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"Fully, sir."
"Very well. That s all. Destang out." The commodore s face dissolved in air.
Miles cursed out loud, with feeling. Destang s "precaution" could only mean
that his Sector goons had spotted Mark already, before Miles s Dendarii had
and were moving in for the kill. How fast? Was there still a chance . . . ?"
Miles slipped on his grey trousers, hung ready to hand, and dug the secured
comm link from his pocket and keyed it on. "Ivan?" he spoke into it quietly.
"You there?"
"Miles?"
It was not Ivan s voice; it was Galeni s. "Captain Galeni? I found the other half
of the comm link . . . ah, are you alone?"
"At present." Galeni s voice was dry, conveying through no more than the
tone his opinion of both the misplaced comm link story and those who
invented it. "Why?"
"How d you come by the comm link?"
"Your cousin handed it to me just before he departed on his duties."
"Left for where? What duties?" Was Ivan swept up for Destang s man-hunt? If
so, Miles could happily throttle him for divesting Miles s ear on the
proceedings just when it might have done the most good skittish idiot! if
only
"He s escorting the ambassador s lady to the World Botanical Exhibition and
Ornamental Flower Show at the University
of London s Horticulture Hall. She goes every year, to glad-hand the local
social set. Admittedly, she is also interested in the topic."
Miles s voice rose slightly. "In the middle of a security crisis, you sent Ivan to
a flower show?"
"Not I," denied Galeni. "Commodore Destang. I, ah believe he felt Ivan could
be most easily spared. He s not thrilled with Ivan."
"What about you?"
"He s not thrilled with me either."
"No, I mean, what are you doing? Are you directly involved with the . . .
current operation?"
"Hardly."
"Ah. I m relieved. I was a little afraid somebody might have gotten a short
circuit in his head about requiring it of you as proof of loyalty or some damn
thing."
"Commodore Destang is neither a sadist nor a fool." Galeni paused. "He s
careful, however. I m confined to quarters."
"You have no direct access to the operation, then. Like where they are, and
how close, and when they plan to . . . make a move."
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Galeni s voice was carefully neutral, neither offering nor denying help. "Not
readily."
"Hm. He just ordered me confined to quarters too. I think he s had some sort
of break, and things are coming to a head."
There was a brief silence. Galeni s words drifted out on a sigh. "Sorry to hear
that . . ." His voice cracked. "It s so damned useless! The dead hand of the past
goes on jerking the strings by galvanic reflex, and we poor puppets dance
nothing is served, not us, not him, not Komarr . . ."
"If I could make contact with your father," began Miles.
"It would be useless. He ll fight, and keep on fighting."
"But he has nothing, now. He blew his last chance. He s an old man, he s
tired he could be ready to change, to quit at last," Miles argued.
"I wish . . . no. He can t quit. Above life itself, he has to prove himself right. To
be right redeems his every crime. To have done all that he s done, and be
wrong unbearable!"
"I . . . see. Well, I ll contact you again if I . . . have anything useful to say.
There s, ah, no point in turning in the comm link till you have both halves,
eh?"
"As you wish." Galeni s tone was not exactly fired with hope.
Miles shut down the comm link.
He called Thorne, who reported no visible progress.
"In the meantime," said Miles, "here s another lead for you. An unfortunate
one. The team from the Barrayarans has evidently spotted our target within
the last hour or so."
"Ha! Maybe we can follow them, and let them lead us to Galen."
"Afraid not. We have to get ahead of them, without treading on their toes.
Their hunt is a lethal one."
"Armed and dangerous, eh? I ll pass the word." Thorne whistled thoughtfully.
"Your creche-mate sure is popular."
Miles washed, dressed, ate, made ready: boot knife, scanners, stunners both
hip-holstered and concealed, comm links, a wide assortment of tools and toys
one might carry through London s shuttleport security checks. It was a far cry
from combat gear, alas, though his jacket nearly clanked when he walked. He
called the duty officer, made sure a personnel shuttle was fueled, pilot at the
ready. He waited without patience.
What was Galen up to? If he wasn t just running and the fact that the
Barrayaran security team had nearly caught up with him suggested he was
still hanging around for some reason why? Mere revenge? Something more
arcane? Was Miles s
analysis of him too simple, too subtle what was he missing? What was left in
life for the man who had to be right?
His cabin comconsole chimed. Miles sent up a short inarticulate prayer let it
be some break, some chink, some handle
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The comm officer s face appeared. "Sir, I have a call originating from the
downside commercial comconsole net. A man who refuses to identify himself
says you want to talk to him."
Miles jerked electrically upright. "Trace the call and cut a copy to Captain
Thorne in Intelligence. Put it through here."
"Do you want your visual to go out, or just audio?"
"Both."
The comm officer s face faded as another man s appeared, giving an
unsettling illusion of transmutation."Vorkosigan?" said Galen."So?" said
Miles.
"I will not repeat myself." Galen spoke low and fast. "I don t give a damn if
you re recording or tracing. It s irrelevant. You will meet me in seventy
minutes exactly. You will come to the Thames Tidal Barrier, halfway between
Towers Six and Seven. You will walk out on the seaward side to the lower
lookout. Alone. Then we ll talk. If any condition is not met, we will
simply not be there when you arrive. And Ivan Vorpatril will die at 0207."
"You are two. I must be two," Miles began. Ivan?
"Your pretty bodyguard? Very well. Two." The vid blinked blank."No
"Silence.
Miles keyed to Thorne. "Did you get that, Bel?"
"Sure did. Sounded threatening. Who s Ivan?"
"A very important person. Where d this originate?"
"A tubeway nexus, public comconsole. I have a man on the way who can make
it in six minutes. Unfortunately ""I know. Six minutes gives a search radius
of several million people. I think we ll play it his way. Up to a point. Put a
patrol in the air over the Tidal Barrier, file a flight plan for my shuttle
downside, have an aircar and Dendarii driver and guard
meet it. Tell Bone I want that credit chit now. Tell Quinn to meet me in the
shuttle hatch corridor, and bring a couple of med scanners. And stand by. I
want to check something."He took a deep breath, and keyed open the comm
link. "Galeni?"A pause. "Yes?"
"You still confined to quarters?"
"Yes."
"I have an urgent request for information. Where s Ivan, really?"
"As far as I know, he s still at "
"Check it. Check it fast."
There was a long, long pause, which Miles utilized to recheck his gear, find
Lieutenant Bone, and walk to the shuttle hatch corridor. Quinn was waiting,
intensely curious.
"What s up now?"
"We have our break. Of sorts. Galen wants a meeting, but "
"Miles?" Galeni s voice came back at last. It sounded rather strained.
"Yo."
"The private we d sent to be driver/guard called in about ten minutes ago.
He d spelled Ivan, attending in Milady, while Ivan went to piss. When Ivan
didn t come back in twenty minutes, the driver went to look for him. Spent
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