The Lost Patrol (11 page)

“Yes, Captain,” Galyan said sheepishly.

“It wasn’t a secret to me,” Maddox lied.

“If you don’t mind me asking, sir, how did you know? I cannot fathom how I gave it away.”

“How I know is unimportant. The critical thing is that I’m going to give you a chance to come clean.”

“You mean to impart my reasoning for doing this?” Galyan asked.

“Exactly.”

The holoimage considered that and finally stood a little straighter.

“Captain, I am the last Adok, a replica of my people. There is none like me in the universe. I am alone except for you and the others. I dearly appreciate my family but feel my difference too keenly. I want to learn how to conduct myself better among you. I thought that a thorough study of each of you would help me to integrate better. I know Valerie told me before that I mustn’t spy on any of you, but…I don’t want to make a mistake that makes any of you hate me. I hope you will forgive me, Captain.”

“I appreciate your candor,” Maddox said. “You will stop this monitoring at once, though. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Captain.”

“Except for me,” Maddox said.

“Sir?”

“You will continue to monitor me. If you find a high enough variation to my actions, I want you to tell me at once.”

“Yes, Captain. Is there a reason for the order?”

“There is.”

“May I inquire as to the reason?”

“You may,” Maddox said.

The holoimage waited, finally saying, “I think I understand. I may ask you, but I shouldn’t expect an answer.”

“Not yet,” Maddox said. “If you’ll excuse me…”

“Yes, sir.”

Maddox resumed walking as the holoimage disappeared. This lack of quick mental acuity was troubling. Would Galyan detect a difference in him? Could he just be burned-out from extended overwork? Maddox didn’t like the idea. He had to find the underlying cause to this lack of acuity fast. The success of the voyage might well depend on it.

His Patrol Training had drummed home the importance of a sharp starship captain. A crew often took on the virtues and vices of its captain. If he were becoming dull-witted, that might affect the crew. He had a responsibility to them to be at his best.

It was a novel thought for Maddox—this responsibility to others. He wasn’t sure he liked it. Still, the responsibility was there. Whatever else happened, he intended to bring his starship and crew home again.

He also hoped Star Watch Intelligence could root out the last of the androids and discover who or what motivated them toward their present actions.

-18-

Lieutenant Valerie Noonan sat at her navigator’s location on the bridge. She looked around the large circular area with the commander’s chair, presently unoccupied, in the center of the chamber.

Starship
Victory
continued to accelerate as it passed Mars orbit, heading for the distant gate near Pluto. They were on their way to the Xerxes System. The captain hadn’t told them more than that yet.

Valerie could already guess what would happen there. It wasn’t hard. What was in the Xerxes System? A Nexus, of course, a Builder silver pyramid. Last voyage, they’d used a hyper-spatial tube to travel a thousand light-years like that. They’d landed in a Builder System with a vast Dyson sphere in lieu of any planets.

She doubted they would go back to the same Builder System. They would use a hyper-spatial tube, though. The rational decision for Star Watch was simple. Find the Swarm Imperium as fast as possible. Find out how close it was to Human Space. This was the right starship for the job.

Valerie presently plotted the course to the Xerxes System. It was too easy, though. It left her bored. She’d had an extended vacation, continuing her hand-to-hand combat training. She’d also gotten her uniforms tailored so they fit better.

Valerie had long brunette hair and features most people considered beautiful. She also had a taut body, able now to contort into all kinds of combat positions. The captain wouldn’t be leaving her behind again as he’d done on the Dyson sphere. It still bothered her that Riker had gone with the captain in the landing party instead of her.

The problem these days was her left shoulder. She’d dislocated it twice during the intense combat training. The shoulder was still weak. She babied it even though she knew careful weight training would help speed the recovery.

Valerie shifted in her seat, trying to find a more comfortable position. Once she found it, she adjusted her panel, studying various star systems.

If anyone knew Starship
Victory
up one side and down the other, she was the one. Just like last time, she’d been in command much of the time that the ship had been in Earth orbit.

