by Jaleta Clegg
"Only if it helps. And yes, I would love something to drink. I spent most of the night crawling through shrubs at the zoological preserve. Don't ask why. I'm embarrassed to admit what I was after. I was wrong."
"What are you after?" she asked as she heated more of the drink and fetched cups from the cupboard.
"Evidence." He yawned widely. "How well do you know Sparticus Newellyn?"
She raised her eyebrows as she handed him a cup of steaming liquid. "Senior or Junior?"
"Both."
"Not well."
"Pity." He sipped the drink.
She settled back in her chair. He looked tired, though he tried to hide it.
"Tell me about Dace, since you say the papers lie about her. Tell me the truth."
He looked up, over the rim of the cup, and took his time answering. "She isn't pregnant and she hates lavender silk. Those were the most glaring lies. Other than the big one that she's marrying Vance."
"She isn't?"
"Only if Hades freezes solid."
She laughed. "I haven't heard that expression in years."
"I stole it from your vid." He grinned unrepentantly. "One of your best lines. And very appropriate to Dace's situation. I talked to her yesterday." His grin faded.
"Tell me how you met Tayvis," Deena urged. Enough about the woman.
"It was on Ophir. They had the entire Blackthorne Conglomerate and what was left of Targon Syndicate chasing them down."
"They?"
"Tayvis, Dace, and Jerimon. They crashed on Ophir. I helped them leave again." He studied her. "You really don't have to worry about her, Miss Grace. She would never intentionally hurt him, not without a very good reason."
"Call me Deena." She pulled her feet into the chair, curving her knees to one side. She sipped her drink. "He never told me what he did for the Enforcers."
"He worked undercover mostly."
"And Dace? What did she do? They named her one of the Thousand last night."
Scholar whistled softly. "Someone wants to yank her chain."
"Pardon?"
"Dace hates the Patrol. Yes, she really is an admiral. She enlisted as one." He laughed at the expression on her face. "She worked unofficially for Lowell, until he forced her into a corner. He never thought she'd follow through. But it involved Tayvis. She enlisted for his sake. And then Vance lied and told everyone he'd been shot. Dace went to pieces after that."
"She loves him?"
"Don't doubt her, please. The minute she's got what she needs, she's going to find a ship and start looking for Tayvis."
Deena stared into her cup for a moment, thinking hard. "And why are you helping her?"
"Because Lowell asked me to, and because I like her. And I respect her."
She looked up at him. He met her gaze squarely.
"I can't help you find my son, I have no idea where he went. I do have something that you should see." She stood, placing her cup on a low table next to the chair.
She went into the spare room where Tayvis stayed. She'd put his things away for him. The room looked barren, even with the bright colored quilt on the bed and the touches she'd tried to add. She opened a drawer and pulled out the notes Tayvis had saved, along with the one that had come later.
Scholar was dozing in his chair when she returned. He snapped awake, blinking hard. She handed him the notes. He gave her a puzzled look as he flipped through them.
"Tayvis saved them. He had them hidden in his room. The last one," she pointed to the one on top, "arrived after he left."
She sat in her seat, watching Scholar. He looked through the notes again, then went back and read the notes carefully. She watched him smile as he read the older notes. He knew the people Dace mentioned, that much was obvious from his reactions. He opened the last note. His face was hard as he read through the vicious words.
"Dace didn't write this," he said, holding up the note.
"I figured that out, I was wondering if you'd come to the same conclusion. Who wants to hurt Tayvis so badly?"
"The same people who want Dace dead, I suspect." Scholar stopped and yawned.
"Do you have somewhere to stay?" she asked, on impulse.
"Are you offering?"
"Yes."
"No one will look here. Thank you. I appreciate the offer."
"Are you going to help him?"
"When I find him, I'm going to slap him. Then yes, I'm going to help him. He's an idiot sometimes."
"Aren't we all?"
Scholar bent his head over the last note again. "Do you mind if I keep this one?"
