“Who is it?” Lola’s voice inquired from nowhere identifiable around the purple door with the white surround.
“It’s Vic. Is Murray in there?”
Murray’s voice came on the line at once. “What do you want this time? You’ve already got me a bad reputation. My friends don’t like the company I’ve been keeping.”
“Let us in. It’s important.”
“Us? Oh, shit, not again. Have you brought those two walking tanks back?”
“There’s just me and a friend called Gina. She’s a journalist— American.”
“My life story isn’t for sale yet. I haven’t figured out the ending.”
“Look, PAC’s been taken over by a jevienese coup of some kind. The Shiban police are in on it.”
“Jesus Christ!”
“It could be planetwide. I don’t know. But maybe the Federation isn’t dead yet. We have to get in off the streets.”
The door opened. Hunt nodded at Gina, and she went through ahead. Murray was waiting for them in the lounge. “Gina Marin,” Hunt said. “This is Murray. He’s from the West Coast, too. San Francisco.”
“Yeah. It’s a small galaxy.” They nodded, then shook hands loosely.
“Hi. I’ve heard about you, Murray. I’m another friend of Nixie’s.”
“I guess we can swap all the questions about home later. Is she okay? From the amount I’ve seen of her lately I figured she’d shacked up there at PAC or joined the Marines.”
“She’s been a big help,” Hunt said. “She was okay the last time I saw her. We got separated in the commotion. Gina and I only just managed to get out.” He spotted the COM panel and screen in front of the chair that Murray normally used and moved across to it. “Mind if I try something?” He tapped pads to activate it and call up channel fifty-six in the way he knew by now for Jevlenese units. “ZORAC, can you read?” He waited a moment. “Anything here?” There was no response.
“Bad news?” Murray asked.
Hunt nodded resignedly. “They’ve cut the connection via PAC from the Shapieron.”
Murray said something at the panel in Jevlenese, and a short message appeared on the screen.
“What’s that?” Hunt asked.
“It says they’re on an emergency system. Services are restricted,” Murray said. He motioned with his head to indicate a cabinet with bottles and glasses, at the same time raising his eyebrows questioningly.
Hunt nodded. “Thanks. I could use one.”
“Me, too,” Gina said without caring what it was, and sank into a chair.
Murray squatted down and opened the cabinet door. “So what gives?” he asked over his shoulder as he poured.
“The Jevienese sprang a surprise at PAC. They’ve turned out the Ganymeans and taken over. I’m not really sure what happens next.”
“Jesus!” Murray doubled the measure that he had poured into his own glass and downed half of it at a gulp. He straightened up and passed out the glasses, then propped himself against the edge of the large table. “Is the jolly Green Giant who took off yesterday with the shipload of rollers mixed up with it?”
“If so, it hasn’t come out into the open yet, but we’re pretty sure, yes,” Hunt said. He downed a draft from his glass, then asked in turn, “What’s going on in the city? The place is electric. Green crescents out everywhere. They seem to be expecting something.”
“It started yesterday. The big rumor out there is that JEVEX is coming back. The head freaks are delirious about it. Nobody around here’s gonna spill too many tears if the Gs do have to walk.”
Gina let her arm fall slackly to rest on the arm of the chair and looked across the room. Her tension had eased now that they were secure for the time being, allowing the full impact of what had happened to get through. Her face was drawn, sapped of vigor by her acceptance of the hopelessness that she had been putting off.
“So that’s it,” she said, her voice flat. “It’s over. We wait around until the cavalry limps in, and go home with what’s left of the pieces—if we don’t get picked up in the meantime.”
“Shit, isn’t there anywhere they’ll leave a guy alone?” Murray muttered. “Does this mean they’re gonna be setting up the IRS here?”