First Episode

The Cost of Power is set in an alternative universe from the main Martiniere Legacy series. In this book, I take a closer look at the mind control technology and…the relationship between Gabe and his father Philip ends up being different.

Additionally, Gabe tells Ruby who he really is much, much earlier than in the main Martiniere Legacy series.

Most of all, I’m freeforming this story. I somewhat know where it’s going to go, but how it unfolds depend on what happens with Gabe, Philip, Ruby, and Justine once they get on a roll in this particular setting.

Enjoy! This is part three of Chapter One. There will be three parts to this chapter.

July 2033

GABE

“SV,” Gabe’s phone announced, halfway down the slope from Homestead field. Gabe stopped the crawler.

“Hey, Serg.”

“Gabe. Got your message about the show, just haven’t been able to get back to you until now. Legal isn’t interested in stopping it. And yes, they’re using clips from the trial.”

“I’m surprised Philip’s allowing it.”

“The word came down from Philip. No opposition. No noise. Don’t stir up speculation.” Serg paused. “Dad was able to find out a little bit, talked to some folks in the know. He didn’t get to see the show, unfortunately, but was told about what was used. Not much footage of Philip’s testimony. The actual clips are mostly you. Rumor has it that the show got its primary funding from Philip’s private company, PJM Corp.”

“Damn it.” His worst fear. “He’s trying to smoke me out, isn’t he?”

“That’s what Dad thinks.”

Gabe groaned. Piotr Vygotsky’s analyses were usually correct, especially when it came to predicting Philip Martiniere’s behavior. Except that Piotr had thought Philip might calm down after five years or so.

Well, it had been five years since his testimony. Didn’t sound like Philip was calming down, not at all.

“Serg, I’m at serious risk right now. I’ve made a couple of enemies where I’m at, and they’re the sort of person who would run directly to Philip if they put the pieces together. Plus there’s a possible situation where I really can’t leave.”

God, if Ruby was pregnant and wanted to keep the baby?

He couldn’t walk away. He wasn’t that kind of person.

And Ron Ryder was in failing health, in no condition to help Ruby with a baby. The ranch was too much for one person to run by themselves. Gabe’s four years of work had only started to catch up with everything that Ron had let slide during Ruby’s college years because he couldn’t stay on top of what needed to be done. It took both Gabe and Ruby to keep the Double R going. Ron just couldn’t work anymore.

If he left Ruby, the Double R would collapse. Ruby’s biobot dreams wouldn’t go anywhere—or, worse, she and his child would fall into indenture. With her skills and her ag robotics degree and credentials, she would be so damn attractive to predatory companies.

Like the Martiniere Group under Philip, or one of their competitors, like Zingter Enterprises.

“Maybe it’s time for you to come back,” Serg said softly. “Philip needs someone to keep a rein on him.”

“I thought Justine was doing that. Isn’t she First Secretary of External Affairs?”

And just why is the Martiniere Group organized in this weird fashion? External Affairs and Internal Affairs, plus Security? It doesn’t make sense for an agtech company, even privately held.

He’d told Philip that, fresh out of his college business courses. But his uncle sneered at Gabe and suggested that perhaps he needed to look beyond his learning to understand just why the Group was structured like that.

Family politics, plain and simple.

That was the only reason Gabe could find after that conversation. At least in the files available to him. There were a lot more confidential records about the history and organization of the Martiniere Group, but they were locked down hard. His uncle Gerard couldn’t even access them outside of financials. Only Philip.

Serg sighed. “Justine’s life is blowing up, Gabe. She and Donald are divorcing.”

“Serg, you know damn good and well that divorce after seven years was just a clause in their prenuptial agreements.” Gabe shivered.

Justine’s husband Donald was the custodian of his funds. Donald managed those secret withdrawals that allowed Gabe to contribute to the Double R’s functioning as well as provide him with survival cash—not that he needed help as much once he started working on the Double R. If there were problems between Donald and Justine, the possibility of that linkage being compromised could also be an issue forcing Gabe to resurface. Even though he and Donald had been friends long before Don and Justine married.

“I’m not so sure that’s the situation anymore. It’s getting bad. Tine’s keeping her own counsel, and besides—Philip isn’t about to listen to any woman, much less his daughter, when it comes to how he manages the Family. And that’s where the problems are arising. The Family, not the Group. Though it will spill over into the Group, eventually.”

“Then why the hell did he put her in that position in the first place?” Gabe exhaled, irritated. Though External Affairs didn’t mean management of the Martiniere Family, surely Justine would have some influence over Philip. Or was she less capable than he had thought? It had been five years since he had really talked to that cousin. But unlike her brother Joey, Justine was sneaky and smart. Surely she’d be able to do something.

“The Board forced Philip’s hand when they rejected Joey as the Martiniere-in-waiting and kicked Joey out as head of External Affairs, replacing him with Justine. The only reason Philip went along with the Board was that she had a hysterectomy. It makes her less of a woman in his eyes.”

