“Another problem?” he asked with dread.
“Yes. It’s with the League. Situation here is changing – hell, you know all about that. But the Family Heads are getting jumpy. Most are already at Rendezvous Alpha, but we’ve received word that they’re fretting. We need an Yrden there to calm things down, to get them all talking together. And that means me or you, big brother.”
Jaswinder felt her stomach clench even tighter. This was the wrong way to go about it. Matt didn’t need any more problems dumped on him. But Johannes didn’t pay any attention to the warning nudge she game him.
He merely smiled and continued. “I’d like to go, but I just royally pissed off the Paxtons, what with my taking a shuttle down to Nigeria, getting their government all up in arms about encroachment on their sovereignty.”
Matt shook his head. “That was a stupid and reckless thing to do, Johannes. What were you thinking?”
“No avoiding it, Matt. Either that, or my whole project fell apart. Nonetheless, the Paxtons have it in for me, now. If I go to Rendezvous Alpha as the Yrden rep, I won’t calm anything down. You’re going to have to do it.”
And Johannes had just killed Matt.
“I can’t handle that, too.”
“No ‘too’ about it, Matt. I take over here. I’m up to speed. You heard Jaswinder. I’ve talked to all the groups already.” He paused. “Matt, you’ve always pressed me to accept responsibility. I’m ready. Please let me hold up the Yrden end here while you soft-talk the others. I promise, no reckless plays, no nothing like that. I can handle this.”
“You sure?”
“I’m absolutely sure,” Johannes said with a confidence that almost made Jaswinder believe him.
Matt stood. He looked shabby. Thin and wasted.
“When do you want to take over?” She could hear the hope in his voice. Johannes, despite her doubts, had done it. Inside, she rejoiced.
“I think I just did. Matt, we have a shuttle waiting for you. Renata will take you and Ellen to Twin Star, and Twin Star will light out for Rendezvous Alpha soon as you’re on board. I talked to Ellen. She’s got three people helping her pack your things.”
“But I—”
“I’ve got your notes, Brother. You always keep good notes.” He put all the surety into his voice that he could find. “I’m on top of this. And Jaswinder tells me that her theories will work in practice. She guarantees it, just like she guaranteed it twenty years ago.”
“I guarantee it.” Jaswinder tried to match Johannes’s confidence – something she didn’t really feel.
Johannes brought his hands together in a sharp clap, and indicated the walls, ceiling, everything. “See? Now, this young girl won’t move fast, but we’ll get her where she’s going, safe and sound.”
Matt looked about him, and a smile finally came to his face. Jaswinder fought back the tears.
“It’s your office now, Johannes.”
“Excellent. Let me walk you to the shuttle.”
Hank Lowe stood outside waiting for them. Johannes took charge, like he was born to lead the Family.
“Hank, give Renata a call. Tell her that her shuttle requires its pilot.”
Hank shook Matt’s hand. “I’ll see you soon.”
Jaswinder took Matt’s left arm, while Johannes went to his right, and they walked him to the shuttle.
“Just how badly did you tick off the Paxtons?” Matt looked a little pensive.
Johannes laughed. “I left a one hundred-year-old bottle of single malt Scotch on the shuttle. Perhaps you should open it when you speak to Fred. Have a few belts each before you bring up my name.”
Matt laughed, too. How long since she had heard him laugh? “That bad?”
“What can I say, he’s an excitable man.”
They met Ellen in the landing bay. Jaswinder hugged her goodbye, and then waited for the world to fall in on her. With no need to pretend, with Matt safely aboard the shuttle, Johannes would walk away.
But he didn’t. He stayed with her, even after Hank left for other duties, after complimenting Johannes on the job he did.
She had to agree with that. “You did do good work, Johannes. Now, tell me the truth, just how ‘pissed off’ as you put it, is Fred Paxton?”
“Fred? Don’t know that he’s pissed off at all. Yes, I ruffled some feathers, but it’s pretty calm as far as that goes. And anything that arises in the Paxton camp because of my foray, well Jill will quash it – if she hasn’t already.”
