Chapter 6 - Making The Deal
Jack stood on a balcony looking out at the massive skyline that stretched to infinity in every direction. The rain did its best to beat down the smog rising from the guts of the city more than a thousand feet below, but it was losing the battle. More noxious fumes made their way slowly up through the forest of metal than before the rain began its attempt to wash the stench away. Jack doubted if forty days and forty nights of rain would begin to make a dent in the wretchedness of this city.
How can they all live like this? he asked himself, trying to imagine the lives that inhabited the windows of the towers around him. He was glad he couldn't see into them. He knew it would only depress him.
A soft crack of thunder sounded in the distance. Jack looked up trying to watch for lightning, but unless a bolt struck nearby he didn't think he'd see it. The rain and clouds brought a darkness that flowed out from the horizon and over the city, encasing it in a cocoon of gloom. Once the rain passed, the corrupt beast that was Antenora would emerge to once again buy and sell things never meant to have a price attached to them.
He feared if he remained much longer he'd suffocate in it... or worse, get used to it... or worse still, thrive in it.
He'd already gotten used to the stench of urine and burnt rubber that seemed to be everywhere and even more so up this high above the streets. If he could get used to that, what else might he accept?
The room they had gotten was dirty and infested with some sort of small insect that Hank assured him was harmless, but Jack thought it best to stay on the balcony as much as possible. Hank seemed more upset with the small size of the bedrooms than the bug problem. He told Jack they could have a room better than the finest luxury hotels in the Federation nearer to the Exchange, but too many eyes and ears kept tabs on people in those places. Hank liked more out of the way establishments.
Establishment, hell, Jack thought. This is a damn dump.
Hank walked out onto the balcony eating a plate full of green globs. "You want some?" he asked, holding up a spoonful of the slimy substance for Jack.
"No," Jack whispered with a frown. The consistency of the globs was about the same as that of soggy, milk drenched cereal. "What is it?"
"Hanoric eggs."
"What's a hanoric?" Jack inquired, though he really didn't care.
"Hell if I know," Hank said, forcing more of the runny substance into his mouth.
Jack rolled his eyes and turned back to the city.
"Look, Jack," Hank began. "I'm sorry about earlier."
Jack thought it best to say nothing since he was certain with his luck he'd just make it worse… again.
"I thought maybe we'd get some sort of line on Mei from Cherufe," Hank said. "That was the second dead end of the day and I guess the frustration got to me."
"No," Jack finally said. "I jumped to conclusions and put us both at risk. You're trying to help me find my wife and father and all I can seem to do is make things more difficult."
"You have been a help, Jack. Really."
Jack shook his head, thinking Hank was saying it just to make them both feel better. "I owe you for this one, Hank. And I'm going to owe you for the rest of my life… no matter how it turns out."
Hank smiled and nodded. "Just wait until you get my bill, kid."
Jack forced a grin.
"How about we go get a drink?" Hank asked.
"A drink?"
"I know just the place."
***
"You sure that girl didn't know anything about Mei?" Jack asked as he and Hank Evans sat in a dimly lit bar at a six foot wide table whose top glowed brightly.
"She hadn't seen her at the auction," Hank said taking a drink from a tall glass of red liquid. "If they were going to sell Mei, that's the auction she'd have been at."
Jack took a sip from his own glass, frustrated they didn't have any leads at this point, but pleased this particular direction had gotten them nowhere.
"How does this society function?" Jack asked. "Is everything for sale here?"
"I haven't found anything yet that wasn't," Hank responded as a young eight foot tall, bald Kel-j'na woman, wearing little more than a towel around her waist, walked up to their table and smiled.
"I'm Nilsuna," she said as Hank and Jack watched her step up onto the table. A few moments later loud music started playing in the bar and Nilsuna began dancing.
"For crying out loud," Jack said, turning to Hank.
"Hey," Hank replied. "This is the entertainment."
