Vall's Will by Linda Mooney

yet,
the ship programmed itself to explode. Have you ever heard of the Objurians
doing such a thing?”
    Oglet had to
admit he hadn’t. “This is the first time anyone has ever heard of them
doing that, which is why I was ordered to investigate the matter.” He
tapped his desk. “Your ship confirms what you’ve told me. Neither you nor
any of your crew used your vessel to rig the Objurian ship to blow. Nor is
there any record of you taking explosives onto the ship when you boarded
it.” He scratched his chin again, his eyes gazing out at the panorama of
space, although his vision was focused inward. “Captain, it’s obvious
that, by releasing the prisoners, you caused the ship to trip its kill
switch.”
    Will agreed. It
was the only reasonable answer.
    “Or, maybe,
it was because you tripped the lock on Vall’s cell.”
    “You think
the lock was what triggered the explosion?”
    “It’s very
possible. Which leads to the question, why him? What is so special, or shall we
say terrifying about Vall that the Objurians felt they needed the extra
protection? You said the lock was on the outside of the cell?”
    “Yes.”
    “Then they
meant to protect themselves from him escaping.” Oglet’s eyes went to the
doorway. “What are your plans for the young man?”
    “I was
hoping to leave him here. You have access to information and analysis we don’t.
You might be able to unravel the mystery of what species he belongs to, and
subsequently notify his home world.”
    The commander
turned back to her. “What are your plans once you leave Precorut?”
    “We’ll
resume our sweep of this sector until we’re summoned to our next mission, and
whatever it entails.”
    “You would
leave a potentially dangerous entity alone and unguarded on my space
station?”
    “In the
short time he’s been on my ship, Vall has never shown any sign of being a
danger, either to himself or to others. If he had, my innate sensors would have
tripped.” She came close to confiding the fact that she had spent the
night in the man’s arms on the observation deck, and would have passed along
that information to the commander if the guards had not been around to hear.
    Oglet nodded,
understanding. The Nion were well known and highly respected throughout many
solar systems and galaxies. Their word was irrefutable, as was their power. If
Will felt the strange young man was not a danger to the space station, her word
was as good as a promise of protection.
    “All
right.” He got to his feet and waved away the guards, who exited through a
second doorway she had missed spotting earlier. Once they were gone, he walked
around the desk to face her directly. “I’m convinced you are innocent of
the charges, but you understand you’re still responsible. If you had not
interfered, that ship would still be around, and their beloved queen mother
would still be alive.”
    “And Vall and
the Anglites would still be suffering in near-starving conditions,” she
retorted, meeting him eye to eye.
    The man sighed.
“We are at an impasse,” he admitted.
    “We are.
What do you think should be our next priority?”
    “I will
give the order to allow Vall limited access to this station until we find out
what he is. However, I must ask that you and your crew leave immediately. The
Ben Objure are not to be trifled with. And their threats are never
hollow.”
    “You’re
afraid they’ll attack Precorut if we’re here?”
    “I don’t
know what they’ll do. But if you’re not here, it lessens the chance
we’ll be targeted. I’m sorry, Captain, but I can’t take the risk of you
remaining on board.”
    She took a step
back. “I understand. I’ll notify my ship. We’ll leave within the hour.”
    “Try to
make it less than an hour,” Oglet suggested.
    Will nodded but
didn’t reply.
    Re-entering the
bridge, she noticed Vall hadn’t moved from where she’d left him. Meanwhile,
Killjorn had joined him and Gayt. They all turned around when she