Disclaimers in Pt. 1.
Chapter 5
Sandoval opened his door and smiled as he heard the sound of running feet. A moment later, a small whirlwind hit him around the waist.
"Father! You're home!"
Sandoval chuckled. "Yes, I'm home."
His son stepped back, and light grey-green eyes looked at him accusingly from under a tousled mop of curly brown hair. "You're late!"
"I know, son," Sandoval replied, crouching down until his eyes were level with the boy's. "I'm sorry, but something came up. I'll make it up to you this weekend, okay?"
The boy studied him for a moment, and then nodded. "Okay. But I want to go to the zoo."
"The zoo it is," Sandoval agreed. "Where's your mother?"
"I'm right here," came the reply, and Sandoval looked up to see Siobhan Beckett standing in the doorway to the kitchen, wearing a white turtleneck shirt and a black suit. "The imp's right, Ronald; you should have at least called to let us know you'd be late. Your dinner's gotten cold."
"I'm sure it's fine, Siobhan," he said, standing up. "So, what else has happened today?"
"Your son's discovered a new trick," Beckett replied, sounding a touch exasperated.
How come when he gets over-excited about something he's always my son? Sandoval wondered. He turned back to the boy. "You have? Can I see?"
Grinning proudly, his son held out his hands. "Look!"
And Sandoval stared as swirls of glowing white energy appeared in the centre of his son's palms.
Raising his eyes from the glowing shaqarava, he was shocked to find himself suddenly facing Liam Kincaid.
"Do you see, Sandoval? Do you understand?"
Sandoval jerked awake with a gasp.
The dream again.
It was always the same; different locations and times, but the same dream.
It always started out as Sandoval with his son. Then Beckett appeared. And then, at the very end, Kincaid showed up - and always with the same questions.
Always.
Kincaid's right - I need this vacation, he thought with a sigh, rubbing his face tiredly. I'm so exhausted that I'm starting to confuse my investigation of him with the search for my son.
Sandoval leaned back in his chair and frowned as he studied the pile of files and notes on his desk.
He'd managed to get almost three more hours of sleep after Andrew's call, and despite having another of the bizarre dreams that had been haunting him lately, he'd been feeling almost rested - until he had walked into his office.
Then he'd been faced with the fact that he still had to interview Lt. Dietz this morning, and Kincaid wasn't available to help out; the Major had left a message on his global stating that he had a possible lead on the source of the material the gunman had used, and wanted to follow up on it.
With a sigh, he reached for his global, intending to ask Captain Jardine to find Lt. Dietz for him. Before he picked it up, however, it beeped.
Opening it, he was surprised to see Dr. Curzon's face.
"Doctor?"
"Agent Sandoval," Curzon replied. "I have that information you wanted."
Already?
And why does she look so unsettled? "What is it, Doctor?" he asked.
Curzon took a deep breath, and let it out in a sigh. "You may remember that I said I knew someone who might be able to figure out what the genetic oddities were?"
"Yes, Doctor, I remember," Sandoval replied, a touch impatiently. "Were they able to help?"
Dr. Curzon nodded. "I took the sample to Dr. Julianne Belman - she's a good friend of mine, and I knew she wouldn't ask any questions about it. She just called me back.
"Ron... She said she wasn't entirely certain, but the anomalies in your son's DNA look almost like Taelon genetic material."
Sandoval froze.
Taelon?
"What does that mean, exactly?" he managed after a moment or two.
"I'm not sure, but from the way she said it, I got the impression that she thought the sample was from a Human/Taelon hybrid. I didn't even know that was possible."
"It is," Sandoval said, remembering Steven and Belle, and the babies that were currently being kept under Da'an's protection on the moonbase. My son is a hybrid?
"Did you tell Dr. Belman why you wanted the blood analyzed?"
"Of course not!" Curzon replied, sounding indignant. "You asked me to keep it confidential. And as I said, she won't press me for answers."
"Good," Sandoval declared. "Thank you, Doctor."
Curzon's expression became one of concern as she looked at him. "Are you all right, Ron?"
Sandoval paused for a moment, and then, with a mental shrug, answered her. "Yes, I am. It's just... finding out I have a son I didn't know anything about was a bit of a shock. This is a much larger one. But it doesn't really change anything." And it didn't. He'd need some time to absorb it, he knew... but whether or not the child he was searching for was a hybrid, the boy was still his son. That was the only thing that mattered. "Does Dr. Belman still have the sample, or did she return it to you?"
"She used it all doing the tests," Dr. Curzon replied.
Sandoval nodded thoughtfully. "Do you have any left?"
"No. We needed most of what was donated for your treatment. What I gave Julianne was all that was left."
"All right." He'd had a momentary hope that Dr. Curzon would be able to find out who his son's mother had been, who else the Taelons had chosen; but there were other ways to get that information. "Again, Doctor, thank you. I greatly appreciate your help."
"You're welcome."
Sandoval closed his global, and then leaned back and closed his eyes. And I thought that life was complicated yesterday...
What exactly had the Taelons - had Da'an - done? And when had they done it? And... why hadn't Da'an told him? He'd helped Da'an with the hybrid project, but he'd thought that Belle and Steven were the only results of it.
And, of course, this brought back the other questions... Who had arranged for the donation of his son's blood; and who had left the present in his office?
Liam glanced up from the magazine he'd been skimming through as the door of Renee's office opened and Renee and Jonathan Doors walked in. He almost laughed at the expressions on their faces when they saw him sitting at Renee's desk; would have laughed, if the situation and his mood weren't so tense.
The day hadn't gotten off to a good start; he'd woken up to a throbbing ache in his shoulder, one that hadn't yet gone away, despite the increased dosage of painkillers and the collarbone brace. Then he'd spent almost half an hour persuading Dr. Belman to tell Dr. Curzon what he wanted her to.
At least he had managed to convince her, though he had the feeling that she had figured out why he was so insistent on this. He just hoped that Augur didn't figure it out as well. He didn't think the computer hacker would be overly pleased about his plans.
After that, Liam had figured that it might be a good idea if he gave Sandoval a bit of time to absorb the news before showing up, so he'd decided to check up on Doors and Renee and see if they'd found anything yet. Showing up before Renee had just been a bonus.
"Liam," Doors said, in the tone of voice that Liam had come to hate. It was a tone that said that Doors was speaking to a child who had to humoured.
"Jonathan," he countered.
Renee frowned. "What are you doing here, Liam?" she demanded.
"My job," he replied, keeping his tone calm. "Do you have any idea yet how this guy got past your security to steal the vaile?"
"No, Liam, we don't," Doors declared. "As I'm sure Renee told you, we'll let you know as soon as we find anything."
"I hope you've got your best people on this," Liam commented, closing the magazine.
"Of course," Doors replied.
"Good," Liam said calmly, getting up and coming around the desk to stand in front of Doors. "Because I would hate to have to tell Sandoval about your little project."
"Is that a threat?" Doors demanded coldly.
Liam shrugged. "Take it however you want," he replied, and before Doors could add anything else, or threaten him in return, he walked out of the office.
That went well enough, he decided, as he headed down the street. Although not quite as well as I hoped it would... Though with any luck, he'd shaken both Doors and Renee up enough that they'd take this seriously.
