Cold Revenge

  Cold Revenge

  The Fall of the Altairan Empire Book 5

  Jaleta Clegg

  Copyright 2013 by Jaleta Clegg

  Smashwords Edition

  ©2013

  Please do not copy or distribute this book without the permission of the author.

  A complete listing of works can be found at http://www.jaletac.com

  Cover art by SelfPubBookCovers.com/Shardel

  For Nighthawk - Ricard Blake’s cameo was written just for you.

  For Jon Krupp - Your words came at just the right time

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Author Note

  Chapter 1

  "Target acquired," Touk announced. They’d been chasing the ship for the last ten hours through a pocket of the nebulae. Hide and seek in thick dust and radiation fields was a stressful game to play.

  Tayvis brought the ship into his sights. It sat at a full stop. No fancy tricks, no last minute weapons fire, nothing; not what he expected.

  "On my command," Darus Venn, the Gunnery Commander, said over the com, "fire to disable if possible."

  "Acknowledged." Tayvis lined up the ship in his sights then waited, his finger over the firing button.

  "That’s strange," Mryah said on his other side. She and Touk were his spotters, sorting through scans to locate and mark targets.

  "What?" Tayvis asked.

  "The ship comes up as a registered trader. I'm not picking up any weapons. Shielding reads as standard navigation shields only."

  "It’s supposed to be a smuggler," Lorien the runner for their team, said. "Good cover, having a real ship id."

  Mryah shook her head. "The beacon checks out."

  "Fire when ready," Darus’ voice came from the com.

  "What’s the name of the ship?" Tayvis asked Mryah.

  "Phoenix Rising," Mryah said, squinting at her screen.

  Tayvis hit the lock button, shutting down the weapons. "Hold your fire," he said into the com to the other three gunnery teams.

  The com crackled. "Are you countermanding my orders, Ensign?" Despite a rough start, Darus and Tayvis got along quite well in the two months since Darus was assigned CO for the gun batteries on the Avenger.

  "I don’t think you have all the pertinent information, sir," Tayvis said. "I want your personal authorization to fire on that ship."

  Darus hurried down the narrow corridor to the portside gun station. He crowded past Lorien. "Well?"

  "What’s the delay, Commander Venn?" It was Captain Suweya on the com asking this time.

  Darus leaned over Tayvis to speak into the com. "I’m checking on that, sir."

  "It’s Dace’s ship," Tayvis said.

  "You sure about that?" Darus leaned close to the targeting computer, Mryah’s station, to check the readout. "What in blazes is she doing mixed up in this?" He straightened. "Hold your fire, all gunnery teams, repeat, hold your fire!"

  "Did I just hear you correctly, Commander Venn?" The captain did not sound pleased.

  "Sir, permission to come to the bridge and explain."

  "You’d better, Commander."

  "Lock your station, Tayvis," Darus ordered. "You’re coming with me." He looked at the merchant ship hanging in the targeting sights of the Patrol cruiser. "What’s she playing at this time?"

  Tayvis had his station locked in record time then followed Darus. The two of them hurried through the ship to the bridge.

  "Bet you fifty credits that Lowell’s behind this," Darus said.

  "That’s not a bet," Tayvis countered, "that’s a certainty."

  "Keep your mouth shut when we get up there," Darus instructed as they approached the bridge. "Let me do the talking."

  Tayvis didn’t dignify that with any sort of answer.

  The door to the bridge slid open. Captain Suweya gave Darus a dark look then switched his attention to Tayvis. "Ensign Tayvis, you refused a direct order. The customary response to that is to space the mutineer. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t toss you out an airlock right now."

  "Because that ship isn’t the smuggler you think," Tayvis said. "It’s a merchant ship. And I’m sure the crew’s been framed."

  "Commander Venn?" The captain turned to Darus. "You countermanded my order. Why?"

  "Because Ensign Tayvis is right, sir. We’ve been led on a fool’s chase."

  The captain studied both of them for a long time. His eyes, a brown so dark it looked black, were cold and hard. "I’ll give you one more chance to explain."

  "That ship, Phoenix Rising," Darus said, "belongs to my daughter and two very good friends of mine. None of them would get mixed up in smuggling. There’s more to this than you think, Captain."

  The captain looked wordlessly at Tayvis.

  "I’ve known Dace for a couple of years, sir," Tayvis said. "I’ve worked with her before under unusual circumstances. She’s a sleeper agent for the Patrol." He mentally crossed his fingers and hoped the price Lowell would demand for backing up that statement wouldn’t be too high.

  "An undercover agent for the Patrol." The captain wasn’t buying his explanation.

  "She’s deep undercover, sir."

  Darus covered a snort, pretending it was a cough.

  "The ship is hailing us, sir," the communications officer interrupted.

  "Put it on the main viewscreen," Captain Suweya ordered.

  Dace’s face filled the screen. She looked cool, composed, almost arrogant, but she had stress lines around her eyes.

  "Captain Suweya, of the Avenger," she said. "A pleasure to speak with you."

