Children of the Fleet (Fleet School #1)(50)

“Yes,” said Dabeet. “If you open them, then I don’t get in trouble.”

“Which means that you already planned to give the signal before you knew whether I’d believe you about the smuggling or betray you to the smugglers.”

“I knew I had to give some signal to save my mother’s life. Talking to you, I figured I’d either get your cooperation or not. Cooperation means three doors.”

“And if I hadn’t been cooperative?”

“Then we wouldn’t still be having this conversation.”

“And you believe that I’ve proven myself?” asked Robota.

“Either you have or you haven’t. Either you’re a traitor and a smuggler yourself, or you’re a loyal officer who’s prepared to cooperate with a kid who’s being forced to accomplish an impossible task. If you want me to be able to concentrate on my studies up here, then you’ll help me assure that my mother doesn’t get killed.”

“They’ll probably kill her anyway.”

“They might,” said Dabeet. “I can’t control that. If they kill her regardless of what I do, then it’s on them alone. If it’s because I failed her, then it’s partly on me.”

“What do the signals really mean?”

“That’s what they told me they mean,” said Dabeet. He almost added: As far as I remember. But Robota had obviously read his file, and his file would include data about the near perfection of his memory. She would never believe him if he tried to cast any doubt on the accuracy of what he claimed to remember.

“When do you have to open these doors?” asked Robota.

“O Meek Worker,” said Dabeet, “I still have two months left.”

“Exactly two months?”

“I have to calculate the time zones,” said Dabeet.

“Oh, don’t be a fool,” said Robota. “You have those tables memorized.”

“I have another fifty-five days, plus nine hours. But I wanted to be early.”

“And if I say no?”

“Then I’ll find another way to get the doors open,” said Dabeet. “But this time, it will be only one door.”

“I can keep opening doors randomly, in such numbers that your signal will be lost in the noise.”

“What has my mother ever done to you?” asked Dabeet.

“I’m going to think about this,” said Robota.

“You’re going to consult with MinCol about this,” said Dabeet. “I urge you not to.”

“You were trying to talk to him.”

“Face to face,” said Dabeet. “Unrecorded. Whereas you will talk to him by ansible. And I doubt that Urska will miss out on anything you say by that means.”

“You really are paranoid,” said Robota.

“I have enemies,” said Dabeet. “And now, because of what I just told you, so do you.”

Robota shook her head. “You think you’ve got everything figured out.”

“I know that I don’t have anything figured out,” said Dabeet. “I also know I’m a powerless child who needs the help of adults to get anything done. I hope that when you’re through considering and consulting, you’ll come down on my side. On the side of the Fleet. On the side of stopping the flow of plague agents to Earth.”

“I hope to God you never run for public office,” said Robota.

“I’m too intellectual. I don’t have the common touch. I’d never win.”

“You’ve given it some thought.”

“Please don’t think I’m boasting, Robota Smirnova, but I’ve given everything some thought.”





10

—Are you who I think you are?

—If you think I’m Andrew Wiggin, governor of a yet-to-be-named colony planet, then yes.

—Ender Wiggin. What is—

—If you think I’m Ender Wiggin, heroic savior of the human species, then I can’t believe we’re wasting valuable ansible time.

—No, I’m just surprised, I’m—I didn’t ask to talk to you. I didn’t even know it was possible to talk to you.

—I was told you needed my advice.

—Maybe I do, I don’t know. I mean, I’m in a storm of trouble but the person I asked to talk to was MinCol, and I thought he was the one going to pop up in the holospace.

—He’s the one who told me you needed my—

—I can’t believe this. You’re the one he uses to blow me off?

—I don’t know if you can call it—

—It’s like I’m praying to Santiago and the saint says, not right now, Fleet boy, I’m going to send Jesus to talk to you instead. Here, make do with the Holy Mother.

—Every comparison gets worse and worse.

—Look, how secure is this?

—On my end? Officially, completely dead to outside electronics and no recording devices.

—Officially. That’s the worry. When the officials who tell you it’s totally private and secure are the very people you think are corrupt to the core and they hate you—

—So we’re both taking this on trust. Trusting the untrustworthy.

—People who have no reason to keep their word.