Sarah Zettel - Fool's War

“Evelyn?”

Dobbs’s eyes lifted reflexively. A middle-aged man stood beside the table. His wavy hair had gone grey, but he held his broad shoulders straight underneath his burgundy coveralls. His jet black eyes were calm and there was a concerned expression on his light brown face.

“I’m Theodore Curran.” He extended his hand. “Come on. You probably shouldn’t stay out here in plain sight.”

She stared at his hand. The fingers were square-tipped and the lines of the palm were deeply etched.

“I know this is hard,” he said. “But you need to come with me now. I’ll answer all your questions. I promise. Come on.” He took her hand and raised her out of her seat.

Walking beside him through the cafe’s heavy traffic shook off some of the stupor that had laid hold of her. Dobbs was able to see through the fog filling her mind to where her pent up questions waited.

Begin at the beginning, she thought whimsically. “Where are we going?”

“Ah, good.” Curran let go of her hand. “You are with me.” He skirted the lobby fountain. “And you’ll see where we’re going in just a few minutes.”

Not a very good start at answering. Then she remembered the security cameras. Normally, the fact that the station was monitored was not something that intruded on her conscious thought. Now, though, it sent a chill of fear through her. Anything the cameras recorded and stored, the Guild could find. Guild Master Havelock might already know where she was. Yerusha could put out a request to find her at any time.

Her stride faltered, partly from fear of discovery, partly because of who she found herself so afraid of.

Curran gave her a concerned glance. “They won’t find you where we’re going, Dobbs. Just a few minutes more and you’ll see exactly what I mean.”

Dobbs followed him the rest of the way across the lobby. I’ve burned all the other bridges, she thought, trying to gather her nerves again. A fool’s bolt is soon shot, she added before she could stop herself.

Somehow, though, being able to think in anything like a straight line gave her courage. Curran led her through the teaming corridors to the elevator bundle. He passed the lifts by, though, and took the stairs instead. Dobbs counted that they passed thirty levels on their way down. At last, they came to a bulkhead with a hatchway that had a red security light on its surface. Curran palmed the reader. After a moment, the hatch hissed open. On the other side was a small, green-matted foyer with another sealed hatchway in the far wall.

Dobbs stepped across the threshold, puzzled. All station modules had airlocks for their main entrance and exit hatches, but, while the can was being occupied, both halves of the airlock usually opened together.

Curran was smiling at her. “We’re a little fussy about security here,” he said, as if he had read her mind. “Welcome home, Evelyn Dobbs.”

He palmed the reader on the far wall and the hatch cycled open.

At first, the other side looked like just a normal corridor. Then, she noticed the cameras at three foot intervals and the retracted arms under each one. A multi-limbed drone about the size of a serving cart glided along a grooved track and disappeared inside a hatchway. Dobbs looked down and saw only a thin strip of the normal velcro carpeting down the middle of the corridor. The floor on both sides had grooves in it for, presumably, more carts. She glanced up. There were identical tracks in the ceiling. Looking at it all, she realized there was no portion of the chamber that could not be reached by some kind of machinery.

This can isn’t for Human traffic, she thought with a kind of wonder. This is for us.

She looked up at Curran. He had his gaze fixed on her. “Home?” she asked.

Curran nodded. “This is my home, and home to those who agree with my plans. We designed it so we could work it in our natural state from inside the networks.” His face was relaxed now, and he seemed to smile easily. “We don’t spend much time in bodies, Dobbs. We prefer to live as we were born to.”

Dobbs wasn’t sure which astounded her more, Curran’s easy declarations, or the fact that he had established his headquarters in one of the busiest stations in the Solar System.

In the corridor, another hatch cycled open and a drone shot out. It glided around the curve toward them and through the hatch in the center. Dobbs caught a glimpse of the elevator shaft.

“But,” she stammered. “The Landlords must know you’re here. How…”

“It’s Business module 56 in the Landlord’s records. A private research facility, listed as duly registered, paid for and inspected every six months.” Curran’s grin broadened. “We had a nasty few minutes when they were considering requiring hardcopy inspection reports to be issued.” He gazed proudly around him. “We’ve even got a permit on record allowing us to arm our own security personnel.”

“You faked the records?” Dobbs swept her hand out. “On a whole can?”

“We are faking the records.” Curran waggled a finger at her. “It’s a constant job. Takes some of our best talents, but we have to make sure the station accounts can explain our breatheables and generator use.” He smiled briefly. “I considered replacing the station AI with one of our own talents, but I didn’t want to tie anybody down to servicing that morass out there. We can do what we have to in shifts, with a little careful scheduling.” He saw the expression of amazement on Dobbs’ face and chuckled. “And this is just…”

“Dobbs!”

Dobbs head yanked itself around. A big-boned woman strode down the corridor. She had soot-black hair braided into a coil on top of her head. The cord-like muscles of her forearms showed underneath her translucent brown skin. Grey eyes were set deeply in her round face.

Dobbs forehead wrinkled. This was a stranger.

“You made it!” The woman clapped Dobbs on the shoulder and gave her a playful shake. “And not a moment too soon. From the look in your eyes, you’ve been out on your own limb for too long.”

Dobbs glanced from Curran to the stranger. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

She laughed, a full-throated sound. “Not looking like this, you don’t. The body you saw me in was grey-haired, brown-eyed and didn’t weigh an ounce more than yours does.” Her eyes sparkled. “And had a double-damn of a bad time drilling you in the four basic principles of humor.”

Dobbs froze and she knew there was a look of utter shock on her face, but she couldn’t wipe it away.

The woman just took a half step back and grinned at her.

After what seemed like an hour, Dobbs forced her tongue to move. “Verence?”

The woman nodded. “Hello, Dobbs.”

Dobbs reached out a hand, tentatively, as if she expected the woman to vanish if she touched her. But Verence, just reached out her own hand and grasped Dobbs’. Dobbs stood there, feeling the warmth of her flesh and the strength of her grip.

“They said you’d died. Dissipated. Cohen told me.” She couldn’t seem to think in anything more than fragments. Verence. Verence was not dead. Verence was standing in front of her.

“Well, they had to say something, didn’t they?” She let Dobbs go and stuck her hands in her pockets. The gesture reminded Dobbs sharply of Schyler. “They couldn’t very well tell Cohen, or you, that they’d lost me.” She winked. “I did have to leave my old body behind, but I’m finding this one quite comfortable.” Dobbs opened her mouth, but Verence held up her hand. “I’m on reconnaissance duty in the main station. I’ll be back in the morning, Dobbs. We’ll talk then, all right?”

“All right.” Dobbs felt her knees beginning to shake. This was too wonderful. It was also too much to believe.