  "I very much doubt that," Captain Suweya answered. "You are hereby under arrest. You will remain at full stop and allow us access to your airlock. You will be boarded and placed in confinement aboard my ship."

  "I can’t allow that, Captain," she said. "You will instead cease and desist from harassing us in the performance of our rightful occupation."

  "You’re smuggling drugs, illegal weapons, and counterfeit currency," Captain Suweya countered. "You will allow us to board your ship."

  "Captain, please, it’s getting annoying listening to you. I see you have some of your crew with you." Her gaze passed over Darus and settled on Tayvis. "Ensign Tayvis, what a pleasant surprise. Just like old times, isn’t it, you chasing me across the Empire. Hopefully the end game turns out better this time." She stopped suddenly,
switching topics. Tayvis wasn’t sure but he thought he saw a flicker of pain on her face. "Enough chatting, Captain. You will allow us to leave. Immediately."

  "Or what, Captain Dace?" Suweya asked. "Your ship has been outmaneuvered. You have no weapons. Surrender or suffer the consequences."

  "I’m afraid the consequences will be yours, Captain Suweya. You force my hand." She looked down at something unseen, as if she were reading a paper. "You have exactly ten days to collect five million credits, in small denominations of course, and meet me at these coordinates." She read off the numbers. "If you aren’t there or arrive without the money, something awful will happen. Think of the worst possible action I could take. It’s worse than that. Since I know you’ve recorded this, I won’t repeat myself. Good-bye, Captain Suweya. Give my regards to your brother, Tayvis," she added, then signed off.

  "Commander Venn, report back to your station or be relieved of duty," Suweya ordered. "I want that ship disabled or destroyed."

  "I don’t think you want to do that." Darus pointed at the scanning station. Three huge shapes emerged from the dust of the nebulae. Captain Suweya’s face paled.

  "They’re arming all weapons, sir," the scan tech informed him. "They outgun us five to one."

  The small trading ship they’d been chasing accelerated, curving away from them, headed for open space.

  "They aren’t going to shoot us, if we don’t do something stupid," Darus said. "We’re their messenger."

  Captain Suweya gave Darus and the ships a considering look. "Shields up, and stand down from weapons."

  The three large ships, bristling with weapons, slid past, picking up speed. The Patrol cruiser was left helpless to stop its prey from escaping.

  "Play the message back again," Tayvis said to the communications officer.

  "Ensign Tayvis, you overstep your authority," Suweya said sharply. "Whoever that was, she’s a pirate. Her message was clear enough."

  "She’s a hostage, I’m positive of that," Tayvis insisted. "Play it. There’s a hint buried in there somewhere."

  The communications officer looked at the Captain for confirmation.

  "Security," Captain Suweya said, "arrest Ensign Tayvis for insubordination and mutiny."

  "You don’t want to do that," Darus said.

  The security guards, friends of Tayvis, hesitated. Tayvis ignored them, reaching past the communications officer to access the controls. Dace’s face again filled the viewscreen. Tayvis watched the message replay, his face intent.

  Captain Suweya held up his hand, signaling to the security officers to wait. "What is going on here?" Suweya asked Darus.

  "Tayvis used to work undercover," Darus answered. "He does know Dace better than just about anyone else."

  "That’s Dace?" Suweya asked, nodding at the face on the viewscreen. "Your daughter?"

  "Something else, isn’t she," Darus agreed.

  "She almost became dust," Suweya said. "Ensign Tayvis, my patience is gone. You will cease and desist immediately. Helmsman, lay in a course to follow those ships."

  "You don’t need to." Tayvis tapped the controls. Dace’s face disappeared from the viewscreen. "I know where they’re going."

  Suweya signaled the security guards. "You are confined to quarters until this is sorted out."

  "I don’t think so, captain," Tayvis answered. "You follow those ships and they will destroy you. They’ll find themselves another message boy."

  "I did not ask for your advice, Ensign!"

  Tayvis hoped he lived long enough to regret his decision. Lowell would be overjoyed when he heard, though. "The rank is Sector Commander in the Enforcers. If you wish to remain in command of this ship, you will cooperate with me."

  "You are delusional, unfit for duty."

  Tayvis held out his left wrist, showing the intricate diamond tattoo on the inside of his arm.

  "I read your record, Ensign," the Captain said. "Dismissed from the Enforcers for dereliction of duty, among other things. Dismissed in disgrace from Planetary Survey. I took you on my crew as a favor to an old friend. Don’t make me regret doing so."

  Tayvis flexed his wrist. The tattoo was overlaid by a glowing golden symbol.

  Suweya paled when he saw it. "The ship is under your command, sir. I apologize for my behavior."

  "Don’t worry about it," Tayvis said. "If you’d believed me without proof, you wouldn’t be in command of the ship."

  "Your orders, Sector Commander?" Suweya stood stiffly at attention.

  "Do you want relieved of duty, Captain?" Tayvis asked.

  "No, sir."

  "Then as you were." Tayvis knew Lowell would hand him his rank back. As soon as he talked to him. He hoped Dace would understand. "Set a course for Viya Station."

  "Viya is out of the sector," Suweya said.

