***
At dinner we ran into a bunch of people including Brill, Beverly, Diane, Arvid, Mitch, Tabitha, and Sean. It seemed like half the crew was aboard but getting ready to go out. There was a feeling that I had never had as a day worker in the galley. I do not think Pip caught it, but the sense of the flow of time across the watches was almost tangible. Diane was actually on watch and would be stuck on the ship overnight. Francis had already gone. I would relieve Diane in just under twelve stans. The mood was definitely last chance and spirits ran high. As we broke up from dinner, we reached the general consensus to gather at the lock at 20:00 and all head to Jump! together. Even Pip was going.
As we broke up, Brill said, “Well, you guys be careful, okay?”
“What do you mean?” I asked her. “You’ll be there to keep an eye on us, won’t you?”
She shook her head. “I’m bushed. I’m going to stay aboard tonight, I think.”
Behind her Diane was shaking her head in a vigorous no and making pulling motions with her hands. It was all I could do not to laugh.
“Come on, B,” I pleaded. “Just come have a drink and a dance maybe. We’ll have a few laughs and come back early. Pip and I both have morning duty.”
Diane started nodding yes, just as vigorously.
Brill dithered a little but eventually relented. Before she headed out to get changed, I asked, “Oh, could you do me a favor?”
“What? I’m already doing you one just by going!” She smiled when she said it.
“You remember the outfit you wore up to Chez Henri’s? The red jacket with the tab collars? Black slacks?”
“Of course, I don’t have that many clothes.”
“Wear that.”
“Isn’t that kinda dressy for a few drinks at Jump?” Her eyes narrowed.
I shook my head. “No, I don’t think so. Do you think so, Diane?”
Diane piped up with, “No, I think it would be perfect.”
Brill laughed at the obviousness of our behavior and waved over her shoulder as she set off to change.
At 20:00 she showed up in the red jacket and she still looked like a Valkyrie to me.
We all checked out together which must have driven David ben Dour crazy as he tried to process the group of us all at once. Brill, Bev, and I stepped out of the lock and waited for the rest to get checked out.
Bev just shook her head and snickered softly. “I don’t remember the last time this many of us went out at once.”
“You know what it is?” Brill said to Bev over my head.
“What?”
“Him.” She jerked a thumb in my direction. “They wanna see what he does next.”
I held up my hands in surrender. “Whoa! I got the duty in the morning. I’m just going for a couple of drinks and then I’m coming home and going to bed.”
Brill made one of her mmm-hmm sounds.
Beverly just grinned at nothing in particular.
I looked up at Brill and realized she did not have a necklace on. Her throat and upper chest were spectacular on their own, but I thought it could use something to focus attention. I reached back and untied the leather thong and stripped off my green stone.
“Come down here!” I told her.
Bev and I were both astonished when she did just that, leaning down so I could tie the thong around her neck. It took me a couple of tries, but I finally got it where I thought it would do the most good.
“Is this one of the stones you got on Margary?” she asked, reaching up to touch it with her fingertips.
“Yup,” I said. It was about all I could say because it was stunning. The rawness of the leather and the simplicity of the green stone centered just below her collarbone was like a target. The green stone and the red jacket played off each other making each color look just that little bit richer for being together.
“It’s still warm. “You’ve been wearing it all day?”
“Yeah,” I said.
Bev winked at me.
Finally everybody got off the ship and we headed for the lift. Bev and I took up station on either side of Brill. Bev in her leathers, looked like she would eat the next three men alive and they would love every bite. Brill had on her red jacket, while I sported my pink shirt and olive coat. We formed up in a kind of parade formation with some of the crew ahead and some behind. I spotted Rebecca Saltzman out front walking with Mitch Fitzroy. I never appreciated Rebecca’s ability to really slink. The genetic legacy of heavy-G did not seem to bother her stride one bit and I appreciated it in detail for several moments. I looked over my shoulder and saw Tabitha had her own little escort flotilla bringing up the rear with Sean on one side and Arvid on the other. All three of them looked like they were locked and loaded. Whoever that trio tangoed with was in for a hell of a dance. I started counting heads and realized we had almost half the crew in that one group.
I laughed softly.
“What?” Brill asked without looking down.
“Talk about your extended family,” I said.
Beverly chimed in with, “I was thinking dysfunctional, myself. I think every one of us is crazed.”
“Dysfunctional, no. Crazed, definitely. Every last one of us,” I told her.
We managed to get everybody on the big lift and went down in a single group. When the doors opened to the heat and moisture of the oh-two deck, we streamed off the lift in a herd. The corridors were not crowded. It was still relatively early, but the groups of people who were there parted in front of us and we sailed past.
