by Jaleta Clegg
“You need to learn, since you’re so interested in hydroponics.” I kicked him under the table.
He grimaced, bending down to rub his shin.
“Children,” Lady Rina chided. “No fighting at dinner.” I swear she was trying to hide a grin, although with her poker face I wasn’t sure.
Caid stood, clapping Jerimon on the shoulder. “Dace is right. It’s your turn to learn.”
I smiled sweetly. “Enjoy yourself.”
His look said he’d get even at the first opportunity.
Lady Rina raised her eyebrow. “I believe you are on watch now?”
I wasn’t, not for another three hours, but I nodded and parked myself in front of the controls.
Nothing happened for hours. The ship ran beautifully. Lady Rina and Jasyn played a dice game. Estelle did the dishes then sat quietly twisting yarn into long strips with a hooked needle. Eventually they went to bed, leaving me yawning and trying to stay awake. I dozed off for a while, but nothing went wrong. I was stiff, cramped from sleeping in the chair, and grumpy when they showed up for breakfast the next morning. I collected mine and took it to my cabin to eat. I fell asleep almost as soon as I lay down on the bunk.
I woke late in the day, feeling much better. Space travel has its moments, mostly of pure boredom. I did my exercises and showered again, scrubbing my head until it hurt. My hair was still slightly green when I came out. I took my comb and tried to make my hair do what Jasyn had done. I was only partly successful, but it still looked better than it usually did. I pulled on one of Lady Rina’s burgundy and blue uniforms and eyed myself in the mirror. If I let my hair grow a bit, I thought, pulling at it, then maybe I could comb it to one side.
The door opened. Jasyn watched me, one eyebrow raised, just like Lady Rina. I flushed and dropped my hands. She grinned.
“I have some face creams you can try, if you like.”
“I’m fine.” I tried to keep the edge out of my voice. I failed.
Her grin widened. “I came to see if you were awake. We’ve got two hours to Besht.” She tilted her head to one side. “Caid says you don’t have to help with the plants anymore. Jerimon has a softer touch.”
“Good, Jerimon can have them.” I silently hoped his hair was completely green with slime.
Jerimon’s hair was perfect, as usual, slightly disheveled with a curl hanging down over his eyes. He looked pleased with himself as I joined him at the table.
“I give up. Why isn’t your hair green? Why don’t you look like you’ve been crawling in pipes all day? I bet you didn’t bang your knuckles once.”
“Yours is only slightly green now. I like it.” Jerimon brushed his hand over my head. I knocked it away.
Lady Rina watched us, radiating approval. I lost my appetite, until Estelle placed a steaming dish on the table. I forgot everything else when I tasted it. I rolled it over my tongue, creamy smooth sauce with a bite to it that only made the creaminess more intense. Tiny crunchy things exploded with cool flavors. The chewy pieces had a flavor all their own.
“What is this?” I asked Estelle.
She glanced at Lady Rina, then at me. “Mother’s recipe.”
“I can’t place the spices,” I said as I took another bite. “There’s a hint of nutmeg.”
Estelle looked surprised.
“I wanted to trade in spices. I was working on setting up a route.” I looked down at my plate, biting my lip. Before Dadilan, before I got mixed up with the Patrol. Before my ship was destroyed.
“And we’re going to do it,” Jasyn said. “After we take care of our current mess, we’re going to get a ship and get rich.” She raised her cup. “Here’s to the future.”
We all chimed in, even Estelle.
“Perhaps I could provide you a stake,” Lady Rina said as we all started eating again. “I have plenty of money and little enough to spend it on.”
“I thought it was Family money,” Jerimon said.
“Not all of it. I’ve invested on my own for quite a few years now.” She chewed thoughtfully for a moment. “The Family does encourage trade. You could fly a Family ship.”
“We were disowned,” Jasyn said. “I want my own ship. I want to say where we fly, what cargo we carry. I don’t want the Family to dictate what we do.”
I heard echoes of my own desires and nodded in agreement.
Lady Rina seemed proud. “Well spoken. I think it would be advantageous to have someone who isn’t under Council control out there. You could be my eyes.”
