by S. H. Jucha
Gerder hadn’t admitted defeat. A thought occurred to him, and he desperately followed it.
Sher-li’s head came up, and she looked hopefully at her partner.
The Leaders’ heads had popped up too, and they stared at one another, astounded at Winston’s admission.
Sher-li refused to respond, which was a good idea, considering she was speaking with a SADE.
Winston waited. He calculated that the role of gracious host had reached its limit.
There was still no response from the pair, and Winston tried a different approach.
Still Gerder and Sher-li were quiet.
Gerder and Sher-li received images from Winston, who’d acquired them via Julien. Frequently, they featured reds and grays towering over defenders, which emphasized the insectoids’ size and aggressiveness.
Gerder’s confidence was shaken. The insectoid images had frightened him, but so did the thought of Daphne Lemoyne finding him.
The Leaders eyed one another in hopes of a valuable confession, and Sher-li was grateful to hear Gerder use the word us.
* * * * *
Alex made arrangements with Gino to present his offer of the conclave to the Council.
Two days later, Franz piloted a traveler through Méridien’s atmosphere. The day was overcast, and rain blanketed the landing site, Confederation Hall.
As opposed to touching down in the interior courtyard, arrangements had been made with Gino and his escorts. Franz floated the traveler overtop of the Hall’s roof.
The escorts had opened a rarely used access door, and the Omnians quickly exited the shuttle and crossed the several meters to the opening.
Tatia’s squadrons didn’t fly high above to minimize appearance, as they had done the first time. This time, they flew in tight circles around the Hall at low altitudes. They warned away shuttles and grav cars.
While the attending citizenry was highly inconvenienced, thoughts of complaining were rarely voiced. To most Méridiens, the Omnians’ anger and their precautions were understandable.
Negotiating the corridors, Z and Miranda dismissed any idea of being considerate and sociable. They walked heavily and intimidatingly, which cleared the wide hallways. Citizens of all ranks crowded the walls to stay out of the Omnians way.
It was the scowl on Alex’s face that caused the greater concern for Méridiens as opposed to the huge, heavily armed SADEs. The usual affable face had always given the citizens comfort. Now they wondered what was about to happen at the Council meeting.
Turning into the final corridor that led to Chamber doors, the minder at the small desk hurriedly signaled Gino and Winston. He was relieved to hear that Gino requested their immediate admittance, and the ornate doors slid aside before the Omnians reached it.
The minder expected only Alex and Renée to pass through. When the five Omnians proceeded through the doors, he happily kept his mouth shut.
There was a rumble in the Chamber when the Leaders saw the armed SADEs.
Gino raised his hands to gain attention. “The Council was given three choices,” he said. “First, we could receive no presentation and forgo hearing one of the most important opportunities the Confederation has ever received. Second, I must allow every Leader to be screened and bodily searched to ensure no weaponry was present. Or, third, I could permit Z and Miranda to be present in the Chamber. I chose the lesser of these options. If you’re truly incensed by their presence, you’re welcome to leave the Chamber.”
There was some rustling, but no one objected, much less left.
Gino’s introduction of Alex was perfunctory.
Then Alex made his presentation. It was the same one delivered at New Terra, Haraken, and Omnia.
As expected, the Leaders were nearly salivating at the opportunity to expand markets to an area of space many times greater than the Confederation.
There followed a period of questioning about the conclave and the alliance’s technology, especially the domes.
When the question-answer period came to a close, Alex said, “I’m inviting eight Leaders to attend the conclave. These eight will represent the Confederation, not their Houses.”
Alex waited for the explosion of personalities to die down.
“Why only eight?” Leader Teressi shouted at Alex, when he could be heard.
“After the attack on me and my companions, I debated sailing from the Confederation without inviting you,” Alex said. “Instead of leaving you out in the cold, this is my offer. You’re welcome to refuse it. I require your answer by nine hours tomorrow. If you choose to accept my invitation, the eight Leaders should be aboard the Freedom, with your SADEs, by then.”
“Our House SADE?” Emilio inquired.
“Any SADE will do,” Julien interjected.
“Why?” Daphne Lemoyne asked.
“Because we require it,” Renée replied.
“How long do you expect the eight Leaders to be gone?” Teressi asked.
Alex quickly calculated. “About half an annual of travel time plus the conclaves’ duration,” he replied.
“The invitation from Alex is actually for seven Leaders and their choice of SADEs,” Gino interjected. “I’ve accepted the invitation, and Winston will accompany me.”
“How will the Council operate?” Daphne demanded.
“It won’t,” Gino replied. “The Confederation can exist without our meddling in business arrangements for a little more than half an annual.”
The sudden quiet told Gino that what Alex and
Julien had expected as the result of Gino’s announcement was probably taking place. Leaders were busy communicating with one another and their House associates. They were plotting how to take advantage of the Council’s hiatus.
Winston interrupted the Leaders’ implant conversations. He sent,
That announcement resulted in an even greater disturbance than Alex’s.
“You don’t have that right, Winston,” Teressi shouted.
“SADEs gave me that right,” Julien replied forcefully, “and I’ve requested their cooperation.”
Leaders drew breath to object, but the sight of disturbed Omnians and armed SADEs tended to dampen their ire.
“Is that it?” Teressi asked angrily. “We have less than a cycle to choose seven of us and make arrangements to leave in the morning for half an annual.”
“You’ve summarized it well, Leader Teressi,” Renée replied, with a congenial smile that was reflected nowhere else on her face.
“Then you should excuse us while we get to work deciding whether to accept your generous proposal,” Teressi said sarcastically.
