Price of a Bounty (Reliance on Citizens Makes Us Great!) (22 page)

“I
didn’t know you then – you were just a mark.” She
stepped away from me. “I thought you trusted me.”

I
took Eberhardt’s advice and stepped toward her, closing the gap
between us. “I do, but I need you to make me a promise.”

She
looked at me warily.

“Can
you promise you won’t run from me again? Promise me, if you decide
to leave, you’ll tell me you’re going and tell me why.”

She
hesitated, and then sighed. “Okay, I promise.”

I
held out my hand. “Will you come with me?”

I
had made my decision. I led her to the desk and opened a secret
compartment in the top left hand drawer. I retrieved a key on a
short chain and lifted it so that it dangled in the space between us.

“You’re
welcome to stop by anytime, at any hour. Will you be my partner in
the Resistance?

She
reached out her right hand, palm up, and I placed the key in it. Her
fingers curled shut.

I
didn’t lock up the security codes that night. Instead I put them in
the secret compartment. Then I turned to Keira. “Shall we
retire for the night? It’s been a long day.”

She
nodded and went into the bedroom. I followed her and watched as she
removed her jacket, shoes and pants. Black lace underwear –
I’d expected as much. She left on her t-shirt and climbed under the
covers.

I
removed my clothes down to my boxers, and climbed into bed beside
her. I laid down on my side with my head propped on my hand. I
wanted to take her in my arms, but I was hesitant to press her after
she’d so nearly fled. That brought some other questions to mind –
questions I wasn’t sure I wanted answered, yet still felt a driving
need to ask.

“Keira,
when you run, where do you go?”

“Somewhere
familiar, somewhere safe.”

“But
who do you stay with?”

She
turned to look at me. “Do you really want to know the answer
to that?”

“Not
specifics, I guess, but I want to understand you.”

She
hesitated, and then let out a breath. “There’s a man, a man I
know won’t hurt me. He allows women to stay with him, for a fee.”

She
studied my face. I tried to mask jealousy with a calm passive look.

“Do
you trust him?”

“I
trust him to keep me hidden when that’s what I need.”

“Does
he love you?”

“No.”

“Do
you love him?”

“No,”
she said, without hesitation.

I
nodded. I’d heard enough. I turned off the bedside lamp. There was
a sick feeling in my stomach, but I had asked, and she had responded
with the truth. I wouldn’t want it any other way. Keira rolled
over, and I reached out to hold her. She shifted back into my arms.

I
couldn’t sleep. I thought about my recent decisions and how they
would impact my life. Without realizing it, I began to gently stroke
Keira’s arm, so I was a bit surprised when she turned toward me and
responded completely and without inhibition. As she settled onto me,
I heard a sigh in the darkness as well as something I’d never heard
from her before.

“I
love you, Guy.”

-Keira-

The
Dry Martini

Guy
decided not to go to work the next day. Instead, we discussed
something important over breakfast – whether or not I should
give the Cybonautics data processor access codes to Brody Delaney.

“He’s
in a position to become a strong ally, if we play him right.”

Guy
studied me. “But can you play him right? How can you be sure
that you can control him?”

“Nothing
is ever sure when it comes to other people,” I reminded him,
“but I think I can do this. And even if I can’t, we could use
CalTech as a scapegoat if necessary.”

“How
much time do we have? When are you supposed to give him these
codes?”

“Tonight,
7:00.”

“How
much did you charge him?”

“30,000.”

Guy
whistled. “Not bad!”

I
smiled. “You know I’m good.”

“Yes,
I do.” He smiled too. “I have an idea. Let’s extend an
olive branch.”

“What
do you mean?”

“Give
Delaney a discount. Reduce your fee to 25,000, stroke his ego and
only his ego…”

I
laughed as Guy continued, “And begin building a friendship.
Just don’t push it too far. If he falls for you, or thinks you’re
offering more than you are, and you have to dash his hopes later,
this could backfire on us.”

“Will
do, boss!” I saluted him.

“Don’t
do that.” He rolled his eyes.

