Tin Star (20 page)

“We’re friends, aren’t we?” she asked.

“What do you think?” I asked. I didn’t know the answer to that myself.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t know anything anymore.”

“I don’t have much experience with Human friends,” I said.

“I don’t believe that’s true,” Els said. “You’re friends with Reza.”

“It’s not the same,” I said.

She brushed a strand of hair away from my face.

“Reza is so gentle,” she said. “Is he gentle with you?”

I swallowed.

“I’m sorry. You know how boys are,” she said. “They can split themselves so easily.”

It hurt me that she implied that there had passed something between her and Reza. She was so slippery that I couldn’t tell if it was just something that she had made up or if it was true. It didn’t matter, it was an emotional blow and I wasn’t used to them. It shook me, but I let it slide to stay in the game with her.

“I find him amusing,” I said. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course you do,” she said. “You know how it is. You should string him along a little longer. See if he has anything that we can use to secure our position with the Imperium.”

“Of course,” I said.

“Another thing,” she said. “You’ll have to keep those passes you have handy in case this goes wrong. We’ll have to use them to escape quickly.”

I struggled to keep my eyes locked with hers and to not look at the security panel where I kept them.

“When I first saw you, I saw that we had something in common. You and me, we’re not so different. We’re just two girls, far away from home. But you, you are special. I can see that about you.”

Els had now moved in closer still. She put her hands on my shoulders. She kissed me. It was a warm kiss. Full of affection and softness. But it was so different from Reza.

“When I was young, all I wanted to do was to go to the stars. They would come up at night, and I’d gaze at all the places where I knew life was. I’d marvel at how sometimes a star that looked close was really far and on the Outer Rim, not near anything at all. That’s how I felt, far away from everything. And now I’m here, and not in some slum on Earth staring up at the center of the galaxy, but nearly there.”

She kissed me again. The kiss was electric, but it had no warmth to it. No love. She was trying to manipulate me, and to get what I wanted I would have to go with it.

“There is so much at stake,” she said. “So much is going on that is bigger than you or me.”

I kissed her back.

After a while we stopped kissing. I held her in my arms the way that I held Reza, but it was far from the same. I could tell that she thought she had me in her grasp.

“He wants to meet me at the Sunspa,” Els said. “It’s the only place where a meeting will raise no suspicion.”

I was glad that it would be in public. I didn’t want to do any of this in a dark secret place. If Brother Blue was involved, we were all in danger. But a place with a lot of light and many aliens was safe.

28

This Loor, Ven Dar, was nothing like Tournour.

His orange towel was ridiculous.

He came over to me as I stood by the refreshments. I made a big deal about trying to select the perfect kind of water to refresh me in the cabin. The pickings were slim and mostly high in minerals that I didn’t like the taste of. I would have to settle for swill. I couldn’t afford the high premium waters that I liked.

“I’ve heard that you have the large booth set to G2V yellow star,” he said. “I’m here on official business, and I must get my time in. Would you object to sharing?”

“For a bottle of premium water?” I asked and indicated the bottles on the highest shelf.

“Of course,” he said, paying for the most expensive bottle. I smiled. It was clear by his choice of water that Els had them very scared.

We made our way to the cabin, chatting. It was not uncommon for people to sit together in the Sunspa, every species needed their dose of sun. When the door clicked shut and we were alone, he got right to the point.

“Do you have what you promised?”

I took the data plug out. He took the plug and examined it.

“I’ll be in touch,” he said.

I was glad for the water; it was delicious. I finished it off and got up to leave.

I headed to Els to tell her that I’d delivered the goods. She was at Kitsch Rutsok’s, surrounded by a group of aliens. I could tell that she thought that she had them wrapped around her finger. But she didn’t see all the signs that they were trying to play her.

I slid into the booth and put my arm around her.

“How did it go?” she asked.

“Smoothly,” I said. “They’re scared.”

