Resurgence

by Stephen A. Fender

  "But what about our records here?" Quinn asked.

  "As far as this sector, expunged. As promised. You are now free to travel the confines of Duscinda Quadrant in freedom. That being said, confinement of any kind is still confinement, but it all depends on your point of view, I suppose."

  "And the money?" Mia added.

  He turned to Kristin. "It's on your ship, waiting for you."

  "My ship?" Kristin repeated.

  "Yours. Free and clear, as promised. As is your record, my dear. Oh, and Alasdair," he said before reaching into his pocket. "I believe this is yours."

  Alasdair caught the object in mid-flight. He looked over his Internal Security badge, thumbing its glittering surface with pride. "Thank you, sir."

  "You more than earned it, son. But it's your responsibility to keep it untarnished from here on out. I know you understand what I'm saying."

  "Yes, sir. I do."

  "Good. That's all very good. Now that we've gotten all that settled, I'd like to talk to Captain Glasco in private for a little while."

  Kristin nodded to Riddle, then turned to her crew. "It’s alright. I'll see all of you on the ship."

  Chapter 24

  A little over an hour later, Kristin walked into the cargo ramp of the Cobalt Rose for the first time as its legal owner. The sense of pride she felt when she ran her hands along the corridor leading to the mess hall was palpable. When she entered the compartment, she saw the crew sitting around the table in silence.

  "So, I'm guessing this is goodbye?" she asked but received no response. "I wanted to say thank you to all of you. You've been a fine crew, and I really appreciate everything you've done for me. I know it hasn’t been easy, and I know we got off to a rough start, but if it’s any consolation, you’ve helped to restore a part of me that I thought was lost.” The final point was directed at a silent Alasdair. “Alasdair, if you'll take the copilot’s seat one more time, I can drop you all off back on Arbrer or wherever you'd like to go." This was followed by more silence. "Okay. Well… just let me know. I'll be on the control deck."

  "You know," Alasdair began, stopping Kristin. "I'm not entirely convinced that Devin Trumbul is dead. And, even if he is, I know there was someone else behind all this pulling the strings. Both he and Trahl said as much."

  "And we still don't know the purpose, either," Quinn added.

  "Meaning there's still someone out there responsible for preying on innocent lives," Thad amended. "Likely profiting from it, as well. That should not go unpunished."

  Mia stroked Thesril absently. "And, let's not forget that the Lady Calton’s real captain, Garett Rothschild, might still be out there. Could you imagine the horde of treasure he's probably got stockpiled?"

  "I was thinking more of the universe-wide pardons we get if we caught him," Quinn countered.

  Mia shrugged. "You have your dreams. Mine is retirement.”

  Kristin couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Even if I thought any of that was a good idea, and even if I wanted you as my crew, we've got nowhere to start. The galaxy is a pretty big place to search."

  Quinn folded his hands behind his head and leaned back. "I'm sure the computer logs from the Lady Calton would have all kinds of helpful information."

  Alasdair nodded. "You know, the navigation and library drives were the first thing that Sector Command removed from the Lady Calton."

  Quinn winked at him. "Locked in a highly secure compartment here on the Vanguard, supposedly isolated from the rest of the onboard computer network."

  "Supposedly," Kristin repeated.

  Quinn shrugged. "It's going to take the Sector Command techies a long time to parse all that data. Some of us have a head start." He then turned his computer to face Kristin. She couldn't accurately read what was on the screen, but it was clear Quinn was going over the logs he'd downloaded. “I also took the liberty of borrowing some data from the Vanguard’s main computer. Could be useful.”

  Unbelievable.

  "Well, while you were busy playing with your data, I got something a little more tangible," Mia said, then placed a black duffel on the dining table.

  "What's in the bag?" Kristin asked.

  "The navigation and library drives from the Lady Calton."

  Kristin went wide-eyed. "You stole the drives?"

  "Stole is a very, very subjective word.”

  Kristin noticed that Mia wasn’t wearing her unusual bracelet.

  When Mia followed her gaze, she smiled broadly. “Hey, you don’t get the title of ‘master thief’ by depending on unreliable equipment. Besides, it’s not like anybody saw me, not to mention the fact that Sector Command made backups as soon as they brought the drives onboard."

  "That is standard procedure," Alasdair added. "So, it's not as if she nicked the actual drives. These are the backups, right?"

  Mia looked from Alasdair to Kristin, then back to Alasdair. "Sure."

  Kristin's palm went to her face. "You people."

  "Hey, we're not just people," Alasdair began. He stood, placing his hands on her shoulders. "We're your crew. And the man that betrayed Bobby is still out there, as are the people he was ultimately working for. Now that I'm back in Internal Security I'm taking on that job personally.”

  Kristin was moved by his passion. “What about your life… your family? Don’t you want to get back to Arbrer to start rebuilding that?”

  “It’s going to take a lot more than getting my badge back to do that, Kristin. Besides, I won’t go back until this case is completely wrapped up. I owe Bobby that much.”

  She smiled, placing a hand over one of his. “We both do.”

  As she looked at the crew, Thesril leaped from Mia’s lap and sauntered toward her. The team watched in silence as the feline began to blissfully purr while it coiled itself around Kristin’s leg.

  “I think she’s starting to like you,” Mia offered kindly. “Maybe.”

  Kristin looked at Mia, who was smiling. “I think I’m starting to like her, too.” When her eyes shifted to Alasdair, she saw that same devilish smirk from when they’d first met. “Ships status?”

  Turning, Alasdair stepped back to the table where the rest were seated. “The maintenance crew on the Vanguard were kind enough to get the Cobalt Rose back to normal operation.”

  “With a few upgrades to boot,” Quinn added. “Engines are turned and ready, and we’ve got some proper medical supplies onboard.”

  “Let’s hope we don’t need those,” Thad replied. “I’d rather not resign my fate to your ministrations if it can be helped. And all weapons systems check out.”

  “I still haven’t figured out that smell coming from the vents,” Mia offered, “but I’m not giving up tracking it down. Otherwise, all internal systems are operating at peak efficiency.”

  Alasdair leaned back comfortably. “So, it appears we've got some work to do and a ship to do it with. Now all we need is a pilot who won’t back down from a fight. So, what do you say… Captain?"

  She looked at each member of her misfit crew in turn. My crew. They all have enough credits in their pockets to move on with their lives, yet here they are, choosing to see this thing through to the end. If they were willing to trust her to lead them, she knew in that moment she’d do everything in her power to both earn and reciprocate that faith, no matter how difficult it might be for her.

  "I think… I'm going to regret this."