The Ethics of Silence

by C. J. Nash

  “Just curiosity.”

  Vera’s notepad chimed. “I’ve got the origin for that message. Peter Vronsky. Part of the scientific community. Biologist. You know him?”

  Mason nodded. “We’ve talked. He was on the ship with me, but you couldn’t say that we actually became friends. He didn’t act like an enemy either, but then, I suppose enemies don’t normally advertise the fact that they are planning to kill you.”

  Vera volunteered, “I can’t read his messages, but I can access his call log since he’s been here on Mars. Would that help?”

  “Maybe,” said Mason. “Would you?”

  Vera tapped her ‘pad. “Okay, here it is. Uh-oh. Lots of calls and messages to Eddie. Three calls to the governor. And seven messages to Earth—a Mr. Travis Erwin. The last message to Mr. Erwin was sent at ten-fourteen yesterday morning.”

  Mason scooted over so that he could see Vera’s pad. “I think you have found a motive.”

  “What do you mean?” asked Janet.

  “I can’t say until I have more proof. One thing I can say is that the NAU made a mistake in sending me to Mars. There is data on the Mars server that isn’t available on Earth. There are secrets here that I would never have uncovered if I had remained there. What concerns me are all the conversations that Vronsky has had with the Farmer.”

  “We can ask Eddie,” ventured Janet.

  “Can we trust him?”

  “I trust him,” said Janet.

  “I trust him, too,” Vera agreed.

  “Okay, can you get him back over here?”

  Janet sent the message and shortly the Farmer was sitting opposite Mason. “What’s up, Johnnie,” he asked.

  “First, I want to know what you know about Peter Vronsky.”

  “Biologist. Arrived here on the same ship as you did—you must have met him. Studying closed-system recycling. They bribed me to work with him. Only non-colonist that has access to the farm, besides you.”

  “What kind of bribe?”

  “It’s a secret.”

  “Does it have anything to do with Lazarus?”

  The Farmer searched Mason’s eyes. “I don’t know how much you know about Lazarus, but this secret had nothing to do with it. Promise you three can keep a secret?”

  Both Janet and Vera consented, but Mason replied, “It depends on the secret.”

  “Well, Johnnie my boy, I think you’ll keep my secret, so I’m going to tell you anyway. They are going to send me some honey bees. If we can get a healthy hive, that will eliminate the need to hand-pollinate some of the plants. And we’re going to need them for the apple trees, too.”

  “What about Lazarus?” asked Mason.

  “Forget about Lazarus. I can’t discuss it. What do you want to know about Mr. Vronsky?”

  “He’s the person who tried to kill me. Or, at least, he is the one who sent me that message.”

  “So, what are you going to do about him?”

  “I guess I’ll start by interrogating him, but I doubt that he will be willing to talk. And, as I’ve been told so many times, you don’t have a prison on Mars, so I don’t know what to do with him afterwards.”

  The Farmer squinted. “I’ve got an idea about how to solve both of those problems. But I can only help you if you will allow me three conditions.”

  “And those conditions are…”

  “First, I don’t want you to have any contact with Mr. Vronsky. If he believes that you are dead, I want him to continue to do so. Second, after I interrogate Mr. Vronsky, if I think he should be detained, I don’t want you to ask any questions about where I am keeping him. He will be turned over to you very shortly before your departure.”

  “Can you assure me that he will no longer be a threat? I also need assurance that he won’t be harmed. Even if he did try to kill me, he deserves a fair trial.”

  “I can give you those assurances.”

  “Okay. What is your third condition?”

  “I need you to go ahead and release Mr. Echols. He is needed on the farm.”

  “I still need him. That body is evidence in an ongoing investigation that may or may not have anything to do with Vronsky.”

  “I need him also. You know that you have already gathered all the evidence you will ever get from that body. Why not let me have him? I’ll make a deal with you. Give me the body now and I will hold it here, untouched, until you either complete your investigation, or you leave for Earth.”

