It's Hell To Choose (The Kurtherian Gambit Book 9) (2 page)

Penn answered, “Marcus, you are off my Christmas list this year.” Marcus made a hurt face. “So, is there a reason we need to hide a hundred containers up here?”

This time, it was William who spoke. “Yeah, we need to get some of this off Earth. We should have enough people to help out. Well, twenty or so, to put up there and ADAM is picking up chatter that we have some potential sticky-finger suggestions going on. Like major power players wanting to see what’s up. Easier to move the candy jar than teaching the child he or she shouldn’t get grabby.”

Penn could feel three of his team come up behind him and the three faces on his screen turned to those people over his shoulder.
 
“Hey guys!” Bobcat said, “Want some company?”

Bree responded, “Will you bring more coffee in one of them?”

“Coffee?” Marcus answered, “We just sent you twenty kilograms in a pod a couple of days ago.”

“She’s a hoarder of the stuff,” Coach quipped. “She stores half and then eyes everyone who looks like they are putting too much into the pot.”

Bree slugged Coach, “I’m not hoarding, you poor excuse for a coffee snob. I’m making sure that the coffee is kept fresh!”

The three men on the video watched the two verbally spar. Coach turned slightly towards the barista, “Those are vacuum sealed containers that you are keeping, might I add, in vacuum!”

Bree sniffed, “No rats.”

ReaLea was smiling at the two of them, a glint in her eye.

“How the hell,” Coach began, “are rats going to get up here?”

“Is it completely impossible, one hundred percent, that there are no rats in any of these containers?” She asked magnanimously.

Coach’s mouth turned down into a slight frown, “It approaches it!”

“But, it ISN’T one hundred percent!” Her eyes stretched wide, “And where am I going to be if the precious stash of coffee is ruined? It isn’t like there is a Starbucks around the corner out here!”

“It isn’t like we can’t send up another pod,” Marcus began only to have Bree turn to the monitor and stick a finger out at him.

“If I wanted your take on how to help me with my post-apocalyptic coffee plan, I would have told you what to say.” She turned back to Coach ready to start again.

William leaned towards Marcus, “That lady needs her caffeine, I think.”

Marcus nodded his head, too shocked to say anything.

Bobcat was beginning to understand how Jeffrey felt when the three of them wouldn't calm down. He looked at Penn, who shrugged in response.

ReaLea piped in from behind Penn, “Why don’t we put them together up at L2?”

“What?” asked Bree, momentarily pulled from her coffee conversation with Coach.

“That’s a good suggestion,” agreed Marcus. “We can use the mitigated gravity situation at L2 and start creating a temporary space station with the containers.”

“That’s not a small moon,” quipped Bobcat.

“It’s a hundred cargo containers all jacked together,” finished William. “I think we need to consider how best to connect them together, using the existing brackets. Jeffrey wants them gone post-haste.”

“Do they all have to be connected right now?” asked Penn.

“No,” answered Bobcat, “but as soon as we have everything, we are delivering to you the first eighty. The following twenty will be along soon.”

“When should we expect the first eighty?” Penn asked.

Bobcat looked over his shoulder to Marcus and raised an eyebrow. Marcus grimaced, “Like you don’t already know the answer.” Marcus looked at the screen and smiled, “In about half an hour or so.”

That caused all four of the Moon-Base-One team listening in to stare at the screen like prospective parents who had just been told they were expecting quintuplets.

Bree whispered into the silence, “I’ll get the coffee.”

New York City, NY - USA

“I’m telling you; they have to have technology that they unquestionably need to provide to the world!” Johann Pecora spoke to the assembled men and women in a sub-assembly for the Advancement of the Human Race. While it was a very auspicious sounding name, it held a group of individuals who focused on the advancement of a select group of companies -- Their members.

“This group, this TQB Enterprises, must have even more technologies if they can move shipping containers to the moon!” Johann continued.

The room held sixteen people. This room was in the basement of the Waldorf-Astoria. They used it whenever they needed to step away from the United Nations and meet offsite. It wouldn’t be odd for any of them to have a meeting here individually, so the choice of location was not something that would raise any red flags.

Sixteen nations were represented in the group. These representatives were connected to some of the most powerful, or most influential, countries in the world. None of these people had direct personal power, but acted as behind-the-scene movers and shakers focused on the interests of their respective countries.

“And how,” Ms. Stephanie Lee asked, “do you intend to encourage them to supply what technologies they have?”

Johann considered the question.
 
“What leverage do we hold?” he asked. “It isn’t like this is the first time we have come up against an entity which wasn’t already a member.”

“That,” Eugene Guarran said, “might be true. However, we have never tried to go against this group.”

Johann waved that away, “So what? We represent the combined might of twenty-two percent of the gross national product of the sixteen top countries in the world and their allies.” He took a breath but Eugene cut him off.

“Did you do research on TQB?” he asked, “Just curious.”

Johann shrugged, “I’ll admit I did not. I’ve had issues settling down three congressmen and one highly upset senator this weekend. I know that part of our ability to stay relevant in the short term for two of our requested projects is going to be dependent on our ability to, um, acquire access to this technology.” He finished lamely.

