Kris Schnee - Everyone's Island

The officer disappeared. “Well, Miss Hayflick. Are you exporting illegal software, besides leaving without an exit visa and breaking your travel restrictions?”

“That robot is a blank. There’s no software on it.”

“Then you won’t mind if we fire it up.”

“That’s not necessary,” Valerie protested, but the officer was looming over Tess, reaching down with a big grasping hand.

“No!” said Tess.

The officer scoffed. “Thought so. Get up and raise your hands.”

Tess stood, with her suit rattling and pinching her. One of the Guardsmen said, “Now let’s see who you really are!” and pulled off her mask.

“Just a kid!” said the officer. “Scan her.”

Another man shoved an eye-scanner at her face. After a long wait the officer looked at a screen and said, “Well, well. You three are under arrest for kidnapping.”

Tess said, “They didn’t kidnap me!” The boaters and Valerie stood there sullenly with their hands on their heads. There was hardly any space in the stifling hold. “I wanted to go.”

The officer said, “Says here you were taken from school while mentally impaired.”

“That’s not how it happened. Geez!” Tess felt sweat sliming its way down her armpits. “I wanted to get away from there, and Miss Hayflick offered to take me back to Castor.”

“Miss — de Castille, that’s not really up to you.”

“Then what is ?” Tess lowered her arms before she realized what she was doing. The gloves hurt too much and she pulled them off to let them clatter to the floor. Nobody shot her, anyway. “I’m an adult and a citizen and I say I want to go somewhere with people that offered me a ride! Who are you to tell me I can’t?”

The man who’d pulled off her mask said, “It’s for your own good, kid.”

“The hell it is! I wasn’t feeling well, so people drugged me till I didn’t feel anything at all. I got told where to go, what to do, what to eat, what to wear, how to think! If all I get to do is follow orders from goons who think they’re protecting me, then why am I even alive? I may as well be a dumb robot!”

The Guardsmen didn’t answer. Tess blazed at them. “And how about Valerie here? She wants to leave the country. If you can chain someone up for that, then what have I got to look forward to? Stick me in a cage right now so I can get used to it. Hell, I go to school; why do I even need practice?”

The Guard officer glared at her, searching her face. “Watch your mouth. Why are you so up in arms, anyway? Take a breath and tell me without ranting.”

Tess stood there feeling naked in her armor. She was a girl far from home and in way over her head. A student with mediocre grades, behind on her college applications.

No , she thought, and felt a smile on her face as her fists clenched. We’re a genius engineer . She said, “What I’m saying is, do I get to make my own decisions, or am I your pet?”

The officer stared at Tess forever. Finally he said, “I think we didn’t find anybody here.” He turned to the boat’s owners. “We’re onto you. Go and sin no more.”

The Guardsmen retreated, and the officer tapped Tess’ armored shoulder. “Keep yourself safe, miss.”

Tess gulped. No one else was going to do it. “I will.”

When the patrol boat was gone the others fell to cursing and arguing. “Pigs!” shouted Valerie at the retreating boat.

Tess shot her a withering look. “Shut up, Val. Bad laws, good cops. We’re lucky we got one out of two.”

“Mister Duke. I’ve had less welcome visitors, but I’ve collected their skulls.”

“Are you threatening me, Captain?” The actor was hardly recognizable in his new suit and hat. He’d ditched the Pilgrim clothes but still had a rugged smile that made Garrett want to subtract a few teeth from it.

“No. Spend all the money you like before you leave at sunset.”

Duke spread his arms helplessly. “I’ll need to stay a bit longer. Doing some filming, you see.”

Only now did Garrett notice that one of the cameramen was focused on Duke instead of him, the flag or the reporters who’d come with them. A camera drone whirred nearby like a gnat, and several of the rented mech-birds had taken notice.

“How nice. I thought I told you to get off my island.”

He seemed confused. “Yours? But I’d been hearing all along about what a land of opportunity Castor is. Shall I report otherwise?”

Garrett fumed, trying not to show it and knowing that every second Duke made a fool of him generated bad publicity. He improvised: “You’re standing on my private property. Get off of this platform and spend your time in areas that are open to you: not here, and not most of the walkways. Trespass any further on my property and I’ll physically drag you to any boat that’ll take your sorry ass.”

Duke smiled. “As you wish. Is my entourage banned as well?”

“Just you.”

When Duke had gone below, Garrett called Zephyr. “He’s back,” Garrett said, and explained. “I want you to update Security, and keep an eye on him. I’ll warn Leda.”

Zephyr’s voice said, “He shouldn’t be here. Why is he here?”

“I’d like to know that too. Looks like vindictive reporting.”

Duke scrupulously avoided the main platform, getting around in a hired rowboat and spending his time with the various other boats and platforms. His camera crew roved the main building collecting stock footage. Garrett knew they were documenting the sex and drugs, but he told himself not to sweat. It was already public knowledge and he didn’t feel guilty, not much anyway. He wasn’t forcing anything on people. The camera crew seemed to be spending money on food and maybe other things. Garrett put up with them for a few days, glad to get some work done. Then came the alert.

“Captain, a fight!” Zephyr had interrupted Garrett while he was arguing by phone with a kelp buyer. Garrett hurried out of the office. “Dockside,” Zephyr was saying.

“An attack?”

“Fistfight.”

Down there Garrett found half a dozen Pilgrims beating the tar out of Duke in a dark corner. Garrett felt somewhat relieved. The unwelcome guy struggled to his feet, cursing eloquently and fighting back with an attempt at judo. Still he was surrounded.

Garrett charged in and swiped two men aside. “Hey!”

The two staggered and everyone paused but Duke, who regained his feet and stared at him, gritting his teeth.

“Six on one’s not fair,” said Garrett.

One of the Pilgrims said, “He was after Sister Leda!”

“’After’, like how?”

Duke bellowed, “Troglodytes! You owe me a new shirt!”

Garrett said, “You want to tell me what happened, Mister Duke.”

“I wasn’t doing anything! I wanted to see her again.”

“I notice you’re on my property, too.”

Duke hesitated. “They chased me. I was going to leave in a minute. I wanted to see the site of your battle.”

A Pilgrim with a bloody lip and torn jacket said, “Come on, Captain, let’s teach him a lesson. You’ve got guns.”

“The hell?” said Garrett. “You want me to shoot him?”

“Throw him over!” said the Pilgrims. “Walk the plank! Sleep with the fishes!”

Duke’s eyes were wide. “Captain!”

Garrett’s fists clenched at his sides. It was in his power to help beat Duke to a pulp, even kill him, for trespassing and whatever he’d done to Leda. He subvocalized, “ Leda, come in. Did he hurt you? Are you all right?”

After a long second he heard, “ Did who? You mean Duke? He hasn’t darkened my doorstep at all on this visit.”