Hawkins nodded. “Right now, it is debatable whether she will remember to come back.”
Scarecrow spoke from the pilot’s seat. “You could already be the victim of a mutiny and not even know it.”
Hawkins nodded and smiled. “That would be a helluva thing, wouldn’t it?”
Jasmine piped in from her sensor station. “Four of you and four of us. We could have two crews for this ship and still get the missions done while getting lots of time off.”
“Works for me,” Baby Doll voted.
Cassidy was half listening as she looked over the array of instrumentation. Scarecrow noticed and gestured to the empty copilot’s seat. “Want to handle her?”
“May I?”
“Of course,” he replied. Cassidy glanced over to Captain Whitlock for confirmation, and he nodded.
Lisa settled in the copilot’s seat and gripped the steering yoke. “I have the controls.”
Scarecrow released his grips on his yoke. “You have the controls. It is on the nav computer right now, but kick the computer off with your right thumb on that red button on the inside of the steering yoke, and you’ll be flying.”
Cassidy turned off the nav computer as instructed. Scarecrow continued his directions. “The computer had us on course and speed to Agra 2, so just hold the numbers that are showing and we’ll get there.” He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. He was extremely casual about a new person flying the ship, but nobody seemed to mind. Flicker sped toward Agra 2.
Dylan Whitlock took in the group and then nodded toward Cassidy. The unspoken question was clear. Was it okay to talk in front of her? Hawkins nodded and Whitlock talked. “Before we get to the task at hand, we need to make one final report on our current mission,” Hawkins nodded and Dylan continued. “Our last report was us trailing seven Marbellan ships departing Mistral headed for points unknown.” Heads nodded. “We followed the ships to a rendezvous with Captain Terrant’s Cottonmouth. Her ship transferred supplies via her shuttle to the other ships. One shuttle load per ship. The seven ships and Cottonmouth just drifted in space for six hours while the shuttle ran between ships. I suspect planning was going on or people visiting other ships via shuttle. Finally, the shuttle made one last lap around to each ship and returned to Cottonmouth. Then the seven ships turned around and headed back to Mistral while Cottonmouth went in a different direction. We followed them back to Mistral and then had to rendezvous with you.”
Hawkins nodded. “Makes sense she would use her prize money to get supplies. Those ships must be hurting. Wouldn’t be surprised if they had sold their own shuttles or had only a few left and no repair parts.” He looked at his audience. “She is going to have to make a move soon. I think she is in a quandary about what to do. She is integrated into Flot 1 and may be having second thoughts about her plans.”
“You willing to bet your life on that?” asked the always practical Tactical.
Rafe shook his head. “No, but I might bet hers.”
Chapter 24
Flicker came out of subspace just inside the atmosphere of Agra 2. She accelerated downward to limit any possible detection by the blockade ships of the Bries and their hired help. The spy ship set up for a landing in a small, remote field ten kilometers outside the town of Benteen.
Greg Paulsen stood beside a large air car on the edge of the field. He was the sheriff of Benteen and a key leader in the Agra 2 resistance to the Sunrise Grange. He used his large flashlight to send a set of dots and dashes at the closing ship. The small craft completed a quick approach to the small field. The four passengers and Whitlock climbed out. They moved to the air car as Flicker hovered and slid sideways to be close to the trees. She shut down and the remaining three crewmembers came out and began to camouflage the small craft with nets and cut tree branches.
Rafe approached Paulsen with his hand extended. “Good to see you, Greg.” Handshakes went all around. Rafe introduced Captain Cassidy. Greg went directly to the topic at hand. “Your meeting is tonight at ten. Should be able to get into town and out again with minimum exposure. You’ll be back out in space by morning.
“I think the majority want the base for the jobs and money, but everyone is concerned about the risk.”
Cassidy nodded. “I’ll do what I can to address that.”
The group climbed into the air car and drove to the town of Benteen. The meeting was in the basement of the town church. There were forty-five people there from the major regions of the planets. If these people could be convinced, the deal would be done.