He was well aware of the fact that neither of them would mourn if Zo'or died. In fact, he was pretty sure that most of the people he knew wouldn't mourn Zo'or, his father included. But that didn't change the fact that if Zo'or died, if he was killed by a human, the stalemate that existed at the moment would only get much worse for humanity.
For the time being, he'd do his best to avoid telling Sandoval about the vaile. Hopefully, he wouldn't need to at all.
Sandoval.
I wonder if Dr. Curzon's told him yet?
I wonder what he thinks? Will he still want me?
The sound of laughter interrupted his thoughts, and Liam looked up, only just realizing that he'd arrived at the park near the Embassy, the one Da'an liked to visit occasionally.
There were a group of children there at the moment, laughing and playing, and Liam found himself watching them enviously. All of them - except perhaps the toddler in the stroller over by the bench, next to her mother - were older than him; and yet, he was the one with the weight of the world on his shoulders.
It wasn't fair. His chance to have a normal childhood had been stolen from him by his heritage and the circumstances of his birth. He'd become Da'an's Protector in the naïve hope that he could serve as a bridge between humanity and the Taelons, and had found himself instead dealing with fear and betrayal on an almost daily basis.
And you're doing a remarkably good job of feeling sorry for yourself, Liam reflected with a sigh. Life wasn't fair.
All the same, he was envious of the children. They at least had a chance at a normal life.
Okay, Liam, stop brooding and get to work, he ordered himself. The sooner they found the sniper, the sooner Sandoval would be able to go back to his vacation, and the sooner Liam might just have a chance at a bit of that 'normal' life.
He hoped.
He started toward the Embassy, absently rubbing his right palm. It felt terribly itchy.
So, now I just need to figure out how I'll be able to tell how Sandoval's reacting, Liam figured, as he started across the street. It would be hard; his father was an expert at hiding his emotions behind an impassive mask. But he was sure he could do it, given enough time.
"Mister! Look out!" came the sudden shout from the playground, and Liam looked up in time to see a car heading straight for him. And speeding up.
Sandoval frowned as he studied the information on the screen. According to the records he was able to access from the Taelon mainframe, the hybrid project had never involved actually conceiving new children, only modifying children that had already been conceived - although not necessarily born. The conception of children specifically designed to be Human/Taelon hybrids had been Belle and Steven Hartley's idea.
However, it was possible that his son's existence was recorded in an area of the mainframe that he didn't have access to. He just hoped Zo'or did.
He was just about to use his copy of Zo'or's energy signature to access the secured files when his door slid open and Da'an walked in.
Under any other circumstances, Sandoval might have been pleased to see the North American Companion. But now, considering the information Dr. Curzon had given him, and the fact that Da'an had never mentioned anything about using his DNA in the hybrid experiments, he was more that a little upset with Da'an. And then there was the fact that he'd just been about to try breaking into secured files...
But with the ease of long practice, Sandoval was able to conceal his anger.
"How can I help you, Da'an?" he asked.
"I have a question, Agent Sandoval," Da'an said. "I have been thinking about what has happened, and I was wondering; have you arrived yet at an explanation for why this assassin was using bullets - which cannot harm a Taelon - at Wednesday's ceremony?"
Sandoval shook his head. "Not really, Da'an. Major Kincaid suggested that it might have been a warning, but the events of yesterday morning cast some doubt on that theory. Why?"
"There is another possibility," Da'an said quietly.
"What?" Sandoval demanded. Anything that could help them get an idea on where the sniper was coming from...
"You and Liam are both Companion-Protectors," Da'an said. "Because of that, you both automatically made the assumption that the assassination attempt was aimed at Zo'or."
Sandoval blinked in confusion. "Who else could it have been aimed at, Da'an? The same person-" Or people, he thought suddenly, in alarm, but managed to keep the thought off his face. "The same person is responsible for both attacks. If his target was someone else on the dais, he would not have attacked Zo'or yesterday."
Da'an's hands moved gracefully in the Taelon equivalent of a sigh. "Agent Sandoval, Zo'or was not the only person present at both incidents."
Sandoval stared at him for a moment, puzzled, before he realized what Da'an was suggesting. What? "You mean... you think that Major Kincaid is the target?"
"It is a possibility that should be considered, Agent Sandoval," Da'an pointed out. "Bullets are capable of killing humans, but will not harm Taelons. The fact that the person in question used bullets during his first attack suggests to me that his target was, in fact, human."
"And Zo'or just got in the way?" Sandoval asked in disbelief. All the evidence they had so far - which was very little - suggested that the assassin was a professional. It didn't make sense that he'd miss that badly.
Da'an shook his head. "As I said, Liam is a Companion-Protector. When he saw the reflection off the rifle scope, he assumed that it was Zo'or who was the target; so he moved to protect Zo'or. That may, in fact, be what saved his life."
Sandoval nodded slowly. Da'an's ideas made an uncomfortable - very uncomfortable - amount of sense. "Have you mentioned this to Zo'or?"
"No," Da'an replied, his tone curt.
Sandoval started to ask why, and then he remembered the scene from yesterday morning, and Da'an's comments and concerns last night about Zo'or's insistence that Kincaid be the one to accompany him to Africa.
It wouldn't be the first time that Zo'or had tried to have Kincaid killed, which supported Da'an's theory... but Sandoval didn't buy it. There were too many loose ends. He shook his head. "I don't think Zo'or is responsible, Da'an," he replied finally. "For one thing, he could quite easily have been killed yesterday morning. Besides, I don't think that he would support the development of anything that can defeat your sensors."
Obviously, that angle hadn't occurred to Da'an. "You are correct, Agent Sandoval - this material could become a serious problem, one that not even Zo'or would countenance." He looked relieved.
"I had better inform Major Kincaid of this possibility," Sandoval began, but before he could do anything, his global beeped.
Liam winced in pain as he stood up, hoping desperately that the brace had done its job and prevented any more damage.
He'd had only a split-second to react, and he'd flung himself backwards, onto the sidewalk and out of reach of the car, which sped away before he managed to get a good look at the driver.
Carefully brushing the dirt from the sidewalk off his jacket, he grimaced as he noticed a rip in the left sleeve, from where he'd landed. The amount of damage this jacket took...
"Are you all right?" said a young voice from behind him - the same voice that had warned him only a minute ago - and he turned to see a girl of about ten or eleven standing close by.
"Yes, I am, thanks to you," Liam replied, smiling at her warmly. "I appreciate your warning me."
Just then, a woman who was probably the girl's mother came hurrying up. "Kelly! What are you doing?" she demanded.
Liam turned to face her. "As a matter of fact, ma'am, she was saving me," he said. "If she hadn't warned me, I would have been hit by a car."
The woman looked at him, and Liam could tell the exact moment she recognized him. Her eyes widened in surprise.
"Listen... Kelly, is it?" Liam asked.
The girl nodded. "Yes. Kelly Stevens. This is my mom." She frowned slightly. "You look familiar."
Liam smiled. "My name's Liam Kincaid," he returned.
Kelly stared at him. "You're Da'an's Protector?" she asked in awe.
"Guilty as charged," Liam replied, grinning at her. "Listen, Kelly - have you ever been in a Taelon Embassy?"
"No," Kelly replied.
Liam looked at the girl's mother. "Mrs. Stevens... would it be all right for Kelly to visit the Embassy for a tour in a day or two - as a thank you for saving my life?"
"Cool!" Kelly exclaimed. "Can I, Mom?"
