The Baba Yaga Read Free Page B

Expansion or the Vetch Empire, where lawlessness, theft, and rumour were rife. “This asset reports that there are stories of a Weird portal somewhere in the Reach where a human colony lives alongside it without being absorbed or enslaved—”
    “‘Reports’? ‘Stories’?” Grant snorted. “You’re condemning yourself, Walker. This isn’t evidence .”
    “But it is another option.” Walker turned to address Latimer directly. “We have no evidence either that the weapon that Grant proposes can do what she claims. Are we going to back only one horse in this race?”
    Latimer was tapping his finger against the side of his nose. “What do you need?”
    “Ships,” said Walker, quickly, sensing her moment. “We need to send out ships in search of this world to find it, and to determine whether peaceful co-existence with the Weird is possible.”
    “Ships?” Grant laughed out loud. “You’d be moving them from the defence of the core worlds. This is insanity!”
    “What can a fleet of ships do if a portal opens here on Hennessy’s World?” Walker shot back. “If the Flyers emerge and the Sleer hatch? What could ships do? Blow the portal from the sky and take us all with it? If we knew how to communicate with the Weird, we might have a way to bargain with them.”
    Grant had turned white. “You’re talking about surrender,” she said.
    “You’re stretching the definition of surrender beyond reasonable limits,” Walker said. “I want to prevent mutual mass destruction and, more importantly, our own extinction. A superweapon—by definition—cannot do this.”
    Latimer held up his hand. Everyone went quiet. Slowly he began to gather his papers up in front of him. “I’m interested,” he said, at last. “We can at least explore what can be done. Commander Grant—see what ships can be spared.”
    Grant shook her head. “I’ll look into it. But this is a mistake. If the Weird arrive and we have depleted our defences—”
    “If the Weird arrive, we’re all dead,” Walker said. “Guns and ammo won’t help us. Communication—that might.”
    Latimer brought the meeting to a close. Walker, coming back round the table, sat down again next to Andrei. He was nodding, and Walker heard him murmur, “Good, good.”
     
     
    L ATER, SHE WENT to Kinsella’s apartment.
    He opened a bottle of wine and Walker took the offered glass automatically, cradling it in her hands. He bent to kiss her forehead, and sat down beside her, the picture of satisfaction. “A good battle,” he said. “Well fought and well won.”
    “Hmm.” Walker put down her wine, untouched.
    “You don’t sound as pleased as I thought you would be.”
    “That’s because I don’t think Grant and her gang are likely to give up very easily. If we want to send out those ships, they’re going to have to be from Fleet, aren’t they? Where else can we get them?”
    He rubbed the palm of her hand with his thumb. It felt good; relaxing. “You think there’ll be a price?” he said.
    “There’s always a price.”
    He sat and thought for a while. “You think the price will be mandatory scans?”
    “That’s right.”
    “Then let that be the price. I call that a good bargain.”
    “I won’t do it, Mark.”
    He put his own glass down in frustration. “What’s the problem? In the great scheme of things, it’s nothing.”
    “It’s too far. What about dignity? What about privacy?”
    “ Privacy ? Sweetheart, you’re in the wrong business if you’re worried about privacy! Or has it really never struck you before that what we do, on a daily basis—on an hourly basis—is invade the privacy of others?”
    “Within limits. And with no automatic assumption that we have the right.”
    He frowned. “You sound like Andrei.”
    “That’s not a bad thing,” Walker said. Kinsella was silent a moment, and she narrowed her eyes. “What?” she said. “What are you thinking?”
    “I’m thinking... that sounding like Andrei Gusev