Harlan remembered. Timmy Moreno. His father's friend. A man of honor
and strength. Harlan had looked up to him. And he had played with
-Timmy's son. Ned.
+Timmy's son. Jake.
-"Ned." he said. "I thought you died with your dad."
+"Jake." he said. "I thought you died with your dad."
+
+==== Harlan: Thief, Resistance Operative====
+
+Jake looked down at the carpet under his feet. "No. He protected me
+with his body. I lived because he took the force of the blast." His
+eyes roamed up the wall, seeing a time years ago and miles away. "When
+the Guard came around to see if everyone was dead, I unfocused my eyes
+like you taught me. Remember? And lay limp. I had enough blood on me
+to look realistic."
+
+"Someone poked me in the side with a gun. It hurt, but I managed to
+stay limp. They went on."
+
+His gaze met Harlan's. "I lay there for a long time." His eyes
+sparkled with unshed tears. "My dad and me - we didn't get along well.
+Part of it was the Resistance. He believed. I thought it was
+bullshit."
+
+Running his hand through his hair, he said "We argued, sometimes to
+the point of throwing punches. I couldn't sway him. And I was too
+stubborn to open my eyes."
+
+He chuckled, a laugh with no humor in it. "Boy, did I ever have my
+eyes yanked open that night." Looking at Harlan, he said "If I had
+twitched, they would have shot me dead. Even though I was supposedly
+on their side."
+
+He hung his head down and shook it. "Shit! I was dumb."
+
+"I think I lay there, between the cold floor and the cooling body of
+my father, for at least an hour. At one point I started crying. Crying
+like I had no tomorrow. And I didn't. I had no idea what to do, where
+to go."
+
+Still with his head hanging, he said "The reason I survived had
+nothing to do with my skill or knowledge. The Resistance came. I was
+crawling out from under Dad at that point and was trying to get to my
+feet." He smiled grimly. "I was as stiff as Dad was becoming."
+
+"Three men suddenly appeared - like out of thin air. One was
+Santorini. I didn't know the other two." He sighed. "They obviously
+knew me. One spoke up. He wanted to kill me. Santorini looked at me,
+covered in my father's blood, tears streaking down my face, one leg
+still stuck under the corpse. He shook his head and had them bring me
+along."
+
+"For days, I slept or lay staring at the ceiling. I didn't eat much. I
+didn't think much. Thinking was far too painful. I just lay on the bed
+in a fog."
+
+He smiled then, a genuine smile. "Finally Santorini's daughter, Jade,
+came into the room. I wasn't dead, so I noticed her. Brilliant green
+hair and eyes and a smile that would light up the world. She kicked me
+out of bed, forced me to dress, and dragged me back to the land of the
+living."
+
+Harlan smiled. "I think I've met her."
+
+"At the Big House?"
+
+Harlan nodded.
+
+"Yeah. She's been undercover there for a couple of years." He leaned
+back. "I don't like it. Hell. I hate it. But Jade's a big girl and can
+do what she wants. I'm just her husband."
+
+"You're married to that witch?"
+
+"Yeah. Ain't she great?"
+
+Harlan grinned. "Hell, yeah."
+
+Harlan and Jake began to laugh. Mellie stared at them. "What's so
+funny?"
+
+Harlan managed to say. "You'll have to meet her."
+
+When he had controlled his laughter, Harlan said "You'll have to
+forgive me if I don't trust you implicitly yet, Jake. I'll let
+Santorini okay you."
+
+Keeping their phasers centered on Jake's back, Harlan and Mellie
+herded him out the door and into the garage, boarding a two seater
+AirScooter. Mellie sat on Harlan's lap and guided the machine. Fifteen
+minutes of discomfort and crowding later, they arrived at the Green
+Palace.
+
+Santorini met them at the front door. He didn't even look at Harlan or
+Mellie. He went straight to Jake and hugged him, holding the younger
+man tightly for a moment. When the Boss stepped back, Harlan could see
+tears in the eyes of both men.
+
+Harlan shrugged and put his phaser away. Looking at Mellie, he saw
+that she was smiling and had already holstered her weapon.
+
+Santorini brought Jake over to them. He started to introduce Jake, but
+they all interrupted, saying that they had indeed met.
+
+The Boss said "Oh, yeah. That's right. Thank you for not killing or
+maiming him. Jade would kill all of us."
+
+Mellie looked at Santorini and asked "You got any more daughters,
+Boss?"
+
+"Yeah. Two more. Why?"
+
+Mellie shook her head. "Nevermind."
