“Can you patch me through to the admiral?” Hal asked.
“I’d prefer you did that yourself. I have a feeling my interceding in the Grihan communication system will reveal my presence,” Eazi answered.
“All right.” Hal burst out the back door of Fee’s office building and tried to get through to Grihan High Command.
There was no answer.
He was running toward the docks, but made a last minute decision to head toward Grih Battle Center headquarters instead, which was less than a minute away.
He kept trying High Command as he ran, but it was clear there was something very wrong.
“Why can’t I get through to anyone at headquarters?” Hal asked, hoping Eazi was still listening.
“I think there’s trouble there,” Eazi said after a moment of silence. “I think that maybe Grih headquarters is where the comms jamming is coming from.”
Hal remembered Falna striding in through the doors, annoyed at the long wait to get inside. She’d been sure there was something off about the delay.
He’d agreed with her, but given everything that had happened, he hadn’t thought about it since.
He increased his pace, turned the corner, and headed for the entrance to Battle Center headquarters.
There were still a few Grih assembled outside, chatting easily to each other, a few of them talking on their newly reconnected comms units.
“Has anyone come out recently?” Hal called as he approached them.
One or two lifted their heads, saw who he was, and stood to attention.
“No, Captain. Not for a while.” The soldier who spoke turned to look at the building, as if suddenly aware that something wasn’t right.
Two others, a man and a woman, also obviously part of an active military team, nodded to him and then turned as well.
“What is it?” the first soldier asked as Hal stopped beside him.
Hal studied him. “I think headquarters has been infiltrated.”
“You’re going in?” The soldier looked at the building again. “I’ll watch your back, Captain. Lieutenant Vistna, at your command.”
The two others who’d paid attention when he’d arrived took a couple of steps closer.
“I’m active service, Captain.” The woman executed a salute. “Officer Juy.”
“Officer Crane. At your service, Captain.” The man beside her gave his own salute.
Hal eyed the three of them and then nodded. “Let’s go.”
They moved through the front doors two by two, slowing but not stopping as they stepped into the foyer.
There was no one around, and that was already cause for alarm.
“What do you suspect?” Vistna asked.
“That the people responsible for the comms going down have control of this building.” If that was truly the case, this had to be an inside job.
Hal could sense the shock coming from the three soldiers, and they all drew their weapons, and started paying much more attention.
Hal took the stairs, running lightly up to the offices on the floor above, and when he reached the first landing, he could hear the murmur of voices to the right.
“The conference room,” Juy murmured. “Sounds like a lot of people.”