Jack rolled his eyes and did his best not to look up at the blue skinned woman as her body swayed back and forth.
"You like her?" Hank asked. "I can loan you some money if you'd..."
"I'm here looking for my wife, remember?" Jack said. He took another sip of his drink. But one thing still bothered him. "If I hadn't mouthed off, you were still planning on setting that girl free weren't you?"
Hank turned slowly to him and just stared.
"I take it that means yes," Jack said, hoping he was right.
Hank continued staring until Jack looked away. He then let a slight grin come to his face.
Several more people entered the already crowded bar and Hank made mental note of each one. He tapped Jack on the shoulder. "Take a look at the woman over talking to the bartender."
Jack rolled his eyes. "No thanks."
"Not for sex," Hank said. "She may have information we might find useful."
Jack slowly swiveled around to see a tall, short haired woman speaking to the barkeep in hushed tones. Jack caught a glimpse of her face and outside of himself and Hank, she was the most human-looking person he'd seen in days.
She wore what appeared to be a tight leather suit, but...
As his eyes traveled down her slender body Jack saw that from mid-thigh down, her legs were replaced by mechanical limbs that gleamed in some parts, but in others seemed to have almost rusted over.
"Who is she?" Jack asked.
"Her name's Befana," Hank replied under his breath. "She's got people infiltrated into most of the major business interests on this planet."
"Why didn't we just find her when we first got here?"
"She's not easy to track down," Hank told him. "She's off world most weeks out of the month. She's based on Xalbu, a world about a hundred and seventy light years from here."
Jack watched her as she began to laugh at something the bartender said. "Do you really think she'll know something?" Jack asked.
"Mei's comm badge was here which means either she was brought here at some point or someone who had something to do with the attack on the Balthazar came here," Hank said. "Either way, my guess is, Befana knows something about it."
Jack turned to Hank. "How do you want to play it?"
Hank grinned. "I think we'll try it your way this time."
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"You go talk to her."
Jack thought a moment, then smiled. "Okay." He stood from their table and walked over to where Befana stood.
Hank shook his head and finished his drink.
Jack strolled up next to Befana and gave her a quick smile. "Hello," he said to her.
"Hello," she responded with a sultry voice.
"My name's Jack."
"Hello, Jack."
He asked the bartender for another drink. "You let me buy you another of what you're having?"
She looked at him a moment. "Did you really come up here to buy me a drink?"
"Not really, no," he said as the bartender gave him a new glass.
"Then why don't you get to the point," Befana said. "I'm busy."
"Can we go somewhere a little quieter to talk?"
"We can go to the office in back."
She immediately headed toward the back of the bar leaving Jack to follow.
In the alley behind the bar, Jack McCall sailed out the door and crashed into a set of large metal boxes covered in dirt and grime. He hit the ground hard, but did his best to get up.
"All I want to do is talk," he said as Befana stepped out into the alley.
"Right," she said as she picked him up by the collar and tossed him farther down the narrow alley. Her metal feet clanked each time she took a step, nearing the new place Jack had landed. "How long have you been following me?" she demanded as she grabbed him again.
"I haven't!" Jack shouted as he reached for his weapon.
Befana smiled. "Wrong move."
She threw him up against a wall, knocking the weapon out of his hand. She held him in place as she gently brought her metal right foot down on his left foot.
"Last chance," she said. "Who are you?"
"My name is Jack McCall," he said as she applied pressure with her foot. "I'm here searching for my father and my wife..."
Jack howled in pain as she pressed down with vise-like pressure on his foot.
"And why don't I believe that?" she asked.
"Because you were never a very trusting person," Hank's voice said from behind them.
Befana quickly pulled a weapon and tried to point it at Hank, but she was just a millisecond too slow. His own weapon now pointed at her head.
"Too bad the arms aren't mechanical too," Hank said as he took her gun. "You might have beat me to it this time."
Befana frowned and looked at Jack. "You're with him?"
