As he guided his yacht in, Iswander noted that one array framework was nearly filled with harvested ekti-X, ready for delivery … but even that was now questionable. Ulio Station, one of Iswander’s primary distribution hubs, had been wiped out by the Shana Rei and their black robots. Even without Ulio, their main distributor, Kett Shipping, had plenty of alternative ways to deliver stardrive fuel to an always hungry market … but Kett Shipping had torn up their commercial agreement with Iswander, thanks to Elisa’s foolhardy actions. He had to find some other way to sell his fuel, because soon, very soon, those Roamer jackals would rush out and begin extracting stardrive fuel themselves.
Maybe it was time for him to just shut down these operations and move on. Iswander was horrified that such a thought even crossed his mind. An Iswander did not give up. Shaken, he landed in the admin hub and disembarked.
He was immediately met by his deputy, Alec Pannebaker. The man had long hair and a salt-and-pepper goatee; Pannebaker had an avuncular personality and a cocky daredevil air. “Chief, we’re so glad you’re back! Or do we now call you, Speaker Iswander?” He grinned. “How did it go?”
Iswander dropped the news like an asteroid impact. “Complete failure. Our ekti-X operations have been exposed, and all the Roamer clans know about the bloaters. We need to go into full damage-control mode, and I don’t know if even that will be sufficient for this company to survive.” His throat went dry. “I need to see Elisa Enturi, right now.”
Pannebaker looked uncomfortable. “Chief … about Elisa and what she did while you were gone…” He shook his head, and his face grew dark. “Her behavior was unacceptable. We had an incident. An outside ship managed to make it past the perimeter, and our security attempted to detain them. I thought we were going to figure out how best to retain confidentiality, but Elisa…” His face reddened. “I think she really meant to kill them!”
“That was indeed her intent,” Iswander said, “and there can be no forgiveness for it. That’s what turned all the clans against us.”
He entered the main control center, where his technicians and admin staff studied ekti-production statistics, mapping the cluster, and compiling extraction logs so that the large pumping rigs could be moved efficiently from one bloater to the next.
The staff turned to see him, but he looked around with a sharp gaze. He controlled the anger boiling up inside him while he searched for Elisa. As a businessman, he was good at masking his emotions, displaying anger only at the appropriate time—and when he spoke privately with Elisa, that would be the appropriate time.
Answering the intercom summons, she arrived on deck, flushed from hurrying to present herself. “Mr. Iswander, sir—I have my report ready for you, and I’m eager to hear what happened at the Roamer convocation.” She had a shine in her eyes, seemed so eager to earn his appreciation.
He fired his words at her like bullets. “In my private conference room. Now.” He strode to the adjacent chamber, and as soon as the bulkhead door was sealed, Iswander took his seat. He felt cold. His hands were trembling.
Elisa sat across from him and clearly sensed that something was wrong. “Did you oust Speaker Ricks as planned, sir?”
“No. You’ve destroyed us.”
Her dark eyes flew open. “What do you—”
“You know damn well what I mean!” he said, then raised his voice even further. “We always knew someone would eventually discover the source of ekti-X, and I took precautions to mitigate how that would affect us. But you blew up an extraction operation, murdered dozens of clan Duquesne workers.” She stiffened, paled, but he kept talking. “Their video log survived, and it’s come to light. Now all the Roamers have seen it. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind—including mine! And then, while I was on my way to present an airtight case to the clans, you were attempting to shoot down an outside ship that stumbled upon these operations—right in front of our people! The Voracious Curiosity got away and flew straight to Newstation to report us. I was completely humiliated in front of the entire convocation.”
She stood like a stone pillar, letting his words buffet her.
He rose to his feet and faced her, only inches away. “What the hell were you thinking? You murdered those people.”
She stopped him cold. “It’s what you would have wanted.”
“How could you even think that?”
“Because I’m thinking of Iswander Industries, sir. Because I’m thinking of you, and of our future together. Clan Duquesne stole our process and were profiting from it. I had to stop them, so I did it in the swiftest, most efficient way possible. I regret that I left evidence behind.” She didn’t seem ruffled. “You put me in charge of security here, and I reacted accordingly. As soon as the Voracious Curiosity came upon our operations, I knew they would expose us. I tried to intercept them before they could report our industrial secrets to the general public, but more aggressive measures became necessary.”
“They were never necessary,” Iswander said.
Elisa looked at him as if she were heartbroken. “Yes they were, and you know it, sir. I was always aware of your goals and priorities. You told me I needed to protect us. After the disgrace we suffered on Sheol, I would not allow such a disaster to happen to you or to Iswander Industries again.”
“I never meant for you to murder anyone.”
Her eyes glittered, and she stood straight. “Are you sure of that, sir? I can recall our conversations, and your implications were quite clear. You knew full well what I might have to do. Your orders were implicit.”
“You misunderstood them,” he insisted.
She refused to back down. “Maybe you misunderstand yourself, sir. I’ve always been loyal to you, and I’ve never done anything that didn’t put your needs or interests first.”
