Fatal Blade (Decker's War#3) (16 page)

“Cogent thinking for a former command sergeant.”

“Dummies don’t get to wear the crossed swords on their stripes.  Besides, the Corps runs on its command non-coms.  Now about your real question concerning the Avalon rent-a-spacers: we have no problems putting them at the wrong end of our guns.  They’ll try to return the favor.  Good luck to them.”

“You’re a very confident man.”

Decker’s mouth twitched.

“It’s a curse, but so far, so good.  Another one?”

“Are Shrehari ugly?”  The rebel leader smiled when Zack reached over to the cooler and pulled out a few more bottles.  “There’s none to be had where we’re going and what comforts we do get are pretty miserable.  The militia might not be much on catching us, but they sure can make life hard for colonists who help out with supplies.”

“Have they done anything that crossed into war crimes territory yet?”

“None that would hold up in court, but how many settlements can you ruin before it stops being collateral damage and becomes a deliberate scorched earth policy?”

An evil grin twisted the Marine’s lips.

“I’ve seen that story before too.  Perhaps the Garonne militia needs to experience some real pain.”

He ignored Talyn’s warning glance, knowing full well that she would be against any involvement unless it got them closer to finding the rebellion’s financial backers.

“And you’re the man to do it?”  There was gentle mockery in Verrill’s tone.

“I’ll need a little bit of help from your fine young rebels.”

This time, Verrill laughed out loud at Decker’s disingenuous tone.

“I’m beginning to like you, Zack, and I’d be really chagrined to find out you’re not what you pretend to be.”

“He’s not pretending,” Talyn said.  “My boy here has a ruthless streak when he puts his mind to it.”

“And you, Captain?”

“When we’re in space, he’s the first mate.  On the ground, I’m his winger.  Whatever needs to be done, I’ve got his back.”

“A wonderful non-answer,” Verrill replied, “but I’ll let it stand for now.  Do you have any military background that might be useful?”

“Not even a whiff.”

“Meaning you have a military background and none of it is useful to us or you’ve never been in uniform?”

“Does it matter which one it is?  I sail this ship where it needs to go.  When we get there, I let the big guy run the show.”

“Another wonderful non-answer, Captain.”  This time, Verrill’s tone was openly sarcastic.  “Fair enough.  Your ship, your rules.”

“And what’s your story, to coin a phrase?”  Decker asked.  “Verrill the rebel and all that?”

“It’s a long and complicated story, to coin another phrase,” he replied.

“I figure two bottles of my finest vintage pays for a long and complicated story, not a wonderful non-answer.”

This time, Verrill’s laugh sounded genuine.  It reached his eyes and highlighted every wrinkle in his tired face.

“You know about the situation on Garonne?”

“Sure.  Class one colony, bootstrapped its way to self-sufficiency, but it can’t even get class two status, let alone class three independence, because Celeste, with help from its pals in the Senate, wants to keep a place where it can dump undesirables and appoint useless drones to profitable government sinecures.”

“Succinct, to the point, and sadly true.”  Verrill sighed.  “Though it’s worse than you can imagine.”

“Try me.  I’ve been through a few colonial disturbances in my day, and they all suck in their own way.  The ones with off-world political interference almost always have the most suckage.”

“Our most excellent colonial administration has been hiring deportees into the militia, pushing out those who came from the original settler families.  They’ve been promised free land and even tickets home to Celeste if they serve to the governor’s satisfaction.  Some of the deportees are politicals, and they’re either on our side or keeping their heads down.  Most, though, are criminals.  How’s that for being worse?”

Decker nodded.

“Sounds incredibly shitty.  Let me guess.  They have no problems burning down the homestead of an independence supporter and then claiming they were fired on while running a peaceful patrol in the countryside.”

“Got it in one, with homesteaders often dying in the process.  The properties then get handed over to government supporters.”

“Why has evidence of this not been brought to the Senate?”

“We tried.  Our envoys vanished and are presumed dead by now.”  Anger flashed across Verrill’s eyes.  “My eldest son was among them.”

“And your cities, or make that your one major city is under the control of the militia, at least those parts not under direct control of deportee gangs, and independence supporters either flee, keep quiet or die.”

“I guess you
have
seen it before.”  Verrill sighed.  “Some days I don’t know how we’ll ever get out of this nightmare short of the Fleet risking direct intervention.”

