>>5889012Your fingernails tap impatiently on the table. “No, that would be leading the witness.” He picks up the half-empty wine glass again. “I will tell you what I know for sure first. Then you can guess.”
“First fact, all newspapers published throughout the Directorate have to pass through the Ministry of Internal Security. They don't actually censor anything, mind you, that would be too barbaric. No, they only give ‘recommendations’, which the editors can theoretically reject.” You see where this is going. “Let me guess, no one ever tests that theory.” A slight nod.
“Second fact, the Britannian Parliament allocated funding for 12 Courageous-class heavy cruisers. Due to mismanagement and perhaps a hint of corruption, only 11 were commissioned. Regrettably, an oncoming recession meant that the last almost-complete hull had to be sold for scraps to a Pecheron-based shipbreaker. All weapons should be removed beforehand, but testings conveniently showed that they were defective anyway, so no need to trouble with that.” You had a feeling that not every gun was unusable.
“Third fact, a few years back, an American defense contractor struggling through the same recession had to sell off their profitable energy shield division to a rival. The terms of the contract stipulated that inventories were to be transferred as well. And indeed they were, whatever left after a 'spontaneous worker's rights protest' anyway. Litigations are still ongoing."
“I have a few more. But let's jump to near the end. Lieutenant Silas O'Keefe, after resigning his commission, worked for an international logistics company. Publicly available company logs showed many, many trips back and forth over the border for the 12-odd years he was there.” What is he getting at? “You think Silas was a smuggler?” Johnson looks up at the ceiling, “No, everything checks out with customs. Which is even more concerning. Before now, I had not met a single merchant captain who did not smuggle on the side. After all, the only border anyone bothers to guard is with the Mir."
