“I’ll come along, if I may,” Adele said, rising to her feet. She seemed to be fully herself: cool and detached, with her normal pale complexion in place of the green undertone of a few minutes before. Apparently searching out data had been as bracing for her as a month in the country.
“A pleasure to have you,” Daniel said truthfully, though he was a little surprised.
Of course Adele had a way of surprising him. He hadn’t known about the life-cycle analyses of Stacey’s ships, and if asked he would’ve agreed with Betts that quick in-and-outs would wear a hull at a higher rate than the normal practice.
What he did know—and what Adele probably knew also, though he was glad she hadn’t broadcast the information to the crew—was that despite his picked crews, Uncle Stacey’s commands had abnormally high rates of psychological casualties. Much as Daniel regretted the fact that he was going to lose spacers in the performance of their duty, the Princess Cecile was a warship and they—like him—were members of the RCN.
Daniel offered Adele his arm and walked to the suit closet just off the bridge. The riggers of the port watch had stripped and were going below to their bunks. From the look of their faces, few would be able to sleep. The starboard watch, still on the hull with Woetjans, might well be the lucky ones. As Daniel had noted in Adele and himself, falling into one’s duties seemed to lessen the effect of rapid transitions into and out of the Matrix.
Delos Vaughn lay half-conscious on the floor of the wardroom across from the suit locker. Daniel paused; he hadn’t wanted to take Vaughn aboard, but nonetheless the fellow was his responsibility. Timmins, the power room crewman Vaughn had hired to look after him aboard, lifted the passenger’s shoulders with one arm and brought a tumbler of clear fluid to his lips with the other.
“Mr. Vaughn, are you—” Daniel began.
Vaughn drank reflexively. His eyes flashed open and he spewed the rest of the glassful across the room. Apparently Timmins’ idea of a restorative was neat alcohol from the power room hydraulics.
“Good God, Lieutenant Leary,” Vaughn said. He didn’t sound angry, merely amazed. “Is that sensation normal?”
“I’m afraid it’s going to be normal for this cruise, sir,” Daniel said. He crossed his hands behind his back, a way to keep from fidgeting while he waited for something distasteful.
Instead of the expected shouts and threats—vain, of course, but unpleasant regardless—Vaughn managed a weak smile. “I see how the Cinnabar navy wins its battles, Lieutenant,” he said. “Well, I asked to travel with you.”
Using Timmins as a brace, Vaughn got to his feet. “And Lieutenant?” he said. “I win my battles too.”
Chapter Eleven
Adele sat primly in her place, taking her cue from Ellie Woetjans who presided at the head of the table. The senior warrant officers had invited Lt. Leary, Mr. Vaughn, and the two midshipmen to dinner. Adele was tense because she wasn’t good at rituals, and this one was both new to her and important. A gaffe here—and formal dinners were always minefields—risked hurting the feelings of her family by adoption.
Balsley, classed as a Mechanic II but in practice the wardroom servant, stood at the hatchway. In a loud voice that made his brushy little mustache wobble he announced, “The guests have arrived.”
“Rise for the captain and our honored guests!” the bosun said, suiting her action to her words.
Adele scrambled to her feet. She was so careful not to overset the chair behind her that she bumped the table with her thighs. As the table was bolted to the deck neither it nor the place settings were affected an iota, but Adele knew she’d have bruises in the morning.
And not for the first time. She was perfectly comfortable in tight spaces. What she didn’t like—and couldn’t seem to learn—was moving in tight spaces.
Daniel appeared at the door, wearing his dress grays just as his hosts were. “Please be seated, sir,” Woetjans said. When she spoke formally, her words came out as though so many cuts of a buzz saw.
“My fellow officers, thank you for your hospitality,” Daniel said as he entered. He took the seat to Woetjans’ right. He winked at Adele beside him.