Chapter 4
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Joni plopped down in the copilot’s chair and spun it to face my direction. “Can we at least take her out for a run? I’ve logged over three hundred hours in the simulator for this ship. I know all the systems and how they work. I read everything I can when it comes to something I'm interested in. I’ve always been like that. Having to know everything.”
“In the future, I would prefer if you asked before making use of the Daunte’s systems. I try to keep things in good order so they are set to what I am expecting when I expect them to be. If I'm expecting the ship’s gravity to be set at 1.1, I don't want to twist the dial a notch, thinking it has moved to 1.2, only to find it is only on 0.9. Those things will make a Grunta unpleasant to be around.”
Joni threw her hands in the air as she spun her chair to face forward. “Oookay. Joni will keep her hands off the instruments. Say, I’m getting kind of hungry. What do we have to eat in the galley?”
Joni stood and walked back to the food store, whipping open the door. “Wait. Coffee! And this is the good stuff. I haven’t had a cup in three weeks. You have two big crates of Orientus. I haven’t had Orientus since my dad came to see me five months ago.”
I stood from my chair and walked to the galley. “I thought Humans to visit their offspring on a more frequent basis. I have eighteen little Gruntas at home, but our breaks only come every six months. If you are a Salton, I would think they would keep you close?”
Joni offered a half smile. “Yeah, they stay close if you're in the family business. I don’t have much of an appetite for politics, though. My little brothers, now they get the attention of their father, and our mother. Garrett is twelve and Rodney is ten. They are the two boys my father was hoping for. Don’t get me wrong, he never mistreated me or denied me anything I wanted or needed. It’s just, he has never been supportive of me doing what I want to do. I didn’t get into the academy until he was good and fed up with me pestering him. And now, here I am.”
I prepped the brewer for a cup of the Orientus. “Gruntas also encourage our young to select a worthwhile pursuit. However, when a field of study is selected, whether it be a pursuit of science or tunnel mining, we offer our full support. They may fail or they may select a new career afterward, but we push them to do their best.”
Joni pointed. “Now that's a family I could get along with right there.”
I topped off a mug and gently handed her the steaming brew. “We have our issues as well. There are only two periods in a female Grunta’s lifetime that she is fertile. If she has not retained a mate, she will go looking among those who are spoken for. If the two females come in contact with one another, there is no stopping the savage fight to the death that will ensue. Gruntas mate for life, and a second mate is forbidden. In families where this has happened, the husband often works far away from home until the offspring have been raised.”
Joni sipped at the hot coffee. “Mmm. Oh this is so good. You know, Humans don’t have any restrictions on marriage. You don’t like your spouse, you dump ’em and find another. Of course, that's not most Humans, it’s just the ones you hear about. Take my uncle: he has three daughters by three different wives. He keeps looking for a son as well, and let me tell you, those three are anything but boys. They are spoiled and pampered beyond belief.”
I poured a cup for myself, “And why is it that Joni had no interest in the easy life? I don’t know of many who would turn that down to be an inspection detective.”
Joni shook her head. “If I did that, my life would be nothing more than getting sent to events where I would be paraded around as if something special. I can’t stand the lot of them. Just a bunch of rotten, selfish—”
A voice came up the ramp-way. “Knog? Are you up there?”
I took a sip as I sat on a stool by the counter. “Yes, Captain. Come on up. Miss Salton is already here.”
The captain walked up the steps with a grin on his face. “Miss Salton? Detective Captain Paq Wendell. I've been looking all over for you at the guest quarters and your hotel. Is everything OK?”
As the captain made it to the last step, he froze in fear. Raptor was staring at him with the same leery gaze that had been cast upon me.
“Just give him a second to feel you out, Captain,” Joni said. And I would advise you not to make any sudden moves.”
The Paq Wendell stood in silence for several seconds. “Miss Salton, you have obviously met Mr. Beutcher. Is there anything at all that I can be of assistance with? Food stores? Upgraded bed linens?”
