Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (40 page)

"It seems to be
some kind of syndicate that's been here a long time and is keeping
a low profile," Narmel's voice answered. "I tell you, the Mentan
alone can wreck us! It can win any game it plays and always plays
at top stakes. If we refuse to pay off we lose all our customers.
If we pay we could be bankrupt within two hundred days.

"I made a
mistake when I handed the problem to Dir. I have to admit it! He
sent out four Zurn to question that With character – he's a Maitan
– and then to eliminate him and the Mentan. They screwed it up like
you won't believe! Not only didn't they kill them off, the whole
bunch are in prison! They put them on the probe!"

"I received
word they’d caught Harp, a Zurn who escaped, when he was still with
Dir," another voice announced. "They're putting Dir on the
probe.

"You know what
that means? Do you have any vague idea of the disaster that can
drop on our heads?"

"Dir only knows
your name and that you're over me," Narmel replied. "How could they
put him on the probe? Nobody they know about was actually killed!
They screwed that up completely. There was no capital crime
committed – that they know of. There are very strict rules about
the probe and we all know it, so don't panic for no reason!"

There was
further mumbling about a conspiracy law that would allow use of the
probe. "Great exploding galaxies, Eed! That'll put the empire right
smack in the middle of it! If they get me you know damned well I'll
be put on the probe! You've got to get me out of here!" Narmel
cried.

"It will take a
certain time for them to trace this place," Eed replied. "I was
wondering about the use of the probe, myself. Maq, here, did a
legal check for me through her office. We may have misunderstood
the law. Tell us what's happened and how we get around it,
Maq."

The voice of
the first speaker said, "It seems it's an old law from clear back
when these were pirate worlds. ("Thanks, Maita," Z said quickly.)
It was originally meant to prevent any of the old pirate lords from
taking over the vacation worlds, I think. It never came up before,
so we haven't heard of it. Those judges crossreference all cases
automatically and this one happened to fit the old conspiracy laws.
Two or more beings without any possible personal stake attempted to
commit a murder makes it an automatic.

"I'm not
positive yet, but I think the fact the Zurn used the hypnotic drugs
had something to do with the classification, too. It's very tightly
arranged. We have no recourse. It's law, recorded and with
numerous, albeit long past, precedents.

"This is the
bad news and is why Dir was arrested and why he was put on the
probe. I'll read the pertinent parts to you. You can see pretty
much where we stand at this point. We'll have to make some definite
plans.

"'When it
is shown a conspiracy has been assembled with murder as an end to
its proceedings, person or persons who are convicted of
doing
or
attempting to do
– that
is the important clause here – that or those murder or murders, the
criminal conspiracy act shall be enjoined into the proceedings by
continuing decree.

"'Conspiracy shall be defined as being any time two or more
persons work together to pay for, coerce, or otherwise cause a
criminal act to be perpetuated
or attempted
– again, that is the pertinent phrase.

"'Murder
or attempted murder
in a case of conspiracy shall be defined as a capital crime
and shall be treated in all manner as a capital crime.'

"It says to see
definition Probe Use 'C' at this point. I'll read what that says
and you'll be able to see where we stand under this law.

"'In
cases of criminal conspiracy where murder
or attempted murder
– again, the pertinent words –
are proven, those convicted shall be condemned to immediate
execution and shall be placed on the probe. If it is shown the
perpetrators of the several crimes were working under higher orders
or were being paid, coerced, or otherwise used to commit impersonal
murder, the sentence shall be commuted to a lesser charge, which
shall be decided by the judge upon complete consideration of that
or those perpetrator's or perpetrators' records.'

"This is the
clause that scares pure hell out of me!

"'Shift of
guilt in full account shall thereupon be placed directly upon the
person or conspirator (plurals included), who shall stand convicted
of capital murder, at that point.'

"That would
then put the whole mess directly on Dir's head. He's automatically
convicted of capital murder as soon as his name comes up on the
probe. That's not the point that scares me. This is.

"'The
probe will then be used on that person – etc. – and the
same sequence of
events
shall transpire,
as though
that person
were
the original arrestee.'

"This
means, in simple terms, that they can use the fact that Narmel
ordered Dir to murder –
or to cause
the murder of – those people to put him on the probe. It
will come out then that Narmel fastcommed you and you ordered
Narmel to order Dir to order the Zurn or whatever and
you
will be candidate for the
probe! If it's shown someone ordered
you
to start the thing, then
they
go on the probe until we reach the top.

"You
waited a full two hours to call Narmel with the order to tell Dir
to kill them, so I can assume that you’ve talked it over with
someone else. I can also assume you know exactly who it was you
talked to, meaning
they
will be
candidates for the probe. The way this is set up it doesn't stop
until they reach the top.
It doesn’t end until they reach the
top
!

"Eed, did you
have to wait for that person to call back?" Z was very attentive
now.

"I'm afraid
so," Eed answered.

Eed wasn't top
man. Neither was the one he called if that one had to wait for
orders. There were at least two strata above Eed.

"That
means we have to be very sure Narmel isn't put on the probe,
doesn't it?" Eed said, musingly. "Narmel, get to the port and head
out to one of the uncharted worlds we've located. Don't tell anyone
where you're going. Not us and not anyone else. Do a midcourse
correction after starting for one place and program whichever world
you chose then. Maybe make two or three course deviations.
Let
no
one
know your final
destination. That means
no one
!

"Set your
fastcom to the standby channel and don't use it for any purpose,
whatever. Wait for us to call you. It may take a year before this
is all cleared up. It may take more.

"Go now. We
can't wait. We can't take chances."

There was a
scraping of chairs and Maq said, "I hope you had the sense to use
an alias when you came in here?"

"Yes, I came in
under...." Narmel said.

