gaian consortium 03 - the gaia gambit (26 page)

She lifted her chin and stepped forward, Rast following closely behind. They stood in an immense foyer, probably twenty meters square. Directly opposite them was a pretty Eridani woman in a very chic silver-gray suit who sat behind a desk of inlaid wood. She smiled at them and said, “Welcome to Senn Enterprises. May I help you?”

Lira approached the desk, wearing what she hoped was a confident smile. “Hello. My name is Adriana Ayers, of MonAg, and this is Janth sen Lhannick, agricultural under-secretary from Syrinara. We have an appointment with Mr. Senn at oh three hundred.”

Another smile, and the Eridani woman turned her attention to the virtual keyboard built into her desktop, typing in their information before she checked it on the head’s-up display to her left. “Ah, very good, Ms. Ayers. Master Senn is expecting you.”

What the…? That couldn’t possibly be correct. He couldn’t be expecting them, because the appointment was entirely fictitious. Lira wished she could turn to look back at Rast, to see if he could give her any indication as to the best way to respond, but she knew that doing so would only reveal her confusion.

“Excellent,” she said, in what she hoped was an appropriately breezy manner.

“The lifts are that way,” the receptionist said, and pointed to a bank of doors made of some silvery metal and engraved with a swirling design that echoed the fanciful architecture of the building itself. “Floor fifty-two.”

“Thank you so much.” And Lira headed off in that direction, acutely conscious of the clicking of her heels on the polished stone floor, Rast a pace or two behind her.

She pressed her thumb on the pad between two of the doors, once again establishing her identity, letting the building’s security systems know that she had every right to be there. Although she was acutely aware of Rast’s presence beside her, she knew she didn’t dare say anything until they were both safely inside the elevator. Luckily, she was not forced to wait very long, as it came within the minute.

They both stepped inside, and she pressed the button for the fifty-second floor. It was only after the doors slid shut and the elevator began its ascent that she said, “Rast, what the hell is going on here?”

He shook his head, looking grim. “I have no idea.” Then he brightened a little and said, “Perhaps Jackson Wyler hacked into their computers and inserted the appointment.”

“That would make sense…except that Jackson doesn’t even know we’re here. I haven’t talked to him since yesterday.”

Rast’s expression of dismay might have been comical if the situation weren’t so serious. He appeared to ponder the problem for a few seconds, then seemed to relax slightly, saying, “I’m sure Hunter Chao sent him all the information about our new identities, though. Is it possible he’s been keeping an eye out for our activities, just in case he needed to intervene to help us out?”

That actually did make some sense. Lord knows Jackson could slip into practically any database in the galaxy. Probably he’d gotten an alert the second their thumbprint scans showed up at the Senn Enterprises headquarters. After that it would only be the work of a few seconds to insert the necessary data into the receptionist’s feed, to make it look as if that appointment had been there all along.

And if Daos Senn was occupied with another meeting when they arrived, well, then, it was the sort of mix-up that could easily happen. At least it seemed fairly clear that he was here in his office. A stroke of luck there, that was for sure. She’d just have to hope their luck held.

The elevator doors opened, revealing a short hallway that terminated in a set of double doors. Master Senn clearly occupied the penthouse, as above them Eridani’s indigo-tinged sun shone through panes of blue and violet and silver-gray duraglass, the pattern repeating itself in paler hues on the floor of polished white stone. Rast reached out and took her fingers, gave them a quick reassuring squeeze before they headed toward Senn’s suite.

Those double doors swung open as they approached, and Lira took in a quick breath, willing herself to stay calm. As in the reception area down in the lobby, a desk faced the entryway, and at that desk sat a well-dressed Eridani woman, although this one appeared to be a few years older than the receptionist in the lobby.

The main difference between her and the receptionist, however, was that this woman wasn’t smiling…and that she held a stun pistol pointed directly at them. “Good afternoon, Ms. Jannholm, Captain sen Drenthan. We’ve been expecting you.”

The pistol fired, and Lira’s world went black.

