“And if she isn't?” Rojek asked.
“Then we'll be on the station a little longer than we planned, but she'll be there. This is her station, remember. That sort of arrogance should give us just the advantage we need.”
The shuttle slammed into the side of the station, the single clamp locking into place, warning alarms sounding as the on-board systems sensed the danger they had placed themselves in. Her people readied themselves, raising their weapons to take the critical shot, Strickland ready to snatch Saxon as soon as the hatch opened. Tentatively, Cordova tapped the release control, bracing herself for the fighting to begin.
Five black-uniformed figures were waiting for them, all armed with sonic shotguns, more racing down the corridor towards them. A shot rang out, a single pistol crack, and four rebel weapons sounded as one in response, a blast of high-intensity sound that almost crippled Cordova, slamming into the ambush, knocking them to the ground. A cursory glance confirmed her worst fears, that Saxon had remained behind, and with the noise of the first salvo still ringing in her ears, she advanced onto the station, pistol in hand.
The canny security chief had been prepared for their attack, and klaxons rang through the corridors, summoning her people to their stations. Cautiously, Cordova moved forward, her arm still in agony, flanked by Rojek and Alvarez on either side. When the second wave advanced, four figures, this time mercifully led by Saxon. They reacted first, not letting the troopers take the first shot. Two blasts from their sonic shotguns were met by a pair of bullets flying through the air, one of them catching Alvarez in the side, sending the young man sprawling to the deck, clutching at his wound, blood seeping into his jumpsuit.
“Get her!” Cordova said, and Rojek raced forward to snatch the dazed Saxon, while she turned to Alvarez, urging the rest of her team to move in, to rescue their wounded comrade. Already she could hear the third wave moving in, and Alvarez shook his head, gesturing for them to leave.
“We're not going without you, Yuri,” she said. “Come on, people!”
“Get out of here,” the young man gasped. “You don't have time. You've got what you came for. I'll be all right. Move.”
“He's right,” Rojek said. “We've got seconds, and I doubt he'll live through the shuttle flight anyway. He needs treatment we don't have on Hanoi.”
“We'll be back for you, kid,” Cordova said, firing a pair of wild shots down the corridor as the third ColSec force advanced, charging recklessly towards them. More bullets flew through the air, high over her head, covering fire from the crewmen who had waited with the shuttle. She ducked under the hatch, Rojek dragging the struggling Saxon after her, tossing her roughly into a crash couch. As the airlock slammed shut, she saw figures moving to Alvarez, one of them with a pistol in hand, the hatch locking into position before she could see what had happened to her wounded shipmate.
“Get us out of here!” she gasped, and Moretti worked her controls, urgent alarms sounding as she fired the explosive bolts, the force of the blast tearing into the side of the station, decompression alarms sounding as shrapnel ripped into the hull. Rojek was up first, patches in hand, while Moretti urged greater acceleration from her shuttle.
“Hanoi's on the move,” she replied. “Landing in five minutes at full burn. Satellites are turning into position, homing in on us.”
“Open a channel to Station Administration,” Cordova replied. “Inform them that we're holding Saxon, and that any attack on us will kill her.” Looking down at the wide-eyed ColSec officer, she added, “I guess we're about to find out how much they like her over there.”
After a moment, Moretti said, “They want to see her, Major, and speak to her.”
“Major?” Saxon said. “You are in the Underground. Damn it.” Struggling to her feet, she looked daggers at Rojek, and added, “Put me on.”
“No tricks, Saxon,” Cordova said.
“Do I look like I want to die? Put me on, damn it!” Moving to the viewscreen, she said, “I'm on board. Hold fire for the moment. And stand by to execute Kani and Nguyen if I'm not released in one hour. Out.” With a smug smile on her face, she said, “We've got hostages too, Major.”
“That might work if I knew who the hell Kani and Nguyen were, but I'm afraid I don't.” As Saxon's face fell, Cordova said, “I think we'd better have a talk. A nice, long talk.”
