Red Angel: Book III: Hijackers Read online

  "At ease and sit." She indicated for me to stay standing as she waited for the three commanders to sit. "I'd like to introduce the new Eastar NIA Station Chief, Commander Anna Paulus. And yes, she is as young as she looks. But don't be fooled. She has earned her rank, as her impressive array of medals will attest." Lulltrel stopped to take a sip of coffee her aide had placed on the table in front of her. "I would describe her as a cross between a bloodhound and a pit bull." That produced smiles and a few chuckles. "I've coerced her here to be the station chief because I believe it's where she can be the most use to the organization. Currently, the individual station chiefs each send me a monthly report. Since I neither have the time nor an interest in the details of the individual cases they are working, I have them prepare an executive summary which allows me to focus on any problems, while ignoring the details. I think that was a mistake. Consequently, Commander Paulus is going to assume that responsibility for me. Why? Because she has demonstrated a rare ability to see the bigger picture. That ability led to the destruction of the Smugglers’ and Raiders' operations in the UAS. Without her insights, we would have imprisoned a large group of intermediates, but the Smugglers’ and Raiders’ organizations would have been back in business within months. I'm hoping giving her access to the station reports will enable her to alert us to potential UAS problems." She nodded for me to sit and looked to the woman on her left. "Why don't each of you introduce yourselves?"

  "Hi, Anna. I'm Commander Hadley. You can call me Teresa." She was a tall slender woman in her early forties. Her angular face and black hair pulled back in a tail would have been intimidating except for the welcoming smile. "I'm responsible for NIA data collection, which includes the WavComs. You were using our technology to strip the WavComs and used our databases to obtain information on the merchants’ activities." She turned to look at the slightly younger man next to her. He had a mustache, goatee, and curly brown hair which showed no signs of gray. He look to be Teresa's height and to be in good physical condition.

  "I'm Commander Byrnes. You can call me Kelvin. I manage the NIA school, which is called the Academy. It's where we try to teach people to be a smart as you," he produced a huge grin, "but seldom succeed. We teach them how to use our equipment, use various investigative techniques, and work on old cases. I'd be very interested in reviewing the Smugglers' and Raiders' cases with you. They would be excellent case studies." He nodded to the man next to him.

  "I'm Commander Leyva, Norman. I'm in charge of the NIA's Forensic Department. Ironically, if you hadn't been so good at puzzles, my department would have been assigned to work on them." He nodded, which I took as my turn.

  "I'm Commander Paulus—Anna. You probably already know I have a red-headed krait as a constant companion." I stuck my hand into my jacket and Red wound himself around my arm. "I refer to him as Red. He has been my constant companion from the age of four. He’s venomous but our relationship is symbiotic. He feeds off me and in turn injects me with a poison that keeps the Coaca Virus from becoming active. He never leaves my person so you will always know where he is. And he's lazy so you don't have to worry about being close to me, but I prefer people don't grab or push me. I have the antivenin, but I understand recovery is painful." I paused for questions. When no one spoke I continued. "I carry a weapon because Red is worth in the neighborhood of two hundred and fifty thousand credits, and life to those with the virus." That provoked several whistles. "I'm a graduate of the Oxax Naval Academy. And I would appreciate any help or advice you may be willing to share with me."

  * * *

  "Well, Mother. How was your first day?" I asked as we sat down for our first dinner in our new home.

  "Scary. The current six judges have been on the Eastar Appellate Court for years. I feel like a new lieutenant reporting for her first assignment. What about you?"

  "Worse than I thought it would be. My day started by setting off the weapons detection equipment alarm. Then I was introduced to my peers. Unlike Kris and Adrian, who were less than ten years my senior, Lulltrel's staff have more time in service than I've been alive. Then Admiral Lulltrel informed me she wants me to monitor the activities at the other NIA station offices."

  "That doesn't sound fair. After all, you're new to the job," Alexa said, sounding concerned.

  "Admiral Lulltrel was better than I had a right to expect. She welcomed me in a private meeting in her office, then called a staff meeting to introduce me. And she is giving me her master chief to mentor me and manage the day-to-day administrative duties. And it's not over yet. Tomorrow I'm going to meet my staff, who probably have more time in service than me," I whined, feeling even younger than my age.

