TW02 The Timekeeper Conspiracy NEW

TW02 The Timekeeper Conspiracy NEW Read Free Page A

Book: TW02 The Timekeeper Conspiracy NEW Read Free
Author: Simon Hawke
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a referee for
that!"
said Lucas. "Who'd you hit, a general?"
    "A light colonel," said Finn.
    "I'm almost afraid to ask, but why?"
    "Because he was a pompous military asshole, that's why," said Finn. "I had my blouse unbuttoned in the officer's club. And this runt of an administration desk jockey starts chewing me out about it. I told him to fuck off, so he sticks his face about two inches from my nose and starts screaming, spraying me with spit. So I just popped him one."
    "And they dragged you up before a referee?"
    "Well, no. Not exactly. That happened after the fracas with the M.P.s."
    "What
fracas?"
    "Oh, you know, the standard bullshit. Resisting arrest, direct disobedience to a specific order, striking officers in the performance of their duty, damaging government property, and a few other things that they tacked on that I can't remem-ber."
    "Oh."
    "Yeah. So I'm confined to quarters until further notice. The old man's been nice enough to give me some slack there, which is why I'm here, but I can't so much as go near the lift tubes. I've been cooling my heels for the better part of a week, waiting for the review board to meet. Been spending most of my time right here in the lounge, trying to drink up my back pay. It's kind of funny, actually. Remember the old days, when we scarcely had a moment to ourselves between assign-ments? Now that we're here in this 'elite' unit, it's nothing but hurry up and wait."
    "You said the ref put you down for a review board," Lucas said. "What was the ref's recommendation?"
    Finn grunted. "She was a real hard-assed bitch. Read me the riot act about all the 'previous irregularities' in my record. I think her exact words were, 'Perhaps you'd be better off in a nontemporal unit. Someplace where your flamboyant tenden-cies won't be quite so much of a disruptive influence.'
    You know what that means, don't you?"
    "The Belt Command?"
    "I'll lay you eight to one," said Finn. "If I could get my hands on a plate, so help me, I'd skip out to the under-ground."
    "Not so loud, friend," Lucas said. "Somebody might hear you."
    "Who gives a shit? I don't see how I could possibly be in any deeper than I am now."
    "You can
always
get yourself in deeper," Lucas said. "It's the getting out that's not so easy. Maybe something can be done."
    "Like what?"
    "I don't know. But at least they haven't reassigned you yet."
    Finn scratched his head. "Hell. I had to go and hit that asshole. They've probably fixed his jaw by now and he's back pushing papers, while I'm going to get stuck out in the Asteroid Belt, keeping those crazy miners from killing each other. You know, I might've expected just about anything, but somehow I never thought I'd wind up as a policeman."
    He looked out through the giant window that was the out-side wall of the First Division lounge. It was dark outside and all the buildings were lit up, bathing the plaza far below in a garish glow. The skycabs threading through the maze of build-ings made the night a sea of red and amber running lights.
    The window shut out all the noise, rendering the scene outside into a silent ballet of light and steel.
    "Doesn't look real somehow, does it?" Finn said as he con-tinued gazing out the window. "I really hate it here, you know that? I was born into this time and yet I don't belong to it."
    Lucas smiled. "You're a romantic, Finn."
    Finn snorted. "I'm a soldier, kid, that's all."
    "Look, nothing's settled yet, right? The board still makes the final disposition."
    "When's the last time you heard of a review board going against a ref's recommendation?" Finn said.
    "There's always a first time."
    "Don't hold your breath."
    "Well, if they send you out to the Belt, I'll go along and keep you company. I can put in for a transfer."
    "Don't be an ass."
    "Why not? How bad can it be? The duty's less hazardous and it would sure beat hell out of the lab job I left behind to re-enlist. Besides, we go back a long way together. All the way to 1194, to be exact."
    Finn

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