The interviewer entered the deposition room briskly, walked around the small table and took a chair directly across from the young man. He opened his tablet, touched a few icons and then launched straight into his query.
Rindell and the others watched and listened through the glass:
“Would you like to review our last dialogue for clarity?”
Alec LeDarq glanced at the reflective surface on his side of the one-way viewing bubble and then after a slight pause, shook his head.
“Fine. I’d like to begin today’s session with some questions about your final flight.”
Alec folded his hands on the table in front of him and shrugged assent.
“Mr. LeDarq, you were the mission commander of the high-orbital attack shuttle, Baal Ashtoreth? Were you not?”
“I was the pilot.”
The interviewer raised his brow in curiosity and then deftly fingered various icons on his tablet, scrolling through data.
“According to the logs,” he paused as he quickly read an item. “You are listed as senior officer of a crew of seven and the lone command element. Your biometrics alone were the only authorized ciphers capable of unlocking the weaponry onboard the aircraft.” The interviewer’s challenging glare arrowed through LeDarq. Alec countered with a nod of stoic confidence and then smiled softly.
“Pilot,” he repeated.
The interviewer sighed in frustration before continuing.
“According to our records, the Baal Ashtoreth was commissioned by the Fatum Jihad—the largest, most aggressive Islamic terror faction in the world—and outfitted with the most powerful array of weapons known to exist. The shuttle was then placed into a strategic geocentric orbit by the Sino-Korean Force Consortium. When we finally interceded, you were actively targeting every major city within the European Collective.” The interviewer rolled through the list of incriminating facts with calculated precision.
Alec LeDarq smirked at the mirrored observation window and then winked arrogantly.
“Don’t forget the North American Commonwealth, as well,” he added through his grin.
The interviewer glanced over at the view bubble with a look of exasperation. He then leaned forward in his chair and addressed LeDarq with renewed aggression.
“You cannot deny your significant role in the most elaborate global terror attempt in the history of this planet.”
“I cannot,” Alec also leaned forward as he whispered, “As a pilot.”
“You realize, of course, that you’ve failed?”
Alec arched his brow, feigning dramatic surprise.
“We have?”
The interviewer sighed, his face drawn tight in agitation.
Alec laced his hands behind his head and rotated his upper body, cracking his back. “What exactly is the point of all this, really?” He then gestured to the one-way surface of the observation bubble. “I mean, who are you guys? What are you really looking for?”
The interviewer simply watched as Alec casually stretched and then slouched back into his seat.
“Besides, you’re asking all the wrong questions.” Alec looked directly through the view shield, even though all he could actually see was his own distorted reflection. After a moment he shook his head and rubbed his mouth with his hands.
“What questions should we be asking, Mr. LeDarq?”
“Motive and money,” LeDarq answered soberly. “Motive and money.”
“Explain.”
Alec LeDarq snickered. “Who benefits and why?” He spread his arms. “Moreover, who can afford it?”
“Fatum Jihad has extensive resources--.”
“Fatum Jihad doesn’t exist, you idiot!” Alec snapped. “It’s a fabrication. A convenient cover for something far more terrifying than radical Islam.”
“What could that be?”
LeDarq narrowed his eyes.
“The one true God. The absolute faith.” He confessed solemnly.
The interviewer rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes. We’ve heard it all before. Allahu akbar…Allah is great, right?”
Alec frowned, looked back to the observation bubble and blinked rapidly. His face was suddenly pale, nervous. He shook his head weakly and then, to the surprise of the interviewer and those observing from behind the one-way barrier, he crossed himself.
“Stato della Città del Vaticano,” he said reverently.
“I’m sorry?” Asked the interviewer, caught off guard.
Alec LeDarq flashed an anemic smile and then hung his head.
The interviewer cast a confused glance toward the observation port just as the surface of the bubble turned opaque.