“Agreed,” Honor said. “On the other hand, we’re going to have to be very careful about any moves we make in that direction. Dame Estelle is specifically barred from using the NPA to interfere with native religious matters, and I can’t act unilaterally on the planet without her approval. If we can’t demonstrate direct off-world interference, her hands—which means our hands, as well—are tied unless and until the shaman’s followers actually start using their weapons.”

“Understood, Captain. But just knowing where to look and what to look for makes me feel a lot better. I’d much rather catch them in open terrain that lets us use our air support, mobility, and greater weapons ranges than tangle with them inside the enclaves at pointblank.”

Honor nodded to the Marine, and he sat back. He’d contributed his bit. Anything else was a matter for the Navy to deal with, and some of the interest in his eyes faded as he waited for them to get on with it.

“You know, Skipper,” Dominica Santos said slowly, “I’ve been thinking about what you said. About all this being just a part of some overall off-world scheme.” Honor cocked her head, and the engineer waved a hand.

“It seems to me the only logical suspect is Haven, Ma’am. I know we can’t prove that, but I can’t see anyone else who’d do something like this. And even if it isn’t them, shouldn’t we proceed on the assumption that it is? I mean, no one else could hurt us as badly as the Peeps, so if we assume it’s them and we’re wrong, we’ll leave ourselves a lot less exposed. But if it is Haven and we bend over backward to keep from assuming that it is, we’re likely to miss something important, aren’t we?”

“A point, Skipper,” McKeon agreed. “Definitely a point.”

“Agreed.” Honor drummed gently on the table, then looked back at her exec. “Let’s assume for a moment that this is a Havenite covert op, Mr. McKeon. Do you think they’d kick off something like this and then just sit back to let it develop in isolation?”

“I don’t think there’s any way to know,” McKeon said after a moment’s thought. “My gut reaction is that they wouldn’t, but without knowing their ultimate objective I just can’t say.”

“Captain?” The voice was hesitant and very young, and Honor gave the speaker a reassuring smile as she turned to him.

“Yes, Mr. Tremaine?”

“Uh, I just wanted to mention something, Ma’am. I noticed it a couple of days ago, but it didn’t seem very important then. Now, though—” The ensign shrugged uncomfortably.

“Mention what, Mr. Tremaine?”

“Well, it’s just that I’ve been sort of keeping an eye on the space-to-surface traffic patterns since you called me back aboard, Ma’am. Habit, I guess. And I noticed there doesn’t seem to be any Havenite traffic at all, anymore.”

“Ah?” Honor looked at McKeon and twitched an eyebrow. The exec looked startled for a second, then grinned wryly.