The Mission Read online

  Contents

  Copyright

  Dedication

  - Chapter 1

  - Chapter 2

  - Chapter 3

  - Chapter 4

  - Chapter 5

  - Chapter 6

  - Chapter 7

  - Chapter 8

  - Chapter 9

  - Chapter 10

  - Chapter 11

  - Chapter 12

  - Chapter 13

  - Chapter 14

  - Chapter 15

  - Two Years Later

  - Join the List!

  Copyright © 2017 MJ McGriff

  All rights reserved.

  Editing Services provided by:

  Lawrence Editing

  www.lawrenceediting.com

  To my baby girl Aria, who gave me the courage to pursue my dreams.

  Chapter 1

  “C’mon, India! Wake up!”

  Flo’s lively voice brought me out of a sleepy haze. I opened an eye. It was way too early to see that bubbly bright smile.

  “Today’s your lucky day, my friend!” she sang.

  I dropped my face back into my pillow. “What time is it?” I cleared my throat.

  “Six hundred hours.” She plopped down on my twin-sized bed.

  I turned over and pulled the covers over my head. Working the night shift left little time for sleep. It was mornings like this I regretted giving her the key code to my quarters.

  She pulled the covers off my head. “Didn’t you hear me? You have to get up! I have like the best news ever.”

  “Get on with it,” I groaned, already fading back to sleep.

  She leaned over. “I got you on a mission.”

  It took a moment to register. “An explorer mission?” I opened an eye.

  She shook her head, her short, blond curls bouncing all about her face.

  I sat up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. “But how? I thought Nunez was supposed to be—”

  “Nunez is an idiot. I told them I wanted you.”

  I pushed my black braids away from my face. “How did you even—”

  “They wanted the best tracker in this sector to find more Oranium. That’s me, of course.”

  She was talking about the blue energy crystals that powered almost everything here. We needed as much of them as we could get. We’d depleted the energy cells we’d brought with us on Resurgence, and the solar energy panels only did so much.

  Flo squeezed my shoulder. “I need the best security person in this sector. That, my friend, is you.”

  My face broke into a smile as wide as hers. I had to go beyond the gates of Sector A for the first time since we’d stepped foot on New Earth. All I knew of this planet I called home ever since I’d turned fifteen years old were the grassy green plains of our main camp. I hadn’t even gone to Sector B, which was a few hours south of us, nor to Sector C, the settlement across the river. Now I finally had a ticket out of here.

  Flo jumped up from my bed. “We leave at this time tomorrow. That’s if I get my cataloging done.”

  I pushed the sheet off me, the cold air hitting my bare legs. I picked up a uniform shirt off the floor and my face twisted at the smell. The night before was especially humid. I swore I sweated away a few pounds. I looked around the floor of my small room and there were clothes everywhere. I jumped down from the bed and pulled out the metal crates from under it.

  “Don’t tell me you don’t have any clean uniforms,” Flo said. “If your father saw this mess, he would have your head.”

  Dad.

  I stopped sifting through the pairs of clean underwear. “What was I thinking?” I looked at Flo. “He’s not going to let me go.”

  She crossed her arms. “He can’t stop you from going this time.”

  I slowly stood, the feelings of excitement already fleeting. “Yes, he can. He has before.”

  “This is an important mission. The president himself already knows the chief’s daughter is part of the team. There’s no way your daddy can pull you off last minute without saving face.”

  My heart started to race again. Part excitement. Part nervousness. She was right. He wouldn’t pull me off. That didn’t mean he had to like it, though.

  “Cheer up! You’re finally going to see what this planet is really about.”

  “Yeah. I am, aren’t I?”

  “You can pay me back with an expensive birthday gift!” She winked and left me to start a frantic search for a clean uniform. My job as a security leader left little time to laundry, too. Twelve-hour shifts, five days a week. I spent the other two days student teaching at the Officer Academy. When you were the daughter of Trenton Wilson, there was no such thing as time off. ‘Idle minds are the devil’s mines’ was what he always used to say. I didn’t buy into the whole religious aspect of that, but I kept myself busy all the same.

  I found a clean pair of navy blue shorts and a white T-shirt. With a sack of dirty uniforms in my hand and sector coins in the pocket, I stepped outside into the sticky morning air.

  Sector A was one big campsite, with acres of green grass. The main building was fashioned out of the central pieces of Resurgence, the large space vessel that brought us to New Earth. It was where I was born and where my parents grew up. After landing almost twenty years too late, all hopes of the ship returning to the old planet faded away. So they turned the place that was our only home into part of our new one. The ship’s center, called Headquarters, now served as the governing center for all sectors. The large glass pane windows that looked out into space now gave a view of a matrix of one-story buildings. They were made of old spaceship parts with patios covered by solar panels. A breathtaking mountain range was the backdrop to it all.

  By the time I dropped my uniforms off at the Launder House and scarfed down a synthetic meat and cheese omelet at the Mess Hall, it was already half past seven hundred hours.

