The Dead Priest

by K A Bledsoe

  “I know who you are working for. But apparently you don’t know them as well as I do.”

  Kurla’s jaw muscles bunched, but she didn’t back down. Lenore wasn’t finished.

  “I know that those who hired you will not be pleased at your failure. In fact,” Lenore allowed herself a half smile. “I will be very surprised if you survive long enough to make it to the trial.” Lenore started to turn again but spun back around at laughter. She stared, incredulous, at a laughing Kurla.

  “Oh, bravo. That was nearly word for word what I was told you would say.”

  “What are you talking about?” This woman has lost her mind.

  “You are wrong. I know exactly who I am working for. You see, Lenore. You were my first solo mission.”

  Lenore’s heart went cold, and she felt her own jaw clenching as she ground out a single word.

  “What?”

  “I just finished my training as a Xa’ti’al and you were my target.”

  “You failed.”

  “On the contrary. I succeeded far better than I ever thought I would. My mission was never to bring you in, but to test you. And gather detailed information about your family.”

  Without realizing what she was doing, Lenore whipped out her blaster and pointed it at Kurla. The woman merely laughed again.

  “Perfect! He said you would do that at the mention of your family and you did, angry eyes and all.” She grinned as she pointed at Lenore’s eyes, then suddenly sobered. “Killing me won’t do any good. I have already sent my data in.”

  Lenore fought to control her fury at being manipulated. Only one man could have played her so well. Daviss. Now she needed to forget those emotions if she was going to get anything more useful from Kurla.

  “You said you were testing me. For what?” She kept the blaster pointed at Kurla though she was sure it wouldn’t penetrate the brig’s field.

  Fairly sure.

  “I see no harm in telling you now,” said Kurla, lifting her chin slightly. “The Xa’ti’al wanted to see the result of an ex-Xa raising a family. Would she lose her training? Become soft? Or train her children as well as she had been?” Kurla smirked. “It could be an entirely new program for future Xa.”

  “Why me? Why not breed their own?”

  Now Kurla’s eyes narrowed, the smirk dropping from her face. “Because, when you left, the order came down to sterilize all future agents. Men and women. Thereby eliminating another incentive to desert.”

  Lenore shouldn’t have been surprised at this revelation, but she was shocked nonetheless. “And I suppose Daviss explained to you the best ways to manipulate me?”

  “Of course. I didn’t think he could be that accurate, but you did nearly everything exactly as he said you would.”

  “Nearly?”

  “Well, you were supposed to break out of your cell quicker than you did with all the devices we let you keep.”

  “So those men were Xa as well?”

  “Of course. How else do you think they knew how to deal with a stun grenade and fake unconsciousness? And Daviss knew you were on that station. He led you on so there would be time to sabotage your environmental systems.”

  “So we would have to drop out of transwarp so you could send a message I suppose,” said Lenore.

  “Obviously.”

  “Why not take us on our ship when the patrol stopped us? Three Xa should have been able to do that.”

  “I had my strict instructions and there were two obvious reasons.” Kurla appeared to be enjoying telling the tale. “First, because I know better than to confront you in the place where you are most comfortable. Neutral ground is always preferable. And the second I have already mentioned. We were testing you, Lenore. You and your family. How you would react, what your kids would do, everything. Frankly, I was disappointed. I had heard about how good an agent you were, but now I know that you are a fossil, Lenore.”

  “Oh?” She felt her teeth grinding again.

  “Yes. You’ve grown soft. I guess being a mother will do that.” Kurla’s voice dripped with condescension. “Removing your medplant just aided in losing your edge.” She stared at Lenore. “There is nothing more for the Xa to learn from letting you stay free, so take my advice and run. Run far. But I don’t think that will be enough.”

  A deep breath allowed Lenore enough control to speak.

  “You are right. I have let myself become too trusting. But now, thanks to your warning, that ends today. The Xa will never catch me off guard again.”

  Kurla merely laughed again until Lenore fired her blaster. She had the satisfaction of seeing Kurla leap out of the way despite the force field stopping the shot.

  “If I ever see you again, that is what will happen to you,” said Lenore. “No hesitations.” She holstered her blaster and exited, nearly running into Sherrod. The worry in his good eye calmed Lenore somewhat.

  “She is fine.” She lowered her voice as Sherrod peered around the corner to verify her claim. “Listen to the brig’s recordings and you will know why I did what I did. And Sherrod.” Lenore looked directly at him, voice at a whisper. “You can repay me that favor by erasing those records.”

  He nodded and she headed back to the ship, not even trying to figure out if she was angrier at the Xa’ti’al or herself.

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  Diarmin had just finished securing Bondle’s cargo when he caught sight of Lenore heading for the cargo ramp that was still down. Her face and trudging gait showed that the discussion with Kurla did not go well.

  Lenore strode up the ramp, but before Diarmin could ask a question, she spoke.

  “Where is my medplant? Have you fixed it?”

  Her demanding tone left no doubt she was fuming inside. Diarmin strode to his workbench and reached under it to a well-hidden spot underneath. He pulled out the device and held it out to her.