+
+Jake carried a message from Cassidy. Cassidy could see what was about
+to happen on his world and he wanted to be on the winning side. By his
+calculations, the Resistance would win. He would be throwing all the
+resources of the Syndicate behind the rebels.
+
+There were stipulations, of course, including a full pardon for every
+man or woman who fought for freedom.
+
+Cassidy wanted that pardon. He had set up a legitimate business
+several years ago, importing fashionable clothes from New Dessel where
+they were made with cheap labor. To his credit, he had insisted that
+all of his workers be paid at least a good wage by New Dessel
+standards. He also managed to get them good health care coverage and
+even two weeks vacation. They were basically indentured servants so he
+forgave fifty percent of their debt and released them when the rest
+was paid off. He even rehired them at a significant increase in wages.
+All of this could be done on New Dessel and still save him money.
+
+He wanted to move to New Dessel and continue his reforms, but he
+needed to be free of his past. Going straight was complicated.
+
+Cassidy also foresaw the need for their armories to be updated. He had
+done that for the Syndicate. He offered the Resistance the same
+advances - at a discount, of course. Cassidy was giving them a good
+deal. If they could trust him.
+
+Jake thought Cassidy was sincere. He wanted to be a hero for a change.
+And to make money at it. Jake said he could almost hear the cheering
+of the crowds when Cassidy talked about his dreams.
+
+The Boss agreed to meet with the would-be hero. Each would bring their
+most trusted associate and no one else. They would all be armed. That
+was understood. Trust only stretches so far.
==== Santorini: Boss of the Resistance ====
Cassidy and his associate looked at the thief and at the Boss, then at
each other. Santorini reached out and hugged the helmeted associate.
-The helmet came off.
-
-"Daddy." said Emerald. "You're such a spoilsport."
+The helmet came off and brilliant green hair spilled out. "Daddy."
+said Jade. "You're such a spoilsport."
-The four sat down and talked. Emerald had ordered sandwiches and
-salads from the kitchen and a couple of bottles of wine. It took two
-hours, but they hammered out an agreement that would allow for amnesty
-for freedom fighters and their families.
+The four sat down and talked. Jade had ordered sandwiches and salads
+from the kitchen and a couple of bottles of wine. It took two hours,
+but they hammered out an agreement that would allow for amnesty for
+freedom fighters and their families.
They also discussed a land agreement. Everyone who fought for the
Resistance would be eligible to buy land on the planet. Good land at a
opposition from the factory owners on New Dessel. They liked the
status quo.
-They were packing up to go home when Emerald spoke softly to her
-father. "I'll be going with him when he leaves for New Dessel, Daddy."
+They were packing up to go home when Jade spoke softly to her father.
+"I'll be going with him when he leaves for New Dessel, Daddy."
Santorini went very still for a moment. Then he looked at her. "I
know. But relations should improve between the planets, both
shoulder "or get out and go foment riot and rebellion."
Harlan couldn't help himself. He laughed and took a drink before he
-left to do some fomenting.
\ No newline at end of file
+left to do some fomenting.
+
+==== Mellie: Detective, Resistance Operative ====
+
+Mellie probably wouldn’t have phrased how she was doing as ‘well’. She
+was running scared, every day, every minute. Someone would call her
+out. She knew it.
+
+Meanwhile, she had dug up some important information, but no one had
+contacted her to transfer it to the Boss. She now knew the identity of
+the mole in the detective squad and he was likely to find out that she
+knew at any moment. She had tricked him. It was just a matter of time
+before he figured out that he’d been had. And her life expectancy
+would decrease exponentially at that point.
+
+She had been sheltering in the bathroom, but she really needed to get
+back to the squad room and keep an eye on Tommi Roper, Detective
+second class and spy for the pirates.
+
+When she walked in the squad room, a couple of the guys looked up, saw
+her, and went back to their work. Five men were grouped around Behan’s
+desk and seemed to be arguing vigorously. She could hear the raised
+voices but didn’t understand the words. As she approached, the voices
+fell silent and the men stared at her.
+
+“What’s going on?” she asked.
+
+There was silence for a while, then Alex Biggers spoke up. “Roper here
+thinks you’re a spy for the pirates. He says he’s seen you close to
+both the Big House and the Presidential Palace, like you were
+delivering messages or somethin.’”
+
+Roper stepped forward and squared his shoulders. “I saw you walking up
+to the presidential palace yesterday. It was dark, but I know it was
+you.”
+
+Her gaze didn’t waver. She thought Now or never.
+
+"And why were you there after dark? Exactly what time did this
+'sighting' take place?"
