"A man in your position seldom tells a lie but never tells the truth. I want to know what you didn't report."
Provik denied nothing. "Might I suggest an information swap? To maintain the dignity of the laws of thermodynamics?"
He was a bold rogue. "I'm open to suggestions."
"It's trivial, really. But I'm curious by nature. The question: Why were the artifact and alien so important the Lieutenant threatened general mayhem to get them?"
Why did he keep after Klass? "The artifact and two alien companions had been guests aboard VII Gemina, Mr. Provik. One was the Ku warrior Kez Maefele, who commanded the Dire Radiant during the Ku wars. Some years ago, in our haste to engage an enemy, we pulled out of Starbase without them. During our absence the three fled Starbase with information that might have been deleterious to fleet security. Somehow they reached the Tregesser system M. Shrilica."
Provik looked at him. He gulped air. His expression grew black. He turned slowly toward Shike, who had appeared astounded, skeptical, and grimly defensive in succession.
"You had that in your hands? And all Blessed could think about was wetting his one-eyed snake? Do you have any idea what we could have done with that?" He skirted his work station. "We could have traded it for a couple of star systems. Hell, for Capitola Primagenia! Blessed don't think with anything but his balls, but you're supposed to have good sense. Didn't you bother to find out what you had?"
"They were DownTown stuff, Lupo. We wouldn't have bothered with them if the artifact would've let Blessed break the set."
Provik shouted at him. The Bofoku woman tried to intervene, ended up getting drawn into the shouting match on Shike's side.
They did not care who knew they were villains, did they?
Two determined women burst in, pushed Provik and Shike apart. One forced Shike into his chair. Provik retreated to his work station. His voice quavered, promised murder. "Cable, you drag that cretin out of whatever bed he's in and take him to his mother. T.W., get ahold of Valerena. Tell her he's coming. Tell her why. And don't anybody say anything about this. If the Directorate finds out what we blew they'll hand us our heads."
Well done if staged, WarAvocat thought. You could smell the anger and hatred.
Staged or genuine did not matter. The central fact was inescapable. If these people had known what they had, they would have exploited it.
"Get him out, T.W."
Provik closed his eyes, took deep breaths. He slapped his desk, muttered, "We had it all."
He was shaking still when he opened his eyes and looked at his guests somewhat vaguely. Was he unstable? A man would have to be a little insane to attain Provik's position in one of the great Houses. "Two. Tell Research to put together whatever we've got on the Outsiders."
He looked at them. For an instant raw hatred peeped through. He pressed his hands down onto his desk to still their trembling. ‘Tit for tat, sir. The thing I reserved was the fact that the Outsiders revealed details and identities of the agencies inside Canon space. I neutralized those in a position to harm Tregesser interests and left the others to their mischief."
Aleas asked, "Don't you have any loyalty to Canon?"
He looked at her like she'd just offered to show him a grotesque physical deformity. "To the extent that the Outsider alternative looks worse. Your kind doesn't make a rite of torture and mutilation—that I've heard. I presume some of these people are research and technical staff?"
"Yes."
"Six. When we're done, take them down and let them get started. Tell Linver to give them whatever they want. Clearance is from me."
"It's plain you have no love for us," WarAvocat said. "Why are you cooperating?"
"Pragmatism. Having a Guardship insystem is murder on business. Guardships get what they want. Yours will, too, whatever I like. When T.W. comes back, I'll have her fix you up with documentation. Do be careful wandering around. Security staff won't be told who you are. They get bonuses for shooting people who turn up where they don't belong. You want to go somewhere, clear it with T.W.'s office. We have our own politics to survive. Anything else?"
Aleas whispered, "You're not a demigod here, Hanaver. Just a nuisance." Which amused her.
Provik awaited some response. WarAvocat declined. He had made a mistake, challenging these people on their home ground. Here all the intimidations belonged to them.
"A rest, a meal, a chance to freshen up would do us the most good, Mr. Provik."
"As you will. Six. Forget the labs. Take them to Residential." Provik turned to his screens. He was done with them.
WarAvocat noted that the man's hands still trembled.
One, Three, and Four entered as the outer door closed. One raised four fingers. Lupo nodded, watched them place the bugs in isolation boxes. "That's all?"
"We saw every twitch."
"Give them to Research."
"You put on a hell of a show."
"I almost believed it myself. Shike did better than I expected."
"You pointed them straight at us."
"If we're vulnerable we might as well find out."
"I wish we all were as confident of our ability to walk the edge without falling."
"You are." And that was the truth. He only hoped circumstances would let them step back from the brink someday.
WarAvocat said, "Stay with us, Lieutenant," as Provik's woman led them around, assigning quarters. He owed her an explanation.
The techs started sweeping the moment the woman departed. They found an ample scatter of listening devices. They would have been troubled if they had not.
"That Provik bothers me," WarAvocat said once it was safe. "I don't know why. Maybe it's potential. Sit down, Lieutenant. I'll tell you the story."
Turtle studied Provik, trying to fathom his game. "You have grown too subtle for me."
"Just baffling them with bullshit."
Turtle wondered, though.
— 110 —
WarAvocat gave the order to pull out reluctantly. He stared at the image of P. Benetonica 3, dissatisfied. "I can't shake the suspicion that I've been suckered."
"Gemina is satisfied," Aleas said.
"Gemina hasn't met Lupo Provik. That man... I don't want him loose in the universe."
"You're going to try to trace the Ku, aren't you?"
"I don't want him running loose, either."
"He has a long head start. He hasn't done anything with what he learned. If he did learn anything."
He caught her gentle warning. The Deified had their eyes on him.
"The war will be waiting when we get there." He glared at that world. Six days down there and he had not found a chink. And did not know much more about it as a world. He'd even missed the famous Fuerogomenga Gorge.
"There's something rotten down there, Aleas. Too much has happened for it to be unrelated, coincidental. The Ku. The rogue. The Outsiders."
"The Ku didn't reach M. Shrilica by choice. The rogue had been Outside for centuries. You can't connect them, Hanaver."
"Not logically. But they connect. I'm sure."
Aleas gave him a troubled look.
VII Gemina ran the Lieutenant's trail out. WarAvocat was not surprised when it turned to smoke. He did not dig deep. He was aware of the unfriendly scrutiny of the Deified.
"That damned Ku is out there scheming, Aleas. If those Outsiders get him...."
"Speaking of Outsiders?"
"I know. We're supposed to be showing them the light. My esteemed predecessors think I'm obsessed. They think I'm using the Ku as an excuse to look for the artifact." He ordered Ops to take the Guardship to M. Meddinia. He was WarAvocat. He could not be overruled. "We'll see some truths pretty soon. And the grumblers will be silenced again."