“Will you confine him to the brig, Captain D’Accorso-fila?” Cargomaster Basterra asked.
In spite of his apparent respect, Basterra always managed to remind her that she was still a Dharman woman, and unmarried at that. Cynara maintained her faint smile. “He is in the infirmary at the moment, Cargomaster, and will remain there until Doctor Zheng sees fit to release him.” She turned to the woman seated on her left. “How is he, Bolts?”
Miya Zheng glanced at her with a typically bland expression. “He’s clean. He lost consciousness for a few minutes, but I have discovered no indication of serious illness or other pathology to account for the syncope.” She made a notation on her diagnostic scanner and consulted its display. “It may simply be exhaustion, but I should know more in a few hours.”
“You said that you found it necessary to sedate him.”
“Even when he was half-conscious, he put up vigorous resistance to my examination. It seemed more instinctive than deliberate. My full report will be ready shortly, Captain.”
Cynara waved her hand. “I want your personal assessment, Zheng. You were the first to meet him.”
“And you were the first to make a deep impression on our errant Kinsman,” Zheng said dryly, “if that is what he is. He claims otherwise, and his cerebral scans indicate normal non-telepathic patterns. There are slight anomalies, however.”
Anomalies, indeed. VelKalevi was an enigma—a human who claimed to have been raised among shaauri but was not Kinsman. Shaauri might resemble seven-foot-tall, bipedal, tailless cats, but there any similarity with human-world fauna ended.
Once the human Kinsmen had been perfect go-betweens, negotiating treaties and trade agreements with the aliens, using their telepathic abilities to interpret the highly complex shaauri language. But the Second War had put an end to species loyalty; three-quarters of Kinsmen had chosen their adopted shaauri kin over humanity.
Ronan had said he’d been among the shaauri since the age of six—almost certainly near the time the war began.
“He claims he is not Kinsman,” Janek said, “but not all Kinsmen are telepaths, or vice versa. You saw the way he behaved on the bridge. The very fact that he resisted Dr. Zheng’s examination suggests that he has something to hide.” He stared at Cynara. “You said you touched his mind, Captain. What did you observe?”
Cynara considered her answer. She could have told Janek that her gifts were not so precise or easily controlled as he might believe, but she had no intention of revealing anything he might perceive as weakness. The Persephonean frequently made the mistake in thinking that because she ran the ship with an egalitarian philosophy, she was soft—not woman-soft, but lacking in the discipline and training necessary for the command of such a unique and priceless vessel.
She’d become used to giving the impression that she took telepathy for granted, even if she seldom called upon it. The gift was common enough among the D’Accorsos. But few outsiders, even her fellow Dharman crew, realized how thoroughly a Dharman girl’s abilities were suppressed by custom and training. Her own natural talents had never been great. Janek and the others couldn’t know how much Tyr had contributed to any mental powers she now possessed.
Or how very much she hated and feared using them.
“I was able to learn very little,” she said. “His brain shut down, which could be consistent with his claim that his mind was tampered with by shaauri-allied Kinsmen.”
“I would advise caution in attempting further mental probing,” Zheng put in. Her gaze met Cynara’s with a conspiratorial glimmer.
“Certainly, Doctor. I will abide by your judgment.” She glanced at Janek. “It is of far more importance to keep our guest in good health, both mental and physical, than to obtain by coercion whatever knowledge he possesses. As I’m sure you’d agree, Ser Janek.”
“I must reiterate that this man cannot be left in a position where he may gain access to ship’s manuals and schematics. If you will not confine him to the brig—”
“Our guest cabins are currently unoccupied,” she said. “As they’re located near my own quarters, I will take personal responsibility in seeing that Ser VelKalevi remains under control.” Her gaze swept the table. “Every one of us has reason to be wary of any human associated with shaauri. I ask you to keep in mind that no Kinsman traitor has ever successfully eluded Concordat Intelligence. Those Kinsmen captured in human space have been conditioned to resist all questioning; if Ronan VelKalevi is one of them, his deception will be exposed.