The Prisoner of Eldaron: Crimson Worlds Successors II by Jay Allan

stand with him. General Astor, for one…and all the officers he’d brought onboard. And Duncan Campbell, the retired former commander of Mars’ fleet. He hadn’t even found it difficult to convince them. None of them were comfortable with the plan, but they all understood the threat, and they were old enough to remember the bombings and the Fall…and they realized something like that could easily happen again. And to a man, they trusted his motives, and they were willing to believe his assurances that when the crisis had passed, he would restore the council.
    He was scheduled to address the people at 9AM, and his operatives had already secured the broadcast center. With any luck everything else would be nailed down by then. It would be far better to announce a fait accompli than to tell his Martian countrymen there was an active revolution going on outside their doors. But he’d have to wait and see. He’d done all he could, read and reread every detail of the plan. It was as perfect as he could make it. Now he would find out if fortune was with him…or if it would make a mess of his carefully planned grab for power.
     
    *  *  *  *  *
     
    The girl’s shriek ripped through the air, awakening Boris Vallen from a sound sleep. There was a shaft of light cutting through the darkness, illuminating the large and plush bed. He turned instinctively toward her, but she was already moving, shadowy arms grabbing her, pulling her off the bed. He could see the sheets slip off, as the gloved hands pulled her roughly to the side. She stood next to the bed, naked, crying, and behind her, Vallen could see the soldiers, five of them, all clad in body armor and armed with assault rifles.
    “Mr. Vallen,” one of the soldiers said, “you are under arrest. Please get dressed, sir. You will be coming with us.” The man stood slightly in front of the others, and he wore a captain’s insignia on his collar.
    Vallen felt a surge of rage, an intense desire to spring off the bed, attack these impudent creatures. Didn’t they know who he was? A member of the council. Head of the Valen family. His mind raced with images of what he would do, how he would see these fools punished. But he didn’t move. Fear was a far stronger motivation for Boris Vallen, and one look at the soldiers with their guns at the ready was enough to dissuade any real resistance.
    “What is this about? I demand to know.” He still hadn’t moved.
    “I’m sorry, Mr. Vallen. You are under arrest. That is all I can say at this time.”
    The soldier behind the captain pulled a blanket from the bed and draped it over the girl’s shoulders. She was shaking, clearly terrified, but she was beginning to calm down a bit. She slipped a hand out from under the covering, wiping tears from her face.
    “This is an outrage!” Vallen roared, his anger momentarily overcoming his fear. “I am a member of the council. You have no right to arrest me, not under any circumstances!”
    The captain maintained his composure, showing not the slightest emotion. “As I said, Mr. Vallen, you are under arrest. I am sorry for the abrupt nature of our visit, and I can assure you that we have no desire to cause you injury. But you are coming with us.” His voice changed on the last six words, the ominous timbre of a veteran combat commander overshadowing the polite, almost apologetic tone he’d been using.
    The officer took a step toward the bed. “Now, we must go, Mr. Vallen. These two gentlemen will accompany you while you get dressed.”
    Vallen paused for a few seconds, but he didn’t have the courage to push the captain any further. He moved to the side of the bed and stood up, wrapping a sheet around himself as he did.
    “What about me?”
    It was the girl. Vallen stared over at her with a blistering expression on his face. He was too scared to challenge the Marines standing in his room, but he had no such hesitation in dealing with his recent bedmate. She was the daughter of