“Katherine!” Kat flinched as her mom’s voice echoed across the hallway. “Oh thank God you’re alright!”

Penelope pushed past a security guard in a suit. The guard reached out to stop her, but thought better of his actions when he spotted Jeffrey glowering at him above crossed arms.

“Hey mo-” Kat began only for her mother to all but tackle her into a hug. Somehow, years of living on a razor’s edge and tweaking her reflexes until she could spear flies with a toothpick while blindfolded didn’t help her avoid the older woman.

Her right hand came up and awkwardly patted her mother on the back while she shook into Kat’s shoulder, dampening her collar. On either side, Emma and Whippoorwill took a step or two away, giving Kat a moment with her sobbing mother.

“It’s all right mom,” She said gently. “I wasn’t anywhere near that hill when it blew up. The assassins got a body double and not me.”

Penelope pulled back, one hand on Kat’s shoulder while the other reached up to dab at her eyes. She drew in a deep breath and let it out again before fixing a weak smile on her face.

“I thought I had lost you Katherine. Like your father. I know your job is dangerous and that you’re doing it for Michelle and I, but I worry about you. Every day.”

Kat winced. Her mother might not be a samurai or a player, but her ability to hit Kat where it counted was unmatched.

“Don’t-” Kat began, catching herself. “Okay, I’m not going to tell you that you shouldn’t worry. There are obviously people out there that want to claim my head. Two attacks, one right after the other makes it hard to deny that. That said, I wasn’t there when the mortar dropped, and I have a much better idea as to what happened.”

“Are you sure?” Penelope asked quietly, pulling herself far enough back that Kat could look into her tear reddened eyes. “I don’t want you to just say it. I need to know that you believe it. Are. You. Sure?”

Kat opened her mouth to respond, but the words died in her throat. It would be so easy to lie. Trivial to repeat some useless platitude about how everything was under control and that they had caught the people who did it. Words that didn’t really amount to much other than fluff to comfort the other person. But, this was her mother.

“No mom, I’m not sure.”

Penelope trembled slightly. Kat could feel it through her hand even though her mother was biting her lip and trying her hardest to look strong.

“I can’t be sure of anything.” Kat pushed the words out before her mom could say something to derail her. “The transition from mercenary to shareholder was huge. I’m in a world that I barely understand, and the only thing that seems to have stayed the same is that people want to kill me. Luckily, as lost as I am, that’s something I understand. It’s a bit strange now that the roles are reversed, I’m sitting still while samurai are coming for my friends and I, but the same rules apply. I just need to find them and stomp them out before they get lucky and slip through my defenses.”

A whine pulled both of them out of the moment. Hans was pulling at his leash, trying to get past the security guard with Michelle beside him. Holding onto the end of the dire wolf’s leash was an aggrieved looking corporate officer, his arms straining to keep the huge beast in check.

“Let them through,” Kat called out, watching as the person from her security detail stepped aside. Hans bounded across the gap, practically dragging his handler en route to jumping up and planting his paws on Whip’s shoulders and bathing her face with his tongue.

Despite the seriousness of the previous moment, Kat had to lift a hand to her mouth to cover a smile as Whippoorwill sputtered and tried to pull herself free. Nearby, Emma pouted, crossing her arms as she muttered to herself.

“Come on,” Kat said, reaching forward to scratch the overly excited dog behind the ear. “I’ve called a meeting with Jasper and Anna. There is more to the events of the last day or so than what has made it into the press. I’m not sure I want Michelle in the room for the conversation, she’d let something slip the minute she went back to school, but we can let her play with Hans while I brief the others. If you want to know what I’m doing to keep myself safe, this is your best chance.”

She waved Michelle over, and her sister approached slowly, sparing Kat the indignity of her mother’s sobbing spear tackle.

“So,” Michelle began, fumbling around for words. “You’re alive I guess?”

Kat burst out laughing, all the tension and emotion from the previous moments gone in a second. Penelope stepped away from her, sniffing as she gently slapped Michelle on the shoulder.

“Sorry!” Her sister blurted out. “I don’t really know what to say. Of course I’m glad that you’re fine Kat. I guess I’m just processing hearing that you died followed by Heather calling us over here barely an hour later. It’s just a lot to take in. I don’t think I ever really fully comprehended what was happening and poof, you’re back and healthy.”

“Michelle,” their mother hissed, leaning closer to the younger girl. “What have I told you about appropriate expressions of emotion?”

“I was sad,” Michelle said defensively. “Now I’m relieved? A lot happened and it’s all kinda confusing and exhausting at the same time.”

Kat stepped in, putting a hand on her mother’s forearm and pulling it away from Michelle. “Let her be,” she interjected gently. “Heather and the others are waiting. She can spend some time with Hans while we finish up.”

Penelope shot Michelle a glare that Kat remembered well, one that warned of hours of raised voices and scolding that were surely to come. She sympathized with her sister’s grim fate, but ultimately, there wasn’t a whole lot to be done. Kat could only continue to her meeting and hope that Michelle managed to survive her lesson on proper manners in a public setting when the time came.

