“Oh, we’ve been all over. We talked to Jeanne Velory, and Ambassador Begay,” she said, hoping to distract him from details.
“Did you see the gardens?”
“The gardens?” Barbary tried to remember what Heather had told her about the gardens.
“Your shoes are dirty,” he said. “It’s elementary, my dear Watson.”
Barbary felt confused. Yoshi laughed.
“You read too many Sherlock Holmes books,” Heather said.
“I know, but I couldn’t resist. It seemed a safe bet, though — the gardens are the only place on the ship where you can get dirt on your shoes.”
Thea glanced up as if she were about to say something, then drew her eyebrows together and bent over her gizmo again.
“I took Barbary on a raft trip — we did an errand for Yukiko,” Heather said. “We’re going right back out again.”
“Not till after you’ve rested for a while.”
“But, Yoshi —!”
“No arguments,” he said. “I know you’re excited about showing Barbary around. But there’s plenty of time. You don’t need to neglect your health. You can’t neglect your lessons much longer, either.”
Heather glared at him, then turned and stomped off into her bedroom. She and Yoshi must have had this argument before; Heather must know she could not win it.
“It’s hard,” Yoshi said, “to strike a balance between restricting her and letting her run herself ragged.”
“I understand,” Barbary said. “I don’t want her to do anything that will make her sick. Honest.”
“I’m glad. She can do anything she wants — I don’t ever want her to start being afraid she can’t. She just can’t do it all at once. None of us can, but sometimes it’s hard to convince Heather of that.”
“I’ll just go and tell her not to be mad or anything, then come right out and — and go for a walk, okay?”
“That’s fine.”
Barbary followed Heather into their room. Heather sat cross-legged on her bunk with her chin on her fists. Tears ran down her cheeks, but she had stopped crying.
“Just once you’d think —!”
“It’s okay, Heather,” Barbary said. “Honest. I can find my way back down. If you argue, he might get suspicious.” She dug around in the bottom of her duffel bag where she had hidden the plastic pouches of radiation-preserved cat food. She stuffed a couple into her pocket.
“I guess,” Heather said.
Barbary knew better than to say she was relieved not to have to argue Heather into staying home. Barbary could wait for Mick outside the elevator housing without dragging Heather back into full gravity.
“I’ll be back in a while,” Barbary said. “With Mick.” She hoped.
A knock startled them. Heather flopped down on her bunk and pretended to sleep.
“I’m coming,” Barbary said.
Yoshi opened the door. He was frowning. Barbary thought, I didn’t stay in here that long. Maybe he thinks we’re having another fight.
“Barbary, I just got a call from Dr. Velory,” Yoshi said. “She wants to see you in the control center.”
“Me?” Barbary said. “Why? What — what’s wrong?”
“She didn’t say,” Yoshi said. “But she did not sound happy.”
Heather abandoned all pretense at sleep. She and Barbary looked at each other. Barbary knew they were both thinking the same thing: Mick is really in trouble this time. And so are we.
o0o
As they left the apartment, Thea glanced up, said, “Have a nice time,” and went back to work, without even noticing that no one answered her.
Barbary expected the third degree from Yoshi, but he led her to the control center on the one-g level of the station and never asked a single question or made a single accusation. Nor did he prevent Heather from coming along.
Barbary’s heart pounded. She walked plus-spin along the empty hallway outside the control center, Heather on her left and Yoshi on her right. They meant her to know they supported her, but instead she felt as if they were the guards marching her to jail. It was just as well they were with her, though, because otherwise she might have turned and run. On the space station, there was no place to run to.
They stopped in the doorway of the control chamber.
Instruments and gauges and consoles and computer displays filled the large room. But all the people who should have been keeping track of the station clustered around a central console. Only Jeanne Velory remained apart. Leaning against another console, her arms folded, she glared at the controllers, who were all making the sorts of sappy noises that adults make when someone shows them a new baby.
“You wanted to see us, Jeanne?” Yoshi said.
She turned slowly toward them. She looked very angry.
“I wanted to see Barbary,” she said in a level tone. “I think perhaps she has some explanation for this.”
“For what?” Barbary said.
“Will everybody get back to work!” Jeanne shouted.
“Oh, Jeanne, come on,” one of the techs said.
“Right now!”
The techs reluctantly broke up their gathering.
Mick lay sprawled on the warm console, licking one front paw and pretending he was not the center of attention. When the last technician had stroked him and returned to work, Mick gazed at Barbary and blinked his eyes.
“For this,” Jeanne said.
For an instant Barbary wondered if she could get away with pretending she had not brought him to the station. But if she lied now, even if she got away with it, she would have to keep pretending Mick was not hers. She might stay out of trouble, but he would be sent back to earth, or locked up, or killed, and she would have lost the right to stand up for him.
“Yeah,” she said.
“Come with me.”
Barbary gathered Mickey in her arms and followed Jeanne.
In her office, Jeanne motioned Barbary to a chair. Behind her desk, the director of the science station became even more imposing than usual.
“This explains your behavior,” she said. “But it doesn’t explain why you brought a cat with you in the first place, or how you thought you could get away with it.”
Barbary huddled in her jacket, holding Mick close.
“What are you going to do to us?” she asked.
“For the time being, the cat will have to stay in one of the labs. They can find a cage big enough for him…”
“A cage! Mick’s never been in a cage! He’ll go nuts! He’ll yowl all the time and drive everybody crazy and they’ll get mad and hit him!”
“And you’ll have to consider yourself on probation. When things calm down I may be able to arrange for your cat to go back to earth.”
“He doesn’t have any place to go on earth,” Barbary wailed.
“You’d better put your mind to finding him one,” Jeanne said. “That’s the best I can do for now.”
“But you’re the boss here! You can do anything you want. Why can’t you just let him stay?”
“Try to understand my position, Barbary. I’m the boss, yes. But everything is complicated right now. I’m still feeling my way, and I’m having to do it while I’m under a microscope. The station has enemies who take every chance they can get to attack it, to cut its funding before it has a chance to prove its worth. One of the things they call it is an expensive toy. So we have to be on particular guard against doing frivolous things —”
“I don’t see where a cat is so frivolous,” Barbary said belligerently. “Cats can be really useful.”
“ — or breaking the rules.”
Barbary shut her eyes tight.
“Please don’t cry.”
“I’m not,” Barbary whispered.
Jeanne gazed at Barbary. Finally she left her desk and sat in the chair beside Barbary, hitching it around so they faced each other.
“I’m not omnipotent, and some things I just can’t explain to you. For the time being, your cat…”
“His name’s Mickey!”
“…will have to stay locked up.”