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It changed everything. What if Free had tried to contact her after she’d already died? He wouldn’t have known she wasn’t there to answer. Even if he’d learned about the accident that had taken place, she hadn’t been listed as one of the sixteen fatalities.
That didn’t come as a surprise. Her grandfather would have covered the truth up if the surviving security team members reacted as fast as the clones had implied. He wouldn’t want anyone to know that his only heir was gone. It would leave him open to long-distance relatives attempting to assassinate him to gain his wealth or them coming after him in other ways.
It also hadn’t been the docking port that suffered damage on the station. It had been a section of guest quarters on the fourth and fifth decks. Space junk had slammed into it, breaching both areas of those decks. She must have been inside her rental suite to prepare for sleep. Two human security guards from Clone World, ones stationed outside to protect her, were listed as casualties.
The office door opened, and Stranton Miller walked in. He was one of her grandfather’s most trusted human employees. He’d worked at Clone World for as long as she could remember. That said a lot since she’d been born there twenty-nine years before.
She spun, grateful that she wasn’t still at his desk, and forced a smile. “There you are.”
He frowned. “What are you doing in here?”
“I wanted to talk to you about my gramps’ upcoming birthday.”
“That’s two months from now.”
“I know. I’ve been racking my brain trying to think up the perfect gift, and I finally found the answer. I mean, what do you get the man who has everything? Then it hit me. Dolters.”
“What is that?” He crossed the room and took a seat, plopping down in his chair.
“They are like domesticated alien monkeys. We have cloned species from Earth here, but not dolters. Gramps would love them. I’ve done my research, and they are very mild-tempered. They could easily survive and thrive on this planet. Everyone who visits Jabler raves about how adorable they are. We could get Gramps a mated pair. I think he’d love them. Imagine how cute their babies would be down the road. It might open some financial opportunities in the future, too. Maybe they could become mascots, and we could sell toy replicas of them to guests.”
Straton leaned back, scowling. “I don’t see the draw. We already have a wide variety of animals.”
“His dog died last year. Dolters are said to be excellent companion pets, too. We buy him a breeding pair, and any babies they have can be let loose in the animal zoning area once they are old enough. The guests would love to see them. That’s why I’m thinking plush toy replica sales would be a smart bet. It’s a unique souvenir to remind the guests of their time here on Clone World. Isn’t that perfect? I figure you can fly there, personally find the pair that would fit Gramps best, and bring them back so they can adjust to our environment before his birthday.”
“I am not flying to Jabler. You know I don’t take trips. I’m too busy.”
Marisol frowned. “Well, I’m swamped too. It has to be you.”
“No. We’ll just throw Rico a party like we do every year.”
“We will, but Gramps would really love a set of dolters. Do some research, and you’ll see what I mean. They are super friendly, can be housebroken to use an actual bathroom because of their intelligence, and are sold pre-trained. They even communicate with sign language. Imagine how much glee he’ll get out of showing the pair off to his special guests. You know he loves to own things that few other people have. A mated pair of dolters that can breed are super expensive. Most people can’t afford them.”
Straton seemed to mull that over. He finally nodded. “You’ve convinced me. Rico probably would love to receive them as a gift. I’m too busy to go. We’ll send one of my assistants.”
“Anyone else will let Gramps know what the secret is. You’re the only one I can trust. We both know how this works. Someone will believe they can advance their work positions if they do my grandfather any favors. They’d see this as such. It will dull his joy over our gift if the surprise is ruined. Imagine how impressed he’ll be that we were able to actually keep something from him. He’ll know you were the only person who could accomplish that feat.”
That seemed to please him, just like she thought it would. Straton was an egotistical asshole. She also knew he hated traveling. That was putting it mildly. The hard part was getting him on board to buy the dolters and keep it a secret. Then he’d have to find a way to get them secretly purchased and transported to Clone World. He turned on his screen and tapped at it.
Marisol carefully watched his face, but no alarm showed. That had her breathing easier. She’d hacked his computer well enough that he wasn’t aware of what she’d done. For the next few minutes, Straton ignored her until he finally looked up.
“It’s going to take eight days for a round trip. We have important guests booked for the next four months solid. You know your grandfather depends on me to personally see to their needs. You’re going to have to be the one to pick these animals up.”
She bit her lip, hoping to look frustrated. It was important to make him think it was his idea that she be the one to take the trip. He’d earned becoming Rico Florigo’s righthand man by being ruthless and smart. Long seconds passed as she pretended to give it some thought.
“Alright. This is too important not to do. I don’t want Gramps to be disappointed on his birthday. I’ll see what I can swing to fly there, but you’ll have to cover for me. Gramps will know something is up if I take an unscheduled trip.”
His gaze returned to his screen. “You’ll have to leave later today. It’s early for the yearly audit, but I could send you a formal notification right now to account for why you’d hole up in your office for a week. Can you handle your personal assistant lying for you since you won’t really be there?”
“Yes.” Marisol hated Nancy. The Earth-born woman went out of her way trying to seduce her gramps, wishing to become his seventh wife. The idiot didn’t realize she’d be forced to sign an iron-clad agreement that wouldn’t entitle her to a dime. Gramps wouldn’t spoil her either by giving her expensive gifts. All his wives got was constant verbal abuse, and him being a serial cheater rubbed in their faces. He didn’t even have the decency to pretend to be a faithful husband.
Marisol would feel zero guilt for lying to Nancy and more than likely getting her fired. It was more like doing her a favor in the long run, even if it wasn’t deserved. The same went for Straton. If everything went right, Rico Florigo would need targets to take his rage out on.
“I’ll need a fast shuttle and a security detail. I’m thinking clone guards.”
He frowned.
“Human ones can’t be trusted. The entire point of one of us taking this trip is so Gramps gets a surprise.” She paused. “I’m thinking about telling Nancy that I’m going on the other side of the planet to stay at Gramps retreat home to work from there. I do that from time to time. That way, she won’t even know I’ve taken a quick off-world trip. As I said, we can’t trust anyone.”
