And thus was born an open, but still illegal, form of transport around the Empire. The Rangers turned a blind eye to the practice. Clearly, the demand was there, for anyone with crush status was usually in the freight game themselves, or they were military. There were times military personnel were happy to use the freight lines to transport unofficially, too.
Spacers in general had no patience for the ambling gait of the commercial crawlers, not after experiencing the freedom and speed of freight passage.
I certainly didn’t.
Plus, the freighters headed to destinations which were banned to commercial passenger lines. That included military bases, Imperial facilities and xenophobic worlds who nevertheless needed external supplies because they were not self-sufficient.
It was the only efficient way to get around the galaxy, if you didn’t own your own ship.
However, because freight travel was technically illegal, even though everyone did it, there were no official postings for berths. One had to know someone, who knew someone else, who was aware of a freighter with room and could hook you up with its captain in order to obtain passage.
Most of those conversations and hook ups took place in the bars and shops and cafés where I stopped by that morning. I spent a little money, left a larger tip and asked a few questions of whoever was behind the counter.
It isn’t an instantaneous process. I would have to circle back to these joints to follow up on my original question. The first answer I usually received in response to the question of passage was accompanied by a blank look and an innocent expression, along with a declaration that they had no idea what I was talking about. Then I would thank them for their time and leave a large tip.
When I went back the second time, the innocent act would be dropped. If there was passage available, I would be introduced to a crewman, right there and then. Or I would be offered the chance to leave a message to be delivered to the ship, soonest.
There was always a danger that the berth they had available would be already sold by the time I caught up with someone from the ship. As travel by freighter was so common, though, if I missed the first opportunity, another would be along shortly. I just had to persist in asking.
I continued my rounds. I was braced for it to be a long morning, with my kidneys afloat with disgusting coffee and my stomach protesting over printed food passed off as freshly made. Except life suddenly got interesting, shortly after I had completed my first round of the most likely places to find passage.
I had rented a refresher to rid myself of some used coffee. Not for the first time, my reflection in the mirror startled me. It would take time to get used to looking at that young woman. She appeared to know nothing of the world.
I had never requested such a young cosmetic age before. Youth was not an advantage in the military. It was better to look older and wiser, especially in the higher ranks.
It was while I was staring at the clean line of my jaw, with not a sag or sign of loose flesh anywhere, that I realized that no one had glanced at me with that startled second I had become accustomed to before the rejuvenation.
I was blending in, now. This deceptively young appearance would be useful.
I stepped out of the refresher. The door had nearly closed on me, locking me out unless I paid for another use, when I saw a tall man with useful shoulders and a military bearing, moving through the crowd on the concourse, his head turning as he searched every face.
Billy Kurzel, Agent At Large.
I eased back into the refresher and let the door shut, my heart thudding.
It could be purely coincidental that Billy was here on New Phoenicia. As one of the largest commercial hubs, it saw a lot of traffic, which would make it rich pickings for Billy and his ilk. He could be here merely to fill his quota of recruits.
Only, my gut said that wasn’t the case.
Billy and the people he worked for were not going to give up on me without effort. They had already taken a swipe at me after I had told them no. That should have warned me they were determined.
Now I had a measure of exactly how dogged they were. They would follow me wherever I went, to continue their one-sided negotiations when they caught up with me.
9
Billy did not know about my rejuvenation. It was likely he would look right past me if he saw me, but I didn’t want to take that chance.
I leaned against the shower stall and punched in a message to Juliyana.
Her acknowledgement came almost at once, which was a relief.
I renewed my rental on the refresher and waited inside until Juliyana tapped on the door. I stepped out.
Juliyana carried our two sacks, both of them bulging. I didn’t remember mine being that loaded before.
She shrugged. “You said pack for both of us. So I used the space in your sack for some of my stuff. I’ve been here for weeks. I picked up some clothes.”
I told her quickly about Billy.
“He doesn’t know what you look like but he knows what I look like,” Juliyana pointed out. “I hope he has reason to remember me,” she added with a growl.
“All men are attached to their testicles. I guarantee he remembers you,” I assured her. “I just didn’t want you walking into him out there. We’ll have to sneak off the station.”
“Have you found passage yet?”
I thought of the barkeep with the barrel chest and a quiet manner. He hadn’t bothered with the bullshit about not knowing what I was talking about. He had pocketed my tip. I had a feeling he was the most likely prospect to be able
