Privateer Tales 3: Parley Read online

  “More a question. Let’s find Marny and hash it out.” I stood up and walked to the back of the bridge.

  “You’re just going to leave the helm?” Jordy asked, concern causing his voice to rise.

  “If we’re not in combat, you’re a lot safer if I’m not holding that stick,” I said.

  He looked from me to the chair and back, still a little panicked. I held my hand up in surrender and walked back to the seat. “You had that coming,” I said under my breath as I sat back in the chair. “You guys play cards?”

  “If you’re in the service, you play cards,” Jordy said.

  “We’ve got four hours and we’ll clear out of this traffic fairly shortly.” Already, the number of ships I could see through the armored glass had dropped significantly. “Nick hasn’t had access to the ship for several days and the Navy’s been poking around in our systems. He’ll be busy for the foreseeable future. We’ll stay on the ship overnight, a hundred thousand kilometers off of Coolidge. It’s a nice random location so we don’t have to worry about visitors.”

  “You’re my kind of paranoid, Captain,” Tali gave me an approving grin.

  “Poker?”

  “When’s dinner?” Jordy asked.

  “We’ll set a schedule once we’re underway, feel free to dig in whenever you need. We’re overstocked for the trip. In the past, we’ve gotten together at 1200 and 1800 and we keep coffee going.”

  “Permission to enter, Cap?” Marny asked.

  “Granted. Where’s Tabby?”

  “She’s back talking with Nick. Should I be worried?”

  “I sure hope not. Poker?” I wasn’t sure why I was having so much trouble getting a game going.

  “Sure, I’m in,” Marny answered.

  I pulled out a deck of cards and started dealing them. We talked as we played, hashing out any number of small details.

  The ship was running better than it ever had. Acceleration was smooth and the heat signature was way down. When we’d taken off from Mars and switched from normal gravity to ship-based, I hadn’t even noticed the transition.

  Tali was an excellent card player. I thought I was catching on to her tells and then she switched up on me, almost like she figured out I was reading her. I liked the challenge. Most of the time I had a decent idea how Jordy was feeling about his cards and Marny was an open book.

  We arrived at the destination I set around 1800. It was a good time for us to take a break and eat dinner. The galley-pro did a great job of reconstituting the compressed meals supplied by the chandler’s shop. I wasn’t overly hungry, so I stuck with a meal bar, but the food smelled good. I was happy that the mess table provided enough seats for the six of us. We could have squeezed in eight, in a pinch.

  “We’ll sit out here tonight and first thing in the morning we’ll head back to the shipyard. We aren’t scheduled to leave until 1700, but if I can get hold of Qiu, I’ll want to get going before that.”

  I continued, “We’ll catch up with Ada, who’s piloting the Adela Chen, sometime on Monday night or Tuesday, depending on when we get going. She’ll pick up a string of barges tomorrow morning and then set sail for Jeratorn. We’ve agreed on a navigational plan that she’ll modify along the way. We’ll have to catch her transmission so we can adjust accordingly. Anyone have anything they need to add? It doesn’t matter how big or small, this is a good place to bring it.”

  “Why all the course changes? Are you expecting trouble on the way out?” Jordy asked.

  “Not at all, it’s just a precaution. Ada’s ship was attacked by someone who knew their flight plan.”

  “Cap, we need to talk about locking the bridge during the night watch,” Marny said.

  “What’s your thought?”

  “It’s not uncommon for the pilot to rest during that shift. They’d be easy to sneak up on.”

  My mind jumped right to Xie Mie-su, our last passenger who’d very nearly taken Nick and me out. It wasn’t fair, but I probably projected some of my angst about her onto Qiu Loo. “Sounds like a good precaution. Do you have a proposed timetable?”

  “Why not lock it all the time?” Tali asked.

  I looked at her. It was a good test of the table. I’d invited everyone to participate and now I was getting an idea that I didn’t like.

  “What’s your reasoning?”

  “It’s the heartbeat of the ship. Leaving that door open makes you too easy of a target. It’s no different than requiring people to request entry, just makes it a little more formal.”

