Josie thought about Jack’s deduction. It made sense. And the Montrose had the

manpower to carry out such a Bond villain plan. How did they prove it beyond just

following their runners up the chain?

“How would we prove this in a court of law in front of a jury?,” she asked. She

crossed her arms as Jack leaned back in his chair, and the others put on thoughtful

expressions.

“We would need to know who owns the land on the Shemmarian side of the border,”

said Jack. “Then we would have to check to see if any of those people have money

on this side of the border.”

“The consortium might not have anything to do with this,” said Josie. Despite taking

an opposing view, she thought Jack was right. Someone wanted trouble to happen

between the two countries. More than one hot spot snuffed out indicated a human

mind at work.

Direct proof about whom would give her what she needed.

“Let’s say that we have an idea of what is going on,” said Jack. “Let’s say we have

some rich guys trying to start a war so they can grab the land and make their own

country. We don’t know who yet. Our only clue is the chucklehead we’re following

on the ground. Do we keep following him, or snatch him up and ask him some

questions?”

“How much can he know?,” asked Kyle.

“He will know his contact above in the chain, and below him,” said Glunt. “He might

know general plans. He might know alternate plans now that part of the main one has

been decapitated.”

“We don’t have anything to lose,” said Jack.

“Pick him up,” said Josie. “Brig?”

“He will be in there before you guys get down there to break his legs,” said Jack.

“Enterprise? Can you pick up the target and drop him in the cell opposite Orson?”

“Affirmative,” said the machine.

“Shall we, gentlemen?,” asked Josie. “We’re sharing information, and your insight

will help settle this crisis.”

“Come along, Kyle,” said Rickard. He gestured for the other king to join them.

“Maybe Administrator Worldy and I will be able to help with your problem.”

“I don’t understand why anyone would want to kill me now,” said Kyle. “There’s

nothing big on the horizon as far as I know. We’re not even facing a goblin surge at

this point. We’re trading with the tribes along the Wall.”

“Maybe some of your people don’t like that,” said Rickard.

“I don’t have anything to do with that,” said Kyle. “The peace was established when

my father was appointed the High King. So far, the taxes are getting paid, and nothing

suspicious is crossing back and forth.”

Josie led the way down to the brig. She entered and looked at their prisoners. Orson

sat in one cell. Their new arrival sat in the other. Neither looked happy.

“Mister Orson, you will be going with Minister Worldy and Mister Glunt,” said Josie.

“I am sure that you will enjoy the Shemmarian justice system to the fullest extent.”

She changed into Zatanna and created a book of knowledge and handed that to

Worldly. He flipped through the pages, eyebrows going up.

“That will help you justify any trial you put together for Mister Orson,” said Josie.

“If we want to turn him into an asset?,” said Mister Glunt.

“It would be probably be best if he and I didn’t cross paths again,” said Josie. “The

next time, I won’t need a messenger. I’ll need an example.”

Josie created another book of knowledge for their other prisoner. She glanced through

it to learn the name of their other prisoner. She handed that book to King Rickard.

“Mister Cask,” she said, as she returned to normal. “You will be handed over to King

Rickard to do what he wants with you.”

“He will probably join Rustam in digging rocks,” said Rickard. He flipped through

the book, shaking his head at some of the names mentioned. “As well as some of

these others.”

“Is there anything you would like to say before you are handed over and dropped off

where you belong?,” asked Josie.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” said Cask. “I don’t know why I am here. I don’t know

this other man.”

“Then you won’t be going with the king,” said Josie. “We will drop you over the side

now and let gravity take care of you.”

“Gravity?,” asked Kyle.

“Mass attracts each other, the bigger the mass, the bigger the attraction,” said Josie.

“It’s part of the reason when you fall, you head down.”

“That is a long drop,” said Kyle. He made a gesture to show what he was talking

about.

“It won’t be Mister Cask’s problem for long,” said Josie. “I think estimated time of

impact is two minutes.”

“I would take the deal if I were you,” said Kyle. “We’re a mountain top away from

the ground. I imagine there won’t be an unbroken bone in your body.”

“Ideally, you will look like a rotten tomato thrown at a wall,” said Josie.

“I would like to change my mind,” said Cask. He didn’t hide the grimace that

statement caused.

“I would like to know who you were going to in the city to report the mission had

failed,” said Josie. “And I would like to know the rest of it. Why try to start a war

with Shemmaria at all?”

“I don’t know about Shemmaria,” said Cask. “I was hired to wait until word came that

things had happened and we had to move to the next location, and the next part of the

operation. Once that was done, I was supposed to secure the area with the others we

hired. The expectation was that neither side would be able to take back what we took

as we consolidated our grip on the region. They would be too busy fighting. If the

plan failed, I was to go to the Moon Inn and leave a message that the plan had failed.”