  “In that case, why not just leave it where it is?”

  “I have my reasons, Johnnie. Take my deal and I honestly believe that I can get Mr. Vronsky to talk.”

  “Okay, I’ll contact the governor and release the body.”

  “Not the governor. I want Janet to contact Dr. Norton and arrange for the body to be sent to the farm. At the moment, I don’t want anyone who might be involved to know that you are still alive.”

  Mason nodded to Janet. “Do it.”

  The Farmer continued, “Just one other thing, Johnnie. I need you to stay at my apartment on the farm until I’ve had a chance to question Mr. Vronsky. I don’t want to run the risk that he will see you. If he believes that you are dead, I don’t want him thinking otherwise.”

  “I’m staying also,” insisted Janet.

  “I’ve only got the one spare room,” protested the Farmer. “But I suppose you can have it if Mr. Turner doesn’t mind sleeping on the sofa.”

  “We can manage with one room,” said Janet.

  The Farmer raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

  Chapter 16

  MR. ECHOLS RETURNS TO THE FARM

  Mason was still sleeping when Janet emerged from their bedroom with her notepad. The Farmer was already up. He asked, “When are you going to call Dr. Norton?”

  Janet glanced at the clock. It was almost oh nine hundred. I guess I can call him now.” She tried to place the call, but there was no answer. Instead, Mason’s notepad announced an incoming call from the doctor.

  “Ignore that,” said the Farmer. “Remember, he’s dead. His notepad is missing.”

  Janet closed her ‘pad. “He won’t answer my calls. I guess Mr. Echols’ body will have to wait.”

  “No, I need Mr. Echols. If the doctor won’t answer your calls, you will have to go see him in person.”

  “Can’t you call him? I want to stay here with Mason.”

  “No, I can’t call him. I don’t have the authority to release the body—you do. Besides, you’ve also got to go see the governor.”

  “Why do I need to see the governor?”

  “You’ve got to tell him that Mr. Turner is missing. We can’t pretend that he lies dead, still undiscovered, in the desiccation chamber without reporting that he is missing. When we do discover his body,” Eddie made imaginary quotation marks in the air, “you may even have to tell the governor that Mr. Turner is dead.”

  “He already knows that Mason is missing. I called him Saturday evening before we found Mason. How long do we have to pretend that he is dead?”

  “That depends on what I learn from Mr. Vronsky. It would be convenient if the governor believed that Mr. Mason is dead and never learns otherwise.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, that there would no longer be anyone to investigate Mr. Echols’ murder. If we can convince the governor that Mr. Mason is dead and that it was not a colonist that killed him, then it is possible that the governor won’t bother to ask for another investigator. And even if he did, there will no longer be any evidence—once Mr. Echols has been recycled.”

  “What about Mason? I don’t think that he will be willing to play dead indefinitely.”

  “I don’t know yet. But for every problem there is a solution.”

  “We can’t hurt him. I won’t let you hurt him.”

  “No, we’ll find a solution that doesn’t involve harming Mr. Turner. I worry about you, Miss Edwards.”

  “What? Why do you worry about me?”

  “I worry that yo
u might be getting emotionally attached to Mr. Turner. You know that you can’t let that happen.”

  Janet’s gaze fell to the floor. “I know.”

  “You two are sharing a bedroom. I would guess that you are probably sharing a bed.”

  “Yes, we are sleeping in the same bed—but not as lovers.”

  “Not yet, maybe. But how long will that last? If he is lonely, get him to enter a marriage contract with one of the other colonists.”

  “One of the others—but not me?”

  “No, not you. They won’t get too attached to him; I’m afraid that you might.”

  “But I’m lonely, too.”

  “I know that. I just don’t want you to get hurt. If you aren’t careful, you might actually fall in love with this investigator. And he is going to leave when the next ship lifts for Earth.”

  “It might be too late.”

  “What might be too late?”

