Free Interzone 244 Jan - Feb 2013 by TTA Press Page A

turned away and tightened a couple of
nuts, giving time for her confidence to falter. “I won’t go any
higher than thirty-five,” I said, my back to her.
    “ No,” she repeated. “You
meant that line for me and the others saw it. What will Caldwell do
when I tell her it wasn’t an accident?”
    It was a good question. Caldwell had plenty
to hide, but this was outside her comfort zone. I didn’t know what
she’d do. Still…
    “ You’re missing something,”
I said.
    That shut her up. I wish I could have seen
her face as the penny dropped.
    “ Caldwell’s in on it,” she
said, a statement rather than a question.
    She moved away from me, turning to look at
the point where her lines clipped onto the rail. I was close enough
to reach out and unhook them. I hoped she was scared. If I was
lucky she’d quit before the end of the day and my problems would be
solved.
    I wasn’t lucky.
    * *
    I retreated to my bunk to watch
Murray and Diego’s interview. I couldn’t bear to be in the common
area while they were broadcasting.
    It was sick-making stuff: Diego joking about
how he’d misjudged Murray at first and Murray all forgiveness.
    I wished I dared switch off.
    It seemed every Earthworm with a connection
had a question to ask, and Murray wanted to talk to them all. She
even got in a tribute to her dead granddad, who taught her right
from wrong.
    The longer it went on, the more tense I got.
I held my breath each time Murray spoke. She chatted and
laughed.
    Finally, the flow of questions stopped. The
pair said their goodbyes and signed off to the world. I breathed a
premature sigh of relief.
    The broadcast continued on the staff
network. Diego moved away from the camera. Angela Caldwell came
into shot.
    “ We have a special
announcement,” Caldwell said. I didn’t like the complicit look that
passed between her and Murray. “Grace, would you?”
    Murray smiled.
    “ We all know how much Peggy
Varus deserves to be rewarded for her work.” I swear the hairs on
the back of my neck stood on end when I heard my name. “I’m
delighted to announce she’s been promoted to a management role at
Head Office. Congratulations, Peggy!”
    My orders came through seconds later. I’d
been allocated a groundside desk job without any opportunities for
creativity. Congratulations were hardly appropriate, although
everyone chimed in with good wishes over the open channel.
    A second message pinged in almost
immediately. Caldwell would be taking on my construction duties
until a replacement arrived, with all paperwork being handled
groundside in the meantime.
    My head was spinning. Caldwell hadn’t used a
podger in a decade. And, how did she and Murray plan to keep their
scam – my scam – secret with Head Office nosing into
everything?
    * *
    I turned up for the start of the next
shift as usual and offered my services to the Gaffer. I needed to
find out what the situation was.
    I still hoped Murray and Caldwell would buy
my silence with a cut. I’d salted away some money, but not enough
for comfort. I needed that ongoing income, or I’d never retire.
    “ I’ve rejigged the
programme from today onwards,” announced Caldwell. It was news to
me. I looked at the Gaffer. He knew about it.
    “ What’s going on?” I asked,
as casually as I could. Diego and Murray had yet to
arrive.
    “ We’ve got a delivery the
day after tomorrow,” said the Gaffer.
    “ Nothing’s scheduled,” I
said.
    “ SureEng nuts and bolts,”
said Caldwell. My jaw dropped. “I ran some spot checks and I’m not
comfortable with the shear strength of the Boltefast ones. We’re
going to replace the lot.”
    I closed my mouth and took a deep
breath.
    “ I don’t see how… We’ll
never finish on time.”
    Caldwell pulled up the full build guide.
    “ We’ve changed a few other
material specifications,” she said. I looked at the changes in
despair. Caldwell had been talked into dismantling our entire
scheme. Murray’s negotiation skills were