Myndo looked around at the other Precentors' faces. They all wonder at this change on my part. Are they stupid, or are they just so used to opposing me that no argument I make seems logical to them?"You are correct, on a basic level, Precentor Sian. However, my desire to see Hanse Davion twist slowly in the wind does not blind me to the obvious problems with this missive. It is bound for an Interdicted nation-state."

Precentor Tharkad brushed his left hand through his blond hair. "You know as well as I that we can vote to make an exception." He glanced at the other Precentors. "In fact, as I recall, we need only a two-thirds majority to allow this message to pass. Your argument over the verigraph'slegality is invalid."

She bowed her head. "I understand our regulations, Precentor Tharkad, but I appreciate your reminder. I would like to point out that the message was given to our station chief by an Interdicted agent. Alexi Malenkov is a Davion agent. The verigraphpassed from him to us. It is tainted and, therefore, cannot be delivered."

The flesh around the Primus's eyes tightened. "Do not play these childish games, Precentor Dieron. The message came from Xiang."

"Oh?" Myndo met the Primus's hard stare openly. "And if I were to send a child to a store to purchase wine in my name, do you think the shopkeeper would oblige him? No. Of course not." She turned toward the Precentors. "We have no way of knowing if that message came from Xiang, or if it really is being sent by Alexi Malenkov to his master on New Avalon."

"This is outrageous!" Precentor Sian appealed to the Primus. "Honorable One, please remind Precentor Dieron that we are dealing with reality here, not some fantasy world. Justin Xiang created a verigraph,not a holovid, not a written message. He spoke with my aide via visiphone, and our trace verified the call. He said he was sending Alexi Malenkov down with a verigraph."

Before the Primus could grant Villius Tejh's request, Myndo spoke in a loud and clear voice. "Do not make your case on the basis of lies, Precentor Sian." Her accusation shocked the other Precentors, but she paid them no attention. "The transcript of the conversation, as you provided it, proves you incorrect. In the conversation, Xiang says, 'I've already sent Alexi Malenkov down with the verigraph.He should be there in half an hour.'"

Huthrin Vandel frowned deeply. "What earthly difference does that make? The important thing is that Xiang told our people Alexi Malenkov was carrying the message for him."

Myndo opened her hands. "That statement makes allthe difference, Precentor New Avalon. The transcript marks the time of that line in the conversation as occurring at 6:30 p.m., standard time. That means Malenkov should have arrived at our station at 7:00 or 7:15, at the latest. He arrived at 9:00 p.m. What was he doing for that hour and three-quarters?"

The Primus tucked his hands into the sleeves of his tan robe. "You cannot mean to suggest Alexi Malenkov forged a new verigraph,can you?" The look of contempt on his face matched the derision in his voice.

"It is not impossible." She realized the second she'd spoken that the Primus had provoked a thoughtless outburst, and she rushed to shore it up. "There are rumors that say the NAIS has successfully managed to dissect verigraphsand put them back together."

The Precentor of New Avalon laughed heartily. "You must forgive me, but that is utterly ridiculous. The New Avalon Institute of Science has developed no such technology recently, and even if they had, it would make no difference. There is no way they could have gotten so complicated a device to an agent in the field, especially not to a mole like Alexi Malenkov."

Myndo fixed him with a razored stare. "I was unaware we had agents in the NAIS that could confirm or deny this wild assertion of yours, Precentor. Are you certain you wish to live or die on that pronouncement?"

Vandel pulled himself up to his full height. "I think, Precentor Dieron, that you grossly overstate the case. I stand by my explanation because I know it to be fact." His voice ripped back at her. "You, on the other hand, argue vapor and fairy tales."

Myndo started to reply, but the Primus raised his hand to stop her. "We know well your opinions on this subject, Precentor Dieron. Precentor Sian, do you think there was a chance that Malenkov could have forged or tampered with Xiang's verigraphto communicate information to the Federated Suns?"

"Forgery, no. There is no way he could have forged a message. This is, after all, a verigraph."The small man hesitated as he pondered the second half of the question. "As for tampering with it, that could be possible. My people reported he was nervous, but we assumed that was because he is a Davion agent. Face it. Having us refuse to take the message from him because of his true allegiance could have destroyed him."

The Primus smiled easily, his sallow flesh gathering in flat wrinkles around the corners of his mouth. "Then the solution is simple. Duplicate the verigraphand send the duplicate. If Malenkov did something to it—like injecting a chemical dye that would react to another chemical—our scanning and duplication process will not pick it up. A duplicate should take care of your concerns, shouldn't it, Precentor Dieron?"

"Should it?" Myndo balled her fists in frustration. "We don't know the genesis of this message. What if Malenkov suggested it to Xiang? What if he advised Xiang on the wording? What if he did forge a new message?"

The Primus smiled deprecatingly. "What if Malenkov had General Kerensky return and bring him a Star League-vintage verigraphforging machine?"

Myndo fumed inwardly. You bastard! You back them just to take a cut at me. Very well. You've out-maneuvered me this time, but not again."I acquiesce, Primus, and bow to your superior wisdom. You are correct. This message can do no harm—unless, of course, Malenkov did manage the impossible. As impossible as someone smuggling weapons on to our island at last year's wedding, perhaps?"

Her reminder of the previous summer's security fiasco stung all present, but Myndo realized that it also galvanized their opposition to her. She did not allow defeat to show on her face, however. I will remember this, all of you. If the impossible has occurred, I will not let up until it has destroyed every one of you.

32

New Avalon

Cruris March, Federated Suns

6 August 3029

The fear that had coiled like a snake about to strike now sunk its fangs into Hanse Davion. "Say that again, Quintus. They're going to hit Kathil?"

The spymaster nodded grimly. Color had drained from his face, leaving it half a shade darker than his white hair. The verigraphhe held in his hand trembled, as did the older man's lower lip. "He buried it well inside this note. This one paragraph is not remarkable in context, but it contains all the key words. 'A bird without wings cannot fly, but what need have we of clipping wings if we scale the cliff and fire the nest? Before this is ended, Father, I wish I could see your face one more time. We have come far, you and I, and are now just opposite sides of the same coin.' " The old man looked up from the message in his hand. "It sounds so like Justin."

Hanse sank back into his leather chair. "Kathil. Has Max gone completely over the edge? If he destroys the factories at Kathil, he'll be strangling mankind's travel between the stars."