A Year and a Day

by Gail Daley

  It was a good thing they all had the upcoming Governor’s ball and packing for the coming journey to distract everyone, Katherine thought. They would be leaving for the base on Selene the day after the ball and she was able to keep everyone busy sorting what they would need for the trip and packing everything else for storage.

  The Governor’s ball was the last event before their departure for Vensoog and everyone was in a bustle to get ready. Katherine had decreed that her new family who attended should wear the Vensoog formal dress. The dress clothes were little more than ordinary dress made with finer fabrics and more jewelry but everyone seemed pleased with their outfits.

  The night of the Ball, everyone gathered in Katherine and Corrine’s quarters so she could check their ensembles.

  "Now remember," Katherine admonished the children, "I expect you all to be on your best behavior during dinner. If you don’t like something served you, just push it aside. I don’t want to hear any gagging or puking noises, understand?"

  She got "who me?" expressions from all five of them.

  Jayla sniffed. "Only babies and ill-bred brats do that stuff."

  Lucinda and Juliette both glared at her and Rupert smiled in a way that boded trouble.

  "I don’t see why we have to come anyway," Roderick complained. "There won’t be anything to do there."

  "You won’t have to stay very long," Katherine reminded him. Jayne will send the car to pick you up after dinner, and then you can play games until we get back."

  "I guess," Roderick said morosely.

  Zack laughed, but reinforced Katherine’s warning. It was a tight fit with all of them in the car as Katherine had been unable to secure her usual transport due to the heavy usage of the cars for this event. Corrine and Vernal had come separately, and watching them alight from the vehicle Corrine remarked in an aside to Vernal "reminds me of the time at Planting Festival when a bunch of us tried to see how many of us we could fit into an airboat."

  Vernal choked trying not to laugh. "Woman you’ll be the death of me yet!"

  "Hush! Here comes the Governor’s aide to present us," Katherine hissed.

  The dinner went off without any overt gagging or puking noises from the children, although Katherine noticed that a considerable amount of food seemed to disappear from the children’s plates without being eaten. Wisely, she said nothing about it.

  There was a dance after dinner and the Governor honored each of the Ladies of the three Clans with a dance in the order of their seniority so Katherine was first. Knowing this ahead of time, she had arranged for Zack to dance the first dance with Juliette and for Gideon to do the same with Jayla. Lucas drew Lucinda, and Rupert danced with Violet. Corrine got the Mayor. Roderick and Vernal were able to sit on the sidelines, but they would have to take a turn later.

  Katherine was unsurprised to see Colonel Lewiston appear with Donna Sabina of Clan DeMedici, having heard that the other clan had accepted his unit in much the same way she had accepted Gideon’s. She was taken aback to see Darla Lister accompanying them, not having realized that Lister was so high ranking. Nü-Huang Ishmara of Clan Yang was accompanied by a tall oriental looking man who despite owning the name Captain Mike Mullins was of obvious Asian ancestry.

  This wasn’t unusual as once men immigrated into space, names and ethnic backgrounds soon had little in common with their early origins. Before this trip, Katherine had not previously had many dealings with Nü-Huang Toshi of the Yang Clan. Since Yang clan holdings were on the Northern side of Port Recovery where the capital city of Vensoog was located and Glass Isle was in the south, they had never had cause to negotiate against each other in Parliament.

  Five dances later, she was finally able to get away from protocol partners and dance with Zack. The dance was an old-fashioned waltz and their steps matched perfectly. It was the first real chance they had to be alone since returning from the police station. With seven children underfoot and everyone packing for the journey, privacy had been a scarce commodity.

  "Are we having fun yet?" she asked.

  "Well, I am now," he retorted. "Actually, dancing with the girls was fun if a little awkward. I don’t think any of them have been taught how to dance with a man."

  "Humn, dancing is quite popular at home. I guess we will have to employ a dancing master. For the boys as well, I suppose?"

  "Well I didn’t get a good look at Roderick and Violet, but Vernal told me it was quite funny watching them step all over each other."

