by Gun Brooke
Madisyn had begun to blossom under her attention. Madisyn, who never thought anyone would ever find her desirable if they knew the whole truth about her, had to feel so betrayed. Well, it wasn’t Weiss’s idea to keep her true identity from her. She stalked along the mezzanine, cursing Jacelon for putting her in this position. Why couldn’t that damn woman just have sent her to a maximum-security prison?
“Kyakh! Over here!” Struyen broke her miserable train of thought. “We could use an additional pair of hands.”
“You can manage,” Weiss shouted back. “Podmer made me supervisor.”
“Ah, come on. You’re just too fancy, too good to do honest work, aren’t you?”
Weiss couldn’t believe her ears. She started laughing, which made Struyen turn dark red with rage.
“What the hell’s so damn funny?” he hissed.
“A pirate claiming he’s doing honest work.” More laughter erupted and Weiss had to wipe at the corners of her eyes. “That’s rich.” She could see several other crewmen who found it amusing, but who also knew better than to laugh out loud at Struyen.
“You won’t be laughing much longer,” Struyen said in a dark voice. “And once Podmer sees who he really can rely on—”
“Yeah, yeah, get back to what you were doing, Struyen, and quit wasting time.” Weiss knew she was antagonizing the man even more, but it felt good. Right now, she didn’t care very much what happened to her, and the only reason she hadn’t stolen the shuttle and taken off to lick her wounds was her feelings for Madisyn. She was still determined not to leave Madisyn alone with these idiots. Whether she liked it or not, Madisyn would have to put up with Weiss keeping her safe.
“Everything going well?” Podmer said from behind, startling her.
“Yes, Captain.” Weiss nodded down at the crewmembers hauling the ore onto small sledges. “Are we going to use shuttles, or…?”
“No, we’re going to dock the ships, well into the asteroid ring.”
“Ah, that will make it virtually impossible for any patrols to spot us on sensors.”
“Exactly.” Podmer smiled, looking pleased. “I admit that M’Aldovar character unsettled me, but he’s paying twice the going rate for davic crystals, so I’m not really complaining.”
“Twice, eh? Good. Will that mean any bonus for us, sir?” It would be in her character to be greedy, she thought.
“At least for some of the senior crew.” Podmer shrugged and adjusted his immaculately tailored jacket. “Looking to set some aside so you can get back to being your own boss again, Kyakh?”
“Something like that, sir.”
“Can’t blame you. Once you’ve captained your own ship, it’s not easy to take orders from someone else. You’ve been quite good about it. I appreciate how you’ve cooperated.”
“Thank you. I’m all for making some extra credits.”
“And so you will if this goes smoothly.” Podmer placed a fat hand on her shoulder and Weiss had to use all her willpower not to break his wrist. “Let me know once you have it all ready to go.”
“Aye, Captain.”
He strode down the mezzanine and out through the door leading to the corridor. Weiss followed his figure with narrowing eyes. She loathed the man and the way he treated his crew. She was just as ruthless as he was, but she had kept a tight ship, with clear and just treatment of her crew. They had, with few exceptions, respected her, even liked her.
Weiss glanced down and saw that the men would be ready in a few hours. She didn’t have much time. She had to contact Jacelon about this transaction. If an Onotharian general was so adamant about this ore, it wasn’t hard to figure out that the SC needed to know. Madisyn might have contacted Jacelon already, but Weiss was sure Madisyn hadn’t told Jacelon that she was aware of Weiss’s true background. Sighing deeply, Weiss knew she might as well be up front about that too. But she wouldn’t tell Jacelon that she had disabled the chip. If Jacelon found out about that, she might extract Weiss immediately, and who would look out for Madisyn?
Weiss pulled out a small device from her inner pocket. Having taken all night to construct it from parts she’d come across over the weeks aboard the Salaceos, she had managed to mirror the settings from Madisyn’s computer, including the encrypted transmission software. It would need something to boost it with, and fortunately she was standing next to a vast piece of bulkhead that would serve well as an amplifier.
