Rebel (9 page)

Cole sighed deeply. "We can't kill an ambulance ship. Let them go." He smiled ironically. "I've been spending too much time with Jacovic."

"Thank you, sir," said Christine. "I think even Val would be reluctant to shoot down an ambulance."

"Only because it can't shoot back," said Cole. "Oh, well, that's our good deed for the month."

He couldn't know it at the time, but it was an act of charity that would affect not only the ambulance ships, but would change the history of both the Inner Frontier and the Republic itself.

They made it back to Singapore Station without incident, and Cole gave each of the crews that had been in the battle a three-day shore leave.

He himself remained on the ship, and finally Sharon sought him out in his small, cramped office.

"Are you okay?" she asked as she entered.

He nodded his head. "I'm fine."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure."

"You don't have to mourn alone," she said. "We all miss him."

"He knew the chance he was taking, leaving the ship and the station and going off with Jacillios," said Cole.

"I know why they killed him," said Sharon. "We're outlaws, and there's a price on our heads. But why did they—?" She broke off in midsentence. "This is the Republic, damn it! We used to be part of it. We're not even supposed to treat our enemies like that!"

"They were just trying to lure the
Teddy R
out of hiding," said Cole. "They succeeded."

"Would
you
lure a ship out of hiding that way?" she persisted.

"No, but—"

"But what?"

"But I'm not a member of the Republic anymore."

"It's hard to believe we all served in it," said Sharon.

"The
Endless Night
wasn't the Republic," Cole noted. "It was just one ship with a captain who should have been court martialed."

"Even so," she replied, "it makes me feel dirty that we ever were a part of it."

He made no reply, and after a moment she walked over and sat down on his lap, putting her arms around his neck. "I miss him, damn it."

"So do I," said Cole.

"You don't show it," she said. "We're alone here. You don't have to keep up your stoic captainly demeanor."

"It's not a pretense or an act," said Cole. "It's the way I'm made. He was the best friend I ever had, but he's dead and he's avenged. I'll miss him for the rest of my life, but I've got a ship to run and a crew to take care of."

"I'm not worried about your crew," she said. "I'm worried about
you.
Everyone has to grieve, even you."

"I'll set aside time for it," answered Cole.

"How about right now?"

"Right now it's too fresh in my mind. I see a picture of what they've done to him, and I don't want to grieve, I want to kill." He sighed. "Those are not good thoughts for the captain of a ship that's outnumbered millions to one."

"Would you rather I left you alone here?" she asked.

"No, I'm happy to have you," said Cole. "I'm just not likely to be good company for the next few days."

"When's the last time you ate?"

He looked puzzled. "I don't know."

"Red shift? Yesterday's blue shift?"

He shrugged.

"Then I think we need to get some food into you. Can't have the captain starve himself to death."

He frowned for a minute, as if considering. "You know, I
am
hungry," he admitted.

"Idena and I found a lovely new restaurant on the second level of the station," she said. "Real beef, imported from Greenveldt. And a chocolate mousse that'll add two inches to your waistline." She got to her feet and pulled gently on his arm. "Come on. It'll be my treat."

He resisted for a few seconds, then got up. "What the hell. I'm not doing any good here. Lead the way."

They went to the airlift, descended to the shuttle bay, and stepped out into the docking arm. They were half a mile from the main body of the station. Cole considered walking the length of the enclosed arm, but suddenly a tram pulled up, they got on it, and half a minute later they were inside Singapore Station.

"Okay, where is this place you were talking about?" said Cole, looking around.

"Second level, like I said," she replied.

He followed her to an interior airlift, and a moment later they were being seated in a small bistro, the Home from Home, that did everything it could not to look like part of a shining metal space station. The chairs were an alien hardwood, as were the tables. The floor was covered with a self-cleaning carpet. The wallpaper came in five displays, each slowly superseding the previous one. There were actually ashtrays on the tables, though no one had smoked real tobacco in millennia. Most of the restaurants on the station had robot waiters, and a small handful had scantily clad women, but the Home from Home presented middle-aged waiters in crisp white jackets.

"How long has this joint been open?" asked Cole when a waiter had taken their drinks order.

"About three weeks," replied Sharon.

"They must have found those outfits in an antique shop."

"The place has a nice ambience, doesn't it?" said Sharon.

"It's okay."

The waiter returned with their drinks, they ordered, and then Sharon spoke of a new art gallery she had discovered while Cole pretended to listen politely. Finally the food arrived and they began eating.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"Not bad," said Cole.

"Not bad?" she repeated. "It's great!"

"I suppose so," he said. "We'll come back when I've got less on my mind."

"Forrice again?"

He shook his head. "Forrice is dead. We've still got a fleet to run. Which reminds me—where's Jacovic?"

"Somewhere on the station," she replied. "He'll probably come to Duke's Place later."

Cole nodded, then attacked his meal with more enthusiasm and became more talkative. When the meal was over they left the restaurant, took an airlift to the main level, and a moment later entered the Duke's casino. Cole made a beeline toward the Duke's table, where the Platinum Duke sat with David Copperfield and Val.

"Greetings," said the Duke. "I heard what happened, and I want you to know how sorry I am about Commander Forrice."

"We'll all miss him," said Cole. "I'm just sorry I couldn't blow up the whole fucking fleet for him." He paused, looking around the casino. "Is Jacovic here?"

"He hasn't stopped by to pay his respects yet," replied the Duke.

"I think I saw him at a Teroni restaurant as I was coming here," offered Copperfield.

"I'm going back to the ship," said Cole. "When any of you see him, tell him I'll be in my office and that I want to speak to him."

"You're not staying and sharing my liquor?" asked the Duke, and Cole could almost imagine a hurt expression on his platinum features.

