Slave World 2 - The Ties That Bind (23 page)

“You’re playing with fire, messing around with Snake. You know that, right?

“Who said I’m messing around? Look, Sandy’s not that bad; she’s just misunderstood is all, and age has nothing to do with it. She’s a decent kid despite what everyone thinks about her.”

Burke’s smile turned into a wide, toothy grin, he knew his friend well enough to know that he liked the small, ex-marine much more than he let on. And if that was the case… Now he understood why Snake was going nowhere, anytime soon. Wroth could eventually talk a devout nun out of her panties and into bed if inclined to do so.

“She’s liable to cut your balls off if you go screwing around on her like the others.”

“Hey, my balls aren’t going anywhere in the near future, thank you very much.”

Wroth’s laughter seemed a bit more strained this time.

“I’m serious, Jimmy. I’ve seen her psych eval and she isn’t one to forgive and forget very easily. You better be sure about this before getting too serious with her.”

“I know exactly what I’m doing, there’s a side to her that people don’t know about and I like it. Yeah, you caught me; I like her and have no plans of messing this one up, trust me. Besides, we get along like Mutt and Jeff, can’t you tell?”

“Right, like how could I fail to see that.”

“I’m serious! How many other girls do you know that have a mouth as foul as mine and don’t break down babbling like a baby the moment the shit hits the fan? Sandy is about as rock solid as they come, tough as nails, and she has a good head on her shoulders.”

“You have a point; I may not like her and I know the feeling is mutual, but I can’t think of another person I’d rather have at my side in a firefight, than her.”

“There you go, I rest my case. But enough of this girl talk, so what’s the plan, why are we going to Paradise Falls? There’s nothing there but a bunch of retired old rich fuckers.”

“All my gear was on the shuttle and its gone now, everything for the original mission is history. I don’t imagine you or Snake have a full combat load on hand, do you?”

“No, just personal side arms and tech gear for me. I know Sandy has her stuff, but no heavy weapons or special equipment. Why?”

“That’s why where going there, I have a condo that I use on occasion and keep it stocked in case of emergencies.”

“Remember that Fleet is still looking for you. They think it was you on the shuttle and they’re pissed as hell about what happened back on Tallin. Whatever you’re planning, it better be low profile.”

“Have a little faith, my friend; when have I ever done anything to draw unwanted attention to myself?”

“Well, that settles it,” Wroth groaned. “We’re fucked for sure, and prison orange has never been my color.”

“I don’t think I feel like being arrested any time in the near future, Jimmy. Don’t worry, the condo is listed as property under Burke Industries and supposedly used for business client entertainment. We’ll be going in on a private landing grid and I have an authorization code that allows me unrestricted travel if need be. Don’t worry; we’ll be bypassing immigrations all together.”

Burke stood, wincing as he did so when the wound in his side reopened. He dropped his smoldering cigarette in Wroth’s half-full coffee cup with a hiss, followed by a scowl from his friend.

Wroth stared into his cup of ash-laden coffee with a butt floating in the middle of it, pushing it away.

“Damn heathen, that’s sacrilege.”

“Just doing you a favor- I remember how it makes you piss. You always did have an overactive bladder.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“I’m going to grab some sleep. Wake me when we hit the jump point, I have a call to make.”

“Calling in the cavalry?”

“No, someone much more powerful; my brother, Don.”

***

Sandy was gone now, replaced by Snake, and Snake had learned long ago how to move without being heard and in some cases seen, even by sensitive surveillance gear. With the Colonel still fully augment she treated her covert eavesdropping mission no different than infiltrating an enemy perimeter – silent and deadly, with the grace of a cat stalking its kill. It was a skill she’d perfected under the most extreme situations and when it mattered the most, when her life depended on it.

She reentered the cockpit and eased back into her seat moments before Burke stepped into the corridor, then into the small cabin that held the shuttle’s only bunks, closing the door behind him. Soon after, she heard James’ footfall heading for the shower, followed by the sound of running water and muffled, yet obnoxious singing.

“I’m thirty three, if anyone cares,” she said softly to the silence of open space.

When she first heard them talking, it reminded her of the way it was before, they all thought she was a crazy, coldhearted bitch. Burke still hinted at it to this day. No one had ever had balls to say it to her face, because it meant a one way trip to the infirmary. Maybe the Colonel did, he had a set of brass balls; she’d give him that much despite her personal feelings towards his family. Well… James did too, she mused with a faint smile, but it was only because he was crazy.

Sandy was glad now that she hadn’t burst into the middle of their conversation as originally planned. The way James had spoken about her, defending her in front of Burke, had made her stomach explode with giddy butterflies. Despite his reputation with women, and her initial fears that he was just adding one more notch in his long belt of women that he’d screwed over the years, James actually liked her. It was such a relief to know that she’d been wrong about him.

Maybe Burke was right, though, her entire life had been an emotionless mask up until a few hours ago, like a buffer of indifferent hostility between her and the rest of the world. Maybe at first it had been honest rage and hate directed at the Federation machine and the aristocracy that dominated it, but that persona had served its purpose and run its course. Maybe it was time to start thinking of giving it up, there was really no reason for it any longer, with James entering the picture.

Sandy leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes with a wide smile, simple joy was a pale word to describe their time together. He made her laugh; he made her feel like a woman again, but more importantly he made her feel good in so many ways after years of not feeling anything at all. So what if he’s old? He’s probably well over a hundred, if not more, if he’s had two rejuvs. She would give him the time needed until he was ready to come forward confessing his secret, and maybe one day she would confess her dark past in turn. Maybe… The more she thought about it, it really didn’t matter one way or another if he ever did, all that mattered was the here and now, and possibly the future.