Even though he knew she wasn’t dead, that she’d only been hit with a stun bolt, still Rast lunged toward the woman behind the desk. He hadn’t made it two steps before several pairs of very strong hands wrapped themselves around his arms, pulling him back. The curses died on his lips as a new figure stepped in front of him, one he recognized at once, although the penthouse suite of an Eridani office building was probably the last place Rast had ever expected to see him.

Admiral sen Trannick.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Rast snarled, pulling against the hands that restrained him — hands, he belatedly realized, which belonged to a pair of Stacian soldiers. That made sense, as he should have been able to bring a pair of Eridanis to their knees with just one yank of their arms.

“I might ask the same of you,” sen Trannick responded. His gaze flickered to Lira’s prone form, and his mouth twitched in distaste. “Come, let’s go discuss this like civilized beings.” He extended a hand, indicating another set of doors behind him.

“I have nothing to discuss with you.” Knowing he would have a difficult time freeing himself from the two soldiers who held him — they were even bigger than he was — Rast stood straight and unmoving in their grasp, showing his contempt for them by acting as if they were not even there.

“Oh, I think we have a great deal to discuss.”

“Lira — ”

“ — will be fine.” The admiral nodded, a signal to the woman behind the desk apparently, as she leaned over and spoke a few quick murmured words in the comm unit built into her desk. Almost at once a pair of Eridanis in simply cut civilian clothing hurried out from behind another door, then bent to pick Lira up and spirit her away back where they had come from.

The sight of her limp body dangling from their detestable lavender-skinned hands was too much for Rast, and he lunged forward again, breaking free from the men who held him, an inarticulate growl of rage coming from deep within his throat, deep within his soul. He would save her, no matter what it took.

A flare of violet light, and another, and he found himself falling, body betraying him as he crashed to the stone floor, hitting his head with a crack he heard rather than felt. The last thing he saw before darkness claimed him was the form of the woman he loved disappearing behind a set of polished metal doors.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Lira opened her eyes and tried to ignore the dull throbbing in her head. Despite her military background, this was the first time she’d ever been hit by a stun bolt — and she sincerely hoped it would be the last. In addition to the headache, her muscles twinged in places they’d never hurt before, probably because of the way she’d fallen to the floor after being stunned.

As she slowly focused on the world around her, she realized she was sitting upright in a chair, and that her hands and feet were bound. She did note that at least the chair was padded, and that her feet rested on a floor covered with an expensive-looking carpet in shades of deep blue and steel gray.

“Back among the living?” came an unfamiliar voice from somewhere behind her, and Lira turned her head to the right, trying to trace the source of the question.

He circled her then, coming to a stop a few paces away from the chair where she was bound. Since the room was not well lit, it took Lira a second or two to focus on him, to see that she looked at an Eridani male of approximately forty standard, although since Eridanis didn’t age precisely the same way humans did, he could have been some years older than that.

She didn’t bother to answer his question, instead saying, “Paragraph six, section twelve, of the Eridani Accord states that it is unlawful to hold or confine a sentient being without due cause. Since I have been accused of no crime, I must request that you release me immediately.”

Her words only seemed to amuse him, because he let out a bark of a laugh, then shook his head. “I’ll have to ask you not to quote my own world’s laws back at me, Ms. Jannholm. Not all of us agreed with the Accord at the time it was signed, and so I think I’ll ignore it for now.”

That did confuse her somewhat, as she’d always been taught that the Eridani people had wholeheartedly supported the Accord, since it set up standards for behavior among the galaxy’s sentient beings that were still followed decades later. But she didn’t want this stranger to see her uncertainty, or her fear. “Even so, as I’ve done nothing wrong, or illegal, the best thing for you to do would be to let me go before you face possible repercussions from my government.”

“Your government, Ms. Jannholm, doesn’t seem to give a damn about you, or it wouldn’t have cut you loose quite so quickly.”