  While Katherine and Zac were preoccupied with each other, the children in question had finally managed to escape adult supervision long enough to slip into an alcove decorated with enormous potted plants for a private conference.

  "Well, at least that’s over!" Rupert exclaimed.

  "Oh, I don’t know, it was kind of nice dancing with Uncle Zack," Lucinda replied.

  "Shhh!" hissed Juliette. "There’s that Darla Lister. I want to hear what she’s saying because I’m almost sure it was her that sent us to Ole Ben’s Cyclomart."

  "Those were Grouter’s men who jumped us," protested Roderick. "I saw them once when they were reporting from a collection job."

  "Yeah, but they were hanging out around the base watching us," pointed out Lucinda. "I saw them. They couldn’t get inside the buildings but they were skulking over by the gate a lot."

  "If we saw them maybe Lister did too," suggested Juliette.

  "Everyone knew about Grouter meeting with the base command to try and get us back after we stole his files," Rupert pointed out.

  "You’re thinking she saw them and told them where we were going just make trouble, aren’t you? suggested Lucinda.

  "Sssh! Here they come," Juliette warned again.

  Darla and Colonel Lewiston had paused just in front of the alcove in the midst of a heated argument.

  "I’m telling you to lay off Lady Katherine. What if those thugs you sicced on her had lived? They might have queered our deal with the DeMedici’s if they talked."

  "They didn’t know who I was," she retorted.

  Lewiston snorted. "Don’t bet your life on it. And I’m telling you, if you queer this for us you will be betting your life."

  She glared at him. "Don’t threaten me Major. You mess with me and I might just let it slip to that DeMedici bitch about the stuff you’ve been feeding her."

  "Go ahead. Submit won’t show up on a tox screen even if she believed you. Besides, I haven’t given her much of it. As long as I perform in bed she’s pretty pleased with me."

  "Did you meet with Niche about the weapons? I want them loaded onto the ship tonight," he continued without a pause.

  She shrugged. "Already done. He’s got them listed on the manifest as some kind of ore they want on the planet. I’m more interested to know how you plan to sneak them onto Vensoog. Distance weapons like those are on the banned import list and I hear they’re pretty strict about screening for it on Vensoog."

  "Oh, that’s going to be easy. Once we approach orbit, they’re going to be dropped out the airlock during an emergency drill. Everyone will think a meteor clipped us and the stuff will just fall into orbit. We give the right signal and go to meet it at our landing coordinates. All we have to do is pick them up."

  They moved off still talking in low voices.

  The five children exchanged glances. "I smell a rat," said Lucinda.

  "They’re planning something really bad," Violet’s voice was shaking.

  "Oh, yeah," Rupert responded. "I think we need to find out more about this. Maybe we can stop it."

  "Should we tell Katherine?" Lucinda asked.

  "Not yet," Juliette responded. "Let’s wait until we have more information. Maybe we can find out what those weapons are going to be used for."

  "How many of Grouter’s spy buttons did you filch when we left?" Roderick asked.

  "About thirty," Juliette said. "The real trick will be getting close enough to Lister to plant one on her."

  "Yeah, but it’s got to be on some
thing she always has with her, like her boots or something," Lucinda said.

  "We need to plant one on him too," Rupert interjected.

  "I heard the Clan heads and their families are all going to be on the same shuttle up to the moon where the ships dock, maybe we can try to do it then," suggested Roderick. "We should all carry one so if any one of us gets the chance we plant it."

  "Hey, I think she’s leaving," Rupert reported.

  "Let’s see where she goes," suggested Lucinda.

  Ignorant of the children’s plotting, Zack looked down at Katherine as they spun gracefully around the room, "Are you finished with your duty dances?" Zack asked.

  "Yes, thank goodness," she replied and then gasped as he executed a whirling spin and danced her out of the ballroom and onto the heated terrace.

  Once outside he took led her down into the moonlit gardens. "I thought we could do with some time alone," he said. "Every time I try to get you alone we get interrupted..."

