"That--" The young man gulped, tried again. "That I . . . had to come back. The Brothers . . . some of the older ones had me, the ways Captain Odeon and the others helped me find out I liked, but it . . . with them, it wasn't right, and I finally figured out that was because Captain Odeon and the others also helped me realize the Brotherhood itself was wrong. Especially to hate you, when you're the one who let them help me." He gestured, helplessly. "So I had to go back to the Center, and find you, and . . . offer to help you any way I could, in return for the help you gave me." Her truthsense told her he was being absolutely honest. "Did you tell the Brothers how you felt?" "No, ma'am--that didn't seem like a very good idea. I let troopers see me, but they didn't do anything--maybe because you'd had me released. Anyway, I didn't manage to get arrested until I hit one of them--and then no one'd believe I'd done it to get arrested! And that's how I ended up here." So Mike and the Inquisitors had modified the conditioning she'd set up, had they? Powell was supposed to be terrified of her, if not of them--justifiably so, she admitted to herself--but he was grateful instead, enough so that he'd risked his life to get back. He could easily have been shot for attacking a trooper, not simply gotten arrested. As it turned out, their modification should prove more useful than her simple revenge, so she couldn't get too upset with them--but she would definitely have to find out how it had been done! "That's good, then. What help do you think you can give me?" "To start with, I overheard them planning a raid. I don't think it's the big one--nobody down at my level is supposed know anything about that, except that it's going to happen--but maybe it'll help? Even though I didn't hear much?" Cortin leaned forward, not trying to hide her interest. "It will, Charles. Tell me about it." Powell frowned. "It's supposed to be on the main convent of the Blue Sisters--you know the one, just south of Carthage Mountain?" "I don't, but I can find someone who does. Go on." "It's supposed to be on their main feast day--that'd be the Annunciation, the 25th. But they're afraid the Service'll find out somehow, so if you post troops--even watchers--they won't show." Cortin scowled. The Blue Sisters--formally, the Order of Succor of the Compassionate Mother, Piety's order--were dedicated to caring for the seriously ill or wounded, especially Service troopers. So perhaps they were a natural target--and they definitely needed protection. "The most important part is keeping the Sisters and their patients safe, even if it means the Brothers escaping. I personally hope that can be done without alerting them, but--" she shrugged, "once I pass the information along, I'm out of it unless they pick up some prisoners. Do you know if one of the Shannons will be involved?"