Bridget nodded. “But they still have to tread carefully, because if they make the citizens mad, there will be a revolt. Quinlans appear to be very hard to intimidate, even by authority figures.”
“So I can’t leave the boat, and I can't stay on the boat.” I frowned. “That does limit my choices.”
Hugh grinned at me. “Oh, you can leave or stay no problem. It's Bender they're looking for.”
“No, I think they want Bob too,” Bridget said. “He's part of the mystery, and not just because of his apparent superhuman abilities.”
“And you can't just change the labels again.”
“I don’t think it would matter anyway, Bill. At this point, my guess is they'll open every single crate. Like I said, it's what I’d do.”
“What about hiding Bender somewhere else on the boat?” Bridget asked.
Will shook his head. “If it was me, I’d do a thorough search. Even underwater. Even in the bilge, in case anyone was going to suggest that.”
I sat forward. “That's it, then. Staying on the boat is out of the question. I'll have to take my chances with the wilderness or the river.”
“I'd suggest wilderness,” Bridget replied. “You have more speed advantage there, and it is possible that the searchers won't consider it a likely alternative. Or at least they'll be reluctant to pursue it. Quinlans don't like being too far from water.”
I nodded. It would appear I was going on a hike.
I took the night watch for one of the other workers in return for a favor that I would never collect on. As soon as breathing sounds indicated that everyone was peacefully asleep, I snuck over to the postal pile. I'd ‘accidentally’ re-stacked everything earlier in the day so that my crate was easily accessible. Now I took it and slipped as silently as possible over the side. I balanced to create on my stomach and sculled away from the Clipper using only my tail to prevent any disturbance on the water’s surface. Thanks to the Quinlan design, I could easily watch where I was going, but I was reluctant to place the crate in the water, so the trip to shore took a solid hour.
I could see some lights downriver that were likely the next town. I hadn't bothered to find out its name, as we were not scheduled to stop there. I felt bad for the crew the Clipper, who had all been good people. Even the volatile captain. The guy who traded shifts with me would certainly not fare well, and when the cops arrived, they'd have to mention me jumping ship or they'd have no excuse for the missing crate.
Dawn was just starting to come to the eastern sky as I crawled up out of the water into the shoreline weeds. I could make a nest in the tall greenery, but I'd have to make sure it covered me from aerial surveillance as well. Sure as shooting, the Administrator's devices would be on the prowl. I made sure everything was as secure as I could make it, then returned to virt. Hugh was waiting for me and raised a coffee mug in salute. I fell back into my La-Z-Boy with a loud sigh.
“If it helps, I’m one segment away from you,” Hugh said.
“It does, a little, but let's face it. Two of us isn't going to be that much more useful than one. We still can’t take on the entire Crew and Resistance armies. We still can’t travel in the water with Bender's matrix, and it will still take forever to go overland.” I could hear the discouragement of my voice but couldn't do anything about it.
“Look, if nothing else, I still have my full complement of spiders and fleas,” Hugh said. “We might be able to rig something up. I'm about six days away from you, assuming I don't have to sit around waiting for a boat going in the right direction.
I nodded thoughtfully. “You’ll have to go halfway down the Arcadia before you can get on a connector to loop around to the Nirvana. That'll add to your time.”
I let the silence stretch for a few mils and opened my mouth to bring up the whole AI thing, and predictably, the rest of the expedition members picked that exact moment to start popping in. Howard was sitting in the video window, with Bridget as well.
“Where are we at, Bob?” Garfield said.
“My Manny is in a grass nest with the crate. I put in extra effort to make sure was concealed. I've reduced the Manny’s body temperature in case someone uses infrared for searching. My one spider is out of the box, ready to light saber anyone or anything that gets too close.”
“I don't think infrared is likely to be a useful tool,” Bridget said. “The whole point of fur is to retain heat. Fur-bearing animals tend to shed heat either through their breath or their feet.”
“Feet?” Garfield said, disbelief in his voice.
Bridget nodded. “Hummingbirds would shed heat through their feet and eyes.” She made a sad face. “I’d have loved to see a hummingbird.”
“True of a lot of animals,” Will replied. “We still have the genetic info from Svalbard. If we ever perfect the tech, we’ll bring them back. You might yet get your wish.”
Bridget gave him a small smile of acknowledgment, then turned back to me. “Anyway, the Manny puts out almost nothing when resting. You could float downstream and you'd be almost impossible to spot.”
“Leaving out the small question of Bender.”
“Look, Bob,” Hugh said, leaning forward. “Your problem has been basically lack of opportunity and time to implement some kind of solution for keeping the matrix dry.”
“And lack of money,” I interjected.
He grinned. “Yeah, that too. But I have money. I've been crewing all the way and haven't had to spend anything. Plus, the money my Manny was initially stocked with. You’ve gone to ground, so, other than maybe getting a little farther from the water, you can stay put
