Planetary News: The South African Alliance and East African Society armies that were in North Africa fighting mutated animals have succeeded in killing them. They'll return with some corpses for scientists to study what's causing these animals to awaken.
After Detective J returned to The Universal Authority with the survivors, the news about the deaths of the barons left a sour taste in everyone's mouth. Baron Samson had temporary control of the other divisions until after the election of new barons.
There were no signs of Sister Mary in the system. But it wouldn't be long before she showed up. Wolf had struck a nerve, and she would eventually go after him. Even though Director Bea and Chief Syla were disappointed about the alien's escape, they had pressing matters to attend to.
J's return wasn't as happy as he had thought it'd be. He learned of the disintegration of the State of Kwame and the death of millions of Martians. Even the news of Cleopatra's execution didn't matter. It would take a long time for Mars to recover from the destruction.
But with her death, Cleopatra had the last laugh. The annihilation of the State of Kwame within seconds terrified everybody in the system. The existence of such a weapon shook The Council so much that they fulfilled her wishes.
First, they had banned trophy hunting in the system and disbanded all organizations practicing it with immediate effect, and anyone caught doing it would face capital punishment.
Second, the Martian government had announced the end of slavery—fearing what had happened to Kwame would happen to the other states—and gave the land that used to be the State of Kwame to the freed slaves. In a matter of days, good samaritans from all over the system had volunteered to help the slaves in building their new homes and businesses, naming the area the State of the Free.
Even with all the horrible news, relief washed over J as only one state had been destroyed. Oli and Susan Goldman were in the State of the Founding Fathers. He didn't know what he'd have done if something had happened to Oli again.
Though, more good news came from his successful mission. The Science Division had watched some files on the flash drive and started planning on sending representatives to the other systems. It'd take time because the vetting procedures would be thorough, not wanting to be blindsided by golems again.
In the cases of She-Wolf and Red Hawk, Chief Syla ordered them to stay at The Universal Authority for the meantime while doctors conducted checkups, hoping they weren't secretly golems. But the two could move around on the moon as TUA had facilities for everything—training, cafe, lounge, and so on.
Also, because of their successful return, TUA gave all the bounty hunters on the mission one hundred million credits each before they retired from their respective organizations.
She-Wolf and Red Hawk couldn't wait to spoil their son while catching up on all the missed years, making Detective J jealous, as that was what he wanted to do with Oli.
"J," a familiar female voice called him from behind.
The detective was in the tube that led to Chief Syla's office, drinking herbal tea from a plastic cup. Syla had called him without giving him a reason. It reminded him of when Baron Samson had done the same thing, only for him to learn he had a daughter—he teared up at the memory.
J turned and saw She-Wolf alongside Red Hawk and their son, Wolf. They look so happy. "Hey, how are you guys?"
"Good." She-Wolf smiled. "This is my son, Wolf." She pointed at the brown-skinned man standing between her and Red Hawk wearing a white turtleneck T-shirt tucked in his black trousers. He had his mother's face and his father's height. "You said he knew your daughter, but you didn't tell us your daughter died in Coupon City. Sorry about that."
She'll be back. "No worries." J gave a tight-lipped smile.
"He'd like to speak to you," Red Hawk said, then nudged Wolf forward. "See you at the cafe, son."
She-Wolf and Red Hawk left for the shuttle station at the end of the tube. Wolf looked like a sweet young man who parents would love their daughters to marry. But he gave off wicked energy; the kind that secretly loved trouble.
What does he want to say? "I've thought about this meeting a lot," J said, removing the awkward silence between them.
"Me too." Wolf puffed air through his mouth. "Sorry about Oli. I should've come to you sooner, but I had so much going on. First, it was The Forgotten Nuns. Then, it was Cleopatra. It was all too much."
Could it be? "You were the one who captured Cleopatra and handed her over to her father?"
Wolf smiled. "What can I say? I'm good at my job."
Maybe his parents were right. He might be the best coyote in the GSF. "What rank are you?"
Wolf laughed while scratching the back of his neck. "I just broke into The 100 for the first time, sitting at 90. Sweet, right?"
I wish I saw his parents' reaction when they found out he wasn't number one. J laughed, leaving Wolf with a confused expression. Though he wasn't good at being a parent, the detective understood She-Wolf and Red Hawk's expectations of their son. From the books he had read on how to be a good parent, thinking highly of your child was a pleasant start.
"You have wonderful parents," J said.
"Thank you. It's been years since I saw them. I thought they were dead. So, I'm happy to see them alive and well."
"And rich too."
Wolf laughed. "Yeah, that too."
"What are your plans now? Your parents retired after their massive reward. Are you joining them?"
Wolf shook his head. "I still have a lot to offer the GSF. Plus, I love being a coyote. Though people may not believe it, I love getting rid of criminals law enforcement can't deal with."
J nodded in agreement. Though he didn't like coyotes out of all bounty hunters, they completed more bounties than the others. "Best of luck out there." He patted Wolf's arm. "Don't die."
"Thank you." Wolf bit his top lip. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Did you know Oli was a clone?"
J's eyes widened. "How do you know that?"