"I was tempted to burn it. By all means, take it."
He slipped it into a pocket.
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Do you know who's plotting treason?"
She went pale, her eyes huge. "Treason?"
"That's what Dace is looking for. And this time we're going to find the source."
"Tayvis is mixed up in this? Do you suspect him of treason?"
"Tayvis? Never. Last time he arrested Dace for it. The charges were dropped."
"I think I want to hear the full story."
"I'll tell you what I can, but later. I have to check some things." He stood. "Were you serious about the room?"
"If you need it, you are welcome."
"And you can tell your neighbors we're having a torrid affair," he said, winking.
She laughed as she showed him out the door. He gave her a jaunty wave as he walked away. She closed the door and leaned against it. Perhaps her dreams of grandchildren weren't dead after all. They would be if she couldn't find Tayvis.
She went to place a few calls to old friends. Someone had to know where he had gone.
Chapter 24
The Phoenix hung on the edge of normal space a few seconds too long before sliding through. A huge explosion ripped through the ship as the sublight engines came on line. Clark swore and punched buttons. Twyla didn't bother with the swearing. She hit the reverse thrusters, dumping speed as fast as she could. Beryn jumped out of the fourth seat and headed for the engine room at top speed.
Jasyn leaned across the cockpit, running the scanning equipment. "At least we're in the right place. What happened?" She shouted into the com over the sound of whining engines.
"Looks like the main thruster control port blew and took out half the other systems," Ginni's voice came back. "Darus is a bit shaken but fine. Give us a few minutes to get the fires out."
The com clicked off.
Jasyn switched over to the scanning seat and called ground control on Tebros. They were much too far out. She sent a signal burst and set the com to standby.
"Anything on the close screen?" Clark asked her.
She flipped the system over and ran a check. "You're clear on this heading for quite a ways."
"Good, because it's going to take us a couple of days to get to Tebros."
"Engine temperatures are still rising," Twyla said.
"Ginni?" Jasyn said over the com.
"It's pretty bad down here," Ginni answered. "Give us five minutes. And drop all the speed you can."
"You heard her," Clark said to Twyla. The two of them worked on slowing the ship as much as practically possible. It was difficult with the main thrusters offline.
Louie began to shriek in his cage behind the cockpit. Jasyn went to fetch her son. The lounge was hazy with smoke. The air filters labored to remove it. More clouds of thick smoke rose from the engine room. She left Louie screeching after her as she went down the stairs to the engine room.
"Over there," Beryn shouted. Loud hissing drowned out the rest of what he said.
Jasyn went back to Louie. There was little else she could do. She picked him up. He clutched her shirt, still wailing. She patted his back until he calmed down. By then the fires were out. Darus and Beryn ran checks on all the systems, tabulating the damage to the ship. Clark and Twyla had it moving slowly towards the distant planet of Tebros. Ginni ran back and forth, relaying messages. The com sys
tem had gone down sometime during the fire fighting.
Jasyn shifted Louie to one hip and worked on fixing something for them to eat. They were in for long shifts all the way to Tebros. Louie reached for the cookies as she got them out. She handed him one and sat him in his special chair wedged at one end of the table. He gummed the cookie happily.
"What happened?" she asked when Darus and Beryn finally came up from the engine room. Twyla sat at the table with her, watching Louie smear damp cookie across the table and his face.
"We've been pushing the engines hard for too long without an overhaul," Darus said tiredly. His face was streaked with soot and grease. "The main valve blew and took out most of the cooling system and the main sublight engine. We're going to be stuck on Tebros for at least a week." He dropped into a chair. "The ship wasn't built to take the punishment we've been giving her. She's a good ship, sound, but she isn't built for long jumps. It was bound to happen sooner or later."
"We're still going," Jasyn said.
"All the way to Linas-Drias if we have to," Darus agreed. "But it's going to take a lot longer than you wanted."
"You did your best," Jasyn said. "We all did."
