The Doublecross Program: Book Three of the Star Risk Series Read online

  THE

  DOUBLECROSS

  PROGRAM

  Chris Bunch

  a division of F+W Media, Inc.

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-One

  Twenty-Two

  Twenty-Three

  Twenty-Four

  Twenty-Five

  Twenty-Six

  Twenty-Seven

  Twenty-Eight

  Twenty-Nine

  Thirty

  Thirty-One

  Thirty-Two

  Thirty-Three

  Thirty-Four

  Thirty-Five

  Thirty-Six

  Thirty-Seven

  Thirty-Eight

  Thirty-Nine

  Forty

  Forty-One

  Forty-Two

  Forty-Three

  Forty-Four

  Forty-Five

  Forty-Six

  Forty-Seven

  Forty-Eight

  Forty-Nine

  Fifty

  Fifty-One

  Fifty-Two

  Fifty-Three

  Fifty-Four

  Fifty-Five

  Also Available

  Copyright

  For

  Sherman and Helen Yip

  ONE

  Trimalchio IV lazed under a benevolent sun. All was well on the tropic vacation planet … if you were flush.

  Star Risk, ltd., was not, at the moment.

  “I don’t believe it,” M’chel Riss snarled. “Howin-hells could we be broke? We had two … no, three contracts this year that nobody reneged on.”

  Riss, with her blond hair, green eyes, and statuesque build, could have been a runway model.

  Actually, she was an ex-Alliance Marine Corps major who’d resigned her commission after assignments from a line battalion executive officer to advisory slots to covert operations, because of general boredom and a lecherous commanding officer.

  Looking for adventure was one thing. Eating regularly was another, which is how she became the second member of Star Risk.

  “Not quite broke,” Jasmine King, Star Risk’s general amanuensis, said. She was, improbably, prettier than Riss and had been accused of being a robot. But since she refused to admit one way or another and no one knew of a culture capable of building a robot — actually, an android — as competent and beautiful as King, the matter remained in abeyance.

  “But with no income in the offing we’ll be on the welfare rolls — which our beloved Trimalchio doesn’t seem to think is necessary — in three months.”

  “Three months?” Chas Goodnight snorted. “That ain’t broke. Broke is when your forwarding address is a shipping crate in an alley somewhere.”

  He looked pointedly about Star Risk’s posh offices on the forty-third floor of an antigrav-supported high-rise.

  Goodnight was a highly modified soldier, called a bester, who could, among other things, see in the dark, have reactions three times normal, hear into the FM transmission band. He could — for about fifteen minutes, until the battery at the base of his spine ran dry and he became a wobbling kitten.

  Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, Good-night’s moral sense had been amputated, if it had ever existed. The Alliance Army discovered this about the time they arrested him as a jewel thief. Star Risk had rescued him from some forgotten world’s death cell.

  “I say again my last,” Riss said. “How’d we get so broke?”

  “Well,” King said, consulting one of several screens. “Start with finally being able to repay Grok his loan that got us started — ”

  “About time, by Ludwig’s mustache,” the alien, fully named Amanandrala Grokkonomonslf, a furry bulk almost three and a half meters in any direction, growled.

  “Keep going,” M’chel said.

  “There was the cost of your cottage on that out-island,” Jasmine went on. “Plus buying the island itself.”

  M’chel tried to look guilty, failed.

  “Not to mention a ten thousand credit advance for your vacation,” King said.

  Riss nodded reluctantly. It had been a hell of a vacation, three worlds visited, in the company of that Baron…. What was his name again? Never mind. It didn’t matter. But he was certainly a charmer, and never seemed to need sleep.

  “That’s for you,” King went on. “Mr. Goodnight likes to gamble, as we all know — ”

  “I just had a long run of bad luck,” Goodnight interrupted.

  “And then there was that surefire investment Friedrich made.”

  Friedrich von Baldur, a slender, white-haired, dapper charmer who claimed to have been a colonel in the Alliance but was actually a warrant who resigned just ahead of an investigation of missing supplies, sighed.

  “It was, too,” he said. “At least by my lights. How was I to know a simple device that made perfect copies of your currency simply for record keeping would be thought of as a counterfeiting tool?” He shook his head at the perfidy of bureaucrats and lawmakers.

  “Regardless,” King said, “I’m the only one with my nose to the grindstone.”

  “Wasn’t there a small trip to Earth’s Tiffany somewhere in there?” Riss said.

  “A bauble,” King said. “Or a couple or three baubles. Necessary for the old morale and all of that. But we’re not pointing fingers here. We’re trying to come up with a fast moneymaker.” She looked around for ideas. No one said anything.

  A long moment crawled past, then the com buzzed.

  “Please, God,” Riss said. “Let this be a nice, unhappy type who needs a planet overthrown. Or kept from being overthrown.”

  “One who isn’t too bright,” Goodnight added.

  “And definitely not the taxman,” Freddie said, looking piously upward at the heavens.

  King waved them to silence, picked up the com.

  “Star Risk, limited. This is Operative King. How may we be of service?”

