Hijackers Page 10

  "He doesn't like guns," I quipped and smiled. "The projects I'm working on tend to attract some rather nasty people."

  "Killers, from what Commander Shrader was looking into. How can I help you?"

  "I'd like to go over the same cases with you and hear your insights. If I'm right, we have a group of mobile killers for hire. The better I can isolate those who are unlikely to be local the better I'll be able to track them," I said.

  "Glad to help, Commander."

  "Anna, please, Chief." We spent the rest of the day one floor below ground level, reviewing all the killings for the past twelve months, and managed to find an additional overdose case that didn't feel right. The person was a drug user but never used the hard drugs that were found to have killed him.

  System

  Incident (date)

  Ships in Port

  Westar

  1/23 / Jonnie Lyons, was killed with a knife unique to the airborne

  3/ 15 / Robbery

  4/10 / Robbery

  10/ 20 / Overdose

  1/23 / Hecate, Romulus

  3/ 15 / Laelaps, Oedipus, Zelus

  4/10 / Hecate, Mermes

  10/ 20 / Hecate, Zelus, Romulus

  The Chief agreed to keep Adrian appraised on any murders. I spent the next day at the Westar NIA office, meeting Adrian's staff of eight, including a civilian secretary.

  "How do you like having a station to run?" I asked while sitting in his office.

  "Not as exciting as our project team, but I don't need security and I like having a permanent base."

  "Kris feels the same way," I said, thinking about my conversation with her.

  "How about you, Anna?"

  "Lulltrel has been good to me, and expanding my role has given me another puzzle to work on, and you know how I love puzzles. And I get to have coffee with Admiral Webb," I added with a crooked smile.

  Adrian laughed. "You're going to wind up my boss." He laughed again. "I can just imagine the whiplash looks if you had a star on your shoulder board."

  "Don't even say that in jest, Adrian. I'm still working on Adult Speak and getting used to being a lieutenant commander. My mind hasn't caught up with my last promotion."

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Somewhere in UAS Space

  "Attention," a stern-faced man shouted as a tall man in a black uniform entered the room. His only decoration--a twenty millimeter silver star on his collar. The five men in the room braced to attention.

  "Sit," he said as he sat, and the stern-faced man placed a glass of wine in front of him.

  "Commander Ulisse, any prospects?"

  "No, Captain Santo. None of the merchants we are watching are good targets at this time. Probably a good thing, this close to intercepting the Easy Lady only two months ago and the Pereus three months earlier," Ulisse said. He was a thin man with a narrow face and a scar running from his temple to his chin.

  "Yes, our senior captain wants us to limit our prizes to under ten a year, which translates to two for each captain, and he wants them spaced by at least three months." Santo's fist slammed the table, spilling his wine on the table. "Is he afraid we'll run out of merchants?"

  "Cajetna is a cautious man. I would think he is trying to avoid notice," Commander Rumoco said. His broad face was smiling, his teeth glistening in contrast to his black bushy mustache.

  "Too cautious. We could use a little excitement. This is like hunting lambs in a pen."

  "That may change," Commander Nestore said, looking at his tablet. "As I reported a couple of months ago, the Project Raiders team has been disbanded. Commander Sinclair was assigned to Stone Ring, Commander Shrader to Westar, and Commander Paulus to Eastar."

  "Proving they don't have a clue," Santo sneered, and swallowed half his glass of wine.

  "If that's so, why is Paulus on the move? She visited Stone Ring and I'm informed she's going to Westar next."

  "Stone Ring has nothing to do with us. Maybe she is just visiting her friends," Santo said, and finished his wine in a gulp.

  "That's certainly one explanation…" Nestore paused and gave a small shrug.

  "And the other," Santo said, frowning at Nestore.

  "Our contacts say she was instrumental in solving the Smugglers’ and Raiders’ cases. Is it coincidental that they have assigned her to Eastar as the NIA Station Chief? At her present age, she should be a full lieutenant. At best a very junior lieutenant commander. She has only been on the job for a couple of months and she's on the move."

