"I have no doubt there's something wrong here. I suspect I haven't heard everything yet, but just the Art fellow being involved tells me there's something bad happening. I don't know if your dad is involved with him knowing what he was up to and willingly helping, or just foolishly working for him for the money. But he is a snake. I would expect him to hurt anyone who crossed him. Sorry to have to talk that way about your dad's man."
"Don't worry," Doris said, looking sad. "I pretty much had to lose any illusions about my dad, before I could walk out today. There's no way I can go back. I didn't have any idea what I would do until you came and offered to help. Thanks again."
"Don't be surprised if you see someone at the Holiday Inn, or see somebody's stuff in the room, but I'll make sure they know it's OK. The people who have a keycard are all good people. Why don't you go before your dad figures out you're here?"
"OK," Doris agreed and headed out the exit, stopping to take care of her tray and trash, but never looking back at April.
April watched her walk away, thinking - I hope she can walk away from her horrible life the same way and never have to look back.
"Well!" Ruby said, catching April by surprise. "I was starting to think I'd have lunch with you instead of my break." She put her tray opposite April where she had walked up undetected.
"You seemed to be helping the child out so I stayed away. When I was tidying things up over here earlier I saw she was crying and upset. I'd have asked what the matter was, but she has never been one to talk to me. I wasn't sure it would be welcome. Is she a friend of yours?"
"Ruby, she hasn't been a friend, I haven't even seen her for a couple months, but she just really gave me an earful and I wouldn't be too hard on her for not speaking to you. From what she was saying her dad is a real control freak and he has kept her and her mom almost prisoners in their apartment. Won't let them have friends. Won't let them have money or carry an account for the cafeteria - snoops on them even. I'm going to see what I can do to help her. She left home this morning and is scared to try to go back. Her dad sounds like he could be violent. Maybe is already and covers it up." She explained the hidden bruises the mother laughed off.
"That son of a bitch, I wouldn't be surprised from what I've seen of him."
April was surprised and at once interested. Ruby didn't usually use even the mildest euphemisms. "You know him? I'd like to know. It might help me."
Ruby looked down at her plate and seemed unhappy she had said anything. She chewed on her muffin a bit and thought about what to say.
"Gary, right?" Ruby asked. April nodded yes. "You see the names on the charge register screen and they stick with the faces. You know down Groundside, they still have places you can get treated pretty crappy if you are black like me? Or red or yellow, or the wrong religion, or have an accent, or any number of things?"
"Sure Ruby. I was raised up here but I have been down below and I read the news. I'm not so sheltered I'm clueless. I've seen some crazy hateful web sites too."
"Well when her dad comes through the cafeteria, it isn't just that he doesn't act friendly or joke around. There is a look people give you. It's hard to explain. Oh, he acts anti-social with everybody, but if they just really hate you to the core, it stares out of their eyes at you and you have no doubt at all what you're looking at if you've seen it before."
"My husband and I won't even travel through the Deep South when we go down on leave. Oh - he'll go to Florida, because he says the Crackers lost that state to the Yankees years ago. But if you travel through Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana down the two lane back roads in a expensive rental car, dressed nice and stop in the small towns where you're not welcome, it's more than uncomfortable. You're gonna have your car damaged or have some trumped up bullshit traffic charge from the local police, which will cost you a big fine to leave behind you. Not what you want when you're on vacation, trying to relax and enjoy yourself. Easy says he'd rather take a driving trip through the Arab Protectorate, than the rural South."
"You may find out next visit you'll get hassled for being a station dweller too." April warned her. "My mom just came back from Australia and she had people confront her in public and tell her to go back home because she was from M3 and because they could see she had life extension therapy. She looked way too young compared to my grandparents. In fact that's another reason Doris was not supposed to have anything to do with me, because I'm gene altered so I'm an 'abomination'. Her dad is not just a garden variety control freak. He's a major religious nut too. In fact she made it clear he thinks a lot of his own church people are not strict enough."
Ruby smiled, but it wasn't a pretty one. "Usually one of these groups splits every few years, when a few of them become truer believers than the rest. They have a hard time getting past a hundred members or so before they start bickering and split up. I feel badly I didn't come over to help her but I really wasn't sure it would be welcome."
"Do you know if there is anyone who is like a social worker on M3? I've never heard my dad talk about anyone being responsible for that kind of problem, maybe medical services, or security? I've never heard of such a thing."
"Reason we never have much of those kind of problems on M3 is they screen the people real hard and you have to be real sneaky and smart, not to have some clue turn up you're a trouble maker. Oh, if you have a really rare ability, they may be willing to let a marginal psychological profile slide by, in order to get your skills. Like in the construction crew they'll let a little more slip by."
"Those kids are only here for six months, most of them and they're mostly single and young, so you can't expect them not to cut up a bit. They will talk to them once if there is a problem, or even look the other way, if one gets out of line so bad their bunk mates gives them an attitude adjustment thumping. As long as they can still work Okay the next day. But the residents and corporate people up here long term, they will simply ship them back Earthside in a heartbeat if they cause trouble. If security has to tells a sponsor any workers are a hazard, they're on the next shuttle. Nobody wants to be liable for their actions once they're on record as a problem."
