"Not exactly a productive conversation," Marek said. "You're lucky Dorian Anino hadn't decided to vaporize this station. If she had, we'd all be dead. You're running a sloppy operation here. How could you let a tracking isotope into your top-secret installation? And you need to give up on this idea that a handful of super-soldiers makes any difference at all. Even with all of Anino's resources, she wasn't able to make it work. Why do you think you can?"
"So, you think our security is sloppy?" Zoya asked.
"What would you call it?" Marek asked, his voice raising. "A single well-armored ship breached the station and took your most valuable assets because someone allowed the enemy to send a tracker to home base."
"What would you do differently?"
"We have to move the operation and cut ties with Oberrhein. They're loose cannons."
"Without Oberrhein, Fariza is out. Without Fariza we have no funding. And just where do you think we could go? It wasn't exactly easy to get Fariza to give me this station. Just transporting all of our equipment would cost millions and no way is Fariza underwriting that."
"You're thinking too small," Marek said. "You lack imagination. We're sitting on billions here. Tell me, how many soldiers did you send to Guatemala?"
Zoya wrinkled her nose and shook her head dismissively. "We supplied sixty and it took us more than a year to do that. We couldn't have done it without Fariza."
"What'd you make per soldier?"
Zoya shrugged her shoulders. "Not sure. One of the board members deals with all that."
"Let me guess. You're just in it for the science?"
"No," Zoya replied, her cheeks starting to redden. "Look. Do you think it's easy setting up a secret laboratory to do science that most nations would see you executed for? Not everything is easy! I had to give up control of some things. Why the frak do you think you're here?"
Marek smiled. "Good. Now we're getting somewhere. How much money do we need?"
"For what?"
"To start over," Marek said.
"What are you talking about? We've made so much progress. We can't start over."
"Can't or don't want to?"
"What's the difference?"
"In less than a week, this station will be surrounded by a United Council of Nations fleet. They will board this station and take every piece of technology back to their labs for assessment. After they determine your numerous sins, a tribunal will be assembled to try you and your staff for crimes against humanity. You will be found guilty and then spend the rest of your much-shorter life expectancy appealing this decision, at the end of which, you will be executed.
"That's impossible. Anino would never. She's as guilty as I am," Zoya said. "She has to know hers will be the first name I give up."
"It was the UCN who gave Anino the green light on her mission. We always operated under a mandate from the UCN," Marek said. "You so much as breathe her name in court and you'll spend your short trial with a ball gag in your mouth."
"That's ridiculous."
Marek smiled. "You sit in a secret lab where you perform illegal experiments on an unsuspecting population with the permission of that population's government. Don’t tell me you had no idea what it would mean to be found out. Do you seriously think Dorian isn’t manipulating the UCN? The Anino family has contributed more technology to humanity over the last five centuries than any hundred scientists you can name in the history of time."
"You're sure of this?"
"This is not a productive conversation. Take my advice, don't take my advice," he said. "I'm gone in twenty-four hours either way."
"Take us with you," Zoya said. "Help me get my technology back."
"Now, that's the smartest thing I've heard you say yet."
"What now, Doc?" Jimmy asked, kicking his cowboy boots up and resting them on Little Deuce's forward bulkhead.
"Feet down, James," Dorian said disapprovingly, waiting for him to comply.
Jimmy rolled his eyes and shifted to sit sideways in the chair.
"I've informed the UCN," Dorian said. "The data streams from the laboratory will be enough for them to raid the station and shut it down."
"Marek will anticipate that," Jimmy said. "He'll be long gone."
"No doubt, but at least we will have slowed them," she replied. "The equipment isn't portable enough for them to take if the UCN acts within a few weeks. The sight of those bodies, prepared and ready for surgery should be enough to bring them to action."
"I'm guessing you won't show the UCN your packages."
"Lucien Gray, Katriona Petrev, and Gabino Alcazar are people, not packages, James. The UCN would see them destroyed, just as they would you."