  “I have fixed the basic circuits but, as I told you before, the programs are still unclear, and I don’t know if would work the same as before. Besides, our medbed isn’t capable of reimplanting and we would have to...” He trailed off as Lenore ignored him to return down the ramp. He followed but she didn’t go far, stopping right off the ramp.

  She gently placed the device on the ground, then took out her blaster and fired point blank at the medplant.

  After all that work to get it functional again.

  Lenore bent down to examine the little debris that was left. She scooped it up and handed it to Diarmin. “Destroy the remains, I want nothing left.” She started to head back into the ship, but Diarmin grabbed her arm.

  “What’s going on? What did Kurla say?”

  “Let’s get off this planet,” she said, trying to pull her arm away but he held fast.

  “A few minutes won’t make a difference. Tell me why you destroyed the one thing you have been trying to get me to fix. And we are talking here, not in the ship where we can be overheard so I want to know everything.”

  He could tell by her expression that she was preparing to be stubborn again, but then she must have changed her mind. He released her arm as she related the entire story, speaking very fast as if it were an unpleasant task to be done with as soon as possible.

  When she finished, he agreed with his assessment. Very unpleasant.

  “That doesn’t explain why you destroyed the medplant,” he said.

  “Don’t you see?” Lenore began pacing, only three steps at a time so she could still talk quietly to Diarmin. “The only person who knew about me removing that medplant was the slaver in Quinn’s rescue.”

  “But you killed him. Right after you pulled it out.”

  “Yes, and you erased the tapes.” She paced a few more times, eyes now turned toward the ground. Diarmin waited patiently, knowing his wife was trying to find the words for a difficult subject.

  “I’ve been wondering how Daviss keeps finding me so quickly. If someone reported us the moment we land or dock at a station, it still takes time to get to a ship
and travel. But he’s been there within an hour or two.” She crossed her arms but didn’t stop walking. “He has been a step ahead of me this whole time. I thought I was being sloppy even though I couldn’t figure out where I kept messing up.”

  She stopped and looked at Diarmin.

  “I think they have been tracking me through that medplant. It somehow has been sending them signals. It’s the only way they could have known it was removed and the only way he could know my whereabouts so accurately.”

  Diarmin felt his stomach clench at that realization. “And like Kurla said, they have been testing you so that’s why they never closed in, always pushing you just a little further.”

  “Yes, and like a complete idiot, I have been letting them.” She put her fists to her temples and bit her lip. “They played me. Daviss has been manipulating me from the start.”

  Diarmin grabbed Lenore’s fists and pulled them away from her head, temples already red from the pressure of her anguish.

  “Stop that,” he said. “He has not been manipulating you from the start. For one thing, they implemented sterilization after you left so that means they reacted to your desertion, not planned for it. Now, having been unable to bring you back, they are reacting in another way. They probably realized that your emotions would be easier to manipulate now that the medplant is gone.”

  “You are right. But no more.” The determination was back in her eyes, sending a wash of relief through Diarmin. Determination was better than despair.

  “No more,” he agreed. “Now let’s get this mission finished so we can decide how best to handle the Xa’ti’al.”

  Lenore grinned, but it wasn’t a pleasant one. “Absolutely. They have messed with the wrong family.”

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  Quinn felt the ship enter transwarp. By his calculations, he had been in his room, staring at the ceiling for about nine hours. The first few hours he had dozed, still sleeping off the effects of the stun blast. He felt a wry grin. It had been stronger than he thought it would be. The IGNet never mentioned that.

  His grin faded as he realized that, despite having lain here for hours thinking on the past days, he had no answers. For his family or himself. He had some vague ideas and feelings but didn’t know if he could form them into coherent sentences. Maybe if he identified his feelings, he might have better luck.

  First, there was still anger. It felt like he had been angry since Kurla came on board. But he reluctantly admitted his temper had been short for weeks. Since the end of the mission with the princess, maybe even a little during. He thought it was fading with time but instead the situations just switched. Every day had brought something new to be angry about. Even now, he was angry that neither of his parents had come to thank him for his part in their rescue.

  Now, Quinn felt embarrassment. He hadn’t really helped. He simply focused everyone’s attention on him instead of Allison. She had even gotten him onto the ship without detection. His skills hadn’t been up to the task and he’d been playing everything over and over in his mind but coming up with no better solutions. And he put Allison in danger.

  One huge emotion that took him awhile to identify was doubt. Right now, he doubted himself, his family and even his own intentions. Had he really wanted to join her crew? Did he have criminal tendencies? A stray thought of something Allison had said niggled at his brain but a knock on the door made the thought vanish.

  “Quinn?” It was his father. “Are you hungry? Would you like some dinner?”

  Quinn rolled off the bed with a groan. He opened the door to see his father with a concerned look on his face. “I’m not hungry,” he said.

  “Well, the whole family is in there, Bondle is down in the cargo bay keeping a close eye on his cargo, so now would be a good time for us to have a meal.”

  Quinn was about to refuse again, but the tone of his father’s voice indicated that he was expected to be there.

  “Okay.”