"What do we do at the border?" Twyla asked. "I heard rumors at the last port that they had some kind of border satellite system deployed."
"The border was at Besht," Beryn said. "That's still a ways away. We'll think of something by then."
No one spoke for a long time, except Louie. "Adaba," he announced as he squashed the soggy cookie on the table.
"How long until we make Tebros?" Jasyn asked.
"Eight days at our current speed," Twyla answered.
"Give it a chance to cool down," Darus said. "We might be able to cut that in half if we push a few things. It depends on how badly the engines are damaged, but I can't tell for certain until they cool so I can take them apart. We're going to have to get the hyperdrive realigned at the very least."
"We're still good for cash," Jasyn said. "But we should take cargo if we can."
"That should help our cover story," Beryn put in.
"What are we going to do, exactly, when we get to Linas-Drias?" Twyla asked. "I know Dace is there and mixed up in something of Lowell's. But from what I read, she's only getting married."
"To Vance," Jasyn said as if it were a disease.
"And?" Twyla prodded. "Doesn't she have the right to marry whomever she chooses?"
"She'd never pick Vance, not on her own," Jasyn said.
"So what are we going to do? Crash her wedding and tell her what a big mistake she's making?"
"If that's what we need to do," Jasyn said. She let her chin sink into her cupped hands. "I don't know what we're going to do. I just know Dace is in trouble and I'm tired of sitting here, wondering if she's ever coming back. If she chooses not to come back, then that's her decision, but I have to hear it from her."
There was another long silence.
"I'm going to wash up," Darus said. He left the lounge, headed for his cabin.
Louie threw his cookie across the lounge and squirmed in his chair. A bad smell filled the air around him. Jasyn sighed as she reached for him.
"Let me," Twyla offered. She scooped up Louie and headed for the cabin Jasyn had turned into a nursery. Louie didn't seem to mind.
Beryn excused himself. Jasyn sat alone at the table for a long time, staring at nothing. She finally stirred and collected a mug and a handful of cookies. She took them into the cockpit.
Clark sat in the pilot's chair, staring out the viewscreen at stars. He glanced over his shoulder at her. She handed him the mug and the cookies.
"How bad is it really?" she asked.
He shrugged. Half the lights on his board were red or yellow. "It could be worse. At least we're still moving."
"Darus says we can boost the speed later. Maybe."
"The message blurb came in. You aren't going to like it."
She took the seat in front of the ship's computer and pulled up the data log. She was very quiet as she read the headlines.
"It's real war now."
"I don't know if we can get across the border," Clark said. "We may be stuck on this side."
"We'll find a way across. There are people on Tebros we can contact." She scrolled through the news feed. "This scares me more." She tapped the screen. "They're confiscating ships and crews, at least on the Empire's side. So far, the Federation is outraged by it. But how long until they start using the same tactic? Since it's come down to actual shooting, they'll both be looking for all the ships they can get. Either way, we're never going to make it past Besht."
"Jasyn, let's wait until we can get more information on Tebros. Leon was supposed to leave us a message there."
She rubbed her face. "And what if we're too late? What if we don't make it?"
"Would you rather turn and run the other way?"
"I'd never forgive myself, and you know it."
"When we get closer, I'll get a list of ships in port. Maybe we can get some help."
"We called in our favors already. We'll owe them for their help." She stared out the viewscreen. "I'll find some way to pay them off. Eventually."
"Jasyn, you don't have to do this alone."
"I know. I've got you, Trevyn. And Darus. I don't know if the others really understand."
"They do, or they would have been kicked out with Finn." He reached across the space between them and squeezed her hand. "We'll get there in time, if we have to steal a Patrol cruiser to do it."
That got him a wan smile.
They sat in silence, watching space crawl past. Clark occasionally tweaked the controls, keeping them on course and the engine as cool as possible. Jasyn dozed off in the copilots chair.
