The Water Wars - Cameron Stracher [43]
In the morning Nasri brought us breakfast, along with two pills for Will’s injury. His mood had improved, which made me worry. Sure enough he announced we were heading to an auction where we would fetch top dollar—not enough to replace the carrier, but more than enough for a new desalinator.
“And with the money Bluewater owes us, we’ll have another carrier in no time,” he declared.
I felt the prickly tendrils of unease on my neck. There was something unholy about the relationship between the corporate desalinator and the environmental group.
“Why does Bluewater owe you money?”
“That’s for me to know and you to find out,” he cackled.
“Shouldn’t it be the other way around?”
“Should be!” He was hopping again.
“You had their desalinator, but you said they owed you money.”
“Genius! It’s a shame we had to take you out of school.”
“I thought environmentalists believed desalination was bad for the environment.”
A scowl crossed his face but then passed. “Haven’t you learned anything by now? What’s good for the environment isn’t always good for environmentalists, and vice versa.” He was in a fine mood, hopping from one foot to the other as if he were standing on hot coals.
Will had been watching our conversation carefully, like a spectator at a gaming match. Now our eyes locked, and I could see he was truly frightened. I was frightened too, but I plunged ahead. Talking was the only way I knew to keep fear at bay.
“So you’re hypocrites,” I said.
“If there’s money in it.” Nasri cackled again.
“Did you kill Dr. Tinker for money?”
“Of course. Why else kill a man?”
Then it came to me in a moment of clarity. “Bluewater paid you to kill Dr. Tinker.”
“Not enough.” Nasri stopped hopping. “Let’s just say there was some renegotiating once we had him.”
“But why?”
“Ours is not to question why,” said Nasri. “We just cash the credit chips.”
“And the dam?”
“A diversion. To spirit the good doctor away.”
“You killed all these people for a diversion?”
“Oh, and to save Earth, of course.”
The pirates, PELA, and now Bluewater all wanted Dr. Tinker. But it wasn’t Tinker they had really wanted; it was what they had thought he would lead them to. And now he was dead, which meant only one thing. I felt like I had been kicked in the heart.
“I’d rather kill a man than kidnap him anyway,” Nasri continued. “Simpler, and you don’t have to deal with grieving relatives. Just dump the body and move along.”
I didn’t answer, and Nasri seemed disappointed by my silence. But my stomach was knotted, and I couldn’t talk even if I had wanted to. After several attempts Nasri stopped trying. “It’s a shame to lose you,” he said. “You’re such a cute girl.”
I flinched, but he had already turned for the door. When it closed we were in darkness again.
“Vera?” asked Will.
“Bluewater has Kai.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do.” Anyone who knew the location of the river was a threat to Bluewater and its water monopoly. That was why it had paid PELA to kidnap Dr. Tinker. The desalinating companies were like countries unto themselves—fighting for territory and power. Just as nations profited from surpluses, they profited from shortages and scarcity. But they wouldn’t have killed Dr. Tinker if they had thought he was still useful.
I could feel the hover-carrier lifting off the ancient riverbed. Time seemed to have slowed; each second was like the space between drops of water. In between the drops I could feel my friend’s absence.
“They’re going to kill him, Will.”
“No, they won’t. Why would they? Think about it logically, Vera. If Bluewater went through the trouble to kidnap him from his home, why kill him?”
I wanted to believe Will was right, but I knew he wasn’t. If Dr. Tinker was dead, it meant Bluewater no longer needed