“Jill?”
“We may never be friends, but working on that mission made us, as she puts it, comrades. She knows I only did what needed doing. She agrees with it.”
Well, at least there was that. For a moment she had feared the worst. She walked on, and he stayed with her. Perhaps, just perhaps. She felt a small hope growing in her. Finally, he started looking around.
“Um, where are you leading me?”
Stomach jumping, she said, “To our quarters.”
When he didn’t say anything, she stopped, swung around and hugged him as if she’d never let go. “I’ve missed you so much. So very much.”
And now she would find out for sure.
“I’ve missed you, too.” Then the practical, logical Johannes returned. “I thought you only interrupted your work so that we could get Matt out.”
She smiled at him. “Everything can wait for an hour.”
He sighed. “Actually, it can’t. I believe we’re running on hours now, not days or weeks, and certainly not months. But I can give the order to get underway over the comm.”
Damn and blast that. Just like Wen Carson said about her, Jaswinder Damn-and-Blast-Her Saroya. But he didn’t go off to find a comm. He kept walking with her. One more try.
“And after, you can bring me up to date on Owen. He came over from Venture, but I really didn’t have time to talk. He seemed excited about someone named Sharon. Family member, or otherhire?”
Johannes coughed. What did that mean?
“Um, Major Sharon Temple, United States of North America Space Force. Military liaison to FTL-1.”
“Oh, my.” Owen hadn’t mentioned that.
“I’m afraid our boy has become a man.”
“Oh, my!” Or that. Merciful heavens.
“She’s not as old as her rank might suggest.” Johannes said, as if that made a world of difference. “She planned to use him to get information about the Family and what we knew about the pirates, but I think he charmed her instead. She warned me to get him off the station, and to get both Owen and myself out of the system, ASAP. The Space Force is going to move against us – at least on FTL-1 – very, very soon.”
They reached the door. He still hadn’t left her.
“Tell me more,” Jaswinder said as she opened it. “Later.”
And when Johannes walked with her into her quarters, took off his jacket, and dropped it on the chair, she felt the tears start to come. Maybe she hadn’t lost everything after all.
Johannes called up the Command Centre.
“This is Captain Johannes Yrden. I’ve just taken over command of Haida Gwaii. Give me the status of our engines.”
Bill Tannon must have already informed them, for the shift leader didn’t question his authority.
“Engines ready. What are your orders, sir?”
“Bring in the steel-workers if they’re outside. Ensure everything is secured, and then start her moving.”
“In what direction, sir?”
“Away from Earth; away from the Moon. Get her moving with some dispatch, and then cut acceleration so the steel-workers can go back out.”
His confidence engendered a new feeling. She could hear it in the shift commander’s voice.
“Aye, aye, sir. You realize that the gravetic drive won’t impart much acceleration.”
“I know. As long as we’re moving, I’m happy. I’ll come up in an hour or so, and you can brief me.”
“Be glad to see you.”
Johanne
s cut the comm. Jaswinder bit her lip. She had promised him an hour, but her lab awaited her. She needed to get back there. Leaving would cause damage to her relationship with her husband; staying might imperil everyone. How could she make the choice?
“You said you had a hour,” Johannes said, that old grin coming to him. “Let’s make use of it.”
Sometimes one had to do something for oneself. Feeling suddenly twenty years younger, she said, “Your courtesan awaits you.”
And Johannes burst out laughing pure, joyful laughter.
She smiled. “Shall we play a game of chess?”
“Checkmate,” he replied, drawing her to him, bending to kiss her lips.
“In one?”
“In one – unless the lady has objections.”
She didn’t.
* * *
Thursday 26 August
Johannes Yrden finished reading Matt’s notes. That brought him up to speed as of a week ago. After that the notes had lost coherence. If only he had come over earlier. But, if he had, would they have received the warning from Major Temple? Would Owen still be on FTL-1, in Temple’s embrace?
