The Bright Black Sea (108 page)

'Aye. I saw it in you too, so it's no wonder you got
along famously with Grandmama.'

She turned to me. 'My parents came from outside the
Unity, but I don't feel any affinity for the drift worlds and
stations I've visited either.'

'Well, you're not exactly Unity Standard,' I replied.
'And you certainly look like a drift pirate.'

'And don't forget it, Captain. But that's why I need
to meet Uncle Hawk, and perhaps follow him to where I do
belong.'

'I suppose. Hopefully he'll make it clear what it
involves before you commit.'

She shrugged. 'Does it matter? We'll know more
shortly. I am sorry to tear you away from your grandmother and your
cozy orbit.'

'The life of a spaceer,' I said. 'Though I think I'm
coming to the end of that life.'

'We'll see about that,' she replied guardedly.

'Aye. So what are your orders?'

'Fuel up and wait in the offing until I can complete
the purchase of the
Rift Raven
,' she replied. 'I'll have to
buy out the Patrol's share of the ship. I have the credits, even
without the ones you've earned, I'm just hoping it won't involve a
lot of red tape. And I must break up with Ryth, which I hope to do
without too much fuss as well.'

'Ryth...'

'You know, the Patrol agent. We've been partners. The
arrangement made things easy aboard ship. A small ship and all.
Everything settled...' she said, without looking at me. 'We're well
matched. It worked out fine.'

'Then why break up?' I asked, trying to sound
casual.

'Why? Well, Ryth is a dedicated Patrol lifer. You
have to be, to be an undercover agent. And given Uncle Hawk's mania
for secrecy, I can't imagine he'd want the Patrol in on his
secrets. So taking Ryth along would force him to betray either the
Patrol or me. I couldn't do that to him. No good solution, really.
Still, we're young and dissolving a partnership, may not be
pleasant, but it's the far better course in the long run.'

'He doesn't know about Vinden?'

'No one knows. I've kept my correspondence with Uncle
Hawk strictly secret. Even Vyn and Ten don't know about it. Uncle
Hawk was very definite on keeping everything secret for as long as
possible. He said we're so close to righting the wrong that it'd be
a great tragedy if word leaked out. As far as the others know,
we've come to Amdia because we're all in need of a little rest and
recreation.'

Little did she know. Moving fast was our best option.
Though how St Bleyth would react to the reappearance of Min and
what their current relationship is with their client is an
unknown.

'What are you going to tell Ryth, if not the truth?'
I asked.

'Oh, I'll tell him the truth. Enough of it so that he
understands that if he follows me, he'd likely have to betray me as
well.'

'And Vyn and Ten?'

'They've been out of the Patrol for forty years or
more. Their first loyalty is to me. Besides, they're still looking
after me,' she laughed sarcastically. 'They'll follow me, whether I
like it or not.'

My com link buzzed. 'Captain?' said Molaye in my
ear.

'It's Molaye. I asked that she'd check with me at the
start of the watch,' I said to Min as I opened the link.

'Morning Molaye. I'm fine and will be up
shortly.'

'Was that the
Ghost
?' she asked. She must have
checked out the ship's sensor record before calling.

'Aye, and keep it to yourself. I'll explain when I
get back.'

'Right, Captain, if you say so. I'll be waiting.'

'Soon,' I said and closed the link, adding to Min, 'A
precaution. We have enemies.'

She nodded. 'Yes, we do. Can you catch a shuttle up?
I'll make my grand appearance after we've sailed.'

'Right. What should I tell them?'

She shrugged. 'We're sailing for the drifts on my
orders. Say no more than that. Hush-hush. If anyone doesn't want to
continue to our final destination, they can leave the ship on
Ravin. For now everyone stays. You know, the old 48 hour rule,' she
added with a grin.

'Aye, I believe I've heard of that.

03

I found myself too tired to think as I rode a shuttle
back to the ship. Probably for the best. I saw no point in keeping
secrets from Molaye, so I briefed her on Min's plans and told her
she could tell the crew we were sailing for the drifts on Min's
orders once we fueled and cleared orbit. I asked Molaye to gather a
list of what consumables we'd need, and after I had a nap, we'd
shift the ship to the fueling station and go downside to arrange
for the delivery of needed supplies.