  “Would anyone be able to override it?”

  “I’d think the three of you would have palm access and no one else.”

  What she was saying made sense, I looked to Marny and she nodded affirmatively. “How about we try it for this trip? If we don’t like it, we can adjust.”

  Later that night on the bridge with Tabby sitting on my lap, I felt a pang of guilt. In the rush to get everything going, I’d not done a great job of paying attention to her. She’d been good about it, but I still felt badly.

  “Hey, I’m sorry. It gets hectic when we’re heading out. I’m not being very attentive.”

  “Are you kidding? This is so much fun. You do this every day now?”

  “Yeah, I suppose.”

  “Cool.”

  “We can sleep in the captain’s quarters. We’re not underway and the ship will do what’s necessary if something comes up,” I said.

  She was obviously getting tired and nodded her approval. The bridge door automatically closed behind me.

  The next morning I woke up at 0200 and slipped out of bed. I palmed my way onto the bridge and checked system statuses. I’d never seen so many green systems on the screen before. I engaged the return navigation plan. I wanted to be docked by the time everyone got up and rolling. I grabbed a cup of coffee from the galley.

  At 0600 we docked in an open berth at the Coolidge shipyard. I informed the docking master that we’d be gone within twenty-four hours and he seemed satisfied. I sent a comm to Qiu and asked if she would like to get going early and let her know she could board at her leisure.

  Tabby joined me at 0830. “Hey, you left me.”

  “Sorry, I had to bring us back.”

  “We’re at Coolidge?”

  “Yeah, Marny and Tali are off on a last minute supply run.”

  “You mind if I get going a little early today? You’ve got a lot going on and I could use some more time with the books.”

  “Am I running you off?”

  “Only a little. It’s great, Liam. You’re really in your element here. I’m so proud of you.”

  At 1030 Tabby and I walked over to the elevator.

  “Probably see you in a month or so?” I said.

  “Send me messages. It’s hard for me to find privacy to respond, but I sure love getting them.”

  “Give ‘em hell, Tabby. I love you.”

  “I know Liam. I feel the same way about you.”

  She stepped into the elevator and just like that she was gone. It was a long walk back to the ship.

  At 1145 Qiu pinged me to let me know she’d be on board by 1330. And finally by 1430 everyone was accounted for.

  “All sections report status for immediate departure,” I announced over ship wide communication.

  Marny and Nick both replied immediately with a green status. By taking off five hours early, we would overtake Ada and Adela Chen by midday Monday. I didn’t know what I would do with myself for the next two weeks while we were sailing. Nothing on the ship needed repair and getting a return load from Jeratorn was still ridiculously easy.

  “Permission to enter the bridge.” Nick’s voice came through the comm next to the bridge door.

  “Granted,” I was still feeling moody from leaving Tabby behind.

  “What are you thinking for bridge shifts?” he asked.

  “I was thinking about integrating Marny and doing four hour shifts, but making every third shift a six hour shift. It’ll break up the da
y.”

  “Yup. I’ll pass it on to Marny. You doing okay?”

  “Yeah, it’s just hard,” I said.

  “She’s worth it.”

  There it was. He was right, but it didn’t make it any easier.

  “I’ll take the shift until 1800, then you and Marny can take the next two. That work?”

  “Yup.”

  At 1800, Nick relieved me, carrying a plate with him. “I think they’re holding dinner for you,” he said.

  My next shift would be at 0400. It’d be a hard one to stay awake for, but if I only had to go four hours I figured I could do it. I joined the rest of the crew at the table in the mess.

  “Cap, any update on when we’ll overtake Ada?” Marny asked.

  “Just after 1315 tomorrow,” I said. “Welcome aboard, Lieutenant Loo.”

  “Thank you, Captain Hoffen.”

  “I trust the accommodations are to your liking.”

  “More than satisfactory. Thank you.”

