Entropy Gate-Journey by Etter Allen

Author:Etter, Allen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Unknown
Published: 2011-09-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Chen, Derek, Dr. Sim Fong and Doug Pembrook all met in Derek’s private room.

The doctor kept yawning and apologizing for it while Chen told what she knew about recent events on the Orca. Pembrook said little.

“The man we have in custody has said nothing,” Chen began. “David Franke believes that he isn’t even Russian. In fact, Mr. Franke has asked that he be allowed to question the man privately as part of his company’s investigation.”

“I don’t trust him,” Fong said. “I’m grateful that he saved your life, but I can’t bring myself to believe that he’s who he says he is.”

“I agree completely,” Chen said. “The way he moved out there would lead me to believe that he has had a lot of military training. He dispatched two of the attackers-”

“You mean killed, don’t you,” Pembrook said. “Let’s not mince words here. He killed two of those guys without thought. I saw the external security cam footage too. He smashed right through a faceplate. You know how strong you have to be to do that? It’s a wonder his hand isn’t shattered.”

“It bothers me as well,” Fong added. “I checked the heart monitor on his suit. His heart rate never went higher than seventy-four during the entire experience. His breathing remained steady. He has incredible physical control.”

“Not to mention that he can kill with his bare hands,” Pembrook said.

“If he hadn’t killed those two they might have destroyed the ship,” Derek said. “I am in favor of having Mr. Franke conduct his interview.”

“I’m not,” Chen said. “But I want opinions. Input.”

“What does S.E.R.F. say?” Fong asked.

“Nothing yet. I haven’t told them of David’s request. But I plan to.”

“This Russian-sounding man has no known identity,” Fong stated. “S.E.R.F. has no record or DNA profile. If he is working for the Russians, the DNA search would have included them too.”

“David is convinced that the man isn’t Russian, but I haven’t come to that conclusion yet,” Chen said.

“I’m in favor of having Mr. Franke conduct the interview too,” Pembrook said. “I don’t like the man, but he may be our best help here.”

“And I oppose, so that makes it a draw,” Fong said.

“Actually it’s not,” Chen stood as she spoke. “I wanted your opinions to help me with my decision. I’m not actually voting. It’s why I chose the three of you instead of an even number. I will allow David his time with the prisoner.”

She turned her back on them for a moment and rubbed her sore arm with her free hand. It didn’t hurt as much now, but it was extremely uncomfortable. “I want this business over with.” Chen turned back to face them. “I don’t know what angle Mr. Franke is working, but if it helps us, then I guess we should use him for now. When we get to Venus we’ll have a whole new set of problems to deal with.”

“Anything else, Commander?” Derek asked.

“Yes,” she said. “Both times we’ve had attacks on the Orca the men doing the attacking were retreating to the engine section.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.