parents emigrated to Rust when she was a toddler. She married a man named Prasad Vajhur. You’ll notice ‘Dasa’ is part of ‘Prasad’ spelled backward.”
Ara nodded.
“Anyway, the full records of her farming survived Annexation, but they’re pretty boring reading. How about I hit a few high points and you tell me if you want more detail, all right?”
Ara got the feeling Fen was enjoying stretching this out. “All right.”
“Vidya Vajhur was under contract to breed Silent children for the Unity.”
“What?”
“Well, her contract wasn’t originally with the Unity,” Fen amended. “It was with a company called Silent Acquisitions, Limited. They traffic in Silent slaves.”
“I’ve heard of them,” Ara said, trying to regain her composure. “Dreamers, Inc. is a paragon of virtue compared to them.”
“According to their medical records,” Fen said, “any child Vidya and Prasad had would be Silent, and they apparently negotiated a contract with Silent Acquisitions just before the Unity came. After the Annexation, the Unity took over the contract. Vidya and Prasad produced and gave up two healthy babies, fulfilling their contract.”
“How could she do such a thing?” Ara blurted. “I’ve heard of it, of course, but I can’t sympathize.”
Fen shrugged. “No idea. Anyway, a year after that, records show she had a third child, a daughter. Silent, of course.”
“And?” Ara prompted.
“Here’s where records get spotty. Katsu-the daughter-disappeared when she was barely a year old. A guard report lists her as kidnapped, presumed dead. When she was ten, Katsu would have been taken to be raised in Unity service, of course, and the guard assumed the kidnaping was staged as a way for Vidya and Prasad to keep her hidden somewhere. But the report lists the case as closed, with a link to another report.”
“Another report?”
“The next day, Vidya reported Prasad as missing. And that is the last record I could find of Vidya Vajhur anywhere.”
Ara chewed her lower lip. “It looks to me like Prasad ran away with Katsu.”
“He got away with it, too.”
“And then Vidya decided to disappear as well,” Ara said, thinking aloud. “But why? She hadn’t done anything wrong.”
“Maybe she wanted to escape further scrutiny,” Fen ventured. “The Unity was probably pressuring her to ‘confess’ to the whole thing when actually Prasad took off and left her holding the bag.”
“Possible,” Ara conceded. “She then moves to another part of the city and changes her name-not too hard with so many records damaged or destroyed in the Annexation. Now she can start over free and clear.”
“With her son Sejal.”
Ara thought for a moment. “Fen, when was Sejal born in relation to Prasad’s disappearance?”
Fen glanced at something in front of him. “Eight months afterward. Ah! There it is.”
“Yes.” Ara nodded. “Vidya was already pregnant again when Prasad vanished. She made herself disappear because she knew the child would be Silent and that the Unity would take him away. She didn’t want to lose him like she’d lost her husband and first three children.”
“Except,” Fen said, raising a finger, “I have Sejal’s medical history here. She couldn’t avoid doctors completely, and his gene scans indicate he is not Silent.”
Ara had to force herself not to jump to her feet. “What? I thought you said any child Vidya and Prasad had would be Silent.” Her mind raced. If Sejal wasn’t Silent, how had he possessed people? Had Kendi been wrong?
“Obviously Prasad isn’t Sejal’s father.”
“Or someone changed the records. Or bribed the doctor.”
Fen shook his head. “Extremely doubtful. Those records are strictly guarded. The best hackers on the planet couldn’t touch them. I also doubt Vidya could come up with a bigger bribe than the bonus doctors get for discovering Silent children.”
“You have a point,” Ara conceded. “It’s a puzzle, though. Can you netmail me copies of what you found, Fen?”
“Already did,” Fen answered. He leaned forward again, an anticipatory look on his face. “Now, tell me what you want all this for. You promised to explain later. It’s later.”
There was a hint of whine in his voice that suddenly annoyed Ara terribly. She wanted to comb Fen’s records herself and set Ben to finding what Fen had missed. She wanted to find Sejal and talk to him face-to-face. But Fen was staring at her from the viewscreen.
“I’m trading in genetics,” she said. “Viable embryos and such. Vidya and Sejal seem to be prospects.”
Fen whistled. “The paperwork on that must take you months.”
“It does,” Ara said shortly. “But it’s high profit, low volume. Can’t ask for more. Look, Fen, I have to-”
“This wouldn’t also have anything to do with that Silent everyone’s talking about around here, would it?”
Cold goosebumps rose on Ara’s neck. She went stock-still. “What Silent?” she asked casually.
Fen folded his arms. “The one they’ve posted a big reward for. Haven’t you been watching the news?”
“No,” Ara said faintly. “I haven’t had time.”
“There’s a powerful rogue Silent somewhere on Rust,” Fen said. “And the Unity wants him. Bad. Problem is, they don’t know what he looks like, or even if it’s a he. All they know is that he’s young and he’s somewhere on Rust. And now you’re here sniffing around this boy Sejal Dasa. A connection?”
Shit shit shit. Ara struggled to remain calm. “Coincidence, Fen. You just told me yourself Sejal isn’t Silent. I’m interested in his genetic potential.”
“I see.” Fen’s tone made it clear he didn’t believe her. Ara’s heart lurched. Would he turn her in? She couldn’t leave Rust without Sejal. And time was growing short. They had to get Sejal off Rust, and fast.
“Look, Fen, I have to go,” she told him. “What you told me about Sejal and Vidya changes things, and I have people to contact. I really appreciate your help.”
“So when do we take our walk?”
Ara blinked at him. “Walk?”
“On the seapad. Remember? My price for helping you? How about tomorrow?”
Ara felt genuinely flustered. Not because Fen was pressing her for a romantic interlude, but because of its timing. So much was happening now and so quickly, the question felt out of place. Once she got Sejal on board, Ara intended to hurl the ship into slipspace as soon as humanly possible.
So promise him, she told herself. Even assuming you’re around long enough for him to cash in on it and if he lays a hand on you, all you have to do is give him one hard push and he’s sea monster meat.
“Tomorrow it is,” Ara agreed. “Why don’t we meet at the restaurant at seven?”
A huge smile spread across Fen’s wizened face. “See you then. Glory to the Unity.” And he signed off.
Ara was getting immensely tired of that phrase.
“Peggy-Sue,” she said. “Open intercom to Ben Rymar. Ben, can you raise Kendi?”
“I’m not on the bridge, Mother,” Ben replied. “Let me get up there first.”
Ara sat back and thought while she waited. Stress tugged at her gut, but she pushed it firmly aside. They were doing all they could to find Sejal, and the Children still had the best chance of getting to him first.
Vidya “Dasa” Prasad had voluntarily given up her children. Ara shook her head. How could she do such a thing? Unbidden, Ara’s mind flicked back to Ben’s implantation. Five years after Benjamin Heller’s death, Ara had become aware of a growing desire-need-for a child. She had told herself she was being ridiculous. She was Mother Araceil Rymar of the Children of Irfan, youngest person ever to attain that title, with a clear shot at also being the youngest to make Mother Adept. She was powerful in the Dream, had personally taught half a dozen students, was a widely-recognized expert in transcendental morphic Dream theory. Her life was full, she was busy, her friends and students loved her. She didn’t need anything.
But Mother Araceil Rymar of the Children of Irfan wanted a baby.
Still, Ara put off the idea another year, until a casual conversation with Mother Adept Salman Reza, Ara’s own mother, changed her mind.
“I don’t need a baby right now,” Ara complained. “But-oh, Mother-I want one like you wouldn’t believe.”
