by TR Cameron
She nodded. “Top-of-the-line technology. Better than anyone else has. I think you’re going to like it.”
Athena observed, “You know, if you got the rest of your limbs replaced, we would be significantly faster and stronger. Just putting that out there.”
I like those pieces, thanks. My mother gave them to me. He grinned at Juno. “So, about that heartbreak?”
She laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “Once you heal up, and once you find the time since I think you’re going to be busy, maybe you should try asking me out again. It’s your turn.” She turned and headed from the room. Jax admired her retreating form and wondered if there was a way to take down Arlox immediately, so he could get on to what was really important.
Athena made a disgusted sound. “Honestly. I don’t know what she sees in you.”
Jax closed his eyes and relaxed. I don’t either. I’m just glad she does.
Chapter Four
After being discharged and taking the time to shower and change into the Academy’s black uniform, Jax strode intently toward Maarsen’s office. The Professor’s message had indicated in no uncertain terms that he required Jax’s presence immediately. He entered the space, again noting the comfortable environment that reflected the personality of the man behind the desk. It had a sort of casual formality, the fireplace comfortable rather than fancy, the bookshelves inviting rather than ornamental.
Maarsen himself was in his usual suit and shirt without a tie and had slicked his longish grey hair back out of the way. His mustache, beard, and sideburns all looked like they could use a little attention, and his green eyes seemed to be more sunken in their sockets than usual. He looked more concerned than Jax recalled seeing him, his normally genial face wearing a slight frown. His voice, however, still retained its characteristic warmth. “Jackson, good to see you up and about. How’s the arm?”
He lifted the limb and waved it around a little to demonstrate that it was fully functional. “From what I hear, it’ll be much better than the original.”
Maarsen nodded. “We can use any advantage we can get at this point. Grab yourself a drink and take a seat.” It was only early afternoon, but Jax wasn’t about to refuse. He poured himself a modest amount of the amber whiskey from the decanter and settled into the right-hand chair. Maarsen said, “Activate,” and a holographic display materialized over his desk. It showed a view of the Earth from space, with time accelerated to show the planet spinning slowly. I haven’t seen that image before. Wonder if it means the Professor is occupied with concerns of global importance?
Athena offered, “The fight against Zavian Arlox could be considered a universal problem.”
No argument there. The man was doing backroom deals with aliens and the Confederacy, doubtless all in the name of Alliance security. Or at least that’s what he’d say to anyone who found out. Somehow, Jax doubted that was his only motivation or even his primary one. Once people like that have power, they want more and more and more.
Maarsen ordered, “Connect to Anika.” There was a brief pause, during which the older man stared expectantly at the display, then the scowling face of Major Anika Stephenson appeared.
“What can I do for you, Nikolai?”
The Professor grinned, and there was genuine affection in the expression. “I have your favorite subordinate with me. You’ve been informed of his recent adventures, yes?”
Stephenson’s scowl grew deeper. “I have. And I think he needs to keep his eyes open better.”
Jax snorted. “It was like thirty-seven on one.”
Athena corrected, “It was at best ten on one.”
Hush. Stephenson shook her head. “Regardless. You should have anticipated the attack. We all should have.”
Maarsen nodded. “Fortunately, we already had the defenses in place for the team that came after me, and the one that tried for Dr. Cray.” Jax’s eyes snapped up from staring at his glass. He hadn’t heard that they’d targeted Juno. He wondered if she knew. The Professor continued, “We will continue to maintain those defenses. But it would be far better, Anika, if you were here with us. You, and to a lesser extent Jackson’s Special Forces comrades, are in danger.”
She shook her head. “I have several things to wrap up before I can legitimately take leave. If I depart with them undone, it will be a red flag to our enemies.”
Jax suggested, “Maybe keep Lyton with you at all times?”
Stephenson snorted. “No, he’s too valuable where he is.”
Maarsen let out a small sigh. “I don’t like to disagree with you, but you’re remaining in a very unsafe situation for no clear gain. Our enemies are already aware we’re onto them, as evidenced by the first wave of attacks.”
The major ran her hands through her short-cropped blonde hair. “I know. But here’s the thing. There might be a good reason for me to stay where I am. I have connections I won’t be able to use if I’m away on leave. People who can give us a heads-up about what the Intelligence Division is up to. It might be better to remain on the Cronus. It’s not like I’m an easy target when I’m on board.”
Jax replied, “All the more reason to keep Lyton with you at all times. Come on. He’s fun.”
She chuckled. “He is most certainly not fun. In fact, he’s downright annoying, almost equal to your level of accomplishment in that area. That’s why I put him on your team.” She paused for a moment as if thinking, and continued, “But I suppose I do need an aide. And if that aide also happens to be a highly-skilled bodyguard, that’s not something anyone else needs to be aware of.”
Maarsen drummed his fingers on the desk, then shrugged. “You know your situation best, Anika. I’ll leave the decision to you, naturally, since I don’t have any other option. I still believe you would be safer here.”
She laughed. “Oh, no question. But it’s not exactly my job to be safe.”
“Speaking of unsafe, Jackson, you’ll be interested to know that Gretchen Paltar was allegedly killed by the Confederacy a couple of days ago,” Maarsen added.
