Chapter Eighteen
The manifesto presentations were long and, frankly, disturbing.
Governor Choy from Gemini II explained his plan to use a Puran biodome as an environmental experiment to measure how much air and energy a society could survive on. Whether or not he was proposing to utilise Purans as live subjects was not confirmed but, nevertheless, the incentive was there.
Then Governor Tateman from The Stellar demonstrated how a newly constructed energy shield could protect our civilisation from solar radiation and other catastrophic space debris.
It would have the potential to match forty percent of the magnitude Quoram emitted.
However, the scheme would require abundant manpower to keep the shield functional.
Of course, money was an issue, and those who would power it would be little more than slaves, undoubtedly plucked from Puran biodomes.
The whole lot of these leading men and women were bastards to think their manifestos were ethical or humane.
However, the Foundler’s entry was by far the most logical.
Governor Dix was proposing to construct a huge refinery on Pura, promising to build a vast new city alongside it, which would raise the general living standards there, as well as provide a durable power source to produce fuel and a protective shield for the Orbital Stations.
I remembered Torz had mentioned his approval of it, but the fact the display room was only a fifth full confirmed the lack of support behind the scheme.
Especially when a handful of military chiefs voiced their disgust regarding the Puran-sided benefits, because, apparently, Purans didn’t deserve to live like the rest of us.
“Bigots, the lot of them,” Torz mumbled in my ear as the presentation ended.
“You should cast your vote for him.” I motioned towards the tall, spectacled man standing in front of the scaled model showcasing his plan. “How will Zuli know who you vote for, anyway?”
Torz checked his comms. “When it’s a leaders’ vote, it’s a visible one.”
“Seriously?” I glanced around the room at the few governors and station commanders filtering through the doors. “And I thought we lived in a democracy.”
“We do.” He sighed heavily. “Although the top tier can be just as vulnerable as the bottom.”
We exited the room, meeting Saul who’d been stationed outside.
As we walked down the corridor towards the next presentation, my mind shifted to the Purans and their inability to voice their opinions in the same way the rest of us could.
Their elected governor held no sway over the military chief of Pura, and Lieutenant General Klauss was a vile individual.
I had no doubt he would be here casting his vote against the Puran’s favour.
To be honest, I hadn’t seen the Puran governor here to fend off the likes of Klauss.
“Perhaps we need to warn the Puran general public,” I whispered, glancing at Saul behind us who clearly wasn’t listening. His hand rested on the hilt of his gun, eyes marking each face, every shadow, and vigorous movement.
“I’m not sure it’ll do any good,” Torz murmured. “It would only cause panic. And where would they go? Besides, it’s obvious news is leaking. There was another attack this morning, here in the docks. A military ship from Gemini II was targeted, but the culprits were caught before anyone was harmed.”
“Was it Russo’s men?”
“No. Chaz’s.” Torz shot me a heavy look, and I sighed my despair. I had no idea why Chaz’s team were getting involved in this alienating front. Blatant rebellion wasn’t their style.
“Have you spoken to Chaz recently?”
“Not since you and I met Russo in the bar on Alpha Ring.” Torz glanced over his shoulder and lowered his voice. “I’ve tried, but I can’t get a radio signal through to him. And there’s been a military lockdown on every ship coming out of Pura since then. He’s clearly blocked.”
“If there’s a lockdown on Pura, how the hell did Russo get through?”
Torz grumbled through gritted teeth, “I don’t know.”
My stomach dipped at the thought of that man. Flashes of his snarling face shot across my mind—the image of him holding a glowing syringe. “I’d love to figure out where that scumbag hides.”
Somehow, the Puran drug lord seamlessly evaded the authorities.
Since his release from prison eight years ago, he’d become a phantom with no documented residence.
Even his ships were untraceable, which had been beneficial to Torz’s undercover supply runs at times.
But where Russo hid, no one knew. He only appeared when he wanted to be seen or heard, and it made him even more formidable.
I scoffed. And he had the audacity to say Chaz was evading him. “Maybe we should concentrate on finding Russo’s whereabouts. That way, he could hide a whole biodome or two of Purans with him.”
“If I knew where he resided, he’d be a dead man.” Torz’s unusually gravelly tone coated my insides with splinters of ice. I’d never heard him express such a violent opinion. It was usually me who did that, after which came a scolding from Torz for being too brazen.
