Chapter 4
She was almost dizzy with delight at being on-planet.
The air was sharply cold, but she didn’t care, and the sunlight felt amazing on her face.
On Larga Ways, the sun was filtered through the enviro dome that covered the way station. This was a reminder it was not the same as being on a planet.
She walked beside a luggage hover that the custom’s official had assigned her. It would carry her bags until she reached the port’s main exit doors, then return to the hover ranks.
As she stepped into the main building, which echoed with announcements and the conversations of hundreds of people, she caught a glimpse of a Grihan man watching her from the crowd.
He withdrew into the cluster of travelers milling around near the little cafes and shops that were housed inside the space port authority and she lost track of him.
A woman stood watching the doors, holding up a sign that said Welcome Feenra Planer! She moved around as if she were excited.
She was Grihan, as Fee expected, and around Fee’s own age. Her hair was a creamy white, tipped with blue. When her eyes cut to Fee as she approached, Fee could see them widen in surprise, but when she smiled, it looked authentic.
“Trayla!” Fee had been given her name in advance, and she increased her pace as she headed toward the woman, hands extended. “It’s been so long!”
“Don’t remind me!” Trayla almost hopped in place in excitement and then grabbed Fee’s hands with her own. “Oh! It’s so good to see you, but let’s catch up where it’s less noisy.”
She lifted one of Fee’s two bags off the hover, and Fee took the other one then touched the button to send the luggage hover away.
“I can take the other bag.” Trayla held out her spare hand as Fee slung the bag onto her shoulder.
“I’m good. Thanks, though.” Fee easily settled the bag.
“Let’s get out of here.” Trayla gestured toward the exit and shortened her steps to keep abreast of Fee.
The only wrong note to this whole outing was that Fee’s height meant she looked too young to be Trayla’s contemporary. She hoped her disguise would make people less inclined to question it, though.
“You know the city,” Fee said conversationally. “Did I choose a good place to stay?”
Eazi had found the short-term rental for her and she was sure it was a good place, but they had decided to behave as if they were under surveillance from the moment she landed.
“It’s near the city center, beside the river. You can’t get better,” Trayla said as they stepped onto the concourse.
They got in the queue for a personal runner, loaded the luggage when it was their turn, and then jumped inside.
Trayla entered the address Fee gave her into the nav unit, and as the door shut and the runner slowly accelerated out of the port authority and turned into the main thoroughfare, they both leaned back in their chairs with a sigh of relief.
“Nice to meet you,” Fee said, putting her hand out again. “I appreciate your helping me.”
Trayla smiled back. “Are you kidding me? I was pretty sure I was about to be recalled before my superior officer contacted me to say I was needed.”
“I’m glad. I think I saw Natta, the other operative the admiral assigned, in the terminal. Has he made contact with you?” Fee recalled the Grih who’d faded into the background, and guessed he’d taken the role of watching for trouble, where Trayla was going to be sticking close to her.
“He hasn’t. I knew there were two of us, but no one got in touch so I took my own initiative.” Trayla looked behind them, as if to see if there was anyone following. “What did he look like?”
“Grihan, obviously, hair was brown with black tips, wearing all black.”
“Ah. I did see him.” Trayla nodded. “He stopped next to me as if he were waiting for someone to come through, and complimented me on my sign.”
Fee grinned. “It was a good sign.”
Trayla laughed. “Right. Well, he’s a pro, because I didn’t see him again.”
Fee studied the passing landscape out of the window but looked back at Trayla when she realized the woman was staring at her.
“I didn’t expect you to look Grihan.” Trayla waved at the ears and the wig.
“They work, don’t they? And I couldn’t come down as myself.” Fee tapped her right ear. “These are detachable, so a good yank will expose me.”
“They’re excellent.” Trayla studied them. “But you’re too short to be an adult Grih. You look like a teenager.”
“Can’t help my height.” Fee shrugged. As someone who was tall for a woman on Earth, she never saw herself as short, even though among the Grih she usually came up to their shoulders.
The runner turned off the main thoroughfare, and Fee caught a glimpse of the river up ahead.
For the last few minutes they had been traveling through low, large buildings she assumed were warehouses set near the port authority, but now the structures twisted and soared, and she could see touches here and there of the style that made Larga Ways the jewel that it was.
Beaten copper, walls of flowers, slate cladding and colorful art that looked as if it were made of enamel was everywhere.
The runner turned again, and she admired the trees and plants that abounded on the pavement and in containers on the buildings themselves.
This looked like a business district, and there were cafes and small boutiques that catered to the steady stream of pedestrians.