He shook his head. He had no time to woolgather. His trip to the Command Centre had proved useful. He’d met Shift Commander Quentin, and had seen Owen taking a shift on detectors. Owen hadn’t given him anything but a formal greeting, but he hadn’t expected it, either. They both had their duties. Time enough for personal relations later.
With the gravetic drives slowly pushing the station away from the Moon’s pull, the steel-workers had an off-shift to play with their children, relax, do whatever they wanted. From the notes that Matt had left, they deserved the break, and he decided that a full twenty-four hour acceleration wasn’t uncalled for.
Tired men and women make mistakes. The steel-workers would work all the better, all the faster when they returned. They had actually cheered him when he broke the news.
And his decisiveness had produced a sudden uptick in morale. At least a dozen people had commented on it.
“Johannes?”
He triggered the comm. “Yes, Nordine?”
“There’s a Mr Brian Richardson on the line for you from Topside One.”
Johannes froze. Richardson? He felt a twenty-year anger rise in him. “Put him through.”
“Hello, Matt. Brian Richardson here.” Then came a pause. “You’re not Matt Yrden.”
“Johannes Yrden, Mr Richardson.”
The man pursed his lips. “Please put your brother on. I need to talk to the Family Trading League Head.”
“I’m in charge of the Families in the Sol system for the moment, Mr Richardson. And I can’t think of any good reason to talk with you.” The anger started his heart pumping faster. He felt an adrenaline rush.
“I don’t have time for old quarrels at the moment. This is business – and it may have something to do with my last meeting with Matt and your wife.”
Johannes sat back, stunned. “You met with Matt and Jaswinder?” He couldn’t believe it. “Where?”
“There. On Haida Gwaii.”
No. He had to be lying. “Here? I can’t believe Jaswinder would meet with you.”
“She invited me. I didn’t reach out.”
Insanity. “Why?”
“Venture had just brought back word from the Earth-African Nations Waypoint-2 buoy. They found a recording detailing the loss of an Amalgamated ship.” Richardson gave him a steady look that seemed to imply something. “Ms Yrden wanted to brief me on it.”
Okay. Now it made sense. But Jaswinder wouldn’t have reached out to Brian Richardson personally. Richardson must have been the one in charge. And, of course, the Families would have had to let Amalgamated know of the dangers posed by the USNA patrol ships.
“And this conversation has what, exactly, to do with that?”
Richardson looked relieved at his change of tone. “I don’t know that it has anything to do with it, but we just lost another ship.”
Johannes swallowed. “To pirates?”
“We don’t know. Amalgamated 487 was supposed to jump from Io Station, and should have long ago arrived in Earth Space. She hasn’t, and we’ve had no word from her.”
“My condolences.” And he didn’t mean that in any sort of sarcastic way. “Have you notified their families?”
“Thank you. We’re still not sure what happened. But we’ve listed them as missing. My problem is that I have eighty farmers on Topside One. They are part of a 240-person group heading for Liberty. I have no ship to put them on, and won’t for another week – at least. So, I’m hoping a Family ship will accept a contract to take them to Liberty.”
Johannes brought his head back in surprise. “You’d need three Family ships for two hundred and forty.”
“Only one. As I said, I’ve got 80 people here. I don’t want to send them down and, now, nothing is coming up. We had put a hold on the other two shuttles, but now there’s just nothing. The only shuttles moving up from the USNA are Family shuttles.”
And he hadn’t heard of that. Did this have anything to do with what Major Temple had warned them of?
He pressed his lips together. He might hate Brian Richardson, but this was business – and he wouldn’t turn it down. The Families would rightfully kick his butt if he did.
“Stand by.”
He opened a file.
“Mr Richardson?”
“Yes?”
“The Nakamura’s have a ship due here in four days. She may be able to take some if not most or all of the eighty farmers off your hands.”