"I... I suppose," her mother replied, still looking a bit shell-shocked.
"Here's my card," Liam said, carefully extracting one of the cards from his pocket and handing it to Mrs. Stevens. "When you want to visit, just give me a call - it has my number embedded - and I'll leave word with the guards to let you in and give you the first-class tour."
"Thanks!" Kelly exclaimed. She then grabbed her mother's arm and started pulling her back toward the park. "Just wait till my friends hear about this..." Liam heard her saying as they walked away.
He spared another smile in their direction, and then turned his attention back to what had just happened.
He was fairly certain that the hit-and-run attempt had been deliberate. The car hadn't been trying to slow down when he'd seen it - it had been speeding up. And he'd managed to notice that the license plates had been covered in mud, keeping the plate itself obscured; which meant that the only way to identify the car would be by make, model and colour. His memory - a gift from the Kimera side of his ancestry - would be able to recall that information with no problem, but there were thousands of identical cars built every year.
Looking around carefully before crossing the street this time, Liam quickly made his way to the Embassy. There were no signs of any other attempts on his life, but he kept his attention on his surroundings; it was much better to be safe than sorry.
Luckily, there were no reporters around the Embassy today; Liam felt even less like giving an interview than he had yesterday.
He nodded an acknowledgement to the Volunteers on duty, and headed straight for Da'an's office and his desk. It was the one room in the entire Embassy that was guaranteed to be secure.
As soon as he sat down, he opened his global and called Sandoval.
"Yes?" Sandoval replied curtly, and then his eyes narrowed. "Major. I was just about to call you... What happened?" he added suddenly - probably noticing the rip in Liam's jacket.
"Hit-and-run," Liam replied. "I managed to get out of the way just in time. I think... I think it may have been deliberate, Sandoval. The car sped up when the driver saw me, and I was already in the way... and the license plate was covered in mud, so I couldn't read it."
Sandoval exchanged an alarmed look with Da'an; the Taelon's suggestion was sounding more and more plausible every moment.
"Major," he said, "Da'an has come up with an alternate theory concerning the assassin's actions on Wednesday - one that your report tends to support. He thinks that we may have been wrong about the target; that it may be you the assassin has been aiming for, not Zo'or."
Kincaid looked shocked. "Me?" he demanded. "Why would someone try to kill me - while putting Zo'or in serious danger at the same time?"
Well, he'd never thought that Kincaid was stupid - merely brash and impulsive. "It is unlikely that Zo'or is responsible, Major," Sandoval said calmly. "He would never agree to anything involving the level of security risk that this mysterious material does."
An expression flickered across Kincaid's face, but it was gone before Sandoval had a chance to recognize the emotion. "You're right," the Major agreed. "So, my question still stands - why would anyone want to kill me?"
"We'll have to figure that out," Sandoval returned. "For the moment, however, it would be wisest to act on the assumption that both you and Zo'or are targets. Zo'or will be staying on board the mothership; you should consider doing the same, Major."
For a moment, Kincaid looked as though he was seriously contemplating the idea. Then he shook his head. "If I am the target, I'm also the best chance we have of flushing this guy out," he pointed out.
Sandoval frowned. His instinctive reaction was to order Kincaid up to the mothership and put him under close guard, to make sure he didn't endanger himself; and he had no idea why. It should have been one possible reaction, but not the immediate one. In fact, his immediate reaction should have been to agree. Kincaid was right: he was the best possible bait. "Major..."
"You know I'm right, Sandoval," Kincaid said stubbornly.
Sandoval looked at Da'an again. The North American Companion looked as reluctant as he felt. Then an idea occurred to him.
This might just be the opportunity I've been looking for...
"I'll agree to this - on one condition, Major," he said.
Kincaid looked wary. "Condition?" he questioned. "What condition?"
"Until we find this assassin and stop him, you have a bodyguard with you at all times."
Kincaid's eyes narrowed. "Don't you think you're going just a bit overboard here, Sandoval? If this guy really is after me, he's already had three tries, and the only thing that's happened to me is that I have to wear this sling and brace for a few weeks."
Sandoval kept his expression firm. "That's the condition, Major."
"Come on, Sandoval!" Kincaid complained. "I've got work to do! Work that I won't be able to do with a Volunteer hanging over my shoulder!
"Da'an, talk to him!" Kincaid added, his tone pleading.
"I do not believe it is an unreasonable suggestion," Da'an said calmly.
Kincaid stared at Da'an in disbelief. "You... you... you what?" he sputtered.
"This assassin is a threat, Liam," Da'an explained. "If you are indeed his target, and he has failed to kill you three times so far, he will become more desperate. And from what I understand of humans, the more desperate someone is, the more dangerous he is."
"Da'an... you know I've got work to do that I can't do if I've got a Volunteer tagging along with me. Some of the people I need to talk to don't really like Volunteers that much..." Kincaid protested. "Wait a minute," he added after a moment, his expression brightening slightly. "I've got Corporal Roberts - my pilot. He's a Volunteer, and has already proven that he can think quickly under fire."
"Actually, Major," Sandoval put in calmly, "I wasn't thinking of assigning a Volunteer. And I don't think that a pilot - one who would have to stay with the shuttle - really qualifies."
Kincaid blinked. "So who did you have in mind?" he asked.
"Me," Sandoval replied calmly.
Kincaid stared at him for a moment, obviously startled. But before he could voice the protest Sandoval could see forming, Da'an spoke up.
"An excellent idea, Agent Sandoval," the Taelon declared, sounding pleased. "I will arrange it with Zo'or."
Kincaid was starting to look a bit panicked at this point. "But Da'an..."
"I must insist, Liam," Da'an said firmly. "Agent Sandoval, you will prepare to leave immediately. Liam, you will remain in the Embassy until Agent Sandoval arrives."
"But..."
"This is an order, Liam."
Kincaid sighed in resignation, but he definitely didn't look happy. "All right. I'll see you when you get down here, Sandoval," he said, and closed the connection.
Sandoval turned to Da'an. "Thank you for supporting me in this, Da'an."
Da'an met his eyes. "Keep Major Kincaid safe, Agent Sandoval. That is all I ask."
Sandoval nodded in acknowledgement.
Liam closed his global and stared blankly at his desk for a minute.
This... this was going to be a problem. Having Sandoval hanging around... well, for one thing, all Resistance matters were going to have to be put on hold. That was going to be trouble.
And if the assassin was after him...
Why? Why would anyone want to kill me?
Well, actually, considering that Zo'or's tried several times, and the entire Synod would probably want me dead if they knew the truth, perhaps the question should be: why would anyone other than the Taelons want to kill me? It doesn't make any sense!
...It would put his father in more danger as well.
Then another thought occurred to him. With Sandoval hanging around, he wasn't going to be able to do anything about the matter of the vaile without letting his father know the truth, which meant that he was going to have to tell him.
Which meant that he'd better give Augur a call before Sandoval got here.
Augur looked up as his global beeped. Opening it, he was surprised to see Liam on the small screen. Then he noticed the condition of the kid's jacket, and frowned. "What happened, Liam?" he demanded.
"You sound just like Sandoval," Liam muttered.
Just like Sandoval? Augur thought in disbelief. Is he trying to be insulting? "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," he replied.
Liam sighed. "Augur..."
"What happened?" Augur repeated.
