"It's also come to my attention that mining surveys conducted by prospecting ships from this station have been making their way into the hands of a competitor, R. S. Steele. Do you have any information about that?"
Miss Patty's hands went to her heart, and fear settled over her face. Then the matronly facade crumbled, and she wept openly. "Yes, I sold the surveys," she sobbed. "What else could I do? Mr. Levine told me he wanted to retire. When he retired, I'd lose my job too, and I'd never get another as good. I'm too old."
"And you needed the money?" Rafe asked.
She sniffed. "My grand-niece is a surrogate mother on Bliss. She's already had six children for them, and Ellie's never been strong. She would have died trying to carry another child, but they insisted she fulfill her contract or buy it out. I had to do something. I'm sorry."
"I'm sure you know by now that Mr. Levine is dead."
A fresh welling of tears flooded Miss Patty's eyes.
"I believe you know something about the night he was killed, but you withheld the information because you feared your thefts would be detected. Tell me everything," Rafe said. "I want every detail."
She lowered her handkerchief. "I sent the reports to R. S. Steele in the mail each month. Since it was the mail delivery day, I stayed behind after Mr. Levine left the office to transfer surveys to a stick drive. I put the stick drive into the mail bag and delivered it to the mail ship. I took the incoming mail back to the office, and then I went to bed."
"And then?"
"I woke up later, and I realized that I'd left a list of the reports I'd been copying on Mr. Levine's desk."
"What time was this?"
"About half-past one in the morning, I think," she said. "So I left my quarters and went down the corridor to the office to get it, but when I got near, I heard someone. I thought it must be Mr. Levine working late, so I decided to go back to my quarters."
"Did you hear anything else?"
"A few minutes later, I heard footsteps and a kind of squeaking noise from the direction of the office."
"Squeaking?"
"Yes, I think so. Like a door that needed oiling. I couldn't hear very well—it was only for a few seconds, then it faded away."
Roshal, using the damnable trolley to move Levine's body to hydroponics. If Miss Patty had discovered him, would he have killed her, too? Perhaps more to the point, if Miss Patty had told Rafe this sooner, could he have prevented Roshal from killing or injuring so many others? He pushed himself to his feet with a heavy heart.
"And the fight Ed had with Levine? What did they argue about?"
"I don't know for sure. Something about that woman, Janice Fisher, and how much Ed was seeing her." Miss Patty watched him, trembling. "What's going to happen to me now?"
Rafe faced her with resolute eyes. "Whatever the reason, larceny is a serious crime," he said. "I can't just let it lie. I'm confining you to your quarters until EA can be contacted to begin legal proceedings. I'm sorry."
Rafe left Miss Patty's quarters and headed back to the storage bay to find Janice Fisher. He'd been in the new job less than an hour, and already he hated it. He felt like Death's messenger, bringing bad news to one and all. Before he'd become CEO, he could overlook the problems at the station, but now they'd landed smack on his plate.
He found Janice clearing the last of her patients from the storage bay, sending them back to their quarters with instructions to return for rechecks in the morning. She and the medic looked beyond tired.
"I wanted to thank you, both on behalf of EcoMech and from me personally, for helping out. You saved lives," Rafe said.
Janice gave him a wry grin and wiggled her hips. "Wait to thank me until you see my bill."
He tried to return her smile and failed.
"You look like you just lost your best friend," she said. "Did you and that sassy Oasis technician break up? This is the first time I've seen you two apart since I met you."
Rafe thrust his hands in his pockets and rocked on his heels, thinking of how badly he'd wanted to talk to Kama on the tug and how she'd deflected him. "We weren't together exactly."
"No," she laughed, "but you both want to be."
Taken aback, Rafe goggled at her, which only made her laugh more.
"Honey, she's got the hots for you, she just won't admit it, especially to herself. You have to see past all that intellectual bullshit she shovels and look into her heart."
Focus. His love life—or lack of one—wasn't why he'd come. Why did he have to be so distractible?
