This was going to be easier than she thought.
Unfortunately his superior officer—a dour-faced lieutenant, junior grade—chose that moment to step in front of him. And he didn't look nearly as taken with her as the young private.
"You were ordered to remain in your vehicle."
"I'm-I'm sorry. I just thought—"
"You'll come with us. Private, take her inside. Check her ID. Be sure to search her thoroughly."
The young private reached for her. Nuria stepped away from him, stumbling in her heels.
"There's really no need. Look! I'm not hiding anything, as you can see. I'm just a poor working girl. I only thought—"
"Poor working girl, my ass. I suppose while you're 'entertaining' my men, your friends will be busy trying to smuggle who knows what kind of contraband inside. We
know
your game, girl. Now, come along. We'll deal with your
friends
soon enough."
Nuria screamed as the lieutenant made a grab for her; several of the crew working to offload the train looked up and turned their way. This wasn't going at all as she'd planned.
"Is there a problem?" a new voice said from behind.
Struggling in the lieutenant's grasp, Nuria saw Suko glide down the ladder. She landed smoothly, without a sound.
Suko might not have Nuria's professional training or experience in the arts of seduction, or her more provocative wardrobe, for that matter, but she was still a woman of Alcyone. As such, she couldn't help but command all of their attention. All five of the soldiers turned her way, staring as she strode smoothly toward them. She came to stand by Nuria's side, where she made a point of removing her arm from the lieutenant's grasp.
"These lads aren't bothering you, are they, Nuria?"
"No, I—"
"Now, wait just one moment," the junior lieutenant said, remembering himself. "You'll get back in that vehicle, or we'll have you all under arrest and your cargo seized."
"Arrest?" Suko sidled up to him. She made a point of taking his arm—his firing arm. "Seized? I don't think we need to go that far, do we? Besides, if you arrest us, you'll miss out on all the fun."
"I'm afraid there won't
be
any fun, Ms.—"
"Tansho," Suko said. "But you must call me
Suko. All my friends call me Suko." Reaching up, she let her finger play over his ear. "Don't you think we could be friends, Major?"
"I'm-I'm only a lieutenant. Junior grade."
"Junior? Now, why do I find that hard to believe?"
"I—"
Suko made a point of shivering. Dressed only in her halter and leggings, it wasn't difficult to feign cold.
The lieutenant swallowed. "You—you'll catch your death out here dressed like that."
"Mmm," Suko said. "Well, we can't have that, can we?" She glanced over his shoulder at the brightly lit command post behind them. "Seems silly for us to freeze out here when we could be warming ourselves in there, doesn't it? I doubt your superiors would mind."
"Well, I—I'm not sure."
"You
did
say you wanted to search us, didn't you?"
"Yes, I believe I mentioned something along those lines."
"I imagine you'll want to see to it personally. Leave no, er, stone unturned."
"That—" he pulled at his collar "—would only make good sense."
"Come along, Major. I'll let you search me first."
~ - ~
From the shadows, Sigrid watched as Suko and Nuria entered the command post.
Good girl, Suko.
That only left the three guards walking the perimeter. They were spread out, shuffling in a slow walk that would take them around the entire perimeter.
Engaging her cloak, Sigrid moved on them. She took them one at a time, careful to make sure not even the workers took notice. From the shadows, she snapped the neck of one. A hurled
shuriken
took care of the second as he passed behind the rear of Marta's train. It was only the last of the guards who saw her—he caught her shadow as she de-cloaked—but even then it was too late. He gave a short gasp, spinning around to face her as she came up from behind. Her fist cracked him squarely on the nose. It wasn't pretty, but it was certainly effective.
With the guards taken care of, she made her way to the command post, stopping first to retrieve two of the colonel's satchels from Jaffer's rig. The door was unlocked and she let herself in. She arrived in time to find Suko and Nuria sitting quietly while enjoying a pot of tea that was warming over a small stove. The dour-faced lieutenant and his four soldiers lay slumbering and bound on the planked floor.
"Any trouble?" Sigrid asked as she set the two satchels on the floor.
"None at all," Suko said, sipping her tea. "Nuria set them up and I knocked them down. Isn't that right, Nuria? She was the perfect distraction."