"A hit-and-run," Liam answered. "This car came out of nowhere and tried to run me down. I was lucky - a kid who was playing in the park nearby saw it before I did and warned me. I managed to get out of the way in time."
"You know, Liam, it occurs to me that you might just be going a little overboard with this protecting Zo'or thing."
"I'm not the one going overboard," Liam muttered.
"I don't know about that," Augur countered. "I mean, so far Zo'or hasn't even been touched; you seem to be the one getting all the injuries."
Liam fidgeted slightly. "Well..."
"What is it?" Augur demanded. He had a bad feeling about this...
"Da'an and Sandoval have a new theory," Liam replied after a moment, his tone reluctant. "They seem to think that the assassin's target isn't Zo'or."
"Then who...?" Augur started, and then stopped. "You. Da'an and Sandoval think the assassin's actually after you?"
"Yeah," Liam admitted.
Augur studied him thoughtfully. Considering everything that had happened to Liam since Wednesday morning, it did make a great deal of sense. "So what are you going to do about it?"
Liam looked disgusted. "Sandoval gave me a choice: I can either be confined on the mothership for my own safety until this guy is caught, or I get a bodyguard - him. And Da'an backed him up, which means that it's take it or leave it - no compromises. Sandoval's going to be my shadow until this is over."
"Cheer up," Augur suggested. "Maybe this will give you two a chance to talk."
"What do you mean?" Liam asked, giving him an innocent look.
Augur shook his head, not fooled. Dr. Belman had given him a call earlier this morning and filled him in on what Liam had told her to tell Dr. Curzon. Putting that together with the other things Liam had been doing and saying about Sandoval, it had been obvious where it was leading. "Your 'orders' to Belman weren't exactly subtle, Liam. It wasn't hard to figure out what you're up to. I just hope you know what you're doing, because if Sandoval figures it out and tells the Taelons..."
"He won't."
Augur shrugged. "Whatever you say, kid." He wasn't as certain as Liam was about it, but he obviously wasn't going to be able to convince Liam that it was much better to be safe than sorry, especially when dealing with Sandoval. Well, he'd already decided that he was going to keep a close eye on the kid - now he just had one more reason to add to that list. "Now, what were you calling about?"
"I wanted to let you know about Da'an's theory and orders, first of all - with Sandoval hanging around, I won't exactly have much of a chance to see you until this is over; and... I'm going to tell Sandoval about the vaile. We have to figure this mess out, and that means that Sandoval is going to need all the information we've got. Besides, it's now going to be him co-ordinating my security, instead of me co-ordinating Zo'or's."
Augur heaved a sigh. He didn't like the idea of giving Sandoval any information about what Doors was up to - but the kid was right. It was now Liam's life on the line, and that was not something that he took lightly. "All right, tell him. I'll warn Renee."
"Thanks, Augur. Tell her that I'm going to imply to Sandoval that the effect the vaile has on Taelon sensors is actually an inadvertent side-effect of what the material is actually supposed to do - that should help ease Sandoval's suspicions. And also let her know that I'm going to need to keep a low profile for the next little while, until this situation is over and done with.
"Oh," Liam added suddenly, "there is one more thing. I want you to check out my records, see if anyone's accessed them over the past two to three weeks. And set up some sort of flag, something that will alert you if they get accessed from now on. If Da'an's theory about me being the target is right, then I'm pretty sure that this guy must have at least tried to get information on me. If I'm right, and they have been accessed, see if you can find out who's done it."
"Got it," Augur said. "I'll call you as soon as I know something."
"Good," Liam said. He paused, and then added, "Augur... thanks."
Knowing that Liam wasn't thanking him for agreeing to the job, Augur said simply, "You're welcome," and closed his global.
Grabbing some food from his fridge, he quickly made himself a sandwich, and then sat down at the computer. Turning to his hologram, which was currently based on Lorna Greene, the famous Canadian actress, he said, "All right... let's get to work, shall we?"
"Whatever you say, Augur," Holo-Lorna replied. She tapped rapidly on a keyboard. "There have been eight accesses of Major Kincaid's public records over the past three weeks, and five accesses of his military records, as well as four unsuccessful attempts."
"Looks like we have our work cut out for us," Augur said, and turned his attention to his computer screen. He frowned thoughtfully. "Start by checking out those four attempts at accessing his military records," he ordered. "They should be the easiest ones to trace."
"Starting access trace," Holo-Lorna said calmly.
Taking out his global again, Augur took a deep breath, and let it out in a sigh. Time to call Renee... Let's just hope she won't have a fit.
Liam looked up from the paperwork he'd been trying to do for the past ten minutes as he heard Sandoval's voice out in the hall, talking to one of the Volunteers.
Absently rubbing his palm, he wondered how he was going to handle this. Not telling Sandoval about the vaile - he'd already decided what he was going to say about that, including something that would hopefully convince Sandoval that Doors International's creation of the vaile was innocent. No, the main problem was going to be dealing with his father on a constant basis until they found the gunman, while at the same time not revealing his secrets. Yes, he'd been dropping a lot of hints, but he didn't feel ready to give Sandoval the full truth, not yet.
And I still don't know how he's reacting to Dr. Curzon's news - she must have called him by now. He shook his head. Okay, Liam, stop this. Either he'll accept it or he won't. Nothing you can do is going to change that. Concentrate on the gunman. Once that's taken care of, then you can worry about Sandoval.
Sandoval walked in, and Liam's attention fixed on his father. And suddenly, another question occurred to him. Why did Sandoval decide that he should act as my bodyguard? It was his suggestion, and he was the one who insisted on it - I could've convinced Da'an that if I had to have someone guarding me, Corporal Roberts would be perfect. And despite the fact that we've started to become friends - I think - Sandoval still doesn't really care for me. So why has he suddenly volunteered to spend all this time with me?
"Major," Sandoval acknowledged him. "I didn't have a chance to ask you when you called - did you manage to find anything?"
Liam shook his head. He wasn't going to tell Sandoval about the vaile right away - he'd give Renee some time to come up with something before bringing Sandoval down on her and Doors. "Not yet," he replied. "The lead I was following petered out, but I have got some people looking into this for me. With any luck, I'll get some answers from them fairly soon. What about you? Any luck?"
Sandoval shook his head as he walked over to the window that looked out over the city. "I've interviewed everyone from Lieutenant Dietz's squad except the Lieutenant herself, as well as the four Volunteers who were on the bridge when Zo'or made the arrangements with Si'al and the premier. They all came up clean.
"The squad members all agree that nothing showed up on the sensors - which we already know - and they all think the reason Lieutenant Dietz didn't have another physical sweep done was because the first one was finished only fifteen minutes before you, Zo'or and Da'an arrived."
Liam nodded slowly as he thought about it. "Well, considering that none of us knew about the material before this mess, it isn't really all that unreasonable," he said.
Sandoval turned to face him, his expression dark. "That should not have made a difference, Major," he disagreed. "You are a Companion-Protector, and you gave them an order - one that dealt with issues of Companion security. Whatever she might have thought about it, the fact remains that in not conducting another physical search, Lieutenant Dietz disobeyed an order from a superior officer."
Liam opened his mouth to protest, and then closed it. As much as he would prefer not to get Lt. Dietz in trouble, the fact was that Sandoval was right. By not instigating the physical search along with the sensor sweep, she had disobeyed the order he had given. And that disobedience had cost them; it was possible that if the Volunteers had conducted the physical sweep, they would have caught the gunman before any of this had happened.