Greg got the vehicle there in ten minutes. The group moved into the church and to the meeting room. The audience was already there, and silence took over as the newcomers entered. People took seats without talking. A tension gripped the room as everyone realized the decisions made in this basement would affect the planet for years to come. These people were leaders in their towns and territories but had never been part of anything for such high stakes. Their lack of experience and the potential costs made them edgy and uncertain. Rafe inwardly frowned. Uncertain people inevitably took the path of least resistance and were more than willing to sacrifice long term goals for short term safety.
Greg Paulsen lead the group to a table in the front of the room. They took seats behind the table facing the crowd. Paulsen remained standing. He began the meeting. “Thanks for coming. I know some of you came a considerable distance and have to get back so we’ll get right to it.” He gestured toward Cassidy. “This is Captain Lisa Cassidy of the Royal Navy. She commands six warships as the Royal Navy Badlands Squadron. She was in the last Royal Navy squadron that was here prior to their war with the Orions. She fought in all those battles that took place here against the Orion squadron that came here. She was wounded in that combat. Now she is back here to help all of us in this fight.” He turned to her. “Captain Cassidy.”
Lisa stood up. She thanked Paulsen for the invitation and gave a twenty-minute presentation about the proposed base. She covered the base layout, base services, timelines for construction, budget, jobs for locals, comm arrays, defense systems, commercial opportunities, and the expected money flow. She made a compelling case. She finished by putting the stack of paper and information discs covering the proposed agreement on the table. She sat down and awaited questions.
The first question got to the heart of the audience’s concern. A woman stood up at the back. “You have six ships. How can you protect us with six ships?”
Cassidy stood up. “We have six ships now, but more will come. Your blockaders know that firing on my ships is firing on the Aurora Empire. They won’t do that. They don’t want the repercussions.”
Someone spoke without standing up. “The Goths might shoot at you.”
Lisa smiled at the audience. “No, they won’t. The stakes are too high. One of my ships is Cobalt, the Queen’s Own Destroyer. It is the ship the Queen served on while in the Navy and Cobalt now wears her coat-of-arms. They don’t want to destroy that ship. Remember at the start of the war, the Goths let the OrCon squadron into the Badlands because the OrCons would engage our squadron. The Goths didn’t engage the Royal Navy ships themselves. They still don’t want to engage us. They will not let a corporation like Sunrise push them into a war.”
Another voice. “Seems like a big risk on our part for a return that may or may not happen in the future.”
Lisa came back quickly. “Don’t you do exactly that when you plant crops each year.”
She got many smiles and head nods with that answer.
It was clear that the room was still focused on the potential danger. Greg Paulsen stood up. “Look beyond today. We get a Zeke base here; it will be the only one in the entire quadrant. The Zekes have to protect it as best they can. That means six warships today but many more tomorrow. It means the base expands as their presence here expands. It also means the Aurora Empire is here. How many people out there want to take on the Aurora Empire? This is the best offer we are going to get in this lifetime.
You turn it down and the Zekes take their base, their jobs, and their protection elsewhere, and the lowlife Bries and their hired dogs stay here. I don’t see much of a decision here.”
An old bearded man stood up. “I see that, Greg, and would be all for it in peacetime. Now I’m afraid that base will draw Goths and their friends like flies. Can’t enjoy it if we are dead.” The man glanced at Hawkins and the pirate captain gave him a slight smile. “Something I say amuse you, Captain?” the man responded with some scorn in his tone.
Rafe stood up and smiled at the assembly. “Yeah, much of what has been said here amuses me due to the irony of it all. The fact is Captain Cassidy and her crews and Pirate Flotilla One are willing to fight and, possibly, die for your planet, your lands, and your families. They risk their lives while you are not willing to risk anything. Another fact is, you can’t change this situation by talking about it or wishing it away. The Sunrise gang is not going to wake up tomorrow with the revelation that they have been going about this all wrong and then vow to be nicer in the future.
“What more do you want someone to give you? If you don’t take this offer, exactly what do you expect is going to come along? A better offer? From who? This is the best deal you’re going to get. If you turn it down, there won’t be another. Freedom is not won without risk and sacrifice.”
