“You then violated the Charter by firing Executive Board members under rotation contract and reassigning those funds to appoint lackeys who will do your bidding. Specifically, I refer to the expansion of Shadow Gambit, which you are now illegally using to vet every soul onboard Amity. Worse, you appointed your lover, Shireena Balance, to lead that team. The conflict of interest is outrageous.
“Trevor, any of these charges will destroy your life if made public. Your family will be shamed. Your daughter will hate you for betraying the station’s best interests. And Shireena? Whatever will become of her? She’s a collaborator in many of these charges.
“My recommendation: Resign. Cite whatever reason. Phrase it however poetically. You’re still young enough to join the UNF and see the stars with your brother. Or perhaps you will see how Earth has changed these past twenty years. Whatever the case, I want it done. Today.”
Trevor nodded.
“Quick. Huh. You definitely mean business, Rafe. I never doubted your capacity to serve revenge ice cold. And ... to be honest ... I’m impressed. You brought more than idle threats this time.”
“Then your decision should be simple.”
Trevor stifled a laugh.
“Yeah. Actually, it is.” Trevor pressed the comm on his wrist plate. “Please come forward, everyone.”
Murrill sat up, his delicious smile a tad hesitant.
“What is this?”
Trevor didn’t need to answer.
Three holos sprouted from his desk.
Harmony Chief Barukh Tasqur. Episteme Chief Ilya Petrov. The newest chief: Haven’s Ramesh Suhl.
“Thoughts on what you’ve heard?” Trevor asked.
Murrill cut them off.
“They’ve been listening? Stallion, I demanded a private meeting. How dare you?”
Barukh jumped in.
“I can’t speak for the others, Governor, but everything you’ve done has been in the service of keeping this station safe. I’ll gladly testify on your behalf against any of these accusations.”
“Agreed,” Ilya added. “We all must bend the rules on occasion to serve the greater good.”
“I’m the new guy,” Ramesh added with a twisted smile, “but I’ve been banging about the place for a few years. We’ve never been more prepared for a crisis thanks to the Governor.”
The door slid open as Ramesh concluded his opening remarks. Shireena took her place alongside the holos.
“I watched Gov. Stallion save lives more than once,” she said. “If he had followed every protocol, there might not be a functioning Amity Station. These are dangerous times, Mr. Murrill. Amity cannot operate like it used to.”
“Says the woman he beds,” Murrill scowled.
“Yes.” Shireena smiled, showing no sign of insult. “Trevor and I are intimate. It’s not a secret. But when we go to work, our only priority is the station. Could you say the same?”
Murrill set down his drink. Did he sense the cage about to close around him?
“I spent seven years in this office. What do you imply?”
Trevor spoke for Shireena.
“She implies nothing, Rafe. All you’ll get from us are accusations upheld by proof.”
“Accusations of what?”
Trevor sighed. OK. Here we go.
“Ilya, why don’t you get us started?”
“Happily,” the Episteme Chief said. “My predecessor, Sharif Al-Jani, frequently spoke of the pressure coming down on this office from the Corp Execs. Halifax and Atumwa, especially. When I was his First Deputy, Sharif often said we were made to serve them ahead of everyone else. We were to turn a blind eye to their misdemeanors.
“I asked why he did not defer to Central Administration for help. Sharif said, ‘Because the orders come from Central. If I disobey the Governor, I will lose my job.’ I saw the pressure weigh on Sharif.”
Murrill scoffed.
“Hearsay. Pointless. Will you now blame me for the man’s suicide?”
“No need,” Ilya said.
Trevor followed up.
“When I took over this office, I instructed Accounting to open the master ledgers. I’m good at seeing discrepancies in details. It’s a quality I learned from Grandfather Max. My instinct – I’d call it paranoia – usually leads me down an interesting path. Halifax and Atumwa paid twice the mandatory Station Finance Fees during most of your term. But I couldn’t track the additional UCVs. That many creds would hire additional deputies, Customs agents, screening tech. You name it.”
He nodded toward Shireena.
“When I opened the Shadow Gambit office, with Shireena in charge of the team, I asked her to vet top down. We began with you, Rafe.”