When we got to Jump! the group broke up into table-sized bunches, some people choosing to pull tables together, others simply settling in threes and fours. The waitresses were kept hopping for a few ticks while everybody got drinks and the evening began to ramp up. Pip sat with Bev, Brill and me at a four-top and I looked around to see if I could see anybody familiar.
Brill leaned over to me and said, “The Hedley is getting underway in a couple of stans. Al’s not here.”
“Yeah, I know. I looked it up earlier. The Sigler left, too, so I’m safe from whats-his-name.” I winked at her. “I’m just getting a feel for the room.”
Pip laughed. “A feel for the room? You planning on moving in?”
“No, I just wanna see how the people are grouping up.”
Brill didn’t look comfortable and I asked, “Are you okay?”
She shrugged. “I don’t do well on these last night outings. Everybody seems so desperate.” She laughed self-consciously.
I looked at Bev who gave me a little shrug.
I turned back to Brill and said, “Do something for me?”
She barked a short laugh. “You mean something else? I’m already out, wearing the clothes you asked for, and I’ve got your stone around my neck. What more do you want?”
“Close your eyes. I’m going to whisper a word in your ear. Hold it in your mind. Then finish your drink before you open your eyes.”
She looked at me like I was crazy, but she closed her eyes. I leaned into her ear, savoring the scent of her under the ship’s shampoo and soap and whispered. She giggled, but she finished her drink before opening her eyes.
“Now what’s that supposed to do?” she asked.
“Maybe nothing. But you gotta believe,” I told her and grinned.
Pip looked at me funny then but he didn’t say anything.
Beverly shot me with an expression that asked, “What the hell are you up to?” I just shrugged and waited.
The waitress came back then and put a drink in front of Brill.
“But I didn’t order—” she started to say.
The waitress pointed toward the bar. “It’s from the gentleman over there.”
We all looked and saw a nice-looking guy in a leather jacket and pullover. He raised his glass in silent toast.
Beverly ducked her head a little bit when she saw him and started to giggle. “The guy in the jacket?” she asked from behind a hand.
The waitress nodded. “Yup. That’s him.” She continued on to deliver an order to the next table.
Brill leaned into Beverly and asked, “You know him?”
“Oh, yeah,” Bev said with an emphatic nod of her head. “You should go over and thank him for the drink.”
“Really?” Brill said and looked again. He still smiled at her, waiting for her reaction.
“Oh, yeah,” Bev said again.
Brill looked puzzled and shrugged. “If you’re setting me up, Beverly Arith, I will make you suffer in ways you cannot possibly fathom,” she said darkly.
“You already do, hon,” Bev assured her with a smile so warm, two of the ice cubes in my drink melted.
“And I should go thank him for the drink?” she asked again.
Bev nodded very solemnly. “You’ll thank me tomorrow.”
The way she said it made even Pip blush.
Brill looked at me and I just said, “Remember the word.”
She made up her mind stood up. I was so proud of her because she did not just stand—she really stood. Not the usual Brill stoop so she did not bang her head, but straight, tall, and proud like that day we sailed into Chez Henri. She picked up her drink and sashayed over to where he waited. As she approached, he slid off the stool and dropped almost to the level of the bar, but held a stool for her before getting back on his own.
I looked at Beverly and asked, “You sent her off to thank a midget?”
“He’s not that short. The angle and standing next to Brill makes it look worse than it is. He’s about a meter and a quarter. A little more maybe.”
“But you know how sensitive she is about her height…”
“Oh, I don’t think height is going to be an issue tonight,” she said softly with a peculiar emphasis on the word height.
Pip was leaning in on the conversation, too. “Why not?” he asked.
Bev shrugged. “What he lacks in height, he more than makes up for in length and width,” she said with an evil grin. I thought Pip might swallow his tongue at that, but when she added, “And he can lick his own eyebrows.” I was very glad I did not have a mouthful of my drink.
I turned to her. “You are evil.”
“Thanks,” she said smugly.
“I think you guys are becoming a corrupting influence on Ish. He’s change a lot since leaving the galley.”
Bev and I looked at each other and shrugged. “We try,” she said. “As much as we can.”
“I suspect this is just the beginning. Things are likely to be pretty lively in Betrus, too, don’t you?” I asked Bev.
“Yes. Yes, I think you’re right,” she answered.
Pip just shook his head and laughed. “Someday I’m gonna be able to tell my grandkids I knew you.”
“Yeah, right. With your luck, you’ll be in the cell next to us,” I told him.
I ordered another round when the waitress came by and the room was already growing warm as more people arrived and overloaded the air conditioners.
About half a stan later, Brill came back to the table with an odd, dazed look on her face and the man in tow. “Hey, guys, this is Steve from the Calhoun. Steve, I think you know Beverly, that’s Pip, and this is Ishmael.”
“Hi, Steve,” Bev said. “I thought you were getting off the old Hound.”
