Even in the dim lighting he could see her cheeks flush. “Don’t try to change the subject, Lars.” But she was smiling as she spoke.
“Not at all. I merely—”
“Do you mind if I sit with you?”
They looked up and saw Kris Cardenas holding a dinner tray in both hands.
“No, of course not,” said Amanda. “Do join us.”
Cardenas put her tray on their table. “The place is crowded tonight,” she said as she sat on the vacant chair between them.
“But awfully quiet,” Amanda said. “It’s as if everyone here is attending a funeral.”
“The Peacekeepers are due to arrive tomorrow,” Cardenas said, jabbing a fork into her salad. “Nobody’s happy with the thought.”
“Ah, yes,” said Fuchs, feeling relieved. “That’s why everyone is so morose.”
“They’re worried it’s the first step in a takeover,” Cardenas said.
“Takeover?” Amanda looked startled at the idea. “Who would take control of Ceres? The IAA?”
“Or the world government.”
“The world government? They don’t have any authority beyond geosynchronous Earth orbit.”
Cardenas shrugged elaborately. “It’s their Peacekeepers that arrive tomorrow.”
“Looking for me,” Fuchs said unhappily.
“What do you intend to do?” Cardenas asked.
Looking squarely at Amanda, Fuchs said, “I’m certainly not going to fight the Peacekeepers.”
Cardenas chewed thoughtfully for a few moments, swallowed, then said, “We did at Selene.”
Shocked, Amanda asked, “What are you suggesting, Kris?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all. I’m just saying that six Peacekeeper troops in their nice little blue uniforms aren’t enough to force you to go back Earthside with them, Lars. Not if you don’t want to go”
“You mean we should fight them?” Amanda said, her voice hollow with fright.
Cardenas leaned closer and replied, “I mean that I could name a hundred, a hundred and fifty rock rats here who’d protect you against the Peacekeepers, Lars. You don’t have to go with them if you don’t want to.”
“But they’re armed! They’re trained soldiers!”
“Six soldiers against half the population of Ceres? More than half? Do you think they’d fire on us?”
Amanda looked at Fuchs, then back to Cardenas. “Wouldn’t they just send more troops, if these six were turned away?”
“If they tried that, I’m willing to bet that Selene would step in on our side.”
“Why would Selene—?”
“Because,” Cardenas explained, “if the world government takes over Ceres, Selene figures they’ll be next. They tried it once, remember.”
“And failed,” Fuchs said.
“There are still nutcases Earthside who think their government should control Selene. And every human being in the whole solar system.”
Fuchs closed his eyes, his thoughts spinning. He had never had the faintest inkling that Selene could become involved in his fight. This could lead to war, he realized. An actual war, bloodshed and destruction.
“No,” he said aloud.
Both women turned toward him.
“I will not be the cause of a war,” Fuchs told them.
“You’ll surrender to the Peacekeepers tomorrow, then?” Cardenas asked.
“I will not be the cause of a war,” he repeated.
After dinner, Fuchs led Amanda back to their quarters. She leaned heavily on his arm, yawning drowsily.
“Lord, I don’t know why I feel so sleepy,” she mumbled.
Fuchs knew. He had worried, when Cardenas sat at their table, that he wouldn’t be able to slip the barbiturate into his wife’s wine. But he had gotten away with it, Kris hadn’t noticed, and now Amanda was practically falling asleep in his arms.
She was far too gone to make love. He helped her to undress; by the time she lay her head on the pillow she was peacefully unconsciousness.
For a long time Fuchs gazed down at his beautiful wife, tears misting his eyes.
“Good-bye, my darling,” he whispered. “I don’t know if I will ever see you again. I love you too much to let you risk your life for my sake. Sleep, my dearest.”
Abruptly he turned and left their apartment, carefully locking the door as he stepped out into the tunnel. Then he headed for the warehouse and his waiting men.