Jones held his breath, hoping ridiculously that it hadn’t been heard over the pump’s noise.
Then the alarm sounded.
Hamilton heard Jones’ blunder and saw the guard strike the alarm in the hut. The entire area was suddenly bathed in light as dozens of hidden floodlights burst into glaring, halogen-powered life.
Hamilton got out of the car at once. The guard dog moved forward menacingly, obviously trained to react to the sound of the alarm and perceiving Hamilton as the cause of it. Hamilton backed around to the engine compartment and quickly
undid the sabotage that had rendered the vehicle inoperative. The dog growled ever louder. It was as if it could read his mind.
The two guards and remaining dog had disappeared inside the warehouse at a run. Hamilton scanned the rooftop for Jones. Sure enough, there he was, lowering the ladder across to the opposite warehouse.
Hamilton completed his repairs and returned to the driver’s side of the car.
The dog blocked his way, snarling now, revealing huge fangs. Hamilton froze. There was no reasoning with animals, he knew. Best to subdue them or dispose of them swiftly, particularly vicious brutes like this one. He slid a hand cautiously beneath the shirt Jones had loaned him and into his jumpsuit and withdrew a small cylinder, not unlike the one he’d used to damage his room with.
“Nice doggy.” he crooned.
The dog snarled viciously and prepared to spring. Hamilton brought the cylinder up swiftly and sprayed something in the animal’s face. The dog promptly forgot about attacking and fell over onto its side, whining piteously. Hamilton ignored it and got into the car, putting away his little cylinder.
Perversely, the car refused to start. Hamilton cursed and thumped the wheel in time-honoured fashion. He could see that Jones had crossed to the other building and was disappearing over the ridgeline. He tried the engine again. It choked and gagged but finally fired up. Breathing a sigh of relief, Hamilton got under way, driving around the back of the building Jones was on.
The black man was clambering down the last few rungs of a rope ladder. He dropped the last few feet and hurried over to the car. Hamilton opened the door for him and he jumped in, sweating profusely.
“Let’s go!” he huffed, urgently.
Hamilton needed little urging. The car shot away into the darkness.
By the time the two guards traced the route the burglar had taken, the car was long gone.
They stopped some blocks away in a dark alley. There, they changed out of their disguises. Hamilton pulled the fake moustache off with a grimace and threw it aside. The clothes they bundled into the boot. Black tape, which had subtly altered the number plate, was peeled off and the correct hire company stickers replaced. They got back into the car again and drove off.
“What went wrong?” Hamilton asked.
Jones shook his head sadly. “Damn box burst as I was pulling it up. You’d think they’d make ‘em sturdier.”
Hamilton shrugged as he drove. “They’re not meant to be pulled about like that.”
“I know. I know. It just pisses me off when I have to abandon my gear like that.”
“Well, at least you weren’t caught.” Hamilton said.
Jones nodded. “Some comfort, at least. Still, by the looks of the components, it wasn’t what I’d been led to believe, anyway.”
Hamilton glanced across at him. “Dodgy contacts, huh?”
Jones shrugged. “Occupational hazard, I guess.”
They drove on in silence for a while, following a circuitous route back to Jones’ place. There was little other traffic, particularly once they entered the slums.
As they pulled up outside Jones’ apartment building Hamilton said. “So, I’ve helped you. Now it’s your turn to help me.”
Jones nodded. “I know. I just want to rest a little, that’s all. Have a drink, too.”
The pair abandoned the car and trudged up to Jones’ place. Jones went to unlock his door, and stared at the lock in horror.
It had been smashed off. He glanced at Hamilton in concern.
Hamilton pushed past him and withdrew something dangerous looking from his jumpsuit. He placed an ear to the door but could detect no signs of movement or talking from within. Cautiously, he pushed the door open.
The room had been completely wrecked. Jones’ computer had been smashed to pieces and his ‘merchandise’ liberated or battered into junk. Graffiti had been sprayed all over the walls and more odorous leavings had been smeared over tables and chairs. There didn’t appear to be much that was salvageable.
