Of course, Huth thought, there was at least one other possible reason, and they all knew it. Cawdor might also be being held to gain advantage, one Global trying to get the jump on all the others by accessing on an exclusive basis the information in Shadow Man’s head. To speak the words, to make the public accusation, was to let ten thousand devils out of their box. It was something none of the chief executives were prepared to do at this point.
The white-maned man from Hutton-Byrum-Kobe asked, “Has anyone received a demand for payment?”
For a long moment no one replied. The CEOs just glared into the vid cameras.
Huth wondered if, out of sight of the lenses, they were digging their fingernails so hard into their palms that they were making them bleed. Or stabbing themselves in the thighs with blunt letter openers. He sincerely hoped so. If any of them had received a demand, they would never admit to it to the others. And they would have already paid the ransom.
Gladly.
“I have received no such demand!” said the woman, slapping her desktop with an open palm. Though her head moved, her hair didn’t. It was as stiff as spun fiberglas.
“Nor have I,” added the man from Questar.
One by one, and with equal vehemence, all of the CEOs replied in the negative.
“Perhaps the kidnappers are keeping quiet to put additional pressure on us?” the man from Invecta said. “So we will jump at their first offer?”
“That’s ridiculous,” the white-haired man said. “They have to know FIVE is ready to pay anything to get him back.”
“He could be dead,” the CEO from Questar said. “Killed trying to get away, or in an accident. There could be nothing for them to ransom.”
“With an attack this well-planned and executed,” the woman said, “I seriously doubt that an accident of any kind would be allowed to happen. And if he was killed on purpose to prove some political or economic point, we would’ve found his body along with the others.”
“There’s nothing we can do about the situation until we are contacted by the kidnappers,” the man from Mitsuki said, “and of course, keep each other fully apprised of any developments.”
“What about advertising the kidnapping on the tell-yous?” the CEO from Questar said. “We could offer a reward for the safe return of Shadow Man.”
“That would definitely get him killed, if he isn’t already,” said the white-haired man.
“We have to face facts,” the Mitsuki man went on. “Regrettable though it is, it might not be possible for us to recoup our investment in this man. We have to remember that he isn’t irreplacable. After we make the crossing, we can capture another informant. Any number of informants.”
“And you’re saying?” the woman prompted.
“That writing off our first specimen is always a viable option.
While the others considered this, Huth could imagine how hard the bushes were going to be beaten to find Ryan Cawdor. Looking into the icy faces of the CEOs, Huth had a moment of crystal clarity. He knew that one of them had done it. Out of stupid, ham-fisted greed, one of them had done it. He wanted to shout in outrage; he wanted to weep. But he knew better. By the tight, fixed expressions of the CEOs, he knew that all of them knew it, too.
What this meant, in terms of the survival of Earth-born members of the human species was simple.
They weren’t going to make it.
Everything that FIVE had pulled together in order to open the passage and make the exodus possible was going to fall apart once the Globals started accusing one another of betrayal. To operate the system, it took huge contributions of nuke power from each of the economic giants, contributions that would be withdrawn when critical treaties were torn up. At some point, hours, maybe days away, the shit would surely hit the fan. The armies of individual Globals would battle for control of the Totality Concept complex. But by then it wouldn’t matter. No one else would be making the crossing. Ever.
“May I offer a suggestion?” Huth asked.