  “Great. Shall we eat?” I’d noticed no one was eating. I’d heard about the ritual of waiting for the captain before starting a meal and I’d even experienced it on the Kuznetsov with Commander Sterra. I didn’t think it would apply to me. I appreciated the gesture.

  “Don’t have to tell me twice,” Marny said.

  “Marny, mind if I ask you something kind of personal?” Tali asked.

  “Fire away.”

  “How much of your jaw got replaced?”

  “Not sure that’s good dinner conversation - anyone squeamish?” She looked around the table. I hadn’t thought she was serious when it’d been brought up before.

  “I know I’d like to hear about it,” I said. I was also interested in the idea that a bone could be replaced and wondered if that was possible for my foot.

  “On the left side, everything from the eye socket down and most of the top jaw as well as the entire lower jaw.”

  “Synthetic skin, sinuses, the works?” Tali was obviously enthralled.

  “Aye. If you look real close you can see where skin is matched back in with my own.” Marny ran her finger along her cheek, leaning toward Tali.

  Tali whistled in appreciation. “That’s nice work.”

  “Mind if I ask how much of your arm is your own?” Marny asked.

  I interrupted. “How do you know about that?”

  “Cap, she hit me hard enough to shatter her hand a dozen times over. Initially, I was more worried for her.”

  “Is that why you didn’t bruise?” I asked.

  “It actually does bruise but it’s not anywhere near as noticeable. If I use the right kind of patch it heals most things overnight.”

  “Entire arm, shoulder, socket, clavicle, shoulder-blade, ribs and part of my spine,” Tali said somberly.

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Marny replied.

  “It was tough for a while, but like everything else, you either let it get you or you don’t. Right Liam?”

  Tali’s question caught me off guard. I finally answered, “Seriously. I’m done moping. It’s just hard when I have to say good bye.” I didn’t think I was bringing everyone down.

  “Uh, Cap, I think she’s talking about your foot,” Marny said.

  “Oh …”

  The next morning 0400 came unmercifully early. I palmed my way onto the bridge.

  “Captain on the bridge,” Marny’s voice was subdued.

  “It’s mesmerizing, isn’t it?” She was gazing out at the stars.

  “Sure is.”

  “Thanks for taking a shift.”

  “Just part of the job, Cap.”

  “Well, get some sleep, we’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Aye, aye.”

  The shift went without incident and Nick relieved me at 0800. I slept for a couple of hours and had my alarm set for 1200. I relieved Marny early so I could be piloting when we overtook Ada.

  At 1323, and with a bridge full of spectators, I slid Sterra's Gift up alongside the Adela Chen. Normally under hard burn, we wouldn’t be able to communicate, but I was close enough that we were able to punch through the interference.

  Hail Adela Chen.

  “You sure got here fast.” Ada’s always cheery voice played across the sound system of the bridge.

  “You want to break from burn? We’d like to transfer a passenger.”

  “Are you joining me again, Captain?”

  “Not this time and you’re on a public comm.”

  “Hiyas, all!”

  Everyone chuckled and returned her greeting. She had an infectious personality.

  “Okay, burn off in 3… 2… 1…” She counted down and I adjusted so that we were sailing along together, no longer accelerating.

  “Who am I getting?” Ada asked.

  “Jordy Kelti. You okay with that?”

  “He’d better be on his best behavior. I won’t have anyone messing up my ship.”

  “You hear her, Jordy?” Marny asked.

  “Yes, ma’am. Unlock your airlock and I’ll be over in a jiffy.”

  He wasn’t kidding either. No more than ten minutes later, he was safely aboard the Adela Chen.

  “Well, there’s one last thing,” I said.

  Broadcast on both ship’s public address. I instructed. I caught Nick rolling his eyes at me.

  “Breaker one-nine, Breaker one-nine.” I said in the cheesiest voice I could muster. I had a larger audience than usual, but I’d be darned if I was going to miss this.

  C.W. McCall, Convoy, I instructed the AI.

  The song started out with someone talking on the radio and I really only remembered the chorus, but I had to join in once we got there, all the same.

  Cause we got a little convoy

  Rockin' through the night.

