'Therein lies their only hope,' Kharls said, 'at least as regards overt action. Covertly there is a fair amount of harassment of Grith-based sesheyan interests: market restriction, shady business practices on the small scale. On the small scale, the Concord has seen fit to ignore that kind of thing. No use taking out the cannon to shoot the gnats. At the same time, it has been entirely too long since VoidCorp has attempted something against Grith, and specifically against the Council of Tribes, which hasn't been more overt. This does not reassure me, nor does it suggest that the Company is getting tired of fighting this particular battle.'
'You're suggesting that they're about to try something new?'
Kharls nodded. 'The Concord has been putting a lot of subtle economic and political pressure on VoidCorp along many fronts in an effort to get them to back off a little in their demands regarding the sesheyan species in general-and the sesheyans on Grith in particular. There's been no movement, not even the kind of token movement that a negotiator might make to convince the other side that something is beginning to happen when it's not really. The suggestion is that not only is VoidCorp's position hardening but that they may be considering some action to consolidate their position regarding the sesheyans-and not at all to the sesheyans' advantage, or the advantage of anyone else who may be standing in the vicinity. They won't care about that. As far as VoidCorp is concerned, 'free' sesheyans are a bad example to all the rest of the Company's Employees, an example that I think from their point of view can't be tolerated any longer.'
'If VoidCorp is contemplating some kind of move against Grith,' Elinke said, 'they have to realize what kind of trouble this would stir up for them with the Concord-'
Kharls shook his head. 'It would take a long time for that consequence to follow,' he said. 'Meantime, they would have done whatever it is they're planning to do. My concern is to find out what they have in mind-for something is going on here- and stop it before it happens. They must understand that, as big as the Verge is, it is not unpoliceable, and they will not be allowed to have their own way by acting against the rule of Concord law and then taking the consequences later. They are going to start learning that, at least in the larger matters, it is impossible for them to act against Concord law. Period. Let alone, to do it with impunity.'
Now it was Elinke's turn to sit back and fold her arms. The man talked a good fight, that was true, but could he actually produce the result? Then again, Concord Administrators were chosen not only for their sense of justice and their cleverness in producing it, but for a certain innate ruthlessness, a whole suite of emotional tendencies that made them difficult if not impossible to stop. Though we'll see about that, she thought.
'It's a big goal, Administrator. Audacious.'
He smiled slightly, in a way that suggested he knew perfectly well what she meant. 'Well, what good are small goals?' he asked. 'Aim at the sun, and you're more likely to hit it than if you aim into the bushes. But, Captain, I need your help in this. I can understand that my position here, and my intentions here, do not make you happy. At the same time, we both have work to do that overrules or outranks our personal feelings in the matter. I am concerned about Grith and the sesheyans here. I will do whatever I must to preserve their lives and the peace that reigns here at the moment, however rocky and cracked a thing it looks to be.
'Matters here are not going to stay as quiet as they have for very much longer. My presence here-our presence here, for you are part of this too-will start to stir things up. One Concord ship just left, and people were beginning to relax. Now here comes another one, and ...' He shook one hand gently in the air, mimicking the motion of something liquid in a container. 'The ripples begin to spread, and it will be very interesting to see what starts to come to the surface.' 'Are you expecting 'shooting' to break out?' Elinke asked, rather cautiously.
'Why, Captain, what a restrained way to put it. I am, but I'm not at all sure what form the shooting will take, or who'll be doing it, or from what quarter. Almost all parties involved in this 'discussion' are entirely too used to acting through intermediaries. I expect to take some weeks more of analysis here before I'm certain, unless the situation is even more volatile than I expect, in which case we may have to move very fast indeed. Make sure your marines are in their best form, because they'll need to be. When the pressure builds high enough and this situation blows, it will blow sky high.' He smiled slightly. 'So, Captain, is there anything else we need to cover?'
'Only one thing,' Elinke said. 'Administrator, if you bring that man aboard my ship-well, be warned. This is Concord territory, and I will confine him and hold him for transfer to a Concord jurisdiction for trial. A proper trial.'
'Captain,' said Kharls, unfolding his arms and stretching, 'if you attempt that, I will try him right there with whatever data I have at that point, and then I'll try you. Don't be sure you would come out any better than he might.' Elinke swallowed.
Kharls stood up. 'Anything else?' he inquired amiably.
She shook her head slowly. 'No, Administrator,' she said, 'I think that about covers the ground for the moment.'
'Good. Then let's go up to the bridge and look at some stops we'll be making in the next few days.' He led the way out, and Elinke went after him. For the moment, she thought, but not for very much longer, if I can help it.
Chapter Eleven
SCHMITTERUNGS PRESENCE was indeed causing the ripples to spread. The system Grids were full of pictures of her, and there was speculation all over the planetary media as to what her presence might mean. There was some attention, too, to the sudden reassignment of Captain Elinke Dareyev to duties so close to a system where she had previously suffered tragedy. It was well known that Star Force was normally generous with leave for officers who had lost a family member or partner. Much speculation went on about this and other matters.
'I tell you, he's here,' the voice said down the shielded line. It was expensive to make Grid contacts secure over long distances, but it could be done if you paid enough for it. In this particular case, money was not even slightly an object. 'Well, that's hardly our problem.'
'Oh, yes, it is, or it will be, shortly. If they meet and a few things come out that should never have had a chance to come out-'
'That wasn't our fault either.'
'It doesn't matter. The only one who could have really made a difference to the situation is gone now where he can't be pumped, not even with the drugs they say they won't use.'
'Well, it's just as well they never got suspicious. We've been very lucky so far, but we don't dare take the chance that the luck'll continue. So look, just make sure they don't meet.'
'A lot of chance we have of stopping it if he decides a meeting should go ahead.'
'Don't be an idiot. There are about a hundred thousand possible solutions lying right under your nose.
Just pick one and go to work,, and make sure you lose it afterwards! Some of them would be only too glad to turn around and admit everything in the aftermath. Disloyal creatures-sometimes I wonder why we bother.'
'Because they're there, and we own them.'
'Well, I just wish the rest of the nations would give up and admit it. Then we could all get on with life.
Look, just get on with it. It's not exactly as if he's keeping his schedule or his movements a secret. Makes you think he didn't know what was going on.'
'Him? Hardly likely. He's got his own agenda, much good may it do him for the short time he has left.' 'Right. Well, good luck, and report back immediately when you get it finished. Himself is eager to start the next phase.' 'Right.'
They dropped slowly toward the green, cloud-swirled world, Gabriel taking his time at the controls while Enda watched without being obvious about it. Cocky as Gabriel had become with the system drive on Eraklion, that had been over barren ground, a world of few settlements and few people, a place where if you crashed you had a better than ninety percent chance of killing no one but yourself. Here though, the chances went up significantly. Oh, Grith might not be overpopulated-a hundred thousand sesheyans or so, maybe a hundred and fifty thousand Hatire humans and others, various other people of various other species-and they might be scattered fairly thinly over a largish world. It would be just his luck, while stunting in a new ship, to lose control and come down right where someone was standing waiting to be killed.
'It's a pretty place, really,' Gabriel said as they dropped through Grith's pale orange-red sky toward the big central continent that girdled the planet. The majority of Grith was vast tropical rainforest. There was no landing in
