I smiled, but that was the last thing we needed. Peg and I had little enough time to devise an escape plan and put it into action.
‘Are there any time-ships docked at the spaceport?’ I asked.
‘Time-ships go straight to Earth,’ said Ben, catching my eye. ‘Most of the ships that dock here are shuttles and cargo ships.’
‘That’s too bad,’ I said. ‘The only time-ship I’ve ever seen is the one I travelled on.’
‘Four-dimensional travel is very dangerous,’ said Ben. ‘You’re best off staying well away from it.’
‘If Admiral Wolfe wins the presidency of the Space and Time Institute, all time-ships will be decommissioned,’ said Peg. ‘There will be no more time travel.’
Ben shook his head. ‘That would be a great pity. I believe there’s a place for carefully regulated time travel.’
‘Talking of Westland,’ said the first officer through a mouthful of green sludge, ‘weren’t you involved with his son?’ He was looking at me.
I shrugged. ‘We knew each other. We were friends. Nothing more.’
‘But on the news they said . . .’
‘All lies,’ I said, reaching across the table for Peg’s hand. ‘A way for Admiral Wolfe to discredit the Westland family.’
I watched Milo Jackson notice our joined hands.
‘That doesn’t surprise me,’ he said. ‘Wolfe is an ambitious man. He’ll stop at nothing to win the presidency and shut down Westland Shipyards. He’s even using the Westland boy’s transport to the moon as a campaign opportunity. He’s coming along himself, together with his son and a host of reporters.’
‘Really?’ I said, feigning surprise. ‘I don’t suppose I would be allowed on board to say goodbye to him?’
‘I doubt that very much,’ said the first officer. ‘Tight security. Admiral Wolfe wouldn’t allow it.’
After dessert and coffee, Peg went off with Milo Jackson for a quick tour of the shipyard. Ben walked me back to my quarters.
‘Eden,’ he said as we took the lift down to B Deck. ‘I don’t know what’s going on in your head, but I hope you don’t think you can rescue Ryan. It’s not possible. The spaceport has tight security and if you were caught trying something, security would shoot first and ask questions later.’
‘I understand. I’m not trying anything.’
He placed a hand on my shoulder. ‘You can make a good life here. Work your way up. Make good money.’
‘That’s all I want,’ I said. ‘To live a good life.’
There were two women in my berthing area now, both undressed and in the process of washing their faces.
‘Hi, roomie,’ one of them called, waving a hand in my direction.
I waved back and counted silently to twenty, long enough for Ben to get back to the lift. I opened the door. The dimmed lighting that signalled night-time cast a warm pink glow on the walls, so that as I stumbled along the curved passageway, I had the strangest impression that I was walking inside a blood vessel. Peg had the map Ben had given us, but I had carefully memorised the route from my room to the lifts. I passed dozens of slim doors that led to tiny berthing areas just like mine, but not a single person.
I reached the lifts and pressed the call button. With no map, I wasn’t sure what I should do, but I wanted to locate a few key places. Ryan’s ship would arrive at the landing bay on A Deck. Temporary accommodation was also on A Deck. With the little information I had, it seemed Ryan’s entire stay aboard the spaceport would be centred on A Deck.
The lift arrived and the door opened. No one was inside. I pressed the button for A Deck and concocted a cover: I’d left my handbag in the Officers’ Club. No one would know I’d never owned a handbag in my life.
The curved passageways of A Deck were equally deserted. I walked straight ahead, trying to commit the layout to memory. I counted twenty-four doors before I reached the entrance to security and the landing bay beyond. The walk between security and the lift had taken me about two minutes.
‘Can I help you?’ asked a tall female security officer.
‘I’m trying to find my way back to the Officers’ Club,’ I said.
‘Keep walking,’ she said, pointing along the passageway I’d been following. ‘It’s a little way along there.’
I thanked her and continued. I passed a holding cell with a bored-looking security guard sitting at a desk reading something on her port-com. Someone had handwritten a sign that said Vacancies and stuck it to the door. I kept walking. I passed toilets and a store cupboard, a cleaning cupboard and then came to the double doors that led into the club. Just as I was about to push the door open, it swung out and I came face to face with Ben.
‘Eden?’ he said, the surprise clear in his voice. ‘What are you doing back up here?’ The door swung shut behind him and latched with a faint hiss.
Somehow I didn’t think he would believe I was looking for my handbag. ‘Looking for Pegasus.’
‘Milo was taking him for a quick tour of the landing bay,’ said Ben. There was a touch of impatience in his voice. ‘He’s probably back in his berth by now.’
I took a step backwards. ‘I’ll go back down and see if he’s there.’
‘It takes a few days to get used to the rhythm of life aboard the spaceport,’ he said. ‘The central section of the port rotates on its axis every twenty-four hours to help with circadian rhythms in our workforce, but even so, most people take a while to adjust. You should try to sleep.’
I strode quickly back along the passageway, past the security checkpoint to the lift. Peg was there, touching the call button.
‘What are you doing here?’ he asked.
‘Exploring.’
‘And?’ He looked at me expectantly.
‘I bumped into Ben and he told me to go back to my berth. How about you?’
‘I have good news,’ he said quietly.
The lift arrived. Peg waited until we were inside before telling me. ‘He took me out on the landing bay where we arrived. There’s a small shipyard there and he wanted to show me some of the things they’re working on.’
He touched the button for C Deck.
‘What about security?’ I asked.
‘Milo was with me so it wasn’t a problem that I didn’t have ID yet. But that’s not the good news.’
The lift doors opened on to C Deck.
‘What are we doing down here?’ I asked.
‘That’s just it,’ said Peg, taking my arm. ‘Milo told me that there’s a small boat deck on C Deck where the evacuation craft are kept. They’re like lifeboats. You only use them if there’s an emergency. I want to find them.’
He let go of my arm and walked out into the lobby.
‘Peg,’ I whispered, half running to catch up. ‘What if someone sees us? It’s ten o’clock at night. We shouldn’t be here.’
‘We say we’re lost.’
Unlike the twisting guts of B Deck, C Deck had a large central lobby with four passageways leading off it, like the spokes of a steering wheel. There were no signs pointing the way.
‘Choose a passageway,’ said Peg.
I turned in a circle. ‘Wait. If these shuttles are for emergency evacuation, there must be directions to them. You don’t hide the lifeboats.’
There was a noticeboard by the lifts. A laminated sign at the bottom of the board gave instructions for evacuation.
‘Found it,’ I said. ‘First left and follow the fluorescent green arrows.’
The left-hand passageway took us past a library and a storeroom. The boat deck was at the end. Although the hatchway to the deck was sealed, there was a reinforced glass panel in the hatch. Peg pushed his face against the glass to peer in.
‘Can you see anything?’ I asked.
‘Not really. It looks like there must be several shuttles inside, each within their own airlock. But I’m not sure.’