How old were you?
Twenty.
Ah. His mouth quirked in an expression she could not quite interpret, a sad mixture of irony and sympathy. Yes.
Obscurely encouraged, she went on. Tiens scheme for dealing with the dystrophy without anyone ever finding out he had it was to go get galactic treatment, somewhere far from the Imperium. It made it much more expensive than it needed to be. Wed been trying to save for years, but somehow, something always went wrong. We never made much progress. But for the past six or eight months, Tiens been telling me to stop worrying, he had it under control. Except Tien always talks like that, so I scarcely paid attention. Then last night, after you went to sleep I heard you tell him straight out you wanted to make a surprise inspection of his department today, I heard you-he got up in the night and called Administrator Soudha, to warn him. I listened I heard enough to gather they had some sort of payroll falsification scheme going, and Im very much afraid no. Im certain Tien was taking bribes. Because- she stopped and took a breath -I broke into Tiens comconsole this morning and looked at his financial records. She glanced up, to see how Vorkosigan would take this. His mouth renewed the crooked quirk. Im sorry I ripped at you the other day, for looking through mine, she said humbly.
His mouth opened, and closed; he merely gave her a little encouraging wave of his fingers and slumped down a bit more in his chair, listening with an air of uttermost attention. Listening.
She went on hurriedly, not before her nerve broke, for she scarcely felt anything now, but before she dragged to a halt from sheer exhaustion. Hed had at least forty thousand marks that I couldnt see where theyd come from. Not from his salary, certainly.
Had?
If the information on the comconsole was right, hed taken all forty thousand and borrowed sixty more, and lost it all on Komarran trade fleet shares.
All?
Well, no, not quite all. About three-quarters of it. At his astonished look, she added, Tiens luck has always been like that.
I always used to say you made your own luck. Though Ive been forced to eat those words often enough, I dont say it so much anymore.
Well I think it must be true, or how else could his luck have been so consistently bad? The only common factor in all the chaos was Tien. She leaned her head back wearily. Though I suppose it might have been me, somehow. Tien often said it was me.
After a little silence, he said hesitantly, Did you love your husband, Madame Vorsoisson?
She didnt want to answer this. The truth made her ashamed. But she was done with dissimulation. I suppose I did, once. In the beginning. I can hardly remember anymore. But I couldnt stop caring for him. Cleaning up after him. Except my caring got slower and slower, and finally it stopped. Too late. Or maybe too soon, I dont know. But if, of course, she had not broken from Tien just then, in just that way, he would not tonight have and, and, and, along the whole chain of events that led to this moment. That if-only could, of course, be said equally for any link in the chain. Not more, not less. Not repairable. I thought, if I let go, he would fall. She stared at her hands. Eventually. I didnt expect it to happen so soon.
It began to be borne in upon her what a mess Tiens death was going to leave in her lap. She would be trading the painful legalities of separation for the equally painful and difficult legalities of sorting out his probably bankrupt estate. And what was she supposed to do about his body, or any kind of funeral, and how to notify his mother, and yet solving the worst problem without Tien seemed already a thousand times easier than solving the simplest with Tien. No more deferential negotiations for permission or approval or consensus. She could just do it. She felt like a patient coming out of some paralysis, stretching her arms wide for the first time, and surprised to discover they were strong.
She frowned in puzzlement. Will there be charges? Against Tien?
Vorkosigan shrugged. It is not customary to try the dead, though I believe it was done occasionally in the Time of Isolation. Lord Vorventa the Twice-Hung springs to mind. No. There will be investigations, there will be reports, oh my head the reports, ImpSecs and my own and possibly the Serifosa Sectors security-I anticipate argument over jurisdiction-there may be testimony required of you in the prosecution of other persons He broke off, to hitch himself around with difficulty in his chair, and shove a now somewhat less stiff-from-cold hand into his pocket. Persons who I suppose got away with my stunner His expression changed to one of dismay, and he spasmed to his feet and turned out both his trouser pockets, then checked his jacket, shucked it off, and patted his gray tunic. Damn.
What? asked Ekaterin in alarm.
I think the bastards took my Auditors seal. Unless it just fell out of my pocket, somewhere in all the horsing around tonight. Oh, God. Itll open any government or security comconsole in the Empire. He took a deep breath, then brightened. On the other hand, it has a locator-circuit. ImpSec can trace it, if theyre close enough-ImpSec can trace them. Ha! With difficulty, he forced his red and swollen fingers to open a channel on his comm link. Tuomonen? he inquired.
Were on our way, my lord, Tuomonens voice came back instantly. Were in the air, about halfway there I estimate. Will you please leave your channel open?
Listen. I think my assailants have taken off with my Auditors seal. Delegate someone to start trying to track it at once. Find it and youll find them, if its not just been dropped around here somewhere. You can check that possibility when you get here.
Vorkosigan then insisted on a tour of the building, drafting Ekaterin once more as occasional support, though he stumbled very little now. He frowned at the melted comconsole, and at the empty rooms, and stared with narrowed eyes at the jumbles of equipment. Tuomonen and his men arrived just as they were reentering the lobby.
Lord Vorkosigans lips twitched in bemusement as two half-armored guards, stunners at the ready, leaped through the airseal door. They gave Vorkosigan anxious nods, which he acknowledged with a wry salutelike gesture, then pelted after each other through the facility for a rather noisy security check. Vorkosigan hitched himself into a deliberately more relaxed posture, leaning against an upholstered chair. Captain Tuomonen, another Barrayaran soldier in half-armor, and three men in medical gear followed into the lobby.
My lord! said Tuomonen, pulling down his breath mask. His tone of voice sounded familiarly maternal to Ekaterins ear, halfway between Thank God youre safe and Im going to strangle you with my bare hands.
Good evening, Captain, said Vorkosigan genially. So glad to see you.
You didnt notify me!
Yes, it was entirely my mistake, and Ill be certain to note your exoneration in my report, Vorkosigan said soothingly.
Its not that, dammit! Tuomonen strode over to him, motioning a medic in his wake. He took in Vorkosigans macerated wrists and bloody hands. Who did that to you?
I did it to myself, rather, Im afraid. Vorkosigans pose of studied ease slipped back into his original grimness. It could have been worse, as I will show you directly. Around back. I want you to record everything, a complete scan. Anything youre in doubt of, leave for the experts from HQ. I want a top forensics team scrambled from Solstice immediately. Two teams, one for out here, one for those royally buggered comconsoles at the Terraforming offices. But first, I think, he glanced at the medtechs, and at Ekaterin, we should get Administrator Vorsoissons body down.