  She listened, her face carefully blank. Then she smiled.

  “Well, I’m certain we can be of assistance.”

  Grok growled in pleasure.

  “That noise?” King said. “We’ve had a lot of trouble with line static. Our scramblers, you know. Now, we’ll be able to make an appointment for an interview in three weeks … no, wait, since you said time was a factor with your problem. It just happens we had a cancellation, and there’s a slot that came open tomorrow.”

  • • •

  Riss was quite sure the government of Roh Bahtrine wasn’t democratic — or else the man who sat across the conference table, Van Hald, was an appointee or a bureaucrat. He was simply too colorless to survive, let alone win, an electoral campaign.

  Riss listened, decided he was an appointee, since he referred to the system rulers as the Supreme Council, in capitalized speech.

  An appointee, definitely a potential patsy, she concluded.

  The members of Star Risk were staring at Van Hald in mild incredulity.

  “I must say,” von Baldur said, “we’ve had some … unusual assignments. But I can’t recall ever having robbed a bank before.”

  “Oh, no,�
�� Van Hald said. “You’re not robbing any bank.”

  “Perhaps I misunderstood,” von Baldur said.

  “And why couldn’t you have just rounded up some local villains to do the smash and grab?” Chas Goodnight asked.

  “I said, we don’t wish your services in robbing a bank,” Van Hald said. “And it’s not just any bank, but our system’s National Repository.”

  “Did your campaign funds end up a little short?” Goodnight persisted.

  “If all of you will be silent for a moment,” Van Hald said waspishly, “I’ll give you the precise details and you’ll understand why Roh Bahtrine’s Supreme Council needs the services of a rather irregular force.”

  Five years before, Roh Bahtrine had been in a depression, one that hung on and on in spite of the government’s best efforts.

  In desperation, it finally went to the National Repository and surreptitiously removed about half of the system’s liquid assets — mainly the old reliable gold, and the remainder platinum.

  “This they used,” Van Hald continued, “to, shall we say, encourage outside capital to invest in Roh Bahtrine, and corporations to relocate or open branches in the system.”

  “You mean bribe them?” Goodnight said.

  “Well … that’s a rather harsh word to use…. But yes,” Van Hald said.

  Now the system was stabilized and its economy prosperous.

  “We want your firm to arrange to put the money we, shall we say, borrowed, back, using the guise of a large-scale robbery,” Van Hald said.

  “Can’t you just slither it back, the same way you took it?”

  Van Hald hesitated, then shook his head.

  “Security measures have been radically changed since then.”

  “Interesting,” Grok said. “An honest government repaying its debts? A true anomaly.”

  Van Hald didn’t reply.

  “Well,” Friedrich said, “I assume you have details in that pouch.”

  “I do.”

  “We’ll have our analysts consider them,” von Baldur said. “But I can assure you we’re interested in this unusual project. Quite interested.”

  His eyes rested on the rather large, and certified, check on the table between them.

  TWO

  “All right,” Riss said, throwing the projection up on the wall. “This is their capital world — Gentric — and the capital city, Masd.

  “Over here is the repository, flanked by two fields, garrisoned with regular troopies, with ground and interplanetary ships in support. Jane’s says they’re supposed to be pretty good.

  “So the plan will be to put ourselves next to the repository, try not to kill too many of the guards, try not to get killed ourselves, shovel the gold and platinum bars — that’s the shape the geetus is in, by the by — and get out, get paid, and come home.

  “Yes, I’ve already leased some antigrav wheelbarrows. Now, what’s the matter with that plan?”

  “Do you mean in the design, or in the details?” Goodnight asked.

  “I mean the whole idea stinks on ice, as they used to say,” Riss said. “It’s too frigging easy. Goodnight, you’re our resident crook. What’s the matter here?”

  “I, m’love, was a high-class Raffles, working solo and in the gem trade,” Chas said loftily. “I was never part of those vulgar mobs that went around blowing up safes and such. So I know little. But it does stink on ice. I can’t believe that a gummint can’t figure out a way to put some money back in a drawer without the attendance of loud bangs.”

  “No,” M’chel agreed.

  “Are you voting we should pass on the job?” von Baldur asked, looking slightly worried.

  “No,” M’chel said. “I’ve gotten as used to feeding off the fatted hog as anybody. I just want to take the job and walk out with my ass semi-intact.”

  “Well,” Jasmine said, “there’s only two possibilities for a doublecross I can see: either they plan on letting us put the money back and then drygulching us — I do wonder where that term came from — when we show up to get the rest of our money.”

  She fell silent.

  “And the other possibility?” Goodnight asked.

  “I haven’t figured out what that can be yet. But I know there must be one.”

  “Nor do I have any sudden, gut-level Betrayal Flashes,” M’chel said. “So we’re going to take the job. The way I see it we can do things sneaky, which means tippie-toe in some night with the bags of money and only take out enough guards to make the job possible. Or else we can go in high, wide, and handsome, guns blazing — and why somebody would set fire to a perfectly good blaster is beyond me.”

