"I have heard disturbing rumors, Commander," Salinas said suddenly. "My counterpart on New Cornwall has been told that we are going to be accused of these terrible attacks on local shipping?"
"A rumor or Coalition agitprop, Ambassador," Li said dismissively. "That is all."
"Of course. I am simply concerned about the damage this might do to our standing. We must do everything we can to prove it nothing but falsehood, a mistake, or a vicious lie by the Coalition."
"Agreed. And rest assured, I am doing what I must on that matter, Ambassador." Li grinned at her. "It will be handled."
* * *
There were several pirate bands operating in the vicinity of the Trifid Nebula. Each had different characteristics. The Tokarevs of Cyrilgrad, for instance, allowed merchants to pay for protection and not only left them alone but protected them while openly attacking the League whenever the opportunity presented itself. Harr'al pirates raided ships for slaves as much as cargo. The pirate ships operating out of Trinidad Station had varying codes of honor, but all agreed not to target each other and not to kill spacers out of hand, since independent cargo ships were necessary to the station's economy. A vessel known on Trinidad Station was typically left alone, as well, pirate or not. Pirates from the Aland system, on the other hand, used kidnapping and ransoms to supplement their income.
And then there were the Tash'vakal, a reptilian species like the Saurians. But while Saurians were bipeds, the Tash'vakal were a hexalimbed species with segmented bodies that allowed them to use their limbs as hands or feet. The species was a divided one with no central government, and clans and tribes were still central to Tash'vakal social organization. Some of those groups became space-dwelling life-forms over the centuries, acclimated to living in low-G and zero-G conditions, so they became nomadic, going to planets only to pick up the materials needed to maintain their sustenance. For many such nomads, the line between trader and pirate blurred, as most were willing to steal what they needed if it could not be easily acquired.
The Mek'taman Clan was closer to the pirate side and threw in the willingness to be mercenaries while they were at it. In recent months, they'd grown desperate, which was the only reason they would consider a deal with Chantavit Li.
Ship-Lord Jastavi of the Pahknabi presented the offer to his fellows and to the clan's chief, the venerable female Lamat, Ship-Lord of the Vanarak. Lamat's reign had been long and fruitful, but recent setbacks were making it tenuous. The Mek'taman were likely to remove her if fortunes didn't change soon, which was precisely why Jastavi presented it to her first and won her support. He had every intention of succeeding her as Clan Chief and knew that her endorsement and success with it would go far in securing that title.
The council meeting was aboard Vanarak, as was custom in the Mek'taman. The Ship-Lords, sixteen in all, were arranged around a circular table of green plastic construction, their segmented bodies resting on cushioned seats built to comfortably accommodate their forms. Their scaled skin tended to dark reds and browns, unlike planet-dwelling Tash'vakal, who had lighter colors due to their frequent exposure to UV rays from stars. Each Ship-Lord had access to food and drink, provided as by custom by the Chief, with each also having a taster present to prevent poisonings—hosting Ship-Lords would be insulted to not see a taster, since it would imply a fellow Ship-Lord thought they were too stupid to think of poisoning food. The Vanarak's meat vats provided fresh slabs of delicious, raw skamar, a mammalian food species from their homeworld, and even tastier slices of human-provided bakhon. Aeroponically grown tsham provided the vegetable nutrients to round out the scrumptious meal, and flavored sugar water would wash it down.
Opposition came from Ship-Lord Tresak of the Turavi. He was a distant cousin of Lamat, but there was no familial loyalty there. He was also a traditionalist. "We have remained outside of the human conflict so far," Tresak argued, his middle limbs bringing up a container of flavored sugar water for his upper right hand to grip. He drank from it, both to wet his throat and to provide the hydration he needed for the moment. "You would commit us to working with the outsider humans."
"They offer us new ships, Lord Tresak," Lamat said, "and resources. Pickings have been lean."