This
was perfect! Finally, Guy trusted me to do what I did best.

***

That
afternoon, Eberhardt drove me to an empty field on the outskirts of
Tkaron. Ricardo was already there, her long dark hair tied back in a
ponytail. A bicycle was on its side a few meters away. I exited the
car and stood facing her in the warm sunshine.

“Keira,
this is Raquelle, but the other Raiders know her as Ricardo.
Raquelle, this is Keira, sometimes known as Madeline.”

“Oh,
not anymore,” I corrected. “That ID blew up, remember?”

“Blew
up, huh?” Raquelle and I shook hands, and I smiled at her.

“Ladies,
shall we begin with a few warm up laps?”

We
both nodded and began to run.

After
a half hour high intensity workout, the real training began.
Eberhardt taught me how to safely use and dismantle a handgun, while
Raquelle practiced target shooting nearby. I tried to tell Eberhardt
that guns leave too much evidence behind, but he pointed out that
even if I chose not to carry, someone could pull one on me.

Next
he emptied the gun, and we took turns disarming each other. This, I
felt, was a far more useful skill. When I’d needed to in the past,
I’d fought with sheer gut instinct. It felt good to learn some of
Eberhardt’s trusted techniques.

We
agreed to meet again in two days at Eberhardt’s apartment where
Raquelle would begin to teach me the fine art of disarming high
techno security devices, an extremely useful skill for a Raider.

On
the way home, Eberhardt let me drive again. “Thank you for
inviting me along today.”

He
just nodded.

“It
was you, wasn’t it? You saw me enter the room after Raquelle last
night. You let her know I was there.”

“Yes,
but I didn’t know it was you.”

“You’re
good backup, Eberhardt.”

He
smiled.

***

When I opened the door to my apartment, a wonderful aroma welcomed
me.

“What’s
this?” I asked Guy, who was standing at the stove.

“An
apology dinner. I really am sorry about some of the things I said
last night.”

I
kissed him on the cheek. “You’re forgiven. Just let me go
clean up.”

“Clean
up after,” he suggested. “Sit and eat now. The food is
ready.”

Guy
pulled out a chair for me, and I sat.

“Did
you really cook this, or did you have it catered in?” I teased.
“It really is better than anything I could make.”

He
shook his head. “It’s really not much. You just haven’t taken
time to practice.”

“Maybe
you could teach me?”

After
dinner, I showered and prepared for my meeting with Delaney. Guy
walked into the bedroom just as I was clipping up my golden curls.

“You’re
wearing that?” He stared at my short black cocktail dress.
The deep V-neckline and sequined clip at the waist drew the eye right
past my breasts.

“Is
something wrong with it?”

“Try
this.” He held up a glittering necklace that matched the clip
at my waist. “It will draw his eyes back up to your face which
is exactly where we want his focus to be.”

I
held up my hair, and he fastened the clasp. Guy was right. It was
the perfect finishing touch.

“You
look stunning in that dress. I’m not sure you realize what kind of
effect you have on men.”

“Oh,
I know.”

“I
thought we’d agreed that you wouldn’t overdo this. We want Delaney
to build a friendship with you, nothing more.”

“Yes,
that’s the plan,” I agreed. “But I have to fit in. I’ll
be at the Dry Martini tonight. I know what I’m doing.”

“
I know you
do. I have something for you.” He held out an ID with my
picture on it, and then reached into his pocket for something else.
“It’s a new one, and here are some business cards.”

I studied the ID.
“Kendra James. I like it. Thanks!”

Then I turned my
attention to the business cards. They featured my real name had a
faint imprint of the symbol of the Resistance on them.

“
What’s this
number? It’s not yours.”

He reached into his
other pocket and pulled out a black transceiver.

I
paused. “Guy…”

“Yes?”

“Would
you like to be my backup tonight?”

“I
thought you didn’t use backup.”

I
looked away. “You can thank Eberhardt. He got me thinking
about it.”

“All
right, I accept. You’re the lead, so tell me what to do.”

