The Middle Kingdom (20 page)

Axel looked at
him a moment, then shrugged. He didn't like it, but they were
probably used to it down here. This was how they expected the Above
to behave.

The sedan lifted
at once and they were away, the carriage swaying rhythmically about
them, the shouts of the senior
p'ei
encouraging the men to
run.

"What do
you think of that, Hans?" Fest asked, leaning forward to draw
the curtain back and look out at the runners. "It seems the
General has bought the fighter's contract."

Ebert laughed
dismissively. "The man's a brute! A primitive! I tell you, he'll
prove nothing but trouble!"

Axel looked
down. He had said nothing earlier, when Ebert had insulted Karr, but
now he had had a bellyful of Ebert's arrogance. "You only say
that because he stood up to you."

Ebert glowered.
"I'll break him! See if I don't!"

Axel laughed and
looked up, meeting Ebert's eyes. "And how will you do that,
Hans? Is the General yours to command, then?"

"No!"
He bit back the reply, then looked away, a dangerous expression in
his eyes. "But there are others who feel as I do."

It was clear he
meant DeVore. Surprisingly, the Major seemed to have been as much put
out by the big man as Ebert. In the corridor outside the murdered
Han's apartment he had muttered angrily about upstarts and big sacks
of wind. It was clear he had not appreciated the big man correcting
him about the
kwcd.

"Karr will
be the General's man," Axel insisted. "Answerable only to
him." He paused, then, rubbing it in, added. "It seems he
has need of such men."

Ebert laughed
mockingly, but Haavikko's words had offended him. He turned aside
angrily and beneath his breath muttered, "Gods, but what fools
they give us in command!"

Fest leaned
forward. "Hush up, Hans! Have a care what you say!"

But Axel had
heard and was furious. This was too much. "I take it you refer
to General Tolonen?"

Ebert turned on
him squarely, his right fist bunched, his face dark with anger. "And
what if I do, puppy? What's it to you what I say?"

Axel drew
himself up in his seat. "It is discourteous, to say the least.
You forget where your duty lies, and to whom. Retract your words,
Hans Ebert, or I'll be forced to make you retract them!"

For a while
neither spoke, but faced each other out, the sedan swaying about
them. Slowly Ebert calmed, his breathing normalizing. Then, turning
his face away, he laughed. "Go fuck yourself, Haavikko," he
said softly.

At once Axel
swung a punch at Ebert, but Fest, anticipating trouble, had moved
between them. He blocked the blow with his arm, then pushed Ebert
away to the far side of the carriage.

"For gods'
sake, Hans, shut up!"

Then he turned
on Haavikko. "As for you, Axel Haavikko, listen carefully. I
don't condone what Ebert said just now. But you had best just forget
it. Understand?"

"Forget it?
How can I forget it? It undermines all we are. If I—"

Fest put his
hand roughly over Haavikko's mouth, glaring at him.

"Forget it!
Is that clear? Hans meant nothing by it. His temper was up, that's
all. Understandably, I'd say. The barbarian insulted him! Spat at his
feet! Would you have stood as much?"

"It doesn't
excuse—" Axel began, but Fest silenced him with a look.

"Enough! Do
you understand, Haavikko? No one's honor has been besmirched. What
passed here ... it was only words. Nothing to get fired up about."

Axel looked
across at Ebert, his face gone cold. Only words, he thought. Only
words! He turned his head away, disgusted with them; aching to make
Ebert eat the words he'd uttered and annoyed with Fest for
interfering. And understanding now the restraint the big man had
shown back in his dressing room.

"Well,
Axel, some good came of the day after all."

Tolonen leaned
forward across his desk, steepling his big hands together. Karr had
just left the office, escorted by two elite guards. His contract had
been purchased and he had sworn the oath of allegiance to the T'ang
and to General Tolonen. All three junior officers had been witnesses.
But now the others had gone and Axel was alone with the General for
the first time since the business in the carriage.

Axel hesitated,
looking down at the old man. Tolonen had treated him like a son since
he had become his duty aide. Had honored him with advice and
explanations. He had learned much in serving the General, but now
things had changed. "Sir, there's something I wish to speak to
you about." Tblonen smiled good-naturedly. "Go on, boy."

