Chapter Two
Councillor Tevos was standing with her back to the door when Khalisah entered, her hands clasped neatly behind her back as she gazed out calmly across the Presidium.
"Miss al-Jilani," she greeted without looking round, there was a chair but Khalisah was not asked to sit, "before we begin you should know, I have security measures in place in this room, no recording or listening devices will function in here so if you happen to have any on you, they will be of little use," Khalisah said nothing. As it happened she already did know that and had therefore not brought any such devices. The fact that Tevos felt the need to inform her was not only irritating but frankly, patronising. Typical asari.
"If you quote me on anything I say during this meeting," she continued, "I will deny it and you will be made to look a liar and a fool," she turned sharply to stare at her through steel grey eyes, "is that clear?"
Tevos probably expected her to flinch, but Khalisah wasn't prepared to indulge her. Instead she arched one of her styled eyebrows and placed a hand delicately on her hip, "Why so concerned Councillor? I understood this to be an informal meeting, all I need is clarification on one or two facts before I publish them to the galaxy. I would hate to appear misinformed."
Tevos considered her quietly for a moment, all hint of any threat had gone from her eyes to be replaced with an air of reason and rationale that Khalisah found wholly unconvincing. There was no reason to be fooled by the level-headed peacekeeper image, she was dealing with a lioness.
"Very well," Tevos decided swiftly, "I have nothing to hide."
Everyone has something to hide, Khalisah thought quietly, in the case of politicians it was often something with potentially galaxy-shattering consequences.
Tevos sat and indicated to the chair Khalisah had previously not been offered. She took great care with how she sat, making sure her dress remained smooth and un-creased as she crossed one leg neatly over the other. She placed one hand in her lap while the other rested casually on the arm of the chair. She made sure she was slightly side-on to the councillor so that she could turn away and briefly hide her face beneath her hair if necessary.
The steel in Tevos's eyes had turned to silk and her whole expression softened as she spoke as though with complete sympathy, "You wish to discuss the recent attacks on human colonies?"
Khalisah kept her expression neutral, "I understand the Council has declined to offer aid in the matter?"
"The matter is a human one," Tevos replied without hesitation, "it would be entirely inappropriate for us to interfere. As much as we regret the losses of your people, there is nothing the Council can do," as calm as Tevos's voice remained, Khalisah noted a distinct lack of regret in it.
"Do you know how many colonists are missing, Councillor?" Tevos didn't answer, "Nine-hundred-and-eighty-four-thousand-six-hundred-and-fifty-two," she had memorised the number especially but as she looked into those silky eyes she saw nothing. No emotion. No recognition. A VI would have shown more empathy she realised and just barely managed to avoid clenching her fists.
"I am unsure why you came to me with this," Tevos said after a moment, "surely Councillor Udina has more to say on the matter."
Councillor Udina cares less about the colonists than you do, Khalisah thought grimly. At least Tevos would have been jumping to protect the colonies if it were asari lives at stake, Udina cared about nothing more than his own political standing.
But still, she smiled pleasantly in response, "I find it best to use as many sources as possible when trying to clarify my facts."
"I see. And is there anything else you need clarifying?"
"Just one thing," she paused, making sure to lean forward ever-so-slightly, "is it true that you have reinstated Commander Shepard's spectre status?"
Tevos blinked, it was the first flicker Khalisah had seen from her, the first, small victory.
"It is."
"So, Commander Shepard is now operating on the behalf of the Council?"
Another flicker, a second victory. It wasn't widely known that Shepard was working with Cerberus, Khalisah hadn't even managed to confirm it, but there was enough of a rumour going around to make the Council look incredibly bad if it came out, at least if it was worded right.
"Spectres work independently," Tevos remained carefully vague and Khalisah jumped on it.
"So her investigations into these attacks weren't ordered by you?"
Tevos waited for a while and Khalisah could tell she was picking her words, "What makes you think Commander Shepard is investigating at all?"
"She did an interview with me last week."
Another pause, "Indeed."
Outwardly Tevos remained unconcerned, but Khalisah saw the steel creep back into her eyes. Her defences were going up, a sure sign Khalisah was winning.
"So, Shepard is pursuing this of her own accord but as a spectre she does so in your name with your resources, is that correct?"
"Spectres are an independent arm of the Council," vague again.
"But they do have access to Council resources?" she pressed.
"They do."
"Excellent," Khalisah smiled as she stood, abruptly enough to take Tevos by surprise, even if she didn't show it, "that was all the clarification I needed, thank you for your time, Councillor."
Without giving Tevos time to respond she swiftly opened the door and left, disguising her triumphant smile even as she marched back down the corridor. She hadn't really learned anything she didn't already know, and she didn't have the Councillor's own words recorded but then she hadn't really wanted either. All she had wanted was to look the most powerful woman in the galaxy in the eye and see whose hands all their lives were in. And now she knew Tevos could flinch.