  Alexa laughed. "But the day has ended well. We survived our first day on the job, the repairs on our home are finished, we have a full-time cook, and we are together."

  "Yes, Mother. I hope I'm not too much of a burden, but I desperately need a place where I feel safe."

  "You will never be a burden, Anna. Adopting you was the best decision I've ever made."

  * * *

  When I exited the elevator on the sixteenth floor, a master chief took a step toward me.

  "Good morning, Commander Paulus. I'm Master Chief Stamm. I've been assigned as your assistant," he said, as he unobtrusively appraised me. "Ma'am, if you like, I'll show you to your office and we can discuss my duties."

  I nodded, unsure what to say…assistant…office. And if I wasn't mistaken, Stamm was the same master chief who was at the desk in front of Lulltrel's office. He pointed to the left and I followed him down the hallway, past open areas with cubicles, conference rooms, and recessed areas with secretaries and offices.

  "This is Commander Hadley's area. Commander Leyva is at the other end of the hallway, along with Commander Byrnes." Toward the end of the hallway he stopped and pointed to a recessed area containing a small waiting area with chairs and small tables. Ten steps into the room sat a large oak desk, and behind it a door. He proceeded to the door, opened it, and waited for me to enter. He smiled. My mouth hung open as I entered and saw the view out the floor-to-ceiling window that constituted the back wall. A mahogany desk sat a few steps in front of the window and several padded chairs sat to the right and left of the desk.

  "Mine?" I stuttered as I heard the door shut behind me.

  "Yes, ma'am. You're the Eastar NIA Station Chief and, according to the scuttlebutt, will be monitoring the other fourteen NIA offices."

  "Master Chief—"

  "Carl, ma'am."

  "Carl, I'm not only young, but don't have a clue how to run an office or manage people…"

  "That's why Admiral Lulltrel assigned me to you. I'm here to answer questions, take care of the administrative duties, run interference, and to help in any way you want."

  "You don't consider this assignment…" I wasn't sure of the right word but a master chief as a secretary seemed…

  "Below me?" He laughed. "Serving someone Admiral Lulltrel considers a cross between a bloodhound and a pit-bull, needs a permanent security detail, and has earned more awards than a grizzly Marine gunny sounds like an exciting assignment." He walked over to a small bar. "Coffee, ma'am?"

  "Anna. Half milk and half coffee." I sat in one of the padded chairs and waved Carl to another. He sat two coffees on the table between us. Mine only slightly darker than milk.

  Just then Red emerged and wrapped around my neck with his head facing Stamm.

  "Carl, meet Red. Red, this is Master Chief Stamm."

  "Hello, Red," Stamm said, leaning forward for a better look. "Judging by the rumors, that is a very expensive necklace."

  "Red adopted me when I was four… I went on to explain our symbiotic relationship. I carry a weapon at all times because he's worth two hundred and fifty thousand credits. Thanks to my mother, ex-Captain Bellona, I know how to use it. I'm a graduate of the Oxax Navy Academy and qualified with all standard weapons." I stroked Red before looking directly at Stamm. "I'm terrified, Carl." I said just above a whispe
r.

  "That's why Admiral Lulltrel assigned me, so you will have someone to lean on. Think of me as another weapon for you to use as necessary. Two pit-bulls should be enough to handle any trouble."

  "Thank you, Carl." I gave a weak smile. "I think it's time I meet my staff," I said reluctantly, knowing I couldn't put it off any longer.

  "First, let me give you the passwords and show you how to log into the NIA system. That will get you access to their personnel files. I'll schedule your staff meeting for after lunch to give you time to review their records. And I'll schedule a department meeting an hour after that." He stood, awaiting my approval. When I nodded, he left.

  * * *

  At noon Stamm took me to the building cafeteria, and I selected a light lunch I could carry back to the office and continue working. A few minutes before my scheduled staff meeting, he knocked and entered when I acknowledged. "Ma'am, if you're ready I'll accompany you to your conference room."

