Starlaw (30 page)

Dar slowly walked forward. He said nothing more until he stood directly in front of his son. The king took his time responding.

“You want us to resort to torture? Is that what you're asking, Darius?”

“There are those within enforcer ranks who could extract information that would—”

“Is that what my son … my firstborn and heir to the throne … is suggesting? Is this what I've taught you? Is your need for vengeance so all-consuming that you'd forgo your oath in order to see Goll suffer? Do you want justice or do you want him to endure the same agony you have? And are you remotely suggesting, after allowing you to bring Goll safely here, that I would now let you throw your career and your life and freedom away so you could somehow witness or even participate in such an interrogation?”

“I want the truth!” Darius loudly confirmed.

“The truth will come out.” Dar put one hand on Darius's right shoulder. “Until further notice, you are officially relieved of duty. You will remove your uniform, turn in your weapon and identification to League headquarters, then remain on palace premises.”

“
Father
!”

“You'll be allowed to attend the trial and the administration of any punishment, assuming officials deem it necessary. But you will remain within the compound or you will be arrested by the household High Guard. Is … that … clear?”

“Assuming officials deem it … Father … you can't be serious!”

“I won't repeat myself. You have one hour to present yourself to League headquarters and obey, or I
will
put you under lock and key.”

Speechless, humiliated, and profoundly embarrassed. Darius slowly turned and walked away.

Laurel wasn't aware she'd been holding her breath until soft apologies were made by the family. Regrets were voiced for having subjected her to what they referred to as “this ugly business.”

Once the Starlaw clan was gone and her door closed, she sat on the bed and tried not to cry. The entire trip to Earth had been painfully put into perspective, and one thing was terribly clear.

Dar had been fully aware this might happen.

The look on the king's face, as the news of Goll's defense was delivered, had suddenly become passive. The king's choice to send a son after a murderer—a son with a very definite conflict of interest—was ordered to give Darius closure. The father was seriously worried over Darius's future as he'd seen his son become obsessed with catching
all
the vamphieres present when Astral and Kyrie were killed. This fact was revealed in words of relief uttered by the king, just moments before Darius arrived back from League headquarters. The king had just expressed his thanks to the Creator of all things for sending his son home safely and with the last vamphiere incarcerated.

But the result of Dar's well-meant intentions might now set Goll free. Dar probably believed that Goll's imprisonment would be enough, that once the pursuit was over, Darius would heal and finally get on with his life. Obviously, Dar hadn't known the vamphiere would flee to a banned planet. But the order to find and arrest the brute, wherever he was, added to the problem inherent in sending Darius to begin with.

With several legal boundaries having been breached, Goll
might
really go free. And Darius was at the point of losing his edge, possibly even his reason. She'd seen the look of stupefied shock on the big man's face. He'd stood there listening to his father at least temporarily take away the only thing he had left—his career.

What Dar had meant to accomplish backfired.

She sat there feeling horrible sorrow for a man who'd only tried to protect and serve, a man who was being punished with agonizing pain every day of his life. Years after the fact, he still loved his wife and child. He still missed them and couldn't get on with his future and likely never would now.

And she knew one thing more.

If Goll went free, Darius would become a criminal himself in the pursuit of his nemesis. No order from any constabulary would keep him from going after the vamphiere and one or both would end up dead.

“There's a solution to this. I know there is,” she whispered as she stared at the marble floor and clasped her hands together.

The words of a training officer, from her academy days, suddenly came back.

“If a situation is as bad as it can get, what's the harm in trying something crazy?”

For several hours she thought. She hadn't even been on the planet a full week. Goll would stand trial that afternoon and, if he was found guilty, would be executed summarily. Darius's sister, Nyssa, had said so. There'd been so little time to get used to being on solid ground again, before she had to go right back into cop mode.

Suddenly, a very strange plan began to form. She lifted her left hand to her mouth and chewed on her thumbnail, trying to work out the details. But to enact it, she needed to work fast. And she needed to talk to Darius.

She stood and lunged for the computer console and addressed the artificial intelligence device therein.

“Computer … is Commander Starlaw in his quarters now? Has he returned to the premises?”

Sc
a
nning for known biological readout … presence is confirmed. Commander Starlaw is within his quarters. Initiate contact?”

“Yes. Now … please.”

“Com open.”

“Darius, can I speak with you?”

For a long moment nothing happened. She opened her mouth to repeat the request, hoping he wasn't ignoring her but perhaps taking a shower and unable to hear the console com request. But then a low, familiar voice responded.

“What is it, Laurel?”

“Can I talk to you?”

“I'm not in the mood,” he softly responded. “Perhaps later.”

“I … I think I might have a plan that could out Goll's collaborators.”

Another silence ensued.

“Darius?”

“Come on over. I need to speak to you anyhow. Now's as good a time as any.”

She pulled at the edges of the robe she still wore and tightened the garment as she bolted for her door and the one directly opposite.

His doorway swung open just as she got to the other side of the hallway.

When she entered his room, there was barely time to note the beautiful spruce-colored furnishings, and how they were so perfectly balanced by the white marble of the walls, ceiling and floor.

He stood there with his arms folded across his chest. He'd removed his uniform and now wore a dark green robe that made him look even larger, his shoulders more broad. His hair was damp. He'd recently showered and appeared to be going nowhere soon, just as his sire ordered.

She quickly closed the door behind her, took a deep breath, and squarely faced him.

“First … I want to apologize for how I acted this morning, Darius. I-I know everything you've ever done was to protect me. I'm not used to it and I reacted badly.”