Jones wandered about his place in a kind of daze, as if unwilling to believe what had happened. Occasionally he would stoop down, examining some personal item, before moving on.
Hamilton tried to make sense of the graffiti. Most of it was typical self-aggrandizement gang rubbish. There was no mention of which gang had carried out the destruction, but Hamilton noticed that many of the symbols painted about bore a remarkable resemblance to the tattoos he’d seen on the heads of his assailants in Smokin’ Pete’s bar. It was easy to figure out what had happened.
After his escape from the gang in the bar, they’d grilled Smokin’ Pete. Not unnaturally, he’d blurted out all he knew. Which amounted to little more than someone was asking about Jones. No doubt the gang had come here to question Jones and, getting no reply, had broken in and wrecked the place. Jones probably wouldn’t appreciate it if he admitted this was his fault. He decided to keep quiet about the whole matter.
Jones quickly pulled himself together and, with Hamilton’s help, began to collect things that were still usable. Hamilton was suitably impressed when Jones revealed a hidden compartment in the floor that had escaped the burglars’ notice. In no time, Jones had a bag bulging with his equipment.
“OK.” he said, at last. “I think that’s everything I need.
Let’s go.”
“We can leave this for another day, if you’d prefer.” Hamilton offered.
Jones shook his head. “We might as well get on with it. It’ll take my mind off things.”
Hamilton nodded. “Alright, let’s go.”
The pair headed downstairs.
“Looks like I might be with you all the way.” Jones said as they reached the car.
“Listen,” Hamilton said, about to tell Jones the truth. “I…” he stopped. A better idea had occurred to him. He smiled.
“What is it?” Jones asked.
“Nothing.” Hamilton lied. “I’ll get you a room at my hotel. You can stay there until you’ve decided.”
Jones merely nodded.
The pair got into the car and drove off.
Somewhat over an hour later the pair entered Hamilton’s new hotel room. Jones carried his black bag. In accordance with the plan they’d come up with whilst driving over, Jones began to wave one of his electronic toys around the room. Hamilton, meanwhile, started a disk recorder playing. It soon began emitting an interview that the pair had taped earlier, during a stop for some food at the local equivalent of a diner.
Jones made his tour of the room. He pointed to the sheaf of dossiers that Hamilton had left on a chair. Hamilton nodded, then moved the player closer to the papers. Both of them then moved away from the area.
“Audio only.” Jones told him quietly.
Hamilton nodded. “I’ll check my bags. See if you can get the hotel lock off it without tripping the alarm.”
In fact, Jones made short work of the lock. Hamilton rummaged inside and withdrew his clip of ammunition. He quickly emptied it of rounds and peered inside.
A baleful red glow shone from inside the clip.
“That settles it,” he whispered to Jones. “There’s definitely something going on.”
“Maybe the guy who sealed it was curious” Jones said.
“Did you see me collect this from the desk?” Hamilton asked, showing his room key to Jones.
Jones shook his head.
“That’s because I didn’t hand it i
n when I left. No one other than Vogerian knew I was going out.”
Jones nodded thoughtfully. “OK. Now what?”
“We’ll go down to my old room and check that out. If it’s wired then we’re in trouble.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll take things one at a time.”
“OK. So what about the hall cameras. They’ll see us going down to your old room.”
“Haven’t you got something in that bag of yours to bypass them?”
Jones looked uncertain. “I’ve got something that’ll prevent the monitors from spotting us. On the other hand, they won’t see anything at all until we’re out of range.”
“A scrambler?”
Jones nodded. “Sort of.”
Hamilton rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “OK. It can’t be helped. With luck, the security guys won’t bother to check it out or report it if the screens come back online after a few seconds.”
“That’s the usual way it works, alright.” Jones conceded.
“OK. Let’s go. That disk won’t play forever.”