"Only because you insist on remaining in this area of space," Tresak countered. "We should move to the Pektak Nebula." He meant what the humans called the Omega Nebula. "The hunting grounds there are fresh."
"And it is too near the Kal'gevak Clan," Jastavi countered. "They have more ships than we do. We would be conquered or destroyed."
"The feud is old. They would lose too much in a fight."
Ship-Lord Savakak of the Iltamak spoke up. "A compromise, honored Lords?" She was a younger female, still capable of laying eggs, and Jastavi envied Ship-Lord Hektam of the Ses'shek for his marriage alliance with her. "Our chief is correct that the offer is most generous for the recovery of just one human. We can intercept and overwhelm this vessel Shadow Wolf with but a quarter of our ships. Then, upon payment, we depart for Pektak with enough bounty to offer the Kal'gevak a peace gift. Perhaps even this human ship will serve."
"The ship is too small to be of much use," noted another Ship-Lord. "They would be insulted. What would we do with it?"
"If they surrender the human we are being sent to claim, nothing," Jastavi proposed. "As you said, their ship is of little use. I doubt they have enough food to be worth the trouble of seizing it. And if not…" He grinned and let his tongue flicker, a pleased gleam in his black eyes. "It has been some time since I dined on human flesh. It is a delicacy to be savored, much like their bakhon." He held up a strip of the same.
"There would be too few humans to be worth the effort of slaughtering for food," Savakak hissed dismissively. "You know how they get about it!"
"They are as bad as Saurians," Hektam pitched in, agreeing with his wife and ally.
"Few species enjoy the full range of meat," Lamat agreed. Undoubtedly, she felt her silence until then to be sagacious. Jastavi felt otherwise. "But regardless of how we deal with the Shadow Wolf itself, the deal is sound. I call upon the Ship-Lords to concur."
Jastavi beat Savakak to seconding the call. Tresak, predictably, voted no, as did five other Ship-Lords. That left ten votes in favor.
"Ship-Lord Tresak, Ship-Lord Jastavi, Ship-Lord Keshav, you will join me for the attack?" Lamat asked. "The human Li has provided us the quantum entanglement signature his agent's tracker uses. We will ambush them before they arrive at the Lusitania system."
"So the clan wills," Tresak said, a glare in his glittering gray eyes as he looked to Jastavi. "I will prepare my ship for combat at once. Victory for the clan!"
"Victory for the clan!" the entire council echoed.
22
Henry waited until they jumped out of Harron's system before he went to bed. Given the day’s events, he was tired enough to fall asleep almost immediately.
Unfortunately, that didn’t guarantee a restful sleep. Instead, he found himself in the familiar dream about Phi Philomena and the Laffey. He spent the nightmare screaming at himself not to push the drives and listening to the deaths of his crew while fusion-heated plasma surged from section to section of the ship, killing everyone bit by bit.
He woke up and tried to go back to sleep but couldn't. As it always did, the dream left him too agitated. It brought back too many terrible memories and with them the horrible feeling that he'd let them down. He'd failed to get justice for their needless deaths.
With sleep evading him, Henry decided on a small meal to ease the grumble in his stomach. He went to the galley and put together a sandwich from the food stores, roast beef with slices of golden-hued New Virginia cheddar. With the food and a glass of water, he sat down to partake.
The solution of what to do on Lusitania dominated his thoughts. Jules's fate continued to be his priority, so fulfilling Caetano’s orders was at the top of the list. But practical necessity made throwing away Vitorino as a client problematic, to say the least. Independent
traders couldn't be selective about who they worked for. He highly doubted Caetano would be the type to bribe the League to export valuable ores and materials to Lusitania, whatever she said about replacing Vitorino as an employer.
The galley door slid open, and Brigitte walked in. She was out of her work jumpsuit and in a plain short-sleeved T-shirt and gray pants, implying she was soon to go to bed herself. "Everything good with the drives?" he asked as she approached the pantry and fridge.
