Bianca D'Arc (11 page)

Command and Control access meant the station
would be theirs to do with as they pleased. They could kill
everyone, lockdown whole sectors, gas the population or even
deprive them of oxygen or water. Nobody would be safe if the
saboteurs got into C&C.

The men all looked grimly resigned to Chip’s
conclusions. Nobody wanted to argue, which reinforced Chip’s
assessments that first, his men were steadfast, and second, that
they’d been able to put two and two together as he had. It made
sense, given all the intel they’d just revealed to each other. Each
of this dirty dozen of retirees had seen different things that,
when added together with what Chip and Lila knew from their
observations in the bar, led to his conclusion. The saboteurs were
after the station, not to destroy it, but to control it.

Thankfully, Chip had a plan.

“All right. It’s time we discussed the
players.” Chip stood and flicked a control that raised a projection
station from the floor of the bar. Lila raised one eyebrow in
surprise and Chip had to smile at her. He still had a few tricks up
his sleeve. The bar was fully equipped to act as a troop staging
area, complete with armory and briefing capabilities.

Chip brought up images of the group Lila had
begun observing almost from the first day she’d taken over the bar.
He had a series of short clips he played for the vets, along with a
corresponding data stream that correlated the conspirators’
conversations with events on the station. Seen in this fashion, it
was pretty damning.

Chip was betraying a lot about the bar’s real
function to several men who were not part of the intelligence
service, but desperate times called for desperate measures. He was
also pretty sure these particular vets would be drafted into intel
work as soon as this situation was dealt with. If nothing else,
they could serve as sleeper agents. They’d already proved their
willingness to pitch in and help, and they’d been very
observant.

After the clips finished, Chip stood and
faced the men. He left several holographic projections of the
saboteurs up for study. He went through each profile, including any
family members they had on station and other connections. He
outlined the support group first, saving Beezus and Bjornson for
last. When he put up Bjornson’s close-up shot, one of the older
guys, a former Master Chief named Hank, started to scowl and
squint.

“Can you remove the facial hair and make him
a brunette?” Hank asked out of the blue. Any good image program
could modify holograms to some extent. Luckily,
The Rabbit
Hole
was equipped with software that was better than most. Chip
made the mods and Hank nodded. “I think you’ll find that this
Bjornson fellow is really a pirate brat named Robert Morgan. His
father ran the
Aleuseus Seven
out of
Isengard
, that
little moon that was a pirate base for two decades before the
action at
Last Spiral Station
cut them off. His dad called
himself
Captain Morgan
, but his real name was Bill Monroe
and he hailed from
Nine Rings Station
over by Halcyon
Prime.” Hank sat back and slapped the table. “I thought I’d seen
the last of them when we cleaned out
Isengard
. I was on the
Odysseus
for a few years, back when human pirates were more
trouble than jits. I was part of the escort for Captain Morgan and
his family when we took the moon. His son, Robert, would be just
the right age now. I’d swear your Bjornson is really Robert
Morgan.”

Chip called up Hank’s service record on his
implant and confirmed his duty assignment on the
Odysseus
.
It looked like they’d just caught a big break.

For the sake of the group, Chip made a show
of pulling up the information on Bill Monroe aka Captain Morgan and
his family. Sure enough, the pirate captain had recently been
released from prison, supposedly reformed. His son had received a
lighter sentence because it had been decided that he hadn’t been
heavily involved in his father’s illegal enterprise. Robert had
been too young when their moon base was taken. Or so the court had
concluded.

It wasn’t too hard to draw the connection
between Robert Morgan and Bill Bjornson. One had ceased to exist
mere weeks before the other showed up, seemingly out of nowhere.
And their facial structure was nearly identical. Morgan had changed
his hair color, but other than that, he hadn’t done anything too
radical to remake his identity. Mostly it was the paper trail that
had been faked. Easy enough to do if you knew the right
criminals.

And Morgan had been the head of one of the
biggest pirate empires ever. He would definitely know who to pay to
fake his identity.

