Escape From Zulaire (3 page)

Glancing at Iraku, the officer’s lips tightened as if he bit back some hasty comment. Unabashedly eavesdropping, the Naranti servant remained by the open door. “Thank you, I think the lady and I can manage.”

Andi stifled a laugh. The gardener’s assistant had been right—the captain’s accent was pretty bad, soft on the consonants and missing the required prefixes.
His hypnotraining must have been a rush job.

Iraku stared at the outworlder, who glared back, jaw clenched, one hand resting on the butt of his blaster.
 

I never tried outright dismissal on the old dictator. Avoiding him sure doesn’t work.
Breaking the silence, Andi tried for a gracious note. “Thanks for escorting me, Iraku. Can you do me a favor and inform Lady Tonkiln I’ve returned to the house, since she was concerned?” Blinking at last, the servant bowed low. He left without another word but drew the door closed behind him in a leisurely fashion calculated to infuriate the impatient captain.

As Andi watched in disbelief, Deverane crossed to the door. Opening it a few inches, he checked to be sure Iraku hadn’t lingered within earshot, before shutting the door again.

Offering no explanation to Andi for the cautious maneuver, he gestured toward the overstuffed chairs grouped in front of the fireplace. “Would you like to sit?”

“No, thank you, I want to know what’s going
on.
” She took a deep breath, trying to calm her frayed nerves.
Is all this mystery necessary?

“Captain Tom Deverane, Sectors Special Forces.” He walked to the chairs himself. To be polite,
 
she joined him, shaking his proffered hand before seating herself. “Excuse my dust,” he said. “But I’ve been in the Western Plains and the Abujan mountain range for quite some time now.”

“Why don’t you try telling me something relevant about why you’re here?” Many a slow-moving clerk at the Loxton offices had jumped at that peremptory tone from her.
 

“I forget you’ve been out of the loop.” Sitting down, Deverane leaned forward, putting his hands on his knees and taking a deep breath. “Two days ago I got urgent orders, relayed from Sector Command, diverting me from my primary mission. The new priority was to come five hundred miles out of our way to extract you for a safe return to the capital city.” From the dry tone in his voice, Andi guessed how little he’d appreciated the change. “Now, if you could get your things together, I’d like to be on our way before dark.”

She blinked.
Today? He wants me to leave now?
Andi shifted back into the chair’s embrace, crossing her legs. “Get my things—what are you talking about? I’m the guest of Lord Tonkiln’s family, and I’m expected to present a significant gift from Loxton at the reception tonight with due ceremony. I can’t ride off with you on literally a moment’s notice without some compelling reason. Why is your Command issuing orders concerning me anyway?”
 

The captain got up in one smooth motion, like a great cat uncurling, paced to the fireplace and back, then half sat on the edge of a sturdy table.
I bet he’s a person in constant motion—discussing anything in patient detail doesn’t appear to be his style
.
Well, I’m not one of his soldiers and I don’t take orders from him, so he’d better explain himself
.

“Miss Markriss—”

“Call me Andi.”
And let’s get this discussion on a less military, more personal level so you stop trying to give me orders.

The quick, meaningless smile crossed his handsome face again, never reaching his eyes. “
Andi
. In case you haven’t heard, this entire planet is about to be embroiled in a devastating Clan war.”

Andi didn’t hesitate. “Ridiculous. The Obati and the Shenti have been at peace for four hundred years. Everyone has been satisfied with the status quo for four centuries. How long did you say you’ve been on Zulaire, Captain?” She raised her eyebrows, drumming her fingers on the arm of the chair. “You’ve been here—what? Two weeks?”
 

