{"id":209,"date":"2012-07-22T00:00:42","date_gmt":"2012-07-22T04:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=209"},"modified":"2012-07-22T08:44:04","modified_gmt":"2012-07-22T12:44:04","slug":"chapter-twenty-nine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=209","title":{"rendered":"Chapter Twenty-nine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Frederick Rose could have been anything he chose to be, but he chose to apply his considerable intellect toward problem solving, toward sorting out mysteries and meting out justice.\u00a0 I hope someday to be half the Inspector he was.<\/h3>\n

— Sephora Damerian, eulogy for Frederick Rose, 5237 PD<\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

15 Novem, 5249 PD<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSo the Council actually agreed to let them settle here?\u201d\u00a0 Frederick asked from behind him.\u00a0 Adam half turned toward him and shrugged slightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn a probationary basis, anyhow, and volunteers only.\u00a0 We\u2019ll see how it goes.\u201d\u00a0 He stood among the ripening late summer tomatoes, staring up at the twilight sky.\u00a0 The days were quickly getting shorter as the season wore on.\u00a0 Soon the nights would be longer than the days and summer would give way to autumn and the harvest, then winter.<\/p>\n

Will there be war before winter?<\/em>\u00a0 He frowned slightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you think it will work?\u201d\u00a0 Frederick tugged the kitchen door closed behind him and limped to the edge of the garden.<\/p>\n

Adam shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cLindsay seems to think so.\u00a0 The rest of us just have to hope.\u00a0 Scarelli\u2014the Mission Systems rep\u2014is certainly enthusiastic about the idea, and he seems sincere in his desire to stay here.\u201d\u00a0 He crouched, plucking a few small tomatoes from their vines, cradling the orange-red fruits in his calloused palm as he straightened up again.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll have to see if it will work in the long run.\u00a0 They\u2019ll be under significant scrutiny for a long time, I\u2019m thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn\u2019t come as any surprise.\u201d\u00a0 The former Commonwealth Inspector leaned against his cane at the edge of the garden, extending a hand to take the tomatoes from his friend.\u00a0 \u201cWhat did your illustrious spymaster have to say about all of it?\u00a0 I heard minimal complaints about him when you all came back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe kicked him out of the meeting,\u201d Adam said as he handed over the tomatoes and bent to pick some more.\u00a0 \u201cHe was against the idea from the first bloody second.\u00a0 Adriano wouldn\u2019t have been able to say a damned word if we\u2019d let him stay.\u00a0 So we registered his vote\u2014his mind wasn\u2019t going to change\u2014and asked him to get back to work on determining exactly how bad the situation is inside of the Commonwealth.\u201d\u00a0 He smirked, glancing at Frederick.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, anyone coming in from Mission Systems is going to be a wealth of unvarnished information for us, completely outside of D\u2019Arcy\u2019s control.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds like the man\u2019s feeling threatened,\u201d Frederick said, frowning briefly.\u00a0 \u201cDoes he have reason for it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t know,\u201d Adam said, careful not to look at his old friend.\u00a0 \u201cDoes he?\u201d\u00a0 The minute Freder knows that I\u2019ve got the idea in my head, he\u2019ll shoot me down.\u00a0 We\u2019re not at a position where I can talk him into it\u2014not yet.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the way that you\u2019ve all talked about it, no.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have anyone to replace him with<\/em>.\u00a0 Never mind that rot about old Foundation stock.\u201d\u00a0 Frederick\u2019s eyes narrowed in the dim.\u00a0 \u201cAre you trying to gather enough evidence to oust him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been trying for some time, actually,\u201d Adam said.\u00a0 \u201cBut it\u2019s for naught until we have someone to replace him.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know who we could use.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDr. Grace seems to have a great deal of contact with the wider galaxy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ezra Grace, a spymaster?\u00a0 <\/em>Adam snorted.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s a doctor, my friend, and a good one.\u00a0 First of all, I\u2019d rather not endanger his reputation by turning him into a spy for us.\u00a0 Secondly, I\u2019m not certain how easily he\u2019d be able to cultivate the type of contacts we\u2019d need in a spymaster anyhow.\u00a0 Yes, he\u2019s known in the galaxy and yes, he\u2019s got contacts, but they\u2019re all in the medical community.\u00a0 I doubt that would be all that useful for a spy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might be surprised,\u201d Frederick said quietly, then shrugged slightly.\u00a0 \u201cWho would you choose?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Adam lied.\u00a0 \u201cThere just aren\u2019t any good candidates yet.\u00a0 Aidan might know better.\u201d<\/p>\n

