Connection (21 page)

Taylor, Wang, and Westin grabbed their documents and stormed out.

Frasier and Wadley turned to Robert. “Okay for a first round but realize that our adversaries don’t play fair. I expect anything but a settlement – possibly in the middle of the night. We have moved our families to secure locations and we are not going ‘home’ ‘til this is over. You feel secure where you are located?”

“I think we have it covered but the minute you think that is when you let down your guard. I appreciate the warning. We will try to beef up security.” Robert said as they walked out the door into the crowd of cameras and questions. They were inundated with Pyburn security escorting them and reporters converging on them. It took herculean efforts to make it out to their transport.

Twlise was upset and pacing back and forth.

“This isn’t how I imagined it,” she snapped at Robert. “Your people are insane. Some want me to have sex with them and some scream at me – ‘Alien – go home!’ I thought we were going to have some time to ourselves – these people with cameras always shouting my name – it unnerves me. I need some time by myself – some quiet and yet you tell me that these people may try to kill us even here,” she said. “I am going outside for a walk if that is okay.”

Robert motioned for a Pyburn security man to watch over her and he followed her out.

Robert paced back and forth a few minutes himself because he was upset too – he knew the paparazzi would upset her. Hell – they would upset anyone. She had turned down dozens of offers of modeling contracts because she wanted to be with him. Robert hoped he could calm her somehow and knew he had to go to her. He launched across the room and out the patio door. He knew something was wrong the minute he got outside – too quiet and no one visible. He heard a noise and turned toward it before the prongs from the taser embedded in his skin. He hit the ground hard.

                                                                          ****

Cassandra had been monitoring everything she could. She was monitoring the trial, all the communications near her, and anything that ‘felt’ interesting as her ‘grasp’ of her reach increased. She had noticed a large deal of equipment and men approaching her position as well as communications from the area around Robert’s estate.

The team leader of the mercenaries guarding the ship had his communications open on the emergency channel, “Fifty soldiers are approaching our position from Lone Butte Road and Farlin Street. Please delay them while I take off. The ones coming north on Lone Butte have antiaircraft missiles…I would appreciate you taking your men a bit south… out of my engine blast radius.”

“Is this Cassandra?” the team leader said. “They said you were smart…I had no idea.” The team leader alerted his people immediately and placed them about fifty meters out in positions that had some modicum of cover. “How much time do we have?” he asked.

“I estimate a little over five minutes…if you could spoil their aim I would appreciate it,” Cassandra said having heard the approaching teams get orders to ‘capture the ship and dispose of all the guards.’ “They have been given orders to capture me and dispose of your people. Just hold them until I’m airborne and then get away,” Cassandra said over the emergency frequency.

“We can do a sight better than that…good luck,” the mercenary leader said and informed his men. They were incensed by the orders that the attackers ‘were to dispose of his men’ and were going to give their attackers a proper welcome.

Cassandra had been prepping her engines and roared to full thrust and shot down the runway while scanning for traffic and communications. Luckily, the tower had shutdown at 2 am and no tower personnel were monitoring.

The assaulting team called off the ground attack. Cassandra heard them call in air and orbital support but knew they’d be ‘a day late and a dollar short’ – she liked that phrase. It seemed to take on substance in her – mind.

Cassandra knew she would reach orbit before anyone could respond but she had lost contact with Robert’s estate – that worried her. She still had a repeater trace on Twlise right now and the direction she was moving didn’t look good. Cassandra moved all of Robert’s liquid assets into shell accounts all over the globe. Robert’s companies in the northern hemisphere and Europe suddenly had their funds moved to the new, mobile offshore accounts. Methods to fund their payroll and daily operations were put in place and principals were contacted to facilitate these operations and keep the companies intact and afloat.

                                                                          ****

“What do you mean it took off? You must have had a leak. We got Kobe and the girl. The guards were a bit of a problem around the estate. We dug out his subcutaneous transceiver. He’ll just disappear and we’ll find out where he sent his ship. He’ll talk ‘cause we have his alien girlfriend,” said the man in the quasi-military uniform with no insignia of any type. “Then we need to shift Kobe’s assets – need to make it look like he took off on another of his jaunts. No one will look for him if we spread the rumor that he left for that other planet again. No – I don’t know about those other two aliens he’s got with him. What can they do? They don’t have access to anyone. Leave that to me. I’ve got his girl – she’s not even human. What do I care? Our laws concern humans. They’ll never find his body after he talks. You take care of those assets. Put your boy on them…call me from a clean phone when you transfer his money. I’ll have the number hand delivered to you tomorrow. I’ll take care of the girl. I want to see why the females are so different down there.”

Twlise knew something was wrong. She was traveling in a ground vehicle and she couldn’t move her hands. Her mouth tasted gritty and her side was sore under her left arm. Who were these strange men? The last thing she remembered was arguing with Robert and then going outside. Yes… that was it. She went outside, was furious for some reason, and then felt a sting on her left side. Who were these men? They hadn’t covered her mouth but she wanted to watch and feign unconsciousness for a bit to see who they were.

“Hey darlin’ – know you are awake. I want to see how you’re different from Earth women. I’m really curious,” the man said to Twlise and pointed to her crotch.

“Who are you? Why have you bound my arms? You do no want to see the difference to Earth women,” she said.

“Oh darlin’ – I do. I’m John. You’re going to get to know me real well. We’re going to be real close friends.”

“Robert will come for me. You will regret this…” she said.

“Robert was the one that hired me to do this to you…you see…he was tired of you…knew he couldn’t have any children by you and thought it was time to ‘share you out’ – that’s an old Earth custom when breaking up with someone. Welcome to Earth, Twlise Ertain Lastermon,” he said.

