A Rumor of Peace

CHAPTER 5

SUMMARY :  More work on the file.  The boys meet at Logan's to discuss the case.  Roark and Harry tell them someone is trying to frame Kale.  We hear a little about Rodolphus and Rabastan.  

They were both deep in concentration when their door chimed for a third time some centars later.  "Enter," he called out distractedly, not even looking up from his computer screen.

The door slid open.  "Roark.  Hadrian."

"Captain Ardyn," Harry said, ordering up a series of legal outgoing and incoming shipping lanes, viewing them with a frown, then he swore.  "Rory," he turned his head, "I think he's using the dead shipping lanes."

Roark saved what he had been doing, then quickly keyed in the demand for the dead, no longer used shipping lanes, then the leagal ones, watching his screen fill.  "Fuck," he breathed in disbelief as he looked at them.  "There's an awful lot of them, Harry."

"Isn't there, though?  This is going to take up a lot of time trying to figure out which ones."

A nod.  "If he's not using all of them," he said, earing himself a groan from his brother, making him grin.

"It's late, boys," he said, hazel eyes moving back and forth between the two as they continued to work.

"Is it?" came coolly, both still refusing to look up at him, though he did see their smirks after quick glances at the time in the corner of their computer screens.  "Ah...so it is.  How about that?  We hadn't noticed."

"I'm sure you didn't.  Do you intend to work all night?"

Roark picked up his pen, pulled the pad of paper he had close to hand to him and began to write.  "As long as it takes to get the answers to some of our questions," he replied.  "Harry, I think we may want to look at the dead land routes too."

Harry reached for his own pad of paper and pen, made some notes.  "Agreed.  If he's using the dead air routes, it's a good chance he'll use the land ones too."

"I'm not going to let you work all night, boys."

"THAT, Captain, is not your call.  It's not up to you what Roark and I decide to do, or don't do, for that matter."

"Look," he began, exasperation clear in his voice, "there is plenty of time for you to find whatever answers you're looking for tomorrow."

"Very true, and as it happens, we weren't planning to work much longer.  We are, in fact, meeting up with Logan, Fili, and Kili at Logan's as soon as we had finished with this.  Harry, you done?"

"Will be in a moment," came his reply as he typed quickly.

"Has he told you where his new place is?"

"Of course.  Why?"

"Because he hasn't told anyone, other than his cousins, where he moved too, nor has he changed his on file address in the Base computer."

"I can't imagine why, unless he doesn't trust any of you," he looked up then.  "Why wouldn't he trust you, Ardyn?  Any of you?" 

"Are you deliberately going out of your way to be unpleasant, Roark?"

"Not at all, Ardyn.  I'm just following your lead," his lips quirked suddenly.  "Hey Harry, did you notice how he didn't answer my question?"

"I did.  Wonder why that is," he said as he looked up at him, his brow raising.

"I have no idea why Logan wouldn't trust me.  Trust us.  You'd have to ask him that."

"Don't worry," he told him with a cool smile, "we intend to do just that.  Now that I think more about it, Fili and Kili didn't seem to trust you very much either."