“He’d have killed me if I didn’t do what he asked. Death wasn’t one of the choices I favored.”
“It has come to you all the same,” Viktor pulled his gun with its silencer from inside his vest and fired two shots into Johnson’s chest.
Johnson winced and placed his hands over his heart. His knees struck the sidewalk heavily. He fell forward with wide eyes as death claimed him.
Grayson Enterprises (Two weeks later)
Jonas sat at Grayson’s desk, looking through various files, and approving work orders.
Boony entered the office. “Is everything going okay?”
Jonas looked up and nodded. “I suppose. The last thing I ever expected was for the leadership of Grayson Enterprises to be dropped in my lap.”
“I imagine Grayson had his reasons?”
Jonas offered a slight shrug. “He’s always trusted me.”
“I suppose it was a good thing we left Mars then?”
Jonas laughed. “That’s probably the reason I was at the top of the list to oversee his operations.”
“So let me get this straight. He still owns Grayson Enterprises and all the operations he set up on Mars, but he was sent to Mars to work in the mines like the other prisoners?”
“Sadly, yes.”
“The irony has to be painful.”
“Not if he’s under control of the chip. He’s not going to remember a thing.”
“How long is his sentence? Won’t the government try to take everything away from him?” she asked.
“That’s some of what I’ve been reading through this morning. They will try, but Grayson has a ruthless team of attorneys that will find every loophole possible to have the charges against Grayson dropped. Senator Johnson was the only reason Grayson was sent to Mars. The shuttle took off before the authorities ever got a chance to open the investigation. And then, of course, Johnson had been killed.”
Boony shook her head, taking in all the information. “Matthews is in charge on Mars. Even if the attorneys manage to get these charges dropped and grant Grayson freedom, do you think Matthews will ever honor such orders?”
“It’s hard to say, Boony. Grayson is powerful here on Earth, but like you said, Matthews is calling the shots there. It will be interesting how this plays out. The good news is that Carter never had a deadly virus, so that potential threat is gone.”
She cringed. “Yes, but it’s a shame that he killed everyone stationed on Deimos.”
Jonas held a grim smile. “Sometimes the prisoners are the least of our worries. It’s the ones who haven’t yet committed any heinous crimes that are troublesome. You never know when they’ll strike.”
“What about the strange insects that Clark brought back?”
“They’re in a highly secure lab here.”
“That’s safe?”
Jonas nodded. “Safer than any university lab. I’m certain by the time Grayson ever returns to Earth, if he does, Clark will have all his research data on the insects and won’t have to worry about Grayson trying to steal his thunder. Clark will have his moments in the scientific spotlight.”
“That’s good for him.”
“It is.”
Boony stood in silence for several minutes. She looked like she wanted to say something but held back.
“What’s on your mind, Boony?”
“I have a favor to ask,” she said.
“Sure. What is it?”
“I’d like your permission to take a few days to go to Dallas and see if I can find Magnus. I have a good idea where he is. Nothing has been reported in the news about him getting revenge on the gang that killed his cousin. I’d like to help him if I can.”
Jonas studied her for a few moments. “You still believe he’s innocent of the charges.”
She nodded. “I do. If I held any doubts, I’d let it be. But, all the evidence that wasn’t admitted into court was damning to the prosecution and the judge’s overall decision, which is why I think it was all discredited.”
“You think they were in league with the gang?”
“It’s very possible.”
Jonas shook his head and frowned. “If there’s one thing I cannot stand, it’s corrupt judges, attorneys, and police. Go. Keep me posted. But promise me something.”
Boony smiled. “What?”
“If you need anything, call me immediately. I have a lot of contacts, and I definitely will be calling Texas’ Attorney General, informing him of the corruptness in that court. Be careful.”
“I will, Jonas. And thanks.”
81
Dallas, Texas (24 hours later)
Magnus sat in his rundown one bedroom apartment. He studied a city map he had spread out on the floor. Empty Chinese food and pizza boxes cluttered the small coffee table. Someone knocked at the door.
He turned his head sharply in the direction of the knock and frowned. To the best of his knowledge no one except his landlord knew he was there. He stood and pulled his 9mm from the back of his belt and eased toward the door.
“Magnus?” Boony asked from the hallway. “You in there?”
“Boony?” He tucked the gun behind his back.
“Yes.”
Magnus swung the door open. She beamed a wide smile, and rushed and jumped to hug his neck. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her narrow waist, holding her a couple of feet off the floor. “Why the hell are you back on Earth and how’d you ever locate me?”
After he lowered her and invited her inside, Boony explained the reasons why she and Jonas, along with the others had returned to Earth. “And as far as finding you? You know me and surveillance cameras.” She winked.
“Ah, you’ve been spying on me?”
“Not really, but I thought you might need some help. I didn’t want you to do something that would land you real jail time. I was afraid that since you arrived on Earth a couple of weeks earlier than we did that I was too late.”
“No need to worry about that. Apparently the gang members who killed my ex-girl’s cousin have long gone.”
“Tyler Malcolm?” she asked. “Was he the leader?”
“Yeah,” Magnus said with a slight curious frown. “How’d you know?”
