Excelsior by Jasper T. Scott Page B

door.”
     
    “Sir?”
     
    “You heard me. Open sesame.”
     
    “Yes, sir…” The security officer opened the airlock with a hiss of equalizing pressure and an accompanying whoosh of wind as the heavy door slid aside.
     
    Alexander walked in, right up to the rigged crate. “This bomb is a bunch of jury-rigged munitions from Red Deck. That gives us some idea about who it might be. We found some other clues, too. Turns out the bomb has a remote detonator. It’s wired to a comm band. So all it’ll take is a whisper from our secret friend, and boom—we all get to see firsthand what the chaplain has spent his life preaching about.
     
    “Naturally, we should have disarmed it on the spot, but just prior to discovering the bomb, we found signs of sabotage in the ship’s engine code. That means that our saboteur knows how to use a computer, so he may have also tampered with the comm band’s code and rigged it to blow the bomb if we try to disarm it. That’s just a guess, mind you. We don’t know for sure.” Alexander went down on his haunches beside the crate. “I suppose there’s an easy way to find out. Any bets it’s rigged?” Alexander reached for the crate’s lid and removed it, revealing the bomb inside.
     
    The murmurs of discontent were back and growing louder by the second. Suddenly Max Carter stepped forward. “That’s enough! It was me. I did it. Now stop this nonsense before you get us all killed.”
     
    “Really? You know how to tamper with the ship’s engine code and rig a bomb using hypervelocity rounds and a comm band? How did you get access to Red Deck? Or the engine code? Or even to the storage levels where we found the food crate? You have a civilian clearance on this ship. That means you’re barely authorized to wipe your own ass.”
     
    Max sneered. “I’ll explain how later, Captain. You have your confession. Don’t be stupid. Arrest me.”
     
    “I would love to, but there’s just one problem, Max… I don’t believe a word you said.”
     
    The ambassador’s eyes widened, and he looked genuinely scared. “I said enough, Captain!”
     
    “Sorry, I’m not done yet. Anyone else? Last chance before I pull the plug on this thing.” Alexander scanned the crew one more time. No one else said a word. Alexander shrugged. “Fine. Have it your way.” He looked up to the chaplain. The man had turned white as a ghost. “Say a prayer for us, minister.” Alexander reached into the crate and lifted the comm band from the bomb assembly. It was trailing wires and detcord. “Red or blue? Hmmmm… Well, I’m no expert, so I guess I’ll just have to cut them all…”
     
    “Wait!” the voice was shrill, but not feminine. Alexander turned, and so did everyone else. Alexander couldn’t believe who it was.
     
    “Williams?” Then again it made sense. The sensors operator had taken first watch on the bridge while everyone else was in the officer’s lounge attending the wake for the dead Rapier pilots. Williams would have had the time to plant his bomb, and as the ship’s quartermaster and a member of the bridge crew, he had all the clearance he needed to do just about anything.
     
    Problem was, Alexander had known Williams for years, and sabotage was the last thing he would have expected from the man. “Why?” Alexander asked, feeling genuinely confused.
     
    Williams looked stricken, and his entire body was trembling. “If you disconnect that, it’ll kill us all. I’m going to hold you to your word, Captain. No court-martial. No summary execution.”
     
    Alexander returned the detonator to the crate and rose to his feet. “I’m a man of my word, Lieutenant, but there will still be consequences.”
     
    “I understand.”
     
    “Stone, arrest Lieutenant Williams and take him to the brig. Commander Korbin please accompany them and speak with the prisoner. See if you can establish a motive for this insanity.”
     
    “What about the motive for your insanity,