“No,” Jasyn said. “We would be happy to send you reports, but we decide where to go.”
“Of course, dear.” Lady Rina patted Jasyn’s hand. “The three of you would be flying the ship. Together.”
We were interrupted by the reentry warning. I swallowed my last bite along with my unspoken comment about old ladies and matchmaking.
The Swan glided gracefully into normal space, living up to her name. Besht was a major crossroad between the outer worlds and the rich inner worlds. All of my life had been spent in the fringe and the outer worlds. This was the closest I’d ever come to the fabled inner worlds. Besht had more traffic in an hour than the places I’d ever been had in an entire day.
Lady Rina placed a call as soon as the turbulence of our down jump cleared. I only heard part of it, steering the ship through the mess of traffic took my entire concentration. I heard her mention Kile Wells, the dealer in odd collectibles. She got into a heated discussion with the person on the other end about Family and status. About that time, she moved her conversation to the other side of the lounge. She spent another ten minutes arguing before cutting the contact. She said nothing when she took her seat again, but her face was set in a nasty scowl.
We had a busy hour piloting the ship in and docking her at one of the five orbiting stations. The moment we received clearance, Lady Rina left, Estelle trailing behind.
“What now?” I asked.
“We wait,” Jasyn answered.
“We go get supplies,” I said, checking the fuel status.
“What do we need besides fuel?”
“You don’t leave until Lady Rina returns,” Caid said, appearing at the top of the stairs. I didn’t argue with him. The odds against winning were too high.
We spent an hour making a list. We checked everything, toiletries to spare charges for the handlights on board. I even peeked into Lady Rina’s cabin before losing my nerve and deciding if she needed anything, she would get it herself. Her presence was strong, even when she wasn’t there.
She returned with Estelle and an older man. He was short with dark hair, dressed in an elegant suit, and an angry scowl. Lady Rina cut off his protests with an abrupt wave of her hand. “The man you are looking for works for a company in Lueden. Here are directions and shuttle tickets.” She handed me a paper. “You and Jerimon have twelve hours. No more.”
The shuttle left in fifteen minutes from a dock across the station. We would have to hurry.
“We’ll be back in time,” I said. We had to be. Lady Rina didn’t put deadlines on things without meaning them.
The station was bigger and busier than any I’d ever been in. The stations in the outer system were utilitarian, mining and transfer points. Besht’s station was designed for passengers, high-paying customers for the big trans-system liners. Steel girdered ceilings hid behind huge lights that mimicked sunlight. Planters ran up the walls, greenery cascading down.
We barely made the shuttle, arriving at the ticket desk just as the last boarding call went out. The shuttle was almost full with only three empty seats left. Jerimon took the one in front between two very old, very wealthy ladies, to judge by the size of the gems festooning their fingers. I had a choice between sitting next to a very fat man or a boy who looked about ten. I chose the boy.
The launch warning sounded just as I sat. I clicked my lap belt closed.
The boy poked my arm. I glanced at him, then away. The shuttle lurched as it undocked. I clenched my hands o
n the armrests. I hated not being the one flying. I hated not seeing where we were going.
The boy poked the ship patch on my sleeve. “What’s that?”
“That’s the ship I fly.” I hoped the boy would pester someone else.
“What kind of ship looks like that?” He picked at the swan embroidered on the patch.
I pushed his hand away. “The ship doesn’t look like that. It’s named for a swan, a mythical bird.”
“Why?”
“Because that’s what the owner wanted to name it.”
“You aren’t the owner?”
“No.”
“Then what do you do?”
“I’m a pilot.” Outside the shuttle, the atmosphere of Besht screamed past.
“If you’re a pilot, how come you’re flying on a shuttle?” The boy picked his nose, then examined his finger before wiping it on his pants. “Why aren’t you flying it yourself?”
“Because I don’t work for the shuttle company.”
“Why not? Aren’t you good enough?”
“Did you know it’s rude to ask so many questions?” I swallowed nervously as the shuttle banked.