Valerie shifted on her seat again, frowning, suddenly remembering a decision she had made several weeks ago.

Valerie loved routine. She loved knowing where everything went and at what time something should happen. Yes, Captain Maddox had taught her the art of command-while-in-danger. She had watched him for several voyages now. A good starship captain could make snap decisions. She liked sticking to regulations no matter what, though. Maybe she didn’t have enough confidence in herself to make snap decisions the way Captain Maddox could.

Valerie stared at her blank screen with her fingers resting on her board. Several weeks ago, the Lord High Admiral had visited her aboard
Victory
.

She used to work for Cook. She liked the old man, felt comfortable around him and safe in his presence. It was like Detroit when her wheelchair-bound father had been sober.

Valerie sighed. The crux of her unease was that the Lord High Admiral had finally offered her a command again. She would run a tiny escort ship this time. She remembered asking the admiral if she could think about it.

He’d said yes, but she could see how her words had changed his demeanor. It had been a slight thing, but it had been there.

She’d wanted an independent command for some time. She’d even agitated for one. But now that she had the offer…

This was Starship
Victory,
the greatest vessel in Star Watch. She’d been instrumental in making history these past years. If she left
Victory
, she would gain her own command again. But was that better? Being number one in a tiny ship on a boring assignment or being part of the greatest starship in existence doing something critically important? What had her decision told the Lord High Admiral about her?

Valerie shook her head the tiniest bit. She should have taken the independent command. Was she too frightened to run her own ship? Many years ago now, her ship had been the sole survivor in an encounter against the invading New Men. That had been a harrowing experience. Maybe the terror of that time had shaken her self-confidence. She hadn’t thought so before this. But how else could she explain her hesitation at taking another crack at a line command?

The only thing comforting her was that she’d stuck with her family. Besides, Maddox needed her. He might never say that, but she believed it was true. He left most of the everyday chores of
Victory
to her. The captain needed a well-oiled ship. It was her task to see it was so.

While mentally worrying the question like a dog with a rag, Valerie resumed her navigating chores.

Sometime later, someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around to find Keith Maker.

“What happened to you?” she asked.

Keith grinned sheepishly, and that should have alerted her right there. He’d slicked back his hair, put on aftershave, it smelled like, and scrubbed his face with some perfumed soap. The lieutenant wore a spiffy flight jacket with his new insignia on the shoulders. She noticed that his shoes shined, too.

“Could, I, ah, talk to you a minute?” Keith asked.

“Yes.”

“Not here,” he said, glancing around.

There were several people on the bridge, including the new Chief Technician Andros Crank. He was a stout Kai-Kaus with long gray hair and observant gray eyes.

“Can’t it wait until I’m off-duty?” Valerie asked.

Keith shook his head, looking more anxious by the second.

Valerie eyed him again. Was Keith playing a prank on her? The pilot was a little too much like the captain, irreverent at the wrong times. She sensed true anxiety in Keith, though. She should know the symptoms, as she was often quite anxious.

First checking her board, she said, “I’ll take a break in a half hour. Would you like to meet in the cafeteria then?”

“Yes!” he said. “Thank you.” Keith glanced around again almost as if he was being furtive. He would have made a lousy spy. Then he hurried off the bridge.

What had that been about?

Valerie shrugged. She did some systems checks, watched the others for a bit and noticed that the half hour had already passed. She informed the bridge officer before leaving.

The corridors leading to the cafeteria were crowded compared to last voyage. This was quite different, and it made Valerie feel more at home. This reminded her of her training time in the Academy. Finally,
Victory
was beginning to feel like a regular starship. Maybe this time their assignment would be normal. The captain certainly wasn’t a run-of-the-mill line officer, and this showed in almost everything he did.

In the cafeteria, Keith sat at a far table, nervously sipping coffee. How many cups had the pilot drunk already? Obviously too many, as he’d become jittery.

“What took you so long?” Keith asked as she sat down.

