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"Have you heard anything,Mr. Bell?"
"Heard anything, sir?"
MacKenzieleaned forward.
"Inappropriate things.Dirty secrets, the little glimmers that evil can not
conceal and which reveal what is hidden behind the mask. I know, Mr. Bell, I
know about such things, oh indeed I do."
"No, sir, nothing, sir."
"You're a fool then,Bell ,"MacKenzie snapped.
He remained silent again for a moment and then ever so gradually a smile
crossed his face.
"Any stray talk. A slip of the tongue, or a dark and dirty secret shared with
someone you think is a friend, Mr. Bell?"
"No, sir, nothing, sir."Justin replied, trying to not let his voice betray
just how nervous he was. Somehow he was convinced thatGolson had been
spreading stories about Matt and the Captain was now looking for confirmation.
"Perhaps you need a lesson,Bell , perhaps everyone does. You are dismissed."
"Yes, sir."
Justin backed out of the room and started down the corridor.
"Mr. Bell?"
Surprised, Justin looked up and saw DoctorZhing standing in the doorway of
his cabin.
"Come in here, son,"Zhing announced loudly, I want to check your dose meter."
Justin stepped into the room, a bit confused because a quick glance to the
tag on his chest would have shown that so far his exposure had been less than
half arad .
Zhingpeeked out into the corridor then slid the door shut. He made a display
of leaning over to check the meter,then motioned for Justin to stand at ease.
"How are you, son?"
"Fine, sir.No problem. The suit's a bit clumsy but we'll get used to it."
"What did you and the Captain talk about? I see you going in there every
evening."
"I've been assigned as his steward for dinner," Justin said.
"Why?"
"I don't know, sir. Guess it was just the luck of the draw. O'Brian sent me
down with dinner the first night and the Captain asked that I serve him for
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the remainder of the voyage."
"Good, that means he trusts you, at least for now."Zhing hesitated. "The same
way he seems to trust young Mr. Colson."
"Sir?"
"Oh, the Captain knows the family and its connections. Your Mr. Colson has a
powerful family, he does. When the Captain first saw the roster he recognized
the name immediately."
"Sir, we're all cadets on this trip," Justin replied, curious aboutZhing's
comment. "Of course we can be trusted."
To his surpriseZhing leaned over, switched on the computer and dialed in some
music.
"Did he talk to you at all about secrets?Or about the separatists?"
Justin wasn't sure how to respond.
"Son, as medical officer on this voyage I have the right to any information
that might impact on my duty to monitor the health of this crew," he hesitated
for a moment then dropped his voice to a whisper, "and that includes the
Captain."
Taken aback Justin didn't know how to reply. He suddenly wished thatThorsson
or his grandfather were here. This entire situation was not shaping up to what
he had expected the service to be. Somehow, whenever he was done talking
toMacKenzie he left feeling unclean, as if there were something wrong that he
should feel guilty about but wasn't quite sure what.
"Sir, I'm not sure, sir," Justin replied.
"I'm concerned, Bell. I've served four cruises on this ship with that man. I
retire in less than a year. Just a few more runs," he said dreamily, "just as
long as I don't run afoul of that man."
The way he said "that man" surprised Justin; there was a note of disdain, but
his eyes betrayed a look of fear.
"Sir.He talked about the separatists and how he doesn't like them."
Zhinglaughed coldly. "Has reason not to. You know about his wife, don't you?"
Justin shook his head.
"She left him some years ago.Messy situation.What with him gone for months,
years at a time. It happens a lot in the service."
Justin thought of his own mother, the memories of when he was a boy and his
father was shipping out.The long months of waiting, the anxiety and fears. But
she was always there for him when he returned. He wondered how such a blow
would affect a man and how he would learn to live with it afterwards.
"She's one of the leaders now,"Zhing continued. "She's said some embarrassing
things about fleet officers in general and him in particular through the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]