"Ever wonder if we're doing the right thing, Doc?" James asked. "If humanity would be better off without folks like Marek?"
"You mean, would humanity be better off without you?"
"I suppose."
"Can you really ask that question after yesterday? We're shutting down a lab that is responsible for the deaths of all those people you saw in the lab as well as those children in the hallway. Was the price high? How do you measure the price of one man's life against that evil? No, James, humanity would not be better off without you."
"UCN might see that differently."
"People fear what they do not understand. People in power fear what they cannot control. The UCN is no different, James."
"Speaking of acting crazy. Victor is still in the hold with the mercs he hired. What are we going to do with them?"
"They'll be picked up from my compound on Irène."
The sound of rustling alerted them to the arrival of another crew member on the bridge.
"Is that where we're headed?" Bit Coffman asked.
"That's right, Bertha," Dorian said.
"That's quite a distance from Earth," she said glumly, as she flopped her bulk into one of the workstation chairs. "I have exams next week and a new semester starting after that. The fastest shuttle I'm aware of takes twenty-five days and that's a twelve-thousand credit ticket."
The distance was indeed considerable. The moon Irène, which Dorian Anino referred to, orbited the planet Curie, which happened to be in the furthest reaches of human existence in the Tipperary star system. A trip from Irène or Curie would require jumping through two star-systems and three TransLoc gates.
"I'm afraid there's not much to be done about it," Dorian answered. "Our new passengers require immediate medical attention that's only available at my lab."
"Did you know about the children, Dorian?" Bit asked.
"You know I did. We talked about them, Bertha. I told you someone had poisoned their drinking supply."
"That's not what I'm asking. Did you know Marek weaponized them? I watched the data streams. Those children were out of their minds. I ran a full analysis. Not one of them formed a coherent word during the entire period of the assault on the station," Bit said. "Someone turned them into animals. Did you know?"
Dorian sighed. "I wish I could say that I find depravity surprising. I became aware of this laboratory only a few days before you did. The clues were there. I knew someone was tampering with Fariza’s water supply. It's been the subject of an ongoing UCN investigation."
"You're saying the UCN knew Fariza was poisoning their citizens?"
"Fariza's water supply passes all standards. The foreign material is at such low levels that it is technically not illegal. Moreover, the impurities only affect a very small segment of their population. Would you have the UCN declare war on a sovereign state for contaminants in their water supply? What if it were naturally occurring? Where would the interventions stop? Should states like Oberrhein that enslave a portion of their population be allowed to exist? How about Curie? Did you know that a Curian's tax rate is determined by their family status? Is that allowed or should we send in the UCN?"
"Whoa," Bit said. "Take it down a notch, Anino. Seems like some of these lines shouldn't be that hard to distinguish. There's a big difference between tak
ing away a child's youth or subjecting people to slavery, and how much you pay in taxes."
"Then you should take it up with the UCN," Dorian replied. "Because without direct proof like we just delivered, they won't do anything. And even with all that we uncovered, they won't be able to touch Fariza."
"What do you mean they won't be able to touch Fariza? Jammin died because of the UCN's inaction."
"What she means …" The three turned to Tali who had quietly joined them. "Is that politicians only act directly when threatened and then only to do the least amount required to remove the pressure. Don't blame Doctor Anino, Bit. Jammin's sacrifice was to his team and is not lessened by the actions of the politicians."
"Well, it sucks," Bit said.
Dorian's lips curved into a small smile that just reached her eyes. "You are a good woman, Bertha Coffman. It is my honor to travel in the company of those of pure heart."
"You're talking crazy again, Doc," Jimmy said.
"No. Bertha's right. It sucks," Dorian said. "It sucks because good people like Benjamin 'Jammin' Rheel pay the ultimate price for the sins of lazy politicians and villainous tyrants. Do you want to know why I chose to take on this mission personally?"