Jack nodded. "Yeah."
She released Jack who slid down to the pavement. More than hurt, now he was angry. This planet seemed to have it out for him no matter which way he turned.
Befana stepped back as Hank walked up next to her. "How you been Evans?"
"Not too bad," he answered.
"I hear you owe Trulfulsa and Galfalda a lot of money for a holographic system," she said.
"I heard that too," Hank replied.
"What's this?" she asked pointing to Jack.
"Captain Jack McCall," Hank said. "Commander of the Federation starship Chamberlain."
"A starship captain?" she chuckled. "I would have figured him for someone who kept herds of large grazing animals."
Hank looked down at Jack. "He does have kind of a farmer look to him, doesn't he?"
"Very funny!" Jack yelled. "Why didn't you talk to her instead of sending me?"
"Because I wanted to see if anyone else in the bar would follow you out," Hank responded. "For now, I want to avoid the wrong kind of attention."
Befana offered her hand to Jack. "Sorry about a minute ago, Jack," she said with a smile, helping him to his feet. "You don't survive on Antenora unless you're careful."
Jack forced a grin across his face. "That's okay," he said in a jovial tone.
"You seem to still be in one piece," she stated.
He nodded.
Jack suddenly swung his fist, landing a solid punch to her jaw. Unprepared, it knocked Befana back and to the ground.
"Jack!" Hank yelled, running to her. "What the hell was that for?!"
Jack McCall smirked at Befana. He'd had all of this world he was going to take. She'd been the last straw. "Don't grab me like that again unless you intend to kill me." He turned and walked leisurely down the alley.
Hank helped her up.
"He's not as docile as I thought," she said with a chuckle.
***
Jack remained quiet as they returned to their room with Befana. The only thing he cared about was what she knew about Mei-Wan and Jeremiah.
The three of them sat down on the ratty looking furniture that gave off a smell that matched its appearance.
"There was a lot of activity several weeks ago," Befana said. "But I think part of that involved the Zeparans. There was some big confrontation between them and the clans."
"But you've heard nothing about an attack on a Federation starship?" Hank asked.
"Not a thing. And if any of the major clans had been involved in something like that I would have heard about it, Hank," she replied.
Jack hung his head down, looking at the floor. He was beginning to lose the last bit of hope he had.
"You love her very much, don't you?" Befana asked.
"Yes, I do," Jack answered softly.
"I wish I knew something. I really do."
Hank looked over at Jack. "Maybe you should get some sleep."
Jack forced a smile. "I'll be okay."
"Jack, we've come up empty so far," Hank said. "We should rest and start fresh tomorrow."
Finally Jack exhaled and nodded. He stood up and walked to one of the two bedrooms without another word.
"He's not looking good," Befana said.
"I know."
***
The next morning, Jack walked out into the common room and found Hank asleep on the couch. He couldn't help smiling.
"What's so funny?" Befana's voice asked from the balcony. She stood drinking a steaming cup of something as her short, dark hair about blew about in the morning breeze.
Jack joined her on the balcony. "Nothing."
She frowned. "You expected Hank and I to sleep together last night, didn't you?"
"He's slept with about every other woman we've met on this trip," Jack remarked.
She leaned on the balcony railing. "Hank and I were involved for a while, but..."
"He didn't stick around?"
"Something like that," she responded. "I'd trust him with my life without a thought, but not with my heart."
Jack thought he understood. He gazed at the city just as the sun was rising over the horizon. The dense smog left its appearance a dull blob of light instead of a blazing disk in the sky.
"I contacted my people before I went to bed," Befana said. "I've got them checking every source and informant I have. If the Levalum were involved, hopefully we'll find something."
"Thank you," Jack replied. It wasn't much, but it was far better than scouring the streets again.
"Hank told me last night that you'd found something that belonged to your wife here on Antenora," Befana said.
Jack searched through his pants pocket. "I think I've still got it."