I used the sleep machine to get a solid nap before
moving the ship to the fueling station and turning her over to Riv.
Myes came to see me as I was preparing to run downside with
Molaye.

'Ah, Skipper. Where do Nadde and I stand? We were
planning to take a voyage off...'

'Aye, of course. I'm afraid it'll be more than a
voyage. I've no idea when or if we'll ever return to Constina,' I
replied. 'I've not been given specific sailing orders.'

'Are you willing to sail without us? Seeing that we
haven't signed off yet and might be within the 48 hour period,' he
asked warily.

'An awkward question,' I replied with a grim laugh.
'Our owner told me to keep everyone onboard. We'll be calling on a
drift world where anyone who doesn't care to continue on can sign
off. However, we're still a Guild ship, I haven't been given a
definite sailing time yet, and you've already given unofficial
notice about leaving the ship in Constina, so I guess I can let you
and Nadde leave as we've agreed.'

'Won't Talley be...' he trailed off, giving me a
questioning look.

'I'll deal with that. You just keep our plans, what
little you know of them, to yourself,' I said. 'Don't worry about
it. You're simply exercising your Guild rights.'

I called up their contracts and signed them off. 'I
hate to sail without you and Nadde – we're family, but I'd hate to
sail with you too. A long, iffy voyage to some undisclosed location
is definitely not what you agreed to when Nadde and you signed back
on. I'm pretty leery myself, and I'd rather keep as many of my old
shipmates clear of it as possible. It'll be all volunteers after
our next planet of call. This simply saves you the passage back.
But clear your gear out and get downside, just to make
certain.'

'Are you sure? We could sail on til . I'd hate to put
you between a rock and a quantum storm.'

I shook my head, 'Thanks, but I'll deal with it. I'm
sure Min will understand your reasons. And, Myes...'

'Yes?'

'Would you get the word out to the crew that if
anyone else want to sign off now rather than in the drifts, the
next few hours are the launch window, before I have a definite
sailing time and while we're still a Guild ship. I've been given my
orders, but there's nothing I nor our owner can do about it should
they care to exercise their rights as long as I haven't a set
sailing time...'

'Aye. But I think they're rather looking forward to
it.'

I shook my head. 'I wish I was...'

04

It was late morning in Leath, and seeing me walk
though the office doors, M'Risha smiled and told her receptionist
she'd be out of the office for a few hours with Captain Wilcrofter.
Then, hooking my arm in hers, she lead me to the lift and a flier
waiting on the roof to fly us to the beach talking only of
inconsequential things connected with the dinner and Captain
Vane.

'I'm sorry about all this,' I began as we walked down
to the beach.

'Whatever for?'

'For putting you in such an awkward position.' I
replied. 'You certainly must report the appearance of Min and
that'll force you to report my appearance as well, three years ago,
not to mention our business relationship. You might want to forget
who we are.'

'First of all, Wil, let me worry about my position in
the Order. You've other things to worry about. Your grandfather has
been rather guarded on the question of what to do with you so as
long as you were in my charge and in no danger, he wasn't in any
hurry to act. However, I think we can count on him should things
turn iffy. This situation might just be what he needs to act. But
even so, our protection will not keep you from adverse effects
connected with the dangerous company you keep.'

'Right,' I said. 'I expect that. I don't plan on
giving the Order time to act before we disappear into the drifts.
And after that, well, I'm not sure I'll be back.'

'I wouldn't like that, Wil. I've grown used to having
you around.'

'I don't like it either, Grandmama, but I gave my
word... And, well, I dare say no more. I'm more concerned for you,
since you're going to have to admit that you've turned a blind eye
on me for three years. It might be better if you turned a blind eye
to our relationship instead, and claim no knowledge of who I
actually am. I can look after myself and take precautions. And I
may be gone for many years, so it might just be better if you
abandoned any plans to clear my name.'

