V06 - Prisoners and Pawns Read online

  "No—maybe thirty minutes. Well, I know you're in a hurry, and I'd better not waste time. Lydia thinks I'm checking out some important strategic power facilities to see if her insane invasion plan can actually be implemented."

  "Your friend Zachary said it was an invasion plan, but he didn't tell us any specifics," Tyler probed.

  "That's why I'm here," Barry said. He reached into his pocket and took out the holo-reader and one of the small information cassettes, than handed them to Donovan. "This is my report—I want you both to see it now, in case you have any questions. It's complicated, so we may not have much time to stop Lydia if she decides to go through with this."

  "I thought you always said Lydia was more stable than Diana," Donovan snapped. "What the hell is she doing cooking up invasions?"

  The Visitor shrugged. "Lydia's been under a lot of pressure—a lot of it added by your removal of her important prisoners. No, Diana was not at all pleased about that."

  "Gee, we're sorry," Tyler said sarcastically. "Tell them both to get the hell off our planet and we won't put any more pressure on the poor ladies. We wouldn't want them to get gray hairs over us troublesome humans. Oops, I forgot, you lizards don't have hair, do you?"

  "All right, let's get down to business here," Donovan said, leading Ham and Barry to some large rocks in the mine's entrance. They sat down and Donovan slipped the cassette into the reader device.

  Chapter 9

  "Willie, I need your opinion," Julie said quietly. She took the Visitor by the arm and guided him away from the rest of the group still awaiting the arrival of the cargo ship. The marina was deserted except for the resistance team, and Kyle and Elias continued taking turns with the binoculars, scanning the Pacific horizon for any signs of the weapons shipment.

  "About what, Julie?"

  She looked into Willie's eyes, and it occurred to her, not for the first time, that this being from a world almost nine light-years from Earth was probably the most trustworthy creature she'd ever met. He could always be counted on to answer any questions honestly, no matter what the consequences, and his loyalty was unswerving. So was his affection for the humans who'd taken him in and treated him as one of the family. "It's about Elizabeth—about her ability to see the future."

  "Ahh," he said, nodding gravely. "You want to know if her ability is reliable or just a—a splash in the pan?" He looked triumphant, believing he'd mastered another colloquialism.

  Julie smiled gently. It was so hard to correct him, knowing how hurt he would look. "That's flash in the pan, Willie."

  His shoulders slumped.

  "But you were very close," Julie added encouragingly.

  "It doesn't matter," he sighed. "You did not take me aside to give me a linguistics lesson. What concerns you about Elizabeth?"

  "Is it common for your people to have the mental powers she seems to have?"

  Willie thought for a moment. "Common? No. But it's not impossible. We've already seen that she knows things our Masters of the Preta-na-ma religion knew long ago. She's somehow learned these things by herself, since no one could have taught her."

  "Or maybe she was born knowing them."

  "How could that be?"

  "We don't really know how much of Elizabeth's conception was natural and how much of it was controlled by Diana. Once she engineered the fertilization and implant of the embryo in Robin, she may have somehow conditioned Elizabeth prenatally."

  "How?" Willie's face reflected a mixture of revulsion and curiosity.

  "Well—" Julie searched for a way to explain it that would make sense to the alien, who had little medical training or knowledge of biology. "I haven't had any direct experience myself, but I've read about theories and even experiments on pregnant women and their fetuses. They're exposed to outside stimuli to see if unborn children are aware of their environment."

  "Are they?"

  "The research is really just beginning, so it's hard to say. But your science is advanced enough beyond ours that Diana may know of definite ways to influence the fetus at a very early stage. And don't forget she had Elizabeth with her for a while after she was born."

  Willie was clearly troubled. "That seems wrong, to make a child anything it was not supposed to be."

  "You're worried about Elizabeth, aren't you?" Julie said, touching Willie's arm reassuringly.

  He nodded. "She's had so many terrible things happen to her in her short life—the deck has been cracked against her."

  With a half smile, Julie let that one pass. "I don't think

  Diana would've done anything to hurt Elizabeth, anything that would turn out negative later on. I mean, she went to a lot of trouble to create a child that would be a cross between our species. I think she planned on this being some sort of grand experiment."

