Read Online The Independent Worlds (The Sixteen Galaxies Book 2) by William Drayman - Free Book Online Page B

minutes before Jack spoke again. “I was used, Ron. They told me my targets were terrorists. Some of them were, I guess. Others were most definitely not. The department abused my trust and made me a murderer of innocent people. I’ll never trust anyone again.”
    “You sound like my ex-wife.”
    Jack turned to regard the American. “I didn’t know you were married.”
    Ron shrugged. “Once; it ended five years ago. Rosie was a damned fine woman, too. Put up with my job like it was nothing at all. Never complained, not once. Always happy with whatever time I could give her. It was a great time for me, the best of times, especially at home.” His brow furrowed. “Until I got sent on an op that required me to pose as another agent’s husband. We had to share a room. Long days, lots of tension, both of us over-tired.” He sighed. “Put in that situation, it was inevitable, I guess. When I got home, I told Rosie immediately.” He turned to Jack. “I’ve done my share of interrogation over the years. Put a lot of pain on a lot of people and never missed a wink of sleep. But I’d never hurt someone like that before. It crushed her to her very soul. I held her while she cried. It was the worst feeling I’ve ever known.”
    “Must have been tough,” Jack said.
    “Toughest time I’ve ever been through, my friend. Anyway, she asked me to do her one last favor. She said that, if I stayed, every time I went out the front door to work, she’d worry. She could never trust me again. So, she asked me to walk out that door there and then; and never come back.”
    “Damn. What’d you do?”
    “Exactly what she asked me to do. I figured it was the least I owed her. We stayed in touch, had the occasional coffee together. She remarried in the end; nice guy, desk jockey in a finance company. But, she told me once, she’d never trust him, not completely.” He drew a deep sigh. “Not like she’d trusted me.”
    Jack peered closely at Ron. “Why are you telling me all this?”
    Ron put a hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Rosie trusted me completely, and I drove a truck through that trust. She will never put faith in anyone like that again. But, she married another guy anyway, and she’ll do the best she can. These guys need you, Jack. They have faith in you to do the best you can. Surely you can see they’re not like the people you used to work for. Maybe you never will trust them completely, but perhaps you don’t need to, to get the job done.”
    Ron patted Jack’s shoulder and walked across the viewport deck. He wandered off up a hallway, his mind lost in the past. Jack watched him go and shook his head. He turned his gaze back to the breathtaking view outside. It didn’t cheer him up at all.
    *****
    Granfield & Porter press conference, New York City
    Carter Granfield stepped up to the dais amid camera lights and flashes. He set his notes up and smiled into the lenses. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m proud to announce that Granfield and Porter have completed prototype testing of a new data transfer system that will change the way we see computers today.” He held a small machined steel cube aloft. “I proudly present the G&P Quantum Transit Cube, or Cutie Cube, as our lab boys call it. This little device offers an exponential increase in the speed at which data can be transferred, both from one computer component to another, and also between computers. In other words, this device will usher in a new information age; the Quantum Internet Network.”
    He held the device out for the cameras. “Like so many other researchers around the world, we here at G&P have been dedicated to the development of quantum computing for quite some time. But, just like everyone else, we have had no luck in getting this technology much past the theoretical state; until now. Naturally, the details of this device will remain our secret, but what this machine can do, I am happy to tell you all about, right now.”
    He turned and nodded to an