The Collapsing Empire (The Interdependency #1)(89)

“Oh, come on,” Kiva said, to the guard. “Your asshole boss said you would be discreet.”

“This is discreet,” the guard said, standing next to her.

Kiva resisted the temptation to roll her eyes. “What’s your name?”

“Sergeant Brenja Pitof.”

“Well, Sergeant, am I going to get a moment to myself between now and whenever the end of this is?”

“Not really, no.”

“So you’re going to watch me when I take a dump.”

“No.”

“Good.”

“As long as the bathroom doesn’t have a window or a second exit.”

The elevator door opened and Kiva stepped inside. Sergeant Pitof followed.

“Press the ‘Ground’ button,” Kiva said.

“I’m supposed to follow you, Lady Kiva, not be your servant,” Pitof said. Then she pushed the button anyway.

*

“Where are you?” Captain Blinnikka said to Kiva, over her tablet, the one the Imperial Guard hadn’t confiscated.

“I’m in my hotel room bathroom,” Kiva said.

“What’s that noise?”

“It’s the shower.”

“You’re calling me from the shower?”

“No, I’m running the shower so I can talk to you. I have a fucking guard in my hotel room.”

“What’s the guard doing?”

Lying on the bed after a particularly exhausting bout of screwing, Kiva thought, but did not say. Kiva decided that as long as she was going to be that closely watched, she might as well get something out of it. “Waiting for me to be done showering, so maybe let’s get to the subject. Which is, what the fuck happened with our shuttle?”

“It was coming back from Imperial Station when the communications went dead and it piloted itself to the dock where the Sing Out was being built and rammed itself into the damn thing. Imperial Guard craft opened up on it as it came in but they didn’t manage to destroy it before it hit.”

“Who was the pilot?”

“Ling Xi.”

Kiva grimaced. Xi was completely competent and wholly uninteresting and had no personal politics as far as Kiva knew. “It doesn’t make sense she would jam a shuttle into that ship.”

“I don’t think she did,” Blinnikka said. “We have the data from the shuttle’s control panels. It shows a lot of activity during the trip, but not piloting data—or more accurately piloting data that corresponds to the trip. Everything we see is what you’d see from a pilot trying to take control of the shuttle, not actively piloting it.”

“So you think it was hijacked.”

“Yes. I think it was hacked into somehow and then either autopiloted or remotely piloted to the Sing Out.”

“Did you tell that to the Imperial Guard?”

“They didn’t ask, and I decided I’d let them figure it out. They just came onto the ship, downloaded everything they could, and set up shop in one of the cargo holds. They’re still there. They questioned me and the senior staff, but that was hours ago. We’re not allowed to leave. I don’t know what they’re up to right now.”

“There was no one else on the shuttle except Xi?”

“No.”

“What about before? She piloted the shuttle to Imperial Station, yes? Was anyone with her then?”

“Hold on,” Blinnikka said. Kiva waited, and while she waited, decided that she really did need a shower; she and Sergeant Pitof had been pretty exuberant. She stripped down, put her tablet into speaker mode, and got into the shower.

“There were a couple of passengers,” Blinnikka said when he came back on. “Three, actually. A husband and wife named Lewyyn, and a man named Broshning. They were departing the Yes, Sir for good.”

“Do we know where they were going?”

“I have no idea.”

“But someone does, yes? Isn’t there some way to find out?”

“I don’t know. I’m a captain, not a private investigator.”

“Ask Gazson Magnut. If they had cargo in the holds that they didn’t take on the shuttle with them they would have to arrange to have it sent somewhere.”

“We just offload it. Imperial Station handles it from there.”

“Then have someone ask them.”

“Easier said than done.”

“We’ve got the fucking Imperial Guard thinking we are trying to assassinate the emperox,” Kiva said. “I think we can make a little effort.”

Blinnikka was quiet for a moment. “Do you have me on speaker?”

“Maybe.”

“I thought you said you were trying to avoid being heard.”

“I decided I needed an actual shower more.”

“I wish I didn’t know that.”

“Find those people for me. Tell me where they are.”

“No promises.”

“Then I guess I’ll see you in prison.”

Kiva heard Blinnikka sigh. “I’m not calling you back. I’m afraid of what you’ll be doing when you pick up. I’ll send you a message.”

“Encrypted.”

“Obviously,” Blinnikka said, and disconnected.