Josie frowned at the man as she tried to make up her mind. He only knew the

Greciousian side of things. He had no idea who was running things from Shemmaria.

“I will allow you to live at the King’s mercy,” said Josie. “But I want the both of you

to remember that you might get killed in a town cleaning spell, or if someone wants

to serve your warrant. I have no way to take the Makeover off, nor do I want to. Once

you are released I would go somewhere that no one will hunt you for the bounty and

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

retire from this life. Do something else.”

“Master Orson,” said Glunt. “Do you have anything to say in your defense?”

“I was hired to do a job, and I was doing it,” said Orson. “I don’t know anything

beyond what Cask told you.”

“Minister Worldy?,” asked Josie.

“He tried to raise an army to attack Shemmarian forces,” said Worldy. “I think we

should put him in prison, and trace down his known contacts from this book. There

might be someone there we can turn to our side to uproot this.”

“Gentlemen, when we are done, we will put you in the custody of the nations that

can keep you,” said Josie. “Until then, enjoy the hospitality of the brig. Do not expect

more than what I am giving you.”

She led the way out in the hall. She frowned at the development. She had a target, but

was it legitimate target?

“How do you want to do this?,” she asked as she led the way to the elevator.

“We need to find out what the innkeeper knows,” said Rickard. “Unfortunately I

won’t be able to touch the parts of this conspiracy that are outside my borders.”

“Most of these names are low level mercenaries,” said Glunt, going through the book

of knowledge from Orson. “I think this man, Anull, could be a commander if he

wasn’t caught up in the destruction you wrought.”

“Why do you think that?,” asked Josie.

“I have seen this name in other reports that have come through my office,” said Glunt.

“The description is man of indeterminate age, one eye, some kind of wolf signature.

Most of these reports are from spies along the border.”

“So if someone had decided to annex that land, he might be the one to call to help

with the operation,” said Josie.

“He might be the most serious force we face in that frontier,” said Glunt.

“If he comes up while we are trying to sort this out, I will be glad to snatch him up

for you,” said Josie.

“We have a rough idea of what’s going on,” said Budd. “How do we stop it?”

“We need to grab this innkeeper,” said Josie. “See if he will lead us to someone

higher up. Once we have identified the commander of the enemy forces, we are going

to have to take him if he is in Coldwater. We can’t allow further access to the border

so he can keep trying to stir things up. Once we have done that, we find whomever

is on the Shemmarian side of things and take them. After that, if the quest is done,

we know we did the right thing.”

“I think the consortium has a hand in this somehow, if not directly responsible,” said

Glunt.

“Madam Fox,” said Hax. “Can you put Captain Russ and me back in Shemmaria

City? I would like to look at the records there.”

“Yes, Mister Hax,” said Josie. “Will the two of you need help?”

“I don’t think so,” said Hax. “I just want to poke around for a bit.”

Josie frowned at him. He knew something, or had put something together. He just

didn’t want to say it in front of his commanding officer.

She reached into her messenger bag and pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen. She

gestured for him to turn around. She held the piece of paper against his back, wrote

on it, and folded it. She wrote her name on the outside. She gave the paper to Russ.

“Anything happens, you rip the paper in half,” said Josie. “I’m not telling your sister

I lost you.”

“I understand,” said Russ. She tucked the paper in her belt. “Why not give the paper

to Major Hax?”

“I trust you more,” said Josie. She looked at them. “Any problems, you send the

signal. I will get there. Five minutes later, the Enterprise will be overhead and

shooting. Got it?”

“I assure you this is nothing more than a record check,” said Hax.

“We understand that you are worried that we might trip some kind of trap with this

and we won’t have you to protect us,” said Russ. “And you don’t like sending people

into danger. I will send the signal, and I will keep Major Hax alive until you can help

us.”

“All right,” said Josie. She changed into Zatanna long enough to send them on the

way with birds to carry them.

“Are you really worried about them?,” asked Haslet.

“When you signed on with me, you became my responsibility,” said Josie. “The

Society doesn’t care if I have to grind every citizen of Shemmaria into a paste to give

to the fish to do the job, but I do. What kind of protector of the planet would I be if

I just sent my helpers to their deaths if I didn’t have to?”

“I didn’t expect any sentimentality,” said Haslet. “But I should have.”

“Soft on the inside,” said Mister Warner. “How do we do this raid on the inn?”

“We turn Jack loose on these goobers,” said Josie. “I think the Army taught him to

love Bond crap a little too much.”

“Bond crap?,” said Case.