She looked tired, her face shadowed. He reached over and brushed her long hair back. It was mostly braided, but it kept escaping, leaving long strands to soften her face. He knew how important Dace was to Jasyn. Somehow they'd find a way to get to Linas-Drias and talk to Dace. The woman in the news sheets was not the same person they'd said goodbye to on Viya Station so long ago. He flicked through the news to the society section. There was Dace, again, her picture filling half the first page.
She was smiling, her face in a polite mask. Right there, he knew something was up. Dace had never been good at bluffing, no matter how much she deluded herself about it. Her emotions were plain to read on her face. But not now. The woman in the picture was a stranger.
Her hair was set neatly, a smooth style that flattered her. She wore a simple dress, but expensive and elegant. She held Vance's arm, exiting some dinner party or other. Clark frowned at the picture as he adjusted the engine settings again. It was all wrong. The woman was not the Dace they knew. He wondered if that Dace still existed.
Either way, he wanted answers as badly as Jasyn. Finn had been right about one thing, They had to move on. It was time to either let her go or get her back.
He erased the image, dumping the news feed into the ship library for storage.
"Clark?" Ginni eased her way into the cockpit.
"What?" he answered quietly. He nodded at Jasyn, warning Ginni to let her sleep.
"Darus wants you to cut the thrusters completely and drop speed in half. He's taking the engine apart, as far as he can."
Clark didn't say anything as he shut down the thrusters, switching them completely off. He reached across his board to the copilots board and slowed the ship. Jasyn stayed asleep.
Ginni popped off the front panel for the com unit. She prodded at the circuits inside with a test wand. Clark watched her work. Ginni was very good at what she did. She was even smaller than Dace, looking more like a child than an adult. Clark knew better than to underestimate Ginni. She was tough and fierce and very loyal. She was almost too much like Dace, even getting certified in the same fields. She pulled out a burnt fuse and replaced it. The com light blinked green. She flashed him a quick grin as she left.
The message light started blinking almost immedia
tely. Clark reached around Jasyn and hit the button to answer the call. It picked up in midtransmission.
"…waiting for reply. Repeat. Fellmarchant calling Phoenix Rising. Reports indicate damage to your ship. Do you wish assistance? We are standing by, waiting for reply. Repeat."
He broke into the message. "Fellmarchant, this is Phoenix Rising."
"That you, Clark?" The voice was vaguely familiar.
"That's me," Clark answered. "Who am I talking with? I don't recognize the ship name."
"Wouldn't expect you to, Major. Remember a junior pilot named Yancy Bearmarton?"
"Is that you, Blackbottom Bear?" Clark grinned.
"One and the same," Yancy answered. "Although I still hate the nickname. Can we pretend that little incident never happened?"
"You mean that time you almost ran a cutter into the Admiral's flagship?"
"With you screaming at me the whole way to change course. That little incident, yes."
"Never happened." Clark grinned wider. Blackbottom came later, after the Admiral's dressing down of the entire crew of the cutter. "So what kind of ship is the Fellmarchant?"
"A big old tugboat straight out of the shipyards on Tebros. Your message burst came in as a priority. I checked the ship manifest and what do I see? My old officer's name on the list. What are you doing in a junk freighter?"
"The Patrol couldn't match the job offer I got here,. What are you doing flying an overgrown thruster pod?"
Yancy laughed. "Better job offer. What kind of assistance do you need?"
"We're running a check of the systems now. We had to wait for the engine to cool before we could find out for sure what was wrong. Hold a minute." He flipped the com to standby and hit the button for the engine room. "Darus? We got a status report yet on the engine?"
Beryn answered. "Darus is up to his armpits in coolant right now. As far as we can tell, the whole thruster system is shot. Other than that, it's pretty minor. Still take us at least a week to dismantle the engine and check."
"Tell Darus we've got a tow into Tebros. He can shut everything down."
"Will do." The com clicked off.
Jasyn was watching him with her violet eyes, the color of amethysts. She didn't look happy. "They sent out a tug for us? We don't need it."