  "So what? The Smugglers and Raiders made a mistake relying on merchants—we don't."

  "So we are going to ignore her?"

  Santo said nothing, raising is empty glass as he gazed off in the distance. His aide took the glass, filled it, and placed it back in his raised hand. "All right, give the Hobos a contract to kill her."

  "Sir, I prefer they delivered her alive. I'd like to know what she knows or has deduced, and who else maybe involved."

  "All Right. If nothing else, it will give us something to do. The money may be good, but I'm bored and so are the men. That last merchant only had three women on board. I look forward to the Eastar NIA Station Chief joining us."

  * * *

  "This is our lucky day, Parsons," Schultz said as he slapped the wiry staff sergeant on the back and closed the door to their three-man quarters. A stocky muscular man sat on one of the bunks, smiling, with a beer extended toward Parsons.

  "You've made contact and?" Parsons asked, grabbing the beer and taking a long swig.

  "How does one million credits split three ways sound?" Schultz asked, laughing. He was the tallest of the three, with an athletic build and rugged angular face, which looked deadly even when it was smiling, like now.

  "Suicidal. They only give bonuses like that to tempt idiots like you to take it. Let me guess…" Parsons stood with his face crunched in thought, one hand clutching his jaw. "They want us to kill…no kidnap the President of Westar."

  "Damn, he's good, Schultz—" Meyer began but was interrupted by Parsons’ shout.

  "You idiots aren't serious." He put his head in his hands and rubbed his forehead while mumbling. "Fucking insane."

  "It's not quite that bad, Parsons. There is a Navy commander on Westar. She arrived on the Scylla. They want us to kidnap her," Schultz said with a crooked smile.

  "What's the catch? That’s not worth a million credits." He stared at the two sergeants.

  "Remember the foreign raiders who were working in the UAS?" Meyer asked. When Parsons nodded he continued. "Remember the NIA team that took them down?"

  "Ya, three lieutenant commanders out of Oxax. Sent a bunch of good Marines to jail in the process…for smuggling. We were damn lucky to get overlooked. If I remember rightly, two were women and one had a venomous snake."

  "Well, the one with the snake is on Westar, with Marine security, and they want her and the snake alive."

  "That explains the money. We have to take out Marine security, neutralize a venomous snake, and capture a girl who, according to rumors, is a deadly shot." Parsons was quiet as he sipped his beer. Both men were content to wait for him to speak. "She probably isn't going to be here long, so I'll go into the city and scout out our options."

  * * *

  It was early evening when the space port shuttle delivered Parsons to Westar City. He canvased several bars and nightclubs frequented by Marines on shore leave and quickly found several from the Scylla. They didn't know much but enough. A Commander who looked like a young girl had left the ship with a Marine escort, to visit the NIA office. A little research and he discovered the station chief was a Commander Shrader who had been part of the Raiders task force. At Shrader's condo unit, he found Shrader had a unit on the third floor and that two Marines were stationed outside his door—indicating the girl was staying with him—and two more were stationed in the lobby.

  It was early in the morning when Parsons arrived back on the Laelaps. Schultz and Meyer were awake when he entered the room.

/>   "Well?" Meyers asked just above a whisper as Parsons closed the door. Parsons smiled.

  "Unless the Dicky bird chooses to shit on us, this may be embarrassingly easy. He waved them over to the table, took out a sheet of paper, and began drawing. "Tomorrow, Meyer will meet with our contact at the Pretty Lady Nightclub and outline what we will need… He went on to explain what he had in mind and to discuss each man's part.

  * * *

  Each man left the Laelaps at a different time that day. Security at Shrader's condo during the day was lax, each man managed to gain entrance on one pretext or another, and were in place by early evening. Early the next morning, when the elevators weren't in use, they installed a gas canister on the elevator's roof, a remote device to each control panel, and then changed into elevator company overalls and settled down to wait. When Meyer, who was on the third floor, notified them the group had entered the elevator designated #1 and the door closed, Parsons activated the gas canister and set the elevator's control to stop at the second floor. When the door opened Pannell, two Marines, the two commanders, and the snake were out cold on the floor. Parsons grabbed the snake and placed it into a reptile cage, while Schultz put the female commander into a plastic bag, which he slung over his shoulder. Meyer had just reached the second floor landing when the two opened the door. They raced down the stairs, past the first floor exit to the parking garage, where a van waited. They piled in and the car sped off. Less than five minutes later, the car pulled into another parking lot where two cars waited. The bag with Paulus and the reptile cage were transferred to one and the Marines to another. They departed in different directions. The Marines went directly to the spaceport shuttle and returned to the Laelaps.

