Chapter 17
Denaris station had that same old smell of recycled coffee and stale air that most stations had.
Cait adjusted the collar of her jacket—the deep blue and silver, the registered colors of CR Transport, the new company she’d registered three days ago—and checked the time on her dataflex.
She had to admit, she was getting used to the thing.
And, no matter how much Fred grumbled about it, the Latharian tech they’d been integrating was pretty slick.
She’d been able to get more done in the last few days than she ever would have before.
Which was a good thing because until she could recruit more people, she was essentially flying solo.
Well, apart from Fred, of course.
“Ready for this?” A deep voice asked, and she turned to smile up at Raaze.
He’d wanted to wear his new uniform, or something menacing and intimidating, but she’d talked him out of it.
Instead, he wore a dark suit that still strained across his shoulders and somehow made him look even more intimidating.
She couldn’t figure out how the hell he did it.
She rolled her shoulder and nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Raaze pushed off the wall as they headed for the wide, double doors of the tribunal chamber. They were the first case to be heard today, which suited her just fine. She wanted this over and done with, then she could move on with her life with her new…
She glanced down at the diamond-encrusted band on her finger, then cast a glance at Raaze.
What did she call him? Her husband? Her mate?
She didn’t know and right now she didn’t care.
He was hers, and that was all that mattered.
Their footsteps echoed off the floor of the corridor as they walked, and she leaned in toward Raaze.
“Remember,” she murmured as they reached the door. “Mouth shut.”
“You’ve mentioned that.”
“I’m mentioning it again.”
He’s sulking, Fred commented over the ship link. His jaw is doing that thing.
“I am not sulking,” Raaze growled, turning to look at his reflection in one of the polished steel panels on the door. “And what do you mean, my jaw is doing that thing? What thing? My jaw does not do any ‘thing’?”
“His jaw is definitely doing the thing,” she agreed. “It’s a look. It’s cute.”
Raaze gave her a sharp look. “Cute? You’ll pay for that later,” he promised in a low voice.
“Promises, promises.” She winked at him, the door sliding open in front of them.
She paused on the threshold. The chamber was smaller than she had expected.
Curved panels of what she was sure was fake marble, because there was no way they’d haul actual marble all the way out to some third-rate station in the ass-end of beyond.
But it looked good, and that was enough.
There were three rows of tiered seats, and a raised platform in the middle of the court for the judge and the arbiters.
In front of the judge were two desks; her brother, Kian, was already sitting at one with his lawyers.
Three of them. She shook her head at the sight of them.
Kian was always overcompensating for something.
He turned to look at her as she walked down the steps to take her seat next to her lawyer, and gave her the same smug, condescending smile he’d used most of her life.
You’ve got this, kid, Fred murmured, and she knew he was watching through her lens.
She hadn’t had a choice in that. He’d threatened to hack the nearest security bot and shoot his way into the tribunal chambers if she didn’t agree to him riding shotgun.
And Raaze had offered to help him. She wasn’t sure how she felt about the two men in her life ganging up on her like that.
Thanks, Fred.
Remember, if those smug bastards try anything, I’ve got three firing solutions on that pretty new ship of his. It’ll be scrap. Just say the word and the assholes are walking home, okay? Without EVA suits.
She bit back her grin at that and sat down. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kian’s smile flicker.
Their father sat in the front row just behind Kian, his back straight and his hands folded in his lap. He didn’t look at her at all, hadn’t looked at her since she’d walked in. No surprise there; being hauled into court like this must be eating him up inside.
Good.
The senior court administrator, a severe-looking man with silver threaded through his hair, stood.
“Case number seven-four-two-nine. Criminal complaint filed by Cait Rhenn, owner and operator of CR Transport, against Kian Rhenn, safety officer of Rhenn Logistics. The charge is sabotage with intent to cause death.”
Silence fell in the room as Kian’s lawyers looked at each other. One of them leaned in, but Kian waved him off. He stood up, all easy charm and confidence.
“Your Honor,” he smiled at the judge, an older woman with gray hair. “These accusations are false. My sister has always had…” he smiled indulgently in her direction. “Somewhat of a fanciful nature, shall we say? It’s the reason we only let her have one ship, with a Fred unit.”