Talyn caught Decker’s eye again, to remind him that he was not to play knight-errant.  He ignored her.

“There are always ways, my friend.”  A slow, predatory smile spread across his broad face.  “We…”

The AI suddenly chirped with alarming insistence.

“That would be the proximity warning.  A ship dropped out of FTL within our security sphere,” Zack said, rising to leave the saloon.  “I hope it’s your third freighter.  If not, we might have a problem.”

“May I join you?”  Verrill asked.

“You can all come if you like.  Just be ready to vacate the bridge the moment we say so.  There’s not much room, and if we have to fight, passengers get in the way.”

When the others caught up with him, Decker was already at the gunnery console, scrolling through the sensor log.

“It’s a freighter alright, looks like the other two, but it’s pushing out an encrypted signal like crazy.”

Verrill stepped closer and peered over the Marine’s shoulder.

“That’s our code.  Can you open a link to
Marilan
?”

Moments later, a somber female face materialized on the main screen.  She spoke before Verrill could open his mouth.

“It’s Roste aboard
Clio
.  He’s got some nasties on his tail.  We need to get away quickly before they drop out of FTL and come at us.”

SEVENTEEN

“Any idea who they are?”  Talyn fingers danced on the navigation console, programming an emergency jump.

“Negative.  Two ships, armed, unmarked and without an IFF beacon, but then, no one broadcasts an IFF out on the Rim unless the Navy’s around.”  The woman looked at her leader with anxious eyes. “Are you coming back, Verrill?”

“Too late,” Zack interjected.  “I have emergence signatures one point five million klicks behind Roste’s ship.”

“Can you jump with my pod attached?”

Talyn thought about it for a moment and then nodded.

“It’s small enough.  The ship will treat it as part of its hull.”

“Good.  I’d hate to lose the thing.  I guess I’m staying, Petra.”

“Roger that.  Any orders?”

“Might I suggest we jump in sync?”  Talyn said.  “I’ll transmit the navigation data over to your ships and link them to my helm.  If we jump in an uncoordinated fashion, we’ll be scattered all over the place and make perfect victims for whoever just joined the party.”

“Makes sense,” Petra said before Verrill could speak.  “Do it. I’ll tell the others to expect your orders and spool up.”

“Don’t dawdle,” Zack warned.  “They’ll be in missile range soon enough.”

“I’m connected to
Marilan
,
Umberto
and
Clio
,” Talyn announced moments later.  “Transmitting navigation data.”

“Folks,” Decker glanced over his shoulder at the others, “find an empty seat and put your butts down.  I don’t want to mop blood off the deck.”

Verrill seemed poised to protest, but thought better of it and obeyed Decker’s order.

“
Marilan
,
Umberto
and
Clio
, this is
Phoenix
prepare to go FTL in thirty seconds.  Acknowledge.”

One by one, the captains of the three freighters responded, all sounding worried by the unexpected turn of events.

“Incoming from the unidentified ships,” Decker said, chuckling.  “Stand down and prepare to be boarded.  Man, that never gets old around here, does it?”

Talyn held up her right hand in the rigid digit salute.

“You’re authorized to transmit my response, but save the ammo.”

Decker snarled into the audio pickup, his face distorted as he uttered the sounds.

“What in heaven’s name was that?”  Kinnear asked when he was done.

“One of the few Shrehari expressions I’ve been able to memorize.  I’m not sure their mothers would be impressed if they actually did what I told them to do.”

“With your excruciatingly awful accent, it was probably wasted on them,” Talyn said, finger hovering over the controls.

“Maybe,” he shrugged, “but doing it entertained me and that’s what really counts.”

“Right.  The universe exists for your enjoyment.  Stand by everyone, five seconds.”

“Doesn’t it, though,” Zack replied, but no one heard his words.  Everything dissolved around them, and they became wholly preoccupied with keeping their stomachs from jumping out of their throats.

“Did everyone make it?”  Verrill asked after a few moments spent swallowing convulsively.

“We’ll find out when we drop out of FTL at the end of this jump,” Talyn replied, turning in her seat to face the rebel leader.  “The ships on our tail will need ten, maybe fifteen minutes to spool up again so we’ll gain some distance but I doubt we’re done with them yet.  When we emerge, I’ll put out fresh navigation orders that’ll send us on a divergent course.  It may take a few random jumps to shake them, so I hope you’re not in a hurry to reach Garonne.”

