Chapter 40

TJ retired to the clean room to think (scheme?); he consulted with Cedric, Orville and Percy and that trio hurried off without demur.

TJ's request (you don't give an order unless you are sure it will be obeyed) for the Windsor Women to have burrfibre garments (in multiple layers) made was treated with disdain — they were wearing their gold biologicals with the tooled leather waist pieces. Morg was not so conscious of his image that he had qualms about standing in the measuring cubicle and being fitted with anti ballistic clothing. TJ later replaced him once he was sure his instructions to the males were being followed.

Clare agreed to pilot 737 as the transportation with 'Nita as copilot; Jane and Janice volunteered as EW and navcom when it became known that 737 was the mode of transport and Cedric carefully instructed them in the modifications; Mary Fogg and Peggy Dare volunteered as gunners on the PD pods; Dorothy Ember inveigled her way on board as missile officer.

TJ supervised the modifications he had decreed.

Percy had obtained an abandoned exhibit's CA's secondary energy tube and generator and USN personnel had volunteered to fit the gun pod under the nose of 737 in place of its removed heavy armament.

Orville had taken TJ's chips and set up his cadcam equipment to manufacture six rockets with explosive heads to be mounted on the re-attached wings of the assault shuttle — Orville was not happy that TJ would accept such primitive weapons, but as TJ pointed out, time was limited and gravity was a problem in this sortie.

(Orville continued to work on his project over the next month and, with the assistance of Cedric and the Windsor Women, developed twelve hull mounted programmable mini missiles; mass is not a problem in space.)

Cedric fitted a rheo to the defensive triple shield enabling it to be minimised suitable for a shuttle in its ground mode.

TJ briefed his crew explaining their roles.

The Families allowed bodyguards to accompany the Dons but not into the conference room where only the consigliore could accompany them. As a matter of courtesy, the Godfather allowed all bodyguards to inspect the conference room and to guard the entrances from the outside.

There was some harrumphing when the Windsor Women entered with Morg as the Comminantes Don and TJ as the Family's consigliore but as Sean O'Flaherty explained, this was the whole Family except for Gabrielle Comminantes who some of the Dons had met socially and who was on Gorgipest.

Introductions were made and the males seated around the table, chairs had been brought in when it was evident the females had no intention of leaving and placed behind the visitors who were positioned at the end of the table. Eduardo Hollier, the Godfather's consigliore and a distant relative by marriage of the assassinated Comminantes Don, provided the details of the Comminantes assets to the meeting and several Dons signalled their objection but Sean waved them down with a promise of discussing their claims later. The details droned on until one of the Dons requested coffee be brought in. Sean acquiesced and no one objected. Four young men wheeled in two trolleys with the urns and crockery under the supervision of two of Sean's bodyguards. The coffee was poured and placed in front of each Don and then as a matter of courtesy the servers partook of the brew. The servers offered the Windsor Women, cups of the brew which were declined.

Later examination of the vid record of the conference depicted the ensuing bloodbath. The servers attempted to restrain the daughters and the bodyguards drew weapons turning towards the table. The doors were forcibly opened and armed men began to enter. The servers fell screaming to the floor and the bodyguards dropped lifelessly with throwing stars embedded inside their cranial cavities — Julie had coated her stars with one of her pharmaceuticals (Not approved by any government organisation for human use.). Those bursting through the door got no further than several paces before intense blue white beams passed through their bodies —and vital organs — taking them out of the affair. As two armed armoured figures approached the door, several explosions were heard from outside. No words were spoken as both figures nodded and then carefully closed the doors. Julie's daughters moved to place their backs against a wall and gazed across the still seated and somewhat dazed men.

It was seen that neither Morg Windsor nor his consigliore had taken their eyes from the seated men.

"Uncle Eduardo" Julie began "Dear Uncle Eduardo. Still up to your old tricks, I see."

Don Andrew Winter was a tough old man who had made his way up the power chain to be the Don of his Family, and he spoke in a gentle manner, fooling no one,

"Sean, we would like an explanation please or is this going to be a war meeting?"

"Don Andrew, I am as much in the dark as you are. Eduardo, Ms Comminantes thinks you know something of this. Perhaps..."

"Sean, I know noth Ow!..." Eduardo began until a throwing star embedded itself into his shoulder. He began to pale, sweat, and struggled to rise only to collapse into his chair.

"One of my more special potions; please, don't get up, gentlemen. I want us all to hear Uncle Eduardo's story and besides my daughters really, really, really do not need throwing practice."

The men more closely looked at those tooled leather belt ornaments and realised that as they were now unpunctured, they were probably going to remain that way — provided the women did not become upset for any reason. Several of the Dons, with steady hands, refreshed their cups, delicately sipped and nodded at Julie.

Julie took her chair and placed it alongside Eduardo Hollier,

"Eduardo, dear Uncle" Julie spoke in a saccharine sweet voice but the listeners could detect the tones of cold dark rage screaming, "from the beginning please."

The neurotoxin partially disabling Eduardo's skeletal musculature had been prepared with a "Truth drug" and Julie assisted him to remain upright as he completed the details for what should have been his death at the hands of the Families.