  "But Diana isn't good, Julie. I fear she may have had some very twisted motives when she did these experiments."

  Julie nodded. "Maybe. But I think we'd have seen some evidence of that by now. I really don't think Elizabeth is a time bomb. In fact, I think she's one of the few positive things Diana's done. That's why Diana wants her back so badly."

  "I guess you're right."

  "Back to what I was asking about—do you think she can really see the future?"

  "It's very possible, Julie. Why? Has she told you something she thinks will happen?"

  "Mm-hm. And I need to decide if her warnings are worth a change of plan."

  They heard shouts from the dockside and turned to see Kyle waving. "Hey, they're out there!"

  Julie squinted, then saw a ship coming toward them, appearing just around the spit of land that protected the harbor. Elizabeth ran up to her, nearly bowling her over. The girl's face was tear streaked.

  "Julie, I saw it again. Please, please don't go to the ship!"

  Julie held Elizabeth at arm's length for a moment, then drew her into a hug. "Okay, Elizabeth, I won't go. I don't know how you know, but you know something—and that's good enough for me.

  "Elias, you're in charge," Julie said as she, Willie, and Elizabeth rejoined the rest of the resistance members preparing to sail out to the cargo vessel once it dropped anchor.

  "Hey, man, thanks a heap," Elias said sarcastically. "What do I look like, Long John Silver?"

  "Did he own a restaurant too?" Julie asked innocently.

  "Very funny."

  "Hey, Julie," Kyle called from one of the tracks. "The ship's calling us. They want to talk to the person in charge."

  Julie and Elias turned in choreographic unison, then stopped in place.

  "Hey, I thought you said I was in charge," Elias protested.

  "On the high seas, Elias." She climbed up into the truck cab, and Kyle handed the transmitter microphone to her. "Rendezvous One, this is Rendezvous Two. We read you."

  A crackle of static spat from the dashboard speaker "Roger, we copy. We don't have a motor launch on board— hadda leave port in a hurry. Hope you don't mind the inconvenience of coming out to us."

  Julie glanced at Kyle and Elias, her mouth curled in annoyance. "Nope," she lied. "No problem at all. Have you dropped anchor?"

  "Roger on that, Rendezvous Two. We're ready for you."

  Julie put the mike back on its dashboard hook and climbed down from the truck. Kyle and Elias stood in front of her

  "Okay, gentlemen, it's your show now," she said.

  They moved quickly to the dock, where Kyle had already made sure the fifteen-foot launch was ready. He climbed down first, holding the boat steady for Elias, who gingerly let his toe touch the aluminum floor of the boat, then only very reluctantly let go of the dock piling. He stood in the center of the launch, swaying unsteadily.

  "I'm gettin' seasick already," he called out plaintively to anyone who would listen.

  "Oh, you're a big baby," Julie shouted down at him.

  "If you don't sit down, you're going to be a big wet baby," Kyle snapped, grabbing Elias' hand and yanking him down on the middle bench seat. "Hold on, man."

&
nbsp; Elias made a sour face. "What's this 'hold on' stuff? Give me a little credit, man."

  "Suit yourself," Kyle said. He reached around, started the engine, and accelerated quickly away from the dock.

  The nose of the boat lifted out of the water; and Elias promptly toppled over backward.

  Julie and the others couldn't help laughing as they watched Elias rolling around, clamping his hands onto the gunwales in a vain effort to regain his balance, and his dignity.

  Kyle steered the launch to the cargo ship as it lay in the middle of the harbor; rolling gently with the waves lapping at its sides. The Mary Beeme had seen better days. Rusty patches showed through her dark blue paint and her hull was scarred and dented from a lifetime of run-ins with tugboats, barges, and docks. As Julie watched through binoculars, Elizabeth clinging to her side, she knew that this old freighter carried the means to carry on the resistance. Funny, she thought, / spent my life going to school to learn to save lives and here 1 am anxiously waiting for guns and ammo to kill people with.

  She gave herself a mental shake. No, they're not people, kiddo, and they'd sure as hell kill you and your friends, given half a chance.