I
thought a moment. Guy would need to look the part. He kept a couple
of suits here, for when he stayed overnight. I walked over to the
closet and pulled one out. “To start, you should wear this and
bring this.” I held up his black briefcase.

We
arrived early. I went in first and chose a small table off to the
side of the room as far away from the dance floor and piano as
possible. Guy sat at the bar, ordered a drink and turned his gaze
toward the dancers. He looked like a businessman who had just
concluded a long day at the office.

I
saw Brody Delaney before he saw me, so I stood to get his attention.
He walked over and joined me.

“Hello,
Brody.” I smiled. “It’s nice to see you again.”

“How
do we do this?” He started to hand me his briefcase, but I
stopped him.

“Put
that down. After a job well done, it’s traditional to sit and have a
drink first. We’ll talk, and then make the exchange. There’s really
nothing to it.”

He
sat and placed the briefcase on the floor beside him.

“How
do I know you’re not really working for Cybonautics? I wouldn’t put
it past them, and this could get me into a lot of trouble.”

“You’re
being paranoid. Why would anyone at Cybonautics hire me to do
something that will only advance your career?”

He
signaled to the waitress and ordered two martinis, one for each of
us. As she was leaving, Guy walked by, stumbled into her, apologized
and continued on to the restroom.

I
put my hand on top of Brody’s and commanded his attention with my
eyes. “Brody, I think you’ve got what it takes. You saw an
opportunity and took it. I think you’ll make an excellent CEO at
CalTech.”

“I
can only do that if you’ve done what I hired you to do.” He
spoke as if this had been his idea. That was a good sign.

“I
have, and I hope you’ll remember that Kendra James gets the job
done.”

“Kendra,
now I have a name to go with your face.”

The
waitress arrived with our drinks. As she turned to leave, Guy
stumbled into her yet again, on his way back from the restroom. I
covered my mouth and giggled. Brody looked at me rather than Guy.
He smiled too.

I
reached out my glass. “I’d like to propose a toast…to new
friendships.”

Our
glasses clinked, and we each took a sip.

“Do
you like what you do, Brody?”

“I
guess. It pays well. I didn’t realize I’d have to be watching my
back so much though. Everybody wants the top position, but everyone
can’t have it.”

“I
know what you mean. Those access codes you wanted? They’ll help
both you and your company get to the top, won’t they?”

“Yes,
they should.”

The
waitress returned then with an appetizer. “Oh, I didn’t
order…” Brody began.

“I
did, before you arrived. Thank you.” I smiled at the waitress
who set down two small plates and a platter with artichoke dip and
cubes of bread.

There
was also small tracking device on the plate she set in front of me.
I picked it up. “I hope you’ll remember who helped you get to
the top and that we’ll be able to trust each other from now on.”
I dropped it into what was left of Brody’s drink.

He
looked down at his briefcase in alarm, then back at me. “Did I
blow it?”

“Not
yet. I can’t fault you for being cautious, but I wouldn’t try
anything like that again. I am good at what I do. I hope you
believe that now.”

He
glanced around the room. I was glad to see that Guy had already
left.

“I
also hope we’ll be able to work together again sometime soon.”
I stood and held out my hand.

“What
do you mean?”

I
dropped my hands to the table and leaned toward him. Did I really
have to spell it out? “There may come a time when I’ll want to
call in a favor from a friend at CalTech.”

Brody
looked at me in alarm.

“Don’t
worry. You could always say no. Until then, let’s get together for
drinks every now and again.” I removed the list of access
codes from my purse and handed it to him.

“That’s
it?”

“That’s
it, and to show you that I really am a nice person, I gave you a
discount. I wouldn’t leave your briefcase unattended until you’ve
emptied it. Enjoy the dip.” I picked up a small piece of
bread, scooped up some artichoke dip, popped it into my mouth and
swallowed. “Delicious!” I held out my hand again.
“It’s been a pleasure working with you, Brody Delaney.”

-Scott-

Caught

Raquelle
was now able to access the airport security systems. A week before
we traveled, she removed my name from the high frequency list. She
was able to get into another part of the system as well. There, she
removed my army title from the database.