Free Senescence (Jezebel's Ladder Book 5) by Scott Rhine Page B

that’s two kilometers across. The Magi imported and modified
several Earth species to make us feel at home.”
    “Like a museum to put humans on
display?” asked the guard, a little offended.
    “More like an ark, in case Earth
didn’t survive until we returned. A few of us were worried that the global
economy would implode during that twenty years, or another stupid war would
make the place uninhabitable.”
    The guard nodded. “We had a few
close calls. After the war, companies had to rebuild our communications
infrastructure. Now, any nation has the right to inspect anything launched into
orbit so we don’t all have weapons hanging over our heads. Technology is also a
lot greener than when you guys left.”
    “Nanofabricators in every home?”
    “No, those are for the military,”
Onesemo replied.
    “Why so few companies in space?”
    “The expense to rebuild was so high
that we had to guarantee profits for a few years to the five companies who
financed the new global net.” Onesemo changed topics abruptly. “So you’re saying
the crew came back to save Earth?”
    Stu snorted. “Yeah! Why else would
we stick around after you murdered so many of us? Oops. Commander Zeiss didn’t
want me sharing any of that information until we have an agreement that you
won’t kill or imprison the rest of us.”
    “Why would you think that?” Onesemo
asked.
    “Duh! You shot down both the
shuttle and my escape pod,” Stu replied. Then he tasted flower petals and vowed
not to give away any more information about Sanctuary . “This is all
ancient history. Give me an example of a recent crisis.”
    “The Durum Wheat Shortage. Without
hard wheat, they couldn’t make semolina for pasta. Most of the world uses
either rice or pasta as their cheapest staple. Without pasta as a food source,
a lot of people went hungry worldwide.”
    A man in military uniform burst
through the door with a hypodermic stick in hand.
    “Hold him still. Boss said we had
to give him a little painkiller.”
    “Whoa,” Stu said, blocking with his
cuff. Because of the chains, he had to lift his feet off the floor to do so. “I
have allergies to—”
    “Maybe—” Onesemo began.
    The newcomer held Stu’s cuff with
one hand and shoved the stick against his bared bicep with the other. The
injector emptied with a hiss.
    “Poison!” Stu shouted.
    Rayburn ducked into the now-crowded
room to hiss, “Shut up! They can hear you.” The pale official pulled out the
promised strip of duct tape and applied it. When Stu squealed at the top of his
lungs, the man activated the shock feature of the cuffs to knock the wind out
of him.
    “A little extreme,” Onesemo said.
“He was cooperating.”
    His boss shook a finger at the
guard, “As soon as we get through this preliminary hearing, we can take him
back and shove him into another interrogation chair. He’ll talk this time.”
    “Sir, with all due respect, he
wants to tell his side, but they ordered him not to say certain things until we
stop trying to kill him,” Onesemo whispered.
    Rayburn glared at the guard.
“Maintaining our custody of this asset gives the US exclusive access to Sanctuary intel.”
    Stu coughed, an operation made
difficult by the gag. He was sweaty and woozy.
    Onesemo tried one last time. “He
looks pale. If he throws up with that gag on, he could die.”
    The head spook hissed, “So what?
That’s better than letting foreign operatives like Mori’s techs get their hands
on him. You’re relieved of duty. The corpsman and I will stand guard until the
preliminary hearing is over.”
    The empath saluted and marched out
of the holding cell and toward the courtroom.
    ****
    Minutes later, the bailiff and several US Marshals knocked
on the door to the cell. “Sir, the judge is ready.”
    Stu coughed more frequently, and
his nose whistled as he breathed uncomfortably. White spots danced across his
vision. He tried to point to the bump on his arm and grunt, but Rayburn shocked
him