“And now I’m ruined again. You murdered those people, and the Roamers will come after me—but even more important, they will come after you. I’ll tell them that you took your actions without my knowledge or approval. I have to make sure that you face justice.” He forced himself to sit down again, pretending to be calm and rational. “And I am sorry about that, Elisa. I know all the positive things you’ve done for me, but this … this is unforgivable.”
Her face darkened as she wrestled to control her fury. “You would throw me to the wolves in order to save yourself?” She paused but didn’t give him enough time to respond before she gave a small nod. “Yes, that’s your best play. I agree.”
Iswander felt guilty to hear her response, and a heavy weight of conscience pushed down on him. He tried to recall everything he had said to Elisa, all the business discussions. Had he really led her to believe that she should kill anyone who uncovered his secret? Deep inside, was that what he really wanted? He refused to admit it to himself, but his inner hesitation told him much about what he needed to know.
He sighed. “Thanks to Tamblyn and her companions, everyone knows the location of our bloater operations. Someone will come here sooner or later. If you are here, they will arrest you. I want you to take some private time, Elisa; contemplate how you wish to respond to this. I will leave you alone so you can consider the consequences. Take all the time you need.”
She was surprised. “Are you saying you’ll look the other way if I just flee?”
“I didn’t say that at all, but you seem to be proficient at extrapolating my implied wishes. Go!”
Elisa stared at him for a long moment, then departed. Even after she left the conference room, though, Iswander wasn’t sure whether he had done the right thing.
CHAPTER
5
ORLI COVITZ
After learning how easy it was to extract ekti-X from the bloaters, clan leaders rushed away from Newstation on “urgent business.” Roamers would scramble to modify old water tankers or cargo ships so they could harvest stardrive fuel. Within a day of the clan convocation, every vessel or piece of equipment that could conceivably be converted to pumping operations had been purchased from the Newstation s
alvage dealers.
Orli Covitz wanted no more involvement with bloaters and ekti, though. She and her compy, DD, settled into temporary quarters, still trying to decide what to do with themselves. The clans were well known for seizing new opportunities, but she hadn’t expected them to move so fast.
A year ago, when she had happened upon Iswander’s original operations, she hadn’t grasped the value of the knowledge she had obtained. Of course, she had been dying from the Onthos plague at the time, but now Orli was surprised that Lee Iswander had let her go, rather than eliminating her as an inconvenient witness—just as Elisa had tried to do. Maybe the industrialist hadn’t been thinking far enough ahead.
The Iswander facility was also where she had met Garrison Reeves, and the more she thought about it—and about him—the more she decided that the benefit was well worth the cost. She and Garrison had been apart for the better part of a month now, by mutual agreement. While he was at Fireheart Station working on the Big Ring project, Orli had joined Kett Shipping for the time being, but she missed Garrison. Taking some time had seemed like a good idea when she had suggested it.…
Now, from her temporary quarters on the station, she looked out the windowport at the busy ships flying around the trading center. DD stood beside her, filing away details. “There’s quite a bit of traffic, Orli Covitz. The Roamers seem very excited about the new method of ekti extraction. Isn’t it a good thing we told them?”
“I’m sure not everyone will be as happy, DD,” she said. “Now that their Iswander distribution contracts are out the airlock, Kett Shipping is losing a huge amount of business.”
“But Iswander Industries was an unpleasant and dangerous partner. Is it not likely that many of these new operations will hire Kett Shipping for distribution?”
“I’m not a business visionary. What I like is fixing compies, and I should figure out how to get back to that. I’d be happier. We both would be.”
“We could return to Relleker,” DD said. “We had a very efficient facility there for rehabilitating unwanted compies.”
Relleker had been a nice world, civilized, comfortable, a temperate climate; Orli had spent quiet years there with her husband … and some of those years had even been happy ones. But now that Matthew had left her and she had disbanded the compy facility, there was nothing for her there. She had to find somewhere else.
She shook her head. “We should try a fresh start, DD, but there’s a point where personal independence crosses the line into being just plain lonely.”
In a remarkably astute observation, DD said, “Does this mean we will return to Garrison Reeves?”
She smiled at the Friendly compy. “Let’s see if Tasia and Robb will give us a ride to Fireheart Station.”
The Voracious Curiosity had been repaired after being attacked by Elisa Enturi. On their retreat to Newstation, Robb and DD had completed the most urgent fixes. After they reached Newstation, Tasia had used Kett Shipping accounts to book a spacedock and maintenance techs to finish all the repairs their beloved ship needed.
When Orli found the two in the assigned maintenance bay, they were fending off questions from inquisitive clan members about the bloaters. The workers wore jumpsuits with decorative embroidery marking different clan symbols. Tasia sounded impatient. “We already made the ekti-extraction information available. Go look it up yourselves—you won’t get any more details by pestering me.”
“And you’re all losing time,” Robb said, trying to shoo them out of the bay. “Better do your homework en route—otherwise, you’ll be the last ones to market.”
The clan members hurried off in different directions.
Robb stood beside the Curiosity, wiping his hands. “Ship’s refueled, and all systems check out. We’ve finished our business, so it’s time we head back to Earth. Rlinda must be worried about us.”
