Shockball by S. L. Viehl Read Free Book Online

better word, yes.” Reever sat back in his chair and rubbed his eyes.
    “We can transport everyone over to the Sunlace temporarily.” I looked at the upper deck, mentally tallying the number of former slaves and crew members left on board. “It would be cramped for a while, but the Torins will be glad to help us out.”
    “There is another possibility.” He steepled his fingers. “We can inspect the Truman , and see if it will serve our needs.”
    “Bad idea. Knowing Joe, he’s got it rigged to send a signal beacon to the nearest mercenary base the minute we step on board.”
    “You know we have already performed several scans, and found no weapons, beacons, or explosive devices on the ship. The computers remain offline and can be fully reinitialized. It appears harmless.”
    “Yeah, that bowl of porridge is just right.” His expression didn’t change, and I rolled my eyes. “Another joke I’ll have to explain to you someday, Goldilocks.”
    “Since the Meridae’s native resources were incompatible with the Sunlace’s power core and dietary needs, the Jorenians are presently running low on both fuel and supplies now. They can’t sustain the additional demand of extra passengers on their equipment for longer than a few days. The only other alternative would be to strand us on Te Abanor while the Sunlace replenishes their supplies at the nearest non-League planet. That would be BiTned, which is more than three weeks away.”
    Three weeks marooned on a planet with little oxygen, animal flesh for food, and dwellings sculpted from fecal matter. “Okay, we take a look at Joe’s gift horse.”
    “I think that would be best.”
    “Just you and me, though,” I said. “There’s no reason to risk anyone else until we know it’s safe.”
    “It will take several days to inspect the vessel.”
    “So we’ll evacuate everyone to the Sunlace , then pack some clothes and take Jenner with us.”
     
    While I assembled what we’d need for the trip in our quarters, Reever sent a signal to the Sunlace and made arrangements with Xonea for the evacuation, then notified the crew. Squilyp agreed to supervise the medevac and cover the patients while Reever and I took care of checking out the Truman .
    I checked on Alunthri, who thankfully had been working on the Sunlace when the meteor swarm hit, and made sure it hadn’t been injured. “I am well, Cherijo.” After I told it what we were going to do, it added, “I hope you and Duncan will be careful. Your creator is a devious individual.”
    “Don’t worry. If I see so much as a recording drone hovering around us, I’m setting the ship on self-destruct.”
    I ended the signal and started to pack. Fifteen pounds of silver-furred Tibetan temple cat jumped up, then sprawled out beside my case on the sleeping platform. Indignant blue eyes inspected me with mild hostility. I could guess what he was thinking.
    You left me again. Alone with that blond guy who never pets me and those disgusting blobs.
    “Hey, pal.” I gave him a thorough scratching around both ears and under his chin. “Miss me?”
    Please . He yawned and closed his eyes. I have a full schedule of naps to take .
    “I’ll bet.” I finished folding my garments, then went to Reever’s side of the storage container. It still felt odd, handling his clothes, picking up his grooming items. The intimacies of married life. “How would you like to take a little trip?”
    Jenner’s head lifted, and his whiskers twitched.
    About as much as I like getting wet . One of the Lok-Teel flowed past him, and he gave it a single, disdainful sniff. And these things .
    I saved bringing out the animal carrier for last. By now Jenner knew exactly what it meant when that appeared. Fortunately for me, he’d gotten too fat and lazy to run very far or fast.
    I caught him and carried his struggling body over to the platform. “Come on, come on, you know the drill.”
    I put a handful of dry mackerel treats in the carrier to