  He tilted her chin up and fastened his mouth on hers. Katherine yielded eagerly. She had wanted this too. After a few minutes however, it became apparent that Zack had more in mind than a few kisses.

  Katherine caught his hand as he was attempting to untie the lacing on the front of her dress one-handed. "We can’t do this here," she protested.

  He sighed, his hand on her rump tightening, making her acutely aware of his arousal.

  "If we don’t, we won’t have another chance before we make planetfall," he said, sliding his lips down her neck. His other hand left the stays and cupped her breast, sliding his thumb over her aroused nipple.

  "I know," she breathed, wanting to give in, but just then, there was a giggle from the bushes behind them, followed by a man’s laugh.

  "I don’t think we’re alone here either," she said, sobering.

  He made a growling noise and dropped his hand, looking around for the other couple. He didn’t find them, but he did spot Darla Lister striding through the gardens. Unfortunately, he saw the child sized shadows following her as well.

  "Dammit!" he exclaimed, grabbing Katherine’s hand and moving to intercept the shadows. He caught Rupert by the shoulder and pulled him out into the moonlight.

  "Alright, everyone, out where I can see you," he ordered. Five very sheepish children stepped out of the shadows and regarded him with identical defiant gazes.

  "I know, this might seem like a good place to play hide and seek," Katherine remarked, "but it really isn’t. I think it’s time for us to take leave of the Governor and return to base, don’t you Zack?"

  Remembering what they had almost interrupted, and what else they might encounter out here with the adults taking advantage of the moonlight and darkness to play sexual games, he agreed.

  The next morning on the shuttle trip, it was Violet who managed to plant the bug on Darla Lister. By "accidentally" tripping on the way back to the bathroom, she managed to drop hers onto Darla’s boot.

  Bending over to help Violet back to her feet, Rupert was able to do the same to Lewiston who was sitting next to Lister.

  Once settled in their quarters aboard ship, the children found it relatively easy to take turns sneaking out to follow Lister and Lewiston because Katherine as well as one of Jayne’s toddlers was suffering from a bout of space sickness and it was almost two weeks before she was back to normal. Since the spy buttons had a limited range, the receiver had to be close to hear and record the conversations.

  Although generously proportioned for a free trader, The Dancing Gryphon wasn’t an especially large ship and they had been in space for several weeks before the inevitable happened. Lister spotted them hanging around and suspected she was being followed. Her angry response and the resulting hullaballoo caused a stink that ended with them all up before the Captain.

  Captain’s Mast

  UPON receiving the summons to the Captain’s Mast, Katherine had taken care to dress herself, Juliette and Zack formally. She had explained to an uneasy Juliette that the Captain was going to make an inquiry in the circumstances that had led to her being locked into an unheated, storage closet. The summons had requested only Katherine, Juliette and Zack attend; however, Rodrick and Rupert had insisted on coming with them. Suspecting the boys were fully capable of sneaking out and following them anyway, Katherine had reluctantly acquiesced.

  When the Dancing Gryphon had been used primarily as a troop transport during the war, the military had made several changes to her inside decks to accommodate both officers and troops. Captain Hidelberg had converted one of the re-conditioned officer’s lounge areas into an outsized office that served as a meeting room for himself and his crew.

  To hold court, the Captain presided behind a sizable table. To the left of the table, stood a large flight cage occupied by a beautifully plumed Screecher. Although considerably bigger, the Screechers loosely resembled the parrots of Old Earth, with their colorful, brightly hued, jewel-toned feathers. Screechers were highly prized for their ability to mimic any sounds they heard and could be trained to repeat it back if called upon to do so. Unfortunately, their beauty was offset by their irascible dispositions; when disturbed or irritated which was frequently, they tended to shriek profanities at very high decibels.

  Two husky crewmembers directed Katherine’s party to one side of the front row. She was unsurprised to note that Donna Sabina DeMedici had been invited to attend as well as Lieutenant Lister. Donna DeMedici was accompanied by Colonel Lewiston who had been Lister’s commanding officer. Since Donna DeMedici had accepted Colonel Lewiston’s application for his unit to become members of Clan DeMedici her presence was required by custom. Perhaps Sabina DeMedici had not objected to his patronizing manner during the interview Katherine speculated, or perhaps he had learned something when she had thanked him and then dismissed him from consideration. He had certainly not been pleased with her rejection.