“Impersonating people so he can cut throats in the dark,” said Mister Warner. “He

also likes to blow stuff up and set it on fire just so he can look impressive.”

“I saw what he did to that house,” said Case.

“And what he did to that town,” said Budd. “I’m glad he’s on our side, and not

running loose.”

“Elaine has been a good influence,” said Josie.

“I’ll say,” said Mister Warner.

“Seems okay to me,” said Vin. He glanced at Markus. The other man shrugged.

They entered the conference room. Jack sipped some hot chocolate as he eased back

against the window. He smiled at them as they took their places.

“Our farmer said he had a contact in Coldwater,” said Josie. “He doesn’t know

anyone above that.”

“Hax and Four?,” asked Jack.

“Hax wanted to go home and check the records,” said Josie. “I sent Russ with him as

protection.”

“What’s the next move?,” said Jack. He sipped at the chocolate.

“I want you to go down and talk to Cask’s contact,” said Josie. “See if you can scare

him into running for the next man in the chain.”

“So we are working our way up the command section of things?,” asked Jack.

“They want to do the island seizure you talked about that sounded farfetched until

Madam Fox produced this book from Cask,” said Rickard. He showed Jack the book.

“They want the land, and once they have it, they plan to hold it against both

militaries, and neither side can do anything because of the risk of losing territory to

the other.”

“And while they can’t cross between our two kingdoms,” said Worldy, indicating

himself and Rickard with a wave of his hand. “They can cross between Shemmaria

and Solas.”

“And that’s why Orson put his group together where he did,” said Jack.

“We don’t have a lot of time,” said Josie. “I doubt that any of what we have done has

reached our spymaster.”

“He would have to be using carrier pigeons, or magic, if it did,” said Jack. “I guess

we should be thankful that nobody invented the telephone to work for and against

us.”

“But when nothing happens at the projected time, they will know something threw

a spanner in the works,” said Josie.

“I got it,” said Jack. “We’re thinking it’s someone hooked to the government, right?”

“We don’t know,” said Rickard. “But I would be surprised if we don’t find some

connection to resource management.”

“Corporations and capitalism,” said Jack. He grinned at them. “It’s like something

from Cyberpunk 2020.”

“Would you mind talking to the guy and seeing where he goes?,” asked Josie.

“I got it, Jo-jo,” said Jack. He put his cup on the window sill and stood. “I can talk to

anyone. I’ll take Markus down to help me out. We’ll be two broken down adventurers

looking for a handout. How bad could it be?”

“They try to kill us for asking questions,” said Markus.

“But we won’t be asking questions,” said Jack. “We will soak up the local atmosphere

and carefully let this guy know we’re after him.”

“Do not use the phasers and torpedoes inside the city,” said Josie.

“Why must you tie my hands?,” asked Jack.

“His Majesty would not like you to crack an important building in Coldwater,” said

Josie. “And neither do I.”

“No explosions?,” said Jack.

“No lightning from the sky,” said Josie.

“No phasers,” said Jack. “Do you see the bossiness you are trying to date, Markus?”

“We’re not dating,” said Josie. She frowned at him, but he only grinned back because

he knew he was being annoying.

“Go ahead, Jack,” said Mister Warner. “The clock is still ticking despite what you

guys have already done.”

“Enterprise, beam me and Markus down close to the city center,” said Jack.

“Affirmative,” said the machine. The two of them vanished from the room.

“Enterprise, keep an eye on them,” said Josie. “I don’t want Jack wrecking a place

because he can.”

“Affirmative,” said the machine.

“What are our options?,” asked Josie, looking around the table. “Did we stop any

exterior forces in the region? Are we looking at more bodies that have to be

dropped?”

“Almost certainly,” said Worldy. “We don’t know if there was more than one

battalion set up to attack the forts, or if the one you destroyed was the only one. An

attack could still happen while we are chasing threads.”

“And Fort Hern suggests they wanted attacks from both sides of the border,” said

Rickard. “How were the impostors put in place while the normal garrison was

removed?”

“Someone had to have written orders for the garrison to leave,” said Josie. “How

would that look?”

“It would have to be someone in the regular army administration at Coldwater, or

someone on Lord Rails’s staff, or Lord Rails himself,” said Rickard.

“But Rails already controls the region up to the border and everything in it,” said

Josie. “He doesn’t need to create a false flag operation when he already runs

everything.”

“The motive doesn’t have to be profit, even though that’s what we have seen the most

from the Montrose,” said Budd. “Remember the Goblin Tree Man. He just wanted

Shemmaria to destroy itself creating monsters.”

Josie frowned. She wondered how he was getting on in his alternate future. It couldn’t

be that bad for him.

But she hoped it was.