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and kept her back to him.
Lieutenant Keyes finally cleared his throat. “May I speak candidly, Doctor?”
“You don’t need my permission,” she said. “By all means, speak candidly, Lieutenant. You’ve beendoing a fine job so far.”
Under normal circumstances, among normal officers, that last remark would have been insubordination—or worse, a rebuke. But he let it pass. Normal military protocols seemed to have been jettisoned onthis flight.
“You said we were here to observe a child.” He shook his head dubiously. “If this is a cover for realmilitary intelligence work, then, to tell the truth, there are better-qualified officers for this mission. Igraduated from UNSC OCS only seven weeks ago. My orders had me rotated to theMagellan . Thoseorders were rescinded, ma’am.”
She turned and scrutinized him with icy blue eyes. “Go on, Lieutenant.”
He reached for his pipe, but then checked the motion. She would probably think it a silly habit.
“If this is an intel op,” he said, “then . . . then I don’t understand why I’m here at all.”
She leaned forward. “Then, Lieutenant, I shall be equally candid.”
Something deep inside Lieutenant Keyes told him he would regret hearing whatever Dr. Halsey had tosay. He ignored the feeling. He wanted to know the truth.
“Go ahead, Doctor.”
Her slight smile returned. “You are here because Vice Admiral Stanforth, head of Section Three ofUNSC Military Intelligence Division, refused to lend me this shuttle without at least one UNSC officeraboard—even though he knows damn well that I can pilot this bucket by myself. So I picked one UNSCofficer. You.” She tapped her lower lip thoughtfully and added, “You see, I’ve read your file,Lieutenant. All of it.”
“I don’t know—”
“Youdo know what I’m talking about.” She rolled her eyes. “You don’t lie well. Don’t insult me bytrying again.”
Lieutenant Keyes swallowed. “Then why me?Especially if you’ve seen my record?”
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“I chose you preciselybecause of your record—because of the incident in your second year at OCS.Fourteen ensigns killed. You were wounded and spent two months in rehabilitation. Plasma burns areparticularly painful, I understand.”
He rubbed his hands together. “Yes.”
“The Lieutenant responsible was your CO on that training mission. You refused to testify against himdespite overwhelming evidence and the testimony of his fellow officers . . . and friends.”
“Yes.”
“They told the board of review the secret the Lieutenant had entrusted to you all—that he was going totest his new theory to make Slipspace jumps more accurate. He was wrong, and you all paid for hiseagerness and poor mathematics.”
Lieutenant Keyes studied his hands and had the feeling of falling inward. Dr. Halsey’s voice soundeddistant. “Yes.”
“Despite continuing pressure, you never testified. They threatened to demote you, charge you withinsubordination and refusing a direct order—even discharge you from the Navy.