  Janet’s eyes filled with tears. “I may already be in love with Mason. We share the same bed because I need someone to hold me while I sleep. I’ve been lonely for far too long.”

  “You’re lonely? You need someone to hold you? Mr. Turner will be leaving in about four hundred days. There are colonists that I am sure would be happy to share your bed, with or without a contract.”

  “Those colonists are children.”

  “They are adults.”

  “Not compared to me. I was already married before they were born.”

  “Still, they’re not all that much younger than you.”

  “I changed their diapers! There is no possible way that I can think of them as adults—not in the bedroom anyway.”

  “What if there was a way to introduce new colonists to Mars?”

  “Is there a way?”

  “Like I said before, for every problem there is a solution.”

  “It really wouldn’t make a difference. I love Mason. I love him and I don’t know what to do about it.”

  “Put some distance between the two of you.”

  “I can’t. We have to work together.”

  “Get him into a contract with another colonist.”

  “He won’t do it.”

  “Stop sleeping in the same bed.”

  “I won’t.”

  “Then you’ve got a problem and I really don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  “Yes, I’ve got a problem. But you said that for every problem there is a solution. Find me a solution.”

  “Damn it, Miss Edwards…”

  “Damn it, Eddie! All these years we’ve been friends, don’t you think it’s time that you started calling me Janet?”

  “Okay, Janet. Let’s look at the choices. You can’t go to Earth.”

  “No, I can’t.”

  “The NAU won’t allow Mason to stay here. He must leave on the very next ship that lifts. That rules out any chance that you two can remain together.”

  “Then I need you to find a third option. One that isn’t an impossibility like the first two.”

  “Okay, Janet, I will try to find you another way to solve your problem.”

  “Eddie, find me that solution.”

  ****

  Janet went to the hospital in search of Dr. Norton. She found him in the doctor’s lounge drinking coffee. “Dr. Norton…”

  The doctor pointed to the door through which Janet had just entered. “Did you see the sign on the door?”

  “What sign?”

  “The one that says Doctor’s Lounge.”

  “I saw it.”

  “Are you a doctor, Miss Edwards? If not, I suggest that you lounge elsewhere.”

  “I’m here to see you. I will only take a couple of minutes. I wouldn’t even be here but when I called you this morning, you didn’t answer.”

  “Well, I called Mr. Turner and he didn’t answer my call either. By the way, where is he?”

  “I honestly don’t know where he is. I haven’t seen him since Saturday morning. Have you seen him?”

  “No, I have never seen him without you at his side. I was beginning to think that you two were permanently joined at the hip.”

  Janet glared at the doctor, but said nothing.

  Dr. Norton set his cup down. “You came here for something. You might as well tell me what you want so I can go ahead and tell you no.”

  “I want you to release Mr. Echols’ body to the farm.”

  “Does Mr. Turner agree with your request?”

  “He told me and the Farmer that he was finished with the body.”

  “I thought you said that you didn’t know where he was.”

  Janet hesitated but quickly recovered. “He told us that, Friday.”

  “And the governor is on board with this?”

  “It is Mr. Turner’s case. I’ll take the responsibility. And the Farmer is tired of waiting.”

  “Bullshit!”

  “What?”

  “I said, ‘Bullshit!’ Turner didn’t ask for the body to be released to the farm.”

  “He did.”

  “He wouldn’t want any possible evidence that might still remain with that body to be destroyed. He’s not here with you because you don’t want him to know what you are asking me to do.”

  “He said that he was done with Mr. Echols.”

  The doctor picked up his notepad. “And if I call him, what is he going to say?”

  “Call him,” said Janet defiantly.

  “I think not,” said Dr. Norton, as he placed his ‘pad back on the table. “He has wasted far too much of my time with his stupid investigation so I’m going to pretend to believe you. Send me a text requesting that I release the body. Just a little something to cover my ass when the governor wants to know by whose authority he was released. After that, you and Old MacDonald can do whatever you want with Mr. Echols.”