+
+Roper sneered. "I was on a stakeout. Watching for any unusual
+activity. And it was just about 20:15"
+
+She nods. "20:15. Well, at that time I was having dinner with Lt.
+Marks."
+
+Eyebrows went up. Even Behan gave her a look.
+
+"And his delightful wife, Celia. Lt. Marks thought that Celia and I
+would get along well. He was right. I think I will enjoy knowing
+Celia."
+
+Behan grinned. The rest looked mildly embarrassed. Roper looked
+unhappy. "Well. I said it was dark. Musta been somebody who looked
+like you."
+
+Mellie smiled. "Actually, Roper, I've been wanting to talk to you. You
+weren't on any stakeout last night. You were meeting with O'Hara, one
+of the group leaders in State Security. He reports directly to the
+President. In fact, I'll bet he wanted you to join with Caspenski, the
+Syndicate goon who wants to take over from Cassidy. You work for the
+Syndicate, too, don't you, Roper? And you report everything to the
+pirates."
+
+The group around them had grown. There were a dozen men and a couple
+of women listening now. The uproar that followed Mellie's words
+brought in another crowd.
+
+Mellie raised her hand and the noise quieted down. "You're double
+crossing everybody, aren't you, Roper? You're a spy for the pirates.
+So everything you hear, everything you see, even everything you
+suspect, goes right back to the bastards who have this planet under
+their thumbs. Just how much are you getting paid, you traitor?" Her
+voice had risen to a shout.
+
+Roper swung a fist at her, but she dodged and grabbed his arm, pinning
+him over the desk. "You're not even a good cop."
+
+Roper yelled "You're a liar! You can't prove any of that."
+
+Smiling a predator's smile, Mellie pulled out a disc, the size of a
+contact lens, and inserted it into Behan's computer. A vid came up.
+Roper was walking toward a dark shape standing near a hoverlight on a
+rainy street. The figure turned as Roper came near and the light
+played across his face. Every cop gasped. They all knew that face.
+Dietr, head of state security for the pirates. The two men walked a
+little way together, then stopped and talked. Something exchanged
+hands. Dietr slapped Roper on the shoulder and Roper turned and walked
+away. The vid stopped.
+
+Mellie looked around at her colleagues. "Santorini will want to talk
+to him." She pulled the disc and handed it in a container to Biggers.
+
+Everyone looked at Roper. He spread his hands. "I was playing him. I
+wanted to get some info from him and go to the Resistance with it.
+C'mon guys. You got to believe me. I was born here. This is my home. I
+love Agalder. She's lying. She created that tape." His voice rose as
+five cops hustled him out of the squad room.
+
+Behan hadn't moved during the incident. Now he looked at Mellie. "Good
+work, Detective."
+
+The stunned audience, consisting of cops and clerks broke free of
+their shock and started talking all at once. Behan leaned toward
+Mellie. "Good work." he repeated. "But you painted a target on your
+back. Be careful."
+
+She nodded and headed out the door. She needed to see Santorini.
+
+==== Mellie: Detective, Resistance Operative ====
+
+Mellie Kaminsky was feeling pretty cocky after successfully taking
+Roper down. She climbed in her little tan AirSedan and lifted off on a
+course to the Green Palace. But before she reached her assigned
+traffic lane, three AirScooters surrounded her. The men on them were
+dressed in black and had black helmets. One pulled right along side
+her vehicle and smashed the passenger side window. Mellie shot him
+with her phaser, but he kept coming, like it had no effect at all. He
+pulled open the passenger door and came in.
+
+She took a crowbar that she kept in the car and swung it with all her
+might against his left shoulder as he crawled in the vehicle. That
+stopped him. He screamed and fell back against the passenger door. The
+door swung open. Mellie pushed hard against the thug. He grabbed her
+wrist as he fell out of the sedan. Praying that the seatbelts would
+hold, Mellie stabbed him with a knife that she always carried. He let
+go and disappeared, falling.
+
+The other two had been waiting to see if their colleague would take
+care of the problem. When they saw him fall thousands of meters, they
+attacked together. Mellie dived and then rolled her sedan, doing
+acrobatic maneuvers that she had learned at the Academy. She came up
+behind one of the scooters and rammed him hard enough to leave him
+hanging onto his bike with his hands while his legs flailed in midair.
+
+She was just congratulating herself when she looked up to see the
+third scooter right in front of her. The rider tried desperately to
+get out of her way but there wasn't enough time. She slammed into him
+and together they fell.