With a fresh outlook on life, Sandy sprang from her seat and headed down the corridor towards the shower, stripping as she went with a trail of clothes spreading out behind her. Who cares if Burke knew they were sleeping together? It was time for Sandy to start living again, and let Snake’s painful and brutal past fall to the wayside where it belonged.

Silent as a ghost, she entered the small shower cubicle, watching James wash and bellow away with some incomprehensible excuse for a song. He turned suddenly and jumped, obviously startled.

“Damn, girl, what are you trying to do, give me a heart attack?”

“You sing like shit; I just wanted to make sure whatever poor animal was being slaughtered in here, had a fighting chance. Mind if I join you?” The soft, unsure tone of her closing question still sounded strange in her ears.

“I can always make room for a pretty girl to bump cheeks with.”

“Yeah, me too… I mean, not a girl but… I can always make room for you, too.”

“I knew what you meant,” he grinned stepping to the side. “C’mon in. Watch yourself; the water’s a bit hot.”

Sandy eased into place in front of him, gliding across his slick, naked body. The swelling firmness of his cock pressed warmly into her stomach, and she went to her tiptoes, looping her arms around his neck, whispering in his mouth.

“Works for me, hot is the only way I like it from now on.”

James’ soapy hands slid comfortably across her hips and up her back, pulling her tighter against him

“Me too, Sandy, me too.”

Chapter Eleven

Interlude

The Tower, Perdition.

Penthouse Suite.

The sky was shrouded in a hazy gloom of perpetual dusk, dancing with erratic flashes of static electricity, as the floating orbs of spacecraft went about their hectic business on a world dedicated to fueling the appetite of humanity’s needs. A dark megalith known simply as The Tower stood at the epicenter; the largest inhabited structure ever built by man.

Donovan Burke gazed down from heaven through an automatic tinting window at the sprawling metropolis below, the undisputed master of a two billion citizen industrial machine of his own creation. There were nearly 50,000 employed in this building alone, and it was but a fraction of his total power laid out on display. He bought and sold worlds, corporations, and even something as commonplace as human beings on a daily basis, with the same indifference that another person might change their clothing. For a man like Donovan it was an insatiable hunger for more power and wealth, never sated. Enough was enough, until there was nothing else to acquire and control. It wouldn’t be long before his nomination to the Federation Council was ratified, and after that...

He flexed his aging hand into an iron fist, smiling. Even death would be a dream once he was inducted into the ranks of the Immortals. Nothing would be beyond his grasp then, and with his direct influence and unhindered economic backing, the Federation would enter a golden age of prosperity unheard of since the Renaissance Period or Information Age of the 21
st
century.

A ray of sun peeked through the clouds, an alien thing to those going about their meager existence 5000 meters below, illuminating Donovan’s office in warm hue of orange and red, matching his current mood. Bad PR and unwanted attention was the last thing he needed at the moment, and that was exactly what Nathan had dumped in his lap. It had always been that way with him, though, make a mess regardless of the consequences and walk away, leaving it for others to clean it up. Every minor detail was an emergency to Nathan, and he thought the world revolved around him. I want… I need… Well, he could sit and wait on hold until the end of time for all Donovan cared, while he contemplated the most prudent solution for dealing with the unexpected turn of events that he’d soiled the Burke reputation with.

“Nathan,” he scowled bitterly, reaching for his centuries old scotch on the rocks on a nearby end table. He was too kindhearted, too gullible, and too soft… He had always been their pampered, little baby. And to think, father had wanted him to sit at the head of his Burke Industries instead of Donovan, even after he’d run away to play soldier like an abstinent child acting out. Nathan had never taken a serious interest in the family business, unlike Donovan, he’d dedicated himself to it as was his birthright dictated, honing his mind for a single purpose. Morality in the world of mega-corporations is nothing more than a stifling dream that hampers growth, and Nathan would have ruined Burke Industries in a matter of decades with that kind of an attitude. He would have ruined everything that Donovan had worked his entire life to one day have, and that couldn’t be allowed to happen, ever.

Some well-laid plans took only hours, while others took years of patient waiting to bear fruit. The untimely death of his parents fell into the latter category, and had closed the book on who would sit at the head of Burke Industries once and for all. It was a shame it had to come to that; Donovan had truly loved them in his foolhardy youth, but they had turned their back on him first, and regret was just as foreign to him now as the concept of mercy.

The notion that Nathan was now a wanted criminal if all the recent press was to be believed, which he didn’t for a moment, would in essence remove him from the equation once again. It was a partial solution to an escalating problem brewing back at the Ranch; the Landowners were in an uproar and calling for immediate action on his part, but the worst of it was that Donna had finally regained her memory.

All Michael had to do was sit back and collect his money, maintaining the status quo at the Ranch and keep Donna sedated and out of the picture with Nathan looking after her. It was a perfect and well-calculated ending to all his problems in one neat little package. The fool couldn’t even do that much, involving her in his fledging pornography empire while inciting a slave rebellion in the process. What’s more, is he had upset Ashley, and set her pet project back by nearly a year. Michael had gotten what he deserved in the end, and good riddance to incompetent trash.

A moment of honest remorse, something he hadn’t felt in some time, flickered briefly through his mind. Donna could have been a part of it all, but instead she’d thrown her lot in with their parents, Nathan, and ethical
naïveté
. The doctors had initially said that they expected a full recovery on her part in a matter of months after the ‘accident’ and now years later it looked like it had finally happened. Her two most recent calls had been troubling to say the least.

Things would have been so much easier if she’d been killed outright, another loose end tied and forgotten. She was far too dangerous and knew too much, things that would destroy his personal and professional reputation if they came to light. That couldn’t be allowed to happen, no matter what the last shreds of his humanity demanded. Old plans needed to be altered now and new precautionary measures taken on all fronts. The time for callous decisions and drastic measures on his part was rapidly approaching.