Chapter 44
“Shade gave these co-ords to you?”
Rina’s voice was almost as skeptical as Helios’s look.
Wraith just shrugged. “Yep.”
“You know he probably hallucinated them?”
She didn’t sigh. “Yep. Doesn’t mean he’s wrong.”
“Doesn’t make him right, either. Sanity hasn’t exactly been one of his strong suits lately.” Rina’s voice was tinged in sadness.
Wraith laid a hand on her sister’s arm. Said nothing, even as she reflected that the truth of the matter was infinitely more complicated.
Rina turned on Helios, “You’re being remarkably quiet over there, Bill.”
Bill?
“Dare I even ask why you gave him that nickname?”
Rina grinned even as Helios said, “No,” in his officer voice.
Wraith looked between them.
Nope. Not touching that one.
She turned to Helios, pointed at the star map, “Got any better ideas, Major? Because from where I’m standing, this is all we’ve got.”
He considered the blinking location for over a minute. It was in the center of their space, but isolated. A dead rock moon orbiting a gas giant.
“None,” he admitted, “But I don’t think Shade hallucinated the location either.”
Wraith tilted her head, “What makes you say that?”
He paused, wondering how much to say. Remembered that he’d burned his bridges when he stepped onto the Styx with Wraith and disabled the trackers. Exhaled slowly.
“Someone in SID is leaking him information. For all I know, he has a whole cell of acolytes hiding somewhere.”
Wraith shared a look with Rina, “How do you figure?”
He shrugged, “He had a lot of information that he couldn’t have known.” His eyes narrowed at Rina, “Have you ever heard of GEO?”
Rina shook her head, “No. What is it?”
“Something Shade told me to find, buried deep in SID. I went looking and the scariest person I’ve never seen calls me on ultra top-secret encryption and tells me to look for Phantom Inbetween.”
“Never seen?”
“Face grayed out, voice modulated. The whole thing felt deliberately staged, like a scene in someone else’s play.”
Rina raised her eyebrows, “Yeah. ‘Cause that makes everything way better. Are you really going to do this?”
He met Wraith’s eyes and didn’t look away as he nodded.
“I think we are. Want to come?”
He could feel the intensity of Rina’s gaze, but didn’t turn from Wraith.
“You know what, I don’t think my nausea quotient is up for the honeymoon phase.”
Wraith’s head pivoted to her.
“But you call me if you need me. I’ll be there.”
Rina stepped over and hugged him, lifting him off his feet and damn near cracking a couple of ribs.
She hugged Wraith next—same rib-crushing affection, just with slightly more care. Whispered something to her that had Wraith’s head jerk back in surprise as Rina chuckled.
Then she nodded at both of them.
“Stay alive, kids. Or I’ll have to kill you myself.”
And left. Delete
It took two hyperspace jumps and almost a full week to reach the right star system.
Kael had tried to access what information he could on the moon; creatively named Moon XK-447. Got nothing.
According to OpNet, it didn’t exist.
According to SID-Net, he didn’t exist.
If he’d had any family left, they’d have gotten the usual condolences by now—a tragic training accident, probably. Or, if an intern wrote it, something about space pirates.
They were running cloaked. All comms off. Short-range nav only. Everything they could do to remain silent and undetected as long as possible.
If Shade was wrong, they wasted nothing but time. If he was right, and this was a site where their—presumably Ghost Command’s—funeral rites were being prepared? Then every caution was both needed and probably not enough.
Wraith was asleep.
They’d fallen into a comfortable routine. Meals, sparring or workouts, and planning they did together. They took turns at the bridge, keeping an eye on the sky.
Otherwise gave each other space.
It felt like re-balancing. And a holding pattern. And he wasn’t sure what the outcome would be when it finally broke.
They both held back when they sparred.
Neither mentioned why.
He cracked his neck. One side, then the other. The sound loud in the confines of the bridge.
Then a crackle of static burst from the comms.
He stared at it for half a second, checked the console. Nope, comms were definitely off. Must be interference from—
“Major. You’re a difficult man to track down.”
All four screens in the bridge switched to gray and seemed to stare at him in accusing amusement.
He kept his mouth shut.
A chuckle emerged from the speakers, still slightly crackly.
“While silence is the better part of valor, you may want to ask a few clarifying questions in a minute. Just a suggestion.”
Slowly, Kael reached out and primed the weapons systems.
The console died. So did the engines.
The screens and speakers did not.
“Now that we’ve established I could take you out any time I please, shall we have a civilized conversation?”
Kael pulled calm around him like a shield. “Then I’d like to see whom I’m talking to.”
The screen flickered, and the silhouette of a man appeared. Back lit. Features hidden in shadow. He seemed to be leaning forward and resting his chin on his hands.
“Your wish is my command. Well, let’s be honest, it’s not. But I’m indulging you anyway.”
“Do you always talk this much?”
A pause. Near-silence, broken only by static.
“I so seldom have anyone… interesting to talk to. So, you’ll forgive me if I indulge.”
Kael knew this. Where did he know it from?
“What do you want to talk about?”
“You and the good Captain are heading into a situation that you’re probably not ready for. Definitely not prepared for. But we seldom get to choose our moments of greatness.”
“So, the co-ordinates are real.”
“Physically? Yes, but you knew that. Metaphorically? Also, yes.”
“How did Shade know them?”
He imagined he could see the smile spread across the shadowed face.
“Because I gave them to him, Major.”
“So, you are the leak.”
“No, Major, I’m the source. Which is a good thing for you. Brandt is very upset that you are still drawing breath. Even more so that he can’t seem to… deactivate the good Captain.”
Kael said nothing. Refused to even think.
Another chuckle. “Good. I knew I chose you for a reason. Now, to business. The facility you are looking for is on the dark side of that moon. It’s cliché, I know, but we do have to play to our stereotypes every once in a while.”
Kael didn’t bother to stop the eye roll. He didn’t know if the man—GEO—could see him. Didn’t care.
“Now, if you were to try a direct approach, you would fail. There is far more security there than there first appears. And even if you survived long enough to make ground fall, you wouldn’t reach your prize.”
The man paused. “No questions yet, Major? Your restraint is admirable. But I digress. I’m going to give you alternate co-ordinates. There is an old mine shaft, just on the light side of the twilight meridian.
“Defunct. Has been for decades. But if a pair of determined infiltrators were to plumb its depths, they would find the point where it meets a very different facility.”
“And how would we find that? Mines aren’t known for their consistent layout plans. And SID doesn’t exactly hang up welcome signs.”
“Ah, but you are still SID too, Major. Brandt revoked your clearance, but I think you’ll find your access codes work just fine. And as a Major, why, practically every door at that site would open for you.”
Kael frowned. Processed the implications. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“I didn’t, did I?” His voice turned serious, “Wraith must lead the way, Major. Just tell her to navigate it.”
The screens went blank. The engine and console flared back to life.
Wraith lurched into the room, wide eyed. “I thought I heard—”
“You did,” he told her. “GEO found us, somehow. But he seems to be on our side.” He paused. “Or at least, not on the side of whoever is down there.”
Her brows were drawn together in confusion, “I think you’d better start at the beginning.” Her eyes snapped up to his, “And this time, Major—don’t leave anything out.”