Jax blinked in surprise. “Really? That’s unexpected.” She was Arlox’s minion. Jax had unsuccessfully tried to compromise her, which resulted in a lot of physical and mental pain.
Maarsen shrugged. “Arlox is cleaning house. He tried to kill his principal enemies with hunter teams, and he wiped out the best trail leading back to him. On the upside, we’ve got him worried.”
“Are you sure it was him behind it, not something coincidental?” He didn’t believe it was a coincidence but figured the question had to be asked.
The Professor somberly shook his head. “Had it only been her, I suppose I might’ve considered that a possibility. However, her home also exploded and demolished the ones to either side and caused several deaths.”
Jax winced. “Not exactly subtle, is he?”
Stephenson snorted. “He’s never been in the same room with subtle, at least where vengeance is concerned. One must assume he’s pretty accomplished at misdirection in other areas, given his position.”
He changed the subject. “So, Arlox needs to go down. How are we going to do it? Blow up a ship in transit? You have favors you can call in with Captain Jensen of the Cronos, right Major?”
A single laugh escaped Maarsen. “Nothing so grand is available, I’m afraid. The man stays on the move, which makes placing any sort of trap almost impossible. Without knowing where he is, the only option would be to drive him to us somehow, which carries excessive danger and likely wouldn’t work. He’d send endless teams of underlings before he’d get personally involved.”
Stephenson asked, “Any political opponents we can leverage?”
Maarsen sighed. “Had you sought that information a day ago, I would have said there was one in a reasonable position to mount a challenge. However, that individual died in their sleep last night.”
She growled, “Probably not natural causes, huh? This guy is a class-A bastard.”
Jax asked, Athena, any ideas?
He echoed her comments to the others, and Maarsen agreed. “That would be the easiest solution, but he’s surrounded himself with exceedingly loyal people. We can’t assume there’s any trust there. He doubtless has them under near-constant surveillance.”
Stephenson nodded. “So, what we need to do is separate one of those people from his protection and have a conversation with them.” Her emphasis on the word conversation made it clear she wasn’t talking about a comfortable chat over drinks.
Jax shrugged. “Okay. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt. Who’s the target?”
Maarsen instructed, “Photo, please,” and Stephenson’s image slid to one side. A low-quality surveillance photo of a mousy looking man with an expression of concern on his face joined it. Jax idly wondered whether Maarsen’s system was smart enough to know what he was referring to, whether he preset the picture before the meeting, or if there was a human listening in to give him what he requested. The older man interrupted his musings. “Quentin Foster is Arlox’s primary assistant. We’ve been able to identify a couple of other people in his network, but this one holds the unique position of being an only child who appears to care deeply for his parents.”
Jax said, “So, we have a source of leverage on this guy. How do we use it?”
Maarsen shrugged. “If our objective is to get one of Arlox’s people out of his immediate protective circle, this is the only one we know of with a vulnerability. His parents live in a smallish dome city on Mars, which puts them within our sphere of influence.”
Jax replied, “I know you’re not talking about interrogating the parents since he’d never have made it as Arlox’s assistant if he were loose-lipped. So, we have to use them to draw him there. False message?”
Stephenson shook her head. “They’d be smart enough to figure that out, I’m sure. It has to be real. I hate to say this, but we may have to inconvenience his folks a little.”
Maarsen nodded. “A health crisis would do it. Nothing fatal, but something that presented as serious enough that it might be.”
Jax sighed. “This is a pretty long shot.”
Stephenson replied, “We’ve had longer.”
The Professor added, “If you have other ideas, any at all, now is the time to put them forward.”
Jax paused a minute to see if Athena would give him something, but she remained silent. “I agree. We put the parents in apparent danger to bring our target to Mars, where my team and I will take care of him. Any reason to wait?” They shook their heads, again in tandem. “All right. I guess tomorrow we’re on the way to Mars.”
Chapter Five
The ride to the airfield northeast of the Academy was comfortably familiar. Cia met him at breakfast, and they headed up before the rest of the team, filling the drive with enjoyable conversation peppered with sarcastic snaps from the pilot. When she finds out who’s coming along on this trip, she’s never going to let me live it down.
Athena replied, “It does seem awfully convenient.”
Shut it. It wasn’t my idea. To be honest, I’m not completely thrilled about it. Really, it’s your fault.
“Since I was part of the tracker’s development, I suppose I can’t argue. But I don’t know if Dr. Cray’s presence with the crew for this mission is strictly essential.”
Jax gave a small laugh. You clearly never tried to stop her from doing something she has her mind set on. To Cia, he said, “So, been keeping busy?”
She didn’t take her eyes off the road. “The usual. Ferry people here and there, deliver things from here to there, and from there to here. As usual, as long as I get to fly, I’m happy.” Her pale skin seemed brighter than usual, which led him to think she’d dyed her short hair a deeper shade of black. “Of course, I’m always happiest when I’m working with you, Jax.” The sarcastic drawl in her voice was impossible to miss.
