Robert Asprin – Tambu

“I don’t sleep with the other members of the force! I just can’t accept the idea of sharing a bed with someone called Ratso.”

They had drifted into an affair after several months of working together. What began as a shared moment of passion had grown into a gentle and tender partnership which neither of them questioned.

“When are you going to do something about Egor?” she asked absently.

“Egor’s one of OUT oldest captains. His seniority gives him certain considerations.”

“He’s a braggart and a bully. Everyone in the fleet knows that.”

“He has an irritating manner,” Tambu admitted, “but he’s a good man. You’ve just got to know him before you can see through his bluster.”

“If so, you must be the only one who can do it. The other captains are wondering why you don’t boot him out, or at least pull his command.”

“Look, just drop it, huh?” Tambu winced. “Egor is my problem, so it’s up to me to come up” with a solution. Okay?”

“Sure,” she shrugged. “Didn’t mean to get on your back. Did you get any sleep at all last night?”

“Not much,” he sighed, relaxing under her skillful hands. “It seems everyone has decided that the easiest time to get through to me is the middle of the night. Then again, there’s all this.”

He gestured at the papers on his desk.

“What is all that, anyway?” Ramona asked. “You’ve been working on it nonstop for a couple of weeks now.”

“I’ve been going over the books checking our cash flow,” he explained. “I’ve got to check the numbers again, but if the preliminary figures hold true, we’re going to be out of business by the end of the year.”