They reached Hamilton’s old room without incident. It was now late at night and there was no about.
“How do we get in?” Jones demanded. “Do you want me to open it?”
Hamilton shook his head and produced a key. He inserted it into the slot and the door dutifully opened.
Jones stared at him. “They didn’t ask for it back.” Hamilton explained with a shrug.
The pair entered and Jones went silently to work with his gadgets. They soon discovered listening devices everywhere. There was even a camera behind the mirror in the lounge. The pair left quietly and returned to Hamilton’s new room.
Jones switched off his camera scrambler.
“OK.” Hamilton whispered, deep in thought. “I see I’m going to have to take some extra precautions.”
“Such as?” Jones asked.
“Never mind,” Hamilton told him. “Are you still interested in joining this escapade?”
Jones scowled. “I’d have to be crazy to join this outfit. This guy’s fixing to fuck you over pretty good. There’s no telling what he’s going to do once he’s found this Humal place. And, you don’t know how many others are in this with him. Those survey team members, for instance. I’ll bet they’re in on it.”
Hamilton shrugged. “Only time, and extensive sneaking around, will tell.”
“I can’t believe you’re going to go through with this, knowing what you know!”
“It promises to be most interesting.” Hamilton smiled. “Besides, I like turning the tables on people.”
“You’re crazy!” Jones was incredulous. “You think this is all a game?”
“Maybe, but think of the potential rewards.”
Jones scowled. “I wish you hadn’t mentioned that.”
“Well? Are you in? Hurry up and decide. The disk’s almost run out. It’s not like you’ve got a business to go back to.”
Jones scowled at the memory and sighed. “It would be a lot of money, wouldn’t it?”
Hamilton nodded. “A fortune.”
Jones threw up his hands. “Oh, alright. I’m in. Like you say, I haven’t got much to remain here for. But if I get killed, you’ll be sorry!”
“They’ll be plenty for everybody. Besides, nothing worth having comes easily.”
“Oh man! Don’t start in with any of those self-righteous platitudes! I said I’m in.”
“Good. Let’s wait until the end of the disk and announce it formally for our friends.”
Jones shook his head slowly. “If only the car hadn’t broken down.”
CHAPTER FIVE
The next day Hamilton was up early. He perused the contract he had signed with Vogerian in detail. The clause which concerned him most was buried amidst dross. It stated, in essence, that in the event of Hamilton’s death, his share would go to Vogerian. It wasn’t worded that simply, but shrouded in legal terminology. A casual glance through it wouldn’t arouse any suspicions in any but a lawyers’ mind.
Or someone who was already suspicious.
At about mid-morning, the clerk contacted Hamilton to tell him that the Stellarnet had been logged on to. It allowed faster-than-light communication over great distances. It was yet another development from Humal technology. Unfortunately, the number of channels usable was limited to a handful per planet. Hence it took some time to arrange to use it. Time, and money. Plenty of money. Still, Hamilton reflected, it was not his money.
Another complication was finding the person you wanted to talk to. Most of Hamilton’s likely candidates were not regularly employed and thus, tended to move around a great deal. The Stellarnet operators were, however, very used to this. Even so, it took several hours for Hamilton’s call to find its ultimate destination. Hamilton waited patiently whilst the ringing tone sounded.
Eventually, a husky voice said, blearily. “Yeah.”
If Hamilton had not known the voice belonged to a woman he might have had a difficult time telling. “Hi Klane! It’s Hamilton.”
There was a pause. “Hamilton! Do you know what time it is?” Klane growled.
Hamilton could imagine her angry face. “Sure,” he said, lightly, looking at his watch. “It’s about three in the afternoon.”
Klane snorted. “You’re about twelve hours fast. You’d better have a good reason for this.”
“I do. I’ve got a job for you.”
“Great.” Klane grumbled. “Can’t it wait until daybreak, at least.”
“No, I only have limited time on the ‘net. You’ll like it.”
“I doubt that.”