Joni shook her head. “Nope. I think I’m good right now, Captain, thanks. Oh, wait, could you go fetch a couple borak steaks for Raptor? He likes borak.”
The captain nodded. “I can do that.”
Joni held up her hand and made a shoo gesture. “He hasn’t eaten at all today. Is that something you could go do now?”
The captain raised his thumb. “Got it. I’ll be right back, Miss Salton.”
The captain glanced back at the dog and then hustled down the steps.
“I hate suck-ups.”
“Take it easy on the captain. He’s a good man. He's always treated his people fairly. If it comes down to the hard decisions, you'll be able to trust him to do what’s right. Your showing up here under his command just has him a little nervous.”
Joni held up her cup. “I like you, Mr. Beutcher. You don’t have a problem with telling it like it is. And you haven’t been drooling all over me like a Rotty puppy.”
I raised my cup and then set it on the counter. “You have to remember, Joni, people fear your family. With the twitch of a lip or the wave of a hand, a citizen’s life could be ruined or taken away entirely. You don’t appear to be that way, at least not as of yet, but your family name brings a weight with it that most fear to cross.”
I chuckled to myself.
“What was that? You laughed.”
I nodded. “I was just thinking about your statement earlier, that you liked me. I kind of like you so far, too. You have that spunk or brashness, a fearlessness really, that will either take you to the top of the detective ranks or lead you to a horrible, early death.”
“Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, Mr. Beutcher. I think.”
Ten minutes later, the captain returned with a pair of raw borak steaks for the dog. Joni restrained her dislike for his repeated attempts at favor as I was given the task of feeding the dog. I held out the steak with a serious look on my face.
The Rotty drooled as the steak neared his mouth, but he didn’t make a move on it. I dropped the steak on the floor as Joni and the captain looked on. The 130 pounds of canine muscle remained staring at my face. I stood straight and nodded. The steak was attacked with a savage ferocity.
Joni said, “I am impressed. That dog already respects you more than anyone I know, including me.”
I looked over at the captain. “Sometimes restraint and patience can be good qualities, huh, Captain?”
The captain slightly squinted an eye as he tried to think of where he had heard that before.
Joni Salton stood. “Captain, we're taking the Daunte out for a little run, if you don’t mind? We'll check back with you when we return.”
Joni gestured for Paq Wendell to leave. As he walked to the bottom of the stairs, he turned and looked back up. The Rottweiler continued to devour the steak as both eyes stayed on the captain.
“Mr. Beutcher, may I have a quick word with you down here?”
I took Joni’s cup with mine and placed the two in the autowash. I smiled as I turned and walked down the stairs.
As I reached the deck, the captain pulled me to the side, out of Raptor’s view. “Look, take her out for a run around the station a couple times or maybe circle around Gelnac Colony or something. Keep her close, Knog. You may not realize it, but there are forces out there that want her kidnapped or dead.
I believe that little insurrection we witnessed earlier was an attempt to so
mehow get to her, or at least to send a message to the royals. Don’t do anything foolish out there. Just a clean run in and out.”
So there it was. The ruling families were now being called royals. I wondered how long it would be before Harden Salton was crowned king.
I looked back at the narrow steps, on one side of the ramp-way that ran up into the Daunte. At the top sat a twenty-year-old girl who had more power at her disposal than most could ever dream of. Yet, other than humiliating any who sought her favor, she had no interest in having or holding that power. The more I knew about Jonias Salton, the more I liked her.
I placed my hand on the captain’s shoulder. “I'll take good care of her, sir. If you'd like, I can leave the transfer transponder running while we're out there. If any emergency should occur, you could sweep us immediately back to here.”
The captain shook his head. “Thanks for the suggestion, but that won’t be necessary. Just try to keep her safe. And don’t be taking any risks you don't need to.”
As I turned toward the stairs, the captain’s response seemed out of place. My offer of the transponder remaining on was a solid solution to potential problems. I was left wondering if I wasn't being told everything about her security. As I reached the top of the steps, I pressed the button to close the ramp-way.
Joni joined me in the cockpit. “So where is it we're going?”