"So what are we going to do?" he asked.
"We still need to interview Lieutenant Dietz," Sandoval replied. "I don't believe that she provided the gunman with either assistance - knowingly, at least - or information, but we need to know her reasoning for not conducting the physical search, not just the assumptions of her squad. I've already ordered Captain Jardine to find her and send her here.
"We also need to come up with some plan to flush out the assassin without putting you in too much danger," he added.
"I'm fresh out of ideas," Liam said with a sigh, leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes. His shoulder was hurting - if this kept up, Dr. Park was either going to put him in a body cast or forcibly hospitalize him; his palms were itching; and he was developing a horrendous headache.
I just want everything to go away, he thought, a touch wistfully. I want...
I want to be able to tell Sandoval the truth, and have him tell me that everything's going to be all right - even if it's not. I want to be able to hug him and get hugged back. I want - just for a little while - to be Sandoval's son. Not Da'an's Protector, not the leader of the Resistance, not Major Kincaid... just Liam.
Why is that so much to ask?
"Major?" Sandoval inquired.
Liam opened his eyes and looked up at his father. "Just thinking," he mumbled. He rubbed his palms together, careful not to jar his right arm or shoulder - the left one was starting to itch as well.
"About what?"
Liam blinked in surprise, and then realized that Sandoval probably assumed that his thoughts had something to do with the investigation. Sorry to disappoint you. "That I'm tired." It was the truth, though not the whole truth. "I didn't get much sleep last night because of the pain."
Sandoval gave an understanding nod. "I hate to say this, but at the moment, I don't have any ideas either. Our best bet is probably to interview Lieutenant Dietz, and then worry about what to do next."
"In other words, I can go back to my paperwork until the Lieutenant gets down here," Liam concluded.
Sandoval gave him a faint, surprising grin. "You may even manage to make a dent in it."
"That's probably pushing it a bit far," Liam admitted, "but at least I'll have a bit less to do later on. I just hope you've got something to keep you occupied as well, or we're going to drive each other crazy."
A strange expression flickered across Sandoval's face. "Yes, Major, I have some things to do. If you have no objections, I'll make use of the office next door."
Liam shrugged his left shoulder, and then reminded himself not to do that again as agony lanced through his right side. He waited a moment to make sure that his voice was under control, and then said, "No objections whatsoever. Even with this material, I doubt this guy will be able to get into the Embassy, especially since all Volunteers on duty have been warned about it. Aside from the mothership, here is probably the safest place for me to be."
And besides, if you're not in here constantly looking over my shoulder, I might just be able to pull this off...
"All right," Sandoval agreed. "I'll join you back here as soon as Lieutenant Dietz arrives."
Chapter 6
Renee's lips tightened as she studied the screen in front of her.
It had happened again. Someone had taken a project under her supervision and messed it up. It was bad enough that the vaile had been stolen to begin with... but to have that very same stolen material used during a very public assassination attempt...
Renee was honest enough to admit that she'd shed no tears if Zo'or were to be killed - in fact, she'd probably even go so far as to nominate the person responsible for a medal - but not in a situation that involved anything that could be linked back to Doors International!
What was worse was that - according to Augur - the new working theory was that it wasn't Zo'or who was the target at all; it was Liam. There was no way in hell that she was going to allow anybody to use one of her projects to kill the leader of the Resistance.
And, of course, the icing on the cake... Liam, of all people, was bringing Sandoval down on their necks because of this.
It had not been a good week.
She sighed and tapped a code into the computer, bringing up the security records for the past two weeks. She'd review the security records one more time before changing tactics; regardless of what she had to do, she was going to get to the bottom of this.
She focused her attention on the records for Lab 15, and began running through them.
Half an hour later, Renee's eyes narrowed in satisfaction as she studied the figure displayed on her screen. Now let's find out who you are.
The intruder had known about most of the security systems around the lab areas, and had managed to circumvent them quite neatly; but he hadn't known about the extra hidden cameras that Renee had a habit of installing in the labs that dealt with Resistance projects. As a result, they'd actually managed to catch him in the act of stealing the vaile.
Okay, be a good little thief and turn just a bit this way...
She advanced the security record frame by frame, and a moment later a triumphant grin crossed her face as the thief turned so that he was facing the camera. Gotcha!
Studying the face on the screen, she frowned. The man looked familiar. She'd definitely seen him somewhere before. The only question is... where?
Thinning blond hair, dark eyes...
Her frown deepened. He wasn't a Doors employee, she knew that - but for some reason, the memory of him seemed to be connected to Doors.
Coming to a decision, she picked up her global and opened it, calling Jonathan.
"Yes?" Doors demanded.
"I've got a picture of our thief, Jonathan," Renee told him. "He looks familiar, but I can't quite place him. I'm sending you the image; do you know who he is?"
Doors' expression hardened as he saw the image. "I think you'd better get up here, Renee," he said.
That translated as, 'it's not safe to talk about it in the open'. Renee pursed her lips. "All right, I'll be right up."
Closing her global, she exited from the security program and was just about to stand up when her global beeped.
Sighing, she opened it - and gave Liam a furious glare. "What is it?" she demanded coldly. Liam was the last person she wanted to deal with at the moment.
"Just wanted to advise you that I'm about to tell Sandoval about the vaile," he replied.
"Are you really that crazy, Liam?" she snapped. "You tell him about it, and you're putting all of our necks in the noose."
Liam didn't look at all impressed by her vehemence. "Didn't Augur tell you my plan?"
"Oh, right, just tell Sandoval that the vaile's effect on Taelon sensors is actually just a side-effect. He's really going to buy that," Renee returned sarcastically.
Something flickered across Liam's face. "You never know," he replied calmly.
Renee shook her head. "I think this is a really bad idea, Liam. Listen, I've managed to get a picture of the thief - it turns out that he didn't know about my extra security precautions. I don't think it will take me too long to find out exactly who he is. You can give Sandoval that information."
"And how will knowing who he is enable us to catch him before he attacks again?" Liam demanded. "If he has the vaile, he can evade us easily - unless we know how to defeat its effect." He gave her a pointed look.
Renee's mouth tightened. Obviously Jonathan hadn't managed to delete or hide all the files on the vaile - Liam's expression made it clear that he knew about the shuttle sensors.
"Liam, the vaile can help the Resistance greatly - but not if Sandoval and the Volunteers know how to defeat it!"
"Maybe you and Doors should have thought of that earlier," Liam said coldly. "Much earlier. It's too late now.
"Sandoval and I will probably be there within the next hour or two. Have your story ready by then," he added curtly, and closed the channel.
Renee looked at the blank global screen for a moment or two longer, and then shut it with a snap.
This had been a really bad week.
And it looked as though it was only going to get worse.
Da'an stood on the bridge of the mothership, looking out the virtual glass window at the Earth.
"You wished to see me, Da'an?" came Zo'or's voice from behind him.
Da'an turned to face the other Taelon. "Yes," he replied.
"About what?"
Da'an moved his hands rapidly, though still with innate grace, the speed broadcasting his agitation. "Agent Sandoval and I believe that these attacks were not aimed at you, Zo'or."