“Yeah. Mom says I’m not supposed to bother people with questions. She says I’m rude all the time. Don’t you know how to fly a shuttle?”
“I can fly shuttles, I’d just rather fly a ship.”
“What kind of ship?” He picked in his nose again.
“A big one.” I was hoping he would get more interested in his nose than me. It didn’t work. His eyes got big; he left his finger partly in his nose, forgotten.
“How big? One of those huge tankers? Or do you fly the big liners? Mom said she’d take me on one of those. We’re going to visit my dad on Vega next month.”
Vega was one of the inner worlds, those closest to the seat of the Empire; rich, settled, civilized worlds I never dreamed I’d ever see. I imitated Lady Rina and raised one eyebrow.
“He works there sometimes. He’s a Council representative.” The boy dismissed it as if it meant nothing.
I stared. This brat was a Council Member’s son? Each Sector of the Empire sent representatives to the Council of Worlds which ruled the Empire jointly with the Emperor. Many of the Council positions were hereditary, and all of them spoke of power and wealth.
The boy squirmed in his seat. “My dad wants to buy his own ship. Then I’ll get to watch when we land. Maybe I’ll even be his pilot.” He eyed me critically. “Maybe I’ll be the captain instead.”
“I used to be a captain,” I said before I could stop myself.
“What did you do?”
“I owned my own ship. It had problems and blew up.”
He laughed. “You’re funny. Everyone knows ships don’t blow up anymore.”
“Are you sure about that? Do you know what could go wrong right now with this shuttle?”
“Nothing,” he scoffed. “Shuttles are safe.”
“Not always. If the stabilizers failed, the shuttle would start rolling and break apart in the air.”
He stared with round eyes. “Do they do that?”
“Stabilizers fail all the time. Then it’s up to the pilot to bring the ship down safe.” I thought back to the training courses at the Academy. “Or the shield could fail. Then we’d burn up, like a big meteor. Or the fuel lines could break. If that happened, we’d either suffocate from the fumes or the whole engine stops and we crash. After we fall a long, long way.”
The boy stared, eyes so big they bulged.
His mother glared from the far seat. “How dare you scare him like that!” She wrapped her arm around him. “None of it’s true, Robert,” she said in a sickly sweet voice.
I looked forward, trying to ignore her. If her precious son had minded his own business I would never have scared him. It was his fault. I tapped my fingers on the armrests. I wanted off the shuttle. It drove me crazy not being in control.
The boy poked me in the arm again. I glanced down. He stuck his tongue out. I gave in to the impulse and stuck mine out, too, after making sure his mother was busy with her handcomp. He stuck his out farther and crossed his eyes. I crossed mine. He screwed up his face, thinking, then tugged his ears out and waggled his tongue back and forth. I was saved from thinking of a way to one-up him by the thump of wheels hitting the ground.
The boy’s mother glared her disapproval as she gathered her bag.
I pushed my way into the aisle and joined the line leaving the shuttle. I glanced over my shoulder. The boy was five people behind. He stuck his tongue out when he saw me. I shuffled forward, ignoring him.
Jerimon had one old lady on each arm. They clung to him, completely charmed. They both hugged him enthusiastically as he turned them over to their families.
I eyed them as I joined Jerimon. “Why do I get stuck with the brats?”
“Old ladies are my specialty. Is that the boy?” Jerimon gestured at the boarding gate.
The boy clomped along with his face screwed up in a scowl. He saw me watching and gave me a sly grin, daring me to tell his mother.
“He does a great imitation of you,” Jerimon said, laughter hiding behind his comment.
“Stuff it somewhere.” I looked for a map of the city.
“You should try to be more charming. You’d make fewer enemies and more friends that way.”
“Leave me alone, Jerimon.” I tried to make sense of the map at the entrance of the station.
“Dace, with a little effort, you could actually be likable.”
“Shut up, Jerimon.” I leaned close, squinting at the scale on the map. “We’ve got to cover over thirty miles of city. Any suggestions how?”
“We take the ground shuttle, right out there.” He pointed out the front door.