"
No
!" Eed cried
sharply. "We shouldn't even know that! They can't get from us what
we don't have! Use your head! No one is to know
anything
!"

"Good
thinking!" Maq agreed.

There followed
a bit of scraping and thumping, then footsteps heading for the
door, then some rustlings.

"I'm going to
head for Bypass," Eed said. "I came in quietly and I'll go just as
quietly. No one knows I was here and no one will. I'm sorry about
this, but you're the only one here who can tie me to this,
Maq."

There was the
Whup! Whup! of a disruptor beam. There wouldn't be enough of Maq
left to identify.

There was the
sound of a handcom being coded, a pause, then, "Klaht? This is Eed.
Get my ship ready as quickly as you can and get clearance for Hoe
Goht Nea. Use the name I used when I came in. Destination, Fortney.
I can change my mind in flight. Narmel is on his way there. Put the
safety valve on line in his ship. One minute into TTH."

There were some
more scrapings and rustlings and the sound of humming, then
receding footsteps, then silence.

"Lovely people,
these crime lords!" T6 said. "He gets rid of good old Maq and dear
friend Narmel and the chain stops right there. Should we grab
Narmel?"

"Let's get the
police here to pick him up," Z suggested. "We have to stay out of
it as much as possible. Maybe we can get him to talk without
waiting for him to be taken to Tltle and put on the probe.

"Get pictures
of this Klaht character setting up the bomb on his ship. We can use
that to get him on the probe in the same conspiracy. The more the
better."

T6 sent a
sensor floater with full audio/video pickups and recorders to watch
Klaht – who was, apparently, the same one who had taken the car and
Narmel out the gate before.

Z decided to go
to the center to await Narmel's arrest while T6 called the local
police to say he was sure the wanted criminal, Narmel, was at the
spaceport and would soon return his gate pass. It was under an
alias, so they would have to watch the place.

Z arrived at
the center to see the car outside the doorway. He stepped out of
sight as a police cruiser came to park behind it and an officer got
out.

Z went inside
the terminal center just as Klaht went out the door. He grinned,
then walked along the hall to the port police office to await the
bringing in of the prisoner. He was shocked a few seconds later
when T6 called to say it had the pictures and there was no doubt
whatever Klaht had placed something against the moder control
section. He'd let the need for the evidence in the pictures
completely slip his mind.

"Send the
pictures on a floater," Z instructed over the hand radio. "Stills
and the whole thing on holocrystal so we can play it for them."

He strolled
outside again to wait for the floater and noticed Narmel's car was
gone and the police cruiser was still there. The two officers were
waiting on the sidewalk, watching everyone who approached.

He ran to the
nearest officer and asked if they had seen that Narmel had been in
the car that was there ahead of them and was he arrested? Where had
he been taken?

"Are you the
one who identified the criminal, Narmel, as being on the port?" the
cop asked.

"Yes, yes!" Z
said impatiently. "I'm an empire agent! Where has Narmel been
taken? It's important!"

"Uh, do you
have identification?" the cop asked.

Z went through
his pouch and took out his empire ID as the floater came to deliver
the pictures.

"Well, Mr.
Lion," the officer said. "The car that was here – the only one
since we arrived – was delivered by a Gid Klaht. He is known to us.
He is the only one who entered the car."

"Oh my God!" Z
shouted. "T Six! They let him...."

"Narmel's ship
is taking off!" T6 cried over the speakers on the floater.

"Stop him!" Z
shouted.

"I can't. He
doesn't answer any calls on standard or fastcom." T6 replied. "He's
going into TTH right now."

Z looked at the
cops a moment, then swore a long string, then said through his
teeth, "Did either of you idiots think to look INSIDE of the car,
or did you let Klaht walk out and drive it away?

"Let's go into
the office. I want you to see something. You can then go arrest
Klaht."

"Arrest him?
Why?" the cop asked.

"Murder.
Premeditated. Conspiracy laws apply," Z answered. "He put a bomb on
Narmel's ship against the moder unit housing. It's on a timer
that's activated as soon as the ship goes into IDmode. Narmel is
becoming vapor in another plane about now."

They went
inside, where Z showed the pictures to the captain, who then
demanded Z prove it was a bomb and not merely repairs. The floater,
which was hovering over their heads, played the part of Eed's words
over the com phone to Klaht ordering the bomb to be placed.

"We have no
idea what this Eed character looks like, what name he has for...."
Z started, then yelled, "T Six! What name is Eed using on his
ship?"

"Hoe something.
Hoe Goht Nea," T6 replied.

"Stop a ship
registered under that name!" Z cried. "He's the one who's the head
of all of this. We have him on the com phone and can prove him
through voiceprint."

The captain
grabbed his intercom and demanded that Hoe Goht Nea be intercepted
and not allowed to take off.

"What or who is
this T Six?" an officer asked.

"It's a
computer aboard my ship," Z replied shortly. "It's an incorruptible
witness. All empire agents have one at all times. Maita demands it
to keep us honest."

"There is no
ship registered under that name anywhere on the port and hasn't
been," the captain said. "Klaht is on the way over with two
officers.

"What was that
conspiracy thing you mentioned? Is the charge to be murder,
attempted murder, suspected murder? If this holopicture was made by
your T Six without editing, then it is all the testimony I need to
hold him, but what charge can I use? We won't be getting any proof
of the crime. Not in another plane."

"I, T Six,
computer and machine employed by the Maitan Empire as corroborating
witness to agent Lion, do hereby offer as sworn testimony those
items already presented for view and swear as to their
authenticity," T6 testified over the floater. "I suggest you charge
one Gid Klaht under the conspiracy laws and place him aboard the
ship of Agent Lion for transport to the planet, Tltle, where this
case is in progress at this time through Empire Court Judge S
twelve hyphen T forty four NY hyphen four A."