Losing Mars (Saving Mars Series-3) Read Online Free Page A

slow-wit before her.
    “Yes, yes,” said the Chancellor, tapping her nails on her glass-topped desk. She’d kept the secret of Mars’s recent visit to herself, asking Johnston the question about tellurium in hopes Mars’s tellurium would be … different somehow—identifiable.
    “Well, what headway have you made, then? Surely, Johnston, with the resources I’ve placed at your disposal in the past week …” The Chancellor’s brows rose in an unspoken question.
    “Yes, Madam Chancellor,” replied Johnston. “We have indeed noted anomalous patterns in the usage of tellurium as we’ve analyzed circulation for the past several months. But we are having difficulty pin-pointing the origin. Whoever has been spending the metal, or trading it, rather, has done an excellent job of covering their tracks.”
    Lucca scowled. “Well, then, we must do a better job of uncovering those tracks.”
    “I have all my best people on it,” replied Johnston. “Rest assured, we will find something sooner or later.”
    “I want sooner !” The Chancellor rose and paced out the length of her office. “The current shortage ought to be bringing the rats out of hiding. They can get more credits for the metal, surely, at this point in time?”
    “Your own recent legislation has made that … dangerous , Madam Chancellor.”
    “Yes, yes, of course.” Her heels clicked in rapid succession as she retraced her steps back to her desk and Johnston. “Perhaps we should attempt to draw out those with large surfeits by offering a better rate of exchange.” Lucca frowned.
    “We could make the attempt,” admitted Johnston. “Greed can drive a certain sort of person to exercise less caution.”
    “No, no. I have something better in mind.” The Chancellor smiled. “I will make the suggestion that it would be patriotic to turn in sheltered amounts of the metal in question. We’ll offer rebody credits to those who empty their coffers—create a civic duty to turn in whatever is lying about. If we offer rebody credits, we can avoid changing the actual exchange rate while increasing the perceived value.”
    “Yes, Madam Chancellor,” said Johnston. “Those holding unusual quantities of tellurium might be motivated by such an offer, if they are operating in the open market. And those operating in the black market would be able to command favorable rates of exchange with this incentive in place as well.”
    “And once the tellurium begins to flow more freely—”
    The dullard interrupted the Chancellor. “The trail will be easier to follow.”
    Perhaps he wasn’t so dim-witted after all, thought Lucca, a smile forming upon her visage.

6
    UNDER THE RADAR
    The enforced week on the ground had passed and Jessamyn was once more allowed at the helm of a ship, flying Pavel, Harpreet, and Brian Wallace to the Republic of Chicago.
    Brian Wallace told Jessamyn she would need to keep low to the ground to avoid detection.
    “I love a challenge,” she said, grinning.
    “It’s a flying technique used extensively by those engaged in black market activities,” Brian explained.
    “Is it really?” asked Pavel. “Last year, I took off a lot without telling my aunt. I figured out by accident that so long as I hugged the ground, I never got stopped or reported.”
    “Aye,” replied Brian. “But Lucca probably knew where ye were, lad. Ye’re only truly safe if ye remove the tracker that communicates with Air Safety.”
    “Which you did on this ship, right?” asked Jessamyn.
    “Which we did,” replied Pavel.
    Jess nodded happily. She didn’t want a repeat of her encounter with the Central African Air Control, exciting as that had been.
    “You look happy,” said Pavel, seating himself beside her.
    She was happy. Sitting in the cockpit of Pavel’s Hercules-class ship transformed life on Earth from drudgery into something with promise and hope and joy.
    Firing up the ship, she grinned at Pavel. “I got called out for hazardous attitudes for