by EJ Fisch
“Well,” he said, pausing in a manner that gave Ziva the impression she had caught him off-guard. “You’re right; Dasaro seems like a complete bastard.” He stopped again, his smile diminishing when he realized she wasn’t laughing. “You’ve been a great help to me in the past couple of days. It’s the least I can do to return the favor.”
Ziva scoffed, unconvinced. “Yes, but helping someone sober up and helping someone evade the law are two entirely different things. I want a better answer than that.”
Aroska shrugged again and added a wag of his head. “Well, I honestly can’t give you one. Give me some time and I might be able to come up with something. How does that sound?”
She wasn’t sure whether that meant he was hiding something or that he truly had no genuine motivation for helping her. Either way, she was less than thrilled with his response. “So what is this, some sort of creepy Elsara life-debt thing?”
“Maybe.”
“Did I ever mention how much I utterly detest the Elsara?”
For several seconds, the entire house fell completely silent as Aroska stared at the floor and Ziva stared at him. The man clearly had something on his mind that he was refusing to share, but to be fair she didn’t press the matter. There were things he would discover about her in due time, and she had no doubt the learning experience would go both ways.
“Can I ask you something?” Aroska finally asked, eyes narrowed as if he were deep in thought even as he spoke. “How do you know you can really trust someone?”
Perhaps she was letting on too much. Still, if she wasn’t going to put her confidence in him, she wanted him to be well aware of it. “You don’t,” she replied, “but that’s the whole point of trust, isn’t it.”
Aroska smiled again, impressed by such a philosophical answer. He grew quiet again for a moment and glanced away. “Do you trust me?” he asked. “You asked me why I’m helping you but I could just as easily ask why you chose to come to me.”
“We’ve been through this, Aroska.”
“Yes, but do you trust me?”
If there was one thing that pleased Ziva about the conversation, it was that he was cutting to the chase and asking direct questions rather than stumbling around the issues and irritating her even more. “I haven’t decided yet,” she replied. “I’m not sure if I can, given what happened last time I chose to trust you and risk my own skin for you. At this point it would be impossible for me to shut you out completely, but I’m being cautious. I’ll admit I’m watching my back.”
Aroska said nothing, though the look in his eyes spoke of utter shock and disappointment. The fact that he had taken offense to her words confused her. For a brief moment she wondered if he had ever been betrayed by someone close to him, but when she remembered Saun Zaid, she knew part of him had to understand how she felt. She wouldn’t have blamed him at all if he’d severed all relational ties and refused to open up to anyone ever again after what had happened with his former partner.
“Ziva, I wouldn’t do that to you again.”
“I would certainly hope not,” she said. “I would hope you had learned your lesson last time. I never believed you would turn me in for saving your life, regardless of how I did it. But you did, and then you came groveling back asking for a second chance. Luckily, Emeri gave you one. If you were to try something like that again, I can guarantee you won’t get another second chance and neither will I. Dasaro will eat me alive the first opportunity he gets. I just hope you realize that.”
Aroska nodded. “You seem ungrateful that I even bothered asking for a second chance.”
“Don’t get me wrong – I’m happy to be alive. I’m just taking everything with a grain of salt right now.”
The house was again filled with the same odd silence, but this time Aroska kept his eyes locked with Ziva’s. She could tell he was disappointed, though it seemed he understood. That made the two of them even – she still possessed a certain measure of disappointment with him, despite the fact that he had risked his reputation and probably his career to get her off the hook. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d willingly given someone another shot. They were both starting over on so many levels.
“I understand,” he finally said. “So do you have any initial ideas for transportation off the planet?”
“I’m thinking public transport,” Ziva replied. “The Intrepid would attract too much attention even if the plan is executed flawlessly, and it’s probably been impounded by the agency anyway. The hard part will be getting aboard, but once we do we can travel as refugees and head to the other side of Fringe space.”
“Do you have anywhere specific in mind?”
“Where would you go if you wanted to blend in, where nobody would care that you’re a wanted criminal?”
Aroska shrugged. “Niio, Chaiavis. I have a contact on Chaiavis who might be able to help us.”
“Chaiavis it is, then. We’ll just have to steer clear of the embassy. I’m not sure how much of a threat they would be anyway; they’re usually a couple of steps behind the government here. We’ll see how things go tomorrow and play this all by ear.”
“That’s all the planning you’re going to do?” Aroska said. “Don’t you think—?”
Ziva cut him off. “I think on the move – you should remember that. We went into Dakiti with less information and still came out successful.”
Aroska scoffed. “Only after we were both captured – you multiple times – and had enough brushes with death to last a lifetime.”
“If you think that mission was a brush with death, then you haven’t seen anything yet,” Ziva said. “Just follow my lead and I’ll get us through this.” She had to admit Dakiti had been a close call, but she wasn’t about to confess any such thing, not now. Besides, it hadn’t been much worse than countless other situations she’d managed to fight her way out of.