  I couldn’t put off telling my father any longer.

  At that time of day he was at Headquarters, getting ready for his morning debrief. If I caught him before then he wouldn’t have time to sit and argue with me. He hated tardiness more than laziness.

  I jogged across the Quad lawn, a favorite hangout for Fourth Gens like me. It was a cluster of gray rocks perfect for climbing, sitting, and lying out to catch some sun. A few were already getting tanned, not stirring as the voice on the sector intercom said, “Good morning, Sector A citizens. We wish you another splendid day.”

  I took a left down the main avenue toward the central building. The grass was almost gone from all the ground vehicles that traveled through it.

  I nodded to the two guards at the front, who swiped their cards and let me inside. I waved hello to the main receptionist before walking through the maze of gray metal hallways to the Security Wing. Two more guards stood at the entrance. I didn’t recognize the tall, husky one. The one with messy black hair and beard, though? That was Juan Ortiz.

  “Mornin’, India,” he said. “Didn’t expect to see you up so early.”

  “Yeah. Me neither.” I nodded toward the door. “Is my dad in there yet?”

  Ortiz swiped his card and ordered his colleague to do the same. The door swooshed open. “He’s been here since I started my shift. If you hurry, you might catch him before his meeting.”

  “Great! Thanks.” I patted him on the shoulder and jogged down the corridor toward the main conference room. The frosted white sliding doors were closed and loud voices came from inside. I looked at my digital watch. I had at least five minutes before the meeting started. Luckily they never tended to last too long. I turned to walk back toward to my dad’s office when I heard his voice boom through the doors.

  “What do you mean it’s GONE? How the hell do you lose a whole sector of people?”

 
Chapter 2

  The response was a whole shuffle of voices, too low and muffled to make out. Whatever they said my dad didn’t like it, his voice still loud and clear. “I want every available person dispatched to that sector right now! And I better have answers within the next two hours. I refuse to have my ass chewed out by the president over this.”

  I should’ve left a long time ago, but my feet wouldn’t move. The doors slid open and a dozen uniformed men came pouring out. Half of them didn’t even realize I was there, while those who did quickly looked away. When the last one was gone I walked into the briefing room. The large space lit by bright energy lights had a round oak table surrounded by empty chairs. My dad was standing by a large screen, his face down in his hands. On the screen was a camp like ours but smaller, situated right along a powerful yet beautiful river. It was also devoid of any people. There wasn’t even a security detail around the perimeter fence.

  “You okay, Dad?”

  His head popped up. “India!” He tried to put on a brave smile. With the clicker in his hand, he shut off the screen. “I’m fine, baby girl.”

  “You’re not fooling anyone. You know that, right?” I went over and gave him a huge hug.

  “How much did you hear?”

  “Oh, just the part where you ripped those guys a new one.”

  He chuckled and showed me to a chair. He leaned against the table. Now he looked worried. The fine lines in his dark skin were much more pronounced.

  “What’s going on in Sector C?”

  He gave a heavy sigh. He was trying to figure out how to sugarcoat this situation for me. When I was younger it used to anger me to no end. After losing my mother at ten years old I was already convinced that nothing worse could ever happen to me. There was no need to dance around things for my benefit.

  As for this situation, there wasn’t any way to get around the fact that a whole group of people was missing. They weren’t just any people. They were our tradesmen—welders, builders, electricians, mechanics. They kept all sectors up and running. What would we do without them? Dad rubbed his salt and pepper goatee, searching for words.

  “Do you know what happened to all those people?”

  He shook his head but looked at me and gave me a slight smile. “But rest assured your dad will find a way.” He crossed his arms, which meant he was about to change the subject. “Enough about me. What brings you here so early this morning?”

  Now it was my turn to try to find the words to tell him about this mission. I shifted in my chair, grabbing one of my braids for security. “I got a new assignment.”

  “A new assignment? I didn’t hear anything about that.”

  “Well, I’m sure the president will let you know about it.”

  “President?” His eyes narrowed and his lips got tight. “I know you’re not going to tell me it’s that Oranium mission.”

  “Dad, it’s a great opportunity.”

  He got up from the table and walked toward the screen. “I can’t have you going out there. Not right now.”

  I got up out of my chair. “Why not?

  “Because it’s not safe.”

  That was the same reason I got for almost anything I wanted to do both on the ship and on New Earth. Normally I would throw a tantrum, my dad would say his decision was final, and I would storm out.

  Not today.

  “Dad, I’m a security officer and it’s my job to keep people safe both in here and out there.”

  He spun around. “And it’s my job to keep you safe.”

  “And you have. But I’m twenty-two years old and I’ve never set foot outside these walls.”

  “Why would you want to? There’s nothing but wilderness and danger out there.”

  “No place is one hundred percent safe. Look at Sector C.”

  I crossed my arms, and we stood there in a stare down. I loved my father, but I had to show him I meant business. Up until then, I’d done every single thing he’d asked of me. Now it was my time to forge my life. The longer we stood there not saying a word, the hope that he would give in got stronger.