Tasia crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m worried about Xander. He got away from Ulio Station, but a lot of excrement has hit a lot of waste-recycling fans in the past few weeks.” She looked up and greeted Orli and DD, smiling. “Shizz, we were about to summon you! Enough frivolous adventures—let’s get to work.”
“Oh, I’ve had enough adventures,” Orli agreed. “Of course, I’ve said that plenty of times before.”
Robb had a look of concern on his face, as if something had just occurred to him. “Orli … have you heard what happened down on Auridia?”
She frowned. “Not much ever happens down there. What’s on Auridia besides the Klikiss transportal and a handful of people?”
“Exactly. The transportal and the whole outpost were wiped out by a single ship. The guy just destroyed everything and flew off.”
Orli blinked. “Why would anyone attack Auridia? It’s barely even a way station.” Few Roamers or Confederation customers used the Klikiss transportal wall, preferring to conduct their business at the giant orbiting station.
Tasia said, “It was the man who hunted you down when you had the plague. Tom Rom.”
Orli could not control her shudder. “I thought he was long dead.” DD had sabotaged Tom Rom’s ship after the ruthless man attacked her, making it explode out in space. She controlled her panic. “He was … here?” He could have easily found her, if he’d wanted to. What in the world was he doing down on Auridia, so close to Newstation?
That was all the nudge she needed. “Suddenly, I want to be out of here—and DD and I want to see Garrison. He’s at Fireheart Station, where they just had that Big Ring accident. I really need to see him. I … I miss him.”
Tasia and Robb simultaneously rolled their eyes.
DD interrupted. “I miss him too, and young Seth Reeves.”
Orli patted the compy on his polymer shoulder and spoke to Tasia. “When you two go back to Earth, give Rlinda my regards and my thanks. But we’re looking for a ship heading to Fireheart.”
“Shizz, you found one—we can do a cargo run from Newstation to Fireheart, and it’s important that we study our markets,” Tasia said. “We’ll take you there as soon as we finalize the load.”
* * *
The Curiosity easily arranged for a lucrative cargo of goods that Fireheart had requested. The facility personnel were so isolated inside the nebula that they needed all basic supplies, not just luxuries.
As Orli rode in the ship, feeling anticipation build, she studied the pastel cauldron of the Fireheart nebula, the expanding gas lit from within by a clump of bright hot stars. The ship shuddered and shook as they passed through the shock front at the dust boundary.
Orli had seen spectacular sights across the Spiral Arm, but she could hardly contain her excitement as they approached Fireheart. “It’s amazing.”
“And a good place to do business,” Tasia said.
Most important of all, Garrison was there.
CHAPTER
6
XANDER BRINDLE
“Good as new,” Terry said when he watched the Verne emerge from the Kett Shipping dock after more than a week of around-the-clock repairs, maintenance, refurbishments, and improvements. Since he didn’t have the use of his legs, the young man kept his balance by resting a hand on their compy’s shoulder.
With a chuckle, Xander clapped his partner on the back. “Far better than new. By the Guiding Star, the Verne is better than any other Kett Shipping vessel, better than any vessel in its class across the Spiral Arm. We’ve installed every available upgrade.”
Terry looked embarrassed. “Even the unnecessary ones.”
“If it’s available, it’s not unnecessary. Besides, ‘spare no expense’ is going to be our motto from now on. You deserve it.”
Repair techs used the Verne’s antigrav engines on low thrust to bring the gleaming ship forward into the open bay, where it settled down on the reinforced floorplates for their inspection.
Rlinda Kett strolled into the maintenance hangar, hands on her generous hips. “Now that’s a beautiful spacecraft—new, shiny, and an excellent hull job. I think you’re sh
owing off.”
“Maybe a bit,” Terry admitted.
“We are definitely showing off,” Xander said. “A lot.”
“I knew it. But with a ship this fancy, you’d better take her out and earn a few bumps. Right now the Verne has everything except for character. You’ve got to earn that.”
Xander lounged with an elbow against the hull and sniffed. “We’ve made enough runs for Kett Shipping to earn a standard amount of character. In fact, I’d say that escaping the destruction of Ulio Station and running away from the bugbots earns us extra credit.”
Rlinda pursed her lips. “Maybe, but you’ve rebuilt the whole thing. You need to start over.”
“Ready to get started on that, ma’am,” Terry said. “I don’t like sitting around. We’re eager to get back out and do some cargo runs.”
The big trader walked beside them as Xander inspected the Verne’s exterior. Wearing his antigrav belt to support him, Terry held OK’s shoulder and let the compy tow him around the vessel. While studying the ship, OK filed away all the improvements and accessed the detailed maintenance and test results.
Rlinda gave the two young men a frank look. “You were among my best earners at Kett Shipping, and I’m glad to hear you want to fly again, but … do you have any conception of how wealthy you are, Mr. Handon? ‘Filthy rich’ doesn’t even come close.”
Terry nodded nervously. “I’ve seen the numbers.”
“Numbers are one thing, but do you understand, dear boy? You could buy my whole company several times over. You could buy your own planet.”
Xander interrupted, “Planets. Plural.”
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