"About Ed, he's pretty sick, isn't he? He told us he never left the station the night Levine disappeared, but the security cameras say otherwise. I think you're his doctor. What are you treating him for?"
Fisher's face turned to stone. "Look, maybe I'm not licensed anymore, but I've never stopped being a doctor. That information is privileged."
"Thanks, Janice, I can take it from here." Rafe jumped at the sound of Browning's voice behind him.
"I just got the message from corporate—that's EcoMech corporate—telling me you're my new boss, so I guess now I have to answer your damn questions." The smelter supervisor stood, hands on hips, a challenge in his eyes. Fisher shot him a warning look and moved away to pack her trunk.
"Last month you visited a med station in Earth orbit for a physical, only the guy described on the form is about three centimeters taller and a hundred kilos lighter than you," Rafe said. "Did Levine discover your report was fake? Is that why you argued?"
Browning's chin jutted. "My lungs are scarred from ice flu. I've always been able to cover by taking meds and staying fit, but lately that hasn't been working so well. Janice helped me get some experimental treatment. I haven't improved enough so I could pass a company physical yet, so I bribed a doctor to give me a good report. Levine found out, and we argued. But in the end, he agreed to give me another month to see if I could meet requirements. Now you know. As soon as my people are safe, you can have my resignation."
Browning rolled his shoulders and marched out without waiting for a reply. Janice, so warm and funny moments earlier, gave him a doleful look and followed.
Rafe stood alone in the storage bay, listening to the echoes of their footsteps fading away to nothing. His forlorn gaze traveled around the gray, uncluttered space. So neat, so empty. So like his future.
Chapter 20
"He's done what?" Kama exclaimed.
"Yeah!" Greg exclaimed. "Isn't it great? Old Man Goldman convinced the board they should make Uncle Rafe the new CEO. He's taking over at EcoMech, and I'm going to work for him."
After a night tossing and turning, she'd spent the morning trying to write her report to Samir, but at mid-morning, she was less than half done. She couldn't get her mind off McTavish long enough to finish the cursed thing. Like some knight in shining armor, he'd ridden into her life and knocked all her beliefs into a cocked hat.
Then Greg arrived at her door with a filmie: the Oasis contract—without the comments—and it was signed Rafael McTavish, CEO, EcoMech.
"I don't understand," she said. "Why would he do that?"
Greg prattled on, something about press conferences, but Kama didn't pay attention. Emotions ran rampant through her like mutinous rats scurrying from the dark corners of her heart: anger that McTavish had made himself a target, fear that his goodness and honesty would be consumed by the temptations of power at the helm of EcoMech, and overwhelming desire to be at his side to protect his body and soul.
"Where's your uncle now?" she asked, interrupting Greg's litany of McTavish's glorious qualifications.
"He's in the admin offices with Bob Coleman, his assistant."
Kama snatched her duffel off the bunk and rushed out. As she neared the admin section, she rounded a corner and crashed into Browning. He rolled like a ship in heavy seas, but his eyes lit up at the sight of her.
"You headed for the office?" he asked.
"Yeah. How's it going?"
Browning shook his head. "No
t good. Five dead, with Levine and Roshal, I guess. One man died on the way to the jump gate medical facilities, and two others are hanging by a thread, plus Warner. Twenty or thirty others injured, but they'll make it. The doctor at the jump gate says the numbers wouldn't be even that good if McTavish hadn't commandeered that fast cruiser. I've never seen a man quite like him. He's a real soldier. And he got rid of that EA patrol boat in a matter of hours. Almost makes me wish I'd still be working for him."
"You're not staying?" she asked, distracted from her anger by Browning's sad expression.
"I can't pass the company physical. As soon as things settle here, I'll be on my way. And that won't take long. He's got Goldman's assistant filing insurance claims already. He says EcoMech will cover the medical expenses for anyone injured in the explosion. It'd take me a month to straighten all this mess out, and I'd probably do half of it wrong.