  He uncrossed his arms.

  His face softened.

  “You’re not going and that’s final.”

  “But the president knows—”

  “He will get a qualified officer to take your place.”

  I walked right up to him. “So I’m not qualified now?”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  “That’s exactly what you meant. I’m not good enough.”

  “India—”

  “I’ve always done my best. I’m just as qualified as anyone else.”

  “Your qualifications aren’t the point.”

  I wasn’t hearing anything else he had to say. “I declined an initial offer to join the explorers because you told me to. I took this security job and the teaching job because that’s what you wanted me to do.”

  “I knew you would be good at it.”

  Of course, I had to be good at it. My father expected nothing less. I could only imagine how much better I would be if I were doing what I wanted to do. I could’ve charted half the continent by now. This mission came my way and it was the closest thing I was ever going to get to that dream.

  He gently grabbed each of my shoulders. “Listen, baby girl, I know you had your heart set on getting out there into that big wild world. But right now it’s not a safe time for you. I have colonists missing, uprisings in the other sectors—things around here aren’t the best.” He tilted his head so his eyes could meet mine, but I averted my gaze. “I need people like you I can count on to help me keep things together here.”

  There he was sugarcoating things again. That wasn’t the real reason. He wanted to keep me under his thumb forever. But I was getting way too old for that. This sector was getting way too small for me. I was suffocating. I needed to get away.

  I didn’t hear the doors swoosh open until a voice said, “Chief Wilson.”

  My dad released me, and I turned around to see a young officer standing in the doorway. “What is it, Burnett?” my father asked.

  “We have a security situation at Ration Station One. It needs your immediate attention.”

  Chapter 3

  Ration Station One was on the north end of Section A. It was a warehouse of a building with a high metal roof and no windows. The entrance was a set of mirrored doors. Around back was the loading dock for the ground trucks. They delivered the foodstuffs housed inside to the rest of the sectors. Deliveries happened after the people here got their own monthly rations. I rarely ever went there. My dad paid extra for delivery.

  Security personnel surrounded the Ration Station. When my Dad and I arrived, Officer Cromet debriefed us on the situation. Inside were two armed men who’d taken a handful of station workers as hostages.

  “Did he state his demands?” my dad asked.

  “Yes, sir,” Cromet said. “He wants a ground vehicle to haul supplies. He also wants safe passage back home.”

  “And where is home?”

  “We can only assume it’s Sector C, sir.”

  “There’s no one in Sector C,” my father mumbled.

  “Sir?” Cromet asked.

  “Never mind.”

  With my father distracted I crept behind the line of officers. They pointed their guns at the building, not sure what to do. There was never a situation like this in Sector A before and even I had to admit I was a bit nervous. This was not going to end well because they were not going to let these guys get away. The supplies in there were worth more than sector coins out here. The hostage takers knew that too.

  I made it to the back of the building. The back door was slightly ajar.

  “My name is Trenton Wilson, chief security officer for all New Earth sectors.” My dad’s voice boomed over the loudspeaker. “We have you surrounded. We don’t want anyone to get hurt. Please come out with your hands up.”

  I walked back up to the front, standing behind my dad and Cromet. The doors sl
id open and a sickly looking colonist came out with a woman in his grasp. He pointed his energy gun at her temple.

  “Lower your weapons,” the gunman barked. “Then get us that truck and let us leave.”

  “You know I can’t let you do that,” my father replied.

  “If you don’t I’ll start shooting every last one of these people in here.”

  The woman started to cry. He jerked her back.

  “We don’t want any bloodshed here,” my father continued. “You can end this without any violence. I’ll even bring your grievances to the president himself.”

  “Screw the president.” The man went back inside, using the woman as a shield, the doors closing behind them.

  Seconds later, there were two gunshots followed by a series of screams.

  He’s going to kill all those people!

  My father was going to continue doing everything by the book. That meant keeping up the negotiations until the president got onboard. By then, all the hostages would be dead.

  I have to do something.

  Then I remembered the door. If I could slip inside I could take them by surprise. All I needed was a gun. None of them were going to give me one, though.

  But if my father ‘ordered’ it, they would do anything I asked.

  I crouched beside the youngest officer I could find. “Give me your sidearm,” I said low enough so only he would hear. “The chief wants me to slip inside.”

  “I didn’t get that order,” the young officer said. “And you’re not an officer—”

  “You don’t know who I am?”

  He turned around to get a better look at me and his face turned red. “I’m so sorry, Miss Wilson...I didn’t—”

  “Look, don’t worry about it. Just give me the gun.”

  “I don’t know. No one can go into that building.”

  I looked up and saw a ground vehicle coming toward us. The officers broke formation to let it roll up to the back of the station.

  We can’t let them get away with this!

  I grabbed the young man’s gun from the holster. Before he could protest I was running toward the truck. I hopped into the back of the covered canopy while it was still heading toward the station. I heard it come to a stop and I charged my gun, holding my breath the whole time.