The next turn they took went straight down to the river front, and then the runner swung left, coming to a stop three houses down from the corner in front of a building facing the water.
Fee scrambled out and took it in.
The three houses were all obviously built together, each with a high pitched roof and balcony. There were gates and tiny, lush gardens in front of each, and stairs leading up to brightly painted doors, each one a different color.
“Admiral Hoke is paying for this?” Trayla asked, surprised.
“No, I am.” Fee set her bag more firmly on her shoulder and pushed the gate open.
It was delightfully beautiful.
Trayla trailed behind, and before Fee could tap in the door code, the man who’d stared at her in the port authority stepped around the side of the building.
Trayla was suddenly right behind her.
Fee turned her head to look at him, the bracelet on her wrist a comforting weight. “And you are?”
“It’s the other operative,” Eazi murmured into her earpiece. “I double-checked with the admiral.”
“Natta.” He lifted both hands. “Sorry, sorry. I didn’t want to wait where everyone could see me.”
Trayla relaxed. “You admired my sign at the port.”
“The card with the name on it made it very easy for me.” There was amusement in his voice. “And you looked just the right amount of delighted to meet our lovely way station manager.”
Fee punched in the code and pushed the door open.
“Wait.” Natta slipped inside in front of them both and disappeared, presumably to check the rooms.
Trayla kept behind her and once they were inside, she closed the door and dropped the bag.
Fee had the feeling she was keeping her hands free.
“You’ve been told about the plot to assassinate me?” she guessed.
Trayla nodded. “From the admiral herself. I don’t even think my handler knows why I’m needed, it’s that top secret. Apparently the Garmman are behind it? There’s a large Garmman presence on Balco, given its proximity to the space boundary.”
“Eazi’s been watching this house since he rented it. He’d let us know if anyone suspicious came around.” Fee knew he had satellites orbiting Balco, but he’d also given Fee some discreet cameras to set around the outside and inside of the house so he could monitor things even more closely.
“So what’s the plan?” Trayla asked. “I’ve been told you need security until you can arrange a meeting with Hi-Lan Baruke, and there’s a possible hit out on you.”
Fee flicked her gaze over to Natta, but if he knew more than that, he wasn’t saying.
“Hi-Lan Baruke doesn’t know I’m here. I needed to leave Larga Ways for a few days according to my security chief, and my team there think I’m spending some time on the Illium. Instead, I’m going to wander around Distani while I wait for Baruke to let me know when we can meet face to face.”
“Why keep Baruke out of the loop?” Natta asked.
“He knows why I want to speak to him, and I don’t think he’ll be in much of a rush to set something up. But if he knows I’m here, waiting for an audience, he’ll definitely try to watch me, and I want to be able to move around without Balcoan eyes and ears on me all the time.”
“Are we allowed to know why you want to speak to him?” Trayla asked.
“He made a commitment to supply Paxe with the materials and parts he needed to rebuild his Class 5. And for some time he hasn’t been delivering.” Fee wondered again if it was out of Baruke’s control, or deliberate sabotage.
“So he knows you’re going to be asking him to fulfill his end of the agreement.” Natta gave a slow nod. “And if he can’t, he won’t want to meet.”
“Yes. So as I can’t be on Larga Ways, I thought it would be a nice break for me to spend time waiting for confirmation of the meeting with Baruke in Distani, because I’ve never had the chance to visit.
” Fiona walked into the small but well-appointed kitchen, and poured herself some water.
“Just as everyone on Larga Ways thinks I’m currently on the Illium, so will Baruke when Eazi contacts him on my behalf.
So hopefully I’m going to be invisible down here. ”
“And what do you actually want to do?” Natta asked.
“I am planning to stroll around, shop, do touristy things, and, if it so happens I hear any chatter about why there are so many delays in the materials Paxe needs for his Class 5, so much the better.” She tilted her head. “Have either of you heard anything about the delays?”
“I’ve heard there are issues with production in some industries,” Natta said, slowly nodding. “But nothing specifically related to the new Class 5.”
“You think the delays are intentional?” Trayla asked.
“It looks that way to me, but I want to be sure of my facts, which is why I need to talk to Baruke in person.” Fiona leaned back against the counter. She looked at the time, and realized it was almost midday. “Got a good place we can go for lunch?” she asked.
“Which one of us is going to sit with you?” Natta asked.
Fee turned to Trayla. Turned back to him. “Up to you two. I don’t mind.”
“Me.” Trayla tugged at her jacket. “I met you at the port and anyone watching will expect us to be together.”
Fiona inclined her head. “Guess you’re eating at a table for one nearby,” she said to Natta.
He sent her a salute. “I know a good place. Let’s eat!”