On the first evening there was leisure for Flower personnel to have liberty, he wandered into the station mess… found Galey, whose face split into a broad and friendly grin at the sight of him; but Galey, of Saber, was with some of Saber’s officers, his own friends, and Duncan found no place with them, a SurTac’s peculiar rank less than comfortable in dealing with officers of the regular forces. He ate alone, from the automated bar, and walked alone back to Flower.
He had done his tour of the station. It was enough. He had no interest even in seeking out the curiosities of the regul architecture, that the men of the warships seemed to enjoy on their hours of liberty.
He went into Flower’s lock, into familiarity, hi among men he knew, and breathed a sigh of relief.
“Worth seeing, sir?” the duty officer asked him, envious: his own liberty had been deferred. Duncan shrugged, managed a smile; his own mood was not worth shedding on the regulars of Flower. “A bit like the Nom,” he answered. “A curiosity. Very regul.”
And he received from the man’s hand a folded message of the kind that passed back and forth frequently at the desk.
He started back toward the level of his own quarters, unfolding the message as he walked.
It was Boaz’ hand. Urgent I talk with you. Lab #2.B.
Duncan crumpled it in his hand and stuffed it into his pocket, lengthening his stride: the mri program and an urgency; if running would have put him there appreciably faster he would have run.
Number two lab contained Boaz’ office. She was there, seated at her desk, surrounded by paper and a clutter of instruments. She looked up at him as he entered. She was upset, blue eyes looking fury at the world. Her mouth trembled.
“Have a seat,” she said, and before he could do so: “Saber’s troops moved in; snatched the mri, snatched the artifact, the mri’s personal effects, everything.”
He sank into the offered chair. “Are they all right?”
“I don’t know. Yes. Yes they were all right. They were set into automeds for the transfer. If they just leave them in them, they’ll fare well enough for a while. Stavros’ orders. Stavros’ orders, they said.” She picked up a sealed cylinder from the center of the littered desk and gave it to him with a misgiving stare. “For you. They left it.”
He received the tube and broke the seal, eased out the paper it contained and read the message to himself. Conditions as discussed apply. Contingency as discussed has occurred. Observe patience and discretion. Stand by. Destroy message. Stavros.
Regul troubles: ship incoming. The mri were going out, off-station, and himself with them, soon enough. He looked sadly at Boaz, wadded the message in his hand, pocketed it; he would dispose of it later.
“Well?” asked Boaz, which she surely knew she should not ask; he stayed silent. She averted her eyes, pursed her lips, and laced her fingers under her plump chin. “I belong to a ship,” she said, “which is unfortunately under the governor’s authority in some degree, where it regards putting us offworld or seizing what pertains to declared hostiles. For now, in those regards, that authority is absolute. I personally am not under his orders, and neither is Luiz. I shouldn’t say this freely; but I will tell you that if you are personally not satisfied with the treatment of the mri there can be a protest filed at Haven.”
Brave Boaz. Duncan looked at her with an impulse of guilt in his heart. There was no word from her of canceled programs, interrupted researches, the seizure of work on which she had labored with such care. The mri themselves occurred to her. This was something he had not foreseen; and yet it was like her.
“Boz,” he said, the name the staff called her. “I think everything is all right with them.”
She made a noncommittal sound, leaned back. She said nothing, but she looked a little relieved.
“They didn’t take the dusei, did they?” he asked.
Boaz smiled suddenly, gave a fierce laugh. “No. The beasts wouldn’t sedate. They tried. There was no way they would go down into that hold with them. They asked Flower staff to do it, got rather high-handed about it; and Luiz told them they could go down for themselves and throw a net over them. There were no volunteers.”