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  “I didn’t lie.”

  “So I can trust you, but I still should be afraid of you,” I summarized.

  “The two aren’t mutually exclusive.”

  “You’re talking in riddles.”

  “Says the enigma.”

  I arched my eyebrows. “I’m no enigma.”

  “Aren’t you? You had a good reputation, a solid law career, the respect of colleagues and friends. You had a decent, safe, if boring, life, and you threw it away to work for Kathryn Jodane.”

  “My life wasn’t boring!” Was that how he saw me?

  “I stand corrected. But that makes it more incomprehensible you would abandon your career.”

  An enforcer judged me? “I wanted to serve my country.” Not a politically correct answer—the truth. I’d been asked by the president-elect of the United States to join her inner circle. Who wouldn’t consider that a tremendous honor, an incredible opportunity? But I hadn’t realized her congenial public façade concealed a blackened soul or that, once drawn into her web, I’d stumble upon secrets that would seal my fate and make it impossible for me to exit.

  I folded my arms. “I could ask the same of you. Why did you join up?”

  “The same. To serve my country,” he said with a straight face.

  What did I expect a thug to say? He got a sick thrill out of hurting people?

  Surprisingly, I didn’t think he did enjoy it. He didn’t seem to enjoy anything. He never displayed any emotion, good or bad. What had gone wrong in his life that he had fallen so far? A cyborg could have enlisted in C-Force and worked to make the universe a better, safer place. Instead, he’d opted to become a common thug.

  Maybe not common. He was in a class of his own. But still basically a thug.

  Was I being holier than thou to judge him? My halo had become tarnished and twisted. While thus far I’d managed to avoid outright breaking any laws, I’d done a lot of things my former self would have considered unethical, immoral, and ill-advised.

  My patriotism had been sincere. Of course, I’d been flattered by the invitation, and I’d hoped four years with the president would lead to future career opportunities, but I had viewed the possibility as a bonus. I genuinely had desired to serve my country. And then I discovered upholding the Constitution was not in my job description, but consolidating the president’s power was.

  God help me, I wanted out of the morass, but the very best I could hope for was keeping my head above the mire. Fight to survive another day.

  He took a step, and I smacked into the wardrobe cabinet, trying to dodge him and then felt like a fool when he moved to the door.

  “We land tomorrow morning. I’ll see you planet-side,” he said.

  Not if I see you first.

  Almost out, he paused. “I assume you arranged for accommodations before you ran?”

  “I didn’t run, and don’t let my lodging arrangements worry you.”

  He left.

  Expelling my breath on a shuddering whoosh, I sank onto my bunk, my knees shaking. Selected for their willingness to commit the unthinkable, Jodane’s enforcers served as her personal bodyguards and special assignment “problem solvers.”

  Bane always had scared me more than any of the others. It wasn’t only because of his intimidating size, the stealthy, silent way he moved, or the ice-blue expressionless gaze that revealed nothing but captured everything. Some other indefinable quality turned him into a walking threat.

  Jesus! He’d been in my cabin. What had he been searching for? What might he have found that could hurt me?

  I sprang off the bunk and popped open the wardrobe. My bag lay on the floor seemingly untouched. I pulled it out and inspected the contents. Everything appeared to be accounted for. I doubted he had an interest in lemon-scented shampoo or my underwear—unless he was a creepy perv with a red-lace fetish. He was creepy, but in a menacing way not in a pervy way.

  So, if he wasn’t interested in my bag… I tossed it in the closet and grabbed my comm device. According to the time-and-date notation, the last person to access the device had been me a couple of hours ago. With a sigh of relief, I set the device on the desk.

  The most incriminating information I possessed was the communique from Breeze O’Day, the western site director of Geo-Tech. She had shared some news that could undermine the plans for Sajave.