He drew himself up to his full height, probably a foot taller than she, hands clasped tight behind his back, and glared at her. “I’ve been here long enough to see that this place is approaching critical mass, which apparently escapes
your
scanners. You’re the only offworlder on Zulaire right now who isn’t military, diplomatic, or mining personnel. And all of
them
are either safe in the capital or behind the defenses of the West Vialtin mine.
Except you
.” His index finger stabbed the air in her direction. “Along with my men and me. I intend to correct that situation in short order. Now, if you will
please
get your things—”

This is ridiculous.
Not intimidated but curious, Andi shook her head. “We would have
heard
something out here. My office would have gotten in touch with me.”
 

Deverane walked closer, leaned on the table. “Have you received any communications from the office, or anyone since you came out here?”

“No, but it’s the summer slow period. Even the Loxton office is all but closed.” She gave him a challenging glare. “Look, on the basis of what you’ve said so far, I don’t appear to need rescuing. You still haven’t told me anything to justify leaving tonight, missing the reception, insulting my hosts, and driving back to the capital like a
prisoner.
” Wishing the deep upholstery didn’t make rising such an ungraceful process, Andi left the chair.

“You aren’t getting the picture.” Jaw clenched, he took a few steps to stand next to her. The glare from his green eyes was scorching, and Andi recoiled from the intensity. Apparently taking note of her unease, the captain gentled his voice. “Though why that should surprise me, I don’t know, considering the warnings Lord Tonkiln and the other members of the Council have ignored.”

“Warnings?” Andi took a step back, crossing her arms over her chest.
 

“To get their families the hell out of this isolated, indefensible spot and into safety at the capital.” Deverane took a deep breath. He walked over to stare at the carvings on the mantel. Andi got the impression from the rigid set of his broad shoulders he was trying to control his temper. After a minute, he came to sit near her again. “I was told your boss made numerous attempts to get in touch with you, right until the moment he and the rest of the Loxton staff took a ship offworld.”

“Dave left Zulaire? They’ve all gone?” Now Andi fell back into the chair, raising a small puff of dust from the plush cushion beneath her. A wave of nausea rippling through her gut, she ran a hand through her hair, looping the tendrils behind her ear. “I don’t understand any of this. Why would my boss and my co-workers leave without me? Why wouldn’t the Tonkilns tell me? You’re still not making sense.”

Deverane came to hunker down in front of her chair, caging her with his arms, invading her personal space. Inhaling sharply, she caught a whiff of musk and forest and man, threaded with some delicious spicy note. She glanced down at his hands, strong, capable, locked on the chair close to her body. As if to calm an upset child, his voice was soothing and low. “Relax. We can get you offplanet in a military transport once you’re safely in the capital.”

She lifted her head, gazing straight into his eyes. Half-formed thoughts chased each other in her mind. The longer he talked, the more nervous she got, but it was still all too much to take in. Loxton only pulled staff offworld in the most serious situations.
I haven’t heard a whiff of trouble. Dave wouldn’t have left me behind. Would he?

Deverane touched her arm lightly. “There have been incidents all summer. People disappearing, vehicles abandoned on the transportway with no sign of the occupants. There have even been some small-scale massacres in isolated villages, both Obati and Shenti. The violence keeps escalating.
 
Command thinks a full-blown war is only a breath away, waiting for some convenient incident to touch it off. Lord Tonkiln and the others have chosen to keep things quiet, leaving their families at risk out here in order to demonstrate their belief in their own supremacy. Putting on a pretense of things going along as usual. Or else they refuse to see what’s coming.
Civilians
.”

He might as well have said
idiots.
 

Deverane frowned at her, three deep wrinkles marring the strong sweep of his forehead. “Are you prepared to take the same risk?”

He’s invading my personal space, damn it. I don’t intimidate that easily, pal.
She pushed at his rock-hard shoulders. Standing, he moved away a pace or two, still keeping his eyes locked on her. Licking her lips, Andi smoothed down her silky skirt. “You’re insinuating my hosts have deceived me and deliberately put me in harm’s way? I find that insulting.”

Eyes closed, he pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re a pawn to them.” Now he reopened his eyes and flung his arms out, hands wide open. “You mean nothing to them. If you’re going to refuse my offer of evacuation, then you’d better be ready to take care of yourself, because I guarantee you the Obati won’t.”

