2954-11-04 – Tales from the Service: The Prisoners' Conspiracy
When the outside investigator arrived, flanked by a pair of functionaries and closely shadowed by a group of armed guards, Sorab Bokori hesitated to descend from his guard post. He wanted Trachtenberg to have a look around before he tried to inject his own theory into the proceedings. After all, the facts were on his side; anyone who saw them should see that, too.
Still, the very idea of what he suspected seemed ridiculous. If he was wrong, he'd never hear the end of it from the other guards. He ran over it all in his mind one more time, just to persuade himself, as the investigator paced the inside of the wire below.
When Trachtenberg entered the bottom level of the guard tower, Sorab took a deep breath, nodded to his shift partner, and headed down to greet him. With multiple extra guards in the vicinity, he would not be reprimanded for going down to the investigators, especially if he had something to contribute.
Trachtenberg, his functionaries hurriedly scribbling something on their slate computers behind him, was just working the door controls to head out beyond the wire when Sorab arrived. After acknowledging Sorab's hasty salute, Trachtenberg waved him forward. "You weren't here last night, were you, Guardsman?"
"No, Captain." Sorab shook his head. "But my partner and I have been here since dawn. I was the one who fixed the wire breach."
"Have you anything to report?"
"I think so, sir. But if it's all right, I would prefer if you looked around before I said my piece."
The older officer frowned, then nodded. With one last jab at the controls, he opened the outer door and disappeared out, his two subordinates hurrying after.
Sorab leaned on the tower's central pillar and waited. If Trachtenberg was as good as McCallum's endorsement, he would probably see most of what Sorab had.
The investigator was back within five minutes. After herding his associates into the guard tower and sealing the door, Trachtenberg turned to Sorab. "I'm guessing you have some thoughts about the escapee's co-conspirator."
Sorab nodded. "I do." He pointed up at the armor-glassed watch-post at the top of the tower. "I don't think it was anyone up there. But I'm sure you've talked to them."
Trachtenberg nodded, his face unreadable.
"The escapee's course across the open space is quite curious." Sorab began cautiously. "But I'm sure you noticed that."
"Yes. It suggests knowledge that this tower was not a threat."
Sorab nodded. "I thought so, too. But I realized that was assuming too much. Rather, it indicates that if the escapee was going to be seen, she wished to be seen from this tower in particular, and only this tower."
"Go on." Trachtenberg still remained impassive.
"Only this tower." Sorab repeated. "Meaning, there was a desire not to have eyes in any of the other towers turned this way." He pointed to the door behind the other man. "There's some dirty handprints on the outside wall of the tower, so it's not too difficult to guess why. The escapee was getting out while someone else was getting in."
Still, the investigator did not react.
"Headcount says nobody is missing, and the sensor net isn't detecting anyone in the camp who shouldn't be. So the person sneaking in, was sneaking back in." Sorab gestured behind himself, toward the barracks buildings in the center of the camp. "And '43 – our escapee – thought that was more important to protect than her own escape."
Sorab expected Captain Trachtenberg to say something, but the other merely made a motion for him to go on.
Taking a deep breath, he continued. "I think the escape was a distraction. '43 is taking the hit for her conspirators. It was probably a snap decision when something went wrong. Probably the tripped wire sensors. She expects to be caught – but as long as we're looking for her, we're not looking for the right thing."
"Let me see if I understand." Trachtenberg held up one finger. "You think there is a group of prisoners here who have learned how to get out of the camp and back in for their own purposes. And you think they are willing to endure the punishment for an attempted escape to cover for it?"
Sorab nodded. "It's got to be a group from the recent inflow, Captain. Prisoners who came in with '43 herself." He winced; of course that's what it was. Her obvious skulking and sizing up of the camp security had been a diversion for more careful efforts by her conspirators. How had he fallen for it so easily?
Trachtenberg nodded. "What purpose do they have for their coming and going?"
Sorab held up his hands. "I don't think the answer to that is visible from my guard post." He sighed. "I can't think of anything they could be doing out in the woods, except hiking around in the vain hope of contacting friendly partisans who aren't there. Maybe you have a better idea."
"I might." Trachtenberg stepped across the intervening space and put a hand on Sorab's shoulder. "I had my suspicions we were dealing with more than just an escape already. I'd bet money you're mostly right. But don't go and brag any of this to your mates, not yet."
"Yes, sir." Sorab saluted. "Hope you get them, sir."
"We'll see." Trachtenberg nodded, then gestured to his subordinates, and they followed him back into the camp compound.
As I promised last week, here is the conclusion of Sorab's account about an escape from a middle-of-nowhere prison camp on Håkøya. I apologize for the rather abrupt end; the implication we are meant to take from this is clearly that Sorab was correct about all his guesses, but he did not include any follow up details to prove this.
What he did provide was a rambling essay about all the things he was considering as reasons prisoners in such a remote camp might want access to the wilderness outside their camp. Most of his guesses are clearly farfetched – he says so himself – he even posits a deal with the Gossamers to establish contact between prisoners in various camps, which is obviously insane.
The guess he included in his account remains the most believable, so I have elected not to include the rest of this idle speculation.