She Bleeds for Us: The Galactic Consortium 3

Chapter 53

Devaki felt out of sorts. Zie was having trouble concentrating, a rarity for zie. It didn't help that zie had been assigned to assembling supply packs, a tedious job that she would have had trouble with on the best of days.

Gabriel still hadn't checked in. He was long past the point of being officially late. If this was an official operation zie would have reported it up the channel. Zie had even considered letting Lakora know, but zie had no idea how her commander would react.

"Devaki!" A voice said, breaking hir reverie. Zie shook her head and looked at the supplies laid out on the table. It looked correct. "Devaki!" The voice said again.

Only then did zie realize it wasn't one of her co-workers complaining about her screwing up, again, but the supply chief, Dhanusha. "Yes?"

"I need to see you, now."

The other two Kurgari looked at her. Zie shrugged and went with Dhanusha. Zie tried to keep hir face a mask, but hir heart started beating harder. Something was up.

That suspicion was quickly confirmed when zie was led into a room that included Lieutenant Jardin with two military discipline officers.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Zie asked.

"You can have a seat, for starters," Lieutenant Jardin said. "There are questions we would ask."

Devaki wondered if zie should insist on having consul before talking to them. Instead, as zie sat zie paused and closed her eyes. Zie activated hir internal communication device and sent a message to Lakora. "Contact late, something is wrong with my special mission. Talking to military discipline now. Can you check on contact?"

It was a wild shot. Devaki would have to face whatever consequences with discipline and would gladly. But something was up with Gabriel and at least Lakora would take care of that, surely.

"So what questions do you have?" Zie said, slowly.

"Let me start at the beginning," Lieutenant Jardin said, smiling coldly. He was enjoying this, knowing he had her.

And it seemed that he did have her. "The first step is this," he said. He made a gesture and started a recording. It was a medical worker working with a refugee. The refugee has an old wound, partially healed. Devaki had enough medical training to know that the off color goo that the worker cleaned out of the wound was first aid medical gel, long gone off, but clearly consortium tech. These people had no technology like it.

"How did a refugee arrive at the border with consortium first aid gel already applied?" Jardin asked.

Her face a mask, Devaki shrugged. "Ask them."

"Or ask information," he replied. "And guess what the answer was?"

"I'm sure you are about to tell me."

He did, a series of recordings. First a doctor identified with a local organisation, Doctors Without Borders. Then Initishi, a consortium driver, handing over a pack. Initisha walking towards a truck, his pack over his shoulder. The recording sped through a ten minute pause to land on a base worker approaching the same truck. "Forgot your pack," the man said.

Jardin paused the recording. "He clearly did not forget his pack, did he? You want to tell me where that second pack came from? What it contained?"

Devaki didn't respond.

The next recording showed a number of similar packs on the warehouse shelf. "It came from here. But who put it there."

I did, Devaki thought. He knows that. "I think I should talk to consul before answering that questions."

"I've yet to make an accusation. I just want answers," He said.

There was no way zie was falling for that. "Nonetheless I suspect you will use what I say to add to your accusation. I'd prefer to talk to my consul before going on."

He gave hir a frustrated look and then nodded. "Fine, but I'll have to ask you stay right here while we arrange legal consul."