“Judging by this, it’s pretty obvious what
they have in mind now. Capture the station and turn it into a
pirate hub,” Chip concluded. “If that’s the case, they probably
have a ship or two lying in wait somewhere beyond sensor range. And
they won’t go easy on the populace of the station. Pirates aren’t
known for their mercy. All of us will be killed first, simply
because of what we are. Soldiers won’t be welcome in a pirate
stronghold, retired or otherwise. The women will be at most risk.
The civ men will be made to serve. I’ve seen reports of what
Captain Morgan and his crews did in their heyday.”

“I saw it first hand,” Hank interjected. “It
wasn’t pretty.” His grim expression said much more than his simple
words.

“Julian, what about air support? Can we beg,
borrow or steal any?” Chip asked the pilot. Julian had been
sidelined from active duty for now, but could still fly circles
around most combat pilots.

“There are a few fighters in the repair
facility on station that could be made ready with relative ease. I
could fly one and Smiley, Jake and Roscoe could each take one.” He
nodded to three of the men sitting near him, who were retired
combat fighter pilots. “As far as bigger ships go, there are a few
docked that might be of some help to us if they knew what was
coming. I’ll make contact with the captains. Some will run at the
first hint of trouble on station. I’ll be cautious because some
might be in league with Morgan, but a few will probably be willing
to help.”

That assessment was better than Chip had
hoped for and probably accurate based on Julian’s experience. If
they were going to have to deal with a pirate armada in addition to
internal saboteurs, they’d need all the help they could get.

“Good. I’ll see what support I can get sent
here on the double, through my channels.” Chip was betraying more
of his actual position to the group, but at this point, he had to
let them know there was at least some chance of help being on the
way. General Winters wouldn’t let a key Rim station fall to
pirates. If Chip could get the message out—and his implant was
already working on the transmission—then Winters would muster
whatever nearby ships he could find to aid them.

“Most of you know already, but a few don’t
and need to.” Chip decided to come clean a bit, to help morale.
“I’m not completely retired. I run intel operatives out of this
bar, some of whom are included in this group. I know I just outed a
few of you, but I think we’ve already exposed ourselves to anyone
with half a brain here tonight. The vets in this group have more
than that.” He smiled to soften his words and try to build
camaraderie. They’d have to fight pirates together. He needed to
build the team quickly. “You all know as well as I do, this station
is a key point on the Rim. I’ve already filed reports on what I
knew. My updated report will go out shortly and include a request
for immediate assistance. They’ll send help as soon as they get my
transmission. All we have to do is hold off the pirates until it
gets here.”

Chip noted the relief on several faces,
quickly followed by determination. Excellent. He’d been right to
tell them.

At that point, Lila fell off her chair.

Chip saw Lila teeter out of the corner of his
eye, but was too far away to catch her. Thankfully, the other guys
got her before she made a hard landing on the floor. Chip was at
her side a second later.

“What’s wrong with her?” Julian asked,
clearly concerned. Lila’s eyes had rolled back in her head and her
body was spasming slightly.

Chip held her until it stopped, thankfully,
only a few seconds later.

“I’m all right,” she said softly, pushing
against his hold. “Just a vision. A strong one, but I’m okay.”

“What can I do to help?” Chip asked. His
heart was racing. She’d just scared the hell out of him.

“Coffee,” came her weak reply.

Chip looked up at one of the men and nodded
toward the coffee maker. “Set it to quick brew. It should be good
to go. The bots keep it ready.” Roscoe dashed off behind the bar to
get the coffee maker going while Chip lifted Lila in his arms and
took her over to one of the booths along the wall. A small crowd
came with them, all concerned for Lila’s wellbeing. “Somebody
remove the table,” he ordered and two men hopped to it, lugging the
heavy table out of the booth and placing it nearby.

Chip placed Lila down gently on the padded
seat, sitting next to her with one arm around her shoulders,
supporting her. She was still a little wobbly, but color was coming
back to her pale face. Roscoe returned with a steaming cup of
coffee, which he handed to Chip. He in turn, held it to Lila’s
lips, gratified when she curled her little hand around his and
sipped at the hot beverage.