The corner of Frederick\u2019s mouth twitched upward in a smile.\u00a0 \u201cLiar.\u00a0 You have ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo good ones,\u201d Adam said, smiling back.\u00a0 Not yet, anyway\u2014still not sure talking you into it would be a good idea.\u00a0 Perhaps another candidate will present themselves\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cNot yet, but I have hope.\u201d\u00a0 With another handful of tomatoes cradled in his palm, he picked his way out of the garden and joined Frederick at its edge, staring up at the starlit sky beyond the trees.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s peaceful here,\u201d Frederick said softly.\u00a0 \u201cMore peaceful than I ever would have suspected.\u00a0 Reminds me of the retreat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the idea,\u201d Adam said.\u00a0 \u201cI built it that way.\u00a0 Found the spot and did it.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled at the surprised look on his friend\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t realize that, did you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI suppose I didn\u2019t\u2014though I suppose it shouldn\u2019t surprise me, should it?\u201d\u00a0 Frederick shook his head slightly, eyes distant as he stared at the sky.\u00a0 His voice grew quiet, almost mournful.\u00a0 \u201cHow much have I missed, Grumpy?\u00a0 I hid from the galaxy\u2014the galaxy wasn\u2019t supposed to hide from me, but that\u2019s what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam winced.\u00a0 \u201cWe did it so you\u2019d be safe, Freder.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d his friend said.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you weren\u2019t wrong.\u00a0 But that doesn\u2019t make it easier.\u00a0 I used to\u2026I used to know what was going on out there.\u00a0 I barely even had to think about it.\u00a0 And now?\u00a0 God help me, I\u2019ve got no idea what\u2019s what, who\u2019s in power, which conglomerates are ascendant\u2026if Sephi could see me now, she\u2019d be ashamed of what I\u2019ve become.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSephi?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSephora.\u00a0 She was the junior inspector that I worked with\u2014one of the few people in the galaxy that got along with Daci as well as I did.\u201d\u00a0 A ghost of a smile crossed Frederick\u2019s lips.\u00a0 \u201cI like to think I taught her almost everything I knew.\u201d<\/p>\n

I wonder if she was working with him on the Mimir investigation.<\/em><\/p>\n

The question must have been on his face, in his eyes, because Frederick shook his head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cShe was with me when Mimir happened\u2014with Daci and I.\u00a0 When I started to get\u2026close\u2026to whatever I must have known before they tried to kill me, I\u2019d recommended her for promotion to First Grade herself.\u00a0 She\u2019d gotten her first assignment.\u00a0 Corporate irregularities at Idesalli.\u00a0 The last time I spoke to her, she was on the way home from their headquarters.\u00a0 That was\u2026a day or two before the gap starts, I think.\u201d\u00a0 There was still pain in his voice, frustration when he talked about the gap in his memory.<\/p>\n

He wishes he knew who killed Mimir as much as every refugee wants to know who murdered our homeworld.<\/em>\u00a0 Adam touched his shoulder lightly.\u00a0 Frederick smiled wryly and shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo sense lamenting it again, is there?\u201d he said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cTell me about the meeting.\u00a0 What else happened today?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you ask them?\u201d\u00a0 Adam nodded toward the kitchen door.\u00a0 Inside, their wives and Lindsay were making dinner.<\/p>\n

Frederick shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cDaci\u2019s still trying to protect me, and Rachel and Lindsay will only let her\u2014at least for now.\u00a0 I think she hopes that after this is all over we can just go back to Urgarthe and be left alone again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you don\u2019t want that anymore?\u201d\u00a0 Adam asked, heart starting to lift a little.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t realized how much he\u2019d missed his old friend until they\u2019d been able to start speaking every day again.\u00a0 The thought of Frederick being gone again made him a little sad, a little sick.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have many friends to begin with\u2014friends from back home, from your past are even more rare.\u00a0 Shouldn\u2019t be a surprise that you\u2019d be upset at the idea of one of them disappearing again.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Frederick said.\u00a0 \u201cAnd God help me, too, because I really don\u2019t want it and it\u2019s going to upset her more than just a little when I tell her.\u00a0 Baby or no baby, Adam, I don\u2019t want to go back into hiding forever.\u00a0 Maybe\u2026maybe whoever was trying to kill me has forgotten.\u00a0 I certainly don\u2019t know why anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fat chance.<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cWe can only hope,\u201d Adam said.\u00a0 \u201cHave you told her?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know how.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 It\u2019s not a discussion we need to have until this is all over, and this won\u2019t be over anytime soon, will it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Adam agreed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m afraid it won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSee?\u00a0 Then it\u2019s a moot point.\u201d\u00a0 Frederick\u2019s gaze shifted toward the sky again.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I\u2019ve got plenty of time to figure out what I\u2019ve missed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll need help,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course I will, but you\u2019re itching to give it to me, aren\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0 Frederick smirked, looking at Adam sidelong.\u00a0 \u201cYou want to put my analytical brain to work on whatever intelligence your illustrious spymaster is bringing in\u2014and then some.\u00a0 Don\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam smiled sheepishly.\u00a0 \u201cHow long did it take you to figure that out?\u201d<\/p>\n

Frederick shrugged slightly.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou all complain bitterly about the man, but you\u2019re the only one I hear suggesting that someone could do better.\u00a0 Put my hands on what he\u2019s got and what your analysts have and I\u2019ll see what shakes loose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay poked her head out the kitchen door.\u00a0 \u201cUncle Adam?\u00a0 Frederick?\u00a0 Dinner\u2019s ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you going to tell Daci?\u201d Adam asked Frederick as they started for the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout what?\u00a0 Keeping myself busy?\u201d\u00a0 He smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t see any reason to\u2014not yet.\u00a0 She\u2019s got enough to be concerned with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam threw his arm around his friend\u2019s shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cI appreciate the help.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll make you pay for it somehow.\u201d\u00a0 Frederick smirked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou always do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Frederick Rose could have been anything he chose to be, but he chose to apply his considerable intellect toward problem solving, toward sorting out mysteries and meting out justice.\u00a0 I hope someday to be half the Inspector he was. — … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-last-colony"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p25yjF-3n","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=209"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":212,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209\/revisions\/212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=209"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=209"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=209"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}