Twlise gasped. How did he know her full name? Robert had known her full name and she had said it to the judge but he hadn’t written it down. She was confused and scared for the first time feeling really abandoned and alone. How could Robert have done this? He was an alien but he hadn’t given any indication. She felt crushed. How could Robert have done this to her? What was she going to do? Why were they not getting out of the van? What were they waiting on? She had heard someone outside say, “Wait ‘til we’re ready,” over the ear mikes. Twlise had fantastic hearing.

                                                     ****

Cassandra could not ‘see’ Robert’s subcutaneous signal. Robert’s signal had been cutoff almost simultaneous with the assault. She could see Twlise’s signal for several minutes and tied into traffic cameras along the projected route. Cassandra was able to pick up the two vans traveling along the highway because it was so early in the morning. She surmised that Robert’s transceiver had been removed but they hadn’t discovered Twlise’s immediately. Cassandra had tapped into Twlise’s transceiver software and set it to ‘ping’ at a series of hours – never on the hour and at different times. She lost the signal upon reaching a higher orbit anyway and would have to swing to a lower orbit at those scheduled times and look for possible locations along the route. Meanwhile she would tap into communications and decrypt traffic video feeds looking for clues. She was sure there would be attempts to capture Robert’s recently moved monies and that would trigger further action.

                                                                    ****

Robert was groggy. He remembered stepping out of the estate home to see if Twlise was all right and then he’d been hit with a Taser dart. Damn his shoulder hurt and his ribs. He’d obviously been kicked a few times because he tasted blood and his ribs were killing him. They’d been professional to get through his guards and sensors. He assumed they’d gotten Twlise when they’d taken him. He looked around and realized he had a criminal court shock belt around his waist. Decrepit court officers used these things under a prisoner’s clothes so they could immobilize a dangerous plaintiff in a criminal trial. Press a button and trigger a paralyzing shock. Shit. He’d seen videos of these things and they were vicious. This was where the hero is supposed to escape and rescue the fair damsel. He looked around and saw two men watching him and a third driving. He couldn’t see out of the van but the road sounded like concrete and seemed fairly well maintained. His neck hurt and he couldn’t contact Cassandra so they must have cut out his subcutaneous transceiver.

He tried to tell what time it was but couldn’t see outside light, anyone’s Dex or hear anything other than road noise. The inside was illuminated with red LED light that wouldn’t hurt an operative’s night vision, but they could see him clearly. No one was saying anything and he didn’t hear a radio so there’d be no communications to connect. He road for what seemed like another hour before the van decelerated and pulled off (interstate?). They made several turns and Robert tried to remember rights – lefts and estimated duration after each.

The van stopped, the two inside guys paused, listened to communications, and then, not too gently, took him out of the van. They jerked him hard to make him walk and he said, “Take it easy.” They literally shocked the piss out of him and marched him into a building. His brief glance told him this was probably an abandoned airfield – he’d sure had experiences in a lot of those. He saw a van behind his but couldn’t see anyone in or around the other van. He did notice an inordinate number of small IR cameras on the outside and in the corridors. They threw him into a concrete block room with no windows, a sink, a prison-type toilet, and foam mattress on a concrete platform. They left his belt and waist shackle on. Light was from a single, shielded LED receptacle in the ceiling with no visible screws. The door was steel in a steel frame.

                                                                                  ****

Twlise had heard the van stop and there appeared to be another van because she heard a vehicle door open and close plus she heard a voice ahead of her. It said, “Take it easy.” Twlise felt a thrill because it was Robert’s voice and then she heard a grunt of pain. She could interpret sounds very well as part of her ability with languages. These men had captured Robert too and just said what they said to make her compliant and afraid. She took in a large breath of air. She had gotten over her weakness in this Earth gravity during the last month and felt relieved knowing Robert hadn’t betrayed her – if she had interpreted those sounds right. She hoped she had. Her hope hinged on that thread.

“Okay darlin’. We’re gonna go inside now and I want you to show me how you’re different down there,” he said pointing at her crotch.

“Are you as big down there as Robert was?” Twlise said nodding toward his crotch.

“Oh darlin’. I’m probably as big or bigger than Kobe…you work with me on this and I’ll get you
special
treatment. Keep me happy and it’ll go much easier for you,” said the large soldier.

“Oh my! Bigger…m-m-m-m-m. That sounds wonderful. Robert showed me how to do a lot of new things and we do things differently on my planet. We can do all kinds of things to show you my
differences
,” Twlise said. “He’s abandoned me. I have to make others like me. I can be your special girl. Women from my planet go with only one man even if others want them.”

A bald man guarding Twlise spoke up. “Look bitch. You’re going to do what we say – whenever we say. You will be
special
for every man on this detail. I’ll make sure of that. Shut your trap Case. This isn’t any way you’re going to get the only poontang within thirty miles. Matter of fact – I’m going to take her first. I’ll tell you about anything special she does. You get me Case.”

The man, Case, grumbled something but clinched his jaw. Obviously, the bald man was his superior.

Twlise looked at Case and then at the bald man but said nothing.

Twlise heard an “Okay – move,” from their communicators. One man opened the back doors on the van. The bald man held Twlise by the hair with one hand with his other hand holding the metal restraints on her wrists. The second man, Case, followed behind with a gun held low and ready. They hustled Twlise into a building so quickly she couldn’t see much of anything around her in the dim light. The air smelled different…mold and dust. She tried to remember the turns – only three before they came to a small room. One undid her hand restraints and shoved her hard into a featureless room.