“Whatever needs to be done,” Verrill replied, waving away any thoughts of objecting.  “How long on this jump?”

“Ten hours.  I suggest another round of whatever libation you like and then some shut-eye,” she said.  “There’s nothing you can do while we’re FTL other than fret, and you won’t be doing that around me.  There’s bunk space in the cabin Miko and Tran have been using.  Zack will get you some sundries from the purser’s locker so you can brush your teeth.  Any questions?”

Verrill seemed momentarily taken aback by her matter of fact orders, then he gave a half-smile and nodded.

“You’re very efficient, Captain Pasek.  I’m beginning to think that I owe Tran for finding you.”

“She’s more of a force of nature,” Zack said, rising from his seat and stretching.  “Stand in her way and you’ll feel like you’re in the middle of an ion storm, but enough about my partner’s friendly disposition.  Is anyone interested in what the sensors picked up about our little friends in the fast ships?”

“Do we need to talk about it here or can we do it in the saloon?  It’s just that I think I’ve earned a nice gin and tonic for my masterful display of convoy captaincy.”

“By all means.”  Zack swept his arm towards the door.  “I’ll even mix it myself.  Lots of gin, a drop of tonic and half a lemon, right?”

“If you can find an actual lemon aboard, I’ll be seriously impressed,” she replied, leading the exodus from the bridge, “but please, reverse the proportions.  Compared to some ex-Marines I know, I’m a smallish female whose capacity for booze is rather limited.”

“And you’re no fun drunk anyway.”  Decker winked at Kinnear, whose slightly embarrassed smile seemed almost comical.

“So,” Talyn said once the drinks had been passed out, “your sensors picked up something useful about our pursuers?”

She took a sip and nodded approvingly.

“Sure.”  Decker pulled up a chair and sat at the head of the table.  “Those weren’t your average, low-rent marauders.  I’m about ninety percent sure they’re our friendly neighborhood Confederacy of the Howling Stars.”

“Jackals?”  Talyn’s eyebrows shot up.  “Since when do they chase honest starships?  As far as I know, there hasn’t been a single instance of piracy ever traced back to the Confederacy.  They’re too smart to engage in the one activity that’ll have the Navy come down on them like the Horsemen of the Apocalypse.”

“How did you figure that out, Zack?”  Steiger asked, sounding skeptical.

“They were a bit too hasty covering up their colors.  I caught just enough of a marking to let the AI fill in the blanks.”

“That makes it even more interesting,” Talyn said.  “The Jackals aren’t known for their modesty.  Covering up their colors isn’t standard procedure.”

“Neither is running down a freighter for shits and giggles.”

“I’ll have to speak with Roste when we drop out of FTL.” Verrill’s mouth was set in a hard line.  “The most obvious motive is the ordnance he’s carrying, which means our operational security might have been compromised.”

“Perhaps it would help if we knew where Roste is coming from,” Decker suggested.

The rebel leader bit his lower lip while he considered the proposal, then shook his head.

“Sorry.  It’s need to know and at this time, you don’t.”

“Fair enough.”  Decker drained his bottle and stood.  “You can stay here if you want, but for us, it’s bed time.”

Once they were safely ensconced in their cabin and far from curious ears, Talyn sighed.

“This is getting increasingly messy.  Is the Confederacy pursuing the Garonne rebels on orders of the
Sécurité Spéciale
?  Or are they operating on their own behalf because they got wind of juicy weaponry and figure the Navy won’t bother them if they take a few insurgents out of the picture?”

Decker stripped down to his birthday suit and grinned at Talyn.

“Maybe a game of hide the soap will loosen the old brain cells.  C’mon.”

“Why?”

“Because it relaxes me and when I’m relaxed, I can think more clearly.”

“I suppose it’s worth the aggravation of playing in a confined space just to see you get an original thought.”

“That’s my girl.”

He put his arm around her waist and swept her into the shower stall.

***

Decker found Verrill, Steiger and Kinnear speaking in low tones around a jug of fresh coffee a few hours later.

“Good morning, or whatever time of the day it is.”  He reached over Kinnear’s shoulder to grab the carafe and poured himself a mug.  “Telling tall tales to pass the time?”