"Hardly." Nuria still looked wide-eyed and breathless. "If it wasn't for Lady Suko, I'm sure they would have hauled me away!"
"Nonsense. I think we did rather well, all things considered,"
The door opened behind them, letting in a blast of frigid air. Sigrid and Suko spun around, weapons in hand, but it was only the colonel and his two warrior soldiers. Jaffer and Victoria followed quickly behind, closing the door after them.
"Any trouble?" Victoria asked.
"She already asked that," Suko said. "And, as you can see, we're fine."
"What's the status of the cargo?" Sigrid asked.
Jaffer frowned. "Offloading's going quickly. Too quickly. Bloody crews are too efficient. They'll have us out of here in no time."
"See if you can't slow them down, then. We can't let them finish—not until we're done."
Jaffer nodded and grinned. "Don't worry. I've got just the thing. We'll keep 'em busy."
"Do that. Remember, Jaffer, if all goes to plan, we'll be driving out of here in one hour. Make sure Tomás and Marta are ready."
"And if it doesn't go to plan?" the colonel asked.
Kneeling, Sigrid unzipped the larger of the two satchels. Inside were more than a hundred charges of C47, the compact yet highly robust explosive. Sigrid retrieved one and tossed it to the colonel.
"I trust you'll know what to do with these?"
Holding the charge in his hand, Colonel Bhandari grinned. "I'm sure we can find a use for them."
"See that you do, Colonel, because if things go south, and there's a good chance they will, we're going to need all the distractions in the world to get out of this. Victoria will assist you, if that's all right."
"I would be honored," the colonel said, to which Victoria gave a bow of her head.
"What about me?" Suko asked. "If you think you're leaving me here to watch over this lot—"
"No," Sigrid said. "Nothing of the sort. You're my backup, Suko. I'm going to need you inside."
"Well, good. I thought for a moment you were leaving me behind."
"And you, Nuria," Sigrid said. "If you're up for it?"
"Of course, Lady Sigrid."
"I wouldn't be so quick to agree, Nuria. This will be dangerous."
Slowly, Nuria nodded. "I know. But I also know what kind of man the marquis is. He's a slaver. A flesh-trader. Whatever you need, I'll see it done."
"Good, because you know these places better than anyone here. You know how they operate. I'll need you to get Suko in.
All
the way in, Nuria."
The young girl thought hard, biting down on her lip. "The tradesmen's entrance. All the flesh-traders must go through a screening. They'll be entering with the rest of the vendors—yes, the service entrance will be the easiest."
"Perfect," Sigrid said. "Then that's your way in."
"Flesh-trader?" Suko said with a finger to her chest. "Me? Seriously?"
"I thought you took to the role rather well—unless you can think of another way?"
"Hmm. What about you?" Suko asked. "How exactly are
you
supposed to get in?"
"Simple." Sigrid unzipped the second of the satchels with a sharp pull. From inside she withdrew a stunning black cocktail dress, holding it over her torso. "Me? Why, I'll be going through the front door, of course."
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
The Crow's Nest
In the cover of darkness, Sigrid exited the guard post. Suko and Nuria followed after her at set intervals, with the colonel and his warriors taking up the rear. A black cargo van sat waiting, hovering on its repulsors inches off the icy ground. The door opened and Victoria waved them inside.
"Nice of these Cabal farmers to leave their vehicles lying about," Victoria said as she slipped back into the driver's seat.
"They're not
farmers
," Suko said. "It's
Pharma.
As in Big Pharma. The Cabal is a narcotics combine."
"Right. Pharma. That's what I said."
Suko rolled her eyes skyward.
Climbing in, the colonel and his two warrior soldiers took their seats along the side. Suko preferred to stand, with her hand braced against the roof as Victoria sped away, heading on the long road up to the marquis's private villa.
Working fast, Sigrid stripped down, shrugging out of her combat suit and boots, even her socks and underpants, as she prepared to arm herself with the colonel's latest creation. It was a singular marvel of military engineering. She couldn't help but be impressed that the colonel and his team of engineers had been able to throw it together in such short order. It was the perfect weapon for the operation.
"What is it?" Suko asked.
