“How long until you can get it open?” Geary asked. He was acutely aware of the fully armored Marines still escorting him around, but for once he did not object to the presence of such bodyguards. The discovery of the two apparently innocuous agents hidden among the population of Ambaru had rattled him enough to submerge his usual concerns about seeming too obsessed with his personal security.
“Another minute or so,” the sergeant declared confidently. Something went snick, and a row of lights inside the panel changed from red and orange to green. “Or less.”
The hatch opened slowly, as if still reluctant to free the occupant of the quarters. Admiral Timbale was indeed inside, looking furious enough to eat his way through the armored bulkhead. “Admiral Geary. Thank you.”
Timbale’s voice sounded slightly strangled from both his anger and the humiliation of having to be freed from his own quarters. “I should have guessed you’d be the one to get things under control. If the Syndics think they can—”
“I don’t think it’s the Syndics,” Geary said. He turned to the Marines and gestured for them to withdraw down the passageway, so he could talk to Timbale with a small measure of privacy.
“Have you seen them?” Timbale asked. “Two people in civilian suits. They claimed to have authority from our government.”
“I’ve seen them. I’ve got them,” Geary said, displaying a picture upon his comm pad. “These two?”
“They said they had authority to override fleet command structures!” Timbale seethed. “I had never even seen them before. Why wouldn’t I have been told if someone like that was on a station under my command? When I insisted on verification, they left to allegedly get it, and I found myself locked into my own quarters with all forms of comms cut off. I don’t care what authority they claim to have. I don’t even care whether or not they are Syndics! I won’t tolerate being treated like one of the enemy!”
“How long have you been trapped in there?” Geary asked.
“A couple of days, I think. With all systems available to me frozen or off-line, I can’t be certain. What happened while I was in there? Did Mortar and Serpentine get clear?”
Geary took a moment to reply as he realized that he would have to deliver some very bad news. “No. They held their orbits.”
“You said there was a threat. Was there a threat?” Timbale demanded with worry growing in his voice.
“Yes,” Geary said, his own tone flat. “A serious threat. Due to malware in official software updates, both Mortar and Serpentine were destroyed without ever being able to see that threat.”
“Damn.” Timbale couldn’t say anything else for a moment, then began again, his voice now trembling with anger. “Any survivors?”
“Seventeen off Serpentine.”
“Seventeen,” Timbale repeated. “From the crews of two destroyers. Those two… agents. They’re the ones who kept me from sending new orders to Mortar and Serpentine. Is that right?”
“I believe so,” Geary said.
“Then I don’t care whatever they are or whoever they work for. I want them shot! Right now.”
“I understand why you want that,” Geary said. “But—”
“Dammit, Admiral, I have asked nothing of you for the support I have offered! This is clearly a war zone once more, and that means I have the authority to order those two to be shot without trial!”
Geary waited, looking back at Timbale’s face, which was distorted with rage. “Is that really what you want, Admiral? Those two might be able to tell us who gave them their orders.”
The light of reason and calculation reappeared in Timbale’s eyes. “Who gave them their orders? I do want to know that. Especially if it was someone supposedly from our side.”
“So do I,” Geary said. “I request permission to take them to a fleet warship for interrogation.”
“You—?” Timbale gazed back at him with suspicion. “Why a fleet warship? Why not here? We’ve got excellent interrogation facilities.”
“You told me that you didn’t even know those two agents were on this station,” Geary explained. “What if they have friends here as well? Friends who would keep them from talking by any means necessary?”
The rage was gone. Timbale wasn’t a screamer, the sort of commander who ruled by fear and intimidation, and now his native caution and control had reasserted itself. “Very good point, Admiral, though I’m surprised that you thought of it.”
Geary made an apologetic gesture. “I’ve been talking to Syndics. Former Syndics, that is, at Midway Star System.”
“They’d be good instructors for this sort of mess.”
“And I’ve spent a while around Victoria Rione,” Geary added.
Timbale actually mustered a cold smile. “She could probably teach the Syndics a few things.” The smile vanished. “Do you think Rione could be involved in this?”
“No.” Geary shook his head for emphasis. “I am certain that she is trying, in her own ways, to find out the same answers that we want, and for the same reasons.”
This time, Timbale nodded somberly. “Her husband. The people who messed up his head to block his ability to talk about that classified research program he was involved with might well be the same bastards behind this. The end justifies the means, and at some point they forget what the end was supposed to be, and the means justify themselves. And then you and your enemies have turned into two sides of the same coin.” He inhaled deeply and met Geary’s eyes. “You reminded me of that. You reminded a lot of us of that. Too bad some people didn’t listen. All right, Admiral. You have my permission to take those two prisoners to one of your ships for interrogation, on two conditions. One, I want to know what they tell you. And, two, I am not relinquishing my right as commander of fleet forces in this star system to order them shot at some future time.”
“Understood,” Geary said. “Many of your subordinates didn’t know you had been malware-exiled. They’re working now to get the station fully operational again using software patches my code monkeys are supplying. The ground forces assigned to Ambaru have placed themselves under fleet command until they manage to reestablish reliable comm links to the star system ground forces commander.”
“Good. People are thinking. I never assume that’s going to happen, so it’s always a pleasant surprise when it does.” Timbale took another long breath, composing himself. “It’s time for the boss to walk around so he can find out what’s going on, and so he can look like he knows what he’s doing. Damn. Mortar and Serpentine. This isn’t supposed to happen. We’re at peace.”
“Some people didn’t get the memo,” Geary said.
Four
Lieutenant Iger did not look happy. “Admiral, I am very uncomfortable with the idea of interrogating Alliance personnel whose identification materials appear completely authentic and who indicate security grounds for their actions.”
“I understand your concerns,” Geary said. He could just order Iger to do it anyway, but he had long ago learned that dramatically different results could come from someone’s pursuing a task willingly and enthusiastically as opposed to someone ordered to “do as you’re told or else.” “But no matter what their identification says, and no matter what they say, they were directly involved in actions that caused the destruction of Alliance warships, the death of fleet personnel, and attempts to corrupt the systems in the battle armor of our Marines.”
Iger nodded. “Yes, sir. There doesn’t seem any doubt of that.”