The judge’s eyes narrowed.
Yeah, she doesn’t like the draanthic either, Raaze sent over the link.
“A Fred unit?” the judge asked, looking down at the data screens built into the desk in front of her.
“Yes, your Honor,” Kian said. “A Fred unit. It stands for Flight Response and Estimation Device. It’s a small, portable AI unit that can be attached to a ship and help a novice pilot learn how to navigate and fly. My sister has needed one since she was a kid.”
“What?” Cait surged to her feet. “That’s utter bullshit, your honor.
Fred’s teaching and supervisory functions were turned off years ago.
And it wasn’t in the H4-RPY. It’s my personal AI unit that I keep around for company.
It’s not company property. I hold all the registrations, and the unit has been upgraded many times.
In fact, if you check, that model number is no longer supported for any kind of assistive functioning. ”
“Ms. Rhenn!” the judge shot her a look. “You will get your chance to speak.”
She ignored Fred’s ire in her ear, her gaze locked onto the judge. Her lawyer’s hand on her arm got her attention, and she sat back down.
“My apologies, Your Honor,” she said. “I react badly to being called a liar.”
The judge inclined her head. “As do we all, Ms. Rhenn. So, Mr. Rhenn, the FRED unit was not in the H4-RPY as per company policy, or because Ms. Rhenn required flight assistance at all?”
Kian looked down at his lawyer, who shook his head. “No, Your Honor. It was not on the ship as per company policy. But that’s because we all knew she used it, anyway.”
The judge leaned forward, her dark eyes narrowing. “But Ms. Rhenn has stated that this unit is no longer supported for flight assistance. Ms. Rhenn, can you provide the FRED unit’s model number for the court?”
“Of course, your honor,” she smiled and rattled off Fred’s model number and registration.
The judge slid a sideways glance at her administrator, who nodded and leaned over to murmur something to her.
“Confirmed. This unit is no longer supported for that function. Moreover, the unit’s registration records confirm all assistance functions were in fact removed years ago. So, Mr. Rhenn, your assertion that Ms. Rhenn required flight assistance is false.”
She turned back to Cait.
“You may present your evidence now, since Mr. Rhenn has already stated his defense.”
“Wait! No!” Kian blurted out. “That wasn’t my defense.”
The judge arched an eyebrow. “Regardless, Mr. Rhenn, you have had your chance to speak, and now it’s Ms. Rhenn’s turn.”
“Mrs. S’Vre,” Cait corrected.
The judge blinked. “I beg your pardon?”
“My name is S’Vre now,” Cait said, turning to smile at Raaze. “I got married recently.”
“Err… of course. Congratulations,” the judge said and turned to one of her administrators. “Please ensure the court record is updated with the new name. Now, would you like to present your evidence?”
Kian glared at her, but Cait ignored him as she stood.
“Thank you, your Honor,” she said, nodding to her lawyer. “I’d like to present several files to the court. They are records of the maintenance done on my ship, H4-RPY.”
She waited a moment for the file transfer from the lawyer’s device. “As per protocol, these were all verified as correct by the Rhenn Logistics company records.”
The nearest of Kian’s lawyers sat up quickly, his expression tight as he read through the files.
“Three weeks ago, I accepted a supply run to Parac’Norr on behalf of Rhenn Logistics. The vessel assigned to me was the H4-RPY, registration number—”
“We have the registration details,” one administrator said. “Please continue.”
“I inspected the ship after an unexpected hard landing as per protocol and discovered significant damage to the ship’s systems. Damage that should have caused a catastrophic failure during atmospheric entry.
As you can see from this recording,” Cait turned to the main viewscreen, showing the video evidence with the sound off.
“The port-side hydraulic line was cut through here. You can see the cut is clean and surgical and intended to make the line fail under landing pressurization.”
The image zoomed in on the sliced line. The edges gleamed in the harsh light. They were smooth rather than the ragged damage of wear and tear.
Kian’s smile had disappeared. His jaw had tightened, and he was staring at the screen as if he could change it by force of will alone.
“Additionally,” she nodded, and the video froze on another frame.
“The starboard secondary power relay had been removed entirely. There was no damage, so it wasn’t the case that the relay had been hit by debris during the run and torn free.