"I think it's a shirt," Victoria offered.
"If it's a shirt, then where are the trousers?"
"It's a dress," Sigrid said, stepping into it. "Now quiet. Both of you."
Strapless, backless and clinging, it was made out of the very same carbon nano-fibers as her combat kit, and just as capable of cloaking or camouflage. It only took a second to establish the link with her PCM. Sigrid dialed in a deep and vibrant blood-red that flowed over the garment. She might not know about fashion, but in the case of her new dress, function definitely won out over form.
Suko, on the other hand, was still collating. She circled her with a distinct frown on her face. "It's a little short in the hem, don't you think?"
"Is it? I thought finger-length was all the rage."
"Finger-length, yes. But finger-length means from your shoulders to the tips of your fingers, not the
length
of your fingers, darling. And, for goodness' sake, learn to bend at the knees! You'll frighten the children."
"Sorry."
"And how on Earth is that thing even staying up?"
"I designed it to emit a low-wattage static charge," the colonel said. "It draws power directly from Ms. Novak. As long as she's alive, it will stay up. I promise."
"Hmm." Suko remained unconvinced.
"Hold still," Nuria said, and Sigrid straightened herself. "This will only take a moment."
Gathering Sigrid's hair in her hands, Nuria rubbed a thick, almost claylike solution into her scalp. It was dark and blood red. With a wide brush, she worked the clay through. With each pull of the brush, the clay thinned, smoothing itself out, bonding to each strand of Sigrid's blond hair—blond hair that grew quickly darker, deepening in tone and even increasing in volume. Depending on the light or angle, her hair would appear as either a deep shade of crimson or bright violet. The effect was startling.
"Almost there." Nuria gave a last touch to Sigrid's eyes and her lips with a few deft if dramatic sweeps of her brush. Blush accentuated her cheeks while a concealer took care of Sigrid's more recent entry and exit wounds.
"Don't you dare laugh," Sigrid said to Suko.
Suko held up her hands in surrender. "I wasn't going to say anything! I can only imagine what she has in store for me!"
"I have an extra evening suit that should fit you," Nuria said. "I think it should do the trick."
"Yes," Suko said. "I can only imagine."
"It's good," Colonel Bhandari said, inspecting Nuria's work. "But it won't beat the security scanners."
"I'll handle the scanners." Sigrid's PCM would take care of those easily enough.
"And if someone recognizes you?"
"I wouldn't worry about that," Victoria said, letting her eyes drift down the plunging backline of Sigrid's dress. "Good God, no one's going to be looking at her face."
"Here." The colonel passed a pair of pumps to Suko, who in turn handed them to Sigrid. "You'll be needing these."
"Please tell me these explode or shoot gas pellets or something," Suko said.
"No," Sigrid said as she stepped into them. "But they go really nicely with the dress."
"Thirty seconds," Victoria said from the front. "I'll drop you just short of the main gate."
The van slowed as Victoria made her approach. Ahead and through the windscreen, Sigrid saw the glowing towers of the marquis's palace. High armored walls blocked it from the street, as did the dozens of guards patrolling the front. Truly, it was a fortress within a fortress.
"One last thing," the colonel said. He held out a long, fur-lined coat for her—real fur, Sigrid realized, amazed.
"You might not need it, but it would look better if you have it on when you arrive. For appearances' sake. Not all of us share your resistance to the cold."
"Of course, Colonel. Thank you." Sigrid slipped it on.
The colonel withdrew his sidearm, checking the chamber before handing it to her. Sigrid declined the weapon, handing it back. "I doubt they'll permit any weapons. Don't worry, Colonel. We've been trained for this."
Suko leaned toward her; Sigrid closed her eyes, anticipating a proper goodbye kiss, but instead, Suko reached past her, sliding the truck's door open and letting in a blast of freezing air.
"But—?"
"When it's done," Suko said, "we'll have all the time in the world."
"Yes," Sigrid said, trying not to sound disappointed. "Of course. When it's done."
She turned to leap out, only to have Suko pull her back into her arms.
"But I thought you said—"
The solid kiss Suko planted on her lips left her weak in the knees and quite breathless. "For luck," Suko said. "Now go finish this."