  “Normally, I’d argue on the side of subtlety,” von Baldur said. “But subtle takes a while, and we are veering toward broke.”

  “Just so,” Riss said. “Not to mention if we play it like crooks, we’ll have to recruit some strong-arm experts, us not being well versed in criminality, which means we’ll have to split the take, which I’d rather not do. So blazing it is. Jasmine, tell old Van Hald that we’re working for him. And ask him for a list of upcoming holidays.”

  “All right. I assume for a cover?”

  “You assume right. And we’ll need a crew — say two platoons — of shooters who’re good enough to not shoot on the ground. Plus our transport, and some friends to give us a back door.”

  King was tapping keys on a calculator.

  “I make it — if we can do the job in a month — about two million.”

  “Make it four,” von Baldur said. “On the chance they’re going to get tricky.”

  “Plus expenses,” Goodnight said.

  “Aren’t we getting a trifle greedy?” Riss asked.

  “Of course,” Chas said. “You don’t want me to change my lovable ways, now, do you?”

  • • •

  “And how does this look?” Jasmine asked, sliding the screen over.

  Riss read it.

  “Very sexy,” she said. “In three weeks there’s a big national holiday, so everybody goes to the shore or somewhere for a couple of days. Plus there’s a big airshow over Masd, which should give us a nice cover for any loud bangs since the repository’s right outside the city.”

  “What’s it celebrating?” Goodnight said.

  Riss shrugged.

  “Somebody won — or maybe lost — a war. The fiche is a little vague.”

  “Definitely lost,” Goodnight said. “Victories are tootled with the most mind-numbing detail. Surprised it’s a holiday.”

  “Never mind that,” Grok said. “What about our backup?”

  “Inbound,” Russ said. “The two transports will be in by tomorrow, those two destroyers that are costing us — sorry, I meant Roh Bahtrine — a lot more than they should be paying…. Anyway, those two’ll be in day after, along with our gunnies.”

  “Who’s running the destroyers?” von Baldur asked.

  “A woman named Inchcape.”

  Friedrich shook his head. “Don’t know her.”

  “Good résumé,” Jasmine said. “Actually worked for the same people more than once.”

  “That’s enough for me.”

  Riss was waiting.

  “For our Plan B, which we’re not going to mention to our client, of course, and Jasmine’s found a way to bury the charges, we’ve got five spitkits, almost brand new, McG Destroyers,” Riss continued. “They’ll be here on Trimalchio … shortly. That’s the most I was able to get from the flight leader, an ex-Alliance sort named Vian.”

  Friedrich von Baldur paled a little.

  Grok noticed the expression. “You know him?”

  “I do,” von Baldur said. “Ironass — pardon me, ladies — Vian. Never known to take a drink or pinch a fanny of any sex. A rigid disciplinarian never known to smile. No. I take that back. A staff officer was making an elaborate presentation to him, waving his arms about, and the staffie stuck his right forefinger in an impeller drive. Blood to hell and breakfast, and a little smile on Vian’s
face.”

  “So what is the matter with him as far as you’re concerned?” Goodnight asked.

  “Unfortunately,” von Baldur said, “he was acting depot commander when it became convenient for me to leave the Alliance’s service in a bit of a hurry.”

  “Would he remember you?” Riss asked, amused.

  “I don’t know,” von Baldur said. “I don’t propose to spend much time in his company finding out. He is, as you’d assume, competent. More than.”

  “So why did he leave the Alliance?” Goodnight asked. “Being as how he’s the perfect admiral.”

  Everyone looked at Jasmine King, who was widely thought to know everything.

  “A rather strange case,” she said. “He was riding in a hovertrain, going on leave, and there happened to be a young lady in the compartment. No one else. The train went into a tunnel, there were screams, and the young lady claimed that Admiral Vian made an indecent assault on her in the tunnel. For which he was court-martialed and requested to resign his commission.”

  “How peculiar,” Friedrich said. “So he did pinch at least one fanny.”

  “That’s strange,” Riss said. “One person’s claim, no witnesses, and a highly respected officer?”

  “The young lady’s father was an Alliance commissioner, and her betrothed was a young fast riser in the Department of State,” King said.

  “Ah,” Riss said. “That’ll do it to you every time.”

  “Lecher Vian,” von Baldur said. “Very, very interesting.”

  “A question,” Grok said. “I seem to recall the Destroyer-class ships were supposed to have rather delicate drives.”

  King nodded.

  “The Mark I’s were … which these are. However, Vian’s five have been reengineered after being condemned.”

  “They’d better be,” Goodnight said. “I simply despise being at the center of a loud bang.”

  THREE

  “Whassamattah, Freddie?” Chas Goodnight asked. “You look worried.”

  “I am,” von Baldur said, looking out of the battered hangar at the nearly empty landing field.

  The long-abandoned field sat on the far side of one of Gentric’s moons, and had been set as the transfer point for the wealth to be returned. On the field were Star Risk’s two rented destroyers and the pair of small liners.