Rick expected the Trading Post to be quiet at this mid-morning hour, but still, the meager scattering of patrons surprised him. Four men, each sitting alone and nursing what appeared to be whisky for breakfast; and three women, two acting as waitresses and one—the attractive but fragile Kai—lurking at a corner table. He had hoped to find Lana, since she was the chattiest of the bunch, but he settled for her quieter friend.
“Hey Kai, mind if I join you?”
Her long, oval face lit up. “Captain Gage! We didn’t expect you back for months.”
“Yeah, I made an unscheduled drop of bio-metal so I figured I’d stop by.”
“I’m not on duty, but if you’re in a hurry—”
“Nope. Just looking for someone to talk to. Especially about Alexia Montoya. I assume that’s why everyone’s so grim?”
Kai glanced around, then lowered her voice. “Our hearts are broken. But it’s not just Alexia. It’s her and Jamie and everyone. And they closed the sinkhole indefinitely. You heard about that, right? It’s so intimidating, especially with David Seaton on the platform.”
He could see he was making her nervous, so he patted her hand. “Thanks for the update. Things will get better soon, I’m sure.” He tried for a casual tone. “I wanted to say ‘hi’ to Lana too. Do you know her schedule?”
Kai took a deep breath, then blurted out, “She’s in the infirmary. She’s fine, or at least, that’s what we’re told. But they won’t let me see her.”
Rick studied her warily. She wasn’t just upset. Or sad. She seemed scared to death. And so even as he asked, “Is Lana sick?” he knew the answer would be something quite different.
“She has a broken wrist, or at least that’s what we’re told. There was an incident the night Alexia died. We were all drinking and crying, and Mr. Seaton came in.”
“You mean David? Or TJ?”
“We never see TJ, since he’s in mourning. His father’s running things completely. Anyway, you know how TJ always gave such inspirational speeches when we lost someone in the sinkhole? It seemed like Mr. Seaton was going to try and do that. No one liked the idea. It was creepy, frankly. And of course, Lana couldn’t keep her mouth shut.” She gave a wistful smile. “I miss her.”
“So she objected to the speech? And…?”
“She didn’t object to the speech, she objected to him. She was tipsy and started accusing him of things. Horrible things she never should have said, but still…” Kai’s backbone straightened. “They didn’t have to get so rough with her. The enforcers, I mean. One of them grabbed her and jerked her arm behind her back. I heard the crack, Captain Gage.”
Rick was half out of his seat with fury. “Which enforcer? Belker? I’ll fucking kill him.”
She grabbed his hand and whispered, “It was Sampson. Belker’s friend. But these days, it hardly matters. They all act like power-hungry bullies.” She licked her lips. “When Alexia died, everything changed. It’s like the Seatons are gods now. The enforcers can do anything they want, and no one will stop them. And we c-can’t go home.”
“Hey.” He gave her an awkward hug. “It’s gonna be okay. You have my word.”
“There’s nothing you can do. You should probably just go. You have a ship. You can get away. Not like us.”
“It’s going to be okay,” he repeated stubbornly. “I can help you but I need more information. The last news bulletin said arrests have been made. Do you know who they mean?”
“No. We don’t get news updates anymore. I just know they have Lana. And they had Gabby but she was released yesterday, thank God. We were so scared for her.”
“They arrested Gabby?”
“No, no. She was in the infirmary like Lana. She tried to kill herself when she heard Alexia and TJ got married. So Dr. Meg pumped her stomach. Or at least, that’s the rumor. Poor Gabby.” She sobbed into her hands. “I just can’t bear it anymore.”
“Hey, Kai?” He waited for her to look at him, then smiled. “I gave you my word, didn’t I? I’ll get you out. Not necessarily today, but soon. The army trained me to rescue people and I’m pretty damned good at it. Your job is to keep a low profile. Just like you’re doing.”
“You’ll rescue Lana too? And George? And…” She wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “It has to be everyone. Because everyone’s afraid. They’ve never closed the sinkhole for more than a day or two before—”
“And now it’s been a full week? I agree, time to re-open it.”
She leaned back and tried to smile. “I keep telling myself the UN will do something soon. So don’t put yourself in danger on our account. We just need to wait it out. Low profile, like you said.”
Rick wondered if the UN could really intercede. Diplomatically, sure. But they had handed Sea-Mont the keys to the kingdom, mostly on the strength of the Montoya reputation. If David wanted to keep the sinkhole closed, it would take weeks and a full-scale battle, not to mention a horde of physicists and fighter pilots, to ram through from E-side.