“Give me some specifics to back up your claims, Captain,” Andi said. “So far I only have your word there’s a problem. No insult intended.”

He nodded. “All right,” he said, his voice crisp. “Fair enough. One of your own Loxton agents was murdered in the southern region, along with all his Shenti guides and workers. The cargo wasn’t even stolen, just left to rot in the haulers. I’m told that was the incident that spooked your boss to close the office and leave the planet.”

“One of the Loxton crew? Who?” As deputy agent, she knew and worked with all of the Loxton staff. Mentally reviewing who might have been in transit, seeing the faces of men and women who were her friends as well as co-workers, Andi felt a wave of nausea.“Someone named Kane. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you all this.”

She felt as if he’d thrown ice water in her face. Kane was one of her favorite crew chiefs on Zulaire, always laughing, even while he ran a highly organized local operation.
Massacred?
Andi’s thoughts were racing and she began to tremble. She swallowed the bile in her throat and said, “When did this happen?”

“Two weeks ago.”

“And no one thought I needed to know? No one saw fit to tell me?” Her voice rose as she got angrier.

“I told you, the Obati were keeping you in the dark, blocking your company’s attempts to communicate with you out here,” Deverane said. “I know it’s a lot to take in.”

She shook her head. “Why would the Obati keep information from me?”

Deverane shrugged. “Maybe it’s good propaganda to have the Loxton deputy agent still on Zulaire, still at the social event of the summer. Signals things aren’t as out of control as people might think.”

“Using me?” The idea revolted her.

He nodded. “There have been other incidents, although the slaughter of Kane’s caravan was the worst. The victims have primarily been Sectors citizens associated with either Obati or Shenti interests in some way. As a guest of the Tonkilns, you fit that profile.”

“But if this is a Shenti attempt to take over rule of Zulaire, why did they kill Kane? He was honorary Shenti. It doesn’t make sense.” Andi’s stomach was in knots, vertigo making her senses swirl.
A tragedy beyond anything I could have imagined
.
 

“Someone commits a crime, someone else takes revenge and the innocents get caught in the middle, because of who they are, who they were with, who they know. Sometimes being in the wrong spot at the wrong time gets a person killed,” Deverane said, his tone gentle. “I don’t want it to happen to you.”
 

A vision of the atrocity committed on her friend battered Andi.
What would I do if I got caught in a similar situation? I didn’t even bring my personal blaster.

She stood, resting her hand on Deverane’s arm for a moment. “I’ll go back to the capital with you in the morning. And…thank you.”

“
In the
—” He glared at her, eyebrows drawing together in an impressive frown, forehead wrinkles deepening even more. “Have you been listening, Miss Markriss? This planet is in a precarious state. We can’t wait for your convenience. We need to leave tonight. The sooner the better.”

Andi walked to the door. “I don’t think we
can
leave tonight, Captain, no matter what you want.”

The door handle moved under her hand. Startled, she released it, falling back a pace or two. When the door opened, Iraku stood there, condescending as ever, face contorted in a sneer, lips pursed in disapproval. Hands on their curved belt knives, two of the armed household guards stood a few steps away. Startled by their hostile expressions, Andi retreated a step.
 

Addrerssing her but staring at Deverane, Iraku asked, “Is there a problem, miss? Lady Tonkiln wishes to speak with you regarding the presentation at tonight’s ceremony.”
 

Andi shook her head. “No problem, I’ll be right there.” She turned to Deverane, holding out one hand, palm up. “Better ask your sergeant what’s wrong with the APC’s engine.”

“What are you talking about?” Deverane strode to her side.
 

“He told me there was an engine problem. The corporal said it was going to take all night to fix. Listen, assuming your men can’t repair the APC tonight, I’ll go to the reception, do my duty for Loxton, and leave with you in the morning. No problem.”