“Here then,” Aroska said, removing a small memory stick from his pocket. Ziva recognized it as one that belonged to Zinni. “This has all the information Dasaro gave me regarding your case. If I’m going to be ‘following your lead,’ I would prefer you at least knew what was going on.”
She took it from him and placed it in her own pocket. “Thank you,” she said indignantly, still not pleased with his attitude. “Maybe we can use this to plan some counter moves. How much do they know?”
“Not a lot,” Aroska replied. “The evidence found in Tachi’s palace is solid; the whole case revolves around the fact that nobody’s going to question it. That memory stick contains a copy of the personnel file they gave me on you. The information doesn’t go very deep, but I’ll warn you now – there’s some stuff on there that I think I need to understand if I’m going to be helping you.”
“And you should know you’re not going to get any answers until we get out of here.”
He nodded. “Like you said, we should stay focused on the task at hand. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted – I haven’t had this much excitement in one day since Dakiti. If tomorrow is going to be as crazy as you make it out to be, I suggest you get some rest as well – you look like sheyss.”
Although Ziva certainly felt like it, she didn’t appreciate the comment. She remained silent however and watched as Aroska stood up and made it only half a stride before stopping. He hesitated there for a long time with one hand on his hip as he thoughtfully rubbed the other over his goatee. Ziva could tell something was ripping him apart inside, and she wished he would just spit it out for both their sakes. Still, they did need to stay focused now and she imagined they would have plenty of time for catching up and filling each other in once their journey got underway.
Finally, he turned around and looked down on her with a sigh and another shrug. “I’m sorry,” he said. “You know, I can sleep out here if you want to take the bed. You’ll be more comfortable.”
“Offer appreciated but not accepted,” Ziva said. “I doubt I could sleep if I wanted to.”
“Suit yourself
. Good night.”
Not in an overly friendly mood, Ziva refrained from replying and watched him wander away down the hall. The frustration was rolling off him like energy from a powerblade. It was clear that it had been building for some time and wasn’t strictly the result of the preceding conversation, though that had certainly been a contributing factor. She would let him sleep it off – or, if he was anything like her, lay awake and dwell on it until there was nothing left to think about – and wait to bring it up again until they were well on their way to Chaiavis.
Exhausted but far from sleep, she went to her pack at the dining table and retrieved her small toolkit. Settling back into the meditative state she’d grown accustomed to over the past couple of days, she set about fixing Aroska’s viewscreen.
-41-
Shevin Residence
Haphor, Haphez
Despite the fact that he heard the floor creak when she entered the room, Kade was still startled when Veya placed her hands on his aching shoulders and began to massage them gently. He jerked his head up from where it had been resting on his desk and rubbed his itching eyes, letting out a tired sigh. He hadn’t realized he’d been dozing, and now his head hurt worse than it had when he’d first sat down at the computer.
“Didn’t mean to startle you,” Veya said quietly, wrapping her arms around him and resting her head on his shoulder.
Kade sat there for a moment and let her hold him, placing a hand over hers. Her ebony hair was damp from a recent shower and tickled his face. Fragrant lotion had softened her already-flawless skin, and for a moment Kade forgot all about his headache and the stress of the past several days. He was sure Veya had no idea how much comfort she was capable of bringing him. His wife was the strongest woman he had ever known – he’d always thought she would have made a fine HSP agent.
“Being startled by you is a refreshing change,” he said, rubbing his face with his free hand. “Actually, I should thank you for waking me. I have a lot to do.”
“Are you doing okay? You’ve been running yourself into the ground lately and it’s not good for you.”
“I’ve got a lot on my mind.” Kade knew trying to avoid the question was useless. They were both young, but they knew each other like they had been best friends since birth. He’d met her one day in the spaceport, he a security guard fresh out of the academy and she a student traveling from Cual to Haphor for higher education. What had started as a simple request for directions had blossomed into an incredible friendship that had resulted in romance and finally marriage.
“Kade Shevin, answer my question.”
“These last few days have been crazy for all of us, you know that,” he replied. He didn’t dare tell her he had nearly lost his job that very afternoon, not yet. It would only cause her to worry more than she already did, and he didn’t feel much like talking about it anyway. Telling her he was afraid he was losing his mind wouldn’t do any good either, so the only solution was to say nothing. At any rate, it wasn’t like there was much to tell about the case unless he actually wanted to lose his job.
Veya pulled away but left her hands resting on his shoulders. “All right,” she said, “you win, but you do need your rest. You’re taking this whole case way too personally.”
“What’s not to take personally?” Kade said. “I’m the one Payvan attacked.”
“She would have done the same thing to anyone else.”
He had to restrain himself from complaining further about the incidents regarding Spence and the coroner’s report. He knew Veya would find out something wasn’t right as early as the next morning when he failed to leave for work. There was always the option of spending the day hiding out in the city as he had done after Zona had dismissed him that afternoon, but he wasn’t sure how long a charade like that would last. The best option was to knuckle down and get to the bottom of matters, but that would be difficult without access to his computer at the RG headquarters.
His train of thought ignited a tiny spark in his mind and he turned his head to meet Veya’s eyes. “By the way, Zona says hello,” he said.
