dead, and the son she lost.”

  “Fucking hell!” said Diego. “What else haven’t you told me?” His grip on Ana’s hand tightened.

  “Nothing else. It was mother who thought to ask you to do the job. So, given the assassination attempt, we can assume there’s a leak in the ambassador’s office.”

  “No shit, Sherlock.” Diego sighed. “This doesn’t help us. We have a theory as to where the hit came from but no way to track the culprit. I’m assuming they’re going to avoid the med deck. So do I hang out and act as bait?”

  “Well, no, because that’s just suicide. We know they want the ambassador, and we assume that his brother hired them, so the question is how to lure that person out without anyone getting hurt.” Roberto opened up a door in front of them and they stepped out into a hallway near a lift.

  “What level are we on?” asked Ana.

  “We’re on level two.” Confusion covered his face as his gaze moved around.

  The corridor was empty. “Where’re the security drones? They’re supposed to be patrolling.”

  “Shit. You’re right. Something is wrong.” His hold on her hand tightened.

  “I’ve finally found you,” a low gruff voice said from behind them. They all turned to confront by Chief of Security Tigress.

  Something was off. The shifter’s hazel eyes turned from green to brown to gold and then to blue. Ana frowned. She’d never seen Tigress’ eyes go blue before.

  Understanding dawned on her just as the imposter raised a Browning Laser Pistol at Diego.

  “She’s the assassin.” Without thought Ana pulled Diego to the floor just as Roberto pulled a gun. She tugged Diego with her while Roberto and the assassin traded shots in the hallway.

  The world became chaos as security drones came barreling at them. Their round bodies bobbed up and down in the air as their spindly arms turned into weapons. “The captain is going to be so pissed.”

  “Worry about that when we get to him alive. Where would he be right now?” Diego’s palm had become damp.

  “Probably on his way to the danger zone. He’s undoubtedly been alerted of the firefight going on. I’m more worried about where Tigress is.” Ana’s heart hammered against her rib cage.

  “We should go find her. She could tell us more about this person, and how long she’s been mimicking the Chief of Security.”

  “I don’t think for long. The captain would notice.” Ana hoped they got to Tigress in time.

  The captain’s voice boomed over them. “What the hell is going on?”

  Ana snapped to attention at the sight of Drogan standing above them and responded automatically. “Sir, the assassin’s taken on the identity of Chief of Security Tigress Crow-Ley. Roberto, assistant to the ambassador, and the security drones are fighting back there.”

  “Fucking hell! Stay here with security. I’ll give Roberto some support. How the hell did this happen?” Drogan rushed off toward the fight while special ops soldiers surrounded Ana and Diego.

  “Screw this.” Diego said. “I want answers. I’m tired of being jerked around. Come on.” One of the soldiers tried to stop him but Diego glared at the man. “Either you escort us or we go without you. Either way, I’m going.”

  Diego tugged Ana with him. They stepped into the lift only to be crowded to the back by all of the security trying to go with them.

  “Someone hit the button for Chief of Security Tigress Crow-Ley’s quarters.” There was a gentle hitch as Ana’s stomach lurched up, and the elevator began to move. Her hand was still clasped with Diego’s. She moved closer to him, trying to get more room for herself. One of the soldier’s knife sheathes was digging into her arm, and someone else was standing far too close.

  Silence filled the cabin. For a moment the ride became claustrophobic. The quiet was broken here and there with the creaking of leather and a few muttered curses. When the lift stopped, it was a relief when everyone rushed out into the hallway. Ana took a few deep breaths, filling her lungs with air and trying to find her calm.

  “You OK, cara?” Diego reached out and caressed her face.

  The concern he showed made her feel much better. “Yeah, just felt a bit claustrophobic.”

  “Now you know how I feel. I’m not that great on ships either, but it’s worth it when you get to a new port and explore a new world.” He squeezed her hand.

  Ana wondered how
the awe of being in space didn’t overwhelm him as it did her. “You’ve had a lot of adventures, haven’t you?”

  “Yes, I have.” Diego gave her a mysterious smile. “Come on, let’s go find out what happen to the Chief of Security. Which way do we go?”

  “Down this hallway, sir.” One of the guards directed. He took point and they followed him.

  Ana’s heart thudded in her chest like a jackhammer. Despite not knowing Tigress very well, she was scared of what she would find once they reached the Chief of Security’s quarters.

  “We’ll have to ask you to stay back. We’ll go in first and secure the area.” Soldiers swarmed around them, and Diego pulled Ana against the wall. His arms encircled her shoulders. She buried her head in against his chest and waited. The gentle whoosh of the doors opening raised goose bumps on her arms. A sudden commotion could be heard and then footsteps rushed past them.

  Ana lifted her head and watched as three guards ran past them. In front of them was a woman clad all in black holding a gun. Shots were fired but they all missed.

  “Come on.” Diego grabbed her hand and led her to the room. A chill raced down her spine as they entered Tigress’s suite of rooms. It was much larger than Ana’s own suite and sectioned off into small areas by low walls and cabinets. They crept in while the guards were looking the place over.

  “So far the place is secure. What’s this?” One of the guards pointed his rifle at a machine the size of a large backpack. At the top, lights blinked on and off and there was some sort of LED readout in an alien language that Ana didn’t recognize.

  “I need help!” Diego called out. He was kneeling on the floor with Tigress in his arms. “I opened the closet and she fell out. She’s unconscious.”

  “I’ll get the doc here.” The soldier spoke into his wrist com, then frowned. “No signal. Can anyone call out?”