I almost teased him about it, but his remark clearly held weight with him.
The sudden darkness swirling across our bond was thick and bitter, leaving me speechless and desperate to lighten the mood.
But adding more acid to the unsettling tension, a drawling female voice sailed over us, and my barriers instantly went up.
“Ah, Commander Benoit. I’m pleased to see you’re taking an interest in my manifesto.” Draped in her usual flowing robes, Zuli stood by the auditorium doors, her head held high.
“How could I miss it?” Torz’s sarcasm was blunt, the feigned smile and hardness in his eyes failing to deny it.
Zuli’s expression shifted to one of shrewdness, scrutinising my black security uniform with disdain. “Guards are to remain stationed outside—”
“Lieutenant Harthwaite will be viewing your presentation with me,” Torz shot back.
“Will she now?” Holding Torz’s gaze with an assertiveness I associated with a dark-minded scientist sizing up an obstinate experiment, Zuli lingered in the doorway, blocking our entry. “How are you finding your suite?”
Torz flashed an incredulous smile. “It’s very nice. You have exquisite taste.”
She smirked. “I’m glad you noticed.” Then she stepped aside, allowing us to pass.
I glanced over my shoulder at Saul, who remained in the corridor, and as Torz and I made our way to two vacant seats near the back of the large, dimly lit room, I stiffened at the burning scowl Zuli threw in our direction.
“I wondered why you were staying in such a luxurious hotel,” I whispered as we took our seats. “So, Zuli is blackmailing and bribing you?”
“Yep.” It was only the bob of Torz’s Adam’s apple that proved his disconcertion about the situation. It astounded me how seasoned he was at hiding his emotions in settings like this, whereas back at the hotel room, he’d been an open book.
He leaned in closer, his shoulder brushing mine. “I’m not the only one.” He nodded down the rows of seats to a grey-haired man dressed in the deep-purple military dress of Juniper. “I spoke to Chief Kalu last night. Looks like Zuli is blackmailing Colonel Sewell.”
Chief Kalu—the Argentum’s commander-in-chief and Torz’s superior—sat to the Colonel’s left.
He and Torz were close. They always had been since Kalu was Delta Ring commander himself, and had assigned Torz as his understudy seven years ago.
I liked Kalu. He was discreet, diligent, and morally just, and he overlooked Torz’s involvement with the Purans, offering support when Torz needed it.
I had no doubt the Debate Gala and its leading manifestos had been discussed between them over recent days.
And clearly, Torz had told Kalu about Zuli’s blackmailing.
I assumed Kalu held no sway over such matters.
Like Torz, he was one good leader among a nest of vipers.
Torz lowered his voice, still looking at Colonel Sewell.
“Kalu said the colonel lost his wife a year ago to cancer. Just after, his eldest son revoked the Damson bond he’d newly accepted with his girlfriend, claiming she’d cheated on him.
But the truth is, he started gambling to cope with the loss of his mother.
After getting himself into some sticky business with multiple loan sharks, his Damson left him before he could escape to Quoram. ”
I glanced at Sewell. If my memory served me correctly, he was usually a jovial, happy man, but today his brow was prominent, his lips taut and solemn. “Why would Zuli blackmail Sewell because of that?”
“To clear his son’s debt, Sewell forged money transfers from Juniper’s military fund. Kalu said it was covered up well. But somehow Zuli knows. And if Sewell doesn’t support her, she will prompt his and his son’s arrest for fraud.”
“Gods.”
Torz then nodded towards the front of the small auditorium to an ebony-skinned woman in her thirties. Glancing around the room, she stood rigid, immaculately dressed in the crisp white uniform of one of the Gemini space stations.
“Kalu also told me Zuli has Commander Oakka in her claws. She rejected her Damson five years ago when she was married and heavily pregnant. Turns out the marriage had been arranged, and when the bond tried to take hold with a near stranger, she was carrying a child that was neither her Damson’s nor her husband’s. ”
“Wow, that sounds complicated. Poor woman.”
“Makes our relationship seem pretty normal, doesn’t it?” Torz chuckled, then cleared his throat as I shot him a pointed look.
Where had that comment come from?
“Anyway…” He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Zuli has threatened to tell Oakka’s husband who their son’s real father is unless she votes for her. I’m starting to wonder if our scheming friend holds a vendetta against those who reject the Damson bond.”