  The president had secret financial connections to the Members Only Real Estate Corporation, a luxury residential and resort property developer. In addition to a plethora of hotels and residences on Earth catering to the obscenely wealthy, the company owned the Lunar Eclipse, a hotel and spa on the moon. Only billionaires could afford to stay there, and good luck getting a reservation, even if you were richer than god. Booked two years in advance, the Lunar Eclipse was the crème-de-la-crème of the hospitality industry.

  Until now.

  MORE had bigger plans than a little hotel complex on the moon orbiting Earth. The Sajave Sands Resort and Spa would be the first full-service resort on another planet. For starters. MORE had contributed heavily to the president’s campaign, and, in gratitude and payback, Jodane had given MORE the green light and no speed limits to turn the planet into a playground for the rich and entitled.

  Jodane’s wayward daughter Sandra “served” on MORE’s Board of Directors, receiving an outrageous stipend for warming a conference-table seat. I couldn’t prove it, but I would bet part or even most of Sandra’s “salary” funneled to her mother. I also suspected Jodane might be a silent partner in MORE. What I did know for sure was that she would profit handsomely from Sajave Sands.

  Geo-Tech’s discovery would throw a wrench into the works. According to Ms. O’Day and Dr. Gayle Chambers, the astrobiologist who worked for her, the sand covering the planet was alive, sentient, and intelligent. International law prohibited the colonization and development of planets inhabited by intelligent life. Legally, MORE could not erect so much as a pup tent on Sajave.

  Besides the presence of intelligent alien life, another problem had arisen that could derail development.

  Jodane’s number two donor, Solar Electric Wind Solutions had been granted an exclusive contract to provide power to the cities and way stations of Sajave. But, according to O’Day, the clean energy company had engaged in some dirty business—they had been transporting and dumping Earth’s hazardous waste into the dunes. Chemicals from spent electric hovercraft batteries and dangerous solar panel metals were poisoning the alien life-form.

  If MORE caught wind of the mess, they might pull the plug on the resort themselves to avoid building an astronomically expensive hotel complex on a planet that might become a massive toxic waste site. It had happened to many third world countries on Earth when they made the unfortunate, short-sighted decision to accept industrialized nations’ “recyclables” in exchange for payment.

  My function was to prevent catastrophes like this. When prevention failed, then I had to fix the problem. Thus far, the president was unaware her financial investment could be swept away. Upon receiving O’Day’s communique, I’d put myself on a ship to Sajave so I could confer with her and Dr. Chambers and check out the alien for myself. I’d also hoped to elude my stalker; however, Bane had tracked me down and boarded the ship, catching it just before launch.

  So, that part of my plan had failed, but I still banked on negotiations with Geo-Tech working out. If only a few individuals were aware of the alien, perhaps silence could be bought.

  Yes, a bribe.

  Acid bubbled in my stomach, and I popped a couple of antacids.

  What I’m considering is wrong, wrong, wrong. More than unethical, it was illegal. This time I would be crossing the line. If I suppressed evidence of the sand’s intelligence, I would be breaking international law. If Geo-Tech wasn’t open to financial persuasion, and the attempt to fix the problem blew up in my face and I got caught, I would take the fall. I’d received O’Day’s preliminary report, so claiming ignorance
wouldn’t be an option. However, if I didn’t try to resolve the issue and the president lost Sajave, Bane or someone like him would fix the problem the Jodanian way.

  My life or the alien’s. Those were the stakes.

  * * * *

  The Città Galactic Spaceport was a far loftier name than the facility, which consisted of a couple of landing strips, a large cargo hangar, and a small terminal building. But the ship landed safely, and I’d gotten shit-ass lucky. Just before touchdown, the captain had summoned Bane to the bridge, and I scurried off the ship, caught my rental RTC, and zoomed away free as a bird.

  My luggage would be delivered to the hotel I’d booked.

  With time on my hands before my scheduled meeting with Breeze O’Day, I programmed the Rugged Terrain Craft to fly me into the dunes. Right outside the spaceport, rolling white hills stretched under a bright-blue sky. Although I’d been warned dust storms could be fierce, the day was calm, affording me a clear, unobstructed view of…sand. Endless miles of white, powdery granular material. Sajave appeared to be covered in kitty litter.

