Victoria's Challenge (42 page)

Lucas slowly turns
, he can see Gad thinks it’s because of his command.

“Did you just give me an order
,
Private Stannic
?” Lucas’ tone is deceptively quiet but the entire flight deck hears him. Stannic’s compatriots shrink back.

“
That’s Private First Class,
Major,
and I’m trying to
help
you.” Gad thinks he’s in command. “You’ve been given some bad information. There’s no ship that can travel that fast.
I
would know about it. I know about
all
Coalition ships.”

“Really
? And why would a
Private First Class
know about
all
the fleet’s ships?”

“Because m
y father is Assemblyman Rogue Stannic from the House of Knowledge.” The self-important grin on Gad’s face rubs everyone wrong.

“So?
” Lucas challenges.

“So?
” Gad is astounded. “My father makes sure I have all pertinent Intel.”

“You
’re saying your father, an Assemblyman, is giving you, a Private First Class with
no
clearance
, classified Intel on Coalition ships?” Gad suddenly realizes what he’s implied.

“No
! It’s not like that! He knows I’d never compromise the Coalition!”

“But you just
did!” Lucas walks up until he’s nose to nose with the Stannic, never breaking eye contact. “Rico!”

“Yes Major!
” The guard trot’s up to him.

“I want Private Stannic escorted to the brig.
” His eyes shoot to the other three. “I want all of them there. The charge is the disbursement of classified Intel to unauthorized personnel.”

“Yes Major.”

“You can’t do this!” Gad sputters. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

“Shut up
, Gad!” One of the three hisses at him. “I’m not going down because you’re an idiot!”

“Fuck you
, Vagi! I’ll make sure your commission is revoked! Fucking little dust sucker, you’ll never be more than a calcite miner like your loser father!”

“Rico.”

“Yes Major.”

“All but that one.
” Lucas points to Vagi. “I want
him
in my office.”

“Yes Major.”

“And Rico, if you feel the need to gag Stannic, I’ll sign off on it.”

“
Yes sir!
” Rico smiles as he salutes Lucas. The significance isn’t missed. Lucas never expects his people to salute him.

Vagi knows he is screwed. Why the fuck, had he spoken? He should have just let Gad dig his own grave, but he couldn’t…. he just couldn’t. He watches as the Major sits behind his desk. He knows who the man is, even if Gad doesn’t. He also knows why Zafar had singled out Gad.

“So
… Vagi...your father, he’s a miner on Nuga.” Of all the things he could have started with, that was the last thing Vagi had considered.

“What of it!” h
e says defensively.

“Is he or isn’t he?
” Lucas challenges.

“He is.”

“
Never
let
anyone
make you ashamed of him, Vagi. Ever! Only those strong in mind and body can mine calcite. He does it to give you a better life! You will not disgrace him!”

“I…
. Major…”

“How long have you been part of Stannic
’s group?”

“I….”

“It won’t go any further, private. There will be no repercussions for what you say.”

“Since
my fourth cycle in the academy, sir.”

“Why?”

“What?”

“Why
? From what I’ve read of your record, you’ve been exemplary. Good grades. Good recommendations. Why would you hookup with Stannic? Prestige?

“The ancestors no!
” Vagi can’t help but say.

“Then why?
” Lucas sees the conflict in the young man’s eyes but he knows he can’t cut him any slack, the boy has to come clean.

“He discovered I’d taken on work outside the
barracks,” Vagi finally admits.

“What
?” Of everything, he could have confessed too, Lucas never would have guessed this.

"
During my third cycle, my father became ill. He couldn’t make the tuition payments. I had to sneak out to work at nights. Stannic found out and threatened to report me unless I helped him with his studies. He was failing strategy. The instructor was House of Protection and his father couldn’t influence him.”

“Fuck
Vagi, why didn’t you go to your advisor?”

“
I did, Advisor Oschofield.” It’s then that Lucas realizes the position Vagi had been in. Oschofield had been the Assemblyman who protested the marriage of Cassandra to his father, demanding it be dissolved before she was allowed to be Queen. He’d lost the support of the people because of it and therefore his seat in the Assembly. Lucas knew he and Stannic were related through their wives. He also knew it was forbidden for cadets to work outside the barracks. They were supposed to be dedicating themselves to their studies. It was grounds for immediate dismissal.

“He advised you to help Gad.”

Vagi says nothing, confirming Lucas’ fears. Shit, the kid had been in a tough spot. A kid from the outer reaches, on his own at the Academy, and the one that should have helped him had a personal agenda. It pisses Lucas off. He looks back at Vagi’s record, gathering his thoughts when a handwritten notation catches his eye. A notation made by Professor Naifeh, one of Lucas’ favorite and toughest teachers.

“It says
here that you’re a genius with mechanicals.”

“Sir?”

“Professor Naifeh personally wrote in your record that in his opinion, any assignment you’re given that doesn’t involve the maintenance and repair of mechanicals is a waste of your talents.”

“Sir
?” He can see Vagi’s confusion.

“You didn’t know this?”

“No sir. When assignments were given, I was assigned to the Conviction with Gad.”

“So are you?”

“Am I what, sir?” Vagi is totally confused.