Valerie didn’t care for the reproof in his voice. Maybe Keith had been promoted to lieutenant, but that was different from her Navy lieutenant rank. His was a strikefighter rank, which still went by old air force regulations.

“Look,” he said, leaning toward her. “I’m going to have to insist you keep this quiet for now.”

“Insist all you want,” she said.

“You promise, then?” he asked, clearly not sensing her mood.

“I never promise anything until I know exactly what’s going on.”

“Come on, Lieutenant,” he wheedled, “give a guy a break.”

She studied him. Keith was panicky. Valerie glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see someone ready to pour a glass of water over her head.

Facing him, she demanded, “What’s going on?”

Keith bent even lower over the table as he whispered, “I need a favor, Valerie. I, ah, have to get into the detention center.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s important.”

“So tell me about it. Why is it important?”

Keith licked his lips and frowned, struggling to find the right words.

“Would you tell me what’s going on already?” she said.

“I saw a woman,” Keith said as he stared intently into her eyes. Then he dropped his gaze as if embarrassed.

“Who is she?” Valerie asked, interested now.

Keith seemed to agonize over the answer. Finally, he looked up at her, the words gushing out. “I think she’s a Spacer. She looked like a Spacer. She was beautiful and she waved to me. She even smiled. She likes me, Valerie. I have to see her, make sure she’s okay. I want to ask her…”

Valerie blinked several times as Keith continued to stare at her. She was trying to figure out if she should play this straight or have some fun with Keith and give him a hard time.

“Do you like her?” she asked.

Something in the way she said that must have alerted the pilot. Keith pulled back and even managed a shrug. “Maybe,” he said, with badly feigned indifference.

“Maybe?” Valerie said. “What do you mean maybe? You come running onto the bridge all breathless and now you’re a jittery mess. You really like her a lot, don’t you?”

“Okay!” Keith said. “So what if I do? Is that a crime?”

Valerie arched her eyebrows in order to keep from laughing. “Why would liking her be a crime?”

“I don’t know,” he said.

Valerie couldn’t hold it in any longer. She laughed. This was too delightful. The boastful, bragging Keith Maker was embarrassed for once. She couldn’t believe it. This was wonderful.

His features clouded over, though, in a way she’d never seen with him.

That sobered her as she recognized the pain in him. She’d been a loner all her life, having trouble making friends. The former crew of
Victory
was family. Keith was family. Despite his bragging ways, they had been through hell and back on more than one occasion. She recalled that Keith had never talked about girls before. Could he be shy around women? That would be something.

“I…” He groped for words. “I…want to meet her.”

Valerie nodded.

Keith must have noticed her change as he visibly brightened. “You’ll help me then?”

Valerie was a stickler for rules and protocol, but this was a matter of the heart, it seemed. “Let me see what I can do,” she said. “I’m not in charge of security, you do realize that?”

“I know, but you’re always making sure everything is running right on
Victory
.”

At least someone noticed, she thought. “Let me see what I can find out about her. Maybe if I ask the captain—”

“No!” Keith said. “Don’t breathe a word of this to him.”

“Why not?” Valerie was genuinely surprised by the outburst.

Keith shrugged moodily. “I…I don’t want to do it like the captain. I want to do this my way. He’s too brash with the ladies and might not understand.”

Valerie knew that was true. Maddox was too brash with everyone.

“Promise me you won’t tell the captain,” Keith said.

“I’ll keep quiet for now,” Valerie said. “But I have to know why she’s in the brig.”

“In detention,” Keith corrected.

“Let me find out what’s going on. Then, I’ll get back to you. I can’t promise to help you see her because maybe she’s dangerous.”

“I can’t believe that,” Keith said. “She sure didn’t look dangerous.”

Valerie realized Keith was no longer thinking straight. She must be a pretty Spacer to have caught Keith’s attention like this. That made her curious about the woman. Why did
Victory
have a Spacer in detention anyway? Did it have anything to do with their voyage?

She eyed Keith sidelong. Would he have any luck with a Spacer woman? This could prove to be very interesting…