Free The Evolutionary Void by Peter F. Hamilton Page B

capsule. Beckia
and Tomansio shared a quiet smile and followed him out onto the trim lawn.
    Mr. Bovey had come out of the house to meet the capsule, three of hims.
Oscar hadn’t met a multiple before, at least not knowingly. He couldn’t ever
recall hearing about any on Orakum. The leader of the trio, the one standing in
front, had black skin and a face that had even more wrinkles than Oscar’s;
several gray strands were frosting his temples. To his left was a tall Oriental
male, and the third was a young teenager with a thick mop of blond hair. None
of them was releasing anything into the gaiafield. However, their posture alone
told Oscar they were going to be extremely stubborn.
    Oscar’s immediate response was to regret wearing the Ellezelin forces
uniform, which was a huge visual trigger for any Viotia citizen right now. Then
a deeper guilt began to manifest. He wasn’t here backed by Ellezelin authority;
his sponsor was a whole lot more powerful than that. That was the problem.
Marching into someone’s home with the authority and force to demand his
cooperation was exactly the kind of fascistic repression that had so animated
the young Oscar Monroe’s political instincts, which in turn led to him joining
the Socialist Party at college and ultimately being seduced by radical
elements. A journey that ended in the tragedy of Aberdan station.
    Talk about going full circle. But we have
to find her. Overriding necessity, the siren call of tyrants everywhere. Yet I
know she cannot be allowed to fall into the hands of the factions. Damn, how
does Paula live like this?
    “What do you want?” the first Mr. Bovey asked sourly.
    Oscar grinned, letting his amusement free in the gaiafield. “Oh, come on.
We know you and her had a thing.”
    The three Mr. Boveys stared defiantly ahead.
    “Look,” Oscar said reasonably, and plucked at his tunic. “This uniform,
it’s a load of bollocks. We’re not Living Dream. I’ve never even been to
Ellezelin. I work for ANA.”
    “Yeah? And I work for the Raiel,” Mr. Bovey replied, all three of hims
speaking in concert. “So that makes us both supersecret agents.”
    “I saw her at Bodant Park. Me and my team here, we covered for her so she
could get free. Ask her. We’re the reason she’s still out there. If she still
is.”
    There was a flicker of uncertainty in the black Mr. Bovey’s eyes. “I met
Araminta a few times, that’s all.”
    “It was more than that. Come on, man, she’s in shit so deep, she’ll drown
if she doesn’t get some serious outside help. So please, if you know where she
is, tell me.”
    “I haven’t seen her for days.”
    Tomansio grunted in understanding. “She didn’t tell you, did she? You
didn’t know she was the Second Dreamer?”
    Mr. Bovey’s scowl deepened; none of hims would look at Tomansio.
    “Hell, that’s got to suck,” Oscar said. “She was probably trying to
protect you.”
    “Right,” Mr. Bovey said.
    “She was frightened, you know that. This planet was invaded just because
she lives here. And she’s all alone. She doesn’t know what she’s doing; really,
she hasn’t got a clue. If you know where we can find her, if you have any
notion where she might be, then we’re the ones you need to tell. Call ANA if
you need my status confirmed. There are others out there who are looking equally
hard, and I don’t mean Living Dream. The Second Dreamer is an important
political tool right now. Who do you think caused the Bodant Park fight?”
    “Bodant Park massacre,” Mr. Bovey said. “You unleashed a massacre on our
planet. There were hundreds killed.”
    “That was just the warm-up,” Tomansio said. “The agents involved in
hunting her down will not give a crap about civilians who get in the way.
Memory read will be the least of your worries when the others come here. And
they will. Soon.”
    “We found you,” Beckia said. “The rest won’t be far behind. Think. Be
real. The most powerful organizations in the