She started walking toward the conference room. Heather was waiting and needed to be hurriedly briefed on what happened before Kat called their allies. It would take days if not months to go through the entirety of the revelations ripped from the Daniels estate, but the changes resulting from what they had already uncovered would be immediate.

They had to be. Even during the two hour drive back from their raid, Whippoorwill had uncovered enough information to keep Kat’s security forces scrambling for weeks.

The doors hissed open in front of her, revealing Heather and Baker standing at the head of a long wooden table in the conference room. Guards from both In the center of the table, the small metal pyramid of a holographic projector blinked green, indicating an incoming call that was standing by.

“Miss Debs,” Heather began, only for Kat to shake her head quickly.

“Clear the room please,” Kat interjected, making quick eye contact with each of the 3445 and corporate security guards. Heather opened her mouth to object only for a stern look from Kat to silence her.

“What’s going on?” Heather asked. To her side, Baker slouched in their chair, the red tip of their vape puffing silently.

“Corporate security is compromised,” Kat replied evenly. “We don’t have exact numbers, but there are at least a half dozen names in my security detail that are taking money from one source or another. We already knew that there was a mole or two, but it has gone beyond that. Jane Andrews was the one that handled targeting for the attack that killed my decoy.”

Heather stopped, taken aback for a second before she replied.

“But Jane died in that attack? I can understand taking money to turn over information. It’s a short term way of thinking and a mistake, but there’s a huge step between that and aiding an assaination attempt against one of the principals you are charged with protecting.”If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“This isn’t just fights between shareholders,” Kat said grimly. “Outside forces are involved. Even if it was someone local that served as Andrews’ handler, the attack was ordered by Millennium. GroCorp has historically turned a bit of a blind eye to espionage and… violent but clandestine business disputes. Every non-employee, from the lowest manager to the shareholders themselves engages in some cloak and dagger work. It’s just that the stakes change when you work for a force outside the company that seeks to harm GroCorp itself.

Heather nodded reluctantly, wheels turning behind her eyes.

“If you get caught, you die. At a minimum you are fined so much in arbitration that you’re going to spend the next decade in a work camp paying it off.”

“At that point,” Kat continued. “If you are unwilling to do what your employer says, all they need to do is out you. Functionally, there are a number of people so deep in over their heads that they are blackmailing victims. We need to figure out how to handle them, or all three of the new shareholders are going to have an absolutely unacceptable security risk from the teams we’ve inherited.”

Baker leaned back in their chair, blowing out a cloud of apple flavored water vapor. Their hands, covered in thin black gloves so that no skin showed slipped out of their sleeves as they interlocked their fingers behind their head.

“We’re always around,” Baker said. “You’ve treated us well. Better than any outfit I’ve heard of, and that’s not even accounting for the tough spot you pulled us out of. If you want, I could rustle up a couple of the boys to make sure no one gets near you.”

“Thank you,” Kat replied with a smile. “That was going to be a large part of the plan. Up until now, I’ve relied on corporate security for the sake of appearances, but to be perfectly honest, I trust the 3445 more. They’re survivors and their reflexes are honed to a razor’s edge. The only spot where they aren’t as ‘good’ as GroCorp officers is in etiquette and social niceties. I’ll be honest, I’m not up to snuff there either. Mercenaries or not, the 3445 is a better fit for me. I’m fine with bringing a more traditional security team back into the fold once we have done a full check on all of them and ascertained their loyalty but-”

“-but that will take a while,” Heather responded grimly. “I can’t say that it doesn’t hurt to hear that. I’ve been missing sleep to search for leaks only to find out that I’ve missed something so vital that it put you at risk. It makes sense that I would be side-line-”

“No,” Kat corrected. “You’re jumping to conclusions. Whippoorwill has looked into your background and cleared you and Emma vouches for you. I’m not sure if it’s an ability from the Tower or not, but I trust her judgment on someone’s character more than any lie detector I have access to. You’re still on the job, you’ll just be working with folks from the 3445.”

Heather nodded slowly, a half dozen emotions flickering across her face. Finally she settled on a combination of acceptance and relief.

“Now that we have that settled,” Kat continued, “It’s about time for us to initiate the conference. We’ve kept Jasper and Belle waiting for too long. They’re entitled to know what’s happening as well.

Across the room, Whippoorwill nodded. The small pyramid of the holographic projector Belle with light as it hummed to life. A half second later the partially translucent silhouettes of Anna Donnst, Jasper Haupt, and Davis Stoller appeared in three of the chairs around the conference table.

“Miss Debs.” Belle spoke first. “It is good to see your face once again. I heard the rumors of your passing, but I knew better than to believe them. You are a surprisingly hard person to kill, and at this point it seems more than a little foolish for someone to try without an absolute assurance of their success.”

“They leveled a hill with her on it,” Davis snorted. “That seems like a pretty assured kill. I know that Kat is slippery, but I am eager to learn how she managed to dodge an artillery barrage. I’ve seen a lot, but that is genuinely something that I’ve never heard of.”

“By not being there at all,” Kat replied. “I arranged for decoys that even my security detail was unaware of while I was out of town on… business. A lucky thing given that it was one of my security guards that called in the artillery strike.”