“They shouldn’t be,” Els said. “I’m going to be the greatest thing that happened to them. I’m their ally.”

Her sureness was so steady that even I almost believed that what she said was true. But I’d seen enough too good to be true deals go sour very quickly in my time, so I kept my reservations up front. There was always a catch. She would never believe me though.

“Still,” I said. “We should be careful,” I cautioned.

“Lighten up, Tula! The galaxy is about to drop into the palms of our hands. You should stop worrying and start celebrating.”

She called over to the server to bring me a hot meal of fresh food. I knew she didn’t have the currency yet, but in her mind she was already powerful and rich. Tonight, though, she would have to depend on the generosity of those aliens whom she thought she had twisted into owing her for her part in the communication array repair.

The aliens drifted off one by one, knowing that they could not pull one over on me. But Els was clueless, delighting in the fact that she thought that she had done well.

“I was meant for this,” she said. “Meant to deal with different species.”

“Yes,” I lied. “You’re so good at it.”

“I’m going to shine bright on Bessen.”

“I have no doubt,” I said.

“You could learn a thing or two from me,” she said.

She ordered a round of jert juice for us.

“Tell me what happened,” she said.

“I gave him the data plug. He’ll examine it and get back to us.”

“It’s such a bore that things take so long,” she said. “I want to be out of here soon. Traveling to Bessen will take long enough, and I want to be living my new life already.”

“Me, too,” I said.

I changed the hours that I worked in order to avoid Reza. And I did not go to his bin. I wasn’t sure if I could follow my own plan and leave him behind without revealing myself.

29

I was surprised when Ven Dar came to me as I weaved through the third level only a day later. At first I didn’t hear him because he called me Els.

“Els,” he said. “Els.”

He quickened his step until he caught up to me and then motioned for me to follow until we entered a private room.

“Let’s get down to business,” Ven Dar said. “Your proof could be a disaster for Earth and those of us who have been helping Brother Blue to keep up the ruse. You can’t reveal too much or you and your people lose everything. We have you. You don’t have us.”

I started to protest. He put his finger up to stop me.

“But, we’re willing to offer you amnesty on Bessen, and Brother Blue will offer you a position in his administration. He likes your initiative and thinks you may have something to offer. But it is determined that trouble may still lie with these Human boys. We followed up on your information that they have been dealing with disreputable characters. They were with you and they may know what you know. They are wildcards in our plan.”

“They’re harmless,” I said. “They know nothing. I guarantee my life on it.”

“I’m glad to hear it. But I’ve had instructions from my superior. The boys are too dangerous. They cannot live.”

“You want me to kill them?”

“If you want to come to Bessen, you must dispose of them. We need to be certain of your loyalty.”

“Leaving them here with no way off the Yertina Feray means they are as good as dead,” I said.

I tried not to fumble the deal on the spot. Here was the anything that I would not do. I would not kill Reza and Caleb to further my own agenda.

“No,” Van Dar said. “They could recruit people sympathetic to those opposed to the Imperium. The Earth Imperium Alliance has finally shifted back in control of Earth. But these boys could sway the population of Earth to Earth Gov’s view to become isolationist again if they know about the colony situation. Better to kill them. Nip any rot in the bud.”

“You want me to kill my friends?”

“From what you’ve revealed about them in your dossier, you are not their friend.”

Of course. Els had been feeding the Imperium information about them to deflect any suspicion on her and to secure her footing with Brother Blue. She was ruthless.

“It will be difficult to manage without getting caught,” I said.

I had to change tactics or Ven Dar would see that I was faltering.

“Make it look like an accident,” Ven Dar suggested. “That always works.”

“Of course,” I said.

“We’ll need to see the bodies before they are disposed of,” he said.

“I’ll arrange for a funeral,” I said.

“Good,” Van Dar said. “We expect that you will have a bright future in the Imperium.”

He turned to go. If I was going to play a part in this heinous game, then I wanted something for myself.

“I have a question about the last colony ship. The
Prairie Rose
?”

