Jack McDevitt - SEEKER

“Why’d you kill Ollie?” Alex asked.

“He ransacked the Gideon V site. I thought he deserved it. I assumed you’d agree. He bought one of the director’s people. What I told you was true. I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Not in so many words,” I said.

“That’s hardly fair. I don’t know how many times I warned you about what you and your partner were doing.”

“So you arranged to bomb a shuttle.”

“No. I didn’t intend that.”

“That was my idea,” said Charlie. There was something surreal about that moment.

Charlie was standing, grinning, proud of himself. “It seemed foolproof. Most people don’t screw around the way you two do.”

“You and Chase had to be stopped. I told him to take care of it, but to find a way to make it look like an accident. I never imagined-”

“It’s too late to worry about it now,” said Charlie. “Can’t put the wasps back in the nest.”

Alex tried to lower his hands, but Charlie signaled him to keep them high. “You didn’t really kill Ollie,” he said, “because of Gideon V, did you? You killed him because he’d begun to suspect the truth about you.”

“I killed him because of Gideon V. But it’s true he’d begun to put things together. He was, in fact, foolish enough to ask me the same question you just did, whether I’d been responsible for the shuttle. I was offended.”

“I’m sure,” said Alex.

“I mean it. I didn’t want those people to die. If I’d had any idea-”

“How’d you know?” I asked Alex.

“What else could Ollie have wanted to tell you?” he said. “Look out for Windy.”

“I had no sympathy for him. I mean, we’re talking about a guy who robbed tombs.

Who bribed one of our staff to get access to information. That was what outraged me.

People like him and you have no morals at all. I’m sorry to say it, but it’s true. Even you, Chase. You’ve corrupted Shara. By the way, I haven’t heard her voice. Hello, Shara. I’m sorry you had to get involved in this.”

“She’s not here,” said Charlie. “There’s just the two of them.”

“Of course she’s there, Blink. Look around. And be careful. She’s hiding somewhere.

Call me when the job’s done.” She broke the connection, and I shut down our end.

We did not want to take a chance on Windy’s overhearing the next few minutes.

“Blink?” said Alex. “Is that you?”

“Yeah.” He looked nervously around to reassure himself there was no one coming up behind him. “Okay, where is she?”

“Windy’s mistaken,” Alex said. “Shara’s with the Gonzalez.”

I moved a couple of paces to my right. Away from Alex. Alex gave me a moment and inched in my direction. Charlie responded by moving to his right. He wanted to keep some distance between us. But we wanted to inch him around where he’d be standing with his back to the cargo airlock.

“What’s your full name, Blink?” asked Alex.

“What do you care? Where’s the bitch?”

“She’s not here.”

He aimed the weapon at a point between Alex’s eyes. Alex flinched a bit, but he didn’t back away. “I’ll say it again,” he said. “She’s not here. You know she’s not here.”

“Okay. It doesn’t matter.” He pointed the weapon at the pilot’s chair. “Sit down, Chase. You, too, Benedict.”

We complied.

“Chase, put this thing on a collision course.” He nodded toward the brown dwarf.

I started to turn around, but he held the laser where I could see it. The torch end of the thing, which was big, black, and lethal.

“Kalu. New course. Make for the brown dwarf.”

“Orbital?”

“No.” I hesitated.

Charlie pushed the laser against the back of my neck. The metal felt cold. “Tell him,” he said.

“Make it collision.”

“Are you sure, Captain?”

“Yes.”

“Very good. It will require only a moderate adjustment to our present course.”

“Do it.”

“And we will be accelerating for a few seconds.”

Alex was watching me. “You know, Charlie, Blink, whatever your name is,” he said, “you’re going to get caught.”

“It’s possible. But I doubt it.”

“Two minutes to start of maneuver,” said Kalu.

“Very good,” said Charlie. “Buckle yourselves in, people.”

He braced himself against a bulkhead. “I hope neither of you will try anything foolish during this.”

The Spirit slipped into its turn and began to accelerate. Something went bump in the airlock.

“What was that?” he demanded.

“Storage,” said Alex. “We probably dislodged something while you were turning the place upside down.”

Charlie stole a look down the passageway. It was still empty. He hung on to a monitor while gee forces pushed us into our seats as we simultaneously accelerated and turned to port. Then it all went away. “ Maneuver complete,” said Kalu. “We are on collision course with the dwarf. Impact in four hours, eleven minutes.”

“Thanks, Kalu.” I started to release the harness, but Charlie told me to sit still. He came up behind me and I caught a glimpse of the laser. I thought he was going to use it on me. But instead he fired at the controls. Didn’t aim; just cranked it up and swept the beam along the panel. It cut through modules and monitors. Wires popped and burned. I said something unkind and released the harness, but he shook his head no and swung the laser, still firing, in my direction. He aimed low. I got my feet out of the way, and the beam sliced into the base of the chair and cut it off its mount. It collapsed and spilled me onto the deck.

“Don’t get up,” he said. “Just stay where you are.” The air filled with the acrid smell of burning cables. He smiled at me. “Believe me, I’m sorry about this but I don’t really have any choice here, love.” My heart stopped. He laid an index finger alongside his jaw. “It can be a hard world,” he said. His back, finally, was to the airlock.

“You know,” Alex said, “it’s painful to have this happen when we’re so close.”

“Yeah.”

“I mean, this would be a good time. To be out here on a mission like this.”

That was intended to signal Shara. Charlie, not paying strict attention, missed the line.

This would be a good time… Now or never.

Behind him, the airlock began to open.

“I’d like to leave you both alive for these last few hours,” he said. “But I can’t. I’m sorry about that but I’m not sure what my chances would be to get out with you two loose up here. For example, I’m pretty sure you could seal me in the airlock. Couldn’t you?”

“We can’t do that,” I said. “There’s no way.”

“Good. But I can’t be certain. Sometimes you just don’t get a break, you know?”

I was straining to keep my eyes off the hatch.

“Ladies first, I suppose. I’m really not sure of the protocol in this sort of arrangement.”

He leveled the weapon at me. “Good-bye, Chase. It’ll be-”

Shara charged out of the airlock with a wrench.

Charlie heard her, started to turn, and I grabbed the laser. Shara swung for his head.

He got one arm up, and the wrench nailed him on the shoulder. Good enough. He screamed and went down. Alex jumped on and we all wrestled for the weapon.

Charlie pushed me aside and hit Shara in the jaw, sending her tumbling. Alex and Charlie were both holding the laser when it went off again. Metal crackled and smoked. Charlie screamed and tried to wrestle it away. It popped into the air and bounced under the auxiliary seat. They flailed away at one another, trying to get to it.

But Shara got there first, grabbed it, spun around, and came up firing. The bolt hit Charlie in the head. He grunted, staggered back, and crumpled, slowly, as people will in low gravity.