Chapter 8
Krieger walked up to the hatch, nodding in satisfaction as he approached, and cautiously tapped the entry chime four times, each a slightly longer pulse. Counting to five, he repeated the sequence, and the door cracked open, just enough to reveal the barrel of a pistol pointed at his chest.
“Relax, Doctor, it's me,” Tom said.
“You've got friends with you. Knowing how I feel about uninvited guests...”
“Commander Curtis and Flight Lieutenant Voronova. Democratic Underground and Commonwealth Fighter Command, respectively. It's a long story, and I think we'll be better off if we can tell it in some sort of safety. We had ColSec on our tail, but we've shaken them for the moment.” He paused, then said, “Come on, Doc, you owe me big for that last shipment I brought in for you. I'm calling it in.”
With a sigh, the unseen figure withdrew the pistol, cranking open the door and stepping back to allow the trio to enter. Inside, Curtis saw a row of improvised medical beds, all of them occupied, with white-suited attendants moving back and forth, checking readings and administering injections. Most of them were children.
And for a moment, he was back at Mareikuna again, watching those last terrible scenes from the doomed transports, the look on the faces of the dying women and children in the dormitories, knowing that he was the one who had ordered their deaths. He looked up at Tom, terror in his eyes, and his friend grabbed him by the shoulders, roughly shaking him, trying to break him out of his nightmare.
“Come on, Teddy, not now. We haven't got time for this.”
“I thought I recognized the name,” the doctor said. “The Butcher of...”
“He tried to save them, damn it,” Tom replied.
Taking a deep breath, Curtis said, “Let go, Tom. I'm all right. After a fashion, anyway.” Turning to the doctor, he said, “You have me at a disadvantage.”
“Jack Ransom,” the man replied. “Welcome to the Ransom Free Clinic. The only place on the station where anyone can get medical treatment, regardless of their lack of political connections or wealth.” Shaking his head, he added, “This is what your Federation is really like, Commander. This is what you fought for. Satisfied?”
“No,” Curtis said. “Why do you think I switched sides? I'm working with the Underground now.” Turning to Voronova, he added, “Lieutenant, I think you might want to start that briefing.”
“Yeah,” she said. “I came with two others. On a special mission to find Keranos.”
“Juan Keranos?” Ransom said. “I knew the guy. Treated him for hyper-tuberculosis a couple of years ago. Damn near died.” He paused, then said, “He gave me some medical supplies about a month back. Said it was part-payment.”
“Have you still got them?” Curtis asked.
“Most of them,” Ransom replied. “Back in the storage bay.”
“Tom, take a look. You know the prefix number you're looking for.” Turning to Ransom, he asked, “Whose side are you on?”
“The side of the poor damned people who are dying because their government doesn't give a damn, and isn't willing to lift a finger to help them.” Looking at Curtis with a scowl, he continued, “Which doesn't mean I'm going to help you any more than I have to.”
“Right now, Doctor, I think I'm the nearest thing to a good guy you're going to find.” Turning back to Voronova, he added, “Go on, Lieutenant.”
“The three of us got separated. I ended up behind them. I got there just in time to see Kani and Nguyen being arrested, taking into close confinement. They placed Keranos' o
ffice under guard. I couldn't get to it. And I don't have the equipment or the training to hack into his systems remotely.”
“Wouldn't matter if you did,” Ransom volunteered. “By now, they've probably sucked everything dry, taken all the information to Security Headquarters along with your friends.”
“How were you going to get back to the Commonwealth?” Curtis asked. “On that transport we spotted out there?”
“No, that was just our ticket in,” she replied. “Our orders didn't specify a return. Just that we were to make our way back to Commonwealth space by any means necessary.” She paused, then continued, “We were meant to try and grab Polaris for ourselves. To transmit the location of the ship to our people. There's a flotilla waiting to move in on our signal under Commodore McKinnon.”
Looking from the back, Tom said, “You seem rather eager to help us, for a loyal Commonwealth officer. Teddy, this is a trick. And a pretty obvious one, at that.”
