Helena, on the other hand, was still young enough to feel impatience with time’s slow
progress. She wanted things to happen now, and if they didn’t proceed of their own
accord, she was willing to push them a little.
It was all very well, she reasoned, for her father to sit calmly and hope for the best.
Helena had grown up with Edna and she, too, trusted the Empress. But it was foolhardy
to suppose that the conspiracy, having incapacitated the Service and thrown doubt on
everything it had done, would be content to do nothing else. As Helena saw it, ‘each day
she and her father were out of commission was another day the conspiracy would use to
build its own power.
She did not argue the matter with her father. She could recognize the finality in his voice,
and knew that further discussion would be useless. He Would not make a move counter
to Edna’s orders, not even to save his own life. But Helena had to do something. From
what Fortier had said, there was not a shred of evidence against her; she was only under
suspicion for being her father’s daughter. Perhaps Edna wouldn’t think it too base of her
if she ran away and tried to make some sense of this confusion. If Helena could find the
truth and prove her father’s and her own innocence, Edna would certainly pardon any
breaches Helena made in strict observance of the Imperial commands.
She spent several hours mulling over her plan, polishing its rough edges as her father had
taught her, and honing it to perfection. When her idea was well in shape, she lay back on
her bed and tried to sleep for several hours. Sleep came but fitfully; she was too keyed
up by the prospects of what she had to do, and true rest was impossible. After a few
hours she gave up on it entirely. She changed into her favorite brown and peach-colored
jumpsuit, knowing it would be sturdier for traveling. Then, gathering up her jewelry,
money, and the few other possessions she thought she’d need, she put her plan into
action.
Even though there was no true “night” and “day” in space, most private ships operated on
specific cycles. “Day” was when most of the three hundred people aboard this ship were
active, and certain functions had to be performed. “Night” was when most of the crew
were sleeping, and only a few crewmen and women performed maintenance duties. It
was the middle of the ship’s “night” when Helena started out, ensuring the minimal
opposition. As she stepped from her doorway fully clothed, the guard outside snapped to
attention, hand resting close to her stun-gun.
Trying to put the guard at ease, Helena told her, “I’ve been thinking about this accusation
of treason against my father, and I think I can prove he’s innocent. I’ve got to talk with
Captain Fortier. Where is he?”
“I believe he’s asleep right now,” the guard said with some hesitation. “Can it wait until
morning?”
“I’m afraid not.” Helena shook her head. “Each passing second increases the danger to
the Empire. I can’t even trust it over the ship’s intercom. I have to speak to him in person.
”
“I’ll have to accompany you,” the other woman said. “Of course. Where’s he staying?”
“Cabin 36, Deck E.”
“Fine. I know a shortcut. It’ll save us going down a lot of corridors and waking people
up.”
The guard hesitated. This was not a situation specifically covered in her orders, but it did
sound important. After a moment’s indecision, she nodded and motioned for Helena to
lead the way. She kept her hand near the butt of her stunner, but did not draw the
weapon. The prisoner had shown no indication of hostility, and her orders were to show
courtesy and use minimum force.
Helena started off at a brisk pace, and the guard had to move quickly to keep up with
her. As Helena had hoped, the corridors were deserted at this time in the ship’s cycle.
Helena led her escort on a fast tour of the emptier parts of the ship, all the while keeping
up a pleasant, innocuous conversation indicating she was resigned to her captivity. The
officer was a little out of breath and just enough off guard by the time they reached the
spot Helena had chosen to make her move.
There was one place where, due to a design problem, the hallway made a slight S-bend.
As she reached it, Helena turned and abruptly slowed her rapid pace. The officer, who’d
been walking quickly to keep up, did not slow quite as fast and almost bumped right into
Helena.
Helena gave a slight laugh and said, “Excuse me,” then reached out as though to steady
the officer.
In a quick gesture, she pushed the other woman hard against the bulkhead and snatched
at the stun-gun in her holster. The officer, realizing belatedly that she’d been tricked, tried
to grab Helena by the collar, but the SOTE woman ducked under the outstretched hand
and pulled the stunner free. Before the guard had a chance to do more than utter a
startled cry, Helena had shot her with the weapon and the woman sagged to the deck.
Helena checked the setting on the stunner and saw, much to her relief, that it was set on
three-a half-hour stun. The guard would wake up in a short while greatly embarrassed,
but otherwise none the worse for her failure. Helena had been worried that the stun-gun
might be set so high as to cause real damage-but the orders to use minimum force were
being carried out accurately. Helena did not want to harm anyone on her own side who
just happened to be in the awkward position between her and her freedom.
She looked around, but there appeared to be no one who’d heard the brief cry; this part
of the ship should be well deserted at this hour, which was one reason Helena had
chosen it. Another reason was that it was near the emergency escape boats that were
her next destination.
As the private space yacht of a Grand Duke, the Anna Libeling would naturally have
been an impressive craft. But with its owner also being the Head of the Service of the
Empire, it was equipped very well indeed. Not only could it hold its own in a military
battle, but its emergency craft had subspace capabilities, a rare commodity. The boats
were not the fastest in the Empire, perhaps-but with a little luck and a good head start,
Helena felt sure she could outrace anything Fortier currently had available to
him. By the time he could call up anything faster, she hoped to be off his screens and too
far gone to catch. She slid like a ghost through the silent halls, stun-gun at the ready,
alert for the slightest sign of trouble. She encountered no one until just before she
reached the emergency airlocks, where Fortier had stationed a couple of his men.
Helena stunned them both before they had a chance to draw their own weapons, then
moved to the bank of lockers beside the pressure doors. She was never more glad that
her father had ordered a spacesuit specifically tailored to everyone who normally
traveled aboard this ship.
” All shuttle craft that went to and from the Anna Libeling docked in a hangar open to the
vacuum of space. Normally, boarding tubes snaked out to connect up with the airlocks of
the ships, allowing visitors to come aboard without having to don the cumbersome
spacesuits. But sending out a boarding tube was a function controlled from the Anna
Libeling’s bridge, and under the circumstances Helena could not afford to be that formal.
Instead, she would have to put on her own spacesuit and go out the airlock, then board
the emergency craft in a manual mode. Even this was a calculated risk, for the opening
of the emergency airlock would cause a light to flash on the control board. The
emergency hatch had a manual operating mode and could not be overridden from the
bridge, which was a point in her favor; but once she started the process, a clock would
be ticking for her. Everything then would depend on how quickly the alarm was noticed
and how decisively her captors acted on it. She was hoping there would at least be a
few minutes of initial confusion, giving her time to get through the hatch, enter one of the
lifeboats, and blast out of the Anna Libeling before anyone really knew what was
happening. She donned the suit carefully, checking all the joints and seals as she’d been
trained to do. Then, after staring at the doorway for a few nervous seconds and offering
up a silent prayer, she pressed the emergency exit plate beside the hatch.
The portal slid aside quickly with a clang Helena could hear even through her helmet.