Anna Elisabeth Hauser interjected, “I will provide some information, and only this much.” All heads turned to the representative of the most secretive member of the group. “Because it will be on pain of death if I am ever found out to have spoken this truth. Is this understood?”

The light-skinned lady with the long blond hair looked into each eye to make sure she got a head nod. She didn’t expect any of them to listen to her, but she had to try. In her country, there were whispers about a shadowy group in the highest areas of power. She had a glimpse of the elusive leader of TQB Enterprises and hadn’t been able to shake the feeling she had seen the lady before.

At three o’clock this morning, she had bolted up in bed and hurried to put on a housecoat. She made a special, secure request to confirm the facts of an incident which had happened years before in her country.

Anna Elisabeth had sought information on a bank heist. Not a successful one, but a crime where the criminals had been captured, but nobody knew how it had been stopped. The bank videotapes had mysteriously been erased. Yet, no one had ever been brought up on charges for failing to supply the police with the evidence.

She had seen a picture of a woman leaving with a hat shading her face. It was the jawline that she remembered. Poised, it was confident, it was determined.

Her name had been on the list of those interviewed.

There could only be one answer to this question, and it scared Anna Elisabeth beyond reason. She had discounted these rumors ever since she had heard them back in her country. She had risen to this level of responsibility because she didn’t scare easily. Oh, she knew the power and strength of respect for those more influential than her, and those more desperate. But that was all aspects of the great game.

Now, this caused her blood to feel like it was turning to ice. It had taken her eighteen years to get into this position, and she was about to throw it away in a futile gesture to warn fifteen others who she had worked with secretly. This conversation was going to be debated for weeks and months, or perhaps, years. If the former, then these idiots were going to ignore her. If the latter, then they will have learned enough to use caution.

Because with some entities, a bigger stick isn’t the answer.

With all eyes on her, she started what she considered her farewell speech.

“There is a group known in our country for over a thousand years; a group that is never addressed. It has been stated that those in power will kill those underneath them if necessary to keep this secret.”

Now she had all of their attention. When you are known for your secrets, it doesn’t take much to keep attention when you admit you are spilling one.

“While I have never heard of such a killing myself, I would not be surprised if it had happened in centuries past. This group has much influence and holds incredible wealth across many countries and in many lands throughout the world. Individually, they each hold controlling interests in many of the economies in my nation and many of yours.”

“Surely you spin a great tale.” Johann interrupted, “If there were still such a secret society, we would know about it!”

Anna Elisabeth just stared at Johann. Not only because he was an arrogant prick, but because he compounded that attitude with rudeness. Johann felt that the power of those he represented defined his own authority, never understanding his position as a simple figurehead. Anna Elisabeth had always recognized her similar position and had sought to be the best representative that she could be.

Until now.

She had been able to piece together what had happened at that bank and knew that the rumors, the stories, the whispers were true.

“Sorry,” he finally mumbled.

“I cannot tell you much, but I can inform you that if you choose to do something drastic, then expect severe consequences in response. This group makes the Israelis’ eye-for-an-eye attitude seem plebian.” She looked around the table, “I share this because if TQB Enterprises is in an alliance with these people, then your directors are not safe. Your people are not safe, and I dare say your countries are not safe.”

At this Johann and two others around the table chuckled.

Well, that was the best she could do and still keep her head. “As is my right, rarely employed by my country, I ask for a table vote on whether you intend to acquire TQB Enterprise technology through whatever means necessary?”

 
“Whatever means,” Stephanie said, “Doesn’t always mean force, Anna.”

Anna turned to Stephanie Lee and smiled, “You will not receive the technology any other way from this group. I require a vote right now whether the group will approve using force to acquire this technology.”

In her country, Ms. Lee would be open to being more circumspect to the question. But she had learned in this group, her country’s long history was little understood and even less appreciated. She raised her hand while staring at Anna, “All the way to force.”

Fourteen other hands rose up around her. Anna Elisabeth shrugged and moved her chair back. “Then I wish you the best of luck on your peaceful negotiations.” She picked up her notebook and tablet and pushed her chair back under the table.

“Can you give us any other hints?” Johann asked. She looked over at his face holding a smirk as if she was the little girl at school running from a scary story.

Fuck them all, she thought. She turned her head towards the group as she started for the door, “Yes. Don’t screw with the Archangel.”

She opened the door and stepped through. They could hear the click-clack of her steps on the stone floors as she walked away.

Moon-Base-One

The base had grown from the original seven containers to fifteen. Six of them were double stacks that had been welded together on Earth before transport to the moon. Now, they had twice the space in the three forty-foot-long and sixteen-foot wide rooms.

They helped for get-togethers like this.

“What I’m saying, boss,” Coach stated as he stood up in front of everyone who was watching him try to manipulate two forks. “Is that we plan on connecting everything for five containers long, then one at the side to angle up ninety degrees. Then we use another one positioned at the end, attached to the side. With that second container, we go back the way from which we came. The middle container of the five has a side as well to allow us to connect across at will. BUT, that assumes we have a new type of connector. One that just plugs in and locks through force, no screwing in or twisting to finish. We won’t have the ability to make that turning motion.”