Bactine (43 page)

Daniel's gut tied itself in a knot. His apartment was in the Street of Barges. He started walking, but after a few hundred feet he changed tactics and resorted to running.

By the time he reached the street, he could not get into it anymore. The building where he had been only an hour earlier was now a hopeless heap of stones glass shards and pieces of wood. The street lights probably hid the worst of it all, with the limited way they could illuminate the environment.

There were policemen in the street. "Please stand back. We do not know if there will be another explosion. We cannot allow people to go near the building as long as the area is not secured. Please stand back."

"Officer, I live there," Daniel said as he was close to a policeman.

"Not anymore, sir, I'm afraid," said the man.

Daniel stared at the building. How many people had died in that explosion? And how was it possible that he had gone out exactly this evening? "Do you already know what happened, sir?" he tried.

"No, sir," the policeman replied. "The inspection team will come tomorrow, when it is light."

"But there could be people buried alive in there!"

"Rescue searchers will come as soon as the area is secured, sir, and please would you now move out of the street?" The police officer was strict and not in the mood for a chat.

Together with many other people Daniel walked out of the street, wondering what he could do now. He needed a place to stay overnight.

As he slowly walked down the main street that led to the harbour, he turned into the small street that ran parallel to the Street of Barges. Through it, he knew, he could reach the building by walking down to the third crossing street and climbing over a fence there. As he turned into the crossing street, his hopes of seeing the building up close were slammed into the ground: there were already two policemen patrolling by the fence. The local constabulary knew their streets.

Daniel halted under a tree and tried to think of what he could do now. He considered the time. Not many people would be awake at this hour. Of course, there were people who had said he could call them night or day, but actually doing it was something else. Yet he knew he had to do something.

He took his hydger and walked to a street light so the small display was clearer to read. Warlem and his mother... no... The senator? Oh dear, no. Ulaman? He flipped the switch.

"Who the hell- oh, Daniel. What are you up for at this time of night? You should be in bed, man."

"I wish I could, but my bed is damaged, Ulaman. The building I live in exploded."

"Exploded? Are you well, Daniel?" Ulaman was wide awake all of a sudden.

"Yes, I was not in the building when it blew up. I do need a place to stay, for now, and I hoped that you would know of somewhere."

Daniel heard Ulaman explain to Xandree what he had said. Then Ulaman came back to the screen. "Xandree says that you are welcome here, Daniel. We are very limited in space, but we can try to set you up somewhere." The man's face turned again, and there was more muffled speech coming from the hydger. "Oh, yes. You could go to the harbour. Behind the warehouses there are small shacks and such. Some have locks, but they are easy to open. Maybe you can go in one of those for the night."

Daniel managed a smile. "That might be an idea, yes. And that's closer from here than your place. I'll give that a try, Ulaman. Thanks, and good night. And sorry for waking you."

"That is okay, Daniel. Let us know if there is something we can do for you." Then the display went dark.

With a sigh Daniel slipped the hydger back in his pocket. It was good to have friends.

Daniel had called a carriage. He was a bit surprised that these things also ran at night, but he was glad about it. He was becoming sleepy now and a walk to the harbour was not what he fancied.

The journey went slow. In the dark hours, the carriages only ran at half speed. Daniel understood why; with the dark carriages in poorly lit streets it was easy to get an accident.

After a trip at almost a walking pace the carriage reached the shipyard. From there it was only a short stretch to the harbour. Daniel looked out the window, as he recalled his adventures at the shipyard. Just as he wanted to sit back for the last leg, he thought he saw some men walking towards the area of the building company where the new Pricosine was being built. And one of the men looked suspiciously like Clelem Dandra ko Galem.

"What the heck is he doing here at this time?" Daniel wondered. He made the carriage stop and jumped out. Quickly he backtracked to the shipyard. Carefully he followed along to the gate of the shipyard. It was shut but not locked. Clelem had to have a key, and also the conviction that this time of night would be a good time to leave the gate unlocked.

There were only a few lamps burning on the immense yard, but Daniel saw two swinging lamps. That had to be where Clelem and his companions were. He moved as quietly as he could and reached the three people quite fast. They were talking out loud, evidently having no fear that anyone might be around to listen in on them.

"The work is almost done. In one or two weeks the ship is afloat and can be outfitted further," Clelem stated.

The man next to him almost stumbled over a block of wood that was in the dark, outside the reach of the lamp Clelem carried. The man cursed violently. It made Daniel frown. There was something about that voice...

"Don't. I hate it when people curse. It shows weakness and lack of control. You did not want to take a light," Clelem dryly said. "Mr Slindris, if you'd please help."

So the third man was Gaguran Slindris, the serving man. He silently lowered the light he carried.

"This'd better be worth it," the other man said, "I'm risking my head, walking around with you."

"It is dark. Nobody sees you and nobody hears you. And you can row a boat to your ship and sail off before the light, so nobody knows you've been here," Clelem said, as if nothing was the matter.

Daniel almost froze. He recognised the voice. His tiredness had just delayed things a bit. Clelem was marching around over the deserted shipyard with Birkle Asciza, the pirate captain that had thrown him into the water. Who had enslaved his friends. Daniel's blood ran cold and his first reaction was to jump the man and rip his heart out. He understood that was not a good plan, though: he was tired and Birkle did not sound sleepy at all. Plus there also were Clelem and the mouse.

"You wanted to check the smuggle hatches, captain," said Clelem. "I proposed this time and you agreed. If you want to go away because you are frightened, then please do so at once. I can spend better time in bed than walking around with a cursing and muttering pirate."

