第21节

piercing gaze. For some unexplained reason, Assessors almost always

had abnormally intense pale grey or cold blue eyes and an air of total

dedication. They could quote page after page of the Manual and were

absolutely fanatical about points of procedure, rules and

regulations.

But while there were some word-perfect pedants who could not see the

wood for the trees, there were other Assessors who were remarkably

shrewd observers adept at spotting the slightest hint of evasiveness or

insincerity.

A tv monitor was set into the table in front of each Assessor on which

data relating to the examinee could be displayed. Each member of the

board was also provided with an electronic memo pad to make notes on.

The pads could be plugged into the monitors, enabling them to send

messages to one another without the examinee knowing what was being

said. A number on Steve's side of the table identified the individual

board members; 1--4 on his left, 5-8 on his right. The President's

position needed no clarification.

A door on the left-hand section of the wall behind the table opened.

Steve sprang to attention as the President of the Board entered and

moved to her place directly opposite him. The eight Assessors waited

deferentially until she sat down, then followed suit.

'Sit down, Steven." The President's voice was low-pitched, firm and

well-modulated. Her dark hair, parted on the right, sloped across her

forehead and was swept back behind the ears. Her eyes were

greyish-brown. It was Fran. Franklin Delano Jefferson, Steve's

controller.

Steve had no means of knowing this, or that she was Family. Fran was

dressed in the standard grey jumpsuit worn by all members of the

Federation's Legal Division.

Draped over her shoulders was a loose-sleeved, three-quarter length

sessions gown - part of an Assessor's formal dress. As the Board's

President, Fran wore a vermilion gown with charcoal grey trim. The

other members of the Board wore similar gowns with the colours

reversed. Had she cared to consult COLUMBUS, Fran might have

discovered that the shape and cut of the gowns recalled those worn by

ivy-league college professors in the halcyon days preceding the

Holocaust.

The others - who, despite their Level 12 ID-cards, would never acquire

the same unrestricted access - were destined to remain ignorant of this

minor piece of sartorial history - and a great deal more besides.

Fran exchanged the customary greetings with the other members of the

Board and checked that the monitor intercom system was working

satisfactorily. The preliminary questioning of the examinee, which

followed a standard procedure, was conducted by the Board's

President.

The primary function of the eight Assessors was to observe the examinee

and evaluate their responses, but individual members were permitted to

seek clarification of an answer, or ask a supplementary question. Any

Assessor wishing to do this sent a signal to the President then waited

for the green light. Fran used this brief settling-in period to make

an appraisal of Steve. Since taking over as his controller she had

studied the videofile covering the relevant stages in his life from

birth to date, but this was the first time she had met him face to

face. As a woman, she liked what she saw but that did not affect her

resolve to extract from him every ounce of information he possessed

about the Mutes.

Fran leaned her forearms on the table, placed her palms carefully

together and fixed Steve with her grey-brown eyes. The corners of her

mouth tweaked up into a half-smile that belied the serious note in her

voice.

'Steven, before we ask you to describe your experiences, I want to

emphasise that despite the circumstances surrounding your initial

reception at Pueblo and Santa Fe, the Federation does not consider you

to have defaul