"Everyone believes that," Miles corrects, maybe a bit stubbornly, but he relents. Without the fork in his hand, his fingertips take to drumming restlessly on the tabletop between them.

"It wasn't a very good cover-up, though, was it? He was still charged with responsibility. Demoted to Captain for it. In fact, killing his political officer was the worst thing he could've done in order to evade responsibility, claim innocence by ignorance of the order given without his conset. But he was angry -- he was so very angry that one of his subordinates not only issued an order without his consent, but shattered his honor in the process, that he killed with his bare hands the one man whose fast-penta testimony could have exonerated him. A dead man can't testify. And so he bore the consequence and responsibility."

Miles has no way of knowing if that's how it really went down, save for asking his father, and he...doesn't know if he can do that. But it's what he'd like to believe. Miles leans forward then, cupping his chin in his other hand.

"So tell me -- if the Prime Minister of Barrayar solves his political problems with murder -- then how is it that my treason charges were resolved, Vorhalas's plot dismantled, without a single drop of blood spilled?" He leans forward a little more. "Do you know how those charges were resolved?"