“One more thing,” Voronova added, looking at her watch. “We've got company coming. Two Federation Starcruisers, arriving in a little under ninety minutes from now.”
“Ninety minutes,” Curtis said. “Tom, we don't dare take the chance that she's right. One way or another, we've got to be on our way out of here before they arrive. Doctor, can you open up a secure communications link to Hanoi? We've got to talk to our people before the situation deteriorates any further.”
“And if the signal is traced back here?” Ransom asked.
“Doctor, my people are going to die if you don't help us,” Voronova replied. “Kani might be an arrogant bastard, but he's one of the best pilots I've ever seen.”
“Why is it you are willing to help us?” Tom asked, bluntly.
“Because this mission is a farce, from start to finish,” Voronova said. “We ought to be helping you, not trying to sabotage you! All the Council will do is use the spare parts to patch up our own ships, keep our decrepit line of battle going for a few years longer. You've got a chance of actually doing some good with it.” Turning to Curtis, she continued, “A lot of us wanted to help during the Uprising. My father was arrested for campaigning too vigorously on the subject.”
“You think we're going to put that aged collection of oligarchs back into power?” Tom asked. “I suspect you'll find that we aren't willing to dance to the Commonwealth tune.”
“That doesn't matter as much as you might think,” Voronova said. “I'm twenty-seven years old. My parents were children when we fled the death squads. You think I care about what happened two generations ago? I just want a better future than the one I'm facing now. We're totally dependent on leavings from the Federation anyway, smugglers and raiders to scavenge what we need.” She paused, and said, “There are plenty of us who would join you willingly.”
“This Kani,” Curtis asked. “Is he one of them?”
“Maybe,” she replied. “I don't know what he believes in. Or if he even believes in anything. All I know is that he is totally insufferable and good at his job.” She looked over Curtis, and said, “You're the former commander of Polaris.”
“Yes.”
“I studied your battle tactics during my midshipman cruise.”
“Careful, Teddy,” Tom warned. “You've got yourself a fan.” Waving up a packet of neo-penicillin, he said, “It's a match. Prefix code is from Polaris, and the date index is after her departure from Sentinel Station. That just about settles that, I think.”
Nodding, Curtis turned to Ransom, and said, “You're in this with us whether you like it or not. If ColSec raids this place and finds those drugs...”
“They leave us alone,” Ransom replied. “We're a pressure valve. If my clinic didn't exist, the relatives of these people would be on the streets, screaming in protests. There are only so many massacres ColSec can perpetuate before they bring about the very revolution they are supposedly trying to prevent.”
“This time might be different, Doc,” Tom said. “They want that ship.” Gesturing at a terminal, he said, “You can get the link-up you need right there, Teddy. I set up the system myself three years ago, the last time I swung around here.”
“I always did wonder where you went on holiday,” Curtis said, walking over to the transmitter. “I give you my word as an officer that I will do everything I can to prevent any harm coming to your patients, Doctor, but I've got to contact my ship before this situation can deteriorate any further than it already has.”
“Your word as an officer?” Ransom replied with a sneer. “In my experience, that means less than nothing.”
“From this man,” Tom said, “I think you might be wrong about that.”
Curtis tapped in a code sequence, and after a moment, an image of Cordova appeared on the screen, sitting in the command chair on Hanoi. Rojek was standing behind her, a pistol pointed at an unfamiliar woman standing by the door, and both Voronova and Ransom frowned in disbelief.
“That's Saxon,” Voronova said.
“Deputy Chief of Security,” Ransom added. “She's one of your people?”
“If she is,” Curtis replied, “This is the first I've heard of it. Major, do you read me?”
“We hear you, Commander, but the signal strength's pretty weak. Can you boost your power? There's nothing we can do from this end.”
“If you do,” Ransom warned, “We'll have people pounding on the door any moment now. I wouldn't recommend it.”