He stopped and checked his datapad. His antennae waved slowly from side to side.

“The
Prairie Rose
?”

“It was a Children of Earth colony ship headed for Beta Granade,” I said. “Just before the Imperium.”

“I don’t know anything about that,” he said.

“But the
Prairie Rose
never made it there,” I said.

“Well, someone is manning the colony,” he said. “Each of the Earth colonies houses a small crew to help decoy and mask the lack of colony and to send messages and divert ships from there.”

Someone
was
on Beta Granade.

“Could you find out who exactly is there?”

“Why?”

“I have a Human friend on the Yertina Feray. Tula Bane,” I said slowly. “She was left here and her colony ship, the
Prairie Rose,
was destroyed on its way to Beta Granade. She wants to know what happened.”

“Oh no. Another Human?” he said. “She’ll have to be eliminated, too. No loose ends.”

“No,” I said. “She’s with us.”

It was strange to be defending my own life.

“Your word on this?”

“Yes,” I said. “She’s been helpful to me while I’ve been stuck here, and I’d like to give her some closure.”

“I can do a search,” he said.

“Thank you,” I said. “I owe her a debt of thanks.”

“Fine,” he said, making a note in his datapad. “Will you do what we ask?”

“Consider the Humans dead.”

He bowed to me and walked away. I had to sit down.

I would have to find a way to save Reza and Caleb by making them look dead.

30

In the middle of the night it dawned on me what I needed to do.

Poison.

Els was at the entertainments laughing with a group of aliens. They were a good time Minor Species, and Els had fallen in deep with them.

I dragged Els out of the party.

“What do you want?” Els said. “I was having fun.”

“I met with Ven Dar,” I said. “They’re ready to agree to your terms.”

“They are? We’re leaving? When?”

“There’s a condition.”

“Whatever it is, I’m ready.”

“We have to kill Reza and Caleb.”

Els did not even blanch. She would kill them to get out of here. They were in her way.

“You’ll help me?” she said.

“We need to make it look natural,” I said. I couldn’t kill Reza and Caleb. I wouldn’t. But I had to make it seem as though I would.

“I thought that your attachment to Reza would make you queasy. I would understand.”

I took her hand.

“I’m with you now,” I said.

She smiled. It was the smile of someone who believed that they had won. Els hugged me and there was something in the hug that solidified the feelings that I had. Any doubt that I had about who I should help was swept away. Els created danger and chaos. Reza and Caleb were perhaps misguided in what they wanted to do, but they were good at heart. They believed that they were doing what was best for Earth, for Humanity, and, bigger than that, for a galaxy of aliens that they had not yet met.

“We don’t want to get arrested for murder,” I said. “We’ll have to make it look like an accident.”

“How will we do that?”

“Poison,”
I said.

It was hours before I could extricate myself from Els. Finally I did, exhausted and worried. As I made my way down to the underguts, I noticed Tournour was following me.

“I’ve been told to get a massive security detail ready for a high ranking arrival,” Tournour said.

“Isn’t that your job?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said. “But these kinds of things don’t usually occur on a small station like the Yertina Feray. Who is that Loor that you were talking with? Why does he refer to you as Els?”

“Tournour,” I said. “I can take care of myself.”

“You’ve no idea what you are playing at, Tula. These are dangerous times. Not many are who they say they are. Not many do what they say they will do. One hand distracts while the other slips a system into its pocket.”

“In the end, good must win over evil. The trouble is trying to figure out which is which. Sometimes they look so much alike,” I said.

“Tell me what is happening,” he said. “Let me help you. I believe we’ve always been on the same side.”

This was the moment that he was going to cash in all of the favors that I owed him during all this time I knew him. This is what he’d been saving them up for—a moment to do something big.

“I didn’t know you were young,” I said.

He frowned.

“I bear the burden of shame for my family by being sent out to make my way at such a young age. It’s not something that I share lightly.”