Double Helix 06_ The First Virtue - Michael Jan Friedman [28]
Ben Zoma, who was right behind him, smiled as the orders materialized. “Thanks,” he said. “I don’t think I could have lasted another minute.”
“Think nothing of it,” Picard responded.
Bringing his plate over to his desk, he laid it down on the sleek, black surface and sat down beside it. Then, slicing an apple and a piece of sharp cheddar, he downed them both at a single bite.
At the same time, Ben Zoma dug into his own food. Watching him, the captain believed his exec really couldn’t have lasted another minute.
Picard’s officers waited patiently for their superiors to finish. But the captain didn’t want to wait that long. He signaled for the team to proceed with their report
As the ranking officer on the assignment, it fell to Crusher to outline their progress. “As far as Culunnh’s theory about a third party goes, sir… we seem to have found some corroborative evidence.”
Picard was interested. “Go on.”
Crusher described the weapons found at the sites of the earlier incidents-and the dearth of weapons found at the later ones. He also spoke of the relative levels of violence.
The captain nodded. “So the First Minister wasn’t too far off base after all, was he?”
“We don’t believe so, sir,” said Crusher.
“What’s more,” Simenon added with a grin, “our friend Mr. Tuvok has come up with a lead as to the identity of the third party.”
Picard turned to the Vulcan. “Tell me more, Ensign.”
Tuvok’s forehead wrinkled. Obviously, he was more than a little discomfited by the Gnalish’s attitude. “Unfortunately,” he said, “it is what you humans might call a long shot.”
“If I may say so,” Joseph chimed in with undisguised eagerness, “it’s better than a long shot, Captain. It’s a legitimate lead.”
With his upturned nose and close-cropped, sandy hair, some people often tended to underestimate Pug Joseph. Picard wasn’t one of them.
Crusher smiled at the security chief. “Maybe we should let the captain decide for himself, Mr. Joseph.”
The chief nodded, chastened. “Whatever you say, sir.”
The captain regarded Tuvok. “Ensign? Is someone going to tell me about this or not?”
The Vulcan’s nostrils flared as he began. “A Melacron named Bin Nedrach was listed as a passenger on an intrasystem transport vessel departing Melacron Five approximately two point four hours after the assassination of the G’aha of Laws and Enforcements.”
Picard turned to Ben Zoma, who was washing down his hastily eaten food with some sparkling water. “That would be the spouse of the female we saw in the council chamber this morning?”
The first officer nodded. “I’d imagine.”
The captain returned his attention to Tuvok. “Go on.”
“At first glance,” said the Vulcan, “it may appear that Nedrach’s departure was merely a coincidence. After all, he had no criminal record. There would be no good reason to suspect him of wrongdoing.”
“Except?” Picard supplied.
Tuvok remained as deadpan as ever. “Except that fifty-five years ago, when I was visiting this sector for the first time, there was an infamous Melacronai crime clan in existence. It had all but claimed the furthest planet in the system, Debennius Six, controlling who came and went, who was allowed to open and run businesses-everything. It was during this time that Debennius Six became known as ‘the Last Stop to Nowhere.’”
“I see,” said the captain, “but-“
The Vulcan went on as if Picard hadn’t opened his mouth. “One of the clan’s top ‘bosses,’” he noted, “if I am using the term correctly, was an individual named Bin Nedrach.”
The captain’s eyes narrowed. “The same man who departed Melacron Five on that transport?”
“He would have to have been pretty advanced in years,” Ben Zoma remarked between bites. He glanced at Simenon. “And the Melacronai don’t live as long as some species do.”
“I wondered about the same things,” said the ensign. “Digging a little more deeply into the passenger manifest, I discovered that it was not the Bin Nedrach