I punched up the nav screen on the holo-display. After several swipes I had the planet Gelnac and the Gelnac colony floating in front of me. “Gelnac should be a simple run. There's a large comet moving in close to the Gelnac sun. We can do a flyby. It won’t gain you any inspection experience, but at least it will be something of interest.”
“Anything is better than sitting here.”
“Other than the captain showing up, I haven’t seen any security looking out for you. The captain made a good point that you are a high-value target. I would have thought you would have come with a bodyguard or two.”
Joni offered a half frown. “They're out there, Mr. Beutcher. I have insisted they not be visible, and family security has responded with a team that is pretty good about not being seen.”
“A wise move. You would draw unwanted attention from those who would do you harm. If only to get at your family.”
“Here, out the viewport, see those three men loading cargo? That is the third time they have lifted that crate with the autopallet. See the supervisor up there behind the glass wall? I guarantee he was not working this dock yesterday. When you signal the bay controller with your flight plan, it won’t be a voice you recognize. I would almost bet there's not a single person in this bay today that actually works here.”
I nodded my head as I looked around. “You are right, I’ve been in and out of this bay for years, and I don’t recognize a any of them. If it were me, I would be thrilled at the level of security that is being provided, but I can see how it might weigh on your sense of freedom to move about.”
“I have no freedom, Mr. Beutcher. Was born without it.”
“We're all individuals, and part of being an individual is being able to make your own decisions about when and where you go. I’m guessing you had to tell them ahead of time you were coming on the Daunte?”
Joni sighed. “Two hours’ notice I had to give. They checked the ship, sent everyone home with cabin restrictions so they would not be seen wandering about. Their teams were moved into in all the places connected to this bay. If you noticed, there hasn’t been a single ship docking in here since you came back.”
Joni was right. Bay-17 was normally active throughout the day. I was normally good about observing my surroundings and should have picked up on that fact. I winced at how easily I had been distracted and made a note to myself to not be so again. Potential threats to my new trainee were threats to me as well.
With a flight plan filed, I gave Joni the controls for the taxi out of the bay. We lifted gently off the deck and maneuvered to the gravity wall and then out into space. Any other veteran could not have done it any more by the book than Joni Salton’s first flight. We were soon moving rapidly away from SS5 toward the Gelnac system. On standard propulsion, Gelnac was a two-hour flight in the Daunte.
“That was an impressive first flight out for a trainee. I don’t remember having one who wasn’t as nervous as a Magonia parrot in a hat factory. That was a smooth transit, and I was impressed with the checks you were doing at the same time. Those are things I do as well.”
“I don’t want to be screwing up on my first time out. If I lose your respect, I lose what little trust you have gained in me today. That's something I learned from my grandfather before he passed.”
I pulled up the nav display to look for ships in the direction we were going. “Grandparents are an important part of the Grunta culture. Since many fathers are often away for long periods of time during our youth, our grandfathers play a pivotal role with our young. They are often the man figure of the family during those early formative years. My grandfather, Movis, taught me to fly my first helocycle. I was the junior champion at my school for three years running.”
Joni nodded. “Impressive. I was fifteen before my father allowed me pilot one on my own. I don't think my brothers have ever even wanted to.”
I laughed. “Not really. I mean, I won, but it was not impressive. Of the twelve contestants, eleven were direct family. I would say my grandfather was satisfied, though. I was his only student during that time.”
Joni reached over and smacked me on the shoulder. “Well, it was impressive to me, and I'm your only audience at the moment, so, way to go.”
The flight to Gelnac passed quickly. Joni took the Daunte in close to the comet’s tail and then sped up to just even with the brightly glowing ball of ice. It was a spectacular sight from such a close distance.
After two spins around Gelnac and its two moons, we returned to SS5 in time for a late dinner. Joni was high-spirited, but unpretentious. Her lack of fear was something I would have to work on. Fear brought caution; caution brought safety; safety kept you alive when trouble arose. If Joni was to be an inspection detective, safety would have to be a priority.