William sat at the desk in his office working on a small, black device. He typed into his computer and connected it to the apparatus. Then he removed it, and tweaked it just a bit more.
When he was finished, he took a similar device from his desk. This one was gray. It was the same one he had held the day before, and showed James and Kate. For some time, he compared the gray and black devices.
Finally he said, “That’ll do it.”
Suddenly, his communicator sounded. He placed both the black and the grey objects in his desk, and answered it.
“Greetings, sir. I got your message,” Omari told him from Shackleton Base.
“Greetings to you. I requested your communication because I have an answer. I want you and Io to depart for Jupiter Station tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I don’t believe the Machinists will be a problem,” William said. “It’s unlikely the people who sent that letter are even affiliated with the original movement. Some one out there is just trying to get a piece of the political spotlight.”
“Could they be dangerous to her?”
“Not at all. If they wanted to hurt Io, their first move would not be to send a letter. They would have already taken action.”
“I still plan on keeping watch over her.”
“Good.”
“I’ve profiled the list of passengers you sent me, and will be keeping an eye on them as planned.”
“How many personnel do you have on your security team?”
“Fifteen on my personal staff, and we can utilize the ship’s security team as well,” Omari said.
“Don’t forget your job is to make sure Io returns one year from now. That is your only concern.”
“I understand.”
“Keep in contact. Communication is crucial in times like these.”
“Times like these, sir?”
“Nothing. Just keep watch over Io,” William said. “That’s the one thing I want you to do.”
“Understood.”
William ended the communication. He lifted his hand to his lips and sat in silence for some time, just thinking and contemplating, when a knock at his door lifted him out of the stupor.
He pushed a button on his viewer, and saw Maria, the Ambassador, standing outside the door to his office. He pushed another button, and the door opened.
She stepped inside. “We need to talk, William,” she said.
“What’s on your mind, Maria?”
“The people are talking about your recent actions.”
“That’s usually what people do.”
“The people know you have been recruiting heavily and scheduled meetings with every major military leader across the globe.”
“I have only scheduled two meetings.”
“More than one is enough for rumors to begin,” she said.
“I understand it is your job to observe and report on public opinion of this family, but we both know that rumors are rumors. We cannot react to every one.”
“Our image is dwindling,” she told him. “The credit this family gained after Yori’s death has been squandered.”
“This family gained nothing from Yori’s death,” William declared. “It was only a loss, and a deep loss.”
“Don’t play that game with me,” Maria said. “The people believe that it was James who killed Yori and brought violence to this house. The rumors are that the only ones on this planet who want war are the members of this family, specifically you and James.”
“The Machinists are the problem, Maria.” William told her. He paused and pretended to look around his office, as though someone could be watching. “You must not tell anyone I showed you this,” he said.
He pulled the small black device out of his desk, pushed the top of it, and a projection of a letter from the Machinists’ addressed to Io appeared. Maria leaned forward, sitting on the edge of her seat and read the contents.
“I don’t believe it,” she said when she was finished. “This must be some kind of fake or copycat. It does not make sense for the Machinists to send this to Io.”
“Why not?”
“It does not further their cause in any way.”
“Perhaps it is not their cause they are trying to further. They only want to nullify the one argument against them.”
Maria sat back in her chair. “What do you mean?”
“The only terrible thing this group has ever done wrong is to kidnap and assassinate two innocent and beloved scientists,” he told her. “If that mistake is forgiven, the people will listen.”
“A simple letter cannot take away what they have done. History is history.”
“But it can be rewritten by the survivors of it.”
“It’s not that easy to bury the reputation the Machinists earned when they killed Io’s parents. Besides it’s just a letter.”
“No, Maria,” William said. “It is just the beginning.”
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