"Oli told me before she died. If I had known she was a clone, I wouldn't have left her to die alone." He tapped his temple with his forefinger repeatedly. "It's been bothering me ever since. I keep thinking about it, dreaming about it, seeing all the ways it could have gone differently." Tears welled in his eyes. "I'm sorry I got your daughter killed. I'd understand if you hate me."
This wasn't who J had expected to meet when he thought about meeting Wolf and kicking his ass for getting Oli killed. The detective had expected an arrogant coyote who'd look down on him; it would have made hating him easier. But now... how could he hate him? After everything he had learned about what had happened in Coupon City, he knew the man wasn't at fault. He was only doing his job, the same way Oli was doing hers.
J put his hand on Wolf's shoulder. "I'm going to tell you a secret. Promise me you won't tell anyone."
"I won't. I promise."
J withdrew his hand to his side. "Oli will be back as a sleeve."
Wolf gasped. "What—How—When did—Huh?"
"Her adoptive mother owns a cloning station on Mars. She had never told Oli about the sleeve, that's why she didn't tell you. But when she returns, you'll be the first one to know."
Tears flowed down Wolf's face, and he tried his hardest to wipe them off. "I'm so happy to hear that." He had a big grin on his face, highlighting his boyish looks. "You don't know how much you just made my day. But wow, a sleeve? That's huge."
The sparkle in the man's eyes made J smile. He was proud Oli was friends with a good man. Maybe there's hope for the coyotes after all.
"I have to go now. My parents don't like to wait when they're hungry," Wolf said.
Same. "Of course. Best of luck, Wolf."
"You too, Detective J." Wolf ran off to the end of the tube where his parents were, and the three entered a shuttle before it sped off.
🐺
J knocked on the metallic door.
"Enter," Syla said from the other side.
When J went inside, Syla's office didn't look different from the last time he was there. The only missing things were the barons and heads of the bounty hunter organizations. It made the room look bigger.
Syla sat behind his desk with a glass of wine in his hand. "Sit." He pointed to the empty chair in front of him.
J sat down and exhaled. He had taken a few days off work to relax. Now that he was back, he was ready to solve crimes. Hopefully, him being in Syla's office meant the Chief had a big case for him.
"How's my niece?" Syla asked.
"She hasn't woken up yet. When she does, Susan will call me."
"Good, good." He took a drag from the cigar in his other hand and blew the smoke into the air. "After you left, I had a chat with Susan. She assured me no one will connect Oli to Cybil, or vice versa. She has scrapped her medical records for any signs of relations, so we're good."
Yes! "I understand. " Warmth spread in J's chest. Now he could spend time with her in public without fear of capital punishment for creating a clone while not being a Martian. "So, why am I here?"
Syla blew smoke in the air, then placed the cigar in the ashtray before rubbing back his hair. "I have a job for you."
Finally, the words I wanted to hear. "What kind of case?"
Syla shook his head. "I don't give you cases: that's Samson's job. When I say, I have a job for you, it means I want you to come work for me."
"You want me to retire and sit behind a desk all day? That will be a waste of my skills."
"I said nothing about you retiring. Now that we know about the existence of aliens and golems in our system, I'm putting together a special task force to deal with them, and I want you to lead that task force. As you said, the golems can be anyone we know, so I don't need you distracted by mundane cases. This is bigger than anything you've ever solved, so I need your full attention on it. Understood?"
J nodded.
Syla took a sip of his wine. "Have you heard of the League of Golems?"
Monica Pauly had told him about them. She delivered human organs and flesh to the organization under The Forgotten Nuns' orders. "Yes," J replied.
"They have members are all over the system. The special task force will root them out and put a stop to them." Before J said a word, Syla raised his hand. "I know what you're going to ask. Don't worry about it. The task force will have system-wide clearance. You'll be able to enter any planet, moon, and asteroid colony without a hiccup."
"How did you get that level of clearance?"
"After what happened to the State of Kwame, it wasn't hard. I told them I'm forming a task force that will deal with finding people like Cleopatra and stop them from creating the level of the attack she did."
"And they agreed?"
"Easily." Syla smiled.
J didn't doubt Syla's ability to persuade people. The man could convince a rock it was a plastic cup. And he always gets what he wants. "How will this team work? Do you choose the members or?"
"Your team, your rules. You can pick whoever you want, as long as they're not a golem."
I like the sound of that. There were so many skilled people J knew who'd be perfect for this kind of team. Whether they'd accept was another matter. "How many members can I have?"
"Not more than." Syla raised his brow. "Do you have people in mind?"
That's more than enough. "Yes."
"That's what I like to hear."
"When do I start?"
"Whenever your team is ready. Can you do it fast, though?"
Of course. "Sure."
"Excellent. Now go recruit them. We don't have time to waste."
"Yes, Chief." J stood and saluted, making Syla shake his head with a smile on his face.
J left the office, excited about his new job. But with it came finding a team name, if they'd wear uniforms or not, whether to use codenames or their real names, and so on. Though, first, he had to convince the people he had in mind to join him.
If She-Wolf and Red Hawk agree, then the others will be a piece of cake. J thought as the elevator descended, excited at the prospect of putting a stop to the League of Golems.