  "Then you have two choices, Captain. You can either set the course and let me take the responsibility, or you can set course for the closest Patrol base where I will find a captain who will."

  "One question, Commander," Suweya said, staring Tayvis in the eye. "Whose authority are you acting under?"

  "Grant Lowell."

  Suweya stepped back a pace. "Set course for Viya Station," he told the navigator.

  "Sir, we will have to stop for refueling."

  "Then do it at whatever Patrol base is along the course." Suweya turned back to Tayvis. "This is highly irregular."

  "Most of what I do anymore is," Tayvis said.

  "Why Viya?"

  "The last time I was chasing her in a Patrol cruiser that’s where we ended up. I really doubt she meant Landruss."

  "You do this often?" Darus asked. "Chase her across the Empire?"

  Tayvis frowned. "I don’t understand what she meant by giving her regards to my brother. I don’t know why she ignored Darus."

  Darus shifted at the mention of his name. "She was being deliberate about it."

  "What did she mean, Darus?" Tayvis asked.

  "You’re more likely to figure it out than I am," Darus said.

  "Either way, sir," Suweya said to Tayvis, "we don’t have any suitable accommodations available for you."

  "Forget it, Captain," Tayvis said. "I’ll just trade cabins with Commander Venn."

  Darus gave him a dirty look.

  "Very good, sir." Suweya settled back in his chair as the ship came about and headed on a new vector, picking up speed as it headed for the jump point. "I will ask you to please vacate my bridge. You’re making my crew nervous."

  "Sir." Tayvis left the bridge, Darus trailing at his heels.

  Tayvis knew Suweya would ask for confirmation of his rank as soon as they reached a Patrol base. Tayvis would have to act faster in making contact with Lowell’s agent. The code to reactivate his status was simple enough. All he needed to do was send Lowell the message, "Agreement accepted."

  And it would start all over again. But at least he’d have a chance of getting Dace out of whatever mess she was in this time. It looked to be a deep one.

  Chapter 2

  Three weeks earlier…

  I sniffled into a tissue and felt sorry for myself. I’d picked up a cold. The winter weather didn’t help. I checked the cargo bay doors, making sure they were still locked, before retreating into the ship.

  We’d been sitting on Muugran for five days, waiting for a delayed cargo. We’d had bad luck the last dozen jumps. The trade routes in Auriga sector were well established, run by large corporations. There wasn’t much left for a small independent, like the Phoenix Rising. We’d been taking crumbs that kept getting smaller and smaller. Our latest cargo was bound for Sudhi, a world on the margins of the Sidyatha Sector.

  I’d looked up the Sidyatha in the ship’s library. I was almost tempted to go back and work our way into the part of the Fringe that we already knew. Except last I heard, Targon Syndicate still had a price on my head. I didn’t want to tangle wtih them and avoidance was the more prudent option.

  The government of the Sidyatha was deepl
y religious. They kept a tight rein on who went in and out of their systems. Most of the worlds were closed to outsiders. Only males were allowed to conduct business. I blew my nose again. Clark could handle that. The shipment we’d picked up for Sudhi, crates of textiles and beads, was the only available cargo on Muugran.

  I blew my nose again, fetching more tissues from the galley. Clark and Jasyn still weren’t back. They’d been married for only a few months. Jasyn was like the sister I’d never had. Clark treated me a lot like his little sister, teasing me mercilessly, but he was there when it really mattered. I’d met his family once, at his wedding. His father intimidated me, a full admiral in the Patrol. He’d been a bit disappointed that his only son had chosen to retire from the Patrol to become a trader, but Jasyn had charmed him so thoroughly that he decided he was happy for Clark. Clark’s mother and two sisters had been nice enough. We had little common ground and the acquaintance was only that. They sent him letters a few times. Without a regular route, it took weeks for those to catch up with us.

  Jasyn’s family was a bit more interesting. Her younger brother Jerimon was conceited and arrogant, and much too good looking. He was currently serving a prison sentence scrubbing decks for the Patrol. Jasyn’s aunt, Lady Rina, was not actually her aunt. Jasyn was Gypsy, though her parents and, by default, her and her brother, were all disowned by the Family for some obscure reason. Lady Rina had forced the Family to reinstate Jasyn and Jerimon. I was adopted into her clan, sort of. Lady Rina lent us money and her lawyer, Leon, kept tabs on us.

  My family. I had to grin. I had a family. My father, who was missing and declared dead when I was seventeen, wasn’t missing anymore. Darus Venn was a very interesting person. I didn’t know if I would ever feel comfortable calling him dad, but so far we had a good start on a friendship.

  I printed a list of worlds within fifty light years. And promptly crossed most of them off the list. Too far towards the Inner Worlds, places we’d already been, places deeper in the Sidyatha. I had a list of maybe a dozen possibilities when Jasyn returned.

  She came in the hatch smiling. Her face was pink with cold, her long dark hair hanging loose, tossed by the wind. She was beautiful enough to rival any vid star. "Feel any better, Dace?" she asked as the hatch slid closed, sealing out the chilly wind that tried to blow snow into the lounge.