DAN DIDN’T CRY.
But as he stood there, lips pressed tight together and fists clenched, he was very close to tears.
His mother came farther into the suite. She held the lazgun firmly. “Don’t try anything, Jake,” warned Kate. “Please—I don’t want to have to ... to kill you.”
Jake remained where he was. “So you are involved in all this mess, huh?”
“Sure,” she admitted. “Isn’t that what you’ve always suspected?”
“Yeah, but I guess I’ve been hoping—”
“It’s too late for hoping,” his ex-wife told him. “You’ve screwed everything up.”
“Kate, you were the one who contacted me,” he reminded. “Pleaded with me to find Dan.”
“I know, yes, but I ... I didn’t think Danny would end up here,” she said. “Or that you’d be able to trace him all this way.”
“You should’ve realized that, since Dan and Nancy were brought here on orders from Sands’ partners.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that now, but it’s too late.”
“Mom,” said Dan, struggling to control his voice, “I didn’t want to believe it when Nancy told me that you were working with her father. But ... but it’s true, isn’t it?”
“Yes, Danny. It’s true,” answered his mother. “But you have to understand why I—”
“They killed people,” he said. “They murdered Tek Kids and ... and I don’t know who the hell else. And you ... you’re part of the whole damn thing.”
“You simply don’t comprehend what’s going on,” insisted Kate. “This is a multimillion-dollar venture.”
“I comprehend that you’re collaborating with killers and Tek-runners,” said her son. “I comprehend that you screwed up my life and that you’ve told me lies for ... shit, for years.”
“But, Danny—our share of this will give us financial security for the rest of our lives.”
“Dad was innocent,” said Dan, pointing at Jake. “Completely, wasn’t he? It was you and that bastard Bennett Sands who set him up, framed him. You got him sentenced to the goddamn Freezer—and all along you knew that he was—”
“Nancy, don’t let him talk about your father that way,” cautioned Kate, deep frowns touching her pale forehead.
“My father is a rotten bastard,” said Sands’ daughter. “When I found that out, I ran away. Unfortunately, that just caused more trouble for Dan.”
“Please, both of you—you have to stop talking to me like this,” pleaded Kate. “You must see that I’m trying to help you.”
“Oh ... and Dad, too?” asked Dan.
Jake’s former wife slowly shook her head. “There’s nothing I can do for him,” she said. “But, trust me, no harm will come to you or Nancy. You were brought here so that you couldn’t tell anyone about what’s going on.”
“You’re standing there telling me that your damned lover is going to kill my father!” shouted Dan. “And you expect me to be grateful to you?”
“Danny, don’t yell at me,” said his mother. “You don’t understand ... you don’t want to understand ... that whatever I’ve done, it was for you as well as for myself.”
“That’s great, Mom. I hadn’t thought of it like that, no,” said her son. “Every time you jumped in the sack with Bennett, why, it was really to help me.”
“You have no right to—”
“Yes, I do. The things you’ve done give me the right.”
“Danny, don’t keep on like this.”
Dan started walking toward her. “I’ll tell you something else,” he said. “I’m going to take that lazgun away from you.”
“Danny, don’t try it!”
“And the only way you can stop me,” he told her, “is by shooting me down.”
Gomez, stungun in hand, came strolling into the room where they were holding Natalie. “Are you in passable shape, chiquita?” he asked her.
The reporter was still kneeling beside the disabled Sidebar. “I’m not in the best shape I’ve ever been in, but I’m functioning.” Carefully, she started to rise.
Gomez allowed himself to be briefly distracted by her wobbly efforts.
Noticing that, the lanky Pettiford lunged, grabbed up the metal chair the young woman had been sitting in, and hurled it straight at Gomez.
Most of the chair legs caught Gomez in the chest. He fell backwards, sitting hard. His gun hit the floor and spun away.
Dr. Danenberg made a dive for the skittering weapon.
Natalie, on her feet again, ran. She jumped, landing on the stooping doctor’s broad back.
While the two women were struggling for possession of the fallen stungun, Gomez devoted his attention to the Excalibur leader.
Pettiford had followed the chair and was grappling with Gomez, attempting to twist the detective’s arm up behind his back.
Jerking free, Gomez rolled and then kicked up.
His boot toe connected with the diving Pettiford’s chin.
“Unk,” he said, dropping flat.
Gomez got to his knees, grabbed the man up, and delivered three short jabs to his jaw.
Pettiford sagged. Gomez let him sink to the floor and into unconsciousness.
“Bueno,” he commented, standing up and looking around.
Natalie, brushing back her hair, was straddling the fallen Dr. Danenberg. The stungun was firmly gripped in her right hand. “Don’t think I don’t appreciate your daring attempt at a rescue, Gomez,” she said, a bit breathlessly. “However, should we ever find ourselves in a similar situation at some future date, I do hope you won’t be quite so clumsy.”
Bowing, Gomez smiled at her. “Your gracious thanks are most gratefully accepted, linda,” he said. “And now I suggest that we have a little chat with the good doctor.”
Kate kept the lazgun aimed at her son. “Danny,” she said, “don’t do this.”
He was only a few feet from her now. “Give me the gun,” he said and held out his hand.
“I can’t.”
“Well, you’re not going to use it to kill my father. So either shoot me or—”
“Please, Danny, try to understand why I—”
“I understand.” He reached out, closing his fingers over the barrel of the lazgun.
Kate, starting to cry, let go of the weapon. She turned, angry, toward Jake. “He’s ... he’s just like you.”
Dan slipped the gun into his pocket. “Nancy, Dad, we can go now,” he said.
They moved single file along the hotel corridor. Dan was in the lead, followed by Nancy and then his mother. Jake brought up the rear.
“You’re not going to make it out of here,” warned Kate.
“Once we get to the service passages we’ll be okay.”
“Bennett’s in this hotel,” his former wife said. “He’s at a meeting. As soon as that ends, he’s planning to meet me at the kids’ room. When he finds them gone, he’ll mount a search of the entire satellite.”
“Dan, we want that blue door on the right.”
“Okay, Dad.” Slowing, Dan approached the door. He opened it, slowly and carefully, and entered the blank-walled corridor beyond.
Kate said, “Bennett will kill you.”
“He’s tried before.” Jake urged her into the passageway.
“If you simply give up, turn the kids over to him, then you have a chance.”
“We’ll travel in silence from here on.”
“I’m trying to help you, Jake, to save your damn life.”
“It’s funny, Kate. Somehow I find it tough to trust you.”
Near the end of this section of corridor was another blue door.
“Do we want this doorway, Dad?”
“Yeah, and then take the down ramp on the left.”
Before any of them reached the door, it came snapping open.
Bennett Sands, a lazgun in his hand, stepped into the hallway. “Well, Jake Cardigan,” he said, smiling. “Just the man I was hoping to meet.”