“We were brainstorming why the Confederacy might have latched on to Roste’s ship.”  Verrill didn’t look like he’d had any restful sleep.

“Bad luck?”  Zack took a sip and grimaced at the bitter taste.  “Someone spoke too much in a place where the walls have ears?  Usually, when the bad guys decide to focus their attention on a particular ship, it’s because someone talked out of turn.”

He scratched the side of his face and frowned.

“Of course, sometimes, the bad guys put a ringer on board who figures out the what, where and when for his buddies.  Sometimes, they even…”

“You’re a bucket of cheer, aren’t you just?”  Steiger said, shaking her head.

“Yep,” he nodded, smiling, “and, as I was about to say, sometimes they even blackmail or buy off a senior officer to throw the game.”

“Blackmail?”  Talyn asked, entering the saloon with a smile to match Zack’s.  “What are we discussing?  The reason why we have the Jackals on our collective asses?”

“You two look disgustingly cheerful, you know that, right?”  Steiger made a face at them.  “Obviously, your night was better than ours.”

“A gentleman never tells.”  Zack winked at the mercenary.

“I can’t see Roste either betraying us or being that lax with security,” Verrill said.  “I’ve known him for a long time.  He’s reliable, committed and far from stupid.  Besides, he’ll have vetted the freighter’s crew very carefully.”

“Everyone has a weak spot,” Decker replied.  “Until you can see his face, you won’t know whether someone’s pushed hard on him or one of his folks, or whether it was just bad luck.”

“We’ll have to make the interval quick,” Talyn reminded them.  “Just long enough to re-sync navigation and retune the hyperdrives.  I figure it’ll be a few jumps before we can shake off any pursuit.  If you want to speak with your man while we’re sublight, sure, but the moment all ships are ready, we’re off again.”

“You seem to have taken control of my operation without much of a by your leave, Captain Pasek.”

“You hired us to escort you safely to Garonne.  I’m earning my pay, Ser Verrill.  If you’d like to override me and thereby put us in jeopardy, it will nullify our contract.  Your call.”

“Speaking of blackmail...”  Steiger’s smile was more than a little sarcastic.  “I know, I know – your ship, your rules.”

“Your lives, actually, honey.”  Zack blew her a kiss.

Talyn poured herself a coffee, then nudged Decker.

“If you’re through flirting with the passengers, we have to get ready.  The countdown clock is at thirty minutes.  I’ll need to know where the others are the moment you’re done swallowing your stomach.  They’ll probably have drifted, even on a relatively short leg.”

She paused for a moment and looked at the others.

“The three of you are welcome to join us with the usual caveats that you find a seat and stay there, and that you vacate instantly and without question the moment either of us says so.”

“Most gracious of you, Captain.”  Verrill inclined his head.  “Please believe that I’m grateful for the way you handled our swift departure from the rendezvous point.”

She dismissed his thanks with a wave of the hand.

“All part of the service.”

Then she vanished down the passageway, Decker in tow.

“Fascinating woman, that,” Verrill commented to no one in particular before following the two operatives.

***

Decker swallowed convulsively when the FTL bubble dissolved around them and
Phoenix
returned to normal space.  He focused on the sensor readout, eyes blurry for the few seconds it took his vision to clear.

“We’re not in a tight formation if that’s what you wanted to know,” he reported, “but everyone’s within reasonable distance except for
Clio
, Roste’s ship.  He’s well behind us, further now than he was when we jumped.  There’s nothing else within sensor range.”

“Transmit orders to
Clio
: accelerate and reduce the gap,” Talyn replied, “remainder to maneuver in on us.”

“Done,” Zack said a few moments later.  “And no arguments.”

He swiveled his chair to face Verrill.

“If you’d like to speak with Roste, now’s the time.”

“Could I take it in private?”

“Sorry, no.  This is a matter concerning our collective safety.  You’ll take it here,” Talyn said in a tone that dared him to argue.  “You have twenty-five minutes.”

“Perhaps I should be doing this in person rather than over the comnet.”  Verrill sounded less than enthusiastic.

“We don’t have time to send you over to
Clio
, though we do have time for you to return to
Marilan
if you leave now.  You can even take Steiger and Kinnear with you, but keep in mind that if
Clio
does anything to jeopardize the rest of the convoy, I’ll let Zack do a bit of target practice.”