by Mind Guest
The corridors were as deserted as I'd expected them to be, but once I'd
slouched down to where the ships were and entered the bay, I stopped to
frown. There wasn't a guard in sight, and that might not be too good. I
could only hope that Dameron had been counting on Valdon to keep me
occupied.
I cycled through the lock and headed directly for the control room. If
everything was on the green I could worry about evacuating the ship's
chamber and exit tunnel later. I reached the control console and
started to activate the board and my hand stopped in mid-motion. There
was a thick metal cover over the activating switch, and half a dozen
leads stretched from the cover to a small, featureless box that sat on
the console itself. I'd never seen the cover or box before, but I knew
damned well what they were. The cover kept me from activating the
controls, and the box would be an alarm of some sort, set, no doubt, to
go off if the cover was touched or the box itself was messed with.
I cursed with feeling for a minute, then tried to decide whether or not
to tackle that box. It looked as if it couldn't be approached except
from underneath, and moving it was sure to wake it up. I'd be better
off diverting the leads, but that presented an entirely different set
of problems. Diverting them one at a time would be easier, but there
was a greater chance of setting them off that way. And with all my
equipment a long way off, what the hell could I use to divert them?
"You can't get around it," a quiet voice said from behind me. "Its
completely tamper-proof, and you don't have a chance."
"I told you before that I'm resourceful, Val," I said as I turned to
face him. "It would have been better if you'd stayed asleep."
'Val'?" he echoed with raised eyebrows. "That isn't my name."
"It's sort of silly to he formal now." I shrugged, giving him a faint
grin. "Not after we've gotten to know each other so well."
"I can't argue with that," he agreed, laughing softly with his eyes,
too. "Let's go back and see if there's anything we missed."
"Maybe some other time," I denied with regret. "'Business before
pleasure' has always been the way I handled things; I'm too old to
change now."
"You don't look too old," he said, studying me with his head to one
side. "As a matter of fact, you look like you should have been in bed
hours ago. Let us return to your accommodations, Missy. It is past time
that you retired."
He stood with his arms folded and a grin on his face, and I couldn't
help returning the grin. He'd switched to Tildorian speech, but we
weren't on Tildor.
"Best that you tend to your own affairs, sir," I countered and folded
my own arms. "I am not a child to be ordered about in such a manner."
"I do tend to my own affairs," he assured me. "At this moment you are
my affair. You may come willingly or you may come with struggles, but
accompany me you shall."
"I go my own way," I said and set myself. "No man may interfere with
that."
"I must," he said, a sad look in his eyes as he got ready to move at
me. "I cannot allow you to do something wrong."
"The rough stuff won't be necessary," another voice said from behind
Val. We both looked over to see Dameron, and he was shaking his head at
me.
"I knew you'd probably try, but I didn't think you'd try this soon," he
said, leaning against a bulkhead. "Doesn't Val suit you?"
"He isn't bad," I answered with a shrug. "I'm just not as impressionable as the other girls around here. How did you know I was
here?"
"If you think I'll tell you that, you're crazy," Dameron snorted.
"You're enough trouble just as you are."
"You haven't seen anything yet," I commented, studying them both. I
might be able to take them, but only if I was willing to go all the
way; they were too big and well trained to play games with. The only
questions was, could I kill them? They had saved my life more than
once. Could I now justify to myself the taking of theirs?
"This isn't the time or the place to discuss it," Val said, putting his
hand out toward me. "Come on, Diana, you look tired. After you've had a
good night's rest we can sit around and talk it to death. Or even
ignore it. How about it?"
I looked at him for a minute, then looked a Dameron, then finally
walked between them and out of the control room. I'd have to take my
chances with their friend Phalsyn just as I'd taken my chances with
them, but I hurried back to my room so they would not have a chance to
catch up to me. I was in no mood for the company of either one of them.
Chapter 13
I washed and dressed when I woke up, but didn't leave the room. I
wasn't pleased with the thought of Dameron's surveillance system and I
wasn't very hungry. I sat and smoked and fretted about things in
general.
It didn't take more than a couple of hours before my peace and quiet
was disturbed. The door slid aside as if I were open for business, and
Valdon breezed his way in. I looked at him sourly from the low comfort
of the chair I was stretched out in, and took another drag on my
cigarette without saying anything.
"Are you trying to make me starve now?" he demanded as he stopped in
front of me. "I've been waiting for you in the refectory for hours."
"That's a shame," I murmured, putting the cigarette out. "For some
reason I don't remember asking you to wait."
"Asking isn't necessary." he grinned, looking down at me. "I'm a prince
of a fellow, remember? Think you'd like to try it on your own this
morning? I won't let you poison yourself."