  Janet tapped out the message on her notepad. “Okay, it’s done. When can the Farmer expect the body?”

  Dr. Norton read the text. “That’s up to him. I am officially finished with Mr. Turner and Mr. Echols. If the Farmer wants the body, he can get it himself.”

  “But he will need you to open the morgue for him.”

  “I doubt that, Miss Edwards. As the governor’s assistant, I am sure that you have access to the morgue and just about every other building on this planet. And if you don’t have access, I am sure that you can get it. Now if there is anything further, I can do for you…Leave me the hell alone.”

  Chapter 17

  THE TRAP IS SET

  The Farmer transported Mr. Echols to the desiccation chamber and uncrated the body. After laying the corpse out on the table, the Farmer made a quick evaluation of the body. The desiccation process had caused the skin to shrink to the point that, had he not known to whom the corpse belonged, the Farmer could not have guessed its identity. There was a fair-sized hole over the heart where the letter opener had been cut free. The Farmer struggled with the corpse until Mr. Echols was wearing both a shirt and a pair of pants. Satisfied with his work, the Farmer closed and locked the building.

  The Farmer made a quick check to ensure that all necessary farm duties were being performed. Few of the colonists actually needed any supervision whenever they were working on the farm. Everyone knew very well that the colony’s existence depended on their labors. Being ever vigilant, the colonists paid painstaking attention to every detail regardless of the duty to which they had been assigned.

  Next the Farmer personally checked atmospheric pressure and levels of oxygen and CO2. He made a slight adjustment in the sunlight over the field of grass. The farm was doing well today; the Farmer returned to his apartment.

  Chapter 18

  FRIENDS OR LOVERS?

  The Farmer found Mason and Janet sitting in the family room chatting with his wife, Gloria.

  Gloria hugged her husband. “Eddie, you’re home early. Is everything okay?” It was unusual for the Farmer to end a workday early.

  “Walk with me,” the Farmer said to Mason. “We nee
d to talk.”

  Outside Mason asked, “Have you had a chance to talk to Vronsky yet?”

  “Can’t yet. The normal cycle for the desiccation chamber is five days. If Mr. Vronsky believes that he killed you, I can’t discover your body,” he made imaginary quotation marks, “until Wednesday. I’ll talk to him then.”

  “Then what do you want to talk about?”

  “Miss Edwards.”

  “Janet? What about Janet.”

  “You’re sleeping with her.”

  “I don’t think it is any of your business, but sleeping is all that we’re doing.”

  “Actually, it is my business. I am responsible for the well-being of every living thing in the colony, especially the people.”

  “We’re both adults.”

  “Don’t let her fall in love with you.”

  “I don’t control how she feels.”

  “And what happens when the next ship lifts for Earth? Miss Edwards won’t be on it—she can’t leave Mars.”

  “I know that.”

  “And you can’t stay. And you know that you wouldn’t even if you could.”

  “Maybe I would. You said that it wasn’t possible. Is it possible?”

  “No, it is not possible. You will return to Earth at next lift.”

  “I don’t want to hurt Janet, but what can I do. We have to work together. And I am not forcing myself on her. If you want me to leave her alone, talk to her. I will follow her wishes, not yours.”

  “I have spoken with Miss Edwards. I believe that you both are going to get hurt when you return to Earth.”

  “So, what do we do?”

  “We do what we always do. We do our jobs. Your job, until after I question Mr. Vronsky, is to pretend to be dead. After that we’ll see what comes next.”

  ****

  Mason was sleeping when Janet came to bed. She pressed her bottom against him causing him to roll onto his side and snuggle in closer. Janet grasped Mason’s hand and pressed it to her bosom.

  Mason was instantly awake. There was no fabric separating his hand from the firm warm flesh. “Janet,” he whispered, “what are you doing?”

  “Just shut up and go to sleep.”