  As she observed, the launch reached the Mary Beeme and Kyle tied up alongside. Elias stood, staggered, and the younger man helped him grasp the ladder hanging over the freighter's rail. The black man climbed slowly up her side like a squirrel on a trellis—a very cautious squirrel. Then Kyle went up, hopped over the railing, and he and Elias were met by two of Mary Beeme's crew. They led the resistance fighters through a hatchway and then they were all gone from Julie's sight.

  While Kyle kept his eyes on the two men bracketing him and Elias as they walked quickly through a corridor, Elias sneaked glances at the ship itself. She was a sorry old bucket, with paint peeling and the smell of dank, rotting wood throughout, tempered with a strong undercurrent of mildew. Her cabins leaked, no doubt about it, and no one had cared enough to caulk and seal her

  But the men didn't look as if they matched old Mary Beeme. They didn't look like merchant seamen—their hair was too neatly combed, blue jeans and work shirts too new with no grease spots or sweat stains, faces clean shaven, not stubbly like those of sailors who'd been steaming up in a hurry from Central America for the past few days and nights.

  Silently, Kyle and Elias each hoped the other noticed the things he was seeing, wished they could talk and compare notes, and hoped like hell they weren't walking into some sort of trap. The sailors weren't Visitors—they didn't have the reverberating voices the aliens couldn't really hide—but who were they?

  The answer came when they went up a laddei; through another narrow passageway, and emerged on the bridge. There was a single man waiting in the control room. His back was to them, and he wore a red windbreaker emblazoned with the logo of Science Frontiers.

  Nathan Bates turned to face his son and Elias Taylor. Both of them stood still, unable to move or speak for several seconds. Kyle Bates found his voice first.

  "You son of a bitch," he hissed.

  The elder Bates managed a sardonic grin. "No way to talk to your father, Kyle."

  "You bastard," the young man continued.

  Bates interrupted him. "If you're going to go through the whole book of words you can't say on television, I'm going to have my assistants remove you." He glanced at the stocky Bates security guards, who remained posted at the door.

  "Be cool, man," Elias said to his companion. "No trouble yet. Let the man tell us what he wants."

  "I want you and the other resistance fighters to stop your sabotage and attacks against the Visitors and against my company in Los Angeles."

  Elias leaned back and eased himself onto a stool near an instrument console. "As long as we're taking requests, how about 'Old Man River' played on water glasses at Club Creole every time you come in, hmmm?"

  "I'm not joking, Mr. Taylor I'm serious. And what's more important, Diana is deadly serious—serious enough to threaten to blow L.A. off the globe if something's not done to stop the hostilities under my jurisdiction."

  "Your jurisdiction," Elias said, clucking his tongue. "That's what it's all about, isn't it, Bates? Your little kingdom's in the coals, man, and you're worried about it burnin' up."

  Bates spread his hands, a gesture of admission. "You're a smart man, Mr. Taylor Or can 1 call you Elias?"

  "Sure, man, whatever you want." Elias jerked a thumb at the guards. "King Kong and Mighty Joe Young'll see to that, huh?"

  "They won't touch you. They're just a—precaution, in case you'd decided not to be civilized while we discuss our mutual predicament."

  "There's nothing mutual about it," Kyle said sullenly

  "Oh, but there is, Kyle, there is. Always has been. You and your friends haven't ever realized that, which is really a shame, because we're all on the same side."

  Kyle allowed himself an incredulous laugh. "You're full of crap—Dad." The last word was sarcastic.

  Bates settled into the captain's swivel chair and folded his arms. Kyle cut him off just as he was about to speak.

  "Oh, we're about to get lectured by the great Nathan Bates, Elias. 1 saw that pose at least twice a week the whole time 1 was growing up."

  "Obviously, it didn't have any effect on you, Kyle," Bates said. "Let's see if Elias has any more sense than you. It's really very simple. My deal with Diana was to accomplish one thing and one. thing alone—stop the war here before there was nothing left. With Science Frontiers' people and resources, we'll find a way to beat the Visitors once and for all. But we can't do that if we've already been blown to kingdom come."

