killed Havlik forced him to scrub his rec-cords."
"All of them?"
"Every last one."
Corvan gave a low whistle. "And you want me to sit on it?"
Paxton nodded. "Yup. Why give people ideas? Besides, it's something only the killer knows and would come in handy if we got a confession."
"Okay," Corvan replied. "I'll leave it out. But let me know what you find. A deal's a deal."
Paxton grabbed a hand-line and pulled himself towards the corridor. "That's a roger. Stay in touch."
Corvan hung around for a while, rolled on a couple of eyewitness accounts, then headed for the com center. There was work to do. Lots of it. Kim and he had agreed to produce a half-hour news show every day.
The first fifteen minutes of the show would consist of reports from Earth. A predictable mix of religious riots, food rationing, birth quotas, plane crashes, atmospheric tinkering, and yes, news from the construction team on Mars.
The second fifteen minutes would focus on the Outward Bound. Jopp had sent Corvan a list of what stories to run and what order to run them in. She thought the departure ceremony should come first, followed by a keep-up-the-good-work message from Fornos and a watered-down version of the murder.
The message had taken the form of a suggestion, rather than an order, so Corvan had talked-Kim into some changes. The murder story would come first, followed by the departure ceremony, Fornos, and some human interest stuff mat Kim had gathered with a mini-cam. Footage of the departure ceremony, plus the murder, would be sent to Earth. Assuming that Fornos and Jopp approved, that is.
The upshot of all this was that Corvan and Kim had a lot of writing, editing, and administrative work to do. Work that would normally be performed by a sizeable staff.
So, by the time they had obtained the necessary approvals, and faded up from black, both of them were exhausted. Corvan jacked into the shipboard feed, allowed himself to free-float next to the editing console, and closed his eyes. First came the open, then the murder report.
It was all there. The hard facts, the silly rumors, and the way people felt. The report wouldn't find the murderer, erase people's fears, or make the whole thing go away. But it would provide the colonists with what information was available, serve to reassure them, and kill some of the more outlandish speculation. And that, Corvan decided, was a job well done.
As for reaction from Earth, well, that would have to wait twenty-four hours or so. Murder in space. The tabs would eat it up.
He fell asleep ten seconds into the departure ceremony, and failed to notice when Kim removed the jack from the side of his head, pushed him into contact with a velcro strip, and kissed him on the lips.
But Otis watched the rest of the show, as did Kathy, Susy, Morey, Norma, and Frank. And they enjoyed it, especially the part about the murder and the fight on F-deck.
But there was some concern as well. This Corvan character could be a threat. Otis wanted to act, wanted to counter the danger, but the others weren't so sure.
"Let's give it some time," Norma counseled. "There's no reason to panic."
"And what if Corvan starts to close in on us?" Otis inquired. "What then?"
"How about a warning?" Susy said brightly. "Something to scare him off."
"It won't work," Otis said heavily. "This guy doesn't scare that easily."
"Maybe, and maybe not," Frank put in. "But it's worth a try. Kathy, what do you think?"
There was a long pause. When Kathy answered, her voice was cool and distant.
"It's worth a try. I'll take care of it."
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Chapter Five
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The editing room was small and comforting. There was no illumination other than that provided by the glow of multitudinous indicator lights. Kim preferred it that way, like the inside of a cave, or a walk-in closet. If only she could smoke. Then things would be perfect.
She had straight black hair, long once, but cut to pageboy length in deference to the
"All of them?"
"Every last one."
Corvan gave a low whistle. "And you want me to sit on it?"
Paxton nodded. "Yup. Why give people ideas? Besides, it's something only the killer knows and would come in handy if we got a confession."
"Okay," Corvan replied. "I'll leave it out. But let me know what you find. A deal's a deal."
Paxton grabbed a hand-line and pulled himself towards the corridor. "That's a roger. Stay in touch."
Corvan hung around for a while, rolled on a couple of eyewitness accounts, then headed for the com center. There was work to do. Lots of it. Kim and he had agreed to produce a half-hour news show every day.
The first fifteen minutes of the show would consist of reports from Earth. A predictable mix of religious riots, food rationing, birth quotas, plane crashes, atmospheric tinkering, and yes, news from the construction team on Mars.
The second fifteen minutes would focus on the Outward Bound. Jopp had sent Corvan a list of what stories to run and what order to run them in. She thought the departure ceremony should come first, followed by a keep-up-the-good-work message from Fornos and a watered-down version of the murder.
The message had taken the form of a suggestion, rather than an order, so Corvan had talked-Kim into some changes. The murder story would come first, followed by the departure ceremony, Fornos, and some human interest stuff mat Kim had gathered with a mini-cam. Footage of the departure ceremony, plus the murder, would be sent to Earth. Assuming that Fornos and Jopp approved, that is.
The upshot of all this was that Corvan and Kim had a lot of writing, editing, and administrative work to do. Work that would normally be performed by a sizeable staff.
So, by the time they had obtained the necessary approvals, and faded up from black, both of them were exhausted. Corvan jacked into the shipboard feed, allowed himself to free-float next to the editing console, and closed his eyes. First came the open, then the murder report.
It was all there. The hard facts, the silly rumors, and the way people felt. The report wouldn't find the murderer, erase people's fears, or make the whole thing go away. But it would provide the colonists with what information was available, serve to reassure them, and kill some of the more outlandish speculation. And that, Corvan decided, was a job well done.
As for reaction from Earth, well, that would have to wait twenty-four hours or so. Murder in space. The tabs would eat it up.
He fell asleep ten seconds into the departure ceremony, and failed to notice when Kim removed the jack from the side of his head, pushed him into contact with a velcro strip, and kissed him on the lips.
But Otis watched the rest of the show, as did Kathy, Susy, Morey, Norma, and Frank. And they enjoyed it, especially the part about the murder and the fight on F-deck.
But there was some concern as well. This Corvan character could be a threat. Otis wanted to act, wanted to counter the danger, but the others weren't so sure.
"Let's give it some time," Norma counseled. "There's no reason to panic."
"And what if Corvan starts to close in on us?" Otis inquired. "What then?"
"How about a warning?" Susy said brightly. "Something to scare him off."
"It won't work," Otis said heavily. "This guy doesn't scare that easily."
"Maybe, and maybe not," Frank put in. "But it's worth a try. Kathy, what do you think?"
There was a long pause. When Kathy answered, her voice was cool and distant.
"It's worth a try. I'll take care of it."
Â
Â
Â
Â
Chapter Five
Â
Â
The editing room was small and comforting. There was no illumination other than that provided by the glow of multitudinous indicator lights. Kim preferred it that way, like the inside of a cave, or a walk-in closet. If only she could smoke. Then things would be perfect.
She had straight black hair, long once, but cut to pageboy length in deference to the
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