  "Thank you, Carl. I have no idea where it is." I laughed. One day at a time, I chided myself, I'll worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. It turned out my conference room was the next room over. Inside were two men and a woman who stood when I entered.

  "Sit, please. In case the Eastar NIA Office isn't tuned into the rumor mill, the new station chief is young for her rank, no experience at running an office, and has a venomous snake as a pet," I said as I sat. That elicited nodding heads and a variety of smiles. And wide-eye stares as Red emerged from my jacket and wound around my neck with his head on my shoulder. "Well, the rumors are true, except for Red," I pointed to Red, "he isn't a pet but rather a friend and medical dispenser… I went on to explain about Red and why I carried a gun, the fact I was an Oxax Naval Academy graduate, and my participation in the Smugglers and Raiders cases. "Your turn," I said, looking at the sandy-haired lieutenant commander sitting to my left. Ironically, at thirty-two he was young for his rank, although eight years older than I. He was wiry, built with an angular face, which was frowning.

  "I'm Lieutenant Commander Newman. I manage one of the three eight-person teams that constitute the Eastar Station. In the past, the three of us decided who got each case, based on experience and availability. Commander Wright left the day-to-day assignments to us."

  I had no idea about what my involvement should or shouldn't be. I nodded to the man sitting next to Newman. He didn't look to be as athletic and had a softer build and a round face, which looked amused. He reminded me of Wilbur, which gave me a lump in my throat.

  "I'm Lieutenant Commander Atkins, Chuck. I think Frank," he nodded to Newman, "pretty well summed up the way the shop has been working. Each of us is responsible for assignments, evaluations, and administration of the people assigned to our groups." He nodded to the woman across from him.

  "I'm Shirley Cooper. We met when you were working the Smugglers’ case." She smiled, and her face was full of excitement and mischief. "You may be young, ma'am, but I doubt there are many officers of any rank that would have the nerve to invoke P1A authority on a vice admiral. I hope you can find us the next big case."

  "Yes, the big cases are exciting and put you on the fast track. Commander Sinclair frequently called it the slippery slope. Wilbur, one of our original team members, was killed on the Smugglers’ case and the rest of us had several attempts on our lives."

  The department meeting was easier. I told them a little about myself, and Red and let each of them give me a short bio. By the end of the day I was mentally exhausted.

  * * *

  "Well, Daughter, you no longer appear to have the flexible hours you had on Oxax. You don't leave early and you always bring work home," Alexa said as we sat down for dinner.

  "Ironically, it's more like what I had expected when I went to work for the NIA: go to work and sit at my desk all day working on problems. The monthly reports are beginning to arrive from the NIA station offices and being routed to me, including a copy of the executive summaries to Lulltrel. That's fourteen offices, plus I get one from each of my sections and have to write an executive summary of my own."

  "That would cut into your flex time." She gave me a sad-face look. "Find anything interesting?"

  "In a way. The executive summaries look like they contain all the items the station chiefs would like to be put in their yearly reviews. To their credit, they include everything in their detailed reports, but I think that's because they know the admiral doesn't read them."

  "Anna, you are probably the only person in the Navy who isn't concerned about annual reviews."

  "And look where it got me." I threw up my hands in exasperation. "I should still be a lieutenant under Stauffer's protective wing. Instead I'm a commander who has been given senior-level responsibilities when I'm still grappling with adult-speak."

  Alexa laughed, which shocked me until she nodded toward my right shoulder. When I looked, Red's head was hanging limp rather than up and alert. I couldn't help laughing.

  "All right, I'm finished whining. Obviously it isn't getting me any sympathy. How do you like the Appellate Court, Mother? Getting any interesting cases?"

  "The process is interesting. The senior appellate judge, Laurence Appleton, reviews each petition and assigns it to a three-person committee composed of one person who generally has a liberal leaning and to another who is conservative. Right now I think he is evaluating me to determine which way I'll vote. If the committee has a unanimous opinion, the appeal is upheld or rejected. Otherwise the full court hears the case. I still haven't participated in a full court hearing, although one is scheduled for next month. That one should be interesting, as I was the one person in dissention."

