Koban by Stephen W Bennett Read Free Book Online Page B

would be a bit later. He was left standing alone with the
tiny woman as Mirikami strode out the door. He had been on the verge of
accepting the Captain's invitation and going with him now, but had felt a light
restraining touch on his arm. Maggi Fisher apparently wanted to speak to him
alone.
    “Dillon, you were listening. Is there anything to add beyond
what I've heard so far, that perhaps you considered too minor or sensitive to
discuss with the Board?”
    “Not much Maggi. The Captain was straightforward with you
just now, but his first instinct was to conceal from me how jumpy this had made
him, and to get me off the Bridge. On the way down here, I informed him that I
knew he had practically declared an emergency, and hadn't wanted me to know. I
was satisfied with his explanation, the same one he offered you by the way. I
rather like him, and I think he can be trusted, apparently you think so too.
Why is that?”
    “He was born on New Honshu. The guilt of the Clone Wars
weighs on him and his world, and the blame for causing the Gene War. We may
carry a little of the same burden by our choice of profession; but his heavier
load is inherited and can't be discarded. He's likely to be predisposed to
accept us as fellow outcasts, and to be sympathetic. That doesn't mean I won't
double-check what he tells us.”
    “He’s from New Honshu,” mused Dillon. “I heard a few people
speculate on his features before departure, but I doubt that any of them
thought it likely a male from there would be able to rise to the rank of
Captain. You heard him describe some naval service, and combat experience from
years ago. He must be a very good officer or he could never have gotten his own
civil command, even within a Rim transport company. They sometimes carry
socially sensitive passenger traffic to and from the Hub. That implies a high
level of confidence from his superiors.”
    “Quite a good officer, according to Navy records and
Interworld,” Maggi added, “Though he was turned down for a higher commission in
the Planetary Union's Navy when that was formed after the Prophet’s Robe
incident. Our good Captain was combat decorated several times, and eventually
earned a command on a small scout ship with a crew of five. The first male to
do so at that time.
     “I suspect that the Captain learned that as a male from New
Honshu, he was not going any higher in even the Rim Squadron of the Navy. He
resigned to attend the civil Space Fleet Academy, graduated with honors, and
then sought work with transport companies. In light of our present situation,
his combat background is reassuring.”
    She changed the subject. “I'm going to send you back to the
Bridge, right after you have an early dinner. I'd like you up there all night
if it's permitted, just to keep an eye on developments.” She flashed him a wry
grin.
    Dillon's heart sank. “An early dinner, Maggi? I could go up
right now, then break for dinner at about seven, get a little sleep and be back
on the Bridge in the wee hours.”
    “Why?” she asked innocently. “Did you have plans this
evening? Perhaps to let a certain tall dark and lovely Lady into your tights
big boy?”
    Damn, Maggi always seemed to know everything. “I'm just
meeting First Officer Renaldo for a drink after dinner, to discuss our work at
Midwife. Nothing more,” he ended defensively.
    “Don't pee on my foot and tell me it's raining,” she
chastised him in her usual crusty manner. “I know she was the reason you pulled
strings to get that petty duty. I was having a little fun with you. It's a
shame I'm too old to bed you myself. Don’t pump yourself exhausted just to
prove what a stud you are.”
    Dillon feigned shock. He had known Maggi to bed a few men
back on Ramah, and she had shamelessly flirted with him often enough. She was
probably old enough to remember times when women still outnumbered men by a
factor of five or more. The male population needed all of the last three
hundred years to