"I could have my people run a trace on it and…" she stopped as Jack pulled out the comm badge. "That's it?"
"Look, I know it's just a little trinket, but…"
"No, that's not it at all," Befana said, her eyes wide. "I met with Galfalda five days ago about some business we had and he wore something that looked exactly like that."
Jack placed the comm badge in the proper position on his shirt.
"Is this where he wore it?" Jack asked.
Befana nodded. "Yes, just like that."
Hank stepped out onto the balcony rubbing the sleep out of his tired eyes. "Can you two please keep it down. I'm trying to rest."
They both turned to Hank. Jack's face was filled with more determination than Hank had seen in a long time.
"I think we should go see your Levalum friends, Hank," Jack said. "I think we should go right now."
***
The trip out to see Galfalda didn't take them long. Befana made contact with one of her people and soon after a shuttle landed on the roof of their building and flew them out some fifty kilometers away from the center of the city to a palace, a miniature city of its own--- the main base of operations for one of the more powerful clans of the Levalum.
On the way, Jack learned that Befana was indeed as human as she appeared, but she didn't reveal where she was from or what had happened to her legs, though Jack suspected Hank knew the full story. But finding out wasn't high on Jack's list of things to do just now.
After setting down on a landing pad, Jack, Hank, and Befana were escorted through the large estate past huge gardens and vast pools of still water to a gargantuan dining room with a vast array of murals on its walls and a table that easily measured a hundred feet in length and twenty feet in width, filled with a wide variety of strange foods. Yet, the table seemed small in comparison to the rest of the room. Everything in it had precious metals and stones inlaid within--- the chairs, the table, lamp stands, and picture frames. Jack felt as if he'd stepped back in time to walk through the palace of some great European monarch's castle, but done twice as large and with an alien sensibility to it that made him uneasy.
It didn't help Jack's uneasiness that their weapons were confiscated the moment they stepped off the shuttle either, but he had half expected they'd be disarmed.
Their escort told them to be seated, then left.
Finally, a single, yet well armed, guard accompanied a light green skinned, six foot five figure into the room. Jack recognized him as one of the two Levalum they had encountered in the Parxula system several months earlier.
"Hank Evans," Galfalda said as he slowly moved to the head of the table. "It's so nice of you to visit. You on Antenora on business?"
"Something like that," Hank answered.
"And Befana, my dear. To see you and Evans together again gives me such a good feeling."
"I'm glad we brought a little bit of sunshine to your otherwise dreary day," Befana said with a smirk.
The creature looked at Jack as he sat down. "But you… wait I do know you."
"Captain Jack McCall," he responded.
"Oh, that's right," Galfalda said. "You had that rather nice sized ship. Is it possible you've decided to sell it to me?"
Jack jumped in before Hank did. "If you have something I'd consider trading for it, perhaps."
Hank's eyes widened. He wondered what Jack thought he was doing. They had agreed beforehand to let Hank do the talking.
"Well, that certainly is worth the interruption of my schedule," the Levalum said. "What did you have in mind?"
Jack held up Mei-Wan's comm badge. "You seen this before?"
Galfalda sat back in his chair. "I don't believe so, no."
"I saw you wearing it the last time we met," Befana said, her eyes narrowed.
"Was I?" he replied. "Someone must have given it to me. You'd be surprised by all gifts I get."
Jack stood to his feet. "This would have been taken from someone."
Galfalda sneered. "I don't think I like your tone Captain Jack McCall. I don't think I like it at all."
"Ask us if we care," Befana said, glaring at him.
Jack walked slowly toward the head of the table. "You see this particular item belonged to a specific individual--- someone aboard a Federation starship which was attacked."
"Perhaps she was rescued by one of our ships and gave that object as a sign of her gratitude," Galfalda said with a weak smile.
"She?" Jack asked.
The room became silent as Galfalda realized he'd let something slip. His brother, Trulfulsa, would have beaten him for such a mistake if he'd been there.