The bolts were unscrewed, and the bracket was replaced without the relay inside.
Someone wanted it to look normal on a visual inspection while ensuring the backup systems would fail. ”
Would you look at his face? Raaze’s mental voice was filled with amusement. He looks like a deearin chewing a vasp.
She didn’t turn, even though she wanted to.
Instead, she kept her gaze firmly fixed on the judge.
Under the Universal Commercial Logistics Protocol, Section Thirty-Four, the company safety officer is responsible for ensuring all ships are in good working order and do not put their crew or cargo at risk.
At the time of the incident, the safety officer for Rhenn Logistics was Mr. Kian Rhenn. ”
Kian shot to his feet. “This is ridiculous. I never—”
“Mr. Rhenn.” The judge’s voice cut through like a blade. “You will have your opportunity to respond. Sit down.”
He sat. But his eyes stayed locked on Cait, the look in them confused and angry. The judge motioned to Cait to continue.
“He signed off on the H4-RPY’s pre-flight inspection,” she folded her hands in front of her. “More than that, he was the technician working on the ship before it was cleared for departure. A vessel he knew was compromised.”
The judge’s hard look swung to Kian.
“Mr. Rhenn, these are serious charges. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”
He stood, virtually shaking with anger. “This is utter nonsense. My record as company safety officer is spotless. This evidence is obviously doctored and should be dismissed.”
All eyes shifted back to Cait, and she smiled. She expected this.
“All the files were recorded through my InfoLens,” she smiled. “And as you know, InfoLens data carries its own verification ID to ensure authenticity.”
The judge nodded. “Indeed, InfoLens data is considered the most reliable source of evidence. It is very pricey and strikes me as a little odd, however, that a freighter pilot would be using such a device.”
Cait shrugged. “It’s for POD… proof of delivery, ma’am. I always wear them during a run to prove that I’ve delivered the goods.”
The judge inclined her head. “Do you usually have to use InfoLens data to prove delivery to your clients? Would the presence of the cargo not be proof enough? As far as I knew, all crated cargo had a trackable manifest number.”
Cait grinned. The judge had done her homework, and it was always so much easier working with people who did.
“Indeed, your honor, but in this case it wasn’t the client that was the problem.
Very often, the company refused to pay me for my services.
Not all the time, but often enough that I wanted my own proof-of-delivery system.
In fact, I also have financial counter-charges against Rhenn Logistics for non-payment. ”
“Excellent,” the judge smiled for the first time. “Please send them over to the court system.”
“No!” Kian surged to his feet, screaming at the judge. His face was red and purple. “You can’t do this! She’s a liar. She’s always been a liar. This is ridiculous! It’s a setup, and you’re all in on it!”
The judge looked at him, her expression set, but the eyebrows of the administrator on her left shot up to his hairline.
“Mr. Rhenn, thank you for making this much easier for us all. With the evidence in front of me and your wild accusations as to this court’s integrity, I find you guilty of sabotage with intent to cause death.
You will be placed under arrest and held in custody until your sentencing. Guards, take him away.”
“No, can’t do this!” Kian screamed as the guards surrounded him, twisting around to look behind him.
“Father!” he screamed as they locked restraints around his wrists. “Do something! This is ridiculous! She’s lying! She’s always been jealous, you know that!”
Their father stood and looked down on him, disgust on his face. “You have disgraced our family name. You are no son of mine. In fact, if I have my way, you will no longer be a Rhenn. I will apply to the court to have you disowned.”
Kian thrashed against the restraints, face gray. “You can’t do this! I’m your son! Your heir!”
The guards dragged Kian toward the side door, his protests echoing off the stone walls until the door sealed shut behind him.
“Cait?” her father said in a low voice, finally looking at her.
“Your Honor, I have a last request,” she said, ignoring him. “If you would indulge me?”
“Of course, Mrs. S’Vre.”
“Could you register my formal request to be disowned as a Rhenn, legally?”
The judge smiled as she stood up.
“Mrs. S’Vre, in this case, it would be my absolute honor.”
Cait gathered her dataflex and stood. “Thank you, your Honor. It has been a pleasure dealing with you.”
And with that she walked out of the courtroom, Raaze on her heels, ready to start her new life.