Robot Blues by Margaret Weis & Don Perrin

Author:Margaret Weis & Don Perrin [Weis, Margaret]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9780451455819
Publisher: Roc
Published: 1996-11-22T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

And trust me not at all or all in all.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Idylls of the King, “Merlin and Vivien”

“Here goes my nap.” Jamil groaned.

Tess fixed them all with a grim stare. Her hand rested on her holster. “You want to tell me what you’re up to?”

“I don’t know who this guy is. He’s not one of ours. Maybe,” Xris said, “he’s one of yours. Maybe this is something you’ve cooked up for us?”

Tess flushed in anger. She started to retort, caught herself, swallowed her words. After a moment, she was calm again. “I suppose this is inevitable. We neither of us can trust the other.”

She looked narrowly at Xris, at the rest of the team. “You’re saying that this man isn’t one of your team?”

“Yes, that’s what I’m saying. Is he one of yours?”

“No, of course not! But then who? . . . How? . . .” Tess sighed, put her hand to her forehead. “I don’t believe this.”

“Maybe it’s Harsch?” Jamil suggested. “Or one of his agents? Maybe he got suspicious, decided to check things out himself.”

“That was the first thing I considered,” Tess said, “but NI doesn’t think so. He calls himself Jeffrey Grant. He flew to Pandor in a rent-a-plane. He requested clearance to land. When that was refused, he said he had to see someone about the ‘old robot.’ The Admiralty’s been monitoring all air traffic on this planet. They stepped in at that point, ordered that Grant be allowed to land. He was immediately taken into custody. He hasn’t been permitted to leave his plane. He’s being held incommunicado at the airfield.”

“Harsch wouldn’t be likely to broadcast the fact that he knows something about the robot,” Jamil pointed out.

Tess was silent, thinking. She glanced at Xris. “You’ve seen Harsch. Could you say for certain whether or not this might be him?”

“I might not be able to,” Xris said. “I saw Sakuta, remember? He may or may not have been Harsch. But the Little One could. He could also tell if this guy is Harsch or is working for Harsch.”

“And I’m supposed to rely on what he says? Oh, very well. You and the hat come with me.”

“Sure,” Xris answered. He rubbed the right side of his nose. “But what about the robot? I don’t think anyone will bother it, not with all those biohazard warnings decorating the crate’s exterior. But you never know—”

“Tycho and I could go collect the robot,” Quong offered, picking up on the cue. “Our friend is also decorated with biohazard warnings—so to speak.” He indicated Tycho’s biochemical warfare patches.

“And it would be consistent with my story that I suspected something was wrong with the crate,” Xris said.

Tess was regarding him with renewed suspicion. “You know, I might almost think you had this planned.”

“Yeah, I’m a genius,” Xris returned, shrugging. “I’m such a genius I get taken in by a Corasian agent posing as a museum curator and an NI agent posing as a human.”

Tess contemplated him a moment longer, then smiled a half smile.

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