"What thoughtfulness," I murmured, putting the ashtray aside, then I
looked at him again and stood up. "Well, why not? It's getting boring
around here."
He stood aside to let me go first, and he looked all too pleased with
himself. I'd have to see what I could do about changing that.
As I'd half expected, Dameron was sitting at a table looking somewhat
anxious. When he saw me he brightened a little, but only a very little.
He didn't know how right he was.
"You look like you had a good sleep," he said heartily as I sat down.
"Have you been thinking things over?"
"I certainly have," I agreed with a solemn nod. "And my thinking has
led me to notice something very interesting. Have you any idea how many
different ways it's possible to put a bomb together from just what you
find around you? Not chemically speaking, of coursea133"
"A bomb?" Dameron yelped, paling a shade or two. "You couldn't have" he
glanced at a stunned Valdon, looked back at my small, satisfied smile,
then jumped up and raced from the room, Val hot on his heels. I watched
them with clinical interest for a minute, then tried my luck with the
food box. When the food was delivered, I was happily in solitude then
was able to smoke half a cigarette before Dameron and his trusty second came back. Neither one of them looked very happy, and that was even
more satisfying than using the food box right.
"The detectors say there i
sn't a bomb of any sort, in your quarters,"
Dameron growled as he sat opposite me. "You were lying, weren't you?"
"Not at all!" I protested with injured dignity. "I never said I'd made
a bomb, I just commented on how easy it would be. If I ever decide to
make one, I won't comment on it."
Dameron wearily ran his hand through his hair, and Val leaned back,
looking more than annoyed.
"All that trouble for a comment," Val muttered, his black eyes filled
with thunder. "Never in my life have I been more tempted to -" he broke
it off, but continued to stare at me.
"A whole lot of trouble could be saved all around," I mused, lazily
blowing smoke at the ceiling. "If certain people suddenly turned
reasonable, they'd never have to find out how bad it can get. And
believe me, you ain't seen nothin' yet."
"You are not leaving!" Dameron choked out, his face red with suppressed
fury. "I don't care if this entire base is put in jeopardy-you don't
budge until Phalsyn gets here! Valdon! Have her get her possessions
together and move her in with you! I want her watched constantly! If
there's any more trouble out of her, I'll hold you responsible!"
Dameron poked an emphatic finger at Val, pushed away from the table,
then stomped out, leaving Val with a dark expression on his face. I
wasn't exactly thrilled with the arrangements either, and I was still
in a perverse mood.
"I think I'd prefer your lock-up," I said coldly, beginning to get to
my feet. "I'll tell Damerona133"
"You'll tell him nothing," he growled, grabbing my arm and slamming me
back down in the seat. "You've done enough doing and telling to last
everyone for a while. You'll sit there until I've finished eating, and
then we'll get you moved. Not a word out of you until then."
"The hell you say!" I snarled, at the same time kicking for his
kneecap. I was too fed up with being told where I could and couldn't go
and what I could and couldn't do to worry about what damage I did, but
the blow didn't land square. He moved his leg at the last instant,
catching no more than the painful tail end of the shattering move, then
brought his foot down hard right on top of mine. I was wearing rubbersoled
deck shoes and he was wearing nothing but that one-piece uniform,
but I still gasped and clutched at a mashed foot.
"That's exactly what I do say," he countered, giving me a look
containing all the elements of an electrical storm. "If you try that
again, you'll be limping for a week. Now, keep quiet."
He reached across me to press buttons on the box, then he leaned back
again to wait for the food and stared at me unwaveringly. I turned
completely away from him and ignored him totally, then surreptitiously
rubbed at my foot.
When he had finished eating, he grabbed my arm and hustled me out of
the refectory. I put my few things together without a sound, then was
escorted to another room in the residential wing. This room, done in
blue-green, brown and white, was considerably bigger, with three low
chairs grouped together around a carved, obviously Tildorian table, a
long lounge of sorts off to one side by itself, and a larger, more
comfortable-looking bed. I dropped my possessions in one corner, walked
silently into the very strange but extremely utilitarian bathroom, sat
down on the floor, and proceeded to ignore everything.
For the rest of the day, I could occasionally hear Val moving around in
the outer room, and he came in every once in a while to check on me. He didn't say a word and neither did I, but when he brought food in to me,
I took it and ate it. But I ate just for the hell of it; my appetite
had long since disappeared.