Zo'or looked... startled; not the startlement of being caught out, but rather that of genuine surprise. The expression lasted only a moment, replaced quickly by the haughtiness that his child usually displayed, but it was there long enough for Da'an to see it, and feel relieved. It appeared that Agent Sandoval's belief that Zo'or was not involved was correct.
"I do not understand how you could come to that conclusion, Da'an," Zo'or said then. "It appears obvious that this unknown human - probably a member of the Resistance - was attempting to kill me."
"Why, then, did this assassin use bullets in Seattle, Zo'or?" Da'an countered. "There may be some humans who are not aware that bullets cannot harm us, but both Agent Sandoval and Major Kincaid believe this assassin to be a professional. As such, he must know that bullets would be ineffective."
"I believe Major Kincaid had a theory concerning that," Zo'or said dismissively, turning and sitting down in the command chair.
"He believed that it might have been a warning," Da'an agreed. "But the events of yesterday and today have led us to believe otherwise."
Zo'or turned back to face him, looking impatient. "And what is this theory that you and Agent Sandoval have come up with?" he said, a touch of scorn in his voice.
Da'an was rather surprised at that. When dealing with humans and human behaviour, Zo'or tended to at least listen to Agent Sandoval's suggestions, even if he chose not to follow them. To hear him dismiss Agent Sandoval's ideas that way...
It was... disturbing.
Nonetheless, he forged ahead. "We believe that the target may be Major Kincaid," he said. "There was an incident this morning - a car attempted to run the Major down; a car that had all identifying marks concealed. Combining this attempted... 'hit and run', I believe the human term is... with the earlier use of bullets in Seattle, it becomes increasingly more likely that the assassin is targeting Major Kincaid."
Zo'or looked thoughtful. "It is a possibility," he conceded after a moment's thought. "Have you or Agent Sandoval discussed it with Major Kincaid?"
"Yes," Da'an replied. "Agent Sandoval is currently with the Major; he will be acting as Liam's protector until this is resolved."
Liam hadn't been happy about that, Da'an knew; his Protector had been almost frantic in trying to convince both himself and Agent Sandoval that it was not a wise idea. And under most circumstances, because of Liam's involvement with the Resistance, Da'an would have agreed. But this was not most circumstances; Liam was in danger, and Agent Sandoval was the one most likely to be able to protect him.
Zo'or's expression was unreadable. "I see," he said calmly. "Have they made any further progress in identifying the culprit?"
"I do not know," Da'an replied. "As of this morning, they had not."
Zo'or nodded. "Very well. Thank you for the information, Da'an," he said, and turned the command chair away.
Da'an watched him for a moment or two longer, and then turned back to the view of Earth.
He was worried. A human would have no reason to kill Liam, unless he was a supporter of the Taelons who knew of Liam's ties to the Resistance. Even then, the most likely course of action would be to inform the Taelons, not attempt to kill Liam himself - and certainly not in a way that threatened Zo'or. It made no sense.
And he was concerned for Liam. Yes, they had their differences; but they believed in the same goals. And although the Hartley twins had proven that it was possible to create Human/Taelon hybrids who possessed shaqarava, Da'an still felt that Liam was the best hope for both their species.
Da'an put one hand against the window as he turned his attention to the view. He could only hope that Liam and Agent Sandoval managed to identify this man quickly, before he attempted once again to kill Liam.
"You recognize him, don't you," Renee said, as soon as she had closed the door to his office.
Doors looked up from the screen he'd been staring at. "What makes you say that?" he demanded.
"Oh, come on, Jonathan, don't give me that," Renee returned, sitting down opposite him. "The very fact that you asked me up here to discuss it says that; and even if it didn't, I told you his face looks familiar. I've seen him somewhere before - somewhere with you."
Doors sighed. "You're right," he admitted reluctantly, after a moment. "You have seen him with me before."
"So who is he?"
Doors took a deep breath, and then turned his screen so that Renee could read the information on it.
There was a pause, and then...
"Oh, my God..." Renee breathed.
Doors nodded in agreement.
"He's after Liam, you know."
Doors stared at her. "What?" he demanded. "What do you mean, he's after Liam? He's been trying to kill Zo'or."
Renee shook her head. "According to what Augur told me, Da'an and Sandoval are pretty convinced that Liam's the target, not Zo'or. And Augur thinks that they're right."
"But why would he be after Liam, damn it?" Doors demanded.
Renee shrugged. "For the same reason we'd both like to see Sandoval dead?" she suggested. "After all, as far as the world at large is concerned, Liam is a Companion-Protector.
"Oh, and speaking of Companion-Protectors - and Liam and Sandoval in particular," she added hurriedly, "we've got another problem to deal with."
Sandoval stared at the screen in frustration.
He'd just spent almost an hour going through all the Embassy's secured files, and had found no mention whatsoever of his son.
There had been a great deal about the hybrid project, from the preliminary notes and observations of the Hartley twins to the discovery of the babies and results of the tests that were being carried out at the moonbase... but there was nothing there that Sandoval didn't already know about.
Leaning back in the chair, he sighed. Because of Da'an's interruption and the revelation that Kincaid was most likely the real target of the assassin, he hadn't had a chance to investigate the mothership's mainframe - but then he'd thought about it, and realized that any records of the project would probably be stored at the Embassy. It had been Da'an's project, after all. But neither his access codes nor Zo'or's energy signature - which he'd made very careful use of - had revealed any hidden files about the project.
About his son.
Closing his eyes, Sandoval took a deep breath. It was still hard for him to believe that he had a son, although the fact that he was still alive was definitely proof; and, as he'd said to Dr. Curzon this morning - Was it only this morning? he thought with a touch of disbelief. It feels like it's been days since then... - the fact that his son was apparently a hybrid was a huge shock.
He'd left the pictures at home - the last thing he wanted was to call attention to them - but he could see them perfectly in his mind's eye thanks to his CVI.
How old is he really? Sandoval wondered. The hybrid babies on the moonbase appeared to be - physically - about 1-1/2 years old right now, although they were actually only a few months old. Had his son aged the same way? If so, how old had he really been when the second photo had been taken? And how old did he appear to be now?
Opening his eyes, he looked at the screen again. Nothing had changed.
He was just about to try linking up to the mothership's mainframe when the door of the office opened and Kincaid poked his head in.
"Sandoval..."
"Is Lieutenant Dietz here?" Sandoval asked.
Kincaid shook his head. "No, not yet; but I've just received some information that I think you should know about."
"Oh?" Sandoval inquired.
Kincaid nodded as he came into the office. "I just got a call from one of my contacts," he explained. "He did some digging, and, well... he managed to find out a few things."
Sandoval's eyes narrowed as he studied the Major. Kincaid didn't look overly pleased with the news he was delivering.
"What sort of things, Major?" he demanded.
Kincaid took a deep breath and then let it out in a sigh. "The material - it's called vaile - is the project of someone at Doors International. He wasn't able to find out who. From the information he managed to acquire, a large quantity of it was stolen five days ago."
"Doors International?" Sandoval commented thoughtfully. This was an interesting development.
Of course, he'd also be interested in knowing exactly how long Major Kincaid had been aware of this information.
Kincaid nodded. "Yes. The good news is that the protection it provides from Taelon sensors is strictly temporary. According to what he told me, if you know what you're looking for, a shuttle's sensors can penetrate it in less than ten minutes. It's apparently a side-effect of whatever the original research was about."