  He followed Diarmin into the lounge. Everyone was seated at the table with plates full of food in front of them. Diarmin took a seat and Quinn slowly sat in a chair with a plate. He ate a few bites but the weight of the stares of his family made the food stick in his throat. His mother placed a glass of liquid in front of him.

  “This is a strong electrolyte drink. It will help with the aftereffects of a stun blast.”

  Quinn obediently drank some. It tasted wonderful so he drained the glass. Wordlessly his mother refilled it and Quinn knew they couldn’t put off the discussion anymore. He suspected the drink had something else because suddenly his head cleared, and he felt almost normal.

  “Are we on our way to Bondle’s homeworld?” he asked.

  “Yes. It should be another five hours,” said Diarmin.

  “Two hours to the course change and then three more to finally deliver the cargo,” said Lenore. “Bondle should have twelve hours to test the effectiveness of his vaccine.”

  “Good. I am glad all the…delays weren’t…didn’t…I mean…” He trailed off.

  “We were fortunate,” said Lenore. She took a deep breath and pushed her plate away. “Let’s talk about that, shall we?”

  Everyone else put down silverware and pushed plates to the side.

  “Start from the moment we left the ship to board the patrol ship,” said Diarmin. “We have already heard Alli’s version, give us yours.”

  “Okay. First, Alli and I knew something was up because Alli had read three biosignatures on the bridge. None in the brig as the man had said. We weren’t sure why Kurla was on the bridge with the men, but it seemed wrong. We listened the entire time to your transmissions as you ordered, and when we heard it start to go wrong, Alli accessed her tap into the systems but all she could get at first were the biosignatures. When they put you in the cells, we remotely undocked the shuttle and programmed it to return as you instructed with your subvocals. We hoped at least one would be pulled out the airlock, but he closed it in time.” Quinn suppressed a small shudder. Saying that out loud made him realize for the first time that they had tried to kill a man. He pushed the thought away and kept on. “As soon as the shuttle was aboard, we took off to hide. We argued about going to the patrol base, but I didn’t want to waste time. I had Alli hack into the entire system again while I came up with a plan and readied weapons.”

  “Which reminds me,” said Lenore. “Where did you learn how to use those?”

  “The IGNet. It has everything a person would want to know.” He grimaced. “Good and bad.”

  “I see.” She leaned back in the chair, lacing her fingers together over her stomach. The lack of emotion on her face did not reassure Quinn. “Continue.”

  “The plan was that I would go aboard, distract everyone while Alli slipped on, and then she would go to work.” He swallowed. He had to get the next words right. “I knew I couldn’t take all of them so I thought I would simply surrender and be in the brig with you. She’d then deactivate the cell fields, and, with the element of surprise, you could easily handle all three. I…I honestly had no idea she would ask me to join her crew. But it was distracting them all and giving Allison a lot more time to find a secure place so I went with it. I also thought that if I could even be trusted a little as a member of the crew, maybe I could do more.”

  “But why did you have the device that would suppress my implant if you weren’t planning on needing something to inspire trust?”

  Quinn felt a rueful grin. “I was just using that device to suppress my biosigns.” He shrugged. “I didn’t know if it would do anything about your implants, but it’s all I could think of.”

  Now Lenore looked accusingly at Diarmin. “So why didn’t you tell me the truth?”

  “I couldn’t blow Quinn’s story, could I? And I never really had the chance to later.”

  Lenore put her elbows on the table, hands on her temples as she closed her eyes.

  “Okay,” she said, finally. “So far everything you’ve told me matches with what Alliso
n said.” Here Allison nodded vigorously as if by strength of agreement she could avoid her mother’s next words. “But, Quinn. I…we…need to know. Was there a part of you that wanted to leave?”

  All heads swiveled to look at him. He still didn’t know if he could explain, but he had to try.

  “I will be completely honest. I have thought about leaving and even said so when I was angrily yelling on the bridge. So, honestly, yes, there was a small part of me that was tempted by Kurla’s offer. I was attracted by the thought that maybe I could have some different experiences and learn exciting new things.” Quinn tried to ignore the hurt on his family’s faces. “But only for a brief moment and do you know why? I suddenly realized that Kurla was the completely wrong person to do that with.” He was silent for a moment as he organized his thoughts. “Mom. Dad. Despite the fact that I know you have deliberately kept information from me and Alli, the fact of the matter is…” he shifted his gaze between his parents, trying to show his sincerity. “You have never lied to us. I have had plenty of time these past few hours to think. Now I know that all those things you haven’t told us or taught us are for our protection. Kurla was only ever for herself and she lied about everything. When she laughed about faking the priest and said, ‘there is much more to a disguise than wigs and makeup,’ I knew she had been in my room and gone through my belongings. As far as I know, none of you have ever invaded my privacy in such a way. Well, with the exception of eavesdropping and I understand why that was done.” He grinned at Allison’s red face. “From that point on, there was zero chance that I would help Kurla in any way.” He stopped, even though he felt he hadn’t quite explained himself well enough.

  “I see,” was all his mother said but the tension drained out of the room. “I appreciate the honesty. That couldn’t have been easy.” She smiled and the relief Quinn felt made him light-headed.