  …

  JERATORN HO!

  It would take two weeks to arrive at Jeratorn. If it were just Sterra's Gift, we could easily shave off five of those days, but the Adela Chen wasn’t designed for the same type of acceleration while pushing barges.

  Life aboard the ship quickly fell into an easy rhythm. One of my favorite activities was watching Tali and Marny spar. It was obvious that Tali was significantly faster and had better technique than Marny. It didn’t seem to bother Marny in the least and she accepted the smaller woman’s advice easily.

  Marny, in turn, pushed Nick and me to practice with her. If feeling tired and beat up were any indication of progress, then I was doing really well. Otherwise, I didn’t see the progress that Marny insisted was there. At a minimum, it gave us something to do.

  Midpoint in the journey, we stopped the hard burn in preparation to start decelerating. We decided to take a break for a couple of hours and have Ada and Jordy join us. It was mostly a celebration to break up the monotony, but I thought it would also be a good time for us to talk about how I wanted to approach Jeratorn.

  The mess table was a tight squeeze for the eight of us, but we’d all become pretty comfortable with each other. Marny had a special treat for us in the form of chocolate chip cookies. I was pleased that Qiu had loosened up enough to join us. She was quiet, but it meant something to me that she made an effort.

  “As you all know we’re less than a week from Jeratorn,” I started. I wanted to make sure I had everyone’s attention. “Ada, how long do you think it will take to refuel and load the barges?”

  “We’ll drop the string at the co-op and then head over to the refueling station. Most of the time, strings get loaded within twenty-four hours, sometimes more quickly.”

  “How is Jeratorn set up? Refueling at the main station?”

  “That’s right. The co-op ore station is maybe fifty kilometers away from the main station. I imagine it's getting pretty full, with as little traffic as they’ve had.”

  “That’s what concerns me. Makes ‘em a big target.”

  “I say we sail in at the same time. I drop the string, while you fuel up and then you unload while I get fuel,” Ada said.

  “Lieutenan
t Loo, any way to predict how long you’ll be on station?”

  “Most likely case is four days or less. If I can’t get the information I need by then, I will have blown any chance I had.”

  “I thought you were planning to bring a package back with you,” I said.

  “Depends on the information.”

  “Fine. Marny, you good with that plan?”

  “Small tweaks. I’d prefer that we’re not unloading while Ada’s fueling. Maybe we heave-to off the station instead of docking overnight. That’d keep us close enough to communicate with the lieutenant, but far enough away that anyone approaching is suspicious.”

  “After a couple of weeks of sailing, I think we’d all like some shore leave. Any issues with that?” I asked.

  “How about we play it by ear. If everything’s quiet, then we tie up for the night at the station. If things are looking sketchy, we go back to plan A.”

  “Good. I like it. Anyone else have anything to add? Tali?”

  “I agree, we can assess the risk once we get there, but it sounds like a plan. I think you want to let people know that the two ships are together. Strength in numbers ‘n all. I wonder, though, what happens with the tug once the string is full?” Tali asked.

  “If Lieutenant Loo is done in four days or less I’d like to hold Ada back so we can sail home together. If it takes a lot longer than that, we may need to consider sending Ada on her way, alone. I guess I’d like to play it by ear.”

  “Makes sense,” Tali agreed.

  “Any other business?” I asked.

  “Did Sam finalize that ore contract yet?” Nick asked.

  “Let me check, we may have received a comm by now.” I looked at my comm queue and didn’t see anything from Sam. I wasn’t surprised, as we still had a week of sailing left. When we’d left Mars, the market for most ores was sinking. “Nothing yet. I’m sure he’ll have it lined up by the time we arrive.”

  “He’d better,” Ada said.

  “I sincerely doubt he’d mess with you,” Jordy added.

  “Do I smell fear?” Tali asked.

  “No. I’m just saying …” Jordy looked away.

  “Bawk bawk bawk …” Tali quietly imitated a chicken.

  “Meeting adjourned. Happy midway! Where’d those cookies go?” I said.