"I'd . . .
well, I'd like a new posting." Tblonen sat back slowly, the
surprise in his face quite marked. "What's this?" He drew
his hands apart and set them down on the edge of his desk. "I
don't understand you, Haavikko. Aren't you happy here? Don't you like
the job?"

Axel lowered his
head. "I was, sir. And I did. But. . ." Tblonen was looking
at him strangely. "What is it? What's happened?"

He kept silent.
Kept his head lowered.

Tolonen stood up
and came round the desk to him. "Tell me, boy. Tell me what's
up."

He looked up and
met Tolonen's eyes openly. "I'd rather not, sir. It's just that
I feel I can't work here anymore."

Tolonen's
disbelief surfaced as a laugh. "What am I supposed to make of
that, eh? Can't work here. Don't
feel
like it. Tell me what
happened."

Axel took a
breath. "Sir, I'd rather not."

The General's
bark of anger took him by surprise. "Rather not? It's not good
enough, Haavikko. I'll have no secrets here. You'll tell me what
happened. Why you want a new posting. I
order
you to tell me."

Axel swallowed.
He had hoped to avoid this. He had wanted to settle his score with
Ebert directly, personally. "It's Ebert, sir."

Tolonen laughed
uncomfortably. "Ebert, eh? And what's wrong with young Ebert?
Has he insulted you?"

"No, sir.
Not directly."

"Well,
then, what was it? Don't keep me guessing, boy. Spit it out."

"He was
disrespectful, sir."

"Disrespectful,
eh? To whom?"

Axel felt
Tolonen's eyes boring into his own. "To you, sir."

Tolonen huffed.
He was quiet a moment, then shook his head. "I don't believe it.
His father is my oldest friend. He's like a son to me, that boy.
Disrespect?" There was an ugly movement of the General's mouth.
"What did he say?"

"I'd
rather—" Axel began, but Tolonen cut him off angrily.

"Gods, boy!
Don't 'rather not' me anymore! Spit it out, Haavikko! If you're
accusing Ebert of disrespect I want to know the full details. And you
had better have a witness. I'll have no unsupported hearsay."

Axel bowed his
head dutifully. This was not how he had imagined it. He had thought
the General would let him go— reluctantly, but without a fuss.
This business of accusations and witnesses had come out of the blue.

"It was
earlier today, sir. In the sedan coming back. Fest was present, sir.
He heard everything."

Tolonen turned
abruptly and leaned over his desk. Touching the intercom pad, he
spoke to his secretary. "Have cadet officers Fest and Ebert
brought back here, please. At once."

He turned back,
looking at Haavikko sharply. "What did he say?"

Axel hesitated,
the import of what he was doing suddenly striking him. There was much
he disliked about Ebert—his arrogance and assumed superiority
being the chief of them—but he had never intended to get the
man thrown out of the service. If the charge of disrespect was proven
he could be summarily dismissed from the force. For the first time
since their exchange, Axel wished he had taken Fest's advice and
forgotten the whole business.

"Well?"
The General's roar brought him back to himself with a start. He
looked up. Tolonen's face was red with anger. "Do I have to drag
it from you word for word?"

Axel shook his
head. In a quiet voice he repeated Ebert's words. Then what he had
added afterward.

Tolonen had gone
quiet. He looked away, then back at Haavikko. "That's it?"
he asked, his voice suddenly much softer. "Those are his precise
words?"

Axel nodded
curtly, a shiver running down his back. So it was done. The
accusation made.

The General
shook his head slowly and turned away, moving toward the window. He
gazed outward distractedly, then looked back at Haavikko. "You'll
be silent until I order otherwise. All right?"

"Sir."

There was a
knock at the door.

Tolonen cleared
his throat, then turned to face the door. "Come in!"

Fest and Ebert
entered. They marched to the center of the room and came to
attention.

Tolonen came and
stood directly before them, Fest to his left, Ebert to his right.
Haavikko stood to the side, near the desk. From there he could see
his two fellow cadets' faces. General Tolonen was in profile.

"Do you
know why I've summoned you, Ebert?"

Ebert's eyes
went to Haavikko, then back to Tolonen. "I think I can guess,
sir."

Tblonen frowned.
"Really?"