"A side-effect," Sandoval repeated. He didn't believe that for a moment; not with Jonathan Doors involved. He couldn't help but wonder if Kincaid really thought that he would be fooled by that.
Kincaid nodded again. "I don't know what the original research was on; that information wasn't included either. But I've got the technical information here," he held up a small disk, "including how to defeat it. If he attacks again, it will still take the sensors a few minutes to penetrate the vaile; but if we can keep him contained that long, we'll have him."
"Good," Sandoval said, plucking the disk from Kincaid's hand. He studied it for a moment, and then looked back up at the Major. "As soon as we finish with Lieutenant Dietz, Major, I think we need to pay a visit to Ms. Palmer and Mr. Doors."
"All right," Kincaid agreed, and Sandoval was surprised to see a faint hint of satisfaction in his expression.
Interesting...
Just then, Sandoval's global beeped. Opening it, he saw Captain Jardine. "Yes, Captain?"
"Sir, I'm on my way with Lieutenant Dietz. We should be arriving at the Embassy within the next fifteen minutes."
"Good." Closing his global, Sandoval looked at Kincaid. "You heard, Major?"
Kincaid nodded. "How are we going to handle this?" he asked.
"I'll ask the questions," Sandoval replied. "You listen - and watch her carefully. As I said, I don't believe she is involved; but I may be wrong."
Liam leaned back in his chair and watched Sandoval pace around as they waited for Captain Jardine and Lt. Dietz. He wondered if his father even realized what he was doing - the pacing was a nervous habit from before Sandoval had been implanted. He knew about it from Sandoval's memories, but he'd never seen his father do it before. Not even when Zo'or was in a bad mood.
But then, he'd been seeing a lot of uncharacteristic behaviour from Sandoval over the past three days. All the concern his father had been showing... it was strange.
And yet, Liam had to admit to himself that he'd been soaking it up. It seemed to indicate that Sandoval was starting to consider him a bit more than just a very annoying colleague. And being friends was definitely better than nothing.
He absently rubbed his left palm with his thumb as Sandoval continued pacing.
Despite what both Renee and Sandoval seemed to think, he didn't expect Sandoval to actually believe the story about the vaile's effects. But Liam had the definite feeling that Sandoval would act as though he believed it, and that was all that was needed. He only hoped that Renee could come up with something that was at least plausible - after all, they were going to have to provide an explanation for the Taelons.
Renee...
He was going to have trouble with her. He just knew it. She was furious about Sandoval being told, and Doors was only going to be worse. But, for the most part, the situation they were in was one of their own making. If they had bothered to tell him about the vaile before any of this had happened...
He sighed softly. If only, he thought ruefully. Turn all the 'ifs' into gold, and we'd all be millionaires - right, Mother?
His thoughts were interrupted as Lt. Dietz appeared in the entrance to the room. He sat up, straightening in his chair.
"Agent Sandoval, Major," she said, saluting. "You wanted to see me, sirs?"
Sandoval stopped pacing and turned to face her. "That's right, Lieutenant. I have some questions for you about the incident on Wednesday."
"Yes, sir."
"You told me that you conducted a physical search of the hospital and surrounding area before Major Kincaid, Zo'or and Da'an arrived, correct?"
"Yes, sir, that's correct," Lt. Dietz replied.
"How long before they arrived was the search completed?"
"Approximately ten to fifteen minutes, sir."
Sandoval walked toward her. "And what area did you search?" he demanded.
"Me personally, sir?" Lt. Dietz asked. When Sandoval nodded, she replied, "The roof of the hospital and the top two floors, sir. Sergeant Nicholls assisted me in that."
"And did you see any sign - any sign at all - of the sniper, Lieutenant?"
"No, sir!" Lt. Dietz replied sharply.
Liam watched as Sandoval nodded and started to circle around behind the Lieutenant; it was an interrogation technique his father tended to use when he was suspicious of something - or when he wanted to intimidate. And it was intimidating; Liam could testify to that from personal experience.
"And what did you do when Major Kincaid ordered another sweep, Lieutenant?" Sandoval demanded.
Lt. Dietz was starting to look a bit nervous now. "I... I ordered a sensor sweep, sir," she replied.
"Just a sensor sweep?"
"Yes, sir," the Lieutenant replied, swallowing.
"And why was that, Lieutenant? Why didn't you order another physical search as well?"
Lt. Dietz took a deep breath. "I didn't feel it was necessary, sir," she replied. "After all, the sensors were active; they should have detected anything unusual. A sensor sweep should have been sufficient, and the ceremony was due to start in less than ten minutes. There wouldn't have been enough time to conduct a thorough physical search in any event. And we would not have reached the roof before the sniper fired."
Judging from the look on his father's face, Sandoval wasn't too pleased with her answer. Lt. Dietz was trying to justify herself; not something Sandoval - or Liam, for that matter - approved of.
"I don't believe I asked you whether you would have been able to find the sniper, Lieutenant," Sandoval said coolly from directly behind her. "My question was why you didn't order a physical sweep."
"Because the sensor sweep should have been sufficient, sir," Lt. Dietz repeated.
"And yet, Major Kincaid ordered a full security sweep, Lieutenant. It was not up to you to determine what was or was not sufficient."
The Lieutenant stiffened. "Yes, sir," she said, her tone flat.
"Disobedience of a senior officer is a very serious matter, Lieutenant," Sandoval continued, coming around to face her. "Disobedience of a Companion-Protector, when dealing with issues of Companion Security, is even more so. And in this instance... your negligence may have resulted in the sniper escaping."
"I understand, sir."
"Good," Sandoval declared. "I will be raising this matter with your immediate superior; he will decide on the appropriate discipline.
"You are dismissed, Lieutenant."
Lieutenant Dietz saluted them both, then turned on her heel and marched out.
"I think you're right, that she isn't involved," Liam said after a minute, leaning back again. "Yes, she may have been in the wrong about doing the second physical sweep, but her reasoning was sound."
"I agree," Sandoval said, and sighed. "As I said, we'll let her superior - Captain Masters, I believe it is - deal with the matter of her disobedience of your orders. I'm sure he'll be able to come up with a suitable form of discipline." He looked at Liam. "For the moment, I believe that we have a visit to make - to Doors International."
Liam nodded, standing up. Doors was going to have a fit.
Remembering earlier this morning, he couldn't help the faint grin that crossed his face. If this entire situation hadn't been so serious, he would be really looking forward to the coming confrontation between his father and Doors. They really didn't like each other.
But it was serious - deadly serious, he thought, the grin disappearing as he followed Sandoval out of the office. And if Da'an and Sandoval were right... he was the one for whom it could become deadly.
It wasn't a pleasant thought.
Andrew frowned as he studied the picture on his screen. This couldn't be right!
Pulling the main file up again, he stared at it, and then switched back to the picture.
Shaking his head, he leaned back in his chair. "This is weird. Really, really weird," he muttered. "It doesn't make any sense!"
He stared at the screen for a moment longer, and then sat forward. He was going to get to the bottom of this, no matter what.
Looking at the picture again, Andrew shook his head slowly. "Looks like your Major Kincaid is hiding even more than you thought, Ron..."
Sandoval sauntered into Jonathan Doors' office, followed by Major Kincaid, and smiled grimly when he saw Doors and Palmer both waiting for them - Doors sitting at his desk, and Palmer leaning against the wall behind him - presenting a unified front that was, for once, not going to work. He and Kincaid were in the right here, and everyone in this meeting knew it.
