Chapter 2
Velda Shan?ha let Ethan Hyt go ahead as she walked toward Henry Nostrada’s apartment building.
His stride was longer than hers, and she was fine with walking with Pamela Ingot, the Nanganya Head of Protection.
She and Pamela had met numerous times in the past few years, although usually in a group setting, and she had always liked the commander.
“Ethan said that Ferris Harden tried to have Wren Thorakis killed,” Pamela Ingot said as they approached the entrance to Henry Nostrada’s building.
“He did. Along with the last person on planet who can use the Guan Scanner, Ed Zeneri.” Velda shuddered to think what would have happened if that plot had succeeded and both Wren and Ed Zeneri had been murdered.
She and her people would still be blissfully unaware of the massive threat to their planet.
“I know Ed.” Pamela Ingot glanced at her in surprise. “I thought he’d resigned.”
“We managed to persuade him to come back.” And thank goodness they had. The Cores, along with the Caruso, were obviously smuggling something into Aponi, and Ed Zeneri was the only one who could use the tech that could expose what that was.
“What’s going on here, Velda?” Pamela reached the door to the apartment block and opened it, holding it for her to enter. “I can barely believe most of what came out of Ethan’s mouth today.”
Velda stepped through with a nod, noting two Protection Unit officers standing beside the lift with Ethan. They must have been sent ahead.
Except Pamela Ingot was frowning.
“You’re not my officers. Who are you?” Pamela called, hand going to the laz on her hip as she focused on the two men.
Ethan Hyt must have excellent reflexes, because the moment Pamela called out, he did something, and the man closest to him went down hard and the other blinked as Ethan’s laz was suddenly in his face.
Pamela strode forward, and Velda trailed behind her, impressed with them both.
She had been a member of the Protection Unit in Demeter at the start of her career, joining straight out of university, but had ended up moving to the Department of Defense when an opening had come up which needed her technological skill set after only a year.
She’d moved again, ever upward, into a high-level strategic role, still in Defense, and then her three years of government service had come due.
It never failed to amaze her that the only role that was available at the time which had suited her skill set was the Head of Planetary Defense, no less.
She’d taken a long look at the responsibilities, finally agreed, and at the age of 25, she’d stepped into the role.
Three years later, she didn’t regret it.
Unlike the two men currently in restraints. They had a lot of regrets, if she was any judge.
“So, what’s the story?” she asked as she came to a stop beside Ethan. “Cores thugs?”
One of the men on the ground turned his head to look at her, face comically twisted into an expression of outrage.
“Seems not,” Pamela Ingot said, staring down at him. “Are you both Aponi?”
“Yes.” The man’s reply was stiff.
“But, to be clear, they are not part of the Protection Unit?” Ethan asked.
“No.” Pamela Ingot crouched beside them, tugged at the badge on the uniform. “Where did you get these?” she asked. “They’re the real deal.”
“We were told it was a prank,” the one who’d shot Velda an outraged look said. “They said to delay you while they set up a surprise in your apartment.”
“Shit.” Pamela stood and lifted her comm unit. “Possible ambush or explosive,” she said, giving the address.
“Who’s ‘they’?” Ed crouched beside the men. “Are they still in the apartment?”
“It was only one person. We met him at the door,” the other man said. “He paid us, then sent us down. He might have gone out another way while we waited down here, but he told us he was setting up a surprise and went back inside when we left.”
“How long ago was this?” Velda asked.
“About thirty minutes.” The man who’d seemed insulted by the Cores thug comment seemed to be coming to a clear realization that he’d been duped.
“Let’s get out of the building.” Ethan was already lifting one of the men as he spoke, and Pamela hauled the other one to his feet.
“The explosives unit will meet us outside.” Pamela pushed the man toward the door and Velda got ahead of them and opened it for them to go through.
Ethan pushed his man in front of him, and then turned to her. “We need to get back a bit more,” he said. “We’re still too close.”
She nodded, following after Pamela, but looking around for anyone paying them too much attention.
A few bystanders were looking their way, but given the two restrained men, Velda guessed that was normal.
As they cleared the small garden in front of the entrance, an explosion cracked through the air.
It came from above, the boom rattling windows down the street.
Velda felt it in her bones, and then pieces of glass and wall began to rain down on them all.
Ethan shoved the man he’d restrained at Pamela and grabbed her, tucking her against him and bending over her so that his body shielded her own.
“Ethan.” She twisted in his hold to look up at him. “You’re not my bodyguard.” And she didn’t see why he should be hurt instead of her.
His eyes met hers, held there for a moment, and then he blinked and let her go.
The explosives unit chose that moment to arrive, and Velda stood to one side, watching with interest as they leaped from the hover and spread out, looking upward.
She walked toward them, turning to see what damage had been done.
Ethan had gone back to his prisoner, but now he was handing him over to one of Pamela’s people.
He moved back to stand beside her.
“If Nostrada wasn’t already dead, he is now,” she said as she took in the blackened, shattered mess that was the third floor windows of Nostrada’s apartment.
Ethan looked over at her. “He was dead already. I don’t think Ferris would have implicated him if he had any chance of contradicting the crap Ferris was trying to shovel at us.”
She didn’t know why that was a relief, but the idea of Nostrada, someone she’d dealt with often, an administrator who’d worked in her department, being blown up while he was still alive, was not good. He was most likely a traitor, but he’d deserved a fair trial.
“I assume you want to inspect the apartment?” Pamela Ingot joined them.
“Yes.”
Ethan spoke at the same time as she did, so they answered together.
“My people will need at least a few hours to clear the scene. Can you do something else for a while and come back?” Pamela put her hands on her hips and looked upward. “The building will have to be cleared and the structural damage assessed as well.”
“I have other things to keep me busy in the meanwhile,” Velda assured her.
Ethan shot her a quick look. “Like?”
She lifted a brow. “Official things.”
His lips quirked. She almost missed it but she was sure he had suppressed a grin.
“Good.” Pamela pulled out her comms unit as it warbled. “I’ll let you know when we’re done.”
She strode away, and Velda watched her wade into a group of uniformed Protection Unit officers and start issuing orders.
“What are you going to do?” Velda turned to find Ethan checking out the crowd.
He swung his gaze back to hers, held it. “I’m coming with you.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I told you, you’re not my bodyguard.”
He shrugged. “I am now.”