"He's also got Miss Patty under house arrest. He says she's been selling our surveys to the competition to buy her grand-niece out of a surrogacy contract. I kind of feel sorry for her, going to prison at her age. She won't last a month." Browning ran a hand across his brow. "I better get going. Still a lot of cleanup to do."
Kama watched him walk away, the anger in her gut doing a tango with fear. Had she misjudged McTavish? Now that he had a big, new promotion, did he care about the people on the station? Did he care about her? She stormed on toward the admin section.
When she reached the admin office, she didn't bother to knock. McTavish sat at the desk wearing a white dress shirt open at the collar and sleeves rolled up to reveal fading bruises on his muscular forearms, gray slacks tailored to his slim frame, and incongruous workout shoes. Like a chameleon, he blended with the business-like surroundings of the office, and it tossed fuel on the fire of her fear.
Which was the real McTavish, the one who'd helped her recover the Oasis contract and brought Roshal to justice, or this corporate type running an empire in his shirt sleeves? Was the new power he'd wield already going to his head, tainting his soul?
He had his back to her while he took a vid call on his monitor. At the other end of the call, a blonde woman Kama instantly identified as a merc by her size, bearing, and haircut listened. From his tone of voice, Kama gathered they were close. The woman's eyes held a sadness she seemed determined to disguise.
"I'll be in town every four to six weeks on business. If you and Ying Ying don't mind, I'd like to keep sharing the house with you," McTavish said.
"No problem, RM." Her eyes looked past him, and her expression became guarded. "You have company."
McTavish glanced over his shoulder and flashed Kama a warm smile before turning back to the woman on the screen. He didn't seem concerned that Kama overheard the conversation, and somehow, his casual behavior enraged her further. He should have a guard on the door. He should be taking his security seriously.
"Barb, I'd like you to meet Kama Bhatia. Kama's been helping me here. Kama, this is Barb, my former assistant and the new CEO at Security Partners."
Barb? This was McTavish's assistant? Not a bimbo buffing her nails but an Amazonian lesbian he'd just promoted to run his company? Kama wasn't sure what to think about the housemates business, but she knew now she'd barely scratched the surface of who McTavish really was. Her stomach turned to an inferno.
Barb's eyes narrowed. "Isn't she an Oasis tech?"
Kama didn't bother to hide her pride. Here was a woman with intelligence, one who knew a predator when she saw one.
McTavish glanced back again before answering, his expression apologetic. "Yes, but it's not a problem."
Barb looked off-screen. "Thiti, place a level three quarantine on RM's network account and start a deep security audit of our systems." She turned to McTavish. "I'll let you know when I have the press conference arrangements finalized."
He straightened in his chair. "There's no need—"
"Take care, RM. We'll talk later on a secure channel." She cut the connection.
McTavish spun around and rose, offering Kama the visitor's chair, his cheeks coloring. "I'm sorry about that. Barb gets a little…"
"Rabid about Oasis," Kama finished for him, dumping her duffel on the chair and remaining on her feet.
McTavish blinked at her sharp tone. He seemed at a loss for what to say next. Kama heard movement behind her. She glanced over her shoulder at a man sitting at Miss Patty's desk. This must be the assistant Browning mentioned. She gave McTavish a pointed look and jerked her head toward the door.
"Bob," McTavish said, "can you please take a break?"
Bob scooted away from his desk, smiled at Kama, and left, shutting the door behind him. McTavish closed the distance between them, joyful exuberance lighting his face.
"You look—"
"Angry?" Kama growled. "Moorhk! What do you think you're doing? Have you become a corporate drone overnight? How can you fire Browning? He's a good man, but with his record and health issues, he won't find another job. And what about Miss Patty? Does she deserve prison for trying to buy her grand-niece out of slavery? What options did she have?"
"But—"
"And you!" she said, voice rising. "What were you thinking? That you'd make yourself the next target of Leon's blackmailer and be some damned hero?"
McTavish studied the floor. His jaw muscles flexed. He took a deep breath, then another. When he looked at her again, all the joy had vanished.
