Cobra Gamble by Timothy Zahn Page A

mixing drogfowl cacciatore with conversations of treason. Situation?
    Merrick felt some of the tension in his chest ease. Not only were his culinary skills his most closely guarded secret, but the figure behind the light out there had even described the meal the family had had the night this whole thing had first started. Impossible or not, that was definitely his father out there. Trofts demanding surrender by sunrise, he sent back. No clean exit available. Suggestions?
    One hour; north wall, his father signaled. Use Sammon family mine explosives to create exit hole in base. Grav-lift cycle will be waiting beside wall; evasive ride into forest. When pursuit has been lost, go to Shaga.
    Merrick nodded to himself. Shaga was the next village south along the road, about ten kilometers away. What about you?
    I'll leave the cycle by the wall and retreat to safety. Once the Trofts have left, I'll travel to Shaga and rendezvous with you there.
    Merrick pursed his lips. The plan was definitely on the dicey side, especially the dual questions of whether Fadil's people could come up with enough explosives fast enough to make the required exit and what the villagers were going to say about having a section of their wall blown to gravel.
    But it was probably the best plan they were going to come up with, given the time and resources they had available. Acknowledged, he sent reluctantly. One hour?
    One hour, his father confirmed. There was just the slightest hesitation. Good luck, Merrick. I love you.
    I love you too, Dad.
    The other light flicked the close-off signal. Merrick sent the proper countersign, then headed down the meditation dome's spiral stairway.
    Time to see how fast Fadil could get his people moving.
    Fadil's eyes were closed as Merrick related the conversation and described what he and his father needed. The eyes remained closed after Merrick had finished, and Fadil himself remained silent long enough that Merrick wondered if he'd fallen asleep again.
    He was just about to check when Fadil's lips puckered. "No," he said, finally opening his eyes.
    Merrick stared at him, his heart sinking. After everything else they'd gone through, a flat refusal to help was the last response he'd expected. "Is it about the wall?" he asked. "Because if it is, I make a vow right now that I'll come back to Milika personally and repair it."
    "It's not the wall," Fadil said, his voice thoughtful, "It's the plan. There's something wrong with the plan."
    Merrick looked at Krites, back again at Fadil. "I agree that it could be tricky to get the grav-lift cycle to the wall without the invaders seeing it," he said. "But—"
    "No, that shouldn't be a problem," Fadil said. "Not at the northern wall. There are several wooded approaches that would provide sufficient cover. Tell me, did your father explain why he wanted you to break through the wall?"
    "I assume so that I can get out of Milika without getting vaporized," Merrick said.
    "Yet there are guards even now walking the top of the wall," Fadil pointed out. "If you joined the patrol as one of them, you could simply drop through one of the many gaps in the wall's upper extension. You'd be beyond easy reach of the invaders' lasers before anyone aboard the warship could react to your action."
    Merrick felt a chill run up his back. Fadil was right. With razorarm attacks no longer a problem in the Qasaman forest, the metal mesh extension that had been long ago erected atop Milika's wall had fallen into neglect and disrepair. Merrick had seen the gaps Fadil was talking about, including a couple in the vicinity where his father had called for the blast. "But if the explosion isn't to get me out, what's it for? A diversion?"
    "Are you certain it was your father behind the signal light?" Krites asked.
    "I am," Merrick said firmly. "He knew things that only he would know. Including the code he used to speak to me."
    "Then the answer is clear," Fadil said. "The explosion isn't a diversion, nor is it intended