"It might be difficult with Doris's dad. He ran his own business, Chalmer's High Iron. So he has no contract or boss to send him Dirtside. But part of the problem is he says they're going home to Canada until the problems with the Rock are over and they'll come back. She doesn't want to go and doesn't believe he'll be coming back." She stopped and thought a little what she should say to Ruby.
"I can hear the wheels and gears turning," Ruby said over the edge of her coffee mug. "Why don't you spit out what you're holding back. Is it a secret or something?"
"I was trying to figure it out," April admitted. "All of a sudden I know a whole lot of stuff and I'm not sure what parts I can share with what people."
"Don't you trust old Ruby? When have I ever let you down? Tell me a bit more. What's this got to do with Mr. Creepo Chalmers?"
"Keep this for your own information. I mean, I know you'll tell your husband. But otherwise keep it tight please. Point is, Doris knew her dad was holding stuff for Art, the USNA spy we talked about who jumped from the lock. He's working for them."
"She said they told him the people here would get straightened out and more under control like back home. So tell me how they are going to make it happen. Huh? Seems like he must know who they are, if they share this sort of information with him. I figure if he comes back, he isn't expecting to start his business back up, although that's what Doris assumed. I figure he'll have some USNA administrative position handed him, for helping them spy now."
"Collaborator is the word you're hunting for," Ruby calmly stated.
"Well, we're not in the sort of conflict to justify the term," April insisted.
"I figured we were when they started sending armed spies in here and we'll be openly in conflict pretty soon won't we?" Ruby said pointedly. "Most folks just aren't aware of it yet and if they arrest a bunch of folks to take over control of M3,
I'd say your dad has to be one of the first three guys on the short list."
April had a hard knot form in her stomach at the idea. "You're right, but I'm sorry to say I've been thinking of so many other things it hadn't occurred to me yet."
"Well, sorry to give you a new worry. One practical thing I can help you with. You tell Doris to come in here and I'll make sure she is fed without using cash like I saw you give her today. We can key it in on an account that never goes over the minimum charges and they'll never check the statement line by line if they're not paying extra."
"Mitsubishi can afford a couple meals, folded into the billions they run in overhead, without going broke. We throw away more every shift than she could eat. I'll tell Wanda to do the same. She may seem sour, but she'll do what I tell her, because she knows I'll help her when she needs it."
"Ruby you always talk about your husband, I wanted to ask about him, but I don't think I've ever heard you say his name."
"He is Washington Carter Dixon. But what he goes by at work and at home is Easy. What about him?"
"Well this may seem odd to ask," April squirmed feeling awkward, "but I wondered if he, or you, know how to shoot?"
Ruby looked to be struggling not to laugh.
"I used to be in the Air Force. It's how I got my college paid you see. The way I met Easy, is he jumped out of my perfectly good airplane a number of times into the dark of night. The way his guys were dressed in black with no uniforms, no insignia and carrying enough death dealing equipment to take on a small army, makes me suspect he can shoot a bit - yeah - just a bit maybe. Myself, I had to qualify like everyone else, with pistol and automatic rifle. We flew cargo planes and I eventually progressed from ramp grunt to loadmaster."
"Lots of times we slept in the plane with our weapons beside us, because we were in some God forsaken rat hole in the middle of nowhere and afraid we'd never get to the plane and get out, if we didn't stay aboard. Been in more little dirt strip pest holes, with minarets and palm trees, than I care to relate. These were old heavy lifters. Some of them so old they had propellers, not ducted fans, big old windmills. They could fly with a whole lot of holes shot in them if you had to."
"We still meet Easy's old buddies from time to time and they never get very specific about where or when they worked together. Don't forget Honey, I grew up in Detroit. You could go out on the street and buy a gun, easier than you could find a good pizza. And the old smart cops were scared to get out of their armored squad car. Real educational place to grow up. Answer your question?"
"Yes it does. I just wanted to be sure you could use this if I gave it to you." April reached back and unclipped the extra laser on her belt. She could see Ruby's eyes linger on the twin which stayed on her belt. She never missed a thing.
April showed her the pressure points to open the handle and screen and explained there was a tutorial which would help her set it up. "It's set at lowest power right now until you find the menu and turn it up." Ruby examined it in her lap, as April explained the basics. With Ruby's back to the rest of the room April was happy with their privacy.
Ruby seemed real pleased with the gift. "I assume then I'm to share this with my husband. You can bet he has something lethal squirreled away he hasn't even told me about, but he'll be tickled with this. He might even have more need of it outside pressure where he works, if it comes to trouble. Thanks April."
"About Easy," April added. "My brother and I are buying a scooter and will be doing some business with it. Would you ask your husband if he would consider moonlighting for us if we need some help? Bob and I are both going to be taking the license exam soon, but we might feel a whole lot better getting somebody to take a few flights with us who has some real experience, especially if we get some work which involves doing a flight to another habitat."
"Easy tells me frequently, in great detail, how he's still the greatest scooter pilot ever. Seriously though, he is good. I'll let him know." She said it like a goodbye - getting up and heading back to work. April watched her walking away and tried to see where she had put the laser, but it was concealed and April had somehow not seen where she had stowed it she was so slick.
