Doctor DeAlvarez called a meeting that night with Colonel Carfield, Magnum, and Doctor Anthony Baker, the head of the Base psychology department.
”Thank you for coming,” DeAlvarez said as everyone took their seats. “Doctor Baker has given me some news that I need to share with you.”
She glanced at Carfield and Magnum, then continued. “Go ahead, Doctor.”
”Simply put,” Doctor Baker said, “Tracker’s violence index is extremely elevated. He becomes almost homicidally enraged over any discussion of Antoinette’s tortures, any criticism however minor, things that normally would not have caused any kind of problem.”
”Has anyone been hurt?” Magnum asked with a frown.
”No, sir. He hasn’t hurt anyone, yet. He displaces his rage onto furniture, smashing them to flinders. I have two labs in a total shambles. We may have to move the testing to Security, or to the Training Room.
”I’ve never seen him so savage. It’s not like him at all.”
”Hmm… Not good. By the sounds of it, he’d be more of a liability than an asset on any missions. What do you say, Doctor?” Colonel Carfield looked over to DeAlvarez.
”I think we need to warn all Base personnel to be very careful around him,” Doctor DeAlvarez replied. “Doctor Baker, do you think we should confine him to quarters?”
”I don’t recommend it. He may take it as being caged. Like an animal. With his old fears of being caged, reinforced by his experiences with Castile, he may bolt. If he’s not guilty of Animal’s charges, that would only hurt his chances. If he is –” He shrugged, then continued.
”Personally, the fact that he came back on the airbus of his own free will, despite being alerted that Animal was pressing charges against him, makes me believe that he is innocent. If it weren’t for the severity of the charges, I’d recommend that he be given leave and let him have a few days of peace and quiet. If nothing else, it may help return him to his normal indices.”
Carfield leaned forward. “That could be risky. While I agree with your analysis of him, there is still the chance he could use such an opportunity to escape.”
”I disagree, Colonel,” DeAlvarez said. “While he could do as you say if he were guilty, I believe he would be far more likely to just want to hide until this problem is settled. All his psych indices over the last two years indicate that he is totally opposed to Castile and its goals. Even now, based on Doctor Baker’s reports, he would rather exact revenge on the Castillian who tortured her than go through this hearing we’re about to impose on him.
”While I do not recommend letting him out of the Base either alone or with only his wife, I will recommend giving him as much freedom as possible in order to reinforce his trust in us.”
”May I see a summary of the psych testing you have done on Tracker so far?” Magnum asked. Doctor DeAlvarez slid a folder across the table. He took it and read the contents carefully.
Then he rose to his feet. “Very good, Doctor DeAlvarez. I tend to agree with your opinion of the situation. However, I also believe we need to keep a close eye on him for the next few days.
”Doctor Baker, I’m going to ask that you postpone any additional testing of Tracker to give him a chance to settle down a bit. You can use that time to rebuild your labs. Unless Doctor DeAlvarez says otherwise, why don’t you schedule Tracker for next Monday. That way we can see if he’ll mellow back to some semblance of normalcy with time.
”Any questions?” As the others shook their heads, he continued. “Then, with your permission, Doctor DeAlvarez, let’s wrap this meeting up and schedule another for this time next week unless something notable happens between now and then. Dismissed.”
