Rafik smiled ruefully, to let his uncle know he had been outmaneuvered. Hafiz could now take Karina and the children and retire from the field, leaving others to face danger for the sake of his profit. On the other hand, with the old man and the kids safely out of the way, Rafik could command the dismantling of the Moon immediately if it looked like Becker’s plan to eradicate the danger from the Khieevi might fail.
Hafiz knew this, of course. And furthermore, he knew that Rafik knew that he knew. But it was much easier to handle matters this -way, allowing Rafik to make the decisions that would preserve or risk life, determine profit or loss. After all, Rafik was now head of House Harakamian, -while Hafiz was technically retired. But these things -were very difficult and must be handled delicately. If the Moon of Opportunity failed, it would be on Rank’s head, and not Hafiz’s.
Thus as soon as the holo team returned from the vine “world, the Acadeckt and the Haven were loaded with the children of Maganos Moonbase. As a mark of his faith that he would be returning shortly, Hafiz left the Sharazad on the Moon of Opportunity and submitted himself and Karina to the far less commodious accommodations of the AcaSeckl. Rafik had suggested the gesture, both because the plans were already in place to use the AcaSecki for evacuation and also because, should general evacuation become necessary, the Sharaza