He shook his head. “Naw, you know how it is, once you get a bunk broke in, it’s hard to change.”
Bev raised her glass to that.
Brill broke in with, “Um, I’m going to go see Steve’s—”
Bev interrupted with, “Etchings?”
“Yes, etchings. Exactly.”
“We’ll leave a light on for you,” Bev said.
Brill looked at Bev with the oddest expression I think I’ve ever seen on anybody’s face then turned to me. I smiled and winked. “Remember,” I told her.
When they had gone, Pip said, “Sweet python of Pythias, those were tight pants he had on.”
Bev nodded, slurped an ice cube out of her drink, and started crunching it. “Steve knows how to get a girl’s attention, no question about it.”
I turned to Pip and said, “I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling a little inadequate right now.”
“He’d make a horse feel inadequate,” Pip said with more than a little awe in his voice. “He won’t hurt her, will he?”
Bev laughed. “Only if she wants him to.”
About that time a strawberry blonde in a tight, white cashmere sweater, black capris, and knee-high boots laced all the way up plunked down in Pip’s lap and looped an arm around his neck. With a nod to me and a wink at Bev, she turned to Pip and held out her hand. “Hi, my name is Janette and my friend over there is Katie,” she said, nodding back to a brunette in a low-cut blouse sitting in a booth.
Pip shook the offered hand. “Hi. I’m Philip but everybody calls me Pip.”
She didn’t let go of his hand, but leaned in a little closer. “I wonder, Pip, if you’d settle a bet for us.”
“Sure. I will if I can.”
It is not often one sees Pip disconcerted, but the assets wrapped in cashmere so close to his face tangled his usually glib tongue.
“What’s the bet?” I asked.
“Well,” she said, looking directly into Pip’s eyes, “do you know that little sigh that a really satisfied woman makes?”
Pip said, “Yeah?”
“Well, see,” she went on, “Katie bet me ten credits you probably didn’t, but I bet you probably did.”
“Sounds like she owes you the ten creds,” I said, playing the straight man.
“Well, she’s not going to pay out ten creds just on your say-so,” she said with a delightful little pout still staring into Pip’s eyes. “I don’t suppose you’d come with us for a couple stans and prove it?”
“Why, yes. I’d be happy to,” Pip said. “But, what does she get if she wins?”
“She gets to teach you how.”
Bev said, “Sounds like a fair bet to me.”
Janette stood up and drew Pip after her.
As they started off, I called after her, “He’s got duty at 04:30.”
She checked the chrono, and tossed me a saucy wink. “That should be just about right.”
Bev and I watched them go, one on either side. Pip seemed a bit dazed.
“What was that?” I asked.
“Katie and Janette?” Bev asked back. “Bunk mates on the Alistair. They’re getting underway midmorning tomorrow.”
“Bunk mates?”
“Yeah, they have a different culture on the Alistair.”
“I dare say.”
“They’ll give him a good ride and then bring him home. They’re not cruel—usually.”
“You realize he’s going to be insufferable for a month?” I asked.
“Probably two,” Bev agreed.
“I hope he clipped his fingernails.”
Bev took another slug of her drink and nodded agreement.
“Tell me,” I said to her, “is the Lois the only ship—like us?”
“You mean where we don’t screw with crew?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
She shook her head. “No, actually, most ships are like that. Too professional or too much like family.”
“Seems harsh.”
“It’s not all that pleasant on ships like the Audrey and the Alistair,” she said.
“Oh, like being locked on a ship for forty-odd days with somebody you just broke up with?” I asked.
“Or being locked in a ship for forty days with a pair of feuding lovers?” she countered.
“Ouch,” I said.
We grinned at each other. “In spite of that do you wish we were on the Alistair?” I asked her.
She considered it for a bit while she chewed another ice cube. “No,” she said finally. “If we were, we wouldn’t have what we got and I’m liking that a lot.”
“Two more of my ice cubes just melted,” I pointed out.
“Please don’t talk about melting.”
“Sorry.”
She nodded. “So? What are you going to do now?”
I looked around the bar for a few heartbeats. “My work is done here. I think I’ll just drink up and head back to the ship. I got duty in the morning.”
“I do, too. Mind if I join ya?”
We swigged down the drinks and I threw a couple of cred chits on the table. “Let’s go,” I said.
We didn’t need to talk much as we walked back toward the lift. We were communicating just fine.
I pressed the call button and she turned to me with a frown. “What was the word?”
“Valkyrie.”
The lift doors opened and we rode it up in silence. When we got to the Lois’s dock, she keyed the lock and said, “Good word.”
“Thanks.” I paused as the lock cycled. “He won’t hurt her?”
“She’ll thank me in the morning.”
“Still.”
“Yeah,” she agreed with a sad little sigh.
The lock cycled open and we got on with being spacers.