“What about Venture? Or Maid Marion? Or Sendai Maru? They’re here now.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that, and I’m not trying to put you off. Those three have full complements of passengers, or soon will. We have prior commitments that we must discharge faithfully. But you are absolutely first in line for Kobe Maru. As soon as she drops, I’ll contact her captain, and put him on to you.”
“I appreciate that, Captain Yrden – especially as no more shuttles are coming up. With none coming up, I don’t have any to send the farmers back down on. If you understand me.”
Double meanings.
“It is worrisome, Mr Richardson. These are troubling times. Unless you have something to add, I have to go.”
Richardson gave him a knowing smile. “I have nothing further. Thank you, Captain Yrden.”
Johannes disconnected, and then cursed. This on top of Major Temple’s warning didn’t bode well at all. He had to warn everyone. And, according to Jaswinder, they needed further bolstering – which couldn’t take place as long as Haida Gwaii accelerated. Should he stop that, and send the steel-workers back out?
His hand made it halfway to the comm before he dragged it back. No. They had to do two things to jump. One: complete the bolstering and the laying of the field nodes; two: get away from the Moon. If he stopped the one, he would only have to start it up again later. It made no difference. Give the steel-workers their break.
On the other hand.
His hand went back to the comm. He’d bypass Nordine on this one.
A familiar face appeared.
“Jill, it’s Johannes Yrden. How are things going?”
She stared the screen, and he felt as if she stared at him in person. He well knew how things were going. He got all the reports.
“Fine, fine. Almost finished. What’s up?”
“Brian Richardson from Amalgamated Shipping called me up. Seems they’ve lost another ship, leaving eighty farmers stranded on Topside One. He wants them off, and has contracted with us to get them off.”
Her eyes went wide with outrage. “You’re joking!”
“Perfectly serious. Now, listen carefully. Nakamura’s have Kobe Maru dropping on the 30th. I’ve told him we’ll try to get the farmers off to Liberty on her. But, if there’s any problem with that, we might be faced with taking them back down to Earth – where they came from. Richardson rightly doesn’t want eighty extra mouths to feed.”
/>
He had her full attention, now.
“Why can’t he drop them back where they came from?”
He gave her a grave nod. “Exactly. He tells me that no more shuttles are coming up from the USNA at this time. That means he has nothing to send them down on. Only Family shuttles are moving. So, I want you to be prepared to divert sufficient shuttles to help him out.”
She went silent, her head tilted to one side. When she spoke, she spoke slowly. “And that’s only after the 30th?”
He smiled for her. “And only if Nakamura’s ship can’t take them.”
“Because there’s no traffic between Earth and Topside One just now.”
“Exactly. We might not even have to call on your shuttles. So, consider it a little advance warning. Just in case.”
She gave him a short, sharp nod. “Consider me warned, then. Thank you, Johannes. I’ll make sure that our scheduling allows for that possibility.”
Okay, that made it one down. Jill understood the true meaning of his message, and would pass it on to the other ships by workboat or shuttle. That left Venture.
He taped a short note for Bettina, grabbed the datastick, and headed for the control centre.
“How are we doing, Quentin?” he asked the shift commander.
“Still accelerating.”
“Are we? I don’t feel anything.”
“I’m not surprised. The gravetic engines don’t exactly match a full burn on a scoutship. But, trust me, we’re moving.”
“Thank you.” He looked over to the detector station, where Owen sat second to a Fontaine.
“Owen.” He motioned his son over.
“Yes?”
“You’re now off-shift. I’m sending you back to Venture.”
He could see the outrage in his son’s eyes, but the boy at least had some self-discipline. He stood, took his leave of Fontaine, then the Shift Commander.
“Owen Yrden, leaving the Command Centre under orders.”
“Very well. You’re relieved,” Quentin told him.
Once the door to the Command Centre slid closed, however, Owen’s fury burst.
“Dad—”
“Not here. I’ll walk you to your quarters to pick up your luggage. If, after you hear what I have to say, you want to start a fight, well and good. We’ll have it out there.”
Not With A Whimper: Survivors Page 32
