“Funny you should use the word ‘trust,’ ” Lopera was saying. “I called you here because we seem to have one of your Trusts.”
“What?” exclaimed Basante.
Instantly Dionte laced her fingers together, activating her internal systems. Her implant had picked up on the word “trust” and had accessed the appropriate information.
High probability that the rain forest intruder was Chena Trust, as predicted by Basante, but she has been reported safely returned to Off-shoot and Basante file secured pending future requirements.
Subfile personal notes: With C. Trust becoming more active, increasing attention needed to keep her out of hands of opposition (access family meeting notes 25-20-2073). Becoming harder to rationalize leaving her in village (access Constable report 25-27-2073 and Bas-ante personal report). May have to preemptively sequester (access preliminary action notes).
No reports on Teal Trust (most recent constable report awaiting input and assimilation), but increased communication between Elle Stepka and various contacts in village Stem (files available and fresh information pending) observed from time of rain forest infiltration.
Outside her, she heard Lopera saying, “Young Teal wants to go back to Athena. She’s come to us for help.” Lopera’s smile became positively indulgent. “Do you want her?”
All annoyance vanished from Basante’s face and his eyes shone with eagerness. No, Dionte corrected herself, greed.
“Perfect,” he breathed. “This is perfect. We can work with her here. I can direct the experiments remotely. Dionte, if you can shield communications and set me up…”
Possibilities flitted through Dionte, directed by her Conscience and her instincts. She smelled scents of warning and imagination, creativity and fear. Her ears rang with inner voices, both imagined and remembered, whispering to her, only to her, with their wisdom and possibilities. So much information, so many ideas, dizzying with their speed and intensity, opening her up, making her alive, truly alive to the world, to her responsibilities, to the future, the true, good future that lay before them, that lay in the voices and possibilities surging through her.
And for a moment she had not been able to understand the smile on Lopera’s face. Dionte shivered.
But Basante was rambling on and giving orders to Lopera, who wasn’t even looking at him. She watched Dionte. Lopera knew where the decisions lay; she always had. An isolated villager she might be, but she was not stupid. She was skilled and she was practical. That was precisely why Dionte had chosen her to keep Eden. This memory and caution came to Dionte, and she knew she would have to choose the immediate future and speak it into being before Basante got too carried away.
“No.” Dionte broke her connections and waved away whatever Bas-ante had been saying. She would catch it up later from the recording her Conscience would have made. Her ways of understanding were shifting. That was all. All was well. She could still do what she needed to. “Help her go. Help her hide so that we hothousers cannot possibly find her.”
Basante stared at her, momentarily mute with shock. “Dionte…” he finally choked.
Dionte walked swiftly to his side. “Be calm, Brother.” She laid her hand on his, her scent, warmth, and touch letting his Conscience know that these were the words of family. It was good to listen to your family, and his Conscience would tell him so, soothing him for her. “Consider what will happen when we are able to tell the family that Director Shontio is harboring fugitives aboard Athena Station. He will no longer be able to pretend he is a victim of circumstances. He will be shown as the active participant he is. Father Mihran will finally come to understand that we can no longer leave the station in the hands of those who have no Consciences.” She knew the future, at least this one little piece of it. She saw it clearly and she knew triumph at the sight. “We will be able to do in one week what none of the family has been able to do in a thousand years. We will bring Consciences to Athena.”
Basante pulled his hand away. “You’ve placed too much faith in one successful experiment,” he said with unusual firmness. She had trespassed too far into Basante’s area of expertise, and he would not be easily calmed this time. “You haven’t heard anything I’ve said, have you? We need to be sure we can create this gene combination consistently. We need to study variations in alleles. At the very least, we will need other breeders to ensure a numerous and healthy defensive force.” He glared at her. “Or did you think we could neutralize all the Called with one boy?”
“Of course not.” She waved his words away. “But there are other considerations here. The station must be tied to the family and the cities if we are to stay defended. The Authority must not be able to get to us through them.”