  Captain Hidelberg rapped the table lightly with a large crystal. "Be seated, please," he said. "This formal hearing will be recorded into the ship’s log. Captain’s Mast, Star Date 3841, Dancing Gryphon, Captain Hidelberg Presiding, concerning the endangerment of the minor Lady Juliette O’Teague’ni Jones. Please step forward Lady Juliette."

  He gestured to the chair set sideways between the audience and his table. "Lady Juliette, do you know who I am?"

  "Yes, sir," Juliette glanced apprehensively at Katherine and received a reassuring smile and nod. She turned back to the Captain.

  "Do you know the difference between a truth and a lie?" he asked

  "Yes, sir," she gulped.

  "Good. I expect you to truthfully answer all my questions."

  "Yes sir," she said again.

  "What were you doing in that particular corridor, young lady?"

  Juliette straightened in her chair. "It’s a game sir, to learn about the ship."

  The captain’s eyebrows rose. "Tell me about this game."

  "Grouter, that’s the administrator at the Placement Center where we were put during the war after our parents died, used to send us kids out in the city to—well to do errands and carry messages, I guess. He wanted us to learn how to get around and not get lost, so he taught us this game. A couple of us would go around the city, spot landmarks, and come back and draw our own map. It’s kind of boring shut in the cabin all day so we started the game up again. We didn’t mean to cause a problem, sir. And we didn’t go anywhere that wasn’t marked okay for passengers. The idea was to find the places we weren’t supposed to go and not go there."

  "You said we, who was with you?"

  "My cousin Violet, sir. Violet is pretty young and still learning the game, so I was with her."

  "You said you didn’t go anyplace that wasn’t open, so how did you get into the locked storage closet?"

  Juliette jerked her chin at Corporal Lister. "She put me in there. She tried for Violet too, but I kicked and bit her and Violet got away."

  Darla Lister jumped to her feet. "That’s a lie!"

  Juliette
flinched but glared back at her defiantly.

  "Sit down, Miss Lister," the Captain ordered sternly, and she reluctantly resumed her seat, whispering angrily to the Colonel.

  "That action seems a little extreme Milady", the Captain commented. "Do you know why Miss Lister, wanted to put you in that closet?"

  "She said we were following her and spying on her," Juliette replied. "She said—"

  Darla jumped to her feet again and this time she sprang at Juliette, "You lying little Bitch, I’ll teach you to lie about—"

  She broke off with a squeak. Katherine had blocked her lunge at Juliette, and spun her away from the child, dealing Darla a backhanded blow with her fist as she did so. Reeling backward, Darla’s extended arm slapped the Screecher’s cage, setting it swinging violently. Darla then tripped over the crewman who was rushing in from behind to restrain her, and the two of them went down in a pile in front of the desk. The Screecher let forth with a stream of vituperative complaint in five languages. Colonel Lewiston and Donna DeMedici were on their feet. Out of the corner of her eye, Katherine noted Zack had come up beside her, and that the two boys had protectively flanked Juliette.

  Grabbing the Screecher’s rocking cage, Captain Hidelberg bellowed for order. The outer door burst open and several more crewmembers rushed in, lining the walls ready to restore order on instructions from their Captain. He gestured for the nearest crewman, a large muscular woman, to restrain Darla Lister and make sure she stayed in her seat.

  "Thank you, Milady," he said to Juliette. "You may return to your seat now. The rest of you sit down, and you shut up!" he added to the Screecher, who ruffled his feathers indignantly but obeyed even though he continued to mutter rebelliously to himself.

  "Now, Miss Lister, what were you doing in that corridor?"

  "It’s Lieutenant, Lister," she said sullenly, "and I was taking a walk. Those nosy brats were following me. I just wanted to scare them a little and teach them a lesson. I would have come back and let them out."