However, that was the least of his concerns as Jack McCall got nearer to him. Galfalda motioned the guard to come closer. If he couldn't talk his way out of this the guard might have to protect him, but he didn't trust the guards. They were all on his brother's payroll.
"What would you be willing to pay for information about the woman's whereabouts?" he asked, now more timid.
Jack smiled at Hank who used his eyes to remind Jack about the guard. "I suppose I could let you leave this room alive."
Galfalda let out a laugh. "You'd be the one not to leave alive, Captain. I have hundreds of guards just outside these doors. Ask your friend Evans what would happen if I were to be killed."
Jack didn't bother.
"Evans tell him!" Galfalda shouted as Jack got nearer.
Hank remained silent. He enjoyed seeing Galfalda frightened.
"If I don't get the answers I want, I don't give a damn if I live much more than a minute or two longer than you do," Jack said, glaring at the Levalum.
"All right," Galfalda said. "I know what happened."
Jack stopped moving. "Let's hear it."
"I can't tell you," their frightened host told them. "We were instructed to keep the operation a secret."
"I don't care," Jack said, taking another step.
"The woman wasn't the primary objective!"
"My father was," Jack whispered.
"Your father?" Galfalda said. "That admiral was your father?"
"Yes," Jack answered. "And the woman is my wife."
Galfalda's eyes grew wide like a trapped animal's. "Guard! Restrain him!"
The guard hesitated a moment.
"I said restrain him!"
Finally the sentry moved to block Jack's path. Jack stopped and stared at him.
"Evans, explain to your friend how business arrangements like this work," Galfalda pleaded.
"I'm waiting to hear the details on this one myself," Hank said. "I'm curious to hear who was so hell bent on capturing a Starfleet admiral and why they wanted to use your bunch of dirtbags."
"You don't tell them no," Galfalda said.
"Them?" Jack asked. "Who?"
The Levalum remained silent.
Hank looked at Jack with a confused expression on his face. The plan they came to this place with was definitely out the window and he didn't like the direction Jack seemed to be taking this.
Befana lowered her hand to her right leg and touched a tiny metal stud. A section of the leg opened and she pulled a small weapon out.
"Jack!" Befana called out as she tossed it his direction.
Jack spun about and caught the gun in his hand and a moment later had it pointed at the face of the guard.
"You," he said to the guard. "Get out!"
Galfalda started to get up, but Jack quickly fired a plasma burst from the weapon, hitting the wall a few feet to the Levalum's right. He fell back into the chair, cringing.
Jack swung back to the guard. "Tell your friends out in the hallway that your boss won't be hurt as long as no one tries to come in here. We just want to talk to him."
The guard shut the doors behind him, leaving Galfalda in a full blown panic. Jack walked up to their host.
"You can't do this!"
Jack pointed the weapon at the Levalum's head.
Hank gave Befana a wide eyed look as they got up to join Jack at the head of the table.
I wonder when they came up with this plan? Hank asked himself, rather proud of Jack's ingenuity.
"I told them to search you!" Galfalda whimpered. "Those guards never look out for me when Trulfulsa's gone!"
"Maybe you should get better help," Hank suggested with a grin.
Jack pressed the end of the gun to Galfalda's temple. "Before I leave you're going to tell me what happened to Mei-Wan and my father."
"Just tell us so we can get out of here, Galfalda," Hank said.
"You'll all die for this!"
"I'm sure you were paid well for this operation," Befana said. "I wonder how the other clans would feel about you and your brother going off on your own without consulting them."
Galfalda let out his breath, his eyes went wide with fear.
Hank smiled. "I don't imagine they'd be too happy with you two keeping all that money for yourselves. They're sure to want their cut."
"We were told not to tell them!" Galfalda shouted. "We didn't have a choice!"
"You don't have a choice now, you sorry son of a bitch," Jack said through clenched teeth as he pushed the end of the gun more into Galfalda's temple.