“I told you that I’d look into your case. When they arrested you, his name was the one you gave to the police to search, but they ignored your request.”
“I guess it was easier to charge me since I was less of a threat than Tyler’s entire gang.”
Boony smiled. “I think maybe some of the officers, the prosecutor, and the judge were in cahoots with Tyler Malcolm. Instead of bringing charges and arresting him and his gang members, they received a large cut of the money from drug sales.”
“I’ve thought about that, too. But hell, there’s no way to prove it, and even if I could, we haven’t any idea which officers we could trust to turn them in.”
“Jonas said that he has ties higher up at the state capital.”
Magnus looked at her and shook his head. “Jonas is willing to help me? Nah, I know better than that.”
“If we get the proof, he will. I’ve never known him to go back on his word.”
“Like I said, T.M. isn’t using the warehouse where he set me up.”
She smiled. “No, now he’s using one several blocks away.”
“For real? You found that out?”
“It’s not difficult when you have computer access to the Dallas City Records, which Jonas does and allowed me to snoop around.”
Magnus chuckled. “That’s definitely something I don’t have.”
“So what was your plan?”
Magnus sat down and pointed at the map on the floor. “Where is the warehouse he’s using now?”
Boony knelt to the side of the map and after a few minutes of tracing the city grid, she pointed. “There. So what do you want to do?”
“With some of the money I got from selling those MarQuebes, I bought some spy-tech cameras and bugs, hoping to uplink whatever I could capture on f
ilm and audio to get enough evidence to have them all arrested.”
“So you’re not planning to kill Tyler yourself?”
“Lord, no. I think his time in prison would be a greater punishment. How can death punish him? It’s instant. I want all of them behind bars without the possibility of parole, which based on our judicial system is a long shot.”
“You need some help?” Boony asked. “Setting up the cameras and bugs?”
He shook his head. “No, I can’t have you putting your life on the line for this.”
“Okay,” she replied. “How about an extra set of eyes? I could be your lookout.”
Magnus smiled. “That would be something I need. I have binoculars.”
“Great. So we should probably go check out the warehouse and figure out a way to get these devices set.”
“My motorcycle’s in the parking lot.”
“Motorcycle?”
He nodded.
“You’re settling in pretty good already.”
“Ah, this place, nah, I don’t intend to stay here. It’s a weekly lease, but a good place to blend in. Say, have you heard anything about Sylvia and Carter?”
“You didn’t hear?”
Magnus looked worried. “No. Is Sylvia okay?”
“She’s fine, I suppose. She’s been released from her contract with Grayson and from what I can figure out, she went to live with family. But Carter—”
“What’d he do?”
Boony rose to her feet and rested her hands on her hips. “He killed everyone that was stationed on Deimos.”
Magnus’ mouth dropped open. His eyes widened. “I suspected that he was a bit messed up in the head because he kept going into weird trances, but I never thought he’d ever do something like that. And to think Sylvia and I had traveled back from Mars with him.”
“He’s not going to ever get out of prison.”
“It’s a shame his fate turned out so badly.”
“Count your blessings. You’re lucky he didn’t kill you and Sylvia aboard the shuttle home.”
Magnus nodded. “The first month that we went into Hyber-Sleep he stayed awake. I noticed him while I was going under and he wasn’t preparing to sedate himself and get into his chamber. It was frightening because there wasn’t anything I could do.”
“You’re safe now.”
“Yep. Come on, let’s go scope the warehouse.”
In order for Magnus to get inside the warehouse, Boony had to become a major distraction to lure out the two gang members who guarded the warehouse while the rest of the group were out on their bikes.
She had worn short shorts and stood bent over the side of Magnus’ motorcycle acting frustrated that she couldn’t get the engine to fire. Of course, the two men hurriedly offered to come help, and while she feigned helplessness, they combed over the bike, trying to identify the reason for it not starting.
Magnus hurried inside and concealed cameras in every corner of the warehouse. Then he planted a few bugs where he guessed Tyler might negotiate terms for major drug deals. When he finished setting up the devices, he slipped out through the rear side door into an alley. Once he was at a safe distance where the two guards wouldn’t see him, he texted Boony.
She then pointed to a loose wire, connected it, and got onto the motorcycle. She started the motorcycle, smiled, and then rode away.
After a week of recording video surveillance from the rooftop and the inside of the warehouse, which was forwarded to Jonas, he made contact with the state attorney general who sent a SWAT team to raid the warehouse at the most convenient time. Three local officers were inside in the middle of a trade when the armed police forced everyone to lie facedown on the floor.
Magnus and Boony sat upon the roof of a neighboring building, watching everything as the SWAT officers took the gang members, including Tyler Malcolm, and several police officers into custody. Every major television news station was present, as were countless newspaper reporters.
Magnus tipped his bottle of beer toward Boony’s and she clinked hers to his in a toast.
A few days later, the national news reported the arrest of the prosecutor and the judge from Magnus’ case. Jonas had pointed higher ups in the right direction as he had promised. Charges against Magnus were later dropped, and he declined the offers from attorneys wishing to represent him in a suit against the city.
