Read Online Freehold by William C. Dietz - Free Book Online Page A

anyway, the agreement wouldn't impose a hardship on the brigade. Stell smiled, remembering the twinkle in Kasten's eyes as he said, “Frankly, Colonel Stell, Austin would do our planet a great service if he'd just stay unconscious a little longer. Without him mucking around I wouldn't have any trouble getting the Senate's approval!”
    Stell's thoughts were interrupted by the buzz of his com-set. Without turning, he said, “Yes?”
    “There's a man here to see you, sir,” Sergeant Wilkens, the headquarters clerk, said disapprovingly. “Says his name is Sam. Won't give any other name, sir.”
    Stell grinned. “Send him up, Sergeant.”
    “Yes, sir,” Wilkens replied reluctantly.
    A few minutes later the door to Stell's office flew open, and a disheveled young man strode in and flopped onto the couch that Wilkens had dredged up from somewhere. “You call this an office?” he said, looking around critically at the dingy walls and shabby furniture. “I've seen Finthian bordellos with more class than this.”
    “Hello to you too, Sam,” Stell said, dropping into a chair and swinging his boots up onto the scarred metal surface of the old campaign desk. “It disturbs me to learn that one of my officers is so familiar with Finthian bordellos ... and a lady officer at that.”
    Captain Samantha Anne Mosley stuck out her tongue at her commanding officer, peeled off the wig she wore, and shook out her medium-length blonde hair. She wasn't especially pretty, but that was an asset in her line of business. The last thing an intelligence officer needs is a memorable face. On the other hand, she wasn't ugly either, kind of cute in fact, something which hadn't escaped Stell's notice. Intelligent brown eyes twinkled under bushy unplucked brows. A nose a shade too large was softened by full, sensuous lips. And Stell knew from personal experience that the male clothing hid a very nice female body.
    “Hello, Mark,” she said. “It's good to see you. Excuse the charade, but this dump isn't a nice place for a defenseless girl to wander around in.” She looked him up and down with the proprietary air of an older sister.
    Stell snorted in disbelief. “Defenseless my ass. You're about as defenseless as a Linthian Rath snake ... but I'm glad you're back, you had me worried.”
    “Why?” she asked with a smile. “You know I'm indestructible.”
    “Yeah,” he said. “I know you think you are, anyway.” For a moment they sat, sharing the comfortable silence of two people who know each other very well. For nearly two years they'd enjoyed a close relationship. Although the love affair had eventually run its course, it ended in an amicable parting of the ways, and they had remained good friends. The relationship made Stell feel guilty sometimes, but he couldn't bear the thought of ending it. He wondered what he'd do if faced with the necessity of sending her on a mission with little chance of survival. He wasn't sure, but he knew she'd hate him for the slightest hint of favoritism, which made him admire her even more, and in turn made the problem worse.
    She pulled out a dopestick and puffed it alight. Stell frowned in disapproval as always and, as always, she ignored him. “You've been busy,” she said waving vaguely toward the outside. “Any connection with my mission?”
    Stell nodded. “Lots. I'm hoping you'll be able to shed some light on the whole thing. But first, I'd better bring you up to date.” Quickly, he reviewed the Zonie attacks, his meeting with Kasten and Roop, and the subsequent attack on brigade HQ. When he finished, Sam stubbed out her dopestick and lit another. As she spoke, her eyes narrowed in concentration.
    “There's a connection all right, although for a while it looked like a standard client recon, and a boring one at that. I landed on Freehold using a deep cover as a sales rep for a small shipping line called Tri-Star. Supposedly, I was looking to set up regular runs to Freehold. First I talked to