Both Belle and Davis sobered instantly, leaning forward slightly in their chairs as they processed Kat’s words. Jasper took their silence as an opportunity to chime in.

“If you were going through all that trouble to hide your location, where were you? Did you meet with one of the aliens again in secret?”

“Not Dorrik.” Kat shook her head. “I was visiting our collective friend Blake Daniels. I wanted to dissuade him from any further attacks that might put myself or my companions at risk. I suspect our point has been made, but while I was making my stance on the issue clear, we came across some data that I think needs to be shared across our little group.”

“Hmmm,” Belle remarked, pursing her lips as she leaned back slightly in her chair. “That would explain the sudden storm of activity my agents have spotted in Daniels’ faction. They’ve clamped down tight enough that I doubt that air could escape his manor and facilities at the moment.”

“I’ve also heard reports,” Davis responded. “It sounds like he’s trying to figure out if there was a samurai team active near his home earlier today. They’re also looking for consultants to help them update their counter intrusion suite. Something has them spooked.”

“Oh I wouldn’t know anything about that,” Kat said sweetly, trying her hardest to keep her heart from hammering so loudly that everyone else could hear it. “We had a perfectly healthy and reasonable exchange of ideas. He didn’t say much, and I let him know that I could kill him at any opportunity. What actually concerned me was that his meeting before our little chat was with Millennium.”

With a hiss, the rest of the table recoiled. From Heather and Baker to the three members present via hologram, everyone’s expression melted into one of concern or worry. Only Penelope seemed unphased, probably because Kat’s mother didn’t really keep up to date on heady political matters.

“Do you know what Millennium wanted?” Belle asked, her voice cold. “More importantly, did Daniels know who he was talking to?”

Kat nodded. “He did. The Millennium representative wanted the technical specifications on some of the defensive measures used at this facility and only this facility. As best I can understand, I was targeted so that Blake could step into the aftermath of my death and snap up the resources needed to transfer that information to them.”

“They haven’t given up on the stallesp research,” Davis said thoughtfully. “Even after their main base of operations was destroyed and they were forced underground, they’re still trying to seize control of the alien technology.”

“Frankly,” Kat replied, “I think they’re still working for the stallesp. Between sanctions and the undeclared civil war that’s been taking place in the Galactic Consensus, the moles are on their back foot, but they were a fairly major player and they had a number of allies. The lokkel are winning at the moment, but that doesn’t mean that the game is over entirely. If the stallesp could seize control of Earth and undermine the reports being made on their previous interference, it would go a long way to fixing the predicament that they’re in.”

“Then why didn’t you kill Blake?” Jasper asked. “If he’s knee deep in all of this crap and you caught him red handed, I don’t see why you didn’t just, you know-”

He clenched his hand into a fist, making a couple of downward stabbing motions. Kat couldn’t help herself, a smile began tugging at the corners of her otherwise taciturn expression.

“Mmm, yes,” Belle said dryly. “While I believe the young Mister Haupt phrased it a bit colorfully and inartfully, I share his curiosity. I understand that you… explained the situation to Mr. Daniels, but if he were a traitor, it is a tad unclear why your explanation wasn’t a bit more permanent.”

“Because he turned them down,” Kat replied. “His hands are dirty and the man is guiltier than sin, but he wasn’t willing to directly harm GroCorp. I walked away from the encounter with enough information to bankrupt him in arbitration despite his shares, and that is good enough for me. Unfortunately, it seems like Millennium was able to find another partner inside the company. After all, someone managed to drop a mortar on my decoy.”

“Do you have any idea who it might be?” Davis asked, his fingers drumming against the table in front of him. “Having an enemy both capable and willing to engage in such a strike is more than a bit concerning, especially if we don’t know the identity of the actor behind the curtain.”

Kat glanced at Whippoorwill, but her girlfriend just shook her head. With a sigh, she turned back to the projector.

“Not at the moment,” Kat responded. “We have information that we’re sorting through, but there isn’t anything actionable. That said, Daniels has been a naughty boy, and I think with a little proper pressure, we should be able to force him to join a coalition with us. It might not be a huge change in the long run, but at a minimum, his support could be useful in revitalizing GroCorp’s security apparatus. He is on the committee with Belle and I. I’m sure he would rather change his vote on a couple of appropriation and budgetary measures rather than have all of his dark secrets laid bare.”

“That seems reasonable,” Bella said evenly. “I don’t suppose it’s anything you can transmit to us over this connection?”

“No,” Kat replied, shaking her head slightly. “At this point I barely trust anything built by GroCorp that predates our investiture which means more or less everything. At this point, we will need couriers that we trust to move physical copies of the data. In the meantime, remember to look over your security. It’s likely that a good number of them are being paid by someone else.”

Davis snapped his fingers, drawing everyone’s attention to him as he leaned forward.

“I have the perfect person,” he said, wrinkled eyes squinting slightly. “A player strong enough to defend herself against most attempts to waylay her as well as someone that would have reason to visit all three of our headquarters.”

“Kat,” he continued. “What would you say to meeting up with Hestia again?”