"Wilf," she exclaimed over the construction noise as she stepped from the staircase,
"then it was Defiant I saw landing earlier this afternoon." She frowned and glanced at his dressings. "I heard she took a couple of hits this time. How badly were you hurt?"
Brim nodded. "I'm all right," he said grimly. "I just happened to be down with Ursis when the Leaguers took out our starboard Lateral. We both got a little singed-but nobody was killed." Then he frowned. "They do say she'll take a whole week to fix, though."
She smiled and shook her head. "Just so long as you didn't get killed," she said. "And keep in mind, Mr. Wilf Impatience, that Defiant's the first of her type," she added defensively.
"Whoever heads up her repair crew will literally write the manual for everything they accomplish. Second time's always easier."
"I understand," Brim said. "But I think everybody in me Fleet expects that you people can perform magic on a regular basis. You know..." He gestured toward Prize below.
She stood beside him on the rail and nodded happily. "Not bad for less man three weeks' magic, is it?"
"You must be killing yourselves," Brim observed.
Claudia laughed. "It's a lot safer than having the Leaguers try to do it for you," she said as a hullmetal trimmer began a long, noisy cut.
"Huh?"
"I SAID..." Then she put her mouth close to Brim's ear. "Let's go out on the Wharf," she said. "It's quieter there...."
Brim nodded, then followed her down the long flight of stairs and across the bricks to a rear door. Outside, the air was still thick with acrid smells of burning rubble-an all-clear from Atlanta's latest raid had sounded only metacycles earlier. Compared to the confusion inside, however, the bustling wharf was like a haven of repose. "How do you stand it in there?" he asked.
"These," she said, pulling earplugs from her coveralls. "Otherwise, I'd be deaf." Then she grinned. "The Intransigent party wasn't quite that noisy, Wilf Brim," she said, suddenly serious, "but it did get us an evening away from all of this for a while."
Brim felt his heart leap. "Didn't it, though?" he agreed. "Maybe we ought to do something like that again. Soon...."
"I sort of hoped you might take the hint," she admitted, her brown eyes sparkling.
Brim grinned. "My pleasure," he said. "But I think you'd better say when-I'm the one with a flexible schedule."
"All right," she said, "let's see..." She frowned for a moment. "Not tonight, that's for certain. Everyone in The Section is going to watch Princess Effer'wyck's wedding-the BroadcastPac came in on your convoy, you know."
Brim nodded, grinding his teeth. He didn't need to be reminded about that. "Yeah," he answered grimly. "I suppose I'll watch in the wardroom...."
"What's the matter with the royal wedding?" Claudia challenged defensively. "You sound as if you don't approve."
Brim smothered a bitter laugh. "Oh... nothing like that," be lied, avoiding her eyes. "It's just that, ah, I probably have duty tonight, myself." He shrugged uncomfortably.
"Well, I hope you don't have to miss it," she said, raising her eyebrows. "From what I've beard about the preparations, Avalon hasn't put on a spectacle like it since before the war.
And Universe knows we Imperials can stand a little something beautiful in our lives these days."
"I imagine this Imperial might survive..." he grumbled.
Abruptly her face became serious and she touched his cheek. "I'm sorry," she whispered gently. "I guess things look a lot different when one has nearly gotten himself vaporized."
Unconsciously, Brim took her hand-it was small and warm in his. "Let's see if we can schedule that evening together," he temporized.
Claudia nodded-without removing her hand from his. "I guess it's not going to be for the rest of this week, either," she said presently. "About a year ago, I signed up to chair an Operations seminar. It starts tomorrow afternoon and runs through the rest of the next thirty watches. There's simply no way I can get out of it."
"How about the evenings?" Brim guiltily heard himself ask.
Claudia laughed. "That's when the seminar is, Wilf," she answered. " Nothing changes my day schedule-especially with this crazy Payless Project your skipper has on me. Prize has to be finished in a little more than three weeks, you know."
Brim nodded. "Just my luck," he said, forcing a smile. "When you get to your office, you'll learn that Defiant is due out at the end of the week."
"I had a feeling it might be something like that," she answered with a frown. "I guess that does it for this trip." Then she brightened. "But I haven't any more seminars scheduled for a month-and you will be back."
"You bet I'll be back," Brim said. "Especially if I have something special to look forward to-like another evening with you."
"Come on, Claudia!" someone interrupted from the barge. "Let's get this rustbucket on the road. She's due back in two metacycles-and you have to sign the release papers."
Claudia grimaced. "I'm afraid I've got to return the barge, Wilf," she said.
"Yeah," Brim mumbled, mesmerized by her brown eyes.
"Hmm, ...perhaps you'd better let go of my hand before I turn around and everyone can see," she whispered.
"Voo't beard," Brim said, feeling his cheeks burn. "I'm, ah..." He cleared his throat. "Ah... sorry."
The man in the barge was waving again. "Hey Claudia. We need to go!"
"Don't be sorry," Claudia said with a little smile. "I thought it was nice." Then she turned and hurried onto the deck of the barge. Moments later, the huge vehicle lumbered out into the stream. Just before it disappeared around a bend of the canal, Claudia looked back and waved.
Brim could feel the warmth all the way back to Defiant....
That evening, after he ran out of excuses for being anywhere else, Brim trudged reluctantly to Defiant's wardroom-determined to sit out Margot's wedding ceremony as if it were nothing more than an interesting spectacle. Every officer who could spare as much as a half metacycle was already there, staring raptly at a huge three-dimensional monitor Provodnik rigged for the occasion in the center of the room. By the time he purchased a bottle of meem at Grimsby's pantry, he could see that most of the interminable prewedding rituals had already been broadcast and the main event was about to begin. He took a seat near the door between Ursis and Calhoun, then poured himself a deep draught of meem and braced himself for the worst.
It didn't work....
His first glimpse of Margot in the monitor was like a searing tongue of flame-and there was no protection from love. She was so beautiful in her wedding gown that everyone in the wardroom gasped.
"By Voot himself-isn't she a picture!"
"Oh, look at the gown! And she's wearing the Stone of the Empire."
"Yeah. She is, isn't she?"
Brim remembered the huge StarBlaze pendant-she'd worn it the first night they'd shared her bed.... His mind raced back, filling for a moment with delightful recollections. Then abruptly he tried to imagine what she might be doing bow-at that very instant! The BroadcastPac had been compiled days ago. He shook his head. He knew what he'd be doing in the same circumstances.... He took another healthy swig of meem.