The Aftermath

the earnestness in his tone, the urgency in his last few words.

Why would he let us go? she asked herself. His men killed Theo. He knows I’ll report that once we get to Ceres. Why is he so willing to help Angie and me?

The memory of his naked body pressing against hers sprang into her mind. Don’t be an idiot! she warned herself. He’s not in love with you. He’s not even infatuated with you. He’s nothing but a smooth-talking murderer who’ll end up killing you and Angie both. After he and his crew have had their fun with us.

She tried to think of some other option, some alternative that she could turn to. There was nothing. Except…

With an effort of iron will she suppressed her trembling. She rose to her feet and went to the hatch. She touched the keypad on the bulkhead and the hatch slid open.

Valker stood there, an expectant smile on his face. Handsome face, she thought. Dangerous face.

“I’ll reconfigure the control console,” she said, without preamble. “You return to Vogeltod and deal with this approaching ship. I’ll bring Angela to me once you’re off this vessel.”

His brows rose slightly. “You don’t trust me?”

“Not entirely.”

Valker shrugged good-naturedly. “Can’t say I blame you.”

He stepped into the pod and went straight to the command chair.

“What are you doing?” Pauline demanded.

“Punching in the command code to disconnect the access tunnel. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” she said.

“There’s a price, you know,” he said, without looking up at her.

“I expected there would be.”

Valker straightened up and turned toward Pauline. “When we all get back to Ceres I’m going to quit this crazy scavenging business. It’s coming to an end anyway; the rock rats are seeing to that.”

“And what will you do?” Pauline asked mechanically.

“With my share of what we make from selling off Hunter I can set myself up in business. Nothing grand. Maybe selling jewelry or other luxury items imported from Earth.”

“And a little smuggling on the side?”

Valker laughed. “No, I’d be strictly legitimate. But I’d want you with me, at my side. We’d make a good team, together.”

This is his price for Angie’s safety, she realized. Aloud, she replied, “I’ll… I’ll have to think about it.”

“I want your promise, Pauline. Now.”

“I still have a husband,” she insisted.

“He’s dead and we both know it.” He looked at her intently, his face totally serious. “I want you, Pauline. For keeps.”

“I can’t—”

“I’ll protect your daughter. I’ll protect you both. But I want your promise, right here and now.”

Pauline closed her eyes and heard herself murmur, “Very well, I promise. As long as you protect my daughter.”

* * *

Victor paced restlessly about Pleiades’s bridge, debating inwardly about whether he should send out a call to Pauline or not.

She’s out there, he told himself. I’ve got a good fix on her tracking beacon and I’m homing in on it. I’ll be with her in two days, max.

I should call her, tell her I’m coming.

Yet something made him hesitate. He remembered his brief encounter with that scavenger ship, Vogeltod. What if he’s out there with Pauline and the kids? Theo couldn’t repair the antennas without help, we didn’t have the stores on board to do the job. If he had, he would’ve done it years ago, right after we were first attacked, right after I left them.

No, Victor said to himself. Theo had to have help from somebody, and whoever that somebody is he’s not emitting a tracking beacon. He’s running silent. Why?

His train of logic frightened him. Because he’s holding Pauline and the kids prisoners, using them to lure other ships to him so he can capture them and sell them as salvage.

But what’s he doing with Pauline and the children? Victor’s blood ran cold as he imagined the possible scenarios. He replayed Pauline’s short test broadcast. She sounded all right, he told himself: calm, under control.

But what if… what if…

When he finally stretched out on his bunk and closed his eyes to sleep, the “what ifs” filled his mind.

ALONE

Theo knew he had less than an hour left to live. Pinwheeling through space, he tried to ignore the stars swirling dizzyingly around him and concentrate on the condition of his suit. The diagnostics displays splashed on the inner surface of his helmet confirmed his worst fears. Kirk had punctured his main oxy tank; the oxygen jetting from the puncture had acted as a miniature rocket, thrusting him away from Syracuse, away from Mom and Angie, away from any possibility of help.

His radio was gone; there was no way he could call for help. Big spitting deal, he thought: the nearest help is out at Jupiter.

The suit’s auxiliary oxygen tank held a half-hour supply. In half an hour I’ll die, Theo knew. No, he corrected himself, less time than that. A lot less.

He tried to look back toward Syracuse but the ship was already too far away from him to see. Besides, his spinning motion made it almost impossible to focus on anything for more than a few seconds. It made his stomach queasy to watch the universe whirling around him.

They’ve got Mom and Angie, he realized. Valker and his bastard crew have Mom and Angie and there’s no way I can do a thing about it.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he muttered to himself, “You might as well die. You’re not good for anything else.”

* * *

Dorn sat in Hunter’s command chair as tensely as a bird dog that’s spotted a partridge.

“That’s a body,” he repeated.

Elverda strained her eyes, but saw only a featureless blip on the radar screen. “How can you be certain… ?”

But Dorn was already tapping on the navigation keyboard, maneuvering Hunter toward the radar contact. Elverda felt the soft nudge of the maneuvering jets. Minutes passed and the radar blip grew larger, sharper, better defined. Sure enough, Elverda could make out arms and legs.

“Matching velocity vectors,” Dorn muttered, bent over the keyboard as he called up the propulsion program. “Setting up a rendezvous trajectory.”

Hunter glided after the figure. Elverda could see that it was tumbling, spinning slowly as it coasted through space. She thought she saw the arms moving but knew it must be her imagination.

“Was there a battle here?” she asked Dorn.