Placing the device on the wall, Weiss pulled an adhesive from another pocket and attached it. She put in Madisyn’s password, something it hadn’t taken her very long to memorize, and hoped for a signal. She kept a wary eye on the men and women working six meters below her. No one was paying any attention to her, but she needed to make sure and be quick.
“Weiss Kyakh for Admiral Jacelon, emergency-emergency-emergency, over.”
Static hummed and she tried again. “Weiss Kyakh here for Admiral Jacelon, emergency, over.”
Static mixed with waves of whistling made Weiss worry that someone might overhear. Still below, crewmembers hollered to each other and made even more noise. So far, nobody looked up at her.
“Weiss Kyakh for Admiral Jace—”
“Admiral Jacelon here. Who is this?” a gruff male voice responded, making Weiss flinch.
“I need to talk to Admiral Rae Jacelon.” Weiss’s head reeled. A male admiral Jacelon. That had to be Jacelon’s father. Dahlia Jacelon’s husband. Oh, stars and skies, the husband of her latest kidnap victim. Wonderful.
“Who is this?” The man offered no explanations.
“Admiral Jacelon, my name is Weiss Kyakh, and your daughter sent me on a mission.”
“Kyakh.” The contempt was obvious, but he didn’t cut the connection. “Go on.”
“I have important information. It’s vital that you put her through.”
“It’s impossible. You have to give your information to me.”
Weiss hesitated. Surely Jacelon’s father, an SC officer with even higher rank than his daughter, would be able to do something about Podmer’s plans.
“All right, sir. I’m currently aboard the Salaceos, a ship belonging to—”
“Podmer. Yes, I know the background. Go on.”
“All right. He is about to trade davic crystal and intel obtained by attacking the SC cruise ship Koenigin to the Onotharians. To a General Trax M’Aldovar.”
“Did—did you say Trax M’Aldovar?” Ewan Jacelon sounded incredulous. “Impossible. My daughter-in-law killed him.”
“Severely disabled him, yes, Admiral, and he relies on a ventilator to breathe, as well as a hover chair for moving around, but I guarantee, Trax M’Aldovar survived.”
“This is bad news.” Ewan Jacelon’s voice was cold and flat. “Where is your position?”
“Transmitting that as we speak, Admiral.” Weiss sent the grid readings. “Just inside the Gantharat system, as you can tell. A dense asteroid belt around an uninhabited planet.”
“All right. I will relay your information to the team we have deployed closest to you.”
“I need further orders on how to proceed, since this transaction is going down now, and for all I know, M’Aldovar might disappear as soon as the crystals are in his possession.”
“He must be stopped at all cost, Kyakh. I repeat. Stop him by any means necessary.”
“Aye, sir.” Weiss flinched as a sound over by the door startled her. “Got to go, Admiral. Kyakh out.” She snatched the device from the bulkhead and tucked it inside her jacket. Two of Struyen’s buddies entered, sauntering toward her with sly grins on their faces.
“Hey, Kyakh.” The taller of the two, clearly of Onotharian descent, his eyes narrowly placed and with an unpleasant yellow tone to them, raised his hand.
“What are you doing up here?” Kyakh spoke quietly, something any member of her own crew would have recognized as a warning sign.
“Just enjoying the view,” the other pirate replied, eyeing her with blatant desire.
“Get ba
ck to your duty stations. You are both needed in the cargo bay.” Even and cool, Weiss’s obvious lack of dismay or fear seemed to get through to the taller man.
“Why don’t we enjoy the view—together?” the second pirate said, and pulled out something resembling a martial arts baton. “My friend Shafas here and I have something to discuss with you.”
“Struyen isn’t going to take the fall for you when I report you to the captain.” Weiss leaned against the bulkhead and crossed one leg over the other, scrutinizing her nails with deliberate indifference. “You’ll only make total fools of yourself.” She made sure she kept an eye on the baton. “Shafas, I know these morons have you convinced, but think about it. Who is Struyen’s best friend among the two of you? Who will most likely be the one left to our captain’s less-than-amiable nature?”
“Holta?” Shafas turned to his friend. “Perhaps—”
“Shut up,” Holta replied, clearly angry now. He shifted his grip around the baton, back and forth. “That goes for you too, Kyakh.”