+
+Desperately Mellie threw the sedan into reverse and managed to
+disengage from the scooter. She pulled up hard on the stick, trying to
+come out of the dive. And she almost made it.
+
+==== Harlan: Thief, Resistance Operative ====
+
+Harlan had just hopped on his AirScooter when he heard the sound of
+the collision in the sky. He looked up. There were just a few sparks
+falling. He thought it looked like a sedan vs scooter accident and
+took off to see if he could help. He recognized Mellie's sedan as she
+pulled free of the scooter wreckage. His heart seemed to stop as the
+little sedan's nose was pulled up, away from the hard, hard ground. He
+reached for the com to call for help, but all they heard at the Green
+Palace was a scream as her sedan plowed into trees along the highway.
+
+He came down almost as fast as she had, his scooter skidding sideways
+and throwing up a wave of earth and grass. Running through the trees,
+he tripped and fell twice but barely noticed. He found the wreckage
+back in the woods. The vehicle was wrecked, steam pouring from the
+front. He saw a few flames. But he couldn't see Mellie. The protective
+bags covered all the windows. Then he saw a hand pawing at the window.
+It dropped to the door handle and the door cracked open about five
+inches. The bags were still in the way, but the hand shoved a crowbar
+at him. He had the door off in three minutes.
+
+Reaching through the bags, he felt her. He also felt blood. Cutting
+the seatbelt with his knife, he started to pull her out. But she
+resisted him briefly. She cried out as he removed her from the
+vehicle. Her face was covered with blood and she was cradling her
+right arm.
+
+He tried to stand but his knees gave out and he sank to the soft
+ground. Holding her gently, he wailed, great, heaving sobs that
+threatened to tear his chest apart. He tried to talk, to tell her that
+his heart would die if she did, but she hugged him, pointing out that
+there were flames coming from the front of the car and would he please
+take them somewhere else?
+
+He carried her to the road where Santorini, Behan, and most of the
+detective squad were just touching down. Mellie lifted her left hand
+and waved at them. Behan sagged against his sedan as he realized that
+she wasn't dead. Hanson and Biggers gently cleaned some of the blood
+off her face. Finding a scalp laceration, they packed it and then
+placed a splint on her arm.
+
+She accepted all these ministrations with good grace although she
+yelped a few times. By the time the emergency vehicle arrived, she was
+already bandaged. The emergency personnel scooped her up and headed
+for the hospital. They let Harlan ride with her because they realized
+he wasn't going to take no for an answer. Getting her out of his arms
+was hard enough.
+
+Mellie was the only one to notice that, while everyone recognized
+Harlan, no one made any attempt to restrain him. He was a thief, but
+he was also a legend. And Agalder had few legends. Its people tended
+to treat those legends with respect.
+
+==== Santorini: Boss of the Resistance ====
+
+Another of those legends watched the lights of the emergency vehicle
+disappear into the traffic lanes in the night sky. Santorini had put
+his head in his hands and cried when he saw that Mellie was alive. Now
+a couple of the detectives were eyeing him. They looked to Lt. Marks
+who shook his head. No messing with the legends tonight.
+
+Santorini kept his gaze on the sky, but he didn't miss the exchange.
+He smiled as he climbed back into his AirSedan and headed back to the
+Green Palace. Watching the lights of the traffic and the city, he was
+going over the plans for the next day. He needed to check with Behan
+to see when his partner intended to initiate the take-over of the
+police headquarters. His very last thought was how much he was looking
+forward to peace and prosperity for his planet.
+
+The missile hit his sedan just to the rear of the passenger door and
+exploded. Wreckage fell over a four square kilometer area.
+
+Harlan: Thief, Resistance Operative
+
+The fractures in Mellie's arm were multiple and involved both the
+forearm and the wrist. So Harlan was sitting outside the surgical
+suite when Jurgeson, one of Santorini's aides, came running up to him.
+
+He bent over with his hands on his knees, gasping for air. "They
+need...you. At the...Green Palace. Now."
+
+Harlan had stood up. Now he leaned closer to the runner. "Why? What's
+going on?"
+
+The man straightened up, putting a hand on the wall. Harlan saw that
+his eyes were red and swollen and tears were running down his cheeks.
+"Santorini's dead." he said, face screwing up like a little kid's.
+"Somebody brought him down with a missile."
+
+Harlan's gut felt like someone had hit him in the gut. He sat down,
+staring at nothing. Then he jumped up again. "Wait. No. I just saw
+him. He was fine."