A woman stood up. “Why not build the base on Agra 5? It’s the least populated. Plenty of land for a surface base. They could use jobs as they have the least amount of farmland in crop production. They want people to come to their planet. Go there and build.”
Rafe looked at her. “In other words, Agra 5 gets the risk of attack while you would get the benefit of Aurora protection. We might go to Agra 5 if we don’t get a base working here. We get in there, build a base, protect it, and settle in. In fact, since Agra 5 is the least desirable to the Sunrise Grange, I suspect the Grange would be very happy with that arrangement. Of course, that won’t do you any good. You’ll still have the blockade here.”
“No,” the woman replied as if Rafe had missed her whole point. “The base goes there but you come over from there and drive out the blockaders here.”
“Why would we do that?”
“Because it is the right thing to do.”
“Your planet could do the right thing by assuming some of the risk, but you don’t want to. Putting a base at Agra 5 actually hurts you. As we go in to build the base, the Goths and their mercenaries will see our strength and reinforce their blockade of the other planets in this region. We lose the element of surprise and will be faced with more enemy ships blockading the other four Agra planets. Plus, we have to dedicate resources to defend the Agra 5 base. If we go to Agra 5, I see no support for you in the foreseeable future.”
The room went silent. Tactical had been quiet but couldn’t take it anymore. She stood up and stared at the audience. “Somewhere in this process, you need to grow some balls. In your perfect universe, everyone else takes the risks, and you go about your business while reaping the benefits. Well, guess what? The universe isn’t perfect. You want a better future? Then you have to take chances, assume some risk, show some courage. You’re all damn pathetic cowards.” She turned to Rafe. “I’ll be outside.” She turned and moved to the stairs. Baby Doll rose quickly. “Wait up! I need some air too. The smell of people crapping their pants is overwhelming in here.” She filed out behind Tactical.
Paulsen addressed the group. “She is absolutely right. We need to buck up here. This is the best offer we will get. We turn it down and the Aurora Empire leaves. The Goths and their dogs will still be here. Predict the future if that happens. I don’t think it is good.”
Rafe turned to Cassidy and Whitlock. “Let’s wait outside.” He turned back to the audience. “You need to talk this through without us in the room. We got about an hour before we have to head out. We will need a decision by then.”
The visitors moved up the stairs and out the back door. Tactical and Baby Doll were standing in the dark. The other three joined them. Whitlock spoke first. “Well, I’ve made several trips here, but never met anyone but Greg. Now that I know what these people are like, I wish I had not come in tonight. I prefer my illusions.”
Cassidy said, “They are just farmers and can’t imagine the universe beyond their planet. Decent enough people who can’t understand why everyone else isn’t decent enough. We got systems full of these people back in the Empire.”
“Cowardly bastards,” Tactical was contemptuous. “I’ve seen enough of these types of gutless sons of bitches to last a lifetime. They always want two things. Things set up to their liking and somebody else to fight to make them that way.”
Nobody had an answer to that. Most the universe was that way, and they all knew it.
Fifty minutes later, Greg Paulsen emerged with the paperwork. “It’s been signed and we are with you.” He handed the paperwork to Cassidy.
“I’m surprised,” Rafe answered. “You must have had to do some serious threatening.”
“That’s exactly what I did do. I told them I would resign and move back to Potenka. I was taking Flot 1 and the Aurora Empire with me, and they can deal with the Goths, the mercenaries, and the Bries on their own. Have a good time.” He stopped and then added. “I had allies in the room. In fairness, half the people were always with me. They just didn’t speak up while you were down there. They did after you left though. We all brow beat the others into submission. Anyway, the papers are there. We have our copies. There will be a five-member board, chaired by me, who will do all the base dealings now. You will have that group to work with. Keeps it from getting out of control.”
Cassidy looked down at the paperwork. “It is actually kind of amazing. Usually, it takes months of negotiating to get a base deal done. We sent you the paperwork a month ago, talked for an hour, and got a deal. Probably a speed record there. Well done, Greg.”