“You will, honest. It pays extremely well.”
“Not well enough to get me up at this time.”
“It pays well enough to make you forget about sleep.”
“How well is well?”
“Ah, well.” Hamilton began. “It’s not exactly a cash in hand proposition.”
“I knew it! Next time I see you, you’re gonna be sorry, Hamilton!”
“No, listen! It’s a percentage cut basis. Kind of like the old profit share business back in some of the units we used to be in.”
“What’s the percentage?”
“A little under one percent.”
“You gotta be kidding me?”
“No.”
“So how much do we get to share?” Klane demanded.
“I can’t really say much over an open channel.”
“Alright, so what could I buy with my share?”
“A very big house.” Hamilton said. “In very posh surroundings, with very posh furnishings.”
“You’re full of crap, Hamilton!”
“No! I’m serious. This job pays extremely well. For a start, your fare will be paid to a rendezvous point. Just bring yourself.”
“Hamilton, I’m not heading off into space for a share of a mystical amount.”
“Look, if it means that much to you I’ll guarantee you a fee.”
Klane snorted. “That means a lot.”
“I’ll pay you ten thousand.”
There was a long pause. A very long pause.
“Klane?” Hamilton called.
“Yeah, I’m still here, worse luck. OK. Twelve thousand, payable when I meet you. I still get my share and I keep the twelve grand.”
“Eleven thou’” Hamilton argued.
“Twelve, or I hang up right now.”
“Shit! I forgot what a hardass you are.”
“Your mistake.”
“I could get Rogers or Chapman for less.” Hamilton said.
“Rogers is dead. Chapman’s so old he has to have his food liquidised before he can eat it.” She retorted.
Hamilton already knew that. “OK. Twelve thousand it is.”
“It better be in your hand when we meet.”
“I hope you’re talking about the money?”
Klane laughed, a loud grating noise akin to a wrecked vehicle going through a crusher. “Still got your sense
of humour, I see. Just make sure you’ve got the money when I see you or you’ll lose both your sense of humour and the other thing.”
“OK! OK. Just make sure you get to the rendezvous point.”
“That’ll be difficult unless you tell me where it is.”
“I was coming to that. You don’t need to know where it is. Just get on the private flight. One will be laid on especially for you.”
“Oh goody!” Klane said, drily.
“I’ll see you soon.”
“Assuming I don’t die through lack of sleep. Did you know that people have been known to make some very bad decisions when they’re tired?”
“Yes! Yes!” Hamilton muttered.
“Good! Then don’t make me regret this one.”
“I get the point, Klane.”
“Good. I’ll see you soon, then.”
“Sure. Oh, one last thing.” Hamilton said. “It may get a little hairy where we’re going, so bring your own gear. Once this mission is over you can give up a life of hardship and sunbathe on the beaches of Sol itself. Those legs of yours could do with a tan in particular.”
“Very funny, Hamilton.” Klane said, coldly.
“No, I’m serious.” Hamilton said, flatly.
The line was quiet for a few seconds. Then Klane’s voice crackled through again. “I suppose you are. I’ll sure look forward to that sunbathing. I’ll even buy you a drink. Whiskey and rye, wasn’t it?”
“That’s right.” Hamilton said. “I’m glad you remembered.”
“How could I forget? I’ll see you soon.”
“Yeah, see you.”
Hamilton terminated the contact. He hated whiskey and rye. Klanes legs were, to say the least, not normally subject to tanning. She had got the message.
The operator’s voice came on quickly. “Will you require further Stellarnet use, sir?”
“Yes, thank you.” Hamilton replied. “I’d like to place a call to Poldori.”
“Who do you wish to contact?”
“Andrew Hamilton.” Hamilton told her, adding the address.
There was a delay of several minutes before the operator replied. “I’m sorry sir, but all lines to Poldori are down due to the earthquake there. There is, however, an emergency number given. Would you like me to connect you?”
Humal Sequence 1: A Breath of Hope Page 7