Justine’s hysterectomy, caused by a pregnancy that went into severe hydatidiform mole, fortunately not cancerous. Another nagging concern that fueled Gabe’s worry about Ruby. What if that was happening to her?

Though Gabe was happy that Justine had soared while her brother Joey had crashed. Joey was a wastrel, a drunk, and into who-knew-what. Mind control barely kept Joey reined in from his worst impulses, something Gabe had known even before his testimony. Justine had been one of his favorite cousins—but now that she was this close to Philip, he didn’t know how far he could trust her.

“Justine’s still in a position of authority,” he said.

“Gabe, if you came back, things would settle down within the Family. There’d be a clear heir. You’d be able to resurface under your own control, setting your own conditions, rather than risk someone exposing you.”

“Has Philip stopped threatening to kill me?”

“He doesn’t do it as often, but—“

Gabe sighed. “Serg. I have people depending on me. People Philip could hurt, as a means of getting back at me. That hasn’t changed. I can’t reveal myself.”

“How much do they know?”

He groaned. “Nothing. My girlfriend knows that I’m on the run, but she thinks it’s because I owe a minor fortune for college and gambling loans. That the bounty hawks have a huge indenture contract on me from the Group.”

“You’d have money to provide security for them if you became yourself again.” Serg sounded tired. “You’d have Family support.”

“If it were just my girlfriend I’d risk it, or run and take her with me—but she has a frail relative that she can’t leave, and I can’t risk him, either. I can’t do it, Serg. I can’t tell them. If they know nothing—maybe Philip won’t hurt them.“

“How are you gonna explain the show?”

“Well, the streaming quality and the TV here aren’t that good.” That sounded like a lousy excuse, even to himself. “I should probably leave. Meet up with you somewhere for new ID papers. Bury Gabe Ramirez, become someone else.”

Did he really sound as despairing as he thought when he said that?

Serg didn’t respond for a while. “Gabe,” he said finally. “That may not even be an option. The show’s gonna be streaming for a month. Where else are you gonna go to get away from people spotting you? There’s no place to hide these days. Besides that, the Family needs you.”

There’s always the Saldivars.

But that would mean agreeing to things that Gabe found as personally repellant as what Philip was doing. He did not want to become beholden to his cousin Jorge Saldivar and the Saldivar cartel. What had happened to his mother’s family was sufficient warning about taking that option. Going Saldivar was a one-way ticket—and an even bigger price on his head. A very last resort.

“Can the Family keep me and those who depend on me safe from Philip?”

“You have a lot of support.”

“But is it going to be enough?”

Serg’s slow response was Gabe’s answer. “Gabe. Dad thinks revealing yourself is the only safe response. Get us wherever you are to provide security. Plan out the process. But do it quick and soon.”

“I’ll have to think about it, Serg.”

“Don’t take too long. Otherwise, you’re setting yourself up for more trouble than we can handle. Dad says that the sooner we can get security around you, the better it will be. And—” Serg paused. “Joey’s been spotted in Pendleton.”

Shit.

Pendleton was where Gabe usually met Serg to collect his quarterly cash drop. He had kept his location mostly secret—Serg knew it was somewhere in Northeastern Oregon or Southeastern Washington, just not exactly where. Thunder County was sufficiently isolated that Gabe would know if Serg or Joey were snooping around the little town of Lakeside. He had made enough friends in the past four years who would comment on the odd appearance of Vygotsky Security’s second-in-command in the County, or a Martiniere heir prone to drunkenness and abusive behavior.

However, there were those in the County and Pendleton who would happily help Joey. The Barkleys, family of Ruby’s father, had a huge grudge against Ruby and the Ryders and Gabe had no idea why. Gabe had nearly ended up in jail a couple of times after getting into fistfights with a couple of Ruby’s Barkley cousins from Pendleton.

Nathan Bonham, of course, would have no qualms about working with Joey.

Why the hell is Joey in Pendleton?

That didn’t bode well. And there were a lot of Barkleys in Pendleton. If Joey joined up with the Barkleys and Nathan Bonham, then Ruby and her grandfather were definitely at risk. Even if Gabe ran. Protection had been his motive for not telling them who he really was from the beginning of his relationship with Ruby, and he had been honest with them about that aspect of his exile.

Gabe exhaled. “Understood. I’ll get back to you within twenty-four hours.” He hung up.

Serg’s message was all too clear.

If I run, I’m on my own.

He didn’t care for those odds. He had already experienced that life in the witness protection program, and damn near ended up dead as a result. This was as much of an ultimatum as anything Philip would issue.

Return to the Family, or face permanent exile and death.

Gabe buried his head in his hands.

If it wasn’t for Nathan Bonham—and whatever was happening with Ruby—

He raised his head and roared in frustration.

No good choices. None at all.

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