  Elias folded his own arms to mirror Bates's posture. "And if along the way you get even richer and more powerful than you were before, that's no skin off anyone's nose, right?"

  "I notice you weren't above finding a little personal gain in your own fame after the first Visitor invasion," Bates said with a smile.

  Elias returned the smile. "What I got I earned—after the wai; in peacetime, without using anybody else as pawns in my own power game. If we don't do what you want, agree right here and now, are me and Kyle gonna disappear just like all your other enemies?"

  Bates laughed mirthlessly. "Starting to believe your own propaganda, eh, Mr. Taylor? Bates the demon? Bates the traitor? Well, whether you care to admit it or not, I am on your side. We want the same things—peace, safety, getting rid of the Visitors. To prove it, I'm going to let you go."

  "Gee, thanks, Dad," Kyle said.

  Bates ignored his son's comment. "Do things my way, we'll all win in the end. But keep up this underground rebellion and we'll all die. I can almost guarantee it. That would be a waste, wouldn't it? Go back to your restaurant, Elias. I like the place—I'd hate to see it reduced to radioactive cinders, wouldn't you?"

  Bates nodded to the guards, who moved in to escort Elias and Kyle back to their boat. Elias stopped at the door.

  "Oh, uh, Nat, I don't suppose we can still take the weapons shipment with us?"

  Bates shook his head. "You're a cool customer, Elias. You could learn a thing or two from him, Kyle. You're still too excitable."

  "Hey, man," Elias said, "one last thing."

  "Sure."

  "How'd you find out about this shipment? I mean, you don't have to give away any trade secrets or nothin'. But just to satisfy my own curiosity."

  "If you mean did the Visitors tip me off—no. Don't underestimate the resources of Science Frontiers. We can do things Diana would never suspect. It's one of the reasons I can deal with her on an equal footing. She thinks she's toying with me, but I may be the one who's doing the toying. Consider that when you think about whether you want to play on my team. Oh, and Elias, sit down in the boat on the way back. You're going to be a valuable asset to

  me someday. I wouldn't want you to fall into the bay and

  drown."

  Elias tipped a salute. "Thanks for the concern, man. You're beautiful, I love ya," he said, Hollywood style.

  As the guards t
ook them back down to the deck, Elias shook his head. "Some dude, your old man."

  "Sounds like you admire him," Kyle said bitterly. "He's a bastard and a traitor."

  "Whoa, kid, I didn't say I admired him. But he does have his act together. It's a wonder he didn't take over the world before the Visitors came."

  "Don't think he didn't try."

  The security men helped them over the side and held the ladder steady until they were back in the motorboat. Kyle pushed away from the landing platform, started the outboard engine, and looked back at Elias. "You sitting?"

  Elias rolled his eyes. "What does it look like, man?" He was sitting, feet planted firmly on the boat's floor, hands holding the sides, elbows locked. "I am not just sitting, I am ready for a high-impact collision with the QE II."

  "Good." Kyle gunned the motor, swung sharply away from the Mary Beeme, and watched as Elias toppled over onto his back again. "You're not cut out for this seafaring life, are you, Elias?"

  The black man looked up from his place on the floor. "Just drive the damn boat."

  When they arrived back at the marina a few minutes latei; their faces revealed that something had gone terribly wrong. Julie and the others gathered around to hear the details. Elizabeth listened for a while, then turned pale and drifted off to sit by herself in one of the truck cabs. As Elias continued the story of Bates's surprise, Kyle went to look for her.

  He leaned through the truck window. "Are you okay?"

  She shrugged. "I guess."

  He extended his hand, and after a moment, she took it in her own. They stayed that way for a long, silent moment. Julie quietly joined them.

  "Elizabeth," she said, "you might have saved my life today. Thank you."

  "What do you think my father would have done if you'd walked onto that ship instead of me and Elias?" Kyle asked.

  With a deep breath, Julie opened her eyes wide. "Oh, I don't know. But I don't think he'd have let me go. In his eyes, I'd be a traitor to him personally. He trusts me, Kyle. I don't think he'd understand my betraying him. To him, that would be worse than betraying the planet."

  "Yeah," Kyle agreed, "he does tend to see things in narrow terms."