  I saw nothing distinctive about the sand, other than its sparkling whiteness. From a distance, it could be mistaken for snow. This is intelligent alien life? Field grass acts more alive.

  It struck me colonization had been an honest mistake—at the onset anyway. How could the government, MORE, SEW Solutions or anyone be faulted for assuming the sand was weathered crystals? What space-exploring nation wouldn’t attempt to colonize an unoccupied planet with an extensive underground water supply, a breathable atmosphere, and a temperate climate? Sajave could have been the next Earth!

  When the sand’s encroachment on settlements had become an impediment to development, the government had contracted with an astrogeology firm to study and mitigate the impact. Instead, Geo-Tech had put all colonization at risk.

  I itched to get out of the RTC for a close encounter, but the Geo-Tech report had cautioned fierce dust devils could whip up without warning. Until I knew more about what I was dealing with, I’d wait to walk among the dunes.

  Settling in my seat, I headed to a SEW Solutions’ solar farm. Claiming hundreds of acres, it had been visible from outer space as a dark blotch against a sea of white.

  Up close, the enormous solar array etched an even bigger, uglier blight on the landscape. Thousands of massive glass panels tilted toward the sky to absorb the sun’s rays and power the five cities and dozen way stations. Several bots scurried among the rows, sweeping sand from the glass panels. The solar eyesore was located near the western city of Città. Not surprisingly, MORE had chosen to build Sajave Sands Resort and Spa in the east, near Stadt.

  Where was the toxic waste dump, I wondered. Hopefully nowhere near Stadt, the resort’s future location. When I met Breeze later this afternoon, I’d get the coordinates. Or, maybe, I could get them sooner…

  With my handheld, I connected with my Geo-Tech informant. “I arrived on Sajave. Any chance we could meet?”

  “I can slip away at lunchtime.”

  “You can’t break away any sooner?”

  “Wish I could. But that’s the best I can do.”

  “All right. That will work.”

  She told me where to meet her, and I saved the coordinates in the RTC’s GPS.

  With time to kill, I inspected a SEW Solutions wind farm. It wasn’t hard to find, either. I spotted the towering windmills from miles away. The windmills resembled tall, skinny, long-armed skeletal giants. Due to the windless day, the blades were motionless. That was one of the problems with using windmills to generate electricity. No wind—no energy. The other problem was the amount of waste windmills generated. Vanes could not be recycled. When they got damaged or wore out—they went straight into the landfills.

  I did a quick sweep of the area, and then I headed for Città to meet my informant.

  Chapter Three

  Tempest

  Shifting from hover to ground mode, my RTC set down outside the walled city of Città. Gates slid open, and the craft rolled inside, giving me my first glimpse of an urban settlement. Tall block-style buildings with little adornment or architectural interest appeared whitewashed from sandblasting. Enclosed sky bridges resembling hamster tubes connected the buildings so pedestrians could avoid venturing outside if they didn’t want to.

  Apparently they didn’t want to. Not a single soul walked the streets. Città could have been mistaken for a ghost town, except for the sweeper bots scuttling around. At least an inch of white coated the streets despite the bots’ best efforts and the barricade afforded by the seven-story wall surrounding the city. Right away, I could see the annoyance.

  Does the alien consider us a nuisance?

  We’re more than an irritation. We’re a threat. Does the sand sense that?

  A sweeper bot swerved around my RTC, scooping up the tiny aliens to be expelled into the dunes. What if aliens landed on Earth, drove machinery through our major cities, and scooped up the nuisance humans?

  That’s not the same!

  I couldn’t afford empathy for the alien. Nothing could be allowed to prevent MORE from building its resort. Not the alien, not Sew Solutions, not Geo-Tech. My life depended on the development.

