Intrepid Read Online Free PDF Page B

were registered. Our captain surrendered when they asked, but they killed him and all the officers without even blinking.”
    “Who?” Kris asked, her voice low. She recognized her tone as deadly. Jack’s lips were a thin line. He’d give her no guff.
    “I don’t know their names, ma’am,” the old chief wiper said, “but I’ll never forget their faces.”
    “Captain, what say we get this man some faces to look at.”
    “My thinking exactly,” Jack said, and turned to Gunny. “I want the whole company over here. Reduce the admin watch to minimum on the Wasp . Full battle rattle and demolition loads.”
    Kris coordinated with Captain Drago. “I’m stripping my Marines for a rat hunt. Can your sailors keep an eye on the ship to make sure no rats make it off or across to you.”
    “I’m getting video of what you’re seeing, and even with life support on full boost, we’re getting some of what you’re smelling. I’ll have armed sailors looking out for anyone that you miss.”
    “Could your crew take care of these people?”
    “Cookie is preparing oatmeal and got the largest pot of coffee perking. Those that aren’t shooters are ready to help distressed mariners. Even some of the boffins are standing in line to help.”
    “You do the humanity thing. We’ll do the other stuff.”
    “Kick their butts good.”
    Kris brought Jack up to date. He nodded. “Give me five minutes to get everyone in place. Let them have more time to stew in their own juices. I don’t want to face desperate men with anything less than overwhelming odds. I don’t care how many of them die. All of them are not worth one of my Marines.”
    Kris gave him a thumbs-up.
    Sailors and boffins arrived to carefully tow out the former prisoners. The Marines aft, told there might be solid work for them forward, quickly cuffed and led up the engineering staff, still protesting their innocence to anyone listening.
    No one was.
    The LACs were launched again. The Compton had life pods. Their present position was a good four-year drift in a pod to an only marginally inhabitable planet. Anyone who tried to escape that way faced a long, slow death. As tempting as it might have been to let them try, the LACs had orders to corral in the life pods and head any pirate in them toward a date with a judge and a noose.
    At Jack’s orders, the Marines popped the hatch and started their way up the forward spine of the Compton .

5
    The four-hundred-foot climb up the first forward spine compartment would have been arduous at one gee. In free fall, Kris went hand over hand. Ahead of her, Marines were already fanning out to secure the next compartment, the second of five.
    So far no weapons fire. No booby traps. Possibly these pirates had never expected to have to defend their own ship.
    The first resistance was in the forward-most compartment. The hatch leading out of it was dogged down and locked from the other side.
    “Shall we blow it?” Gunny asked. With a glance, Jack passed the question to Kris.
    She mulled it for a moment. Just coming into the space with the Marine rear guard was Chief Beni. Apparently, rage at the pirates’ behavior toward their merchant prisoners had overcome his usual desire to be wherever action was not.
    She waved him to her. He looked around to see if there might be anyone else but him that she wanted. She shook her head and waved him forward. He came.
    “I want to talk to those thugs on the other side of this bulkhead. Jack me into their net,” Kris said.
    His eyes lit up at the prospect of doing good without any unnecessary risks. A minute later he had spotted a cable conduit, had its cover off, and was rummaging around its innards.
    “You’re in, Your Highness,” he chimed through a grin a moment later.
    Kris considered for half a second what she wanted to say and chose a simple “This is Lieutenant Kris Longknife. We have come for you, ladies and gentlemen. You can survive the next few hours or not. It doesn’t