"I've wondered," Tali said. "You could have hired a team without getting involved. You're taking a significant risk being tied to this directly."
"Because Gabino Alcazar, Lucien Gray, and Emilie Bastion deserve it," Dorian said.
"Lots of people deserve not getting killed, Doc," Jimmy said. "Tell 'em the rest."
Dorian nodded. "I'm not surprised you guessed my plans, James. Are you in?"
"In what?" Bit asked. "Stop talking in code. And we recovered Katriona Macillvain, not Emilie Bastion."
"We're not done," Dorian said. "We'll be going after Emilie as soon as we figure out where she's been taken. As for Ms. Petrov, she'll have a decision to make."
"About what?" Bit pushed again.
"Doc's putting together a team from those stiffs we just recovered," Jimmy said. "You already know I'm in, Doc. Who's going to stand up to Marek if not me?"
"Natalia?" Dorian asked. "No good team operates without a strong leader. Would you care to join us?"
Tali slowly shook her head side to side. "No, I'm done with all this. I can't keep burying my friends."
"What if I said I didn't need you in the field?"
Tali chuckled. "What, the old girl's too slow for your new team of young bucks and you want to make sure I keep your secrets?"
"You underestimate your own value, Natalia," Dorian said. "It is no secret you would struggle for physical dominance as a member of this team. But I'm convinced you are equal to the task."
"I've had a lot of shiny words blown up my skirt, Dorian," Tali said. "I know my limits. There will never be a time when I am faster than Jimmy and it is not a simple matter of physical speed. Jimmy's ability to see the entire battle even before it unfolds makes him a better combat leader than I could ever be. With sufficient training and motivation, he could achieve truly great things."
"If'n you were tryin’ to get into my bed, Natalia," Jimmy drawled slowly, "you needn't work so hard. Jimmy's door is always open."
To avoid rolling her eyes, Tali closed them and took a slow breath. "A lot of training," she finally said with a deep sigh.
"I believe what James meant to communicate was that he has chosen a different path." Dorian ignored the wide grin on Jimmy's face. "We all reach crossroads in our lives where we must make choices. When Jimmy was given the choice to lead, he turned from it, choosing to step away entirely. It was a decision I did not understand at the time, but have come to respect."
Jimmy nodded and momentarily grasped the brim of his hat in acknowledgement.
"I failed my team, Dorian," Tali said, "and Jammin died. I should have taken Marek into account."
"We had no idea Marek would be on the station," Dorian defended, her voice rising.
"Not true," Tali said. "Jimmy knew. He said as much."
"He was guessing," Dorian answered.
"That's my point. Jimmy knew in his gut that Marek would be there. He also knew that Jammin wouldn't survive Marek's onslaught. I'd given Jammin orders. Jimmy tried to countermand them to save Jammin's life, but Jammin was too good of a soldier to ignore my orders. I might as well have killed him myself."
"That's a heavy burden to carry, Doll," Jimmy said, after a few minutes of silence. "I doubt Jammin would see it that way. He stood between his team and a truly great warrior bent on our destruction. That was what he lived for. His commitment was steadfast and he paid for his honor in blood. It is our way."
"And if I'd been better, he would be alive," Tali said hotly.
"Perhaps now isn't the best time for this conversation," Dorian said.
"The timing is perfect," Tali answered tightly, her anger simmering just below the surface. "Respectfully, I decline."
Chapter 18
Pecking Order
Luc Gray woke slowly. In the fog between sleep and wakefulness he felt the blade piercing his back and the sound of Eduard Leonidovich's laugh ringing in his ears. Luc fought for consciousness and sensed the Oberrhein ruler watching as life ebbed from his body. Instead of everything turning black, however, shafts of bright light burned through the image of the sadistic ruler.
