Admiral Lucin.
Molly dropped her bag and went over to hug him. It was one of the small joys of being out of the Academy. She didn’t see him as often as she would like, but he was a friend again. The infrequent hugs always helped heal some of the pain that seeing his uniform caused.
“Hello, Wonderful.” He held her tight.
“What are you doing here? I thought you had business this weekend.”
“Well, this is part of my business. I’m here on official duty. They were going to send some flunky to break the news but I told them they were out of their minds.” He looked around the office and then out through the smudged windows. “Let’s go outside so we can talk.”
Now Molly was really confused. What official business could the Navy have with her? Once you were out of the Academy, there was no going back. Ever. If they made an exception, it wouldn’t be for a girl. Would it?
She led Lucin out through two double doors and into the school courtyard. A handful of students were still hurrying off to their weekend, so the two friends sat on a bench off in one corner. A Japanese cherry tree provided some shade and left a carpet of pink blossoms to stir in the breeze.
Lucin took in a deep breath and admired the campus. “It’s beautiful out here,” he said.
“Yeah,” Molly agreed. “I eat lunch over there in the grass. They give us an hour. Beats the old cafeteria with its two-meter ceilings and bare walls.” She compared the two experiences in her mind. She knew this talk was probably not about going back to the Academy, but she still made the comparison. And part of her betrayed the rest in wanting to switch places. “Anyway, what’s orbiting, Lucin?”
“‘What’s orbiting’? Is that the sort of English they’re teaching you here?” He looked at her with mock disapproval.
“Yeah, it’s nebulous.” She said it with a grin and Lucin returned it.
He reached over and tousled her brown hair. “It’s getting long.”
“I’m trying to be normal.”
“And how’s that working out for you, young lady?”
“It’s unique. Being normal.” Molly pursed her lips. She’d never known Lucin to avoid getting straight to the point. Then she understood why he would be the one coming here. Why he was having a hard time bringing it up. Why he would do this at the school. This has nothing to do with the Academy, Molly thought. This is about my father.
Her face must have betrayed it. Lucin’s brows came down in recognition of whatever flashed across her own. He nodded slightly. “We’ve located his ship.” His voice was small and tight.
“Parsona?”
“Yes, Parsona. A Navy operative working undercover on Palan came across it. It was discovered by one of the pirate gangs there and has been impounded. We’re working on getting the paperwork together to get it out of there.”
“On Palan? But that’s on the other side of the galaxy from where Dad was last seen.” Molly leaned back and looked up into the pink blossoms, doing some calculations.
“I’m glad your astralogy hasn’t gone the way of your English,” Lucin joked, a sign he was nervous, or keeping something from her.
“What’re you gonna do with the ship when you get it?”
“That’s why I’m here. Legally, it’s yours. It was all your father had, and he left it to you in his will. The fact it’s been lost for almost ten years doesn’t change that. So eventually, you’ll need to think about what you want to do with it. We’ll need to look over it first, of course. See if there’s a clue in the logs about where he was, signs of struggle, all of that.”
“My father’s dead, Lucin. Don’t give me any hope. I could feel something different in my bones the day he died. It’s hard to explain.”
“There’s no need, I felt it too. Even before I knew he was gone. I’m not saying we’ll be able to find him, or even give him a proper burial. But the Navy needs to know what happened.”
“Why?” Molly felt herself getting a little angry. “He wasn’t in the Navy anymore, remember? Why do you guys care?”
“I care.” Lucin was solemn. “I care, Molly. I want to find out if someone was responsible, and if so, I want to hurt them.” He looked down at the chips of pink color around his feet. “I mean I want to bring them to justice.”
She nodded.
Then she felt that hardened thing inside her twist into a new shape. Another layer of the film that kept her from seeing the world pulled back and the sky and the courtyard came into a tighter level of focus and detail. She looked at Lucin, and she could see the valleys in his wrinkles and the individual pores in his face. Her mind was so keen she expected to see mitochondria swimming around in his skin cells.
“I’m going to go get Parsona and bring her back.”
It wasn’t a question. It wasn’t even a decision. It was a statement of fact, like she was reading about something she did in a history book. It was as real as if it had already happened.
“We have spring break next week,” she continued. “I’ll go to Palan—it’s only, what, three jumps from here? I can be there by Monday, grab the ship, and I’ll be home before the weekend.”
“Molly—”
“As long as the hyperspace drive is working, and even if it isn’t, we can install a new one, maybe your guy can check that ahead of time. See if the astral charts are updated, clear the paperwork.”
“Molly—”
“I can do it myself. This is basic stuff, Lucin. You know I can do this. I’m almost 17, and I’ve already tested out for my private captain’s license.”
“Listen, Molly—”
But she couldn’t stop talking. Thinking. “I’ve flown that ship with my father from one side of the galaxy to the other. I know it like I know my old simulator. C’mon, didn’t you say the ship was mine? I have my license. It’s totally legal.”
“It’s suicidal, Molly. Stop it. Settle down for a second.” He didn’t seem angry. A smile snuck ’round his mouth, Molly’s excitement rubbing off on him. “Palan’s a bad place. The Navy has almost no presence there. Also, you are not traveling alone. What am I saying? You aren’t traveling at all.”
“You know I am. You can help me or you can see if I can do it on my own.”
Lucin leaned away from her, blinking, as if he couldn’t take all of her in. His brows eventually came down, throwing shadows over his eyes. “I haven’t seen you like this since the day you talked yourself into the Academy.”
“Except this will work,” she insisted.
They were both silent for a while. Molly couldn’t tell if Lucin was thinking back or planning forward. “There will be strict conditions, young lady.”
She nodded vigorously. She would agree to all of them up front.
“First, my agent is going to accompany you back. I don’t want any evidence on Parsona lost just because you didn’t know what to look for.”
Molly kept nodding.
“Second, you bring the ship straight back with minimal jumps and she goes into my hangar for a few weeks. We need to make sure we haven’t missed anything and perform a deeper safety inspection than you’ll be able to do on Palan.”
Her neck started to hurt.
“Finally, I want you to have someone you trust accompany you to Palan—I don’t want anything to happen to you on the way there.”
Molly froze. “Who?”
“Someone who can navigate, even help pilot if you end up needing to do shifts.” He ticked requirements off his fingers, but Molly felt like he was describing someone in particular. “Someone you know and trust who will stick his neck out for you if you get in a jam.”