  Closing the door to their quarters, they hugged, laughing wildly.

  "We'll be Hobo legends," Meyer said to nodding heads—referring not to nomads without jobs traveling the country, but a species of venomous spiders.

  * * *

  The car made its way out of Westar City cautiously to a remote skimmer parking area. There the bag with Paulus and the reptile cage were transferred to a small skimmer, which headed for the designated rendezvous some four thousand kilometers, to a remote part of the country. They arrived just after midnight, and an hour later a combat shuttle settled next to the skimmer. The shuttle left five minutes later, with Paulus and Red, for the Cruiser Shark which sat in orbit at minimum power.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  A Living Infernal

  I woke to a man's voice. "Lock her in that container until the captain has exited the area." I heard a door squeak open, and was being carried and dropped like a sack of dirt. Gasping for breath from the shock and pain of the impact, I fought for calm. I heard the door close and steel hitting steel as a lever slammed into place. As the pain subsided I tried to make sense of my situation. The last thing I remembered was leaving Adrian's unit with Pannell, two Marine security guards, and Adrian. As we began to enter the elevator, Red became agitated and hissed in my ear as the door closed. I drew my weapon as Red hissed…and gas hissed, and I lost consciousness. My head pounded like hundreds of men were beating on the inside of my skull, desperate to get out. I felt constrained and used my hands to feel around me. I panicked, remembering that four-year-old girl in a body bag, desperately wanting to join her mother, father, and Grandpa Ianus in heaven and wondered if the time had come as I realized, this time, Red wasn't in the bag with me.

  With considerable effort, I managed to take deep breaths and to calm myself. I had a good life and didn't want to die, but I had reconciled myself long ago that my lifespan would be short. Slowly, the headache receded and I could think again. Judging by the vibrating floor and the sound, I'd wager I was in a spaceship accelerating with military-grade engines. I laughed at the irony. "I think I found the Hijackers."

  I must have nodded off or blanked out from lack of oxygen—the bag felt close to airtight. I was hot, sweating, lightheaded, and lost consciousness again. I woke to the sound of a zipper and fresh air engulfed me. I gulped in air as two men tied my hands, stood me upright, and attached me to a hook that dangled from a chain hanging from the ceiling.

  "Well, Commander Paulus, I'm Captain Santo, and you have an important choice to make. Unfortunately, living isn't one of the choices. But I'm a compassionate man and willing to provide you with a quick and painless death if you will cooperate." He smiled and gently brushed my sweat soaked hair off my face. Even without Red, I knew he was lying—he wasn't a compassionate man and had no intention of making my life easy, no matter how much I cooperated. I returned his smile with a false one of my own.

  "And what do you want to know, Captain?"

  "What you and your team have learned about our operations," he said, continuing to produce what I'm sure he thought a warm comforting smile, which looked more like a shark eyeing lunch.

  "Sorry that's on a need-to-know basis and I don't think you—." Air and spit exploded out of me as Santo drove a fist into my stomach. Santo's face twisted in rage as he wiped the spit off his face. A backhand slap snapped my head around and stars danced in front of my eyes.

  "I need to know if you want a quick death. If not, you will die after weeks of pain as we cripple your body and degrade your…" His hand grabbed the top of my blouse and ripped it open and cupped my breasts. "…young virgin body. With help from our Regen unit, you will last a long time." His hands tightened on my breasts and I screamed in pain. There was no sense pretending it didn't hurt. He waved one hand up, and my feet left the ground as the hook rose. Dangling there like a side of meat in a butcher shop, he began punching me in my ribs. I screamed and screamed as I felt one rib after another break.