“I’ve one more piece of business to conduct,” Alex said.
To the Leaders’ eyes, Alex seemed to loom larger. It was a subtle shift in his stance, but the audience was suddenly deathly quiet.
First, a few Leaders noticed that pairs of Gino’s escorts now blocked every exit from the Chamber. Soon every Leader knew it.
“Cycles ago, we were attacked by two New Terran assassins, as we landed to attend the Council meeting,” Alex said. “Those men no longer exist. They were killed and delivered to the furnace of Delacroix.”
The inference of the details Alex was sharing wasn’t lost on the Leaders. Tens of thousands of House escorts hadn’t found the assassins. That they’d escaped the planet, been killed, and thrown to the gas giant said that some powerful person had managed their demises. Now the guarded exits made sense, and the Leaders gazed carefully left and right to see who appeared nervous.
“We’ve traced the funds used to pay the assassins,” Julien added. “They collected ten point one million in credits. We assume that was a down payment. The credits are no longer within the Confederation, and we assume that they reside in an anonymous New Terran account.”
Renée picked up the thread. “The company that managed the clever credit exchange with many of the entities that are owned by Leaders in this Chamber is actually defunct. At one time, the company was owned by three Houses. We know that House Ganesh hadn’t anything to do with the operation. Although, there was a poor attempt to direct us that way.”
“That left two Houses that might have managed the payments to the assassins,” Alex said, his voice cutting through the Chamber. “They are House Teressi and House Lemoyne.”
Lawrence Teressi rose and pointed an angry finger at Alex. “This is what we’d expect from an outsider. Baseless accusations.”
“Sit down, Teressi,” Alex said sternly. “It wasn’t your House.”
While Leader Teressi suddenly found his legs weak, forcing him to sit heavily in his seat, the remaining audience turned toward Daphne Lemoyne, who sat perfectly poised in her chair.
“Your conjectures have crossed the line, Alex Racine,” Daphne declared. “I’ll hear no more of your dribble.”
Daphne attempted to rise, but her legs wouldn’t respond. Those near Daphne saw her silently struggle, and they knew what had happened.
Renée and Gino wanted to intercede with Alex on Daphne’s behalf, but, for one reason or another, neither did.
Winston’s voice was received by every implant and comm.
Then the Council’s holo-vid projected the images of Gerder and Sher-li in detention. The Council and the petitioners heard Gerder’s confession and Sher-li’s affirmation of the appropriate sequences.
Daphne coldly objected, “Why should we believe the words of confessed murderers?”
In the next vid displayed on the holo-vid, the audience observed the recording made by Gerder, when he accompanied Daphne to meet the assassins.
“That could be a fabricated vid,” Daphne accused.
“As such, Leader Daphne Lemoyne,” Gino intoned, “you’re charged with the attempted murder of Alex Racine, Renée de Guirnon, and Julien. In addition, you’re to be charged with the destruction of the SADEs, Z and Miranda, which I hope the courts will decide are attempted murders. Escorts, take Leader Lemoyne away.”
Gino’s escorts closed in on Daphne, and Alex released control of her implant, as hands were laid on her.
Stunned silence accompanied Daphne’s exit from the Chamber.
“That concludes my business,” Alex said pointedly, and the Omnians turned in concert and exited the Chamber.
* * * * *
Multiple events took place after the Omnians left the Council.
First, there was an overwhelming urgency by the vast majority of the Leaders to push for a resolution to join the conclave, and it passed handily. Business opportunities were not to be missed.
Second, the debate began in earnest as to who would attend the conclave with Gino and Winston.
Third, Darse’s eldest son approached his father.
“Winston has informed me that Daphne has been arrested for murder, Father, and that my presence will be required at Council. That is unless you wish my younger brother to represent the House in my place,” the son said.
Darse appeared to be shocked by the news. “No, you attend the Council for the House,” he said. Then he turned away from his son, entered his office, and closed the doors behind him.
Taking a seat behind his desk, Darse poured a drink from an expensive and rare bottle of stim. Then a nasty smile twisted his lips. Of his three children, he had only feared one.
From Daphne’s young age, Darse had recognized her naked ambition, and he’d tried to manipulate her, but she’d proved resistant to his machinations. Throughout their interactions, he recognized that his daughter pretended to be enamored of his attentions.
Darse had become certain that his role in the House would end sooner than he anticipated. He lamented that it was unfortunate that his daughter hadn’t finished the job against Alex Racine before she was apprehended.
As Darse sipped on his drink, he considered the two potentially desirable outcomes — the Omnians’ deaths and his daughter’s arrest and charge for soliciting murder. Of the two, he was more satisfied with the removal of his daughter from his life.
29: Alain’s Challenge
Alain sent.
Jess sent.
Alain explained.
“What happens if fifty or a hundred individuals arrive?” Lucia asked.
“I’m open to advice,” Jess replied, while he poured himself a Pyrean fruit juice.
Lucia laughed. “On this subject, don’t expect my help, Commander.”
“Coward,” Jess teased.
“Seriously,” Lucia said, taking up the juice that Jess had just poured.
“She won’t give me much needed advice, but she’ll pilfer my drink,” Jess grumped and poured another glass. “I wonder how many delegates Alex is expecting us to recruit.”
“I don’t think he has any expectations,” Lucia proposed. “He’ll be dealing with the same issue in the Confederation. There are just short of two hundred House Leaders.”
“And the Tsargit has nearly three times that number,” Jess said. “That’s not counting the worlds that don’t have membership.”