"They're humming right along, sir," she answered, searching for what Henry assumed was going to be a late snack before she went to her quarters. "No problems."
"Good." Henry appreciated hearing it. He watched her retrieve food, and as a thought went through his mind, he let out a small chuckle.
She looked his way. "What is it, sir?"
"That damn Mohawk," he said, indicating her hair. "I still don't get the point."
Brigitte smiled at that. "Doesn't matter whether you do. The important thing is you let me have it."
"I'm more open than most employers. Half the shops in Tylerville would send you packing if you came in looking like that and wanting a job."
"Really?" She pulled a lunch wrap from the refrigerator. "Because the Coalition's supposed to be about freedom, I thought? I know that's what Felix always insists."
"Felix is Felix. People have expectations of appearance. Standards. If you don't measure up, they don't like it." Henry took a small bite and chewed on it for a few moments. Brigitte was busy eating, so he resumed after swallowing. "The big difference is that the government doesn't mandate appearance short of 'don't be naked.'"
"I guess people just love to boss other people around sometimes." Brigitte lowered the wrap for a moment. A distant look came to her face. "That was what it was like growing up—being told what to do. How to act. How to work. How to eat. How to think. How to be the perfect member of Society." She frowned. "And never to contradict it. Never. Otherwise, you were anti-Social, and then it was off to a resocialization camp." As she spoke, Henry saw old pain on her face. She spoke from experience.
"That's how you met Oskar, if I remember correctly," he said softly.
Brigitte nodded. "He helped me escape. Well, we helped each other. He's a good man."
"He is." Henry drew in a breath. "I'm sorry that this job might have us in the League's sights."
"I get it," she said. "I don't know him, but this Jules guy sounds like a good man too."
"He is, yes, and a truly holy pain in the rear," Henry answered, grinning at the turn of phrase.
"Then we can't leave him to Caetano's people. We're doing the right thing."
"And we're almost done. That's the important part." Having said that, Henry returned his focus to his half-eaten sandwich, and Brigitte did the same.
* * *
The pain was mostly gone when Miri woke up. She drew in a breath and felt the familiar sensation of circulated air. She was in a starship running on life support, so they were in space. The air wasn't too stale, either, which said a lot about how seriously they took maintenance on the air scrubbers and other life support systems. I approve.
The previous day's memories were something of a jumble. She remembered the attack, getting shot, and the helicar that came to her aid. As the details flowed into her mind, she recognized that she was aboard the ship her contacts had sent to her. That was a good sign, at least.
Miri sat up and looked around. Now that she was fully conscious, she could see the lived-in, used layout of the infirmary she was being kept in. A man about her age, maybe a little older, was napping quietly on one of the other beds. Given his coat and the flashes of memory she had, he was the ship's surgeon, the man who’d saved her life. She glanced down and realized she was wearing a patient’s gown, fully covering her above the waist, while below it, she was still in what she’d had on when she left her room at the ISU center.
The ISU center. That led to thinking about P&Y, and she immediately frowned. The Astra Mater would not find her at Harron. As far as anyone could see, Karla Lupa had vanished from the Harron ISU. That would mean questions. It would also mean doubt about her account of the League seizing the Kensington Star. This isn't how I wanted it!
She pushed such considerations away, and her training kicked in. She was reasonably sure that she was safe, but she needed to be ready in case of betrayal. Her firearms were missing for the moment, undoubtedly put away. There were emergency scalpels in sterilized packaging on one nearby tray, which could be useful weapons if she needed them. Unloaded aero-injectors lay on one counter at the end of the room next to multiple sets of protective-cradle shelving for vials of medications. More were in a cooler. Probably an anesthetic there she could use to knock out an attacker, if it came to it.