82
Olympus Mons: Six months later:
The passenger shuttle entered the landing bay of Olympus Mons. Steven Matthews stood near the landing pad with two guards and a medic. After the shuttle engines shut off, the door opened.
Guards rushed inside with CAM-Ls and commanded the new prisoners to exit the shuttle. Grayson was the last prisoner through the door. He was a massive man compared to the others. Matthews smiled as Grayson walked toward him.
Matthews stared into Grayson’s absent eyes and shook his head. “Welcome to Mars, Boyd. So, my friend, the tables have finally turned, haven’t they? I imagine the last place you’d ever expected to find yourself was on Mars, as a mining prisoner nonetheless.” He chuckled. “Fate can be such a nasty bitch sometimes. Those who sentenced you to come here are probably quite tickled to entertain their thoughts of your demise as you waste away in the very pits where you had sent others to slave until they died. However, how they view your fate is much different than my own.”
Matthews nodded to the medic. The medic placed the chip deactivator against Grayson’s implanted Sleeper Chip. Several minutes later Grayson shook his head and blinked. His eyes darted back and forth as he was trying to comprehend where he was. Finally, it dawned on him and Matthews smiled. “I shall repeat it. Welcome to Mars, Boyd.”
Grayson stood with an incredulous stare. He frowned.
“You look surprised, Grayson,” Matthews said.
“It’s because I am. You released me from the chip?”
Matthews nodded. “I did.”
“Why? I don’t understand. You could have allowed me to die in the mines like Senator Johnson had hoped.”
Matthews laughed. “Senator Johnson is no more a threat to our establishment, if I could be so bold to assume we have an equally vested interest in keeping Grayson Enterprises alive and well on Earth?”
“We do.”
“Good. Glad to hear it.”
Grayson rubbed his temples. “Forgive me. My memories are a bit distorted.”
“That tends to be a side effect of those chips, but your memories will resurface shortly.”
“And how can we be certain that Johnson won’t cause further problems?”
Matthews leaned slightly forward with a sly grin and whispered into Grayson’s ear. “The senator had run into some misfortune and has been permanently retired.”
Grayson’s eyebrows rose. “You mean that he’s dead?”
“Very.”
“Who killed him?”
“You don’t remember?” Matthews asked.
“No.”
“Viktor and Parks. You requested their assistance immediately after Johnson had you taken into custody and ordered you to be implanted with a chip. Viktor and Parks were more than happy to oblige. And the senator’s son is back in the mines. You see, I have honored my contract with you.”
“Above and beyond,” Grayson replied.
“I’d have it no other way, Boyd. I recognized the power we each held prior to our first meeting, but I have also recognized how much more powerful we are as a team. The governments on Earth will soon shudder when the enlightenment of our union seizes them.”
Grayson extended his hand to Matthews. “I’m indebted to you. I don’t know how to repay you.”
Matthews grinned and vigorously shook Grayson’s hand. “Half of everything has a nice ring to it.”
“Half?”
Matthews shrugged. “Equal partners. Besides we both have far more wealth than either of us could ever spend in dozens of lifetimes. And, I think Grayson and Matthews’ Enterprises is rather catchy. Don’
t you?”
Grayson grinned. “I’m not thrilled about it, but it’s livable.”
“Great! Now, let us find a suitable way to return you to the US, so you can continue to be the pressing thorn in the side of those who hate you most.”
“I always thought that was you.”
“Once upon a time, my good man, but no longer. Let bygones be bygones.” Matthews reached into his suit pocket. “Cigar?”
Grayson accepted it. “Who is currently overseeing Grayson Enterprises on Earth?”
“Jonas. Apparently you had also informed Henry to have Jonas take the reins for a while, but that’s another reason I cannot afford for you to be a miner here. Jonas and I . . . well, we’ll never see eye to eye on things. He’s too ethical in ways that you and I are not.”
Grayson nodded. “I agree, but he’s the only person on Earth I’d have trusted until I can return.”
“I totally agree, but your team of attorneys are quite busy fighting off all the attempted fines and seizures of properties on Earth, and I expect that they’ll do one damn good job in preventing the government from prying anything out of our grasp.”
“That’s why they make the big money.”
“Indeed,” Matthews said, striking a match off the wall.
Grayson lit his cigar off the rising flame. “Thanks.”
Matthews grinned. “Now, since this is your first time to visit, let me show you around. I’m sure in a few months you’ll be more than ready to return to your throne on Earth. I may, in fact, accompany you. Mars has a cold way of settling on you, and as I’m certain you’ll agree, ‘there’s no place like home.’ And that’s on Earth, not Mars. Besides, with the bizarre bloodthirsty insects locked inside the mineshaft—”
“Insects?” Grayson frowned.
Matthews nodded and explained the insects in detail. “I ordered a large supply of flamethrowers and napalm since extreme heat seems to be the only thing capable of killing them. These weapons should arrive any day, but I’d rather not be around when they reopen that mineshaft.”
“I agree,” Grayson said.
“Ah, to Earth it is, eh, ol’ chum?” Matthews asked.
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