He vividly remembers Hashi Lebwohl bluntly informing fellow directors Min Donner and Godsen Frik that he, Angus, was emphatically NOT programmed for rescuing Morn.
And, a heartbeat later, Angus experiences an equally vivid memory of United Mining Companies Police director Warden Dios switching out his datacore and then telling him, It's got to stop. He realizes Warden WANTS Morn rescued, but has some compelling reason to keep everyone else in UMCP from knowing of that desire.
His face was gray and lost, as if he were in the grip of an infarction. I can easily envision Milos in that moment with such a description as that sentence. Donaldson's storytelling here makes me feel elated that Morn will be rescued and smug that it horrifies Milos. Milos was so sure that he was in control of Angus, until Angus agreed with Nick to rescue Morn. Now Milos' confidence has been thoroughly deflated, and that somehow makes me feel relieved. As if this scene gives me assurance that any guttergang-inspired double-cross Milos tries will be thwarted.Unfortunately, he [Warden] hadn't foreseen that she could be saved by mere money. The simple expedient of buying her from Nick with Milos' credit wasn't available.
Even Lebwohl had been kept in the dark. And Milos certainly hadn't been let into the secret. His face was gray and lost, as if he were in the grip of an infarction, and his eyes rolled with panic, trying to look in all directions at once, measure the extent to which he'd been betrayed. No one knew the truth.
I'll give you exactly what you came for.
Except Nick Succorso?
How had Nick known Warden Dios' secret?
No, stop it, Angus told himself harshly, don't panic. All Nick knew was that Morn was UMCP--and Trumpet had come from UMCPHQ. The rest was just a lucky guess. When he laughed like that, the stark pallor of his scars under his wild eyes made him look crazy enough to have guessed anything.
Why did Warden Dios want to keep what he was doing hidden from his own people?
Who was the real target of Joshua's mission?
Angus wanted to laugh at Milos' consternation, and at Lebwohl's. Those motherfuckers deserved to be cornholed like this.
And he wanted to cry out like a stricken child because none of the decisions were his.
We'll get Davies Hyland for you.
You give us Morn.
These words meant the exact opposite of what Milos so obviously believed about the purpose of their mission.
But he had no choice in any of this. The link to his computer gushed like a conduit: commandments and data flooded him.
The extremely pitiable woman who performed the just-finished stage show by self-mutilating is now being bandaged up by medics and carried off the stage. The impression left is that the Ease-n-Sleaze bar will give her thorough medical care so that she can return to perform on their stage. As a robot mops up blood from the stage floor, Angus snaps at Nick and Milos to be quiet so he can discuss plans before the Bill sends more of his wires into the bar.
Angus states they need to know where "the kid" [Davies] is, and explains that Nick is needed to get that information. Angus then promises Nick that he will be able to use the Bill as an alibi while he and Milos acquire Davies. Milos is angry and tells Angus not to force his hand, but Angus knows Milos won't dare use a Joshua command on him while Nick is watching them--for that would tempt Nick to kill Milos at the first opportunity so as to take full command of Angus. So Angus calls Milos' bluff, telling him to follow his orders as an obedient second or else be replaced. Milos openly vows Angus will regret saying that, but he doesn't try to do anything with Angus while Nick is still watching them.
Angus quietly tells Nick to go seduce the woman wearing the wire, find out where the Bill keeps prisoners, and relay that information to Trumpet after he separates from her. Angus orders Nick to see the Bill before three hours have passed, so the Bill's recording instruments show Nick with him at the times Angus and Milos spring Davies out. Angus tells Nick he hasn't anything to lose, and that they need to act quickly to catch the Bill off guard. Nick states he can always tell the Bill where Davies is if he feels he's been betrayed by Angus or Milos. So, that being the case, Nick commits to acting according to Angus' plan.
Nick focuses on Milos for a moment after standing up, asking Milos if he'll give reassurances that he had Nick's back: Milos retorts that they're all in hell, and that Nick and Angus have no idea what's going on. Nick snaps that Milos has no idea, either, and moves down the bar toward the woman wearing the Bill's wire.
With Nick now out of hearing range, Milos demands Angus explain his confidence that their conversation can't be monitored by the Bill. Angus' datacore makes him answer that the Bill has a blind spot where they're sitting because Angus cut power to all nearby bugeyes. Then Milos leans forward and softly gives Angus a Joshua command to abandon his intention to work with Nick and rescue Morn. Angus' datacore plays back a message for Milos through Angus' mouth in response to that Joshua command.
Angus silently considers that Warden lied to his own directors about rescuing Morn as part of some greater deception. Milos quietly whispers his dismay at learning Warden's goal of retrieving Morn. At the other end of the Ease-n-Sleaze bar, Nick intimidates the two male companions of the woman wearing the Bill's wire, causing them to retreat. Milos orders Angus to open his mouth. Forced to comply to that standing order by his zone implants, Angus endures the pain of Milos extinguishing the fire of a nic against his tongue. Angus would like to kill Milos and then vomit, but is forced to just hold still except for chewing and swallowing the nic."Message for Milos Taverner from Warden Dios." The words seemed to reach his mouth directly from his datacore. "'Milos, this was recorded before you left UMCPHQ. You've just been given a rather nasty shock. I regret that, but it was necessary. On this one subject, you were mislead. Everything else you were told concerning Joshua, your mission, and yourself remains true. Joshua has not diverged from his programming. Your command codes still function. You have not been betrayed.
"'When you return to UMCPHQ, I will personally explain why it was necessary to mislead you.'
"Message ends."
At the same instant Angus' mind came back online.
Grinning with relief, he jeered, "Too bad. Better luck next time. I guess it just doesn't pay to trust those bastards." As if nothing unexpected had happened, he twitched one hand in Nick's direction. "He won't take long. She hasn't got a prayer against a seductive fucker like him. You'd better be ready to move in a couple of minutes."
He was thinking, Clever, Dios. Nice play. Too bad it won't work. You're too late--you've already lost him.
What kind of game are you playing?
Milos expresses puzzlement that he's been allowed to command Angus while being kept ignorant of a key component of Angus' mission on Billingate. Milos then concludes Warden set him up to be some patsy destined for elimination. Nick continues to work on seducing the female employee of the Bill's who is wearing her boss' still-functioning wire.
As Angus had instructed, Nick is holding that woman's neck so that Angus can short out that wire. Angus announces they're leaving, and without argument Milos lights a nic as they both head for the bar's exit. Angus walks out of the woman's line of sight and with a tiny laser flare disables the lead to her wire as he walks past her and Nick. Angus and Milos head back to their adjacent rooms.
Angus' stomach stays queasy and his mouth is in blistering pain as he enters his room. He knows Milos is going to make him suffer more once they get inside their rooms. Milos follows Angus inside as soon as Angus' room door slides open, and Angus tries to hid his fear of Milos' wrath by sitting in a chair and telling Milos he has at least an hour to wait while Nick seduces the Bill's employee and then goes to a meeting with the Bill.When the woman's wire stopped transmitting, the Bill would assume at first that she'd cut him off intentionally so that she could have a little more privacy with Nick. And he wouldn't take that kindly. However, one look at her neck and the leads would convince him she hadn't done the damage herself. If she couldn't report that Angus or Milos had been anywhere near her, he would believe Nick was to blame.
That was the real point of the gambit. As a secondary consideration, it might give Nick a lever to use on the woman. If he needed one; if his famous virility and charm weren't enough. Nevertheless the primary purpose was to force the Bill's distrust away from Angus and Milos.