But to the stranded, terrified denizens of the platform, a rescue party from Earth probably seemed like the last, best hope. Who was he to take that away from Kai? So he told her briskly, “You’ll be back home in no time. I’m sure of it.” Then he cleared his throat and added, “If someone asks what we talked about—”
“I’ll say we talked about Alexia. Lana says you had a crush on her.” She winced. “I’m sorry, Captain. And maybe Alexia was right all along. Maybe the people in the sinkhole are still alive.”
He nodded. “Maybe so. Meanwhile, just lay low. Someone will come for you soon, I promise.”
“Thanks, Rick.”
“It’s my job,” he reminded her. Then he stood up and strode out of the bar.
As soon as he was a safe distance away, he contacted Sensie. “Did Alexia leave yet?”
“Yes, Captain. Is something wrong?”
“It’s worse here than we thought. But if she’s on her way, then so am I. Which means it’s time for you to impersonate TJ.”
“I won’t let you down, Captain.”
“Yeah, I know.” He exhaled sharply. “So let’s get this done.”
Alexia had feared a run-in with the enforcers on the space dock, but to her amused surprise, those guys already had bio-girls in the booth with them. Apparently, TJ was running a loose ship these days, which worked for her, so she strolled—alone and unnoticed—across the platform, surprised by how few residents she saw.
They’re all depressed, she decided. Two sinkhole losses in less than two weeks. It must be so scary for them.
She sighed, knowing they’d be even more frightened if they knew what the Sea-Mont CEO and his father were really capable of, namely attempted murder. She only hoped it hadn’t progressed to actual murder, given the ominous assertion that “arrests have been made”.
Don’t think about that. Think about the sentient.
A shiver of excitement ran along her bare arms. If even a fraction of her brother’s ingenuity resided in that computer, and if she could access that brilliance and pair it with Rick’s experience and fearlessness, the Seatons would be finished for good.
And if some vestige of her brother’s personality still existed in this world? Did she dare hope for that?
Her heart pounded as she sauntered—hooker style—through the lobby doors of Sea-Mont headquarters and up to the guard. “Hey, handsome,” she said in her huskiest tone. “TJ is expecting me.”
The man gulped. “He called a minute ago. You can go right up, or wait for Captain Gage. I understand you’re his date.”
“I can handle them both,” she insisted with a wink.
The guard laughed. “I bet you could. But Mr. Seaton’s grieving, you know that, right? He’s a widower now, like me. Poor guy. At least I had thirty great years with my wife.”
Ugh…
The idea of TJ masquerading as a bereaved husband angered her more than his treachery. She almost understood the bullying and the jealousy, but this? Trading on people’s sympathies? Truly the lowest point yet in his fall from grace.
“Here’s the guest of honor now,” the guard announced cheerfully. “Welcome back, Captain Gage. Mr. Seaton said to give you the royal treatment, so just let us know what you need.”
“Looks like you’ve already read my mind,” Rick congratulated him, eyeing Alexia greedily. Then he slipped his arm around her waist. “Hi, honey. I’m Rick. Ready to go upstairs and have some fun?”
“You make a terrible sleazeball,” she told him as soon as they were safely in the elevator.
“Too bad, because you’re built for action.”
She laughed, then quirked an eyebrow. “How’s Lana?”
A shadow passed across his face, but all he said was, “Things are grimmer than we thought.”
She nodded, remembering the deserted platform. “It must be so weird for them. But now they have us.”
“Yeah, let’s hope Sensie’s impersonation works wonders again.”
On cue, Sensie’s TJ voice gave confident, clipped instructions to the security system.
“Can you believe this?” Alexia asked in relief as the door opened on the third floor. “Now it’s up to me.”
He turned her to face him. “He’ll let you in. That’s what big brothers do, right?”
She stared into his green eyes, dying to declare her feelings once and for all. He was everything she ever wanted or needed in a boyfriend, and now he was actually doing the impossible: helping her reconnect with her long-lost brother.
Moistening her lips, she settled for saying, “I’m so glad you’re here with me.”
He nodded, then took her by the elbow and led her down the long, white, empty corridor. The guards had cleared out, which meant Sensie’s ruse had worked. The cameras would be dark, too.
If only Sensie could open the door to the computer room as well. But that would be up to a different sentient.
“You can do it,” Rick told her as they approached the sensor pad. “Just rest your palm there, look up into the red light, and speak your name clearly.”
She gulped and nodded, then rubbed her hand against her dress to ensure good contact. With one last smile at Rick, she took a deep breath and firmly positioned her palm on the pad.
Before she could utter her name, or even blink for the retinal scan, the door slid open. Her knees buckled from the shock, but Rick’s arm caught her, propelling her forward.
And just when she thought it couldn’t get any better, a familiar voice drawled, “Hey, sis. What took you so long?”