"It was the G'voda!"
Jack and Hank looked at each other.
"What the hell would the G'voda want with a Starfleet admiral?" Hank asked.
"Who are the G'voda?" Befana inquired.
"Nasty customers who fly ships that create they're own wormholes," Hank explained. "We watched them take out several Borg cubes."
Jack looked at Galfalda. "Why did they want my father and my wife?"
"They wanted the admiral for intelligence information," Galfalda said, now a bit more calm. He was glad that Jack seemed less angry now.
"But why destroy an entire starship to get him?" Hank asked.
"We were given a transponder frequency to locate the target," the Levalum said. "And told to leave no survivors."
Jack glanced at Hank and could tell he had come to the same conclusion Jack had--- someone within Starfleet was working for the G'voda.
However, Jack remembered one man who might have been able to access his father's transponder frequency. It was the same man who had sent signals for months from the Chamberlain and who had killed Cynthia Pederson--- his former science officer, Duncan Zachary.
Now he wished he'd been able to blast Zachary to hell before he'd escaped.
"And the woman?" Jack asked, applying just a bit more pressure with the end of the weapon.
"We found her aboard the escape pod the Admiral was on," Galfalda said, with a slight tremor in his voice. "Understand, our orders were to leave no one alive."
Jack's finger started to press against the trigger. If he heard certain words, what passed for brains in Galfalda's head would decorate the wall behind him for some time to come. "What happened to her?" Jack asked with a whisper.
"The others... the other three on the pod had been killed, but the admiral was protecting the woman," Galfalda told them. "He refused to come out of there. He had a weapon. So we used a neural gas we have which left them both unconscious. We were going to leave the woman in the pod to die, but the G'voda who'd come along to supervise demanded we turn her over to him as well."
"You gave them to this G'voda?" Hank asked.
"Not exactly gave," he said with a grin. "We were well paid. He gave me that trinket off her uniform too. He told me to wear it in good health." Galfalda frowned. "I still don't understand what he meant by that."
Hank laughed. "It meant that he knew if we ever came across you with the badge you'd end up where you are right now, with a gun to your head."
Galfalda looked as if he'd just been punched in the gut. "Why does everyone treat me like this?! Why am I the one to suffer all the time? My brother never goes through this!"
Befana turned to Hank. "I wouldn't be surprised if good ol' Trulfulsa set his brother up for this."
"It could be they knew we'd come looking for Mei and Jeremiah, that we'd follow the trail here, and make our way to this stooge," Hank said, pointing at Galfalda. "Jack would take out his revenge, case closed."
"That might explain why the guards haven't been rushing to get back in here to save him," Befana added.
Jack's mind raced. Too many things still didn't add up. Why would a species that could fight the Borg with ease need information from a Starfleet admiral? What possible threat did the Federation pose to them?
He took a deep breath. Another question was far more important at the moment.
"Where did they take them?" Jack insisted.
"Uh..."
"I'm not going to ask again," Jack said, his finger tightening on the trigger.
"To... to the planet Nybiros," Galfalda whispered.
"Where the hell is that?" Jack asked. "Will it take us long to get there?"
Hank shook his head. "It's in Fashod territory."
"I don't care whose border we have to cross," Jack responded. "How far?"
"It's more than two hundred light years from here," Hank answered. "But Jack, the Fashod are not to be angered."
"They don't tolerate trespassers," Befana said. "Even the Levalum leave them alone."
Galfalda chuckled.
"You think something's funny?" Jack asked, tightening his jaw.
"The Fashod are a farce," Galfalda said. "They were conquered five hundred years ago."
"Then who..." Hank started, but he didn't need to ask. He'd already figured it out.
"The G'voda," Jack said. He guessed they must have been masquerading as the Fashod for five centuries.
"They're very insistent on secrecy," Galfalda told them. "They've had Trulfulsa and I do quite a bit of work for them. I think they enjoy having organics serve them."
