Dan chewed his lower lip. "True." He smiled weakly. "I've met a woman-—actually we first met on Tharkad—but I've seen her here again. I. . ."
Quintus leaned back in his chair. "You're in love with her."
Dan nodded. "I think so. Hell, I know so."
Quintus smiled broadly. "Good. I'm happy for you, Dan. Your mother will maintain she's too young to be a grandmother, but I won't mind having a new Allard generation running around." Quintus winked. "And I know your grandfather would love it."
Dan held his hands up. "Whoa! Not so fast. I didn't come here to tell you to ask the Prince to make this a double wedding. But yes, I do love this woman, and I think she shares my feelings." Dan sighed heavily. "I trust her more than I trust the people in my 'Mech lance, but there are some things she can't tell me about herself. I want to know if you can do some background work for me?"
Quintus narrowed his eyes. "You mean you want me to abuse my office as the acting Minister of Intelligence, Information, and Operations of the Federated Suns?"
Dan smiled nervously. "Please?"
The elder Allard nodded. "Of course, son. What do you know about her?"
Dan swallowed hard and concentrated. "She's just a bit shorter than me and not a gram more than sixty kilos. Her hair is brown and her eyes green ..."
"Those can be changed," Quintus said.
Dan nodded. "True. She calls herself Jeana and I'd guess she's in her late twenties to early thirties. I think she trained as a MechWarrior, but she's got no scars or wounds from combat. She's here with the Lyran royal party and says she is very close to the Archon-Designate."
Quintus raised a white eyebrow at the last remark. "Could be LIC. Anything else?"
Dan looked up at the ceiling as he tried to remember any other clue Jeana might have let slip during their time together. As he opened his mouth to add one more detail to the list, he saw something shadowy through the skylight. The room's soft light congealed around and flashed from one part of the shape, spurring Dan into action.
Gathering his feet beneath his seat, Dan launched himself at his father in a tackle that hit Quintus high on the chest. Enfolding his arms around the Count, Dan twisted, wrenching both men free of the overstuffed chair and spinning them into the short hallway.
Above them, spears of flame shot from the submachine gun's muzzle. A hail of bullets blasted through the skylight, cutting a ragged line of holes across the carpet. The projectile stream sawed Quintus's chair into a cloud of wooden splinters and feathers. The stuttering explosions drowned out the whine of ricocheting bullets and the crash of falling glass.
Using his momentum, Dan tossed his father deeper into the hallway, then looked back up at the assassin. The muzzle flame's backlight etched deep canyons in the gunman's hateful face and stained his broad teeth blood-red. Dan felt terror ripple through his body as their gazes met. Grinning madly, the assassin swung the gun toward the hallway.
An overwhelmingly brilliant green light seared its way into the room. Squinting against the painfully intense illumination, Dan saw a narrow, scintillating beam slice up into the gunman's left flank, right below his ribs, then burst free through the man's right shoulder. The gunman stiffened as though every muscle in his body had tensed with the extra energy. When the green light vanished abruptly, the assassin collapsed like a marionette whose strings have been cut. Falling forward, the man somersaulted, landing on his back amid the skylight's ruins and floating white chair feathers.
Dan rubbed his eyes in a vain attempt to rid them of the afterimage the laser had burned into them. Quintus knelt beside his son. "Are you hurt, Dan? God, there's blood on your face!"
Dan pulled his hands away and saw blood on his right hand. He turned toward his father and took heart as the concern quickly bled from Quintus's expression. "Just a small cut, Dan, over your right eye. Won't even scar."
Dan nodded. "Probably flying glass."
Quintus glanced over at the toppled chairs. "You saved my life, Dan." He dug a handkerchief from his pants pocket. "That's as close as I ever hope to be again."
Dan accepted the handkerchief and pressed it to his forehead. Leaning heavily against the wall, he slid himself to his feet. He crossed to the corpse and kicked the boxy submachine gun free of the assassin's nerveless grasp. "Dark hair, darkish skin." He glanced up at his father. "Looks as though he's from a Hindi or Azami enclave—they never did mix much with others. Subhash Indrahar has a Hindi background and the Azami live in the Draconis Combine. Do you think this could be a Kurita Internal Security Force operation?"
Quintus knelt next to the body. "No. If the Combine wanted me dead, they would have used some of the Nekekami."
Dan nodded. "The Spirit Cats. I've heard it said they're as invisible as the wind and apprentices to Death itself."
Quintus grimaced. "You're right about them. This guy, however, is probably Hindi." The Count glanced down at the man's boots. "Wet, with sand in the treads. He came in from the sea."
Dan nodded. "That explains the red line around his eyes. It's from his diving mask. He probably left his gear down by the ocean, then slipped into this black jumpsuit."
Quintus pointed to the hole burned through at the man's ribs. "Had to be a laser rifle. Clean shot."
Dan nodded slowly. "From the angle, the shot must have gotten both lungs and heart. No blood, though. The beam cauterized everything."
Suddenly the bungalow's front door burst inward. Dan dropped to a crouch as two individuals in Jump Infantry body armor swept in, covering the room with the muzzles of their autorifles. Their full helmets and mirrored faceplates totally obscured their identities, but Dan easily recognized the golden star crest emblazoned on their chestplates.
"Clear," clicked the computer-adjusted voice of one. He and his partner snapped to attention as Precentor Tharkad stepped into the room. "Minister Allard . . . Captain . . . are you hurt?"
Quintus shook his head and Dan shrugged. "A scratch," he said.
The Precentor nodded distractedly as he viewed the body. "Shot at you through the skylight?"
Quintus nodded. "Dan pulled me from the chair as the attack started. We rolled into the hall and avoided the first burst."
Precentor Tharkad forced a light smile. "How fortunate." He glanced at Dan. "Excellent shooting, Captain."
Dan shook his head. "Wish I could take credit for it, Precentor. The shot came from outside."
The Precentor narrowed his eyes for half a second, then he let a big smile begin to play over his features. "Well, I'm glad no one was seriously hurt. If you would allow us some time here for a couple of hours, I assure you we can put everything right again."
Dan hesitated. Someone's wandering around on this island with a laser rifle and you 're worried about our accommodations!His anger gathered like a storm over his features, but Quintus laid a hand on Dan's arm.
"Come, Dan. Let us leave the good Precentor and his people to clean up this ... accident."
The Precentor nodded, smiling kindly. "I knew you would understand, Minister. We would not want to spoil the wedding by alarming anyone needlessly. It will be dealt with discreetly."
Quintus smiled as he and his son passed between the ROM guards toward the door. "Oh, Precentor."
"Yes, Minister?"
"The Peace of Blake be with you ..."
34
ComStar First Circuit Compound
Hilton Head Island, North America, Terra
19 August 3028