Having taken a mental inventory of all possible means of self-defense, Miri allowed her thoughts to go back to the situation. Her testimony about the fate of the Kensington Star was worthless if she didn't get to the Astra Mater. She slid off the bed and approached the sleeping man. She gently pushed his shoulder then made it a stronger push when he didn't react immediately. His eyes opened, and he looked up at her. "Ah. Miss Gaon," he said. She noticed a faint German accent. "How are you feeling?"
"I am all right, but I must see your captain. You need to get me to the Astra Mater."
"We do?" asked the surgeon. "Why?"
"It is important that I give my testimony about my ship. If they get to Harron and find that I disappeared, they may assume I'm responsible for its loss, and my account was a cover story. I must see them."
"I see." He stood. "I am Doctor Oskar Kiderlein. Miss Gaon, a pleasure to meet you, and I will take you to see if Captain Henry is awake. If not, one of his other officers might be able to help you."
"Please, do," she said. "There is a greater danger here—that, I am sure of. I must persuade my employers of the truth!"
* * *
Henry was nearly asleep when Felix gave him the heads-up that Oskar and their passenger were waiting in the galley to see him.
When Henry arrived, Felix and Vidia were already present, as was a sleepy-eyed Tia. She stifled a yawn even as Henry took a seat across from Miri. "It's good to see you're still with us, ma'am."
"My thanks to you for the rescue," she said. "You saved me from a terrible death."
"I know how the League treats defectors, and from what I can tell, they're treating you like one."
"In their eyes, I am worse. I tricked them into trusting me then used that trust to break their campaign against us," Miri replied levelly. "But it is possible they would be after me, even if they didn't realize Karla Lupa was Miri Gaon."
"Oh?" That question came from Tia. "What do you mean?"
"They would want to silence me regardless," Miri explained, "because I witnessed them seize the Kensington Star."
That news rippled through the room. "So the ship disappearances, it’s the League?" Felix asked with horror on his face.
Henry sympathized and figured that Felix had also only anticipated a peripheral involvement.
"I cannot say for sure. I know they took Kensington Star. One of their cruisers, I am uncertain of the class. I only had a brief look before they jumped out."
"How did you get away?" Henry asked.
"Because of my past, I laid plans on how to evacuate without being seen," Miri answered. "I did so and ejected myself into space with an EVA suit, a transmitter, and an extra air tank."
Everyone stared at her. "How did ya know you'd be rescued?" Vidia asked.
"I didn't." She could see from their faces that they were imagining the fate of repeating what she had done but not being rescued, which would mean being alone in the void of space for hours, days, before dying from lack of oxygen. To be all alone in the infinite night before the end was the terror of many a spacer. "From my perspective, either I could shoot myself from an airlock with an EVA suit, or the League would do it without one," she added. "And only after my debriefing, which would not be pleasu
rable in the slightest."
"No, it wouldn't," Felix agreed, sighing. "God Almighty, that took gumption, Miss Gaon. Guess it helped you with whatever op CIS had you pull off."
"It didn't," she answered honestly. "That required me to betray good people to the League, an infinitely harder experience. I am a little surprised that HaShem allowed me to survive this long, given all the deaths I caused."
"It's war," Felix said. "You had a duty. Simple as that."
Miri directed an intent look at him. "No, it is not," she replied, a little heat in her voice.
"To me, the important thing is what you saw," Tia said, interrupting the exchange. "So either the Kensington Star did something to piss off the League, if they were willing to send a cruiser into the neutral systems, or—"
"—or the League is behind the ship disappearances," Henry finished for her, "and has been for months."
"Again, I cannot say."
"Then could the peace talks be a fraud?" Felix proposed. "Something to distract the Coalition from whatever they're doing out here?"
"They haven't been attacking Coalition ships, though, just independent vessels and those flagged on neutral worlds," Tia said, shaking her head. "What I don't get is why? The disappearances have almost nothing in common. Medium haulers, big ones, helium-3 and deuterium tankers, even a couple of liners. It can't be for the cargos."
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