A retort rose to her lips, but she choked it back, knowing there was some truth in his words. Truly, if the GDF had valued her at all as an officer, wouldn’t it have at least given her the chance to defend herself? She stared down at her hands, held together with a set of professional cuffs — but the humane kind, of untearable fabric that would keep her wrists bound but not chafe or bruise them. How very Eridani of her captor.

“Ah,” he said then, as if pleased that he’d managed to land a blow. “No, I think there aren’t many people who give a damn as to where you are or what you’re doing — not even that thick-headed Stacian in the other room.”

Her heart rose into her throat at those words, a flash of dismay, followed by denial. The Eridani could only be referring to Rast. It did sound as if he was at least still alive. As for the insult in the stranger’s words, well, she would ignore that. He was obviously only attempting to upset her in any way he knew how, to say whatever he could to increase her feelings of isolation, of abandonment.

If Rast was alive, she had the feeling he’d move heaven and earth to get to her. All she needed to do was keep her cool, and she had no doubt Rast would think of a way to get her out of this place.

Still she said nothing, knowing that it was best to stay silent, to not give this Eridani — Daos Senn? — any more ammunition than she already had. Obviously righteous indignation hadn’t worked at all, so she would just hold her tongue and hope that Rast could get to her sooner rather than later.

A flicker of irritation passed over the Eridani’s features, and he moved closer to her, bent down so he could gaze directly into her face. She stared back at him without flinching, noting that many would have probably called him handsome, with his straight nose and firm chin, the well-formed brows. But she had never found herself much attracted to Eridanis. Something about the lavender skin and odd little antennae that sprouted from within their gleaming purple hair just didn’t speak to her own personal aesthetics of what constituted personal beauty.

Obviously, she had very different feelings when it came to Stacians…or at least one particular Stacian.

“What is it about you,” the Eridani said in half-musing tones, “that would make someone such as Rast sen Drenthan, a man who had his entire career ahead of him, throw it all away?” He reached out and took her chin between two fingers, turning her head this way and that, as if inspecting every detail of her visage.

Lira forced herself to stay grimly quiet, to let him handle her as if she were a piece of meat he was inspecting at the market, trying to find a flaw. She wanted to spit at him, bite down on those lavender-skinned fingers, and despite everything she had to hold back a bleak smile. Perhaps some of Rast’s temper had rubbed off on her.

“I suppose some would consider you attractive enough, for a Gaian,” the Eridani went on. “Still, it can’t be only that. Are you particularly talented? Can you suck a ball bearing through a braided-steel hose?”

Breathe
, Lira told herself.
He’s just trying to goad you. Don’t react
.

So she stared straight ahead, not meeting his eyes, not saying anything, barely even allowing herself to swallow.

He didn’t like that, she could tell; his dark purple eyes narrowed, and he let go of her chin. Lira’s relief at being released was short-lived, however, because the fingers that had been touching her face then trailed down her neck, drifted over the high collar of her modish new suit, then moved lower down, over the slope of her breast.

It was impossible to stay silent then. A muffled sound of protest came from low in her throat, try as she might to choke it back.

“Does this bother you?” he whispered, bringing his mouth close to her ear. “I must confess to being a little surprised. After all, you obviously had no problem sleeping with a Stacian, as large and rough and uncouth as they are. Here on Eridani we are…more civilized.”

“If this is what you call civilized,” she retorted, “then it’s no wonder I prefer a barbarian.”

He laughed. “I’ll make sure he knows you called him that. Not that he probably cares overmuch what you think.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lira snapped, before she realized she shouldn’t have replied at all.

The Eridani straightened slowly, then crossed his arms and stared down at her with a satisfied expression on his regular features. “He’s played his role well, hasn’t he?”

“What role?” She tried to sound indifferent, but despite her admonition to herself not to listen to what this man had to say, to put no stock in his words, trickles of ice began to work their way down her spine.

“The role of ardent lover, of course. He did well to get you to move your ship out of the Chlorae system, but it went much further than that. All this time he’s been following our orders. And then when you also led us to a hacker who’s been stirring up trouble in various of our other business interests, well, that was just a very pleasant bonus.”