Chapter 11
“Leader Baruke got back to us.” Eazi’s voice in her ear roused Fee from where she was sitting in the hospital waiting room.
She had to admit, she was dozing off there. “Give me a moment,” she said to him.
She forced herself to stand, and looked down at Trayla, who was slumped in her chair.
“Grinabo?” Fee offered.
“Yes. I need something.” Trayla slid further down and groaned.
There were about five other people waiting in the room with them, all looking half-asleep, and she decided if she could, she’d get grinabo for all of them.
“I’ll see what I can find.” Fee walked off toward the atrium that was at the center of the building. “So what did Baruke say?” she asked as soon as she was out of reach of listening ears.
“He says he’ll need to check his schedule and get back to you as soon as possible.” Eazi’s tone was dry.
Fee laughed. “Like he didn’t check it before he answered us.”
“I already know his schedule.” Eazi’s smug tone forced another laugh out of her. “He’s free the whole of tomorrow up until the evening, when he has a big dinner event.”
“Hmm. Can we get an invite to that event, maybe?” Fee asked. “As myself, rather than as Feenra Planer.”
“Oh.” Eazi sounded intrigued. “Maybe. It’s a function focused on a student exchange program between Balco and the Grihan planets.
Many of the students that leave Balco and go to a Grihan planet, or vice versa, stop in Larga Ways before and after.
I think we could participate by offering a free room to the students in one of the two hotels we outright manage on the way station to facilitate their travels. ”
“So, contact the organizers, make the offer of a free room on request, and say I’ll attend the function to announce it.” Fee thought it would be a good thing to do, regardless.
“Do you want to speak to them?” Eazi asked.
“If I do it, it’ll have to be later, when I’m back at the house.”
“I’ll send a comm now making the offer, and let them know you’re available to talk later tonight if they’re interested.”
“They probably will be.” Fee couldn’t see why they would turn it down.
“If they agree, do we tell Baruke?” Eazi asked.
“Let’s wait and see what he says after ‘checking his schedule’,” Fee said. “It might be better to surprise him.”
“I’m sure he won’t think so,” Eazi said.
“No, but tough.” Fee was tired of games. “There’s obviously something going on down here, and the parts they promised us were actually manufactured, so why weren’t they delivered?”
“Paxe has had a chance to scan all the lens feed from your time inside the warehouse. Apparently some of the things on that shelf in that office where you found Natta are also parts from his ship,” Eazi said.
“Okay, so a return visit is definitely on the cards.” Fee had made her way down the wide staircase and turned into the cafe that was tucked beneath it. “What’s happening there now?”
“The security forces finally found the correct warehouse and took the two women and the three men away. I don’t think they arrested them, but they are suspicious because of the laser cannon. I’ll follow their investigation and see what they turn up.”
Fee ordered eight cups of grinabo and a cake from the cafe, much to the consternation of the woman behind the counter.
“There are a lot of people waiting with my friend and I, and I want to share,” Fee told her.
While the staff set about making the grinabo, she went and sat at one of the tables.
“The student exchange organization has already gotten back,” Eazi told her. “They’re ecstatic about our offer and would love you to announce it at the dinner. They say they don’t need to speak with you face-to-face. They’ve sent an invitation.”
“I’ll need a dress, probably,” Fee said. “But Trayla can help me find one tomorrow.”
Hopefully Natta would be able to rest at the house for a bit on his own. The doctors had said he had a bad concussion, but Fee had had a concussion before herself, and knew the magic of Grihan medical advancement meant he’d probably be fine to leave the hospital today.
“The exchange organization asked if you would be bringing anyone with you,” Eazi said.
“Well, I don’t think Natta should work tomorrow, so it’ll just be Trayla.” Fee didn’t know whether they should give Trayla’s real name or not. “Maybe give her a fake identity, just in case.”
“I’ll check with the Grih as to what they’d prefer. She’s their agent.”
True. She didn’t want to step on Battle Center’s toes.
When the order was ready, Fee paid and carefully carried her haul back to the waiting room. There was one less person in there when she got back, but she earned the gratitude of everyone who was left.
Natta’s doctor eventually came out to speak to Trayla, who’d identified herself as Natta’s colleague. She took her to one side and spoke quietly with her for about five minutes before Natta limped out from behind double doors.
Trayla went off to get the medication that had been prescribed, while Natta had the spare cup of grinabo and some cake, and they were certainly calmer leaving the hospital than they had been coming in.
“The admiral herself contacted the doctor,” Trayla said as they walked over to where the runner was parked. “Asked her not to note down any specifics of Natta’s injuries, as it was a matter of Grihan security.”
“That’s good.” Fee opened the door for Natta to get in the back.” If the Balcoans at the warehouse mention Natta to the authorities, their next move will be to check hospital admissions for someone who has Natta’s injuries.”
“They probably won’t, though,” Natta said. “That would incriminate them in my kidnap and assault.”
Trayla nodded as she got into the driver’s seat. “Agreed, but better safe than sorry. And maybe they have connections that can look into hospital admissions, so they can track you down.”
Natta settled himself on the back seat, and Fee thought his face hardened at Trayla’s words.
“They won’t catch me unawares a second time,” he said.
“Who did what to you?” Fee asked. “How many of them were there?”
“There were three in the runner that grabbed me. A driver—the woman I saw behind the desk in the office as we were leaving—and then the man who Trayla was standing over and the man with the broken arm near the office door.” He slowly lowered himself so he was lying across the back seat. “Who broke his arm, by the way?”
“I did.” Fee glanced back at him.
“There was one other person, a man who let us in the side door when we arrived at the warehouse, but I only saw him that once.” Natta closed his eyes. “The other two were the ones who took me up the stairs into that little office and questioned me.”
“What did they want to know?” Trayla asked as she carefully pulled out into the road and headed back to the house.
“Firstly, and most urgently, where I’d sent the parts.” Natta’s eyes opened. “They were very nervy about that.”
“What did you tell them?” Fee twisted again in her seat.
“That I didn’t know. I was asked to hand them off to another courier, and that’s what I did. I played the clueless facilitator.”
“You said firstly, what else did they ask you?” Trayla asked.
“Who you two were, and how you knew me.” Natta winced as they turned a corner, and Trayla eased up even more on the speed. “And they didn’t like the answers I gave them to those questions, either.”
Fee pressed her lips together in sympathy. “I’m sorry you took the full brunt of it. We learned a lesson today.”
“I’ll be all right,” Natta said, pushing up on an elbow. “The doc says I’ll be able to get back to work day after tomorrow.”
“Really?” Fee eyed him. He didn’t look like he’d be okay in a day and a half.
“The head injury’s been sealed, there’s no skull fracture or bruising to the brain, other than some concussion, and I have what I need to treat that.” Natta stretched out a little.
“Well, you’ve got tomorrow in bed, then,” Fee said. “Trayla and I have to go out, so you can recuperate in peace.”
Natta stiffened, pushing up a little more. “You shouldn’t do anything dangerous without me.”
“We won’t,” Fee assured him.
“What will we be doing?” Trayla asked, glancing over at her.
Fee shrugged. “Shopping.”