The crew of eighteen gave the ship just enough personnel to stand three watches, and Captain Drago set his course for Jump Point Beta at a brisk 1.5 g's. ''We'll get your work done quickly and get this contract over, if we're lucky, before anything violent comes your way, Lieutenant.''
''I thought my lieutenant signed you up for six months.''
''Right, she did. But if we get all your work done in less, maybe you'll decide to save money and cut our contract short?''
''Strange behavior from a merchant captain,'' Kris said.
''Yes, no question about it,'' Captain Drago readily agreed. ''But working for a Longknife is bound to bring out strangeness.''
''All too true,'' the navigator agreed. Kris noticed, however that her eyes, while staying attentive to Jump Point Beta, did have a tendency to stray briefly, again and again, to the gas giant with the strange, tiny fuzzy presence in its orbit.
She sees my jump point!
Yes. Probably. But, Nelly, she's not talking about it. What say we don't talk about it, either. This is one secret I want to keep between us girls.
But sooner or later we have to talk to someone if we are to go exploring.
Yes, girl. But let's not talk to anyone until we are going exploring.
Yes, ma'am, Your Princessship, Slavedriverness.
Nelly, boss would do just fine.
The long day at heavy g went slowly; Kris set out to get to know Drago and his officers better. They were ready talkers… about anything but their recent work. Jack flashed Kris a scowl after he tried to turn the lunch conversation toward what their Bid For Contract said was their latest work at Lorna Do. That effort was cut short by Abby introducing the need for Kris to expand her wardrobe to more informal wear that would fit Chance better.
''When we get back, could I have a modiste visit?''
''That shouldn't be a problem,'' Kris agreed, and found that Captain Drago had left the dinning room.
Fifteen hours after leaving the station, the Resolute came to a standstill beside the jump buoy. It was nowhere close to the jump point; they would not have found it except for the flashing beacon. Its radio was silent as death.
Two sailors captured it and maneuvered it into the hold. A quick survey showed it was in sad shape. One of the merchant sailors put her finger into the hole in the fuel tank. ''Goes in here and right through to the second tank. Got both.''
Jack studied it up close. ''I guess it was a meteorite. Don't see any evidence of a laser. We can check the tanks better once we get them back to the station.''
''You might as well take the whole buoy back,'' Chief Beni put in. ''The batteries won't take a charge and half the solar cells are gone. We were lucky that it had power for the light.''
''Pull out a replacement,'' Kris ordered. Twice. The first one came up dead. The second one came up alive… once they swapped out the solar cells from the first one.
Two hours later, they placed the buoy on its own and put it to work, passing through the jump point with orders to send the one from the other side through to verify that there was no ship waiting there to come through. It came back.
''I guess no other buoy,'' Captain Drago said. He edged the Resolute through carefully, at only a few kilometers a second and rock-solid steady on its lateral stabilizers. Ships that went through at high accelerations tended to end up at jump points they didn't intend to. Ships that were spinning could end up lost. The navigator of the Resolute was a very careful woman.
''No beacon,'' the captain reported, to no one's surprise. ''I'll have my crew get another spare buoy up and running.''
''But what happened to the assigned one?'' Kris asked.
Drago shrugged. His toothy smile didn't make Kris any more satisfied with her ignorance.
''Beni, report to the bridge. Captain, what search sensors does this ship have?''
''You've seen them.''
''I want to search for something maybe blown down to atoms.''
''You sure it didn't just wander away?'' Sulwan asked. ''If it lost all its solar cells, it wouldn't even show a light.''
''Possibly, but humor my paranoid side for a while. Okay?''
Beni and the Comm Chief got to work boosting the Resolute's sensor suite. By the time they launched a replacement buoy, Beni was frowning over reports. ''This chunk of space isn't nearly as empty as it ought to be. And the mixture of atoms is about what you might expect if someone blew a buoy to atoms.''
''How recently?'' Jack asked.
''Say a month ago.''
''Too recent. Let's go home,'' Jack said.
''Long enough ago that the ship should be long gone,'' Kris countered.
''Could be long gone.''
''Is there any ship in this system?'' Kris asked Sulwan.
Lips pursed, she studied her sensors. ''Doesn't look like anything's here but us chickens… and one vaporized buoy.''
''We need something more substantial than this to change minds on Chance.'' Kris turned to Captain Drago. ''Your board shows no buoy at this system's Jump Point Beta. That's only two jumps away from Brenner Pass. We need to replace it. How quickly can you get us over there?''
''We can maybe make two g's,'' the Captain admitted.
''And if we get into any trouble, what kind of hold-out guns are you carrying?''
Captain Drago looked pained. ''Ma'am, I'm just a simple merchant captain. The Resolute is no kind of a warship.''
''Yes, and I commanded a dozen friendly-looking merchant skippers and their ships at Wardhaven, all just as deadly as they needed to be. What have you got if things get terminal?''
The captain studied the overhead of his bridge for a long moment, then glanced Sulwan's way. She shrugged. ''She's a Longknife. You knew she was going to ask,'' the navigator said.
''Yes, but I was hoping for much, much later.'' He paused for a moment longer, then said quickly. ''We have two fourteen-inch pulse lasers and capacitors that can normally be recharged in five minutes, assuming everything else is running smoothly and our reactor hasn't been shot to Swiss cheese.''
''Good, Captain. That didn't hurt. Who's your gunner?''
''Three ex-Navy types who know the lasers from soup to nuts.''
''That's nice to know. Now then, Captain, let us get to the next jump point as quickly as we may. Chief Beni, make sure the software on this buoy will have it go through the jump to report to Chance anytime the other buoy is activated.''
''Already did, ma'am. It's standard software after that mess up at Wardhaven.''
''Glad to know someone learned something from that.''
''Madame client,'' Captain Drago began most formally, ''Our high g stations are not nearly so fancy as those on Navy ships. In fact, you may find the plumbing rather crude. May I suggest that you and your maid use your room. The men use their own room while we make Godspeed for where you want us.''
''Thank you, Captain. Jack, Beni, with me.''
''If you think I'm going to leave you all alone when that puffed-up pirate has just told me to leave you all alone,'' Jack started as soon as they were alone in the passageway.
''You wouldn't be half the man I take you for,'' Kris said to cut off a long lecture that she already knew by heart. And one, at least today, she agreed with.
''Jack, Beni, get your high g stations. Give Abby and me about ten minutes to get ourselves modestly arranged in our own, then you join us in my room.''
''What about my modesty?'' the chief asked.
''Trust me, I'll close my eyes,'' Kris answered.
''Abby probably will, too,'' Jack added.
Fifteen minutes later, they were ready for a day-long trip at high g. Jack had his station facing the door of Kris's stateroom, automatic at hand. Kris had a similar field of fire. Abby had set up a game hologram between the four of them. She started off with chess, but quickly beat all of them soundly. Even Jack. Abby suggested they try their hand at poker, but neither Kris nor Jack were one of those born optimists that ever answered yes to that question. And they refused to let Abby play Beni for a sucker. They settled on bridge at a penny a point.