“Really.” Weiss kept her casual position, but every muscle in her body was ready to launch. “Use your head, Shafas.”
“Holta?”
“I said, shut up!” Holta leaped toward Weiss, his baton raised.
Weiss quickly moved her bent leg in behind her, to brace for impact as she rolled with the onslaught. Holta was shorter but had more bulk, and the only thing she believed would work was to absorb the energy of his assault. She threw herself backward, gripping his lapels. His body flew across hers, slamming into the railing. Weiss felt Holta grab her harness and pull her toward him. Slamming her hand up from underneath his, she broke his hold and rolled to a crouching position. Shafas, panic in his eyes, ran toward her. Not having any time to think, Weiss grabbed the railing with both hands and pulled hard. Both her feet left the floor and plunged into Shafas’s abdomen. He staggered backward and fell, hitting his head against the bulkhead with a resounding thud.
“You bitch!” Holta was back on his feet, and before Weiss had time to regain her balance, he slammed into her, one arm around her waist, one with a painful grip of her hair. He smelled of sweat and some vile tobacco, and the grunting he made closer to her ear sickened her even more. Driving her knee up, she made contact with his testicles. The air left his lungs rapidly, and Weiss didn’t give him time to even think of recuperating. She repeated the maneuver, and when she felt his grip of her hair loosen, she drove her fist sideways into his windpipe.
Squeaking now rather than roaring, Holta clawed at her face, and she wasn’t fast enough to pull away in time. The burning sensation of his nails breaking her skin made her furious. Until now she had fought like she always did, cold and detached, but that all changed. Weiss pushed Holta away from her, able to gain momentum in her blows. With quick jabs at his temples and his gut, she finished him off with a well-aimed uppercut. He followed Shafas as he stumbled over his unconscious friend’s legs. Cross-eyed, he lay there, blood oozing from his mouth.
“Kyakh to Podmer.” Kyakh spoke into her communicator.
“Podmer here. All done?”
“Negative, sir.” Kyakh leaned against the railing, looking down at the men and women hauling the davic crystals. “Struyen’s cronies, Holta and Shafas, just attacked me. Apparently Struyen sees me as a contender for the throne and sent his friends to do his dirty work. Wish someone had told him I’m not interested in either your position or your ship. All I want is what credits I have coming.”
“What the hell’s that idiot up to now? I’ll deal with it.”
“You better send someone to take these fools to sickbay. I’m on my lunch break. Kyakh out.” Weiss carefully touched her cheek as she stepped over the two semiconscious men. Blood soaked her fingers and she grimaced at the pain. “Nothing that Madisyn’s derma fuser can’t fix.”
People that she met stared at her face, but Weiss didn’t allow any questions. She strode to her quarters and headed directly for the bathroom. Tugging at the med kit, she was about to start the derma fuser when a voice from the doorway interrupted her.
“If you use that without the cleanser first, especially since someone’s dirty nails did that, you’ll get an infection.” Madisyn stood just inside the door, her arms folded across her chest.
“Oh. All right.” Suddenly feeling weak, Weiss looked at her reflection in the mirror. “How did you know?”
“I was in Podmer’s office when you paged him.”
“I see.” Weiss looked in the med kit for a cleanser rod, but couldn’t find any.
“Oh, for stars and skies, let me do it.” Madisyn pushed Weiss away from the sink and made her sit on a small stool. “Let’s clean you up.”
Weiss closed her eyes as Madisyn gently washed her face. After that, the hum of a cleanser rod made her skin tingle. The darker, louder buzz of the derma fuser made her flinch. She had a sudden flashback to when she had been confined to sickbay in a strange spaceship, missing her mother more than anything. The constant treatments of the burns on her legs had hurt, but not half as bad as futilely asking for her mother every day.
“Weiss? Weiss?” Madisyn frowned, cupping Weiss’s cheek as she performed the fusing. “Why are you crying? Am I hurting you?”
