Mandy was into the air as the last word left Tani's lips. She lined out and fled for the home ranch like an arrow. But quick as the paraowl was, the copter had been quicker. The stun-spray was wide-set and the edge of it clipped the fleeing bird. Only lightly but enough that she went into a temporarily blacked-out tumble. Her wings extended, she planed to a soggy landing in brush several miles from the clan camp. She struck lightly enough but one wing hit a branch within the scrub.
Feathers bent, then broke. It was a painless but exasperating injury. It would unbalance her flight. Mandy crouched, dazed, in the bushes, panting. Her head drooped as the light stun took effect. She slept, safe at least from those who would have stolen her, but her message undelivered.
In the clan camp all was quiet. Nothing moved but the breeze twitching the clothing of those who lay about within its confines. The copter landed. Three humans emerged to begin raking through the camp. Cregar caught hold of Ideena before she could get far.
"People first. Where's that man they took alive?"
Baris was checking limp bodies. "He's here, badly injured but he's still alive." He borrowed a knife from the nearest recumbent Nitra and slashed once. "Now he isn't."
"That wasn't necessary." Cregar didn't care about the man's death, but if he was ever deep-probed by some authority he wanted to be able to say he'd protested.
Ideena snorted. "Save it. We don't have to carry the weight back, and we don't have to pay him. The natives killed the other three, we just say they got him too. Maybe this one will even believe it." She took the knife from Baris, wiped the handle, and pressed it several times at a number of angles into the Nitra's hand. Then she allowed the knife to drop as if fallen when his body relaxed, stunned.
"Let them find that. Now, stop worrying and start looking for my cat's-eyes." They found cat's-eyes enough, but of the commoner type. Red, gold, and the occasional black. But of the many times more valuable green or white used only for ceremony or gifts to a Thunder-talker, they found nothing. Ideena cursed steadily as she hunted.
Baris called from where he too searched. "I think this is their witch woman. But she isn't wearing any gems."
Ideena came running. "Check her."
"I have. Nothing."
"Look around her. She may have taken them off and hidden them when she heard us coming back. She'd have only heard that a minute before. Barely enough time to get them off, alone hide them away."
Baris grunted. "I still can't find anything." He nudged the stunned woman with his foot. "Pity we can't take the cow with us. I'd see she talked."
Cregar intervened. "We don't have time to waste. Pick up anything you want and help me with this pair." He'd discovered the coyotes where they lay in small heaps near Tani. The girl too had wisely stripped her cat's-eye jewelry, gifts of the tribe, and hidden it in a hastily scooped hole just by the tent rim. In the black and white of dark-lenses the minor earth disturbance should pass unnoticed. It had. But Minou and Ferarre had leaped back to be with their friend as the stuns struck. Now they lay where Cregar could find them.
His voice came harsher. "Pick up the Ghesh-damned beasts and get back in the copter. We're going on to that mountain ranch."
Ideena turned angrily. "What? That wasn't agreed."
"You want the credits I can release to your account, you'll do it. Get going."
She nodded slowly. "Baris, fire up the engines. It seems we have one more stop."
The limp coyotes were loaded. The engines sounded their muffled beat, and the machine lifted, swung to the north, and was gone. Below in the camp, nothing moved. Not for many hours. But in the air the copter was traveling at full speed and so was Ideena's tongue.
"What are we supposed to do? Where is this ranch? What are we after there, is there likely to be anything worth having?"
Cregar waved her to silence. "Baris, head north seventy degrees by west five. You'll see lights at a hundred and fifty miles. Stun-spray the whole ranch as we come in. We drop straight down, grab what I want, and lift again immediately. If you can find anything worth having in that time, do it. If not you'll have to leave it behind. First priority is the beasts I indicate. As soon as we're back in the air head for the port with all the speed you can get out of this thing."
"And land where?"
Cregar's smile was hard. "On the port perimeter to the east near the cargo area. I have it all arranged."
He saw Baris and Ideena exchange glances. That would hold them. They knew what kind of an ant's nest they could have kicked over here and they weren't keen to walk into peacekeepers. If he had a safe way into the ship they'd hold off. They could always take him once they were safe—or so they believed. He saw their bodies relax and hid an unpleasant look. They were effective, this pair. But incurably small-time and a little too independent. The guild would never suggest they joined it. He suppressed a bitter smile. He was just as independent. He'd simply hidden it better and the guild needed his skills. The abilities this pair had were a cred a score.
The copter droned on until Baris spoke. "Lights coming up below."
Cregar checked the instruments. "That has to be the Quade ranch. Swing low across it and stun-spray. Then go back and do the same at right angles. It should cover any of them out in the other buildings too."
Ideena nodded. "Once we land, Baris, you stay in the copter. Keep the engines ticking over and watch out for anyone coming in from elsewhere. Be ready to lift off as soon as I say."
The machine was swinging through the second line of stun as he nodded in turn. "All done. Get moving..."
The copter dropped like a stone, landed lightly, and the doors slid open. Cregar vaulted out. The door of the ranch opened to his thrust and he darted inside. When the copter swung down Logan had been in the basement. At the start of the Xik troubles his father had lined that with proplas—an application of plascrete and clearplas. Specially treated, it was impervious to stunner and blaster, and if the house collapsed on top, it would hold those within safely.
Logan heard the engines above and headed for the stairs, dropping the basement trapdoor shut behind him. He emerged into the corridor with Surra snarling beside him just as Cregar entered. Behind him Ideena produced a selective needier taken from one of the dead men, and shot in panic; the beast looked like death incarnate as it charged and Ideena had no plans to die here. Surra dropped, blood pouring from a gaping wound across the top of her skull. Logan shouted in anger and kept coming, his hand lashing across to reach his knife. Her adrenaline pumping now, Ideena shot again and Logan fell. Cregar bit back his fury at the possible loss of the dune-cat. It was done and there was no time to fight about it.
He stunned Surra to be safe then snapped at Baris who had followed them in when he heard the needier discharge. "Pick the cat up and get her into the back of the copter. Seal the wound off. If she bleeds to death I'll deduct half the cred. Move it!"
He saw the big cat safely stowed and returned to search quickly through the house. In the main family room he found a stunned meercat curled about a newborn litter. He grabbed the babies and mother and leaped for the copter again. He dumped the box of meercats carefully, then returned to look through the house. Somewhere there was an eagle. He wasn't sure if he wanted to find that or not. But for his own pride he had to know he'd looked. After that he found the safe. It was impossible to open in the time he had but there were a number of small items of value about the room. He returned to the copter with filled pockets.
"Where's Ideena?"
"Looting, of course," Baris drawled.
"Rev the engines."
"That'll bring her." He obeyed and the woman came running, her arms full of small plunder. Baris shifted a hand, the engines rose a note, and the copter lifted. Ideena took her seat and strapped in as the machine fled low and fast for the port.