“Not if Jonah Levin has his way. Not if he keeps coming after me.”

“He will not. One way or another, Jonah Levin will not have any effect on you, or on tomorrow’s election.” Mallowes stood, leaving a mostly unfinished lunch. “I will see to that myself.”

Office of Paladin Jonah Levin, Geneva

Terra, Prefecture X

19 December 3134

Jonah Levin became more comfortable with his upcoming performance when he remembered that, in many battles, a lot of the key work involved theatrics. Making a show of strength to convince your opponents you had greater numbers than you actually possessed, feinting one way then moving your entire force another, sending a damaged unit out alone as bait then ambushing anyone who tried to take advantage of it—all of these involved misdirection, even showmanship. Those tactics weren’t really that different from what he was about to attempt.

Only he had to use words, not ’Mechs, and they weren’t his weapon of choice.

Senator Mallowes had been in Jonah’s reception area for six and a half minutes, and Jonah, using a small camera, had watched him every second. Mallowes had sat for six minutes, the model of statesmanlike decorum. His impatience, though, eventually got the best of him, and he had stood, made a quick circuit around the small room, then sat still once again. Jonah could almost see Mallowes’ knuckles whiten as he held his knees tightly.

A few more seconds, Jonah thought. A little more irritation is all I need.

He counted to twenty in his head, arranged his face into the expression of a man forcing himself to be polite, and opened his office door.

“Senator Mallowes,” he said. “How may I help you?”

“Paladin Levin,” Mallowes said with a convincing imitation of graciousness. “I realize you must be quite busy, preparing for tomorrow, but I’d like to ask for a moment of your time. You must believe that this is important and weighs heavily on the election.”

Jonah rolled his eyes almost imperceptibly. “All right. Come in. But I don’t have long.”

As he turned, he could almost hear Mallowes bristling.

Jonah walked briskly to his desk, leaving Mallowes to close the door for himself.

The Senator sat on the edge of a plain wooden chair. Jonah had considered sawing an inch or two off the legs of the chair, but decided he had more important tasks than mangling the furniture to facilitate humiliation.

“Thank you for taking the time to meet with me,” Mallowes said. “I wanted to talk about something I said the last time we spoke.”

“What was that?”

“I may have led you to believe there was more of a connection between this Henrik Morten and Gareth Sinclair than actually exists. All I intended to say was that I was not aware of Sinclair severing his ties to Morten, as I had. Whether he actually employed Morten, or what he thought of him, I have no way of knowing.”

“Why are you coming to me now with… it doesn’t matter. It’s too late. You can try to cover for your friend all you want, but it’s too late.”

“I beg your pardon.”

“It’s too late.” Jonah gripped the sides of his desk and leaned forward. “I’ve got Morten. And he’s talking.”

“What is he saying?”

“Plenty. Enough to guarantee that Sinclair’s career isn’t going forward anymore.”

“Are you sure Morten is a man you can trust? As I told you previously, I cut my ties to him because I found he lacked the requisite honor needed to serve The Republic in a high position. He would not hesitate to spread falsehood if he thought it could gain him an advantage—for example, if he thought it was something you wanted to hear.”

“What do you take me for?” Jonah snarled. “Do you think I’d build a case on the word of one man, even if I thought that man was honest? Morten just had to point me in the right direction. Once I knew where to look, I found corroboration. Plenty of it.”

“It doesn’t look good for Sinclair, then.”

“Not at all.”

“What do you intend to do to him?”

“Bring him to justice! Let the whole council know what kind of man was just admitted into our midst! If I have enough evidence—and I think I will—he’ll be in custody before we take the first vote.”

Mallowes sat with his hands calmly resting on his legs. The agitation he had shown in the reception area had disappeared.

“Do you think that’s the best course of action?”

“I don’t believe I have much of a choice.”

“We sit at the top of The Republic,” Mallowes said, and his eyes might have actually twinkled. “We always have options.”

“Are you saying you don’t want me to use what I have? You don’t want me to go after Sinclair?”

“Is that the best use of the man? You know him. You have worked with him. Couldn’t he serve better as a Paladin than as a convict?”

“So I should just ignore the fact that he was involved in an assassination because I think he’d make a good Paladin?”

“No,” Mallowes said firmly. “Don’t ignore it. Never let him forget you know it. Make sure he regrets his actions for the rest of his days.”

“That’s why I planned to send him to prison.”

“You’re thinking too small, Paladin Levin. Imagine what happens if this situation hanging over Sinclair’s head goes away.”

“I’m sure he’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

“More than that.” Mallowes speech came more rapidly now. “He’ll be stunned with gratitude. He’ll never forget the people who pulled him back from the brink of personal ruin. He will be in our—in your debt for the remainder of his career. A debt he will never forget because of the information you hold.”

“So instead of sending him to jail, I should punish him by blackmailing him for the rest of his life?”

“Those are not the terms I would use, but I suppose you’ve captured the idea I presented.”

Jonah leaned back in his chair, hands clasped behind his head, as if giving deep consideration to the Senator’s words.

Finally he spoke. “I’m not sure if I should ask you to leave now or tell you what I think of your stinking proposal first.”

“Paladin Levin…”

“You call yourself a servant of The Republic? Suggesting that one Paladin blackmail another as a viable means of running a government? You’ve been in office too long.”

“I ask you to remember to whom you are speaking.”

“I know full well. A traitor.”

Mallowes leapt to his feet, his face twisted into a knot of wrinkles. “How dare you…”

“Enjoy your time, Senator. After the election tomorrow, I will do everything I can to convince the new Exarch to divest the Senate of as much power as possible. Maybe you won’t cling so tight to your office when your main job is attending official funerals.”

“You go too far. Be angry at me if you must, but such an attack on the entire Senate is unwarranted.”

“The hell it is. I could fit all the Senators who are not either corrupt or incompetent into this room and still have enough room for a marching band. Not that you would be in here to see it.”

“I made you,” Mallowes said, his words escaping between angry breaths. “I was there when you were raised to a Knight. You will remember your debt to me.”

“You were there as a ceremonial figure. I don’t mean to sound immodest, but I would have been elevated no matter who was there. You had nothing to do with it. I owe you nothing.”

Mallowes shook with rage. Jonah wondered if he would take a step toward him, or even make a fist. But Mallowes had long been accustomed to resolving conflicts without resorting to violence. He had found a large body of people who could carry out his violence for him.

He brought his breathing under control. His face slowly eased into a resting expression. Before Jonah’s eyes, Mallowes transformed back to the familiar statesman of tri-vid reports.