He was mildly surprised at how it felt to go into this confrontation secure in the knowledge that he had Kincaid's full support; Resistance ties or not, Kincaid was upset with both Doors and Palmer - his actions made that obvious. It felt good to be working together for a common goal.
"Agent Sandoval," Doors said, standing up - he appeared to be pleased, but Sandoval could tell that he was faking it. "Major... I was just about to call you."
Well. That was a surprise. Assuming it was true, of course.
"Oh?" Sandoval inquired.
"Please, sit down," Doors continued, gesturing to the chairs in front of his desk. Sandoval thought for a moment and then sat, but Kincaid ignored the other chair and walked over to the window, peering out.
Sandoval frowned. Was Kincaid determined to ignore all security precautions? "Major..."
When the younger man turned to face him, Sandoval gestured pointedly at the chair. Kincaid hesitated for a moment, glancing back at the window; then seemed to remember that he was the target of an assassin and, assuming a chastened expression, he obediently walked over and sat down.
Sandoval, satisfied, turned back to Doors. "You were just about to call us?" he repeated.
"Yes." Doors sat down and leaned forward. "It seems that one of the high-security labs was broken into a few days ago, and the project currently in development in that lab was stolen."
Interesting... Sandoval thought, surprised. He hadn't expected Doors to introduce the subject of the stolen material. Let's see where he goes with this... "What sort of project was this?"
"The scientist involved was working on developing a cloth that appeared almost like virtual glass," Doors replied. "It started out as being a minor project for him - fashion design is a hobby of his - but when it was discovered that he had created something with very unusual properties, we had it moved to the high-security section."
"Unusual properties?" Sandoval questioned.
"Yes," Renee Palmer answered, frowning. Sandoval had no doubt that she hated having to tell him this; from what he'd seen of the information Kincaid had given him, this material could prove to be a huge boon to the Resistance. "Some part of the process he used to create the cloth provided it with the ability to block Taelon sensor scans. At the moment, we still don't know how he did it."
"I see," Sandoval said slowly. "Are you certain this is not what the scientist intended from the beginning?" The implication was quite clear to everyone present.
Doors looked indignant at the question, but Sandoval ignored the obviously false emotion. Doors wasn't fooling him in the slightest; this was very obviously an act put on for his benefit.
"Of course I'm certain!" Doors snapped. "I've broken my ties to the Resistance, Agent Sandoval."
Considering the fact that his CEO was heavily involved in the Resistance, Sandoval didn't believe that for a minute. But he didn't let it show. "And why were the Taelons not informed of the development of this material?" he demanded.
Doors sighed. "Because, as Ms. Palmer said, we have no idea how it happened. We wanted to investigate the process first, so that we could give Zo'or a more complete report."
Sandoval didn't believe that either, but hopefully Zo'or wouldn't be as suspicious as he was.
Then Kincaid leaned forward in his chair - most likely trying to get them off the topic of why they'd kept the material a secret. "You said it was stolen? By whom?"
"I have no idea of the person's identity, Major Kincaid, but we did manage to capture him on a hidden security camera. Ms. Palmer?" Doors added, gesturing to her.
Palmer turned the computer screen so that it was facing them and pushed a button on the keyboard, and an image appeared.
The man shown on the screen appeared to be tall - although it was hard to say, because the camera had caught him at an angle - with thinning blond hair, a lean frame, and dark eyes. It was a familiar face, though Sandoval couldn't say exactly who it belonged to - familiar in a very disturbing way.
Then he noticed the date-stamp in the corner of the image, and frowned. "Ms. Palmer, this occurred on Monday. Why are you informing us only now?"
"Because we only just found out," Palmer said irritably. "Whoever this guy is, he managed to evade all of our security systems. The only reason we even have this image is because I've taken the precaution of installing hidden cameras into our high-security labs; cameras that only Mr. Doors and I know about. As a result, we didn't know that anything had happened until Dr. Morneaux came back from his vacation yesterday morning and discovered that his lab had been broken into during his absence. I wanted to have at least a bit more information than that to give you, so I've spent the past twenty-five hours going through all of our security records."
"I see..." Sandoval said thoughtfully. "We'll need a copy of this picture."
"Of course," Doors said.
At Sandoval's nod, Kincaid took out his global and downloaded the image from the screen.
Sandoval looked at Palmer and studied her narrowly for a moment before continuing. "Does this material have any weaknesses?"
"Weaknesses?" Palmer repeated.
"Yes. You said it can block Taelon sensor scans - for how long? Is there any way to defeat it?"
There was a pause, and then Doors picked up a small disk and handed it to him. "Here," Doors said coolly. "This contains the information you need."
Sandoval took it and stood up. "Thank you, Mr. Doors," he said politely. "Major..."
Doors watched as Liam gave himself and Renee a nod before following Agent Sandoval out of the office. His eyes narrowed in anger. "Get Dr. Morneaux up here," he ordered Renee. "I want him moved to the Arctic facility immediately."
Renee nodded in agreement. "What about our intruder?" she asked, gesturing to the screen. "What are we going to do about him?"
"Let Liam and Sandoval deal with him," Doors snapped. Right now, he didn't really give a damn if the alien brat got himself killed. "They want him, they can have him.
"Now, I want to see Dr. Morneaux; we've got to get him out of here before Sandoval decides to start probing further."
Renee nodded and left the office.
Doors sat back in his chair and looked at his computer screen for a minute. Shaking his head, he spoke to the screen. "Well, you've really gone and done it now."
"I have that list for you, Augur," Holo-Lorna said suddenly, interrupting Augur just as he was about to start eating his lunch - a proper lunch, not the sandwich he'd grabbed earlier.
With a sigh, Augur put his fork back down and walked over to his computer. "All right, what does it say?"
"You're not going to like this, Augur," the hologram said, shaking her head.
"Just give me the list," he ordered.
A list of names appeared on the screen in front of him. Scanning down, he frowned slightly as he saw that the bottom name was blinking. "What's that?" he demanded, pointing to it.
"That particular person has tripped the flag you set up on Major Kincaid's military record," Holo-Lorna informed him. "The access was dated 1230 hours today."
Augur looked up at her in surprise. "That was two and a half hours ago!" he exclaimed. "Why didn't you let me know when it happened?"
"You were busy at the time," Holo-Lorna replied calmly. "As well, it took me over an hour to trace the access back to its source."
"Which was...?" Augur prodded.
"The FBI computer lab at Quantico," came the reply. "The same source also accessed Major Kincaid's public records yesterday."
"Are there any other sources who have accessed both?" Augur demanded. FBI... that could mean a great deal of trouble for Liam.
"Three," the hologram replied. "Agent Ronald Sandoval of the FBI, Lieutenant Colonel Gary McKenna of the US Army Rangers, and one other that I am currently in the process of tracing."
Augur nodded slowly. "Listen, I want everything we can get on both Lieutenant Colonel McKenna and this," he peered at the screen, "this Andrew Patterson. And as soon as you find out the identity of the other person, on them too," he ordered.
"Right," Holo-Lorna replied. "Beginning search now."
Augur returned to his lunch, but he was too distracted to get much enjoyment from it.
I have a bad feeling about this... Sandoval, the FBI, and the Army... What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into now, Liam?