Free The Orion Plague by David VanDyke Page A

Very
convenient for covert work, he thought . It must have
something to do with what they want me to do. Steal information?
Plant it? And you know what, I’ll do it. He shook his head and
tears began running down his cheeks . I’ll do it, because I can’t
take that kind of pain. No one could, because there’s no way to
run, no way to hide, no way to end it. I’m afraid of the pain, and
I’m afraid I’ll never have the pleasure again.
    Oh Lord, I’m an addict. That’s what this is.
I’m addicted. They got me three ways – addiction, pain, and, I
presume, death. There has to be some kind of deader mechanism
inside me, probably big enough to destroy all the cyberware. I bet
there’s half a kilo or more of C4 in my chest. Dear God, what can I
do?
    Outside in the corridor he heard footsteps,
and the lock turning. He pulled on the teal scrubs he had been
wearing, his only clothing, and sat tensely on the chair.
    Shari entered the room, not in her lab coat
but wearing a body-hugging red dress that showed off all her
curves, and it drove him to his knees. He simply couldn’t help
himself; his body betrayed him. From the floor he looked up like a
dog before his mistress and a groan bled from his lips. “Please…”
He was not sure what he was pleading for.
    “Oh, Rick,” Shari said, closing the door and
stepping over to him. “I missed you.” She caressed his head and he
pressed his face into her body, clinging to her like a child or a
broken lover, hugging her from on his knees.
    “Please,” he said again. “Please…help
me.”
    And she did. Reaching a hand into her
cleavage she extracted a pendant and pressed her thumbprint to the
tiny touchscreen on it.
    Rick cried out in relief and fulfillment as
he was suffused with a feeling of love and caring and warmth that
rolled in like a wave. It subsided into the background, and he
found himself led to sit on his bunk, leaning back against the
wall, eyes dull as a lotus-eater. After a few moments the feeling
drained away, leaving only its afterglow, an imitation of intimacy
that nevertheless felt real.
    “That’s better, isn’t it?” Shari smiled, and
all became right with his world. He could think of nothing but her,
her presence, how much he wanted to be with her. All doubts had
been washed away.
    “Yes, thank you. I love you, Shari,” Rick
said, and he believed it. He really did, even while somewhere
within him wailed a thin small boy crying noooooo . He
ignored the warning, focused on the woman in front of him, the only
thing that made his life worthwhile. “I really do.”
    “I know you do, Rick darling. We just have a
little more work to do to get you ready. Get rid of some of those
pesky little memories that just get in your way.” She held out her
hands to him again and he came into her arms, and everything was
really and truly fine, better than it had ever been.
     
     

 
     
-10-

    The Beast held four now, with Donovan gone:
Lockerbie in the driver’s seat, Butler one-handed on the gun and
Grusky backing them up in the rear. Jill could have found a
replacement but she didn’t feel like trying to fit someone in at
the last second. From the passenger seat of the monster truck she
stared at the assault aircraft.
    They were MH-60 Black Hawks from the 160th
Aviation, the same kind of birds that had brought the SEALs in to
take out Bin Laden. A bit old, but much upgraded and impeccably
serviced. Other countries had helicopters more advanced than the US
did now, but she knew that once the nation got back on its feet
they would get some better ones. For now, the tried and true was
good enough.
    Four birds cranked up their rotors, and she
watched forty nanocommandos load up. She ground her teeth, wishing
she was going in with them, but then again, they couldn’t exactly
fly the Beast along.
    Her team was going in with the ground
assault. That was supposed to start as soon as the commandos were
down, and was mostly there to surround the place and keep