The intrigue had begun nearly five decades ago, when a very ambitious Eduardo had examined his prospects. He realised his distant relative would extend assistance for advancement in the Comminantes Family but Eduardo would only go so far as his relative was not blood and a stop gap until Hector Comminantes was old enough to be acceptable to the Families (the Comminantes women were providing the real leadership). Eduardo instead placed his allegiance with a minor Family, the O'Flahertys, and he advanced rapidly in their hierarchy. He retained friendly family relations with the Comminantes and became a frequent visitor. He paid particular, if not obvious, attention to the Comminantes consigliore and his family. As he rose in the O'Flaherty ranks, Eduardo developed friendly relations with all the Families such that he was occasionally used as an intermediary between Families. He was very aware of the outright mutual animosity between the Mastron and Comminantes which origins were lost in the fogs of time. He never took sides publically but let slip deliberately in Mastron hearing, his ambition to inherit the Comminantes. Hector's liking for underage partners was becoming known — with a nudge from Eduardo from time to time — and the Families disgust was leading to an isolation of the Comminantes. The Mastrons made their move too soon and were being rendered ineffective when the Mastrons called a truce. The Families offered Eduardo as the go between and negotiations commenced. The Mastrons asked for a family get together with the Comminantes at a neutral place which the Families guaranteed. Hector was not so trusting and had been plotting for the long term — he had sent his sister-in-law to Gorgipest to establish a family outpost and as the conflict between the Mastrons and the Comminantes worsened, he had asked his friend Eduardo to smuggle his granddaughter, Julie, to her aunt in Gorgipest. Eduardo had obliged but decided that the body of the granddaughter on Gorgipest would suit his ambition better. He also obliged the Mastron Family by secreting weapons at the get together. The ensuing massacre appeared to bring his ambitions forward considerably but he had misjudged the severity of the Families' reactions and their sequestering of the Comminantes assets. He made the best of the situation pouring his best efforts into establishing the O'Flahertys as the premier family with himself as consigliore.

The discovery of the surviving Comminantes had been a nasty surprise but he believed he was in the clear. And he had been.

But the opportunity presented by the Comminantes arrival in "Sundowner" was too good to let pass by. He manipulated the managers of the Pleasure Palace to report the profit increase and manoeuvred one of the lesser Dons into putting forward the idea of prolonging "Sundowner's" stay providing more time to make the plans for the meeting. His aim had been to wipe out the Dons and as the senior survivor to amalgamate the Families into one under his control.

The plot had nearly worked and the Dons regarded it as good fortune that 737 and its crew had been in the offing to protect their principals.

Those principals did not enlighten the assembled Dons that the Sundowners had become aware of the ploy as soon as the Comminantes had entered the conference room because of the opening in Eduardo's mind which he never knew was there into which Julie's friend had slipped and the rest was history.

Julie allowed Eduardo to slump to the floor and suggested the meeting continue. The Families agreed that an equitable price would be paid for the Comminantes assets which would then be paid into a Sol account. This would bring closure to the defacto absence of Comminantes from Bhute's affairs. A satisfactory closure to an unpleasant part of Bhute's part.

"What about him?" Don Andrew asked, indicating Eduardo. Julie leaned over Eduardo, smiled slightly, selected two fingers and deeply lacerated Eduardo's face,

"He should have a normal life span; it is a pity that he will be in constant agony from spastic muscles and just in case his sensory system is deficient, I've augmented it ... Now, where are my stars..."

She plucked the one out of Eduardo's shoulder and replaced it in her belt. She walked over to the corpses of the bodyguards contemplating them for a moment before retrieving one of the chairs provided for her daughters (lighter than the massive seats about the table) and returning to the corpses to literally smash open the skulls. Julie picked up a serviette from nearby and picked her stars out of the exposed mess,

"Cant lose these" she informed the watching Dons and consigliores "they are platinum. A pleasure doing business with you."

And walked around the table shaking hands before trailing her entourage out of the conference room.

The Dons and consigliores followed them out, stepping over the dismembered body parts scattered about the hallways and watched as the Comminantes entered the shuttle — they were aware of the muzzle of a laser PD pointing at them but control of emotions was a trait long learned by these men. With an apparent indifference, the onlookers noted the streams of blood slowly falling from the wrecks of two blown apart armoured limousines. The shuttle engines roared as it lifted its bow high and powered off to the stratosphere.

The only comment made about the events was Charley's

"Well that was interesting."

Clare briefed Charles and Percy on the events.

Charles had been assessing his situation since departing(?) Harbouria and after reaching a conclusion, made a trip dirtside to purchase Harbours and Space instruction manuals and vids and a commercial marine simulator; he was aware that Morg (and probably TJ) had his "books" from the navigation course.

The Commodore had been assessing the exposition following complaints from the remaining exhibitors about the diminished scope of the original planned exposition. He consulted Charles and Clare and the decision was made to abandon the exposition and return to Sol — the full charter fee would be paid, discounted in accordance with accepted spacefaring practice.

Charles made the announcement that he would take his leave of "Sundowner" upon return to Old Earth. He returned his share in "Sundowner" to the company gratis — after all, he smilingly pointed out, he had his share of the treasure.

"The cancellation of the charter" Charles continued "makes things just a bit difficult — for you. I had planned on using the rest of the charter to give you instruction to enable you to sit the examinations for Master of a spacefaring vessel. The cancellation means the leisure has been taken out of it — with assistance from Clare, Morg, TJ and Orville, the officers will be able to confidently write those exams; other crew members are not expected to read the course but it wont hurt — too much (with a grin) - and the usual diversions will be suspended for the nonce."