He laughed. “Oh, I very much feel the same, don’t doubt it. Really, the only thing that makes dealing with your nonsense tolerable is that the Grace is such a good ship.” She made a noise of agreement as she pulled the van to a stop a distance from their ride. It was in its normal configuration, with the musical note that was its only obvious decoration standing out prominently on the hull near the nose. The side hatch was open, and they climbed up the ladder to it while workers bustled out of a nearby building to move their cargo from the vehicle into the ship. They were traveling comparatively light since the mission ahead was more about subtlety than direct conflict.
He was completing preflight checks in the pilot’s compartment with Cia when he got a surprise. Trianna entered and growled, “Move.” It was the most he’d heard from the Academy’s other pilot, who made a point of not talking to anyone she didn’t like. It appeared he was still on that list. He obeyed with a grin and a quick slap on Cia’s shoulder and headed to the back. The rest of the crew put the final restraining straps on the storage crates and closed up the cargo door. He traded handshakes and fist bumps with the team, including Juno, and said to her, “Allow me to escort you to your lift-off position.”
She shook her head and gave him a look of disappointment, hopefully feigned. “Not my first trip, Jax. Not even my first trip on the Grace.” She strode past him, headed for the front of the ship. Kenton Marshall shook his head. “You’re smooth, man. Super smooth.”
Jax lifted his eyes to the ceiling as if beseeching the universe for justice. “One day, someone on this team is going to show me an iota of respect. I tell you, one day, it will happen.”
Ethan Kimmel, the youngest-looking member of the team and the one most likely to be mistaken for a ghost with his pale skin and blonde hair, replied, “Probably posthumously. Yeah, definitely posthumously.”
Laughter ruled the moment as Jax followed the others forward and strapped in for takeoff. Once they were safely en route to Mars, Cia abandoned her piloting duties to join the rest of the crew, who had gathered around the table in the galley as usual. It wasn’t big enough for all of them, so Jax and Cia stood with their backs to the cabinets while the rest filled the available chairs. He made the appropriate introductions, but everyone was familiar with Juno, and she with them.
He cleared his throat to attract their attention. “Okay. This mission is a little weird, even for us. Our target is Zavian Arlox’s assistant, and we need to pull him out of the Intelligence Division’s protective circle so we can get a shot at him.” He wasn’t willing to share all the information about exactly what form that shot would take quite yet.
Athena snickered, “Shot. You made a joke. Because it’s an injection. You’re coming right along.”
Shut it. “So, our boy Quentin is the dutiful only son of a lovely pair of elderly parents on Mars. We’re heading there now to create a reason for him to come back for a visit.”
Maria Verrand said, “Not a funeral, I hope.” Her voice was neutral, but of them all, she would’ve probably been the most willing to take such extreme measures given that Arlox and his people had blackmailed her into compromising the team in the past. Her long brown hair, always neatly braided, was now pulled back severely. Her face carried a tension that hadn’t been there when they’d met, and he regretted his part in putting it there.
Jax shook his head. “Nothing quite so dramatic, although a health crisis and a hospital visit is part of the plan.”
Anton Sirenno, the tall, dark, and handsome member of the team, looked uncomfortable. “I’ll do a lot of things for the Academy, but I’m not sure that putting the beatdown on senior citizens is within my current definition of acceptable behavior.”
Cia rolled her eyes and quipped, “Please. If the right woman fluttered her pretty eyelashes at you, your alleged morals would disappear like that.” She snapped her fingers.
Sirenno chuckled. “Well, I see three potential fl
utterers in the room. Anyone volunteering?”
Cia replied, “Eww.” Verrand and Juno laughed.
Jax resolved the issue with a grin. “No, we’re not going to do them lasting physical injury. Juno and Athena have come up with something that mimics real symptoms but isn’t ultimately dangerous. It will send them to the hospital and confuse the doctors enough that they should feel the need to call our target home.”
Kimmel countered, “And if they don’t?”
Jax shrugged. “We’ll do it ourselves. We expect the parents will have ordinary civilian comms, which Athena should easily crack to get emergency contact codes for their son. After that, it’s as simple as making the source appear to be the hospital and transmitting the call. Then, if he calls back, he’ll get confirmation from them that they’re there.”
The others nodded. Cia asked, “And after he’s on his way?”
Jax shook his head. “That end of the plan is still in development, so we’ll hold off on discussing it until we’ve succeeded with the first part. How long until we get to Mars?”
She shrugged. “We’re taking the slow way around, so about half a day.”
Kimmel asked, “Are we going to visit your parents again?”
Cia’s scowl was impressive. “I certainly hope not.”
Jax laughed. “Maybe we can stop by if we have time when we’ve finished, but the city we’re headed to is half a planet away from the Rearden estate.”
Juno commented, “Pity. I’ve heard so many good things.”
The pilot barked a laugh. “About the estate, sure. About the people who live there, well, if you heard good things, someone’s been lying to you.”
There was a round of laughter, and Cia wandered forward to resume her piloting duties. Jax looked at the crew, all of whom wore smirks of one kind or another and carefully didn’t meet his gaze, and rolled his eyes. “Okay, get it out of your systems.”
Verrand was first. “So, Juno, you’re slumming, is that it? Or is it pity dating?”