"It's
Haavikko, sir. He insulted me. I had to slap him down."

Tolonen turned
to look at Axel, astonished, then looked back at Fest. "Is this
true, Fest?"

Fest bowed
slightly. "It is, sir. It was coming back here from the Net. The
two had an argument. Haavikko was very offensive about Ebert's
father. Hans... I mean Ebert had no option but to strike him."

"I see,"
said Tolonen. "And there was nothing else?"

"Nothing,
sir," answered Fest. "It was all very unpleasant, but we
hoped it would be forgotten. Ebert feels his honor has been upheld."

"You're
certain of this, Fest? You'd swear to it under oath?"

Fest looked
straight ahead. His reply was instantaneous, unflinching. "I
would, sir."

Tblonen
considered a moment. Then he moved across until he was directly in
front of Ebert. "Your father and I have been friends more than
fifty years, Hans. I held you as a baby. Played with you as a child.
And IVe always been proud of you as a soldier under my command. But a
serious accusation has been leveled against you. One you must either
admit to or deny completely."

"Sir?"
Ebert looked puzzled.

Haavikko started
forward, then stepped back. The liars! The barefaced liars!

Tolonen turned,
looking across at Haavikko. Then, in a cold, quiet voice, he repeated
what Haavikko had said to him, all the while keeping his eyes on him.
Finished, he half turned, looking to Ebert. "Well, cadet Ebert?
What have you to say?"

Ebert looked
totally nonplussed. He said nothing, merely shook his head. It was
Fest who answered for him, his face filled with indignation and
anger.

"But this
is outrageous, sir! Ebert said nothing of the kind! This is just
malicious claptrap, sir! Pure bile! An attempt to get back at Ebert
underhandedly!"

Ebert had
lowered his head. When he looked up there was a tear on his left
cheek. "General Tolonen . . ." he began.

"No!
Enough!" Tolonen drew himself up to his full height.

"Fest,
Ebert, be kind enough to leave the room. IVe heard enough."

Axel, unable to
believe what had happened, watched them leave, and saw, as the
General turned to face him, Ebert smile triumphantly at Fest. Then
the door closed and he was alone with the General.

"You heard
what they said, Haavikko. Explain yourself."

Axel shuddered.
"They were lying, sir. Both of them. Fest was covering for
Ebert. . . ."

Tblonen watched
him coldly, then shook his head. "Take care, Haavikko. Don't
compound your error. You realize I could have you court-martialed for
what you've done. Dismissed from the service. The only thing that
stops me is the promise I made your dead father."

The old man
gritted his teeth, then looked away. His disappointment with Haavikko
was written starkly in his face. "I thought better of you."
He laughed—a sharp, bitter laugh— then turned away. "Get
out of my sight, Haavikko. Right now. You have your posting."

THREE HOURS
LATER Axel sat at the Security Desk at the lowest level of the Bremen
Fortress, waiting for his new orders to come through. His kit—the
sum total of his belongings in the world—was packed and stored
in a back room down the hallway. To kill the time he had relieved the
duty officer while he went to get
ch'a
for them both. The
ninth of the evening bells had just sounded and it was quiet.

Outwardly he
appeared quite calm as he sat there in the reception area. Inside,
however, he still seethed. Anger and bitterness and regret at the
General's actions filled him to bursting. The General had done what
he had had to do, and, in his place, he might well have done the
same. At least, so the logical, reasonable part of him argued. But
seeing it that way didn't help. A gross injustice had been done him
and his very soul felt bruised and raw. It was not justice he wanted
but revenge. He felt like killing them. Slowly, painfully. Fest
first, and then Ebert.

Impossible, he
thought bitterly. And even if he did, they would come and take all
those he loved in retribution. Sisters and aunts and all. To the
third generation, as the law demanded.

He looked down,
momentarily overcome, then looked up again, hearing a noise in front
of him.

The Han bowed
low before the desk, then met Axel's eyes. He seemed close to
exhaustion and his clothes stank.

"I need
protection," he said. "There are men trying to kill me."

Axel stared back
at him, feeling empty. "It's an evil world," he said,
indicating a seat at the back of the reception area. "Sit down.
The duty officer will see you in a while."