Paulsen was uncomfortable with the compliment. “We all should have been onboard from the beginning. This was like a month-long toothache.” He glanced at his watch. “Time to go.”
The party climbed back into the air car and returned to Flicker. After handshakes and goodbyes, Flicker launched for return to Predator. Rendezvous happened ten hours later. Blondie did return with Predator as scheduled.
~ ~ ~
Cassidy, Baby Doll, and Tactical took the shuttle back to Predator. It would return in twenty minutes for Hawkins. He now was settled around a small table with the four members of Flicker’s crew. Rafe eyed each of them. “You’ve done great work. Not only with the Marbellan ships but also at Murmansk and all the other assignments. Every mission has been a success.”
The Flicker crew smiled in response to the praise, but Whitlock leaned toward his commander. “You got something else in mind now, don’t you, Raferty?”
Hawkins smiled slightly and nodded. “I want to make this clear. You can refuse this mission if you want. No backlash. No browbeating from me. No anything. After the discussion here, you talk about it among yourselves and send me a P4 with your answer. I will need an answer in twenty-four hours for planning purposes.” He paused as he let his gaze sweep over the four-person audience. “The mission is this. You will proceed into the Goldenes Tor Empire. There you will locate and kill Baron Ernst Hochstadt.”
Silence met his mission statement. Everyone in the compartment had helped plan and carry out missions that had resulted in hundreds of deaths. Each lived with it. The big difference here was one man was being targeted. One lone civilian who was not in the Badlands and did not know he was a viable target. It took a few seconds for the spy ship crew to adjust, but they did. Dylan spoke first. “When, why, and how?”
“The why is Baby Doll has confirmed that the Baron is the driving force behind the Sunrise Grange in their Badlands expansion. He is the conduit to Prince Joseph, and this gives the Sunrise gang their royal connection and the benefits that flow from that. We eliminate him and that connection vanishes and the Goldenes Tor governm
ent loses much of its interest in the well-being of one corporation trying to establish a monopoly in the Badlands. The loss of Baron Hochstadt is a blow I do not believe the Grange can recover from. He is also Admiral Hochstadt’s husband, and I suspect that is the only reason she got this command out here. If he dies, the wolves will be on the Admiral in a heartbeat. Turbulence in the Goth military command structure would be a nice secondary benefit.
“The how is any way that can’t be traced back to us. Accident. Jilted lover. Homicidal polo pony. Allergic reaction to his mustache wax. I don’t care. The perfect plan would be to kill him and pin it on his wife, the Admiral. I don’t see that so any method that doesn’t get back to us is acceptable. If they link it to us, half the Goth military will set up shop in the Badlands and never leave. It would have ramifications back to the Aurora Empire.
“The when is to be determined. We are planning a campaign against the Sunrise Grange and will kick it off soon. I do not want him hit as part of our Sunrise campaign. If he dies as various events happen to the Sunrise Grange out here, some people might see a link there. At least the Grange people would say there was a link as a way to keep government support for the Grange. His death must occur later than our actions here in the Badlands so there is no possibility of it looking like a tie in. The timeline is flexible but I see it being one month from now. Maybe a little longer. That will give you time to get in position and organize a plan.”
Dylan frowned a bit. “We are all amateurs at that kind of work. Why not one of your death squads?”
“Because you being amateurs helps with your cover. You’re on nobody’s watch list. Having two gorgeous women is not a standard hit team roster. Also, my people are all born outside of the Goldenes Tor and are unfamiliar with their ways. They would stand out as foreigners. When the Goldenes Tor took the Edinburgh systems, the boundary between the two was essentially erased. As Burghs, you can travel around the Goldenes Tor easier than my folks, and you have a passing knowledge of customs and manners. Being former navy officers and intimates, you can conduct yourselves with the proper decorum and etiquette in the Goldenes Tor home system. In short, you can blend in with the high society that Hochstadt moves in. That ability should get you close to the target.”
The Queen's Hammer Page 14