When the rains may come (Science Fiction)

45. Coup d'état

"Is Erik Koehlwin home? I would like to have a word with him," said the man with silver hair.

Erik appeared behind Cathy and saw the visitors at the doorstep. He frowned deeply. "Why the hell are you here?" He was ready to pull out his gun.

That's when the silver haired man raised his hands. "I just wanna talk," he said. "And trust me. You don't wanna skip this conversation."

Erik's frown never went away. "Do you have any guns?" he said.

The man nodded and pulled out a pistol from under his blazer. The girl handed over her SMG as well.

Erik still aimed his gun at them as he let them in. That's when Lisa walked into the living room with baby Oriana in her arms. She raised an eyebrow at the visitors. "Who are these people?"

Erik held back a scoff. "This man," he pointed at the guy in the blazer, "is the one who sent operatives after you and Cathy in Sector 22."

It barely took three seconds for Lisa's face to twist with revulsion. "Then why the hell are we entertaining them in our house?!" she snapped. "If I was the one holding the gun I would've killed them both ten times over."

Erik rolled his eyes. "Trust me, Lisa. I have no doubt you would. But I still wanna hear what he has to say." He turned back to the guest. "So, you were saying something."

The man in the blazer had kept his expression neutral this whole time. And that didn't change even when he lifted his blazer and pulled out his provisional badge. He threw it on the floor in front of Erik and Lisa. "Until eight o'clock this morning, I was still calling myself an agent," he said. "But I can't anymore."

Erik frowned again. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Luce kept on going as if Erik hadn't spoken at all. "Around quarter past eight I received this voicemail from Command." He pulled out his cellphone and played a recording. "Luce, it's all over. Dale knows about me trying to hide the news of Sector 25 massacre. It's all over. I can see her coming down the hallway to my office with a team of steel heads. She is going to arrest me now. I know, this is it."

Erik cocked his head after the voicemail ended. "So? What do you want from me?"

"I want your help," Luce said, "for a coup against the government."

#

Lisa laughed. "Such a sweet sounding plan, Agent," she said as she cradled Oriana on her lap. "Your boss is arrested, your division will be dissolved and you want us--the so-called 'terrorist group' to help you out? Why do you think we'll believe any of this crap?"

"Lisa is right," Cathy said. "Just cuz you walked in here like a gentleman doesn't mean that we are going to believe every word you say. For all we know this might be a trap to lure the entire Last Hand."

Lisa and Cathy were on the couch. Luce and Tracy were in the two wooden chairs Cathy set by the door for them. Erik leaned against the fireplace quietly, just listening.

"If we just wanted to get to you guys we could've attacked this little town of yours in the middle of the night," Tracy said.

"But you can't," Lisa said. "You know what happened in Sector 22 when we stole the truck. And you probably also know what happened at the Sector 25 prison. You know that you can't take the Last Hand lightly anymore. So you resort to this dumb coup story of yours."

"You are not wrong," Luce said. "We don't take the Last Hand lightly anymore. But this isn't just about you or me. The Vigilant Squad division and the Clandestine division were formed under the rules of the Emergency Law Office. Now that Command is arrested under charges of heavy sedition, the ELO will probably dissolve us. That means the Clandestine division will become the sole division of law enforcement. With an organization that strong they may try to usurp the authority from ELO itself or who knows...maybe even the Seat of Authority."