There was a heavy thud from below, and the daylight which had been shining up the stairway was cut off. Lights came on, and then she heard Teresa climbing towards her, saw the woman's elongated shadow on the wall like some twisted, distorted monster.
Teresa stepped into the flight deck and, ducking her head under the canopy, made her way to the front two chairs. She sat in the right-hand one, then gestured at the other. "You can ride up front, as long as you don't touch anything."
"I won't," promised Alice, as she slipped into the left-hand seat. There wasn't much room, and what little space she had seemed to be filled with more controls and screens. She just hoped she didn't sneeze, because if she jumped suddenly her elbows were sure to change their course, or activate the jump drives … or even the self-destruct.
She watched Teresa fastening the harness, and copied her actions. The buckle was complicated but she eventually managed it, pulling on the adjusters until she was clamped to the chair so firmly she could barely breathe.
"Tower, this is Zulu five eight," said Teresa, speaking into her mic. "Request clearance for immediate departure."
"Stand by, five-eight. We have a heavy on final."
Teresa pulled a face.
"What is it?" asked Alice.
"A heavy is a big freighter. They come down pretty slowly, so this could take a while."
"Can't we dodge them?"
"Not legally, no." Teresa thought for a moment. "Tower, I have a child on board with condition eight. Any chance of a quick departure?"
There was a delay from the tower, and Alice looked at Teresa enquiringly.
"Condition eight is a kid chucking a tantrum," murmured Teresa. "They're pretty understanding about these things."
"Can you make course two-two-five before you reach a thousand metres?"
"Sure."
"Clearance granted, but be quick about it or my job's on the line."
"Scrubbing that last, Tower. And thanks." Teresa pressed a button, and for a second Alice thought the ship had blown up. There was a cough, followed by the loudest bellow she'd ever heard. The fighter vibrated like an unbalanced washing machine, and her vision blurred despite the thick, padded seat. Teresa adjusted a control, and the noise abated … a little. She pointed to a headset dangling from a nearby hook, and Alice put it on. The noise was muffled immediately, and she heard Teresa's voice through the speakers. "Sorry, should have warned you about that. Now, are you set?"
"I guess," said Alice nervously. She'd travelled on many ships before, but the raw power of Teresa's fighter was overwhelming.
"Hang on, then." Teresa eased a pair of throttles forward and the ship rose slowly into the air, still level with the ground. Then, with practiced ease, she simultaneously pulled back on the stick and shoved the second pair of throttles to the stops.
Alice was rammed backwards into her chair, her body suddenly ten times its usual weight. The noise blasted through the headphones, shaking her skull, and the vibration and acceleration was like being strapped to a massive firework.
Hopefully without the big bang at the end.
Before Alice could get used to the motion Teresa shoved the stick to the right, bringing the fighter round in a tight, powerful turn that left Alice's stomach dangling somewhere in mid-air. The sky swung wildly, the wing to her left was flexing more than she believed possible, and she was convinced they'd lost control and were heading for a crash. But instead they levelled off, and then Teresa hit the after-burners.
The fighter leapt forward with a growling, ear-splitting roar, and the scenery blurred past. Overhead, through the canopy, Alice caught a glimpse of the descending freighter high above them, its huge bulk all but hidden by the flames jetting from its landing thrusters. Then it was gone, vanishing behind them as though it had never existed.
Once they were clear of the spaceport — and, given their speed, maybe even clear of the whole continent — Teresa pulled the stick back. The fighter reacted instantly, the nose rising until Alice could see nothing but blue sky and clouds. Then, as the sky began to darken, Teresa finally cut the after-burners and throttled back. "Okay?" she asked.
Alice's mouth was bone dry, and she swallowed once or twice before replying with a curt "Sure."
"Good. We can't stay at full throttle for long. Run out of fuel that way." Teresa checked the instruments. "Once we clear the atmosphere I'll use the main drives."
"Those were only the secondaries?"
"Yeah, just thrusters. The big ones would smash every window for a hundred miles."
"Wow."
"Don't worry, we'll catch Tyron," said Teresa grimly. "Hopefully, before he … well, let's just hope your sister is okay."
"Yeah, I owe Harriet a lot." Alice changed the subject. "Do you have any weapons on this thing? I saw the mounts, but—"
"No, of course not. You can't go around putting lasers and missiles on a private ship."
"So how do you survive? Space is dangerous, and a little ship like this—"
"I use my wits."
"Well I hope they're fully loaded," remarked Alice.
Chapter 18
In the cabin aboard Tyron's ship, Harriet was still trying to free herself. With the hood removed, Harriet had been able to take proper stock of her surroundings. As she'd already discovered, the head of the bunk was made from smooth metal tube and there was no way of freeing her wrists. However, the tubing at the foot of the bunk had a kink in the middle, and the metal was pinched into a sharp protrusion.
Harriet moved down the bunk as far as she could, then raised both feet and began the long, slow and painful process of sawing