"Organics?" Befana asked.
"The G'voda are machines," Galfalda stated with a wide smile. "Living machines."
Jack didn't care if the G'voda were elves, fairies, or goblins--- they had his wife and father.
"Nybiros is a world of living machines," Galfalda said. "Their defenses are impregnable. Even with a thousand of your starships you'd never blast through their planetary defense shield."
"You wouldn't happen to have data on it, would you Galfalda?" Hank asked with a raised brow. "Could it be you ran a scan or two?"
Galfalda grinned. "I might be convinced to sell my data."
Jack nearly blasted a hole through his skull at that moment. "The price is your life!"
"No," Befana said, smiling. "We're conducting business here, Jack." She looked at Galfalda. "How much?"
"How about I turn the data over to you and that settles our account?" the Levalum said, smiling from ear to ear.
Hank shook his head. Galfalda might be a spineless little coward hiding in his brother's shadow, but he was Levalum, and he wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to make a deal, especially when the deal was so much in his favor.
Befana took a deep breath and nodded. "Agreed."
Jack realized this probably cost her a lot. He didn't know how he was going to pay her back or explain this one to Starfleet, but he was certain they could eventually figure out something.
"But, I'm telling you now," Galfalda said. "It won't matter. You'll never be able to penetrate that shield. That world is a fortress."
Hank grinned. "The data?"
Galfalda smiled. "We have a deal?"
Befana agreed and the Levalum took a small data chip out of a pocket and tossed it to her.
"Now just one thing left to do," Jack said staring at Galfalda.
"Jack," Hank said cautiously. "We've got what we came here for."
"He took them, he..." Jack fought back the building rage. "He and his men killed over five hundred Starfleet officers. Someone has to pay for that."
"He's just the middle man, Jack."
"Jack, listen," Befana said. "We have an agreement with him. He has to let us go. If he doesn't my people will notify the other clans about what he and his brother have been up to."
"No!" Galfalda yelled.
Hank grinned as he took a step toward Jack. "He knows what the other clans will do. If there's anything else we need from him, we can always threaten him with that. Don't throw this advantage away, Jack."
Jack closed his eyes and all he could see was Mei-Wan suffering in pain and a million worse possibilities.
He opened his eyes and looked down at the loathsome creature at the end of his gun. He hated Galfalda more than any other single being in the cosmos. His hatred demanded satisfaction.
"Jack, don't do this," Hank implored him.
Everything about this world sickened Jack, and most especially the creature sitting in front of him. They had taken Mei-Wan from him and all he wanted was to repay that. Everything on Antenora had a price. Jack was going to extract one from Galfalda.
He pushed all of the air out of his lungs and his finger pulled on the trigger.
This world, he thought. So much pain, so much wrong, so much emptiness.
Jack's lungs waited. The reflex to inhale remained patient.
Galfalda turned to look up at Jack. His eyes stared, and while unlike most Jack had seen, they were still eyes.
He'd seen that look before.
Jack had seen it in Robin Nelson's eyes as she cried out for someone, anyone to save her. He'd seen it in Larissa James' eyes as he held her while she took her last breath. He'd seen their eyes so many times, over and over again. They haunted his dreams and his soul.
Jack's finger moved away from the trigger. His lungs finally inhaled.
"No more eyes," he whispered as he took a step away from Galfalda. "No more."
The Levalum sat frozen in place. He was too frightened to hope he'd live.
Jack tossed the weapon back to Befana. "Let's get the hell out of here." He went toward the door.
"How dare you..." Galfalda shouted. But he was cut short by Befana pointing the weapon at him.
"Remember," she said. "Anything happens to us and the other clans get told you've been holding out on them."
Galfalda buried his rage.
Jack and Befana walked out the door while Hank took a piece of fruit off the table and took a bite out of it.
"Take care of yourself, Galfalda," Hank said.