  I woke as water splashed over me, feeling on fire and my body pulsing with pain. I hung in the same position. The coppery taste of blood filled my mouth and dripped down my chin. Santo laughed and pushed me away from him. As I sung like a pendulum, I felt a cool sensation mixed with stabbing pains and realized I was naked.

  "Well, is it worth it?" Santo said, his eyes bright with pleasure. When I didn't answer he continued. "Corporal, keep her awake as long as you can. If she dies, I'll space you along with her body. When she fails to respond to the pain, get Vega. After Regen has her repaired, hang her up again and call me.

  Two men poked, grabbed, and squeezed until I passed out from the pain, then they doused me with water to revive me and began again.

  * * *

  I woke standing on the floor, although my arms were extended over my head and attached to the same hook, but I wasn't being stretched. My head snapped to the right as I heard Santo speak.

  "What's her condition, Sergeant Vega?" Santo stood with several other men off to the side, staring at me. I was naked. Vega was a soft-looking man with a round face and a full beard. His right sleeve had three red stripes with a silver star above them. A senior sergeant and medic, I assumed. The Regen has fixed most of the serious injuries but they are fragile."

  "Did you hear that, Paulus? Fragile," he said, as he came walking up to me. He patted my ribs and pain lanced through my chest and I gasped for breath. "You can appreciate the problem now. We can cause you hours of pain as we break bones, strip skin from your body, and patch you up for a another day of entertainment. Wouldn't it be better to die? Vega can give you a shot to end this. Just answer a few questions and this will all end." He attempted another smile.

  "How can I trust you?"

  "You have my word. Answer my questions and the pain will stop." He pointed to Vega, who nodded. I would have laughed except even breathing was painful. I decided the only enjoyment I was going to have for the rest of the day was frustrating Santo, so I nodded.

  "What do you want to know?"

  "Why did you go to Stone Ring?"

  "To visit my friend and gloat."

  "Gloat?"

  "Yes, I got Eastar and she didn't."

  "Why did you go to Westar?"

  "To visit my friend and gloat." I repeated. Santo frowned.

&nbs
p; "Don't play with me." He grabbed my jaw and squeezed. I couldn't restrain a whimper.

  "What do you know about the missing ships?"

  "They were merchants."

  "How did they go missing?"

  "Like you, they're lost. Poor navigators, I guess—" I sprayed blood into Santo's face as two blows smashed into my face, breaking my nose and splitting my lip.

  "She's not going to talk, Santo," a man resembling Santo said. He stood next to Vega, stroking his chin. But it's obvious she is on to us."

  "Every person has a breaking point, Commander Restore. We will find hers before we are finished." He turned back to face me. "How do you like sex? I have a hundred ex-Marines on this ship. Each one is going to have an hour with you. I'm afraid they are violent men and the sex will be rough. If you get to enjoy that, we will try something else." His smile was evil. "Vega, you are responsible to make sure she doesn't die before everyone has a turn or two." He turned and walked out of the container, with the other man following.

  Sometime later a broad shouldered man entered, stripped off his clothes, unhooked me, and proceeded to rape me. My mind spun in turmoil and each violent thrust sent scorching pain that felt like I was being ripped in half. Finally he rolled off me, dressed, and left. I lay there, sobbing, wishing Alexa were here to hold and comfort me. The thought of her calmed me and I dropped into a pain-filled fog. A door slamming shut woke me as another man entered. The procession went on and on and the pain became all consuming. My mind could no longer process a coherent thought. I no longer knew who I was, or where, or why—only the pain was real.

  "Enough," I heard Vega shout.

  "It's my turn," another voice rose in anger. My numb mind wished Vega would let the next man continue. I would welcome death to stop the never-ending cycle of pain. I couldn't escape. I was on a cruiser in space. A space submarine, Kris called them. As the men argued, my thoughts flew back to the time when Kris and I sat helplessly in a medical unit, waiting for the Raiders to storm the Tityus—and rape us—and she began laughing. I could still hear her.