+
+The other man nodded. "They got him when he was leaving the scene of
+Mellie's crash. Behan's car blew up, too, but he wasn't in it. It was
+still on the ground. They don't know yet whether it was another
+missile or a bomb."
+
+He took Harlan's arm, trying to drag him away. "Look. You've got to
+go. Now. I'll stay here with Mellie. I won't leave her side until you
+get back." He pushed Harlan toward the exit. "Now go!"
+
+"But why? Why do they need me so much?"
+
+The other man smiled sadly. "Because you're now the Boss of the
+Resistance."
+
+"Me?!"
+
+"Yeah. You. Santorini told us last week. With things coming to a head,
+he wanted the order of succession clear in everyone's mind. He even
+printed it out and signed it."
+
+Harlan shook his head. "But why me?" he asked.
+
+"Probably because you would ask that question. He said you'd feel
+unworthy of the position. You're not cocky." He hesitated and smiled
+slightly. "At least not most of the time."
+
+Harlan turned to stare at the door of the OR for a moment. Then he
+laid his hand on Jurgeson's shoulder. "You take care of her. They may
+come after her again. I'll send backup. Make arrangements to move her
+to the Palace as soon as possible."
+
+The Green Palace looked like a bee's hive that someone had just
+kicked. He walked in and saw all the red, weepy eyes and snotty noses.
+They were all talking at once. The noise was unbearable.
+
+He put two fingers in his mouth gave a piercing whistle. Everybody
+shut up and stared at him. "All right. We've lost the Boss. There will
+never be another like him. And nobody ever call me Boss." He looked
+down at his boots for a moment. "But I want to know what's going on
+now. Is anyone missing? Who's looking for the killers? And I want them
+brought in alive. Understand? Come on people. This is too important to
+stand around and cry. We've got work to do. Get me a sit-rep."
+
+He set up his office in an auditorium. A desk was placed in the middle
+and someone remembered to bring a chair. Computers and vid-screens
+covered 180 degrees of the walls. There were desks all around,
+climbing up to a viewing section at the top. Most of the desks were
+occupied with people speaking to faces on screens and to each other. A
+line formed in front of Harlan's desk. Most people had simple
+questions or suggestions, some of which were important.
+
+John Behan came up behind him and leaned down. He said "Mellie's doing
+fine. Drowsy and in no pain at the moment. Jurgeson and three others
+that I trust are with her."
+
+Harlan looked up. "How did she take the news about the Boss?"
+
+Behan shrugged. "She was so sleepy that I didn't tell her. I'll drop
+back later when she's awake. The staff knows to call me."
+
+He straightened up. "I'll be at APD Headquarters. It sounds like
+they're getting restive over there." Smiling slightly, he patted
+Harlan on the shoulder and left.
+
+It was several hours before Harlan could break away long enough to see
+Mellie. Behan was there, holding Mellie in his arms while she cried.
+Harlan felt a vast relief that he didn't have to tell her.
+
+She saw him and gave Behan a hug then held out her good arm to Harlan.
+Sitting on the bed, he put his arm around her carefully. His other
+hand reached out for Behan. Harlan looked at the older man and saw
+infinite weariness and sorrow in his eyes. Behan squeezed his hand and
+left and Harlan finally let his tears flow into Mellie's hair.
+
+==== Silver Santorini: Resistance Operative ====
+
+Murphy's surgeons had not let him out from under their gimlet eyes. So
+Silver treated him as if he were made of spun telucium and likely to
+break at any time. She made him stay in the hospital area. She knew
+exactly what would happen if she brought him home. He was just going
+to have to wait until the doctors were certain that he was healed.
+
+She was singing as she started out for her parents' suite. They all
+lived in the Green Palace. It was the safest and most defensible place
+outside of APD Headquarters. She wanted to talk to her father. When
+she got there, they told her that she would never be able to talk to
+her father again.
+
+Jade, Emerald, Silver, and Garnet were devastated. But they had to
+comfort their little sisters, Topaz and Golden. Their mother was in
+shock. She sat in a chair and stared at a hologram of her husband.
+
+When Harlan finally was able to visit them, he went to Santorini's
+wife, Lavender, and knelt beside her. Silver watched from across the
+room as her father's successor spoke in low tones to her mother. At
+first, nothing happened. Lavender remained almost catatonic. But
+Harlan kept talking and Lavender's head slowly turned to look at the
+young man. Once she even smiled. Then she began to weep, silently,
+covering her face with her hands. The daughters gathered, pushing
+Harlan out of the way. When they finally thought to look for him, he
+had left.
\ No newline at end of file
projects / universe.git / blobdiff