He could almost smell the acrid smoke of the cigarette he'd been holding. The hot vapors had dried his tongue and he wanted to cough. He tried to focus, but the harsh glare from overhead lights blurred details of the room. Confused, Luc tried to bring his hand around to check for the tip of the sword he was sure protruded from the front of his chest, but something held his arm back. He strained against the cloth holding him fast and was surprised as the cheap fabric tore free with a popping sound. His hand flew up, striking his chest much harder than he expected. Importantly, however, there was no sword.
"Would you like him sedated?" a man asked in a quiet, professional tone.
"You're safe, Lucien. The restraints are for your protection."
He turned toward cool fingers that traced the side of his face. He recognized Dorian Anino’s voice, so he relaxed and attempted to focus on her indistinct figure.
"You came for me," he said, fighting back a wave of emotion that unexpectedly welled in his chest.
As more senses registered, he realized that a covering lay over his face. Whatever it was kept his vision blurry and his ears muffled, even though he felt he could hear what was being said clearly enough. He reached to remove the obstruction and instead violently smacked his forehead.
The same long, cool fingers that had comforted him gently grasped his wrist and pulled it down next to him on the bed. "Go slowly, Luc," Dorian said. "You sacrificed yourself, you silly, brave man. I had to come for you."
Releasing his arm, Dorian peeled away the bandages from his eyes. Her smiling face, hovering over his own, snapped into focus with startling detail. He inspected the face in front of him, tracing the stress lines around her velvety brown eyes, the slight smile on her delicate lips, and every beautiful detail of her ebony skin as it stretched over high cheek bones.
His stomach flopped as his vision zoomed impossibly close, almost as if he wore a magnification lens. Even with perfection, too much detail was unsettling.
"You might give a girl a complex with that look on your face," she said, acknowledging his grimace.
He blinked and his vision returned to a normal focal length, although the detail was considerably sharper than he considered to be normal. "Um. My eyes," he said, closing them tightly against the overwhelming stimulation.
"Luc, there's something we need to talk about," she said, brushing the hair back from his forehead. "Before we do, I'm going to take the bandages from your ears. You're going to feel disoriented as you'll be able to hear things more sharply than you're used to. The feeling will subside in a few minutes."
Luc opened his eyes and stared into Dorian's. "You never answered my question."
"Question?"<
br />
"Don't play coy, Dorian."
She pulled at the patches on either side of his head.
"When I tell you what I have to say, I don't believe your question will be relevant."
Luc lifted his hand, laboring to move it slowly. The motion was still effortless and much faster than he expected. He carefully placed his index finger onto Dorian's lips to stop her from speaking. "We'll get to that," he said. "Before we do, answer the question."
"Is this real?" Dorian repeated Luc's final question to her before she'd sent him to his death. "We hardly know each other."
A confident grin took seed on his face and grew as he stared back at her.
"Why are you smiling?"
With painstaking effort to be gentle, Luc pushed his hand along the side of Dorian’s face, curled his fingers behind her neck to pull her to him. "Can you not hear your own heartbeat? Do you not feel your pupils contracting?"
She resisted just long enough to speak to the medical technician who was the only other occupant in the room. "Leave us," she ordered and climbed onto the bed next to Luc, bringing her face to his as they kissed.
After a few minutes, she pulled away and laid her head on the pillow next to him, resting her hand on his chest. "I sent you to die, Luc."
"I figured that when we met at the bar on Nuage Gros," he said. "Why do you think I ran?"
"I'll admit, that confused me," she said.
"Did you find Emilie?"
"No, but we found the people who took her and they're on the run. I have reason to believe she's alive," she replied. "When you understand how I used you, you will be angry. I am sorry. I was wrong to use your grief in this way."
Luc's grin was lopsided and a little dopey. "Did you ever think I used you to give Emilie a chance," he said. "I knew I was giving my life for hers. I was done on Nuage. My life was over."
"That's ridiculous. You have so much more to offer," she said. "I can think of more than forty open positions in my companies alone that desperately need someone of your caliber to fill them."
On a Pale Ship: A Privateer Tales Series Page 20