He nodded slowly. 'I'm beginning to see that, ma'am. Why?'
'Why? Hell, Paul, everybody's got some skeletons in the closet. Professional and personal skeletons. They're worried you might rattle them, or not go along when something bad pops up in the future and everybody else decides to just sort of sweep it under the rug.'
Paul thought of how Ensign Taylor had explained Commander Moraine's attitude toward him. 'I had someone warn me about that.'
Carr's eyes narrowed, somehow reminding Paul of a great cat scenting prey. 'Threateningly or in a friendly way?'
'Friendly.'
'Good.' She relaxed, then gave Paul a worried look. 'You've damaged your career. You know that.'
'Yeah.' Paul let the bitterness show. 'My orders got changed to Mars.'
'Mars? Damn. Nothing subtle about that. Paul, I hate to see your career run aground because you did the right thing twice and stood by a friend the other time. I asked you before if you'd like to be a lawyer some day. That offer stands. If you put in for a transfer to the JAG Corps I can pull some strings, make sure you get one of the law scholarships and start a new career as a Navy lawyer.'
'I…' It's a great offer. I know that. But I also know it's not for me. 'Thank you, ma'am. Thanks very much. But that's not my road. Not yet, anyway. I know I've got some career baggage following me around now, but-'
'But you're not going to give up this easily?' Carr asked with a wry smile.
'Yes, ma'am.'
'Fair enough. I respect that. But remember. If you want to contact me, the JAGs here or wherever you go can provide a link to wherever I'm stationed in the future. The offer will stand.'
'Thank you, ma'am.'
'Don't thank me. You earned the offer. And I owe you for your assistance with the Silver case. And, God help me, I owe Ms. Shen for things I can never make right. If she needs legal help, Paul, you let her know she can have everything I've got. Assuming she can stand to talk to me.'
'She shook your hand after the court-martial was dismissed,' Paul protested.
'Oh, yeah.' Carr laughed again. 'She gripped so hard I thought she was going break some of my fingers.'
Paul grinned. 'Jen complained you almost broke her hand.'
'Only almost? I must be getting soft.' Carr tapped her data pad. 'But hopefully not too soft to nail Mr. Bradley Pullman for betraying his country. Fortunately, it's a fairly straightforward espionage case.'
'Really?'
Paul's unease must have shown, because Alex Carr rested her chin on one hand and eyed him. 'Misgivings?'
'Ma'am…'
'No, really. I want to know. Your misgivings could point out weaknesses in the government's case. They might even point out fatal flaws. I really don't want to convict innocent people, Paul. Though from what I've seen of the case against Pullman I'm as certain as I've ever been that he's guilty as sin.' She tapped the data pad again. 'This isn't a circumstantial evidence case. In the two months since Pullman's arrest we've been able to unearth a lot of new material thanks to search warrants. There's a lot of solid evidence against Pullman, not the least of which was that he was caught red-handed leaving your ship with classified material.'
'I know.' Paul made a frustrated gesture. 'I don't really have anything specific. It's just that I can't believe Brad Pullman would do that.'
'Nice guy?'
'Uh, sort of.'
Carr made a note. 'Friendly?'
'Yes. Very.'
'Any friction with other officers on your ship?'
'No. He seems to be a really decent guy. He didn't… no, wait. He really got Ensign Taylor… She's in charge of keeping the ship's electronic systems working right, and she got really mad at him for messing around with them.'
'Stupid stuff?'
'No. Smart stuff. He's really sharp. He just didn't coordinate what he was doing with the right people.'
'Uh huh.' Carr made some more notes. 'Smartest guy on the ship?'
'Uh…' Paul had to think. 'Maybe. He's really intelligent. Which is one reason I can't believe he'd commit espionage.'
Commander Carr gave a short laugh. 'There's two kinds of people who commit espionage, Paul. The dumb ones usually get charged with attempted espionage because they screw up trying to be spies just like they screw up everything else and get caught before they can do any damage. The dangerous ones are the smart ones. They get away with it for a while. Maybe a long while. That's because they're smart enough to successfully betray their country but not wise enough to worry about the moral implications or anything else. They're smart, you see. They don't think they need to play by the same rules that you and I do.'
'But they can't think the people around them aren't smart, and we don't do that kind of thing.'
'They think that's because people like you and me aren't smart enough to do it. They figure they're the only ones clever enough. You and me, we're stooges in their eyes.' She must have read Paul's reaction on his face. 'I know. You figure Pullman was friendly. But the evidence shows that while he was acting like your friend he was betraying you personally as well as his country. Is that the action of someone who actually is a friend? There's some stuff on that data coin we pulled off Pullman that came from your personal files. Statements about the incident at the asteroid.'
Even though Paul had already accepted the fact that Pullman had been arrested for stealing information, the news still came as a shock. 'He dug through my personal data files?'
'Apparently.'
'How do we know that coin didn't get planted on him?'
Carr gave a sad smile. 'That'll be one line of defense his lawyer will use for sure. Paul, your captain sent you over here to help us get Pullman. I'm not asking you to buy into his guilt right now. It's my job to convince the members of the court, officers like you, that he's guilty. You'll be in that court-room, you'll judge how I'm doing and help me spot weak points in the case while you're monitoring things for your captain. Okay?'
He thought about it. Alex Carr had agreed at almost literally the last minute to help pursue what proved to be evidence of Jen's innocence. She was tough, but unquestionably fair. 'Okay.'
'Thanks.' Carr looked back at her data pad. 'There's one new wrinkle in the case, at least from your perspective. Pullman is going to have a civilian lawyer assisting in his defense. Some guy Pullman's father is footing the money for sending up here.'
'That can't be cheap,' Paul observed.
'No, it's not.' Carr's face reflected surprise as she read. 'Boy, that's a strange coincidence. The civilian lawyer has the same last name that you do.'
'He does?' Paul felt an icy sensation inside.
'Yeah. David Sinclair.'
'David T. Sinclair? From a law firm in Washington, D.C.?'
Carr raised her head and stared at Paul. 'Yes.'
'He's my brother,' Paul admitted.
'Your brother. Paul, I have to admit you keep making my cases more interesting. Is there any chance you'd be willing to share any insights into how your brother will try to help defend Pullman?'
'I would if I could.' Would I? Don't I want Brad Pullman to have the best chance to defend himself? I don't know that he's guilty. 'But I've never seen my brother handle a case.'
'You've never seen him in a courtroom?'
'No.'
'Never discussed legal issues with him?'
'No.'