I was tempted to kick Jerimon, but the boy and his mother were leaving through the door in front of us. I didn’t want her filing a complaint against me. The boy grinned and stuck out his tongue.
Chapter Sixteen
It took us an hour to reach Lueden. We got off the tram at the main station. I looked at the address for Kile Wells, comparing it to the map on the wall. It was hopeless. I had no idea where we were supposed to go.
Jerimon took the paper away. “We go that way,” he said, pointing. “It’s only a few blocks.”
We walked from the station.
Jerimon stopped outside a large storefront with a sign advertising peculiarities and collectibles in letters four feet high. He pushed the door open then went inside. The street was clean, middle class, moderately busy with midday traffic. I had a prickling along my neck I’d learned not to ignore. Someone was watching. I ducked into the store.
The place was packed with junk. High-priced junk, I noticed as I wandered along the crowded aisles. Jerimon leaned on a desk at the back of the store, talking to a pretty girl. She was all dimples and curly red hair. Jerimon flirted for all he was worth.
I fingered a set of glass bottles in fanciful shapes, watching the street through the main window. A dark groundcar stopped in front of the store. Men in dark suits with suspicious bulges climbed out, spreading out from the car towards the store. I set the bottle on the shelf then hurried to the desk.
“Is there a back way out?” I asked the dimpled redhead.
“Why?” Jerimon asked.
I pointed to the front of the store.
The redhead frowned, sticking out her prettily plump lower lip. “You can’t go back there.”
“Who are they?” Jerimon asked.
“I don’t have any idea, but with our luck, they want us.” I stared the redhead down. “We’re using the back door.”
“You can’t!” She rose from her chair. She wore a very tight knitted dress that showed off a lot of curves and completely distracted Jerimon.
The front of the store crashed in a shower of glass. Men in dark suits poured inside, moving swiftly down the aisles of junk.
I grabbed Jerimon’s arm and lunged for the back door. The redhead screamed, prudently di
ving under the desk.
We slammed through the back door, letting it bang shut. The hall beyond was dim. I scrambled for a lock. It was a flimsy frame lock that wouldn’t stop anything. Jerimon darted into the office. He grabbed a stack of files, then crammed them into a bag hanging on the back of the door.
“She didn’t tell me who bought the Eggstone,” he panted as we ran out the back into an alley. “I hope the receipt is one of these papers.”
Men stepped into the mouth of the alley, men with big guns and dark suits. We skidded to a stop then ran the other way.
The alley narrowed and twisted behind the stores. The men shot their weapons. Projectiles snapped chips from the walls as we ran through the maze.
The alley opened into a street. Jerimon put on a burst of speed. More men in dark suits appeared at the far end of the alley. Jerimon slid to a stop on some garbage. I rammed into him.
“What now?” he asked.
I looked around frantically. Men with guns flanked us on both sides. Doors for shops opened into the alley. I rattled the nearest handle, pushing the door open. We ducked inside, slamming the door on the guns.
We’d just invaded a very busy kitchen. The chefs stared at us.
“Excuse us, please.” Jerimon smiled his most charming smile. He took my elbow, hustling me towards the front of the restaurant.
Two chefs with very big, very sharp cleavers shouted. We both put on speed, crashing out of the kitchen into the dining area. Jerimon swung the door shut with his heel. The chefs slammed into it, cursing loudly. We ran through the restaurant, threading our way between tables and astonished diners. We were almost at the door when I tripped over a dessert cart.
Pies went flying. A cream cake landed in one diner’s hair. Fruit creams hit the wall, splattering bright colors. Jerimon shoved me towards the door. Men swarmed the street, searching doorways. I shoved back.
“Those men are out there.” I wiped futilely at the chocolate spattered over my front.
“We’re dead if we stay here. Run for that alley across the street.”
I took a deep breath and slammed my way outside, trailing chocolate cream. I ran across the street and dove into the alley, Jerimon right on my heels. The chefs erupted from the restaurant, screaming and waving their cleavers. The men in dark suits scrambled to chase us down, pushing the chefs aside.