April took a deep breath and mustered her nerve, then punched Jon's number in the pad. She thought about trying to present her problem with Doris as a pure security problem and make him feel obligated, but she suspected he was too smart to be manipulated so easily. She decided she would just straight out tell him she felt it was the right thing to do and appeal to him to help. Hadn't she read somewhere forgiveness was easier to get than permission?
Chapter 17
April looked across the desk at Jon. This was the first time she had ever been in his office. Maybe it would have been better to get him out to some neutral site, but it was too late now. She had been all worked up about Doris and asked to meet face to face before stopping and thinking what she wanted to accomplish. He had invited her to come right over, before she had thought to ask for a different place. The office was so small if he came around the narrow desk, she thought she'd have to step outside to allow him past. Margaret had been in the outer office and greeted her warmly and an older lady had smiled at her and seemed very happy to meet her, who they called Theo, about her grandmothers age, rail thin in all black with a single string of pearls and a pair of half glasses which were almost certainly a stage prop, since vision was so easy to correct. Margaret was in a call with someone so Theo walked her to Jon's office and asked if she would like coffee?
Jon was looking at Theo, in a way which told her it was unusual for Theo to be offering to serve refreshments and made an awful choking throat clearing noise. Theo cut it off with a quick piercing look and said "You sound like you need a cup too Jon," in clipped curt speech. Not a question or an offer. April suddenly got the feeling he was going to get a cup and he'd jolly well drink it and like it, if he knew what was good for him.
April started relating her meeting with Doris and all she had said about her father.
Theo came back with three cups of coffee and a small platter of almond cookies and baklava, which must be out of the ordinary since Jon's eyes had actually bugged out. She positioned them for April and pointedly far out of Jon's reach, although he got a huge mug of black coffee. Theo planted herself on the corner of Jon's desk and made herself comfortable with her back to the wall, as there was no third seat in the office, or even room for one.
April went on to confess she had given her key card to Doris and pleaded not only the necessity of safe guarding someone at risk for family violence, but explained about the father's alliance with Art and the potential for intelligence about what actions might take place with the rock. Theo made occasional little appreciative noises, to acknowledge the impact some of the information had for her.
"I'm sorry to dump another problem on you, when so much else is going on."
"Hey, everything else keeps happening. Freight gets pilfered, folks get in arguments and stuff gets lost, people write crap on the walls. It's our job," he said dismissively.
"Well Jon," Theo said, "we don't really have a proper police matron. I'll volunteer to meet and assess this young lady and I'm sure you'll be able happy to inform the court through her attorney, when she hires one groundside, she is voluntarily being supervised by one of your female officers. I'll help her if she will allow it, because I have been through the same trial of fleeing an abusive family."
April was glad to hear what was motivating Theo. But Theo was so pushy she worried she'd alienate Jon over the issue of Doris, which she didn't need, as Jon was an important asset for her.
"Theo, I'm sure you have a great deal of experience and I'm happy to hear you will help, but I want to tell you my grandmother was involved in social work of this kind. If there is anything you find you need to ask, about how to work the system, especially the Earth end of it, I'd like to give you her number. Just tell her I asked for her to help. Would you like the number?" She asked, ready to write it on a sticky pad from Jon's
desk.
"Sure." Theo agreed. "I don't know what I might ask her yet, but I will always keep all the resources I can muster." She said, taking the note. April was relieved that was so easy.
"I'd like to go down to the Holiday Inn now. She is probably holed up there to avoid running into her dad and I'll do a preliminary interview."
"Please." Said Jon. "Thanks for taking the initiative. It's always better to have volunteers than assigning a job."
Jon seemed to relax visibly when Theo exited and took a sip of his coffee, contemplating April. She felt so sorry for him she pushed the cookie plate over to share.
"I don't know exactly what happened just now," April said. "But I had no idea Theo would take such an interest. I didn't set it up to have her put any undue pressure on you. I didn't know Theo before coming in here today."
"No, no. It's OK. This really worked out as well as I could have wished. I really would have called Theo in and used her, if she had not thrust herself into it like she did.
I didn't want to say anything until she was gone, but you are doing it again you know, don't you?
"Doing what again?" April asked confused.
"You are snooping out the action. First you found the spy who did a job on the Singhs and now you have uncovered the USNA agent and plan of action for controlling M3, after they come in and do a grab on the Rock."
"Maybe, that's filling a lot of the blanks in with guesses. But it does look mighty suspicious. You know it's not right," April complained. "If Margaret had brought this to you it would have been described as a fine piece of detective work. But when I do it it's snooping. I only found out because I was trying to do the right thing by Doris anyway. I really just kind of lucked out."
"That's fine but in the end the information about her dad is going to be more important than how Doris gets treated. Theo might have even been worried I'd lose sight of Doris, with the bigger issues on the table. The issue hits so close to home she just had to make sure I never got an opening to decide to do the wrong thing." Jon picked a piece of baklava and took a break to daintily nibble the corner off.
April Page 25