“No, no. Got something in my eyes.” Furious at herself, Weiss blinked away the treacherous tears. She focused on her breathing, inhaling and exhaling in exact seconds, a technique that had proved useful and efficient many times. Madisyn’s hands were warm, and the concern in her eyes was evident even if Madisyn clearly still hated everything about her.
“At least the Struyen situation should work out one way or the other now that you’ve beat the hell out of his cohorts.” Madisyn placed the instruments back in the kit. “It’ll be interesting to see what Podmer decides to do.”
“Yes.” Rising on surprisingly wobbly legs, Weiss headed for her bed. She had to lie down for just a few minutes. Judging from the throbbing pain around her chest, her ribs were bruised, perhaps even cracked. She refused to tell Madisyn. It was torture to be physically near her, and to undress and have her touch her naked skin would be unbearable. Weiss also knew she would have to figure out a way to get in touch with Ewan Jacelon. There had been something more in his voice, something beyond the shock of finding out the man who nearly killed his daughter was still alive. Yawning, Weiss couldn’t resist the urge to close her eyes. Just for a moment.
Chapter Twenty-one
The diplomatic team had made great progress after the eight-hour marathon negotiation. Amereena and Dahlia had between them managed to unite old political adversaries among the Gantharian resistance. No group or sub-group had a flawless past, and even though all of them fought to regain their freedom, they went about it in different ways. Kellen had never doubted what her duty was, or which path to choose.
First it was all about Tereya, and then Tereya’s son, Armeo. Now she was more fragmented when it came to her duty and her future. Armeo was still her first priority, but after him came Rae, their family and friends, the SC and her commission in its military force. Kellen had not contributed to her full potential during the meeting. Her thoughts returned constantly to Rae, trying to transmit her love by sheer willpower. Kellen tried to convince herself that if anybody could beat impossible odds, it was her wife. Rae loved her and Armeo, who she regarded as the son of her heart, and she would do anything humanly possible—and impossible—to return to them.
Still, war was war, and brutality and death did not discriminate. Kellen had received word that the Paesina was only charred space debris, and even if a lot of her crew had been rescued from escape pods, some even from floating freely in space, there was still no sign of any of its bridge crew, including Rae.
Relieved that the meeting was over, Kellen walked ahead of the others to the shuttle that would take them back to the Circinus. She strode across the landing pad and waited impatiently while she made sure Dahlia and Amereena walked aboard together with Owena and Leanne.
“Prot
ector, ma’am, there’s an incoming subspace message for you.” A nervous ensign stood in the opening to the navigational niche. “You can use my console. It is a secure transmission.”
“Thank you, Ensign.” Kellen exchanged a glance with Dahlia. “I’ll let you know if it’s about Rae. Instantly.”
“Yes, please.” Dahlia slumped into her seat, looking pale.
Leanne sat down next to her, offering a bottle of water. “Here. You’ve been without fluids and food far too long, Diplomat Jacelon.”
“Thank you, Leanne.” Dahlia gripped the bottle with trembling fingers.
Knowing Dahlia was in good hands, Kellen slipped into the navigational niche and closed the door behind her. She punched in her ID code and responded to the transmission.
“Commander Kellen O’Dal here on a secure channel. Go ahead.”
“Kellen, it’s Ewan.” Her father-in-law sounded gruff, and his use of their first names turned her midsection into a river of ice water.
“Ewan, I hear you loud and clear.” That was all she could do: answer correctly by the book.
“Good. Good. I still have no news of Rae,” he said quickly, as if to get that part out of the way. “This is not about her at all, I’m afraid.”
Confused, Kellen rubbed her stinging eyes. “Go on.”
“I don’t know how much Rae told you about the undercover operation she ran in the sectors between the SC border and the Gantharat system?”
“She sent Weiss Kyakh as a double agent to some pirate gang. That’s all I know.”
“Yes. I heard from Kyakh six hours ago.” Ewan sighed. “She’s aboard a ship, the Salaceos, run by a thug named Podmer. Her contact onboard is a sentient BNSL, Madisyn Pimm. Normally, Pimm’s the one that reports in, but as things are, Kyakh broke protocol and tried to reach Rae. Her page was automatically forwarded to me when…when Rae wasn’t available.”