"Not today," said Cole. "Or is it tonight?"

"It's always tonight out here," replied the Duke.

"Let's go," said Sharon, taking Cole's arm.

"You can stay if you want," said Cole. "I know I'm not being good company."

"No, I'll dance with the guy what brung me, to coin a phrase," she said.

He shrugged. "Okay."

They walked to the exit, and five minutes later they got off the tram and entered the
Teddy R.
Cole stopped by the mess hall, got a cup of coffee, wondered vaguely when he had become addicted to caffeine, and made his way to the bridge, where he found Christine and Domak. He made sure that everything was in order, then went to his office.

Sharon accompanied him to the door, then stopped.

"I've got some work to do," she said, "and you look like you'd rather be alone."

"Not really."

"Then call me back after Jacovic has come and gone," she said, turning and walking away.

Cole sat down behind his desk, sipped his coffee, and stared at the patterns of light that were shown on his small viewscreen. Ships came, ships went, hundreds of tiny brilliant lights in constant motion, producing an almost hypnotic effect. Cole relaxed and just watched the patterns. He lost all track of time and was brought back to the present by a knock at his door.

"Come in," he said.

The door irised, and Jacovic entered.

"David Copperfield said you wanted to see me, sir?" said the slender Teroni.

"Yeah," said Cole. "Have a seat."

Jacovic pulled a chair up to the desk and seated himself.

"You know," remarked Cole, "that's something Four Eyes could never do. You can't imagine how difficult it was to find anything he could sit on with those three legs of his."

"He was a good officer," said the Teroni. "I know how close you were to him."

"He's gone," said Cole. "And I need a new First Officer. You're the best I've got. I'd like you to turn over the
Silent Dart
to your second-in-command and come over to the
Teddy R."

"How will your crew respond to taking orders from a member of my race?" asked Jacovic.

"They had no problems taking orders from a Molarian," replied Cole.

"You were never at war with the Molarians," noted Jacovic. "The Republic has been battling the Teroni Federation for more than twenty years."

"We left the Republic three years ago," said Cole. "The Inner Frontier is no-man's-land. There are no Republics or Federations here. They'll follow your orders, because they've worked with you for a year, and they know you're an honorable and competent officer."

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather promote the Valkyrie?"

Cole shook his head. "I need a First Officer, not a loaded weapon, no matter how loyal and efficient she is."

"Then I accept, sir."

"Good," said Cole. "How soon can you move your gear here?"

"How soon do you need me?"

"A day or two," said Cole. "We've accepted no assignments, and we'll probably be here for another couple of weeks, but it's a good idea to get the crew used to the fact that you're the First Officer."

"All right," said Jacovic. "I'll transfer to the
Theodore Roosevelt
tomorrow." He paused. "Will the Valkyrie be upset that I have been promoted over her?"

"If she is, she can complain to me," said Cole. "I doubt it, though. As long as we aim her at the bad guys, she's content. You're here because I need a First Officer I can trust. She's here because I need a devastating weapon that I can control." He paused. "You served as Third Officer for a while when Val had her own ship, so you know your way around the
Teddy R.
Probably ninety percent of the crew is unchanged. You'll be in charge of red shift, starting the day after tomorrow. Any questions?"

"No, sir."

"Then that's it. I'll have Four Eyes's cabin reconfigured to suit your needs, unless you prefer another one?"

"I'm sure that will be fine, sir," said Jacovic. He saluted and left.

Cole went up to the bridge, where Christine was working at her computer console.

"You ever going to take a shore leave?" he asked her.

"Pretty soon, sir."

"That's what you said the last four times I asked you."

"There's nothing there that interests me, sir," she said.

"Maybe there are some great black-market computers," Cole suggested.

"I'm happy right here, sir."

"They've got art galleries, botanical gardens . . ."

She gave him a look.

"Okay, I know when I'm beaten," lie said. "But you at least should take a little time off to relax."

"This
is how I relax, sir. Really."

"You know we're going to have this conversation every day while we're docked here," said Cole.

"We always do," she said with a smile.

"All right," he said. "You win this time, but—"

Suddenly some code on the holograph floating above her console caught her eye.

"That's strange," she said.

"What is?"

"Just a minute, sir," she said, speaking to the machine in code that sounded as alien as any language he'd ever heard. Finally she turned to him with a puzzled frown on her face.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's very odd, sir," said Christine. "There are six Republic ships in the Braccio system—but only one is in orbit around Braccio II, and that's the only inhabited planet in the system."

"When the hell did they show up?" demanded Cole.

"I just saw the notation on the screen, sir. It can't be more than a few minutes." She peered at the rows of code that suddenly appeared, asked a pair of questions in the same incomprehensible tongue, and waited until she had her answers.

"What's going on, Lieutenant?" said Cole.

"It doesn't make any sense, sir," she said. "One of the ships, the
Distant Drums,
sent a shuttle down to the surface, picked up two passengers, and returned to the ship." She frowned again. "I thought they only took
one
survivor back to Braccio."

"That's right—just one."

"Could his doctor be going with him?"

Cole shook his head. "With six ships they'll have a medical team on one of them."

"Then who could it be?"

"I've got a better question," said Cole. "Why does it take six ships to evacuate two people?"

"I don't know, sir."

He frowned. "Neither do I."

"It's very unusual, sir," said Christine.

"It's more than unusual," said Cole. "It's very
dangerous.
But for the life of me I can't figure out what they're doing there. One survivor made it back to the Republic. Either he or his medic or pilot surely told them that it was the
Teddy R
that killed the
Endless Night
, not some barrage from Braccio II. Hell, it was someone in Four Eyes's whorehouse who spotted him and informed the Republic he was there. They ought to be
thanking
them."