His enigmatic expression faded and a gentler one took its place. “I'm sorry, too. I've never meant to imply, by words or actions, that you're inept. That wasn't my intention but I said and did things that would certainly lead a prudent and reasonable person to that very conclusion. And you're not, by any means, unskilled. But … ”

“But?” she prompted when he paused.

“I can no more set aside the instinct to protect you than I can will myself to stop breathing. I have tried,” he contritely said as he shook his head. “It's just not working for me.”

Deep protective instincts welled within her. She'd never seen this huge man look so confused. A telltale look of boyish pain was etched across his face. He really didn't know what to say or do now. His embarrassment over having been so terribly chastised by his sire, in front of every one of his family members
and
her, clearly humbled him. She'd never wanted to reach out and hold a man so badly in her life. But time was short now. She opted for helping him in other, more potent ways.

“I mentioned a plan.”

“I'm listening,” he softly told her.

She held out her hands, palms up, in a gesture of supplication. “Darius … what if there was a way to trick some of Goll's cohorts into revealing themselves? If they believed Goll spilled his guts while being interrogated,
they
might find a way to shut him up for good.”

His expression suddenly changed. Interest lit his face. “Go on.”

“I know what I'm going to suggest isn't exactly procedure. We'd be endangering the life of a prisoner and that's not appropriate. But I've seen investigators do this on Earth and it worked. It's not a good plan but it's
something
.”

He motioned for her to sit on the bed.

When she plopped down, drew her feet under her body, and shook her hair back, he sat near and gazed down at her while nodding his consent to continue.

She exhaled and blurted out the rest.

“What if we put out a rumor that Goll broke down and gave up names? What would his cohorts here on Luster do if they believed the lie that they were about to be caught?”

He dragged his hands through his hair and gazed at the floor for a moment before responding. “If I were one of them, I'd try to get off the planet. I'd book a one-way ticket on the nearest galactic shuttle. I wouldn't want to be arrested for conspiracy to commit murder.”

“So these traitors … these Warlord anarchists … have been involved in activities that could get them put to death? Just like Goll? And they're highly placed in your society?”

“Most certainly! They're in positions high enough to give pirates, vamphieres, and other butchers news of arms shipments, enforcer troop movements, and gem, ore, and fuel consignments. These traitors have hidden among us, on Luster, for years. They know how to do so while quietly encouraging the looting. The parasites live a life of luxury here while paying bounty to thugs who'll do their dirty work for them. A share of what's pillaged goes to them, a share goes back to Warlord based planets and their dignitaries, and a share of blood and other loot goes to vamphieres and whoever is sociopathic enough to kill for money. But I don't understand—”

“What if somebody leaked Goll's duplicity from headquarters, where I understand he's being held? That leak could be done in such a way that it appears real.”

He thought for a long moment. “I … I don't think it could work. Goll was actually offered a deal to have his death sentence commuted to life in prison …
if
he'd talk. That news has certainly been spread to anyone who'd have a need to know it, including those Warlord traitors in our midst. Why would they believe he'd suddenly start talking now?”

“Maybe the leak could include Goll's sudden, last-minute desire to live. When cowards face death, they might do anything for a chance at life. Especially if the death penalty was one as heinous as the decimation chamber.”

“How do you know about … aha! You've been researching the likely choices for sentencing.”

“I read up about it when I was on the
Titan
. I wanted to know just what would happen to Goll when he was put to death for having killed my friends.”

“Except that now, the bastard might actually go free,” Darius murmured. “And on technicalities.”

“Darius, it's those technicalities that make the law work for everyone.”

When he drew himself up and pasted on an angry expression, she put one hand on his shoulder and spoke quickly.

“I'm not saying he doesn't deserve justice. I'm saying that justice might be served if one of his own, hidden cohorts here on Luster takes exception to his having revealed them. He won't be safe anywhere if what I've heard about the Warlords is true. They'll hunt him into infinity and even a secure cell here might not offer safety. Especially if these secret backers of his are highly placed enough. You follow?”

“It might work … maybe … ”

“It's just an idea. Better than sitting here and doing nothing,” she finished.

He stood and paced for a few minutes before speaking. “If we do this, we haven't much time. The trial is only hours away, sentencing shortly thereafter assuming Goll doesn't go free. But some of Goll's backers
might
be misled into believing they're in danger of arrest.”

He stared into the distance, lifted one hand, and mechanically began to tick off mental notations on his fingers.

“This might work, Laurel. I think I can use my computer to compile a planetary list of every dignitary, official, and bureaucrat who might be privy to information—information that would be worth its weight in precious jewels or other plunder to the Warlords. We've compiled such lists before, but they never came to anything. We couldn't act on them without proof.”

“Can you also set up an alert to flag any dignitary who coincidentally books a one-way ticket off the planet, for no apparent reason?”

“Yes, but … ” He sighed and shook his head in exasperation. “That's still not enough to arrest them. Their leaving under suspicious circumstances isn't proof of any crime against the populace.”

“At worst, they'd get away but still be gone forever. At best, they might be tactfully detained, questioned, and convinced to give away
other
names.”

“It's worth a try, isn't it?” he softly mused. “As you've said, it's better than doing nothing! I've certainly nothing left to lose. And no one can touch you for giving me an idea.”

“We can keep your father's name out of it. He can use plausible deniability if the whole thing implodes.”

“The thing is … I can't get into HQ. Father has had me restricted to the compound, remember?”

“Yeah, but … ”

“But what, Laurel? What are you thinking?” he asked as he rejoined her on the bed.