She started to look better almost
immediately.

“Sorry, guys. I don’t usually keel over from
visions. This was a really strong one and you all need to hear it.”
Her voice was quiet in the still room, all the men watching her
cautiously.

“Are you psychic, ma’am?” Smiley, one of the
pilots, asked with awe in his tone.

Lila smiled at him and sipped her coffee,
nodding slightly. “I see the future. Or, in this case, possible
futures.”

“My gran was psychic,” Smiley went on when
Lila stopped talking to concentrate on her coffee. “She saved the
whole family several times from sand storms that nearly wiped out
our colony. She always knew when they were coming, even if the
forecasters said she was looney for setting up the alarm. And she
was always right.”

Chip could have kissed the guy for setting
Lila at ease. She smiled at him and Chip could feel her muscles
relax slightly. Whatever she’d seen, it had made her shake and
clench in fear. Smiley’s vote of confidence in all things psychic
went a long way to helping her feel better and Chip was
grateful.

“I don’t normally believe in this sort of
thing, but Lila is something special,” Chip added his endorsement,
knowing a lot of the men might not be as accepting of her
gift
as he’d become. But they surprised him. When he
examined their faces, the men all seemed to be willing to listen.
Some of them even looked downright eager to hear what she had to
say.

“First, I have to tell you that I haven’t had
a vision in a long time. Several weeks.” She finished her coffee
and held it out to Roscoe for a refill. The man ran back behind the
bar and got more for her. “That’s not normal for me. Generally, I
see things all the time. Little things. Like a call from my
daughter is coming so I’d better stay home to get it. Or where I
should be to prevent something or help somebody. It’s not usually
anything huge, but every once in a while… I get strong ones, like
the vision where I foresaw that I had to be on this station at this
time to meet Chip and do something that’s going to be important to
a lot of people. That’s what sent me here. And then nothing. For
weeks. Not a glimmer. Then this.” Her eyes widened as she quieted,
probably thinking about what she’d seen. Roscoe showed up with the
new cup of coffee, drawing her attention. She took the mug out of
his hands with a grateful smile.

“You haven’t had a vision of the future in a
while,” Chip prompted. “Is that why this was so strong?”

“Probably. But I also think we’re at a
crossroads. A nexus. A point where things will be decided on a
system-wide basis. I’ve been involved in a few of those in the past
and they’re never easy. Which is why I’m seeing possible futures,
not one single path to take. Air support will be key,” Lila turned
to look at Julian. “The pirates have an armada of about a dozen
ships evenly spilt between cruisers and light cargo ships that have
been armed to the teeth. You’ll need to take command of our ships
when the pirates engage, Julian. I see you leading the charge in a
similar light cargo ship with heavy armament. Whether you steal it
from the pirates or you find it docked here or nearby, I have no
idea, but grab that ship when you see it. It’s the key. And if we
live through this, it’s going to take you places you never
dreamed.”

Julian looked doubtful but when the other
vets frowned at his reaction and Chip gave him the evil eye, he
seemed to backpedal. “Uh, thanks. I’ll keep an eye out.”

Lila laughed. “I know you don’t believe me
now, and that’s okay, but just remember what I said and go with it
when the opportunity comes to you.”

Julian looked more comfortable with that
approach and nodded his agreement. “I will. Thanks again.”

Lila’s color was returning, though her pupils
were still dilated and she seemed a bit dazed. But she had more
energy, Chip was glad to see.

“What else did you see, sweetheart?” He was
there to support her if she needed him.

“Hang on a second.” She reached for the
small, embroidered pouch at her waist. He’d seen her play with
those special cards of hers over the past days, but she’d only
shown them to him that once, at their first meeting. “Could you
slide the table back over here?” she asked the guys, who were only
too happy to comply. They eased the table back in front of her
sideways, leaving the booth side open.