to search for a match, the image did return a known individual.”
We all just stared at him for a minute, but then Andrew picked up the task of getting him to keep talking. “What was the confidence rating?”
“A shade above eighty percent likelihood that the image is of Ivan Solovyov.”
“Ivan Solovyov?” I asked. “You mean the Arbiter of Shaanxi?”
This was a respectful epithet, not an indication that Solovyov had ever been a member of the Arbiter Force. He was far too important to have ever had such a role, having held many positions in both the public and private sector over his long and influential career.
“Yes, the very same.” Thomas nodded.
“So you want me to track him down,” I asked Andrea. “To question him about the Warwick node?”
“Yes,” she replied. “But it has to be discreet, both for his safety and the sake of the investigation. The last thing we want is for the Eleven to know who we’ve spoken with and about what. They could anticipate our next move and cut the lead out from under us.”
“I will endeavor to do my best. Where do I find this guy?”
“His home is on Callisto,” replied Thomas. “In Valhalla.”
“That seems a bit too significant, don’t you think?” asked Raven. “I mean, considering that we were attacked by Jovian special forces. And that we found the Warwick node on Llyr Station.” I could see her point. A lot of little connections to Jupiter. It didn’t amount to evidence, though—just a vague possibility.
“I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions,” Andrea cautioned. “We’re still far better off tracking down Katerina. Are you suggesting Solovyov is one of the Eleven?”
Raven shrugged. “I mean, he fits. He’s wealthy and powerful, has all kinds of influence. What do we know about his childhood? His younger days?”
“Not much,” admitted Thomas. “His family origins are fairly obscure, and all I could find of his childhood was a list of private boarding schools he’d attended.”
“They might have been obscure, but they certainly weren’t poor,” I commented.
“See what I’m saying?” said Raven. “He fits the profile. Does he have any connection to David Kote?”
“Other than appearing in the memory banks of a Warwick node connected to David Kote?” countered Thomas.
“Well, any connection other than that.”
“No. They don’t really move in the same circles,” Thomas admitted.
“I think Ivan Solovyov is our best candidate yet for a member of the Eleven,” Raven insisted. “And I think we should focus more resources on him.”
Veraldi held a hand up as if to stop her. “Hold on there. If you ask me, Solovyov doesn’t really fit the profile as well as you think he does.”
“Why is that?”
“He’s too much of a public figure.”
I had to agree. “I’ve been hearing about that guy my whole life. He’s not just a public figure, but one of the most respected diplomats in the history of the solar system. He’s renowned as a peacemaker because of what happened in Shaanxi, and he’s been heavily involved in both the Jovian and Sol Federation governments at different points in his life. I think he’s retired now, or semi-retired, but his public profile is just too wide for him to be one of the Eleven.”
Veraldi agreed. “That’s what I’m saying. If you ask me, the Eleven would keep out of the public eye as much as possible. They’d operate from behind the scenes, not right out in plain view.”
“I don’t know.” Raven shook her head. “I just have the feeling we’re sending Tycho into the lion’s mouth here.”
“Tycho’s not green anymore,” said Andrea. “Do you think you can handle this, Tycho?”
“Yeah, of course.” I wasn’t really as sure as all that, but I didn’t want to be seen as a novice anymore either.
“What do we know about the Eleven anyway?” asked Andrew. “I mean, what do we really know? We’ve been chasing this thread for a while now, and it always seems to recede into the distance.”
“That’s exactly it,” replied Veraldi. “The power of these individuals comes from operating in secrecy. No small group, no matter how extensive their resources, can stand against the rest of humanity in an open fight.”
“I agree with Vincenzo,” said Andrea firmly. “Ivan Solovyov’s image was in the Warwick node, so he is connected somehow, but for all we know he was just given a demonstration of the technology on a visit to Llyr Station. We don’t have any real evidence that he’s one of the Eleven, and even if he is, we have to remember that he’s an