“A genius with mechanicals?”

“There’s nothing I can’t fix, given the time. Sir,” he hastily tags on. Lucas raises an eyebrow and walks to the hatch.

“Lorre!
” Returning to his desk, Lucas waits.

“What’s up
, Hawk?” Lorre walks up to them.

“Lorre, I want you to put Vagi here on one of the Blades
. Give him the list of repairs needed and cut him loose. Once he’s finished, I want
you,
personally to inspect his work. Is that understood?”

“Yes sir.
” Lorre is stunned.

“
Can you handle that, Vagi?”

“Yes sir
! Just show me the tools and parts and it’ll be fixed.”

Lucas nods.

“Dismissed!”

In the brig, Gad steams. Just who the
fuck
does this
Major
think he is? Sending
him
to the brig! Wait until his father finds out. He’ll run him out of the Coalition. He’ll demand it for this insult, and Vagi, that foabhor! Telling him to shut up! He’s gone too. Gad’s friends say nothing. Just watch him pace. All three turn as the cell door opens.

“I demand to talk to the Admiral!
” Ignoring him, the guards escort them into an interrogation room. Entering, they find Lucas already there. Sitting across the table from him is a man and three empty chairs.

“Anything else you need
, Major?” The guard asks.

“No
. Thank you, Sergeant.” Lucas leans back in his chair and waits as Consul introduces himself to the three.

“What’s going on Gad
?” One of his stooges finally finds the nerve to speak.

“
This is ridiculous!” Gad’s disdain is easily heard.

“This is a preliminary inquiry into
Intel that Private First Class Stannic seems to have acquired and his disbursement of that Intel. Counsel Waage is here to make sure the accused rights are not violated.”

“I demand to speak to Admiral
Tar!” Gad is beside himself.

“The Admiral doesn’t bother himself with preliminary inquiries
, Private. It’d be in
your
best interest that he isn’t contacted at all,” Lucas tells him.

“Trying to cover your ass
, are you Major? Don’t want the Admiral to know you screwed up? My father will
ruin
you!” Gad threatens.

Waage looks at his client
in shock then suddenly realizes that this self-important little foabhor has no idea who he’s dealing with. “I’d advise you to be quiet, Private Stannic,” Waage tells him.

“Oh shut the fuck up
! This fucking Major’s just pissed that I know more than he does! He’s trying to make himself more important than he is.”

“Again
, I advise you to be quiet. The charges Major Zafar has brought against you, if found to be true, carry severe consequences.”

Gad pales
when he realizes just who is sitting across from him. Who he's been insulting. “Zafar…” Gad’s voice goes up three octaves and his friends slide their chairs away from him.

“So you’re never involved in preliminary interviews,” Barek asks Quinn in the observation room. Quinn just grins at him, but he loses it as he turns back to the interview.

“This kid is a
foabhor. How the fuck did he get on my ship?” Barek looks at his own file.

“Seems his old man pulled some strings to move them up on the transfer list and with the casualties from this last attack
, they were moved here. I’m sure LaBahn was happy to get him off the Conviction.”

“Sending me
unqualified
crew! What the fuck was he thinking?” Barek knew he didn’t want to be LaBahn once the Admiral was done with him.

“On record
, they
look
qualified but I talked to some people on the Conviction off the record. They stated that these three never did much, the fourth one...” Barek looks at his notes. “A Private Vagi has skills, seems he did all the work for the others.”

“Where’s he at?”

“Lucas has him working on a Blade.”

“What
? Why isn’t he in with these three?”

“I don’t know
, Admiral, I was only able to speak briefly with Lucas, but knowing him there’s a reason.”

“Yes, there would be
. What else do I need to know?” Quinn turns when Barek hesitates.

“Colonel
?” Saying nothing Barek flips through his file. Finding what he’s looking for he hands it to Quinn and waits. The eyes that meet him are full of rage.

“He attacked her
? He’s on
my
ship and he
attacked
Victoria?”

“Yes.”

“Lucas knows this?” The Admiral looks back into the interrogation room.

“Yes
. Do you want me to step in?”

“Not yet, I want to see how he hand
les this but one way or another, he’s off my ship Barek.”

“Understood Admiral.”

“Yes.
” Lucas acknowledges his name. "So now, tell me Private First Class Stannic, what knowledge do you have of the Fleet’s ships? How you came by it and who have you told?”

“I have no more knowledge th
an any other Carinian, Major.” Gad is backpedaling fast.

“That is not what you inferred on the flight deck
, Private.”

“Sir
… I was just….”

“Just what
, Private?”

“
Sir, I was just trying to get your attention.”

“
My
attention?”

“Yes sir, you’re considered the best pilot in the fleet,
it's a great honor to serve under you.”

“You didn’t even know who I was
, so stop with the Goryn fog. Answer the question.” Lucas can see Gad isn’t used to anyone calling him on his shit as he snaps his mouth shut.

“I have nothing else to say
, Major.”

“So what do you have to say
, Private…” Lucas looks at one of the files. “Kee.”

Kee pales under Lucas’ gaze.

“Sir?”

“Tell me what you know about the fleet’s ships.”