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Carver confronted Altman in the cabin of the Crossed Swords. "You're the reason I was jailed on Argosy Station."
Chels inserted herself between the two men. "Look past it, Mr. Denz," she said. Her voice soothed.
Carver's shoulders slumped. "Easy to say, tough to do but you're right, Chels. Now isn't the time to revive old anger. His is too crazy a story not to be appreciated for its legend-capable telling. I've made mistakes as well but mine usually turn out on the good side of luck." He pointed at Altman. "You found the bad side of the coin. I was arrested. Your partner paid with his life. Chels paid with a potentially lethal jump. For her. Anything I do or say is wasted."
"For what it's worth, Denz, I'm sorry," said Altman. "I overheard what you did to save your colleagues. I should have done the same for mine and I didn't. I was too late for Perry."
Chels said, "Altman went outside and disabled the tracking beacon."
"I hope it wasn't too late. What's your next step, Chels?"
"We've established the location where Altman and Perry fired the weapon. We begin backtracking recoil trajectories from there. The navcom's already given us locations within a day or two's flight. If you're comfortable, we'll be moving on before we have to recalculate."
"You'd better send Cardinal your plan. We'll join you for a fortnight at least. This ship belongs to DualE and I, we wouldn't want anything to happen to it. We separated once against our plan." Carver gathered his helmet and stepped into the lock. "I suggest you divert from the real target on your initial course, just in case the beacon wasn't the only choice to shadow you."
Outside, Carver clipped the safety line to his belt. "Penance, you can reel me back."
The tug drew him away from his ship toward Penance. He'd have to tell Pious about the schedule change. Safety was the main selling point. They didn't need another volatile encounter like the last.
"How's Chels?" Pious asked when he was inside.
Carver removed the rest of his EVA suit. "Her attitude seems solid. I saw no visible sign she's jumphappy. Whatever she did from Slate's to the shipyard worked. Once, anyway."
"She has a mental strength perhaps greater than her physical prowess. I hope she doesn't try the return trip too soon. I wish I could monitor her."
Pious' concern fit Carver's plan. "I think we should stay with them until they find the artifact. It keeps the two ships together as we originally chartered and allows you to keep watch over her. Altman is more salvager than partner and we've witnessed how they can lose moral direction. We'll log any potential audiences while we track with Crossed Swords for return visits."
"I'm with Carver on this," said DualE.
"Very well, we'll accompany them. Brother Cardinal, I leave astrogation in your hands. I need some time to recover from this experience."
DualE cornered Carver as the ships departed the salvage enclave. "You're an amateur astrogator, what do think of the peripheral signal?" She scrolled the second screen and identified the blip.
"Beyond my expertise. Could be another prospector following the Crossed Swords. Piracy isn't unknown in the Eddy. Let someone else do the heavy lifting, then scoop it. Or someone who stumbled across our signals and figures we're not who we say. Paranoia, laziness and greed motivate more than one indolent prospector out here."
"Crossed Swords, this is DualE. Keep a watch on that signal bearing fourteen hours twenty RA and six degrees declination. Initiate your burn, we'll follow in a few hours and see if it shadows either of us."
"Got it," Chels answered. "Thanks."
"I'm not going to wait on an empty stomach," said Carver. "Cardinal, can I fix you something to eat?"
"Thank you, yes."
DualE helped him pull food from the larder. "It's quite the wild show out here, Carver. Surprised a thrill-seeker like you retreated after his big find."
"Rowland was pulling my strings, remember?"
"Rowland and Helena."
The hurt hadn't fully diminished from his fiancé's abrupt desertion before he'd returned to the Confluence. "And Helena," he confirmed.
"Does Pious' meditation routine help?"
"Sometimes. What were the salvagers like? Did they appreciate his message before the hostiles showed up?"
"Yeah." She handed Cardinal his food. "They're eking out a hard living here. But it's relatively unencumbered by oversight. The kind of freedom you and I could only wish for."
"I'll take comfort and authority over austerity and the illusion of freedom. They have to rely on some infrastructure to resupply resources and buy their bounty."
"The ghost is moving," said Cardinal.
"Following the Crossed Swords?" Carver looked over the astrogator's shoulder.
"Too far away to be certain. They are getting closer."
"Hide us on the other side of the biggest rock," said DualE. "Periscope a monitor."
*
Rowland's patience strained. The Rickover retraced the Crossed Swords' path for days until it's halt at a small salvage aggregate. Was this their destination? The artifact left in the hands of allies? More witnesses to dispose of but the prize was worth it.
The ship had joined another small vessel. A rendezvous to the next step or the final location.
"'Swords is moving, Admiral."
"Nudge us back, Captain Siebe. Now that we've a fix on the other ship, monitor its movements as well and relay to the escorts. If the targets split up, so will our ships. The Rickover will shadow the Crossed Swords."
He'd sacrifice one or more of his own craft to capture the weapon. If they used it on a fighter, so be it. The Rickover would retaliate. He would possess the weapon and reset the balance of power between the Confluence and the Realm. And the balance between the do-little politicians and the navy. He tired of being an enforcement tool. He was ready to command the government. Stratocracy was his goal. Such a government required a strong head. The Realm could do worse than him at the helm.
*
DualE sat beside Brother Cardinal.
"They're definitely on Crossed Swords' tail. I'm getting more than one signal. Appears to be three distinct sources." The brother looked worried.
"Numbers alone say we can't fight them if they're Confluence or Realm Navy," said DualE. "We need leverage."
Carver remained silent. Come on, partner, she willed. Help out.
"What do you suggest?" asked Pious. He lay prone on the deck.
"We know where Altman and Chels were going to start their search. We go straight there; we're not the ship being tracked. If we can find the artifact, we'll have a negotiating position."
"If they don't track us," said Cardinal. "Your assumption could be wrong."
"It's a risk we need to take," said DualE. "For us and Argosy Realm if Rowland's hunting for that weapon." She turned to Carver. "What do you say?"
He glared. "Are you working with Rowland?"
"I was supposed to. As a trade for your release on Argosy Station. When Zofie spirited you off, my obligation ceased."
"I don't think so. You've been evaluating every step from a broader viewpoint. A tactical military viewpoint."
"You're right, Carver. But my interest was purely defensive. If battles arise, I don't want to be forced to choose a side but I will do what I can to ensure the safety of my former grunt-mates."
Pious rose, concern reddened his face. "I need to know whose side you are on at this moment, DualE. The brotherhood or your former colleagues aboard one or all of those vessels under Rowland's command?"
"We all need to know, DualE," said Carver.
"If I wasn't on this side, Rowland wouldn't have to track the Crossed Swords. He could wait for me to signal him."
"You still could, if we follow your plan."
"Then make certain I don't," she said. "I appreciate that your trust wavers. Cut my comm access but we need to get moving."
"Are you certain we're not broadcasting a beacon, Cardinal?" asked Carver.
"I can't be one hundred percent sure but there's nothing I can detect."
"Pious? This is your commission and your call," said DualE.
The brother gripped her hands. "They weren't tracking you. Despite the dual role you've played, you have my faith and trust. I agree with your plan."
"Thank you, Brother Pious. I won't let any of you down."
The Penance moved slowly beyond line-of-sight contact with the fleet ships before initiating a burst to set it on its way to hunt for the artifact. DualE planned to use the time to determine how she would regain Carver's trust.
*