Her Commanders - M.K. Eidem Page 0,72

the market area. Cali was walking out of one of the businesses waving behind her as she moved toward The Brink. As he watched, her gaze seemed to fix on something in one of the other businesses.

Splitting the screen, Jamis tapped into another lens and was able to zoom in on what had caught Cali's attention.

Oke. Standing at the business entrance, smirking, until she realized Cali had seen her, then she quickly moved into the business.

Jamis kept both screens running, and after Cali has passed, Oke stepped back out of the business. The smirk was back on her face as she lifted her arm and pointed it toward Cali. An explosion immediately followed.

Genetic markers from both Khatun Masala and Khatun Tarka were found on the recovered shrapnel. No markers for Engineer Le, Taarig typed across the screen.

Jamis’s gaze shot back to Vaine, and in a deep voice, spit out, "Sit Back Down!!"

The rage that filled those three short words had Vaine immediately freezing. Even she knew an enraged Apre was a deadly Apre. Slowly she resumed her seat.

"Your genetic markers are all over the bomb remnants."

"That's impossible! We wiped…" Vaine immediately snapped her mouth shut.

"Down the device," Jamis finished for her. "Yes, Engineer Le will appreciate that. It clears her of any involvement in anything other than making the working replicas. But what you and Khatun Tarka forgot to do was wipe down every hair pick, glass sphere, or piece of metal that you packed around the bomb. Those items contained your genetic markers, meaning you and Khatun Tarka formed them around the device. And with this," he showed her the image of Oke with her arm extended holding the remote, "you will both be prosecuted by the Coalition for sabotage."

"Sabotage?!!" Vaine screeched.

"You intentionally activated and detonated a bomb on a Star Base. That's sabotage." Rising, he left a stunned Vaine sitting in the room.

Chapter Fifteen

Cali looked up through the privacy dome surrounding her table, to where Mae was working behind the bar when Mae pinged her link. She'd told her she didn't want to be disturbed. She wanted to give Crimson's business plan her full attention. With a sigh, Cali touched her link.

"What is it, Mae?"

"I'm sorry, Cali, but Commander Dexxirs is on the comm. Do you want me to forward him to you?"

Cali had stubbornly refused to contact Jamis to get updates on the investigation even after Xanto had told her Vaine and Oke and been taken in for questioning. It was Jamis’s responsibility to keep her informed, and it seemed he was finally getting around to that. A screen rose when she touched the table in front of her.

"Go ahead and forward it, Mae."

In moments, Jamis’s face appeared before her, and she was surprised by his appearance. He sat behind the desk in his private office, and while his uniform was crisp, his face looked like he hadn't rested in days.

"Khatun Baker," he greeted in a neutral voice.

'So, they were going to be formal, were they?' she thought. 'Well, two can play that game.'

"Star Base Commander Dexxirs," Cali replied, her voice just as impersonal as his. If it affected him, it didn't show.

"I wanted to inform you that we've arrested the beings involved in the explosion outside your establishment and obtained confessions."

"Beings?" Cali didn't let on that she already knew who was taken in.

"Yes. There were three. A Coalition Engineer was responsible for creating the device, although it was for purely personal reasons. She had no knowledge or involvement in the explosion."

"You're sure?" Cali demanded.

"Yes. We confiscated the remaining replicas, and the engineer will be reprimanded and demoted."

"Who else?"

"Khatun Vaine Masala was responsible for obtaining and filling the bomb with explosives."

"How the ruk was she able to get her hands on actinic?!!" When Jamis didn't answer, she pushed. "Commander Dexxirs!"

Jamis knew he shouldn't reveal Coalition business to Cali, but he also knew that with her connections to Wik Corp, Cali would discover it soon enough. "She obtained it from our arsenal using her tad's clearance code."

Cali gave him an incredulous look because even as blind as General Masala was when it came to his datter, she didn't think he'd go that far. "He gave it to her?"

"Khatun Masala has denied that. It still needs to be investigated."

That meant Vaine somehow learned it independently, and Cali could picture how she'd done it. She could see Vaine leaning over her tad's shoulder, pretending to hug him as he sat at his desk, entering his code. Masala would think she