For a moment it looked as if Birkle was going to inflict some serious damage upon Clelem, but the moment passed and the men walked on. Daniel followed them, his ears wide open. Smuggle hatches?

"Let's get this over with then. Where are these hatches?" Birkle tried to talk business again.

"There are three on the deck and two in each cargo bay. There are also some hidden in a few of the cabins for the crew, where the double walls are. I'll show you." Clelem informed the pirate.

The three reached the long zig zag gangway that led up to the deck.

"I should kick you, Dandra ko Galem, for making that thing so high. Make them longer next time."

Daniel could not help but repress a grin. The great pirate captain was clearly afraid to get tired. He saw how the men started the long and slow climb up the gangway. Daniel could almost hear Gaguran sigh and moan, despite his silence. How that man hated going up a ship...

The loading hatches to two of the cargo bays were still open, and the gangways up to them were in place also. Next to each hatch hung a lamp. These ways in were faster, he knew, and then up the stairs in the inside of the ship. Drawback was that there were no railings on these two gangways, so he would be taking an awful chance. It was the only way to get on board without being seen, though. He could not go after the other men. They'd hear him.

Daniel waited until they were going up a part of the gangway where they had their backs to him and ran over to the closest board. Swift as a cat he ran up the gangway, hoping that his steps would go unnoticed. As he reached the inside of the ship, he stopped for a moment and listened, his heart pounding. From outside, the footsteps of the three told him they were still climbing. He took the lamp next to the opening from the hook and lit his way through the enormous cargo bay, to the door. He praised every power that might be around for having been here before. That made it a lot easier. Also the fact that the floor had been closed completely was a big help.

Daniel ran up the stairs as long as he dared, the lamp in hand. At the foot of the last set of stairs, the one that would get him to the deck, he waited. Could he hear the voices? Yes, the men were there already. Daniel put the lamp on the floor and slowly ascended. A quick peek over the deck told him that they had to be below deck now, probably checking out the smuggle compartments in the crew quarters. Daniel suddenly wondered if there had been similar things in the other Pricosine.

The men came back sooner than he had anticipated. Daniel almost dropped himself down the ladder as he noticed they were coming his way. He snatched the lamp and quickly went back to the cargo bay he had come in through. Damn it, he was not sure what information he had missed by not hearing them.

He waited by the partly opened door, the lamp extinguished. The three men went into the other cargo bay. Daniel moved through the corridor and looked at what they were doing.

Clelem walked to a side, with Birkle in his wake. Gaguran trotted along behind. "See, here is the hatch. You can recognise it by the triangular knob on it. Just twist it like that, and the hatch opens. The space is not too large, but I did what I could without making people curious about it."

Birkle nodded. "Much easier to load drugs in there than going through the trouble of sticking it in kid toys. It was utter horror to raid these villages for them and get it out of them again."

Daniel swallowed hard. He remembered how he had been playing with the toys in the cargo bay. The toys that had been in the red and green boxes. Clelem was a drugs dealer and smuggler. And he was in business with the pirate! And Gaguran, the rat, was in on the deal as well.

"It's the same thing with the other cargo bay. Two hatches left, two right, triangular knob. Want to see them?"

"No. I'm sure that's the same thing." Birkle spat on the floor. "So what did you do with that guy who refuses to get killed? And the kid?"

Daniel knew the pirate meant him. But 'the kid'?

"Mr. Slindris here knows more about that," Clelem said as he started walking back to the door of the cargo bay.

Daniel retreated into the dark, hoping they would go back to the stairs and up to deck. They did.

Gaguran coughed. "We took the girl and put her in the cellar, sir. It was the safest place, we thought, he would not look there at all. One of our operatives took the liberty of installing and detonating an off-world implosion device in the building." Gaguran chuckled as they climbed the stairs. "I am quite certain that the device was set correctly. The operative has not survived either, so there is no witness against us."

Daniel, going behind the three, had his heart near escaping from his throat. He also was feeling hot and cold at the same time. Clelem and Gaguran had arranged to have the building with his apartment to be blown up? To kill him? And the cellar-

"You're cold, Dandra ko Galem," said Birkle. "It was your kid in the cellar."

The men reached the deck and took time to catch their breath.

"Not my kid," said Clelem. "They both are my wife's. I wanted the money from her family, but getting rid of her husband was enough of a problem. I could not do the two children also without people becoming suspicious. But at least the nosy one is now out of the way."

Daniel closed his eyes for a moment. There was the man who had struck him as a good and gentle, concerned person, good for his people. And he was telling the pirate that he had killed a man for the money of his wife's family, and now the daughter of his wife?

And cellar... Daniel's heart stopped for a few moments. The cellar under what had been the building where he had lived! He had to go there, as quickly as he could. And he couldn't. He was too close to the deck. If he moved on the stairs, the men would almost certainly hear him.

"And the boy? No problems from him?" Birkle seemed to be quite well informed on Clelem's family situation.

"No. That's an idiot who only lives for music and books. And his stupid poems. I may find a good way to get him out of the way too when the need arises, but for now he's no problem."

Daniel willed the three to go away. Go, go, go... He was holding on to the ladder so tightly that his arms started to ache.

"If you say so..." Birkle stomped away. "I'm going. Too bad you had to kill the bastard that took my slaves away, Slindris. I would have loved to see my Bonto play with him for a while. Maybe I'll ask Dandra ko Galem if I can have you instead." The pirate laughed.