  My RTC made a couple of turns and then announced I’d arrived at my destination—Città City Park. Devoid of grass, trees, or any vegetation, the park resembled a giant sandbox, more apt to attract stray cats than humans. Only a few picnic tables under a pergola, a scattering of park benches, and a children’s jungle gym hinted it might be a public recreation area.

  A single individual occupied a bench at the far end of the park.

  The RTC set down in a hovercraft lot—or maybe a public walkway. With so much sand, it was hard to tell. Aboard the ship, protective gear had been distributed to passengers, and we’d been cautioned to wear it whenever we went outside. I donned my filter mask and goggles, slid out of the vehicle, and scooped up a handful of sand. At first touch, the individual grains seemed sharp and faceted, but I soon changed my mind. It wasn’t faceted at all—but more like talc, smooth and powdery.

  Or was it both? Had it changed as I held it?

  My contact waited, and she had limited time, so I dusted off my hands and entered the park, humming as I strolled along. Little puffs of sand stirred by a negligible breeze swirled alongside me.

  When I reached the bench, the woman continued to stare straight ahead.

  I took a seat at the opposite end. “Sajave is sandy this time of year.”

  “Sajave is always sandy,” she replied and finally glanced at me.

  We’d decided on a code to identify ourselves. Since I’d never met my contact face-to-face, I’d had no idea what she looked like. I still didn’t. A filter mask and goggles covered her entire face. A few strands of purple hair stuck out from under a tan cap.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I said. Thankfully I’d had the foresight to cultivate a few loyal straight shooters I could depend on for inside information. I had ready access to company CEOs, but corporate suits tended to be tight-lipped, and they weren’t the ones living and working on Sajave.

  “Likewise.” A lilt in her voice suggested she might have smiled, but I couldn’t tell. “How was your flight?” she asked.

  “Uneventful.” Except for Bane’s unexpected arrival, but I’d caught a lucky break when the captain had detained him before disembarkation.

  “Good. That hasn’t been the case here. A lot has been happening. It turns out the sand”—she gestured at the white ground—“is an alien intelligence. Since the discovery, security has become crazy tight, and everyone on the project is closely watched. Messages are monitored.”

  Sounded a lot like the White House. I really missed my private-sector job. My old safe life.

  “I was trying to figure out how to get a message to you without it being flagged when you showed up. Very serendipitous!”

  “A spur-of-the-moment decision,” I said.
r />   She glanced left and right, as if checking to see that we were still alone. “This seemed like a safe place to meet because nobody ever comes to the park.”

  I could see why. Sand covered everything. It boggled the mind, mine anyway, that all the granular white stuff was alien life. Intelligent life.

  My contact leaned close and whispered, “Geo-Tech called in C-Force.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  She shook her head. “Those close to the project have cyborg bodyguards. Quint Stroud is on site, too.”

  “Quint Stroud?” The name didn’t ring a bell.

  “The C-Force commander. The head honcho himself.”

  My dread increased. “Why? What is Geo-Tech afraid of?”

  “Didn’t you give Geo-Tech one month to control the sand, or you’d hire another company?”

  Yes, I’d issued the company an ultimatum. Shit rolled downhill. Anxious to break ground on the resort, MORE had pressured the president to find a solution to the inconvenience of encroachment. She had put the monkey on my back, and I’d handed it off to the president of Geo-Tech, who’d passed it to Breeze O’Day. “So, they’re afraid of losing the contract. That doesn’t explain why they’d bring in C-Force.”

  “Breeze and Dr. Chambers aren’t afraid of losing the contract, they fear government retaliation. They’re worried when they go public about the alien’s sentience, the government will suppress the information, retaliate against them, and proceed with colonization.”

  That was exactly what would happen.

  The sand glistened in the sun like freshly fallen snow. I leaned over and gently scooped up another handful.

  “The two of them have become very protective of the alien,” my Geo-Tech contact said.

  No wonder the company hadn’t devised a solution—the people tasked with solving the problem didn’t want to. I let the powder-soft grains trickle through my fingers.