“This is as good as it's going to get, Major. Care to tell me why you invited Saxon on board Hanoi? I must have missed that part of my orders.”
“When you went rogue, Commander, I had to improvise. It was either this, or face Hanoi being shot down by the defense network. I managed to buy us some time.” She paused, then said, “They took Alvarez. He might still be alive.”
With a sigh, Tom said, “We're going to be riding to the rescue, aren't we.”
“It gets better, Major,” Curtis said, gesturing at Voronova. “The Commonwealth are active on this station, and...”
“She was one of our operatives!” Voronova said. “Until she turned traitor.”
“I did what I thought was…,” Saxon began, before shaking her head. “I warned Kani that I wouldn't tolerate any unwanted interference on my station. I've worked too damned long to get everything organized to allow a group of wildcats like you to wreck it.”
“Meaning,” Ransom added, “that you're getting nice and fat on the money you're skimming from the smugglers, and the last thing you need is someone like Keranos rocking the boat. You killed him in order to stop his secret getting out, and planned to frame your Commonwealth friends for the crime. With your stamp on the report, ColSec would never have questioned it, and you could make all the evidence disappear. Or sell it to the highest bidder yourself.”
“That option is still on the table,” Curtis said, “but I'm afraid you're going to have to move your timetable up. We've got company coming in less than ninety minutes. Two Starcruisers. Can we leave the system in that time?”
“If we break position in sixty-five minutes, we might just manage it,” Cordova replied. “It'll be touch-and-go, though, and I don't have the people to spare to retrieve you. Our telemetry reports that your shuttle has been impounded.”
Frowning, Saxon said, “You're on the run? And I'm linked in with you?”
“That's about right,” Curtis said. “You can rest assured that if we go down, we'll make it quite clear that you were working with us right from the start. And that you were an agent for the Commonwealth, as well. I'm sure a lot of ambitious – and greedy – people working under you will be only too happy to snatch your job from under your nose.”
“Wait a minute,” Saxon replied, raising her hands. “I'm a realist, Commander, which means that I know when I've drawn a fistful of crap. I'm not going to die here, not today. I take it you want to rescue your people. Let me go back...”
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“Not a chance in hell,” Cordova interrupted.
“Try again, Saxon,” Curtis replied. “You're getting warmer.”
“Fine, fine,” she said, grimacing. “I'll help you retrieve your people. I can send you passwords and coded information that will allow you to break into Security Headquarters and retrieve the data you've obtained. In exchange, you take me with you when you leave the system, and put me off at the port of my choice.”
“The first neutral port,” Curtis said. “I'm not wandering halfway across the galaxy because you decide to play tourist. And I'm afraid the accommodations on offer aren't going to be very good. The brig is rather full at the moment.”
Saxon looked at Rojek, grimaced, then said, “I don't have a choice, do I?”
“No.”
“Then I accept your gracious offer.” Gesturing at a terminal, she said, “You're on a secure channel. I'll down-link the passwords and patrol information to you, and stand by on this frequency if you need anything else. I'd be extremely grateful if you were successful. I get the distinct impression that my life depends on it.”
“That's about right.”
“I thought so. Give me a couple of minutes.”
“Major,” Curtis said, “if everything goes according to plan, we'll be wanting to head back to Hanoi in about fifty minutes. That should give a reasonable margin of error.” Glancing at Tom, he said, “Get this straight. You are to make no attempt to come over and get us. I suppose I can't argue with your abduction of Saxon, but you don't have the personnel to throw away on a second raid. If we don't make it back,” he glanced at Voronova, “then you are ordered to proceed to Commonwealth space. If you stay in the Federation, you'll be spaced. The Commonwealth will probably at least offer you sanctuary in exchange for Hanoi.”
“I can guarantee that,” Voronova added. “We've done it before. A few ships have defected to us over the years. It's an embarrassingly significant portion of our merchant tonnage. One more reason why it's time for us to rejoin the rest of the galaxy.”
Starcruiser Polaris: Blood of Patriots Page 9