“In there,” Arthur said loudly, pointing to an allotment where two other retirees were dismantling the opaque panelling surrounding it, “are the radishes. Of course, we can’t stimulate the gravity on Mars, but otherwise we’ve got the conditions just like they’ll be ten years after the completion of the first stage of terraforming. Not that nutritious, radishes, but if we can get the principles right for them, then we can apply it to potatoes and carrots. That’s the theory. Not my theory, I hasten to add, and not one I agree with.”
“Arthur, this killer—” Ely tried again.
“Not here, come on.” Arthur led Ely past another group working on a different allotment. “Peppery things, radishes. Of course, you won’t ever have tried one. You must come up when they’re ready. If they’re ever ready. The trouble is, that without insects to churn and digest it, we’ve been having difficulty getting the soil right. Hence the new irrigation system, which breaks down half the time. I said we should try and grow some worms. I was turned down. They said that it would work or it wouldn’t, whether here or on Mars. I said it would work better if we’d practiced it first. They just refused, so I doubt we’ll ever get any radishes. Shame that.” Arthur looked around. They were near the windows with no other retirees close by.
“Now,” he said, quietly, “it seems like you’ve got two sets of crimes here. Two very serious ones. Take all these little pieces you’ve got and put them together. You agree that, sooner or later, it’s only a matter of time before you know exactly when the crime happened?”
“At most, it will take a few days,” Ely replied.
“So you won’t find out until after the election. Tell me, why are you up here with me, now? I mean, why aren’t you going busy interrogating each of your forty-seven suspects?”
“Chancellor Stirling wouldn’t allow it. She said I could only interview five of them. I’ve blown one of those interviews already. I wanted some, well…” He was going to say ‘help’ but changed his mind. “Something more concrete, before I wasted any more.”
“Well, all right, what do you think is the most important thing that’s happened because of these crimes?”
“The impact on production,” Ely answered automatically. “We’ve lost two workers. And then there’s all that energy wasted on heating water It’s not just sabotage, it’s got to be some kind of wide-spread anti-production sentiment or–”
“No, no, no. I taught you better than that. Sabotage is just another way of describing the outcome. Forget the bodies, and the blood, and the loss of production. Think about motive. Who benefits from you not being able to interrogate whoever you want?”
“Well, the killer.”
“No, Ely, that’s just another label. Think! They’ve stopped all the transport to and from the Tower, haven’t they? I’ve still got my contacts, people still tell me things. No transports in or out until the killer is caught, right? That’s the most significant thing that’s happened. As to which is the most serious crime, it’s not the murders. It’s not that those people stole the hot water. It’s that for the last year, they’ve been communicating without being monitored. How they’re doing it is something you could solve just by interrogating them. Which you can’t do. So, tell me. Who benefits from that?”
“You’re suggesting… I mean, I think you’re saying that this has something to do with Chancellor Stirling, I just don’t see why.”
Arthur sighed. “As soon as the council learns that people are communicating, no, conspiring, off-net, they’ll cut Tower-One off completely from the rest of the city. It’ll be quarantined, and Cornwall’s name will be removed from the ballot. Which means, at this stage, Stirling will win by default.”
“You’re saying that she wants to hold on to power so badly, that she’d… what? Set up a murder so that I’d discover this theft of the hot water, and that she’d have a reason to close off the Tower?”
“I think,” Arthur said slowly, “that she’s probably the one who found out about this glitch with the showers in the first place. She’s got agents in this Tower, she’ll have arranged for those forty-seven people to have discovered the flaw in the system. The murders are simply a way to ensure the offence was brought to light, just at the right time.”
“No,” Ely said, “it’s too farfetched. Why would she do that?”
“Because she’s old,” Arthur said, softly. “Now listen, and listen carefully. I hear rumours. Good solid rumours that can be trusted. The nurses speak to the pilots when they come to ferry people to Tower-Thirteen. Those same pilots spend most of their lives travelling between our City and the launch pad. Did you ever wonder why people don’t come back?”
“Vox told me. They had their sentences commuted if they volunteered to stay on and work there.”
“That’s what she told you? Well, perhaps that’s what she was told and perhaps that’s what she believed. It’s not true.”
“It’s not? What happens to them? Do they die?”
“No. It’s nothing like that. One of the pilots brought me back a message. There was this man, convicted years ago. It doesn’t matter what for. He had a son, still here in the Tower. Each time the pilot came in, this felon would beg for this letter to be brought back and given to his son. Eventually the pilot agreed but instead of delivering it, he brought it to me.”
“And what does the letter say? Can I see it?”
“I mulched it. It was too dangerous to be left lying around, even here. But I can tell you what it said. There are three ships being constructed at the launch site.”
“I know that—” Ely began.
“Listen,” Arthur interrupted, “Three ships. One for each City. The City of Britain will only get one. And that one ship will only make one trip. One thousand people from each City will leave Earth, Ely. Three thousand people in total, and that’s all.”
Ely had a thousand questions but all he could manage asking was, “Why?”
“That was the plan all along,” Arthur said. “There weren’t the resources to build ships that could travel back and forth between the planets like they told us. Not enough fuel, not enough parts, not enough raw materials and not enough time to turn them into ships. Three thousand people, that’s all. And only one thousand from our City. Half of those places have already been allocated to the engineers, and scientists, and politicians. There’s going to be a lottery for four hundred seats reserved for the guards, convicts, and volunteers working at the site. That lottery was the only way of keeping everyone working. That man, the convict who sent the letter, he actually instructed his son to commit some crime so he’d be sent to work on the launch site, because there are better odds of winning the lottery there than here. And that only leaves one hundred places for all the workers in all of the Towers in the City.”
“That’s…”
“That is our harsh reality. Politicians get a seat. Old people don’t. I won’t be going. If Stirling loses that election, then nor will she. Nor will you. As a Constable, you’re not going to be eligible for the lottery. As a civic servant, it’s down to the Chancellor to decide if you get a place, but I want you on that ship, and I think there might be a way. But to do it, you’re going to need to solve this murder.”
“Just one ship…” Ely murmured.
“Right. Just one. And just one chance for you to live. You remember what I said about when these Towers were built? The truth can’t be hidden forever. People will find out, they’ll riot. They will tear this place apart, and it won’t matter. You can’t alter the facts. They’ll seal off the Towers. Seal off the whole City if needs be, and fill that ship with convicts. Then you won’t stand a chance. So like I said, you need to catch a killer. You need to do it publicly. Make everyone see that you’re protecting them, that you’re keeping them safe. You remember how Cornwall got elected? How he wasn’t on the ballot, but people just wrote his name on it. They did it because he was popular. In a place where nothing ever happens, he was famous. You remember? That’s how he got elected, and you’ve got to do the same. You’ll be elected by popular acclaim. You’ll beat Henley to become Cornwall’s successor as Councillor of Tower-One. And then you’ll have a seat on the ship. And if you don’t get enough votes, then maybe, since you’ll have secured Cornwall’s place as Chancellor, he’ll give you a seat because he thinks he needs you.”