Free Star Force 12 Demon Star by B. V. Larson, David VanDyke Page B

self-doubt was to knock back a few cold beers and talk things out with one of my closest confidantes—Adrienne or Kwon, depending on the subject matter. Both had their insights, and I really needed someone to bounce my thoughts off of right now.
    As Kwon was handy and informed, I decided it was time for a chat with my most trusted subordinate and, dare I say it, friend.
    “Come on,” I said as we got out of our suits in the armory. “Let’s grab a couple of brewskis in your quarters.”
    “Always a great idea, boss,” Kwon replied eagerly.
     
    -7-
     
    I wanted to hang out in his cabin because the marines were used to seeing me come by and talk to him. Going anywhere else might get people wondering. Hell, they were probably already wondering why we’d visited Hoon in full armor, but there wasn’t much I could do about that.
    Once the door was shut, I guzzled two bottles out of a six-pack of the mediocre factory beer Kwon had set in front of me.
    “Not knowing who tried to kill us is driving me crazy. I’m starting to suspect everyone. I told Marvin to look for evidence, and he told me he found some, but…” I rubbed my forehead. “What do you think?”
    “We talkin’ about Hoon?”
    “Yes.”
    “I’d sooner trust the lobster than Marvin.”
    He’d already drained the first two of his own six-pack and then slammed down another.
    “But Marvin has no reason to finger Hoon, and Hoon has every reason to lie.”
    “Unless Marvin has been lying all along and he’s the one trying to kill you.”
    I shook my head. “I’ve considered that possibility several times from every direction and it doesn’t hold up. Marvin maneuvered the original captain and officers into being killed by the Pandas so that I would end up in charge. If he wanted to kill me all along, that makes no sense. No, he’s saved us many times over. It’s not Marvin.”
    Kwon finished his fourth bottle, belched, tossed the plastic empty into a corner for the smart metal floor to recycle and reached for another. “Even though you’re sure it’s not Marvin, that doesn’t mean he’s right. He’s been wrong before, especially about biotics. He’s not human, so he doesn’t really know what humans think.”
    I raised a finger and then paused with it in the air. “Damn, Kwon, that’s true. I thought he’d make a good investigator because he was objective…but maybe I need someone else.”
    “But who else can you trust that’s brainy enough? And don’t look at me.” He said this with an utter lack of self-consciousness. Kwon was a man who knew his place in life, and that was a rare thing.
    “Don’t sell yourself short, Kwon. You’re not stupid, but I get what you’re saying. It’s not your thing. I need to find a biotic with the free time, the brainpower and the motivation to keep digging until he finds the truth.”
    Kwon laughed. “That sounds like Hoon. Maybe you could have him investigate himself!” He slapped his knee and finished off his fifth bottle.
    I gave up even trying to match him drink for drink, but I drained my third and opened a fourth.
    “Who else could I get?” I asked. “I’m pretty sure I could trust Cornelius, but she’s overworked as it is, and she’s not really a technician. She’d have to get help from one of her people, which would undercut any chance of confidentiality.”
    Kwon leaned forward, putting his massive arms on the small table that held our beer, making it creak. “Take it from an old chief who’s been leading grunts for thirty years. You don’t have to trust everyone. You only have to know what makes them tick. Like, if I got a guy who can’t stay away from whores, I don’t try to make him.”
    I looked at him thoughtfully. “What do you do?”
    “I just make him tell his squad leader which cathouse he’s in, so we can find him if he doesn’t answer his com-link. I also tell him to report back to me if there’s any funny business, like if our people get robbed there. You