Mindguard Read Online Free PDF Page A

carried through the Djago Desert.”
    At the mention
of the Djago Desert, Ross’ face revealed a slight twitch; Sheldon’s remained a
petrified mask. In space travel, any ‘desert’ was a region outside of the
control of the Interstellar Federation of Common Origin. Because of that,
telepathy wasn’t at all monitored. Deserts were stretches of space containing
planets sunken in postwar anarchy. Mindcrimes were rampant and the survival
rate of travelers was virtually non-existent. Ross didn’t know what to say.
Miller hadn’t mentioned the Djago Desert when they had first spoken. Sheldon,
however, knew exactly what to say: “No!” Miller smiled with confidence, as if
he had just been issued a challenge.
    “Now hold on -”
Ross said but was abruptly interrupted by his client, who addressed Sheldon
directly: “I was led to believe that you have crossed information through level
5 danger zones before.”
    “Only in
government-issued missions,” Sheldon said. “We generally avoid it.”
    “You are
supposed to be the best.” From his tone, Ross was certain that Miller had just
meant Sheldon in particular, but the mindguard responded in plural. “We are,”
he said. “Part of what makes us the best is a well developed ability to
evaluate risks, in order to avoid foolish ventures. Unless the mission is
issued by the government of the IFCO, we don’t access level 5 territories.”
    “Is this a
politically backed mission?” Ross asked, trying to help out his potential
customer. 
    “You could say
that,” the businessman answered.
    “No,” Sheldon said.
“You need a holorecorded and DNA-encoded dispatch from the Presidential Office.
Do you have or can you produce such a document?”
    “That will not
be possible,” admitted Marcus Miller, who had thus far remained silent.
    “Then we
decline.”
    “No,” Ross said
loudly. He cleared his throat. “Not accepting level 5 missions without a
dispatch from the Presidential Office is an internal regulation of our
company. We can make exceptions, given the proper circumstances. As co-owner
and Head of Operations, I decide that this mission qualifies as an exception.
We will take the case.”
    “Then I’m out,”
Sheldon declared.
    “Perhaps I can
convince you to change your mind,” Horatio Miller said. Ross thought his voice
sounded odd. He seemed uninvolved, as if he were merely repeating a
conversation he had rehearsed in his head many times. “How about a twenty-five
percent pay increase?”   
    “Money?” Sheldon
said. It had been a question but had sounded like a statement. Miller calmly
smiled, as though he had foreseen the man’s reaction. Ross was surprised at how
composed the businessman was around Sheldon. Something about the mindguard’s
demeanor usually made people uneasy.
    “I have access
to holosense material that is - let’s say - hard to find on certain planets,”
Miller said.
    Ross knew that
his partner had understood exactly what the man had meant. He half expected
Sheldon to spit in Miller’s face. Instead, he simply said “I’m out, thank you
for the wine”. Then, turning to Ross: “Good luck Mac!” He got up and proceeded
towards the exit. With the tone of someone announcing a checkmate, Horatio
Miller slowly said: “I have unrestricted access to the archives.”
    Sheldon froze in
his tracks.
    ●
     
    When Sheldon
turned around, his usually inexpressive face was a mask of disbelief. Like a skilled
prizefighter delivering a knockout blow, Miller did not waste a second.
“Perhaps I can arrange for the Council to grant you access to your beloved
grandfather,” he said, smiling in certain victory.
    Ross didn’t know
if Sheldon was going to start yelling and cursing or crying, or if he would
attack Miller or run away or perhaps curl up into a fetal position and just
rock back and forward. At that moment, all those reactions seemed equally
possible. His friend did none of those things.
    “That’s not possible,”
Sheldon