Hammer and Crucible by Cameron Cooper (book recommendations for teens .TXT) 📕

Juliyana. Her face was smooth, her eyes blank. She was pissed, too.

He didn’t seem to notice. Instead he looked at my plate. “A bowl of soup and a salad would go well with that sandwich. Can I get you some?”

“I have zero appetite,” I said, my voice flat.

“Another steak, Juliyana?”

“Ten seconds and counting,” she replied.

He held out his wrist. “Feel free.”

Juliyana waved her pad over his wrist. It pinged as she read it. Her face still did not twitch. She passed the pad over to me.

Instead of the usual serial number ID read out, a white square sat in the center of the screen. Five words.

Billy Kurzel. Agent at large.

“It doesn’t tell me a fucking thing,” I said, putting the pad down. It was another lie.

“Who do you work for?” Juliyana pressed.

“Various different parties,” he said airily.

“You’re not getting any closer to the point,” I said.

He nodded calmly, as if he didn’t know Juliyana could break his neck and go back to her steak without raising her pulse.

“Appearances can be so deceiving, can’t they?” he said. “When I heard the Imperial Hammer was on the station, it made me sit up. I’m sure everyone who looks at you discounts your history.” His gaze upon me was steady.

“Let me guess. You don’t discount me?”

“Precisely. I have spent an instructive few hours going over your history. It is a pleasure to meet you, Danny Andela.”

I didn’t let down my guard. “The clinic sent you, didn’t they?”

Juliyana rolled her eyes and made an impatient noise. “Whatever happened to patient confidentiality around here?”

“I wasn’t a patient,” I reminded her. I recalled the quick scan the boy at the front of the clinic had taken of my wrist. “The clinic and I chose not to complete any business arrangements. They sold the information to this barracuda, instead.”

Billy’s smile shifted a little. “Blankenburg thought I could help you. As it happens, I can almost guarantee I can.”

I looked at Juliyana. “He’s a recruiter for paramilitary outfits.”

Billy’s smile disappeared altogether. He glanced over his shoulder, for we were not sitting inside a privacy bubble right now. “I didn’t say that,” he said quickly.

“You have access to tech which can divert a serial number inquiry. You hotfooted it here as soon as you heard I was on the station.” I smiled at him. “And you know who the Imperial Hammer is. There are not too many people outside the Rangers who know the name. The paramilitary outfits we used to fight certainly did.” I smiled at him. “You realize you’re sitting beside a Ranger right now?”

His glance flickered toward Juliyana. “You’re not in uniform. You can’t arrest me if you’re not officially on duty.”

“Oh, I’d much rather hear you hang yourself a bit higher, before my grandmother drops a heavy load on you,” she said, her tone bright and cheery.

Billy’s eyes narrowed. “I think we’ve got off on the wrong foot.”

Juliyana snorted.

He turned to me. “You have spent your adult life enjoying the privileges of military life, which includes regeneration and the very best and most advanced medical care available in the Empire. You didn’t pay a cent for it. What if I could make that happen for you again?”

I gotta admit that for a fraction of a heartbeat, I entertained the possibility. Then, like cards rifling from one hand to the other, the sequence of decisions and logic reasserted themselves: My time was done. My reputation was gone. Let it go.

I shook my head, regretfully. “All I’m looking for is crush juice. I have no time left to sign up for even a short-term contract.”

Billy rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “You don’t seem to understand. You can very nearly write your own terms. The people I represent understand your value.” He paused. “If you have something to do, somewhere to go, and clearly you do, because you want crush juice, then there may even be a way for us to delay the contract activation long enough for you to deal with your personal issues first.”

“Wow, they really want you, don’t they?” Juliyana said.

“You understand I was kicked out of the Rangers, don’t you?” I asked Billy.

His eyes sparkled. “You formally resigned. It’s of no concern to us. You were a senior colonel in the combat battalions. Your expertise cannot be bottled or turned into an algorithm. People will pay for your experience and wisdom.” He leaned forward to emphasize his point. “Do you know how many wars are running in the Empire right now?”

“I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”

“Official, declared wars; thirty-seven. Those are wars between acknowledged states, including corporate and ball-bound. Undeclared wars, skirmishes, infiltrations and other paramilitary activities, documented and undocumented, well… I could sit here a long time listing those. The people I work for have an interest in many of those arenas and could use someone with your skills.”

“But first I have to rejuvenate,” I said, my voice dry.

“With us, the rejuvenation therapy you would receive would be the most advanced that is currently available. As good as military grade.”

“Of course it would be,” I replied. “You would want your performing monkey to be at her best.”

Billy did not seem to be offended by the analogy. The corner of his mouth lifted a little. “I can tell you that if we don’t find a mutually agreeable arrangement, the only option you have left is a civilian therapy.” All amusement faded in his face. “There is a reason most people choose bonded mortgages for their rejuvenation. The civilian rejuvenation therapy is not worth the price. Besides, thirty years out of the hundreds we all get to live, now, is nothing.”

“Thirty years out of every fifty or sixty is fucking bullshit,” I replied. “And besides,” I added, my anger kicking in, “I’m not interested in rejuvenation. I keep repeating this, and no one hears me. If I have to repeat myself to you once more, Juliyana will shove the point of her steak knife into whatever organ she is currently pointing it at.”

“His left testicle,”