She tilted her head, confused by the abrupt change of subject. “That’s nice of him,” she said, resuming her massage. “You know, we should have him over for dinner one of these days.”
At the moment the thought of such a thing made Kade shudder, but he forced a short nod of agreement nonetheless. It wasn’t that Zona was a bad man by any means – Kade respected him more than anyone else in the galaxy – but with his job, his reputation, and possibly even his life hanging in the balance, he thought it best to steer clear of his boss altogether. He had a family to care for, and losing his job or getting himself killed wouldn’t do anyone any good.
A wave of relief washed over him when the sound of the baby crying reached his ears. Veya pulled away with a sigh and brushed a lock of hair away from her face. She excused herself with a gentle smile, stopping one last time before disappearing down the hall. “You sir, get some sleep. That’s an order.”
Kade watched her go then turned back to the computer, which had shut itself down as he’d dozed. He rebooted and brought up Eason Fromm’s report again, the farthest his short access leash would allow him to go while working from home. It remained the same as it had been when he’d showed it to Zona, containing the information he knew to be false. There were times when he’d wondered if what he’d read initially was merely the result of wishful thinking based on what he’d seen at the med center. It was certainly possible that he could have been hallucinating, especially after the mild head trauma he’d suffered. That combined with lack of sleep made it nearly impossible to focus on anything. After a time however, he’d forced himself to stop second-guessing – he knew what had happened to Spence and that was that.
For the time being, the best method Kade saw of uncovering the truth was to hear the story from the doctor himself. Perhaps he could be convinced to share his observations with Zona as well. Taking a quick look at the contact information listed in the report, Kade opened a direct transmission to Fromm’s private comm.
-42-
Palace of the Royal General
Haphor, Haphez
By the time Aroska pulled up in front of Njo Jaroon’s estate in the Royal City, it was mid morning and the rest of Haphor was bustling with life. There had been some to-do when it came to letting him through the gates – one of several negative side effects of having been away from work for a month and a half – and only after contacting the director himself had he been allowed through. Everyone else was in the same boat, it seemed. Since Tachi’s murder, the security detail had been on edge and virtually the only people allowed into the Royal City were those who lived there, according to one of the gate guards. Aroska didn’t blame them at all for being cautious, though he felt crushed under many a wary gaze as he exited the car and made his way up the front walkway.
It was a pleasant day, warm but overcast, and the hum of insects buzzing in the flowerbeds filled the air. The grounds surrounding the mansion were meticulously maintained, with freshly-cut grass, ornate fountains and thriving green plant life. The house itself was even more impressive. The outer walls were pure white stone, and, despite the fact that it was only two stories, it had a commanding presence that seemed fit for the king himself. Why Ziva had chosen to give up life in such a place was beyond him.
A man with the look of a butler about him was waiting at the front door and let Aroska in without a word. The grand entry hall was still and quiet, with no signs of life in the immediate vicinity. The place reminded him of a museum – cold and delicate – so he moved forward into a pristine little sitting area and contented himself with looking rather than touching.
A massive spiral staircase rose up before him, stretching up to the second floor where he could hear faint footsteps approaching. A woman appeared at the top of the steps and hesitated for several seconds, looking down on him as if he were somehow inconveniencing her by being there. He didn’t need to read his data p
ad or study the gesh punti on her face to know that she was Namani Payvan-Jaroon. The woman was a spitting image of Ziva, but about twenty-five years older. She had the air of a trophy wife about her, with perfect clothes, perfect nails, perfect hair, and skin that she had no doubt paid a large sum of money to maintain. Nonetheless, this was the first blood relative of Ziva’s he had met to date and it somehow seemed surreal.
“My lady, my name is—”
“Lieutenant Tarbic,” she interrupted, quickly descending the stairs with her head up in a pompous manner. “Your captain told us you would be coming, and I will tell you right now that you are wasting your time. I assure you that you will find nothing here and none of us can tell you anything that will help you.”
“That may be true ma’am, but with respect, I can’t leave just yet. With your permission I’d like to just take a look around – you won’t even know I’m here.”
“Very well,” said a male voice accompanied by heavy footfalls. “Do your work Lieutenant and then be done here.”
Aroska turned and found himself looking into the all-knowing eyes of Njo Jaroon. He couldn’t recall that he’d ever seen the man in the flesh, and now that he was seeing him face-to-face he felt put in his place. Intimidation was probably a large factor in Jaroon’s skill as a politician; he was just as tall as Aroska and as thick as Dasaro. If Ziva didn’t look so much like her mother, he would have guessed Njo was the relation, not Namani.
Aroska dipped his head, still caught off guard by how impressive the Royal General was. “Yes sir, thank you sir.” He suddenly felt very small and wished he was dealing with someone with whom he was more familiar – which, he realized, was only Jada. After the mere thirty seconds he had been in the presence of the Jaroons, he already felt like he understood at least partially why Ziva wanted nothing to do with them. He doubted she’d be willing to tell him her family backstory, but curiosity was beginning to eat at him.