A Civil Campaign

time .'

'I didn't,' said Galeni bitterly. 'I've been putting in an extra half shift after dinner nearly every day since I was promoted to head of Komarran Affairs. This came out of my sleep cycle. I'm considering abandoning meals and just hanging a food tube over my desk, which I could suck on now and then.'

'I'd think Delia would put her foot down, after a while.'

'Yes, and that's another thing,' Galeni added, in an aggravated tone.

Miles waited a beat, but Duv did not elaborate. Well, and did he really need to? Miles sighed. 'Sorry,' he offered.

'Yes, well. From ImpSec's point of view, I have excellent news. No evidence has yet surfaced indicating any leak of the classified matters surrounding Tien Vorsoisson's death. No names, no hints of . . . technical activities, not even rumors of financial chicanery. There continues to be a complete and most welcome absence of Komarran conspirators of any stripe from any of the several scenarios of your murder of Vorsoisson.'

'Several scenarios—! How many versions are circulating—no, don't tell me. It would just raise my blood pressure to no good purpose.' Miles gritted his teeth. 'So, what, am I supposed to have made away with Vorsoisson—a man twice my size—through some devilish ex- ImpSec trick?'

'Perhaps. In the one version concocted so far where you were not pictured as acting alone, the only henchmen posited were vile and corrupt ImpSec personnel. In your pay.'

'This could only have been imagined by someone who never had to fill out one of Illyan's arcane expenditure-and/or-income reports,' Miles growled.

Galeni shrugged amused agreement.

'And were there—no, let me tell you,' Miles said. 'There were no leaks traced from the Vorthys's household.'

'None,' Galeni conceded.

Miles grumbled a few satisfied swear words under his breath. He knew he hadn't misestimated Ekaterin. 'Do me a personal favor and be sure to highlight that fact in the copy of this you send up to Allegre, eh?'

Galeni opened his hand in a carefully noncommittal gesture.

Miles blew out his breath, slowly. No leaks, no treasons: just idle malice and circumstance. And a touch of theoretical blackmail. Upsetting to himself, to his parents when it came to them, as it soon must, upsetting to the Vorthyses, to Nikki, to Ekaterin. They had dared to upset Ekaterin with this . . . He carefully ignored his simmering fury. Rage had no place in this. Calculation and implacable action did.

'So what, if anything, is ImpSec planning to do about it all?' Miles asked at last.

'At present, as little as possible. It's not as though we don't have enough other tasks on our plate. We will, of course, continue to monitor all data for any key items that might lead public attention back to where we don't want it. It's a poor second choice to no attention at all, but this murder scenario does us one favor. For anyone who refuses to accept Tien Vorsoisson's death as a mere accident, it presents a plausible cover story, which entirely accounts for no further investigation being permitted.'

'Oh, entirely,' snarled Miles. I see where this is going . He sat back, and folded his arms mulishly. 'Does this mean I'm on my own?'

'Ah . . .' said Galeni. He drew it out for a rather long time. Eventually, he ran out of ah and was forced to speak. 'Not exactly.'

Miles bared his set teeth, and waited for Galeni, who waited for him.

Miles broke first. 'Dammit, Duv, am I supposed to just stand here and eat this shit raw?'

'Come on, Miles, you've done coverups before. I thought you covert ops fellows lived and breathed this sort of thing.'

'Never in my own sandbox. Never where I had to live in it. My Dendarii missions were hit and run. We always left the stink far behind.'

Galeni's shrug lacked sympathy. 'I must also point out, these are first results. Just because there are no leaks yet doesn't mean none will be . . . siphoned out into the open later on.'

Miles exhaled slowly. 'All right. Tell Allegre he has his goat. Baaah.' He added after a moment, 'But I draw the line at pretending to guilt. It was a breath mask accident. Period.'

Galeni waved a hand in acceptance of this. 'ImpSec won't complain.'

It was good , Miles reminded himself, that there was no security rupture in the Komarr case. But this also killed his faint, unvoiced hope that he could leave Richars and his cronies to the untender mercies of ImpSec to be disposed of. 'As long as this is all gas, so be it. But you can let Allegre know, that if it goes to a formal murder charge against me in the Council . . .' Then what?

Galeni's eyes narrowed. 'Do you have reason to think someone will charge you there? Who?'

'Richars Vorrutyer. I have a sort of . . . personal promise from him.'

'He can't, though. Not unless he gets a member to lay it for him.'

'He can if he beats out Lord Dono and is confirmed Count Vorrutyer.' And my colleagues are like to choke on Lord Dono.

'Miles . . . ImpSec can't release the evidence surrounding Vorsoisson's death. Not even to the Council of Counts.'

By the look on Galeni's face, Miles read that as Especially not to the Council of Counts. Knowing that erratic body, he sympathized. 'Yes. I know.'

Galeni said uneasily, 'What are you planning to do?'

Miles had more compelling reasons than the strain on ImpSec's nerves to wish to sidestep this whole scenario. Two of them, mother and son. If he worked it right, none of this looming juridical mess need ever touch Ekaterin and her Nikki. 'Nothing more—nor less—than my job. A little politicking. Barrayaran style.'

Galeni eyed him dubiously. 'Well . . . if you really intend to project innocence, you need to do a more convincing job. You . . . twitch .'

Miles . . . twitched. 'There's guilt and there's guilt. I am not guilty of willful murder. I am guilty of screwing up. Now, I'm not alone—this one took a full committee. Headed by that fool Vorsoisson himself. If only he'd—dammit, every time you step off the downside shuttle into a Komarran dome they sit you down and make you watch that vid on breath mask procedures. He'd been living there nearly a year. He'd been told .' He fell silent a moment. 'Not that I didn't know better than to go out-dome without informing my contacts.'

'As it happens, no one is accusing you of negligence.'

Miles's mouth twisted bitterly. 'They flatter me, Duv. They flatter me.'

'I can't help you with that one,' said Galeni. 'I have enough unquiet ghosts of my own.'

'Check.' Miles sighed.