  "That should keep Judge Appleton up nights. You would think it would always be the liberal or the conservative who dissents." I laughed. She nodded while smiling.

  "I think I caught snoop-paranoia from my daughter, something didn't feel right."

  * * *

  "Carl, can you get me the past twelve months of the NIA station office reports to Admiral Lulltrel?"

  "You don't have enough work, ma'am?" Stamm asked with a look of concern. "Can I help?"

  "Yes, you can. So I don't have to read them, ask Commander Hadley if she could scan the last twelve months for cases involving killings—whether accidental, self-defense, or murder—and print them for me."

  "Find something?" he asked, eyes bright with excitement.

  "I don't know, but… My old team had what many would consider an odd policy. If one of us wanted to do or see something, we did. Adrian, our team leader, said there were no bad leads, just ones that didn't work out. So I want to see last years' reports—"

  "So the commander gets the last years’ reports." He laughed, threw me a salute, and hustled out the door. I smiled. The first one in several days. Looking at the clock, it was time to pick up Alexa for our ride home. When I reached the lobby I didn't see my two security guards, which I thought strange. And stranger still when Chief Nelson stopped the line for the express exit lane for me to go ahead. He felt amused. As I exited into the lobby, two men dressed in Marine security uniforms approached me. When I saw one was carrying a cage for a snake, mental alarms began ringing, and Red appeared around my neck, hissing.

  "Commander Paulus, Colonel Synder wants you at Marine Headquarters for questioning. If you would, put the snake in the box—" the older of the Marines with lieutenant insignia said. I drew my multifunctional weapon.

  "Make any move and I'll shoot to kill," I said, stepping to the side to scan the lobby. Chief Nelson was holding people from exiting and had a smirk on his face. His hand rested on his weapon. "Nelson, draw that gun and I'll shoot to kill. You have no authority here and these men are fakes. And if they aren't, that's my problem and not your concern." I looked to the lieutenant behind the information counter. "Lieutenant, call Marine Headquarters and find out—" Red hissed and I dove to the side just in time to avoid a strike to my head from another Naval security guard who had approached from behind. I rolled to a kneeling position, to
ok aim, and shot him in the knee. Cursing the Naval involvement, I looked to the Marines in time to see both drawing their weapons. One turned toward me while the other had turned toward the entrance. Taking no chances, I assumed both were wearing protective gear and shot the Marine, who was facing me with his weapon halfway out of his holster, in the head. Before I could target the retreating Marine, pellets hit the floor around me. Nelson was smiling as he took careful aim for another shot. I shot him in the right shoulder, which knocked him backward and dislodged his weapon. I turned in time to see two more security guards running toward me as the second Marine disappeared out the building. "Lieutenant," I screamed, "Call Marine Headquarters. Obviously these MPs are fakes. One just ran out the door. And you two, drop those weapons or I'll shoot to kill."

  The guards looked at the MP on the floor with a hole in his head, the petty officer holding his knee and moaning, and Nelson lying immobile on the floor, and laid their weapons down and backed up a few steps.

  "Commander Paulus, they say your security is supposed to be waiting for you," the lieutenant shouted. "I told them they never arrived. They said to stay put. They are sending Marines to investigate."

  I looked down and saw my leg was bleeding. Nelson probably hadn't shot his weapon in years and had it set to a wide spread. So although he missed me, a few stray pellets hit my leg. I took out my Communication and Personal Computer, CPC, handheld device and called Alexa. She answered immediately.

  "Going to be late?"

  "Yes, Mother. There has been a shooting at the Naval Headquarters building—"

  "Are you hurt?" Her voice rising with every word.

  "Only a scratch, but I need your support. I'm tired, Mother." I continued to scan the lobby to ensure no one else wanted to shoot me. The petty officer on the ground was looking at his weapon lying only a few feet away from him while glaring at me. I was too tired to get up and kick the gun away, so I pointed my weapon at his head. That seemed to work and his attention went back to moaning and holding his knee. A medic came running into the lobby just as Alexa exploded through the entrance door. She looked around, located me, rushed over and grabbed me in a bear hug after a cursory examination of my leg wound.