'Not an option,' she said, slipping her arm around
mine and pulling me close as we walked. 'I've got it covered. You
see, keeping you close was all a part of my covert operation to
locate Tallith Min. You've been my tethered goat, my bait, and I
briefed at least one of my superiors about this operation,' and
giving me a bright smile added, 'your grandfather. I'm in the
clear. And since the operation has, in fact, succeeded in bringing
Tallith Min into a position where we might be able to take action,
my operation has been successful. I hope you won't feel guilty
about that. The moment I recognized you, that result was inevitable
unless you ran and kept running.'

Leave it to Grandmama to have a convincing cover
story well in hand. I didn't believe it was anything but her
carefully prepared cover story for this contingency. She was a
smart, hard boiled woman, but I knew she kept me close for reasons
best left unsaid, so I laughed and said 'Baa!'

'You know, you can stay on here. I'm that certain I
can clear your name.'

I shook my head, 'No. Not that I'm doubting you, but
I've obligations, and well, even if you prevail on my account, I'm
not sure that the Order will be all that kindly disposed to you for
finding Min. Really, you've turned over the rock that reveals yet
another failure of the Order. What, if anything, will they tell
their client? And if they don't and the client finds out, as I
suspect they will, what? The Order is between a rock and a quantum
storm and I don't see how they can get out of this situation
untarnished. You may only be the messenger, but messengers often
take the fall for the unwelcome messages they bring. I've a feeling
your tethered goat gambit won't win you much acclaim...'

She laughed. 'True enough. You were born for the
Order, Wil. Still, I was merely doing my duty. Covering up the
failures of Covert Operations is the Masters' job, not mine. We'll
just let them chart that course, won't we?'

'Be careful, Grandmama. Don't you be the goat that
has to be sacrificed.'

'The failures of the Min contract can't be laid at my
feet. The Masters of the Monastery won't be happy, but they'll find
no actionable fault in my actions,' she replied, adding. 'I'm not
from a family that produces sacrificial goats.'

'But it does produce black sheep...'

She laughed. 'Aye, black sheep. But not sacrificial
goats.'

'Then I'll not worry about you. And you don't worry
about me, either. I know enough about assassinations in the Unity
to doubt you can arrange anything before we sail, and once we sail
it's the deep drifts. I assume that despite the quasi-religious
theme of the Order, it's still a business that employs business
managers. The Order has already lost a great deal of credits, not
to mention lives, as a direct consequence of the Min contract. To
continue to pursue Min into the drifts will only add to those
losses, certainly in credits, if not in lives, with little to gain.
Plus, I suspect it's too late now to prevent the contingency your
client had hired the Order to prevent. I realize the Order has a
reputation to maintain, but the client in this case is not going to
be impressed no matter what happens now. Even the Order has to cut
their loses in credits and reputation sooner or later.'

'Don't assume that.'

'Well, I've no intention of letting my guard down.
And though it's self-serving, I will tell you sincerely, that I
hope the Order isn't foolish enough to attack the
Starry
Shore
. I don't lose sleep over the prospect of facing a ship of
the
Sister Sinister
class. Or even two.'

'You're that confident?'

'Aye. I doubt there's a crew in space who's seen more
action in space than mine. And my Unity Standard veneer is pretty
thin.'

'You let the Falcon Rock pirates take to their
boats...'

'I have more respect for the Order. I won't take any
chances. And remember all those actions were prior to our dedicated
anti-missile system, so they can expect losses if they try. Make
that clear in your report. Hopefully they'll do a cost/benefit
analysis before issuing orders to eliminate the
Starry
Shore
. I'd hate for some poor captain of the Order to come upon
us and feel that it was his duty to take
us
on
.'

'You've become quite blood thirsty,' said Grandmama,
who, I suspect was rather pleased. A chip off of the old block.

'Nah, it's just my beard that give you that
impression,' I laughed. 'However, D'Lay said that sometimes members
of the Order find themselves on opposing sides in a conflict. So
despite my heritage, I'd have no problem blowing an Order ship to
atoms to preserve my ship, and look the Masters of the Monastery in
the eye afterwards.'