Both of them then, soaked, soaped, and by the gods clean, just standing propped against each other under the warm water jets until she found her eyes shut. Falling asleep again. “Gods. We got to go, husband.”
“Uhhhn.” Like mornings downworld. Incoherent for half an hour at best.
She got out, cleaned her teeth, dodging sore spots, dried halfheartedly with a towel and hunted up the last pair of clean breeches in the drawer.
And the pocket pistol. Gods, yes, that.
Out into the chill of the corridor still tying the cords, the deck cold under her feet.
“Captain,” she said.
Sirany was still at her post, on a mostly deserted bridge, just herself and her First. The place smelled of unwashed hani. And Sirany’s face as she swung the chair about, was marked with fatigue and strain. “Ker Pyanfar.” The voice was hoarse. “We’re doing all right, but we have a lot of questions backed up. Whole lot of people want to talk to you. / want to talk to you. What do we expect?”
“We expect another wave of kif in here. Meanwhile I’m wondering where in a mahen hell a certain pair of mahen hunter ships have got to and where we misplaced about half a hundred human ships that are doubtless armed and meaning things we don’t want to think about.”
It was maybe more than Sirany wanted to think about. Her face had that kind of look.
“Yeah,” she said. “I’ve been wondering these things. Maybe I’ve been hoping you didn’t. But in a way I wish you did.”
“Different truth once we got to dock, once we threw Akkhtimakt on to the mahen side of the line?”
“I don’t mean I thought you were lying.” Ears lowered in apology and rolled flatter as the jaw took on a harder line. “That’s a lie. I still don’t know. But I don’t think so. I’m betting everything on it. But what choice have I got? There
aren’t any sure things out here. I tell you something, ker Pyanfar. They tell all kinds of stories about you. Since Gaohn. Since you took out the way you did and kept-” Ear-twitch. “-kept na Khym and all. And wouldn’t lickfoot to the han. I heard a lot more stories on Meetpoint, while we were stuck there. Stsho are scared of you. They call you changeable, the stsho do.”
“They’ll call me worse than that. I figured a crew that had the nerve to come aboard this ship had the nerve to handle the boards under fire. Way we’ll have to yet, maybe. Even against hani, if you had to. I’m telling you the truth now. I’m working only our side. The mahendo’sat have doublecrossed us so many times you need a chart to track it. But they’re the best allies we’ve got all the same, and I’m hoping that conniving friend of mine is still alive out there beyond system edge.”
“Waiting for the rest of the kif?”
“I think b’gods sure he is. That ship’s equipped. Lots of com equipment. I’ve never been onto that bridge, but I got the idea it’s not a small place. Lot of crew and techs. Ability to short-jump. Goldtooth’s Mahijiru has a lot more facilities, but I don’t think it gives much to Aja Jin in abilities. We lost track of more than one ship in that flurry out there, and I’m not sure any of ’em are dead. Kif have this concept. Pukkukkta. Revenge. Destruction. That kif Sikkukkut has launched ships down all the lanes. Into all sorts of space. He’s prepared to take civilization out. He says. He gives the impression it’s no use to him. I think otherwise and I think he knows it, but I don’t want to put it to the proof. We’ve lost track of kifish ships too and it worries me. I want a count if anyone can get it.”
“Maybe they met each other out there. Maybe that’s where Aja Jin is.”
“If we were lucky.” She tightened her mouth. Headache still bothered her. “If we were real lucky. But whatever happens we’ve got to handle what’s coming in from Meetpoint, whoever survived that set-to back there. If it’s the kif we’re dealing with it’s got to be one voice talking here. One.”