"What would you like me to do, Kama?" he asked, his voice flat and dull.
It hit her then. He didn't want to be CEO. She could see the resistance, the pain in his eyes. And she'd just twisted the knife with her anger. She wanted to take back her words, to hug him and make him see he wasn't alone, but before she could move, he'd slumped into his chair. He didn't need a lecture, she realized. He needed her help.
"I'm sorry," she said, moving her duffel and pulling the chair close to his. "I didn't consider what a difficult transition this must be for you. When I'd heard you'd taken the job, all I could think about was the danger you'd be in. Whoever blackmailed Leon won't give up. They'll be more desperate now that their plan has failed. Think about it. They've waited patiently for years to get to this moment. And now Aaron Goldman's swapped out their patsy for a smart, savvy security guy. You can't assume they'll play nice."
"I didn't take the job to find the blackmailer," he said. "I took it to safeguard EcoMech so Gabe can inherit. He's as much a part of my family as Greg. I owe Aaron Goldman that much."
"This wasn't a personal grudge—Leon's blackmailer wants power. Whoever he is, he won't care about your motivations; he'll just want you gone."
Then she saw it, a way for them to be together for at least a while longer. Her spirits soared. She could help him find the blackmailer, and maybe while she was at it, she could keep him on track, help him deny the temptations of power. With an honest man at its helm, EcoMech could be the partner Oasis needed to drive development of the Sharma Network. And she could be the Oasis liaison. But first, she had to know that he hadn't changed, had to be sure she could sway his thinking.
"We have to find whoever did this—before they come after you."
"We?" His eyes met hers, and she saw a spark that fueled her own rising excitement.
"You can't do this alone, and you can't trust anyone at EcoMech. You need someone in your corner, someone watching your back. We know more now than Leon did when he chased the blackmailer. And we have the best resources in the galaxy to work the problem. We can find this person if we work together."
"You'll come to Harvest with me?" His enthusiasm changed to concern. "When you say 'resources,' you don't mean Samir, do you?"
Kama laughed. "Let me handle the resource issue. You just make sure you have good security in place when you get to Harvest. Maybe you should take a few of your own folks from Security Partners, people you know you can rely on to have your safety at heart." She raised a questioning hand. "Now what are you going to do about the miners and the station? You promised to
help them."
McTavish sat back, blew out his cheeks. "No clue. EcoMech isn't run anything like Security Partners. If it weren't for Bob telling me what to do, I'd be completely lost."
"This isn't about EcoMech." She couldn't hand him the solution. He had to find it himself. He had to care enough to help these people he barely knew. "The miners don't want to be part of a big company. They want to own the station."
"Yes, but they have no way to buy it," he protested. "It'll be years before they see any settlement from the fraud investigation, assuming any funds are recovered. To make it worse, with the Oasis contract in place and the embezzlement at an end, the place is worth more, making it harder for them to buy. And what makes the most sense for EcoMech is to sell as soon as possible. EcoMech is an ag company, not a mining company. It's a mess and not what I'd wish for the miners, but I don't see what I can do about it."
He might look like one of those uncaring corporate types, but he wasn't thinking like one. He was as dissatisfied with the situation as she was, and it made her heart sing. He just needed to be more creative about solving the problems.
"Let's pretend you're going to sell the station to Independent Mining. What do they need?" Kama prompted.
McTavish sighed as though she asked the impossible, pulled his ball from his pocket and walked it across the tops of his fingers, his eyes losing focus. "They'd need ten percent of the purchase price, say fifty million credits down, and that would still saddle them with stiff payments, more than the station can support and pay them wages. It wouldn't leave anything for the necessary repairs and upgrades."
"That's the standard corporate acquisition approach," she said. "Run the numbers again. How could they do it for less?"
His brows pulled down and his concentration intensified. The ball wove in and out of his fingers, moving gradually faster. "They can't own the place outright. They just don't have the capital. They need a partner, one with deep pockets to share the cost and lessen their debt load."
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