It was just about going-to-bed time when Val came in and bluntly told
me that I'd hogged the facilities long enough. I got to my feet and
left him to his requirements, and just for curiosity's sake went to the
door to the corridor. It was no real surprise to find that it didn't
open, but I was still pushed a little deeper into the pit. I turned the
room light out, groped my way to the corner where I'd left my things,
got out of the ship's suit, and curled up on the floor.
The bathroom door eventually slid open, but the light was partially
blocked off by Val's body as he paused in the doorway. He stood without
speaking for a minute or two, then he moved farther out into the room.
"You can take the bed," he said, his voice soft in the silence. "I'll
make do on the lounge."
"It's your bed and your room," I answered, moving my head around on my
arm. "I'm fine where I am."
He came over and sat down on the floor near me before he spoke again.
"Diana, we're not barbarians here," he murmured. "You don't have to
sleep on the floor." When I didn't say anything he put his hand on my
arm and added, "You're not wearing anything, and you feel cold. Take
the bed and don't worry about what will happen. I gave you my word that
Phalsyn won't give you trouble, and I'll see that my word is kept."
"How nice that you can speak for Phalsyn," I murmured back. "Where I
come from, bigwigs usually speak for themselves."
"I'm speaking only for me," he said, anger in his voice as he pulled me
closer to him. "I couldn't keep you from being hurt on Tildor, but this
base is another story."
I couldn't see his features in the darkness, but his hand was warm on
my arm. I was far away from the area of space I considered home, and
there was only me against a group of very determined strangers. I still
had no real idea what they were determined about, but it has been my
experience that some of the nicest people you'd want to know are often
ruled by the most ruthless of governments. If you deal just with the
people themselves you're all right, but if you happen to tangle with
their government, it isn't wise to plan on being home for the holidays.
I felt his warm hand on my arm and didn't say any of that.
"I know how you must feel," he said softly, drawing me up against him.
"But you're not really alone. I'm here, too." His hand caressed my hair
and moved farther down to my back. "I saved you from that fever on
Tildor, and now I feel responsible for you. You don't think I tended
you just to turn you over to Phalsyn for dissection or something, do
you? Besides, Phalsyn isn't so old that he wouldn't be more interested
in your outsides than your insides. You have mighty attractive
outsides."
I leaned my head on his chest, and couldn't help grinning while my eyes
blinked.
"You're not so bad yourself," I whispered, really feeling his presence
for the first time. "Don't go away for a while."
He didn't go away, and for a lot longer than a while. Neither one of us
slept in the bed, and the lounge was ignored, too. I still don't know
how they manage to produce tiles that are so warm and resilient. It's
just a good thing they do.
The next day Val refused to let me sit around in his room. He dragged
me to the refectory against my will, and then had the nerve to say
mixing with other people wou
ld he good for me. When he left our table for a minute to speak privately with someone, I casually leaned over to
the next table and asked the people there if they'd heard anything
about the rumor that the base was slowly losing air from an
unidentified breach. They hadn't heard a thing, but by the time those
particular people had left, everyone else in the room had heard about
it. Val looked around at the buzzing knots of conversation, and
wondered what was going on.
After we were through eating, Val stopped in to see Dameron, and I
waited in Nelixan's office. She'd always been too uncertain to try Val,
and was curious to know if I had. She listened carefully to my
evaluation of him with a big grin, and when Val came in she looked at
him with a good deal of interest.
"All set," Val said to me as he came up. "Dameron thinks that Phalsyn
will be here in the next couple of days, so we have some interim time
to waste. Is there something in particular you'd like to do?"
"Ah, Valdon," Nelixan interrupted in a very warm voice. "I have no
plans at all for my off hours. Why don't you and I spend them together
- in my room?"
"In your room?" Val repeated blankly, staring at her. "What would we do
in your room?"
"Oh, I'm sure we could find something." She grinned, and Val finally
understood what she was talking about.
"What brought this on?" he asked, curiosity in the dark gaze he sent to
her. "I always had the impression I wasn't your type."
"I thought you weren't, but in the light of the latest reports, I've
had to change my mind," she answered, still grinning. "How about it?"
"Sorry, Nelixan, but I'll be busy," he said with a growl, turning to
give me that look again. "I have a date to strangle someone."
"What did I do?" I demanded plaintively. "I've been sitting here
quietly, not even thinking about my..."
"Sitting there quietly?" he exploded, taking a step toward me. "You
consider discussing me sitting there quietly?"
"Why not?" I shrugged. "Are you ashamed of your abilities?"
The look in his eyes darkened as he stared at me, but he couldn't seem
to think of an answer to that one.
"It's hard to remember that some men are shy about such things,"
Nelixan said with a laugh. "Maybe we shouldn't have mentioned it to
him."
"I'll remember that for next time," I said, which for some reason