Page 21 of Paradise

“Kelly,” the man driving them offered. “Corporal Kelly, sir.”

“Nice to meet you, Kelly. Do you mind if I shorten it?”

“Not at all, sir.”

“Don’t encourage him,” Thérèse muttered. Garrett laughed, and Jonah and Cody just looked at each other and shrugged. Garrett got a huge kick out of bothering the marines, but as long as Cody didn’t start imitating him, Jonah didn’t mind. Most of them thought it was more amusing than anything else. Thérèse might be an exception, though.

A few minutes later, they were at the western edge of the bazaar, a market that encompassed about a square kilometer. The rest of downtown was for Alliance imports and elites; the bazaar was where you found the native Paradisians, rural traders, and small-time interstellar shippers. It was a huge, teeming place and more of a security risk than anywhere else in the capitol, but the city’s security forces as well as the marines were patrolling. They should be safe enough.

The hardest part about it wasn’t making their way through the crowd, which was bustling, but keeping Cody close. Every time there was an explosion (and there were plenty of them, generally small ones that were brightly colored, and some shot sparks or holograms into the air) Cody wanted to go there, tugging out of Jonah’s grip. Garrett was more proactive and settled his grip onto the back of Cody’s collar. That handhold slowed the kid down.

By the fifth time, Jonah was getting tired of it. He knelt down and looked sternly at Cody. “Bucko, if you keep tryin’ to runaway, I’m just gonna pick you up and head back to the car. I don’t want you gettin’ lost, okay?”

“Sorry,” Cody said, staring abashedly down at the ground. His feet were twitching, though. “But can we go watch the fire dancers, please? Wyl told me all about them, and he says they’re thebest, and they’re really close, I saw the flames shoot up—”

“Sure, we can go.” Jonah straightened up and turned around, only to come face-to-face with a girl in green. She had bright-red hair tied back with a sash and wore a long, heavy skirt. Her face was round, and her cheeks were pink, and Jonah knew her the moment he laid eyes on her. She smiled broadly at him.

“Mr. Helms! Fancy meetin’ you all the way out here!”

Jonah felt more than saw one of the marines move up behind him. “Hello, Charlotte,” he said, keeping his voice pleasant and light. The last thing he needed was for Garrett to get nervous and signal their escorts to do something rash. “I’d heard theGondolawas in orbit.”

“And you didn’t call? Da will think you don’t like him,” she admonished.

“Your da and I didn’t part on the best of terms.”

“Oh, that’s nothin’ but old worries, Mr. Helms, for old days.” She reached out to take his arm, and now one of the marines—Kelly—stepped up next to Jonah warningly. She withdrew her hand but kept her smile. “And that must be your boy, hmm?” She turned her brightness on Cody. “I’ve not seen you since you were a baby. You’ve grown so big!”

Cody looked a little confused, and Garrett kept a firm hand on his shoulder. “Is there something you want?” he asked, his tone flat. “Or were you just looking to interrupt our day together as a family?”

“Not at all, sir.” And now Jonah winced internally because “sir” was an insult among Drifters. “I’d never dream of interrupting you without a reason. My da asked me to keep aneye out for Mr. Helms here and to offer to share a drink, for old times’ sake, if I saw him. Our tent’s not far.” She looked back at Jonah. “As long as you can spare the time.”

“Sure.” Charlotte grinned, and Garrett glared, and Jonah turned back to his fiancé. “This won’t take long,” he promised. “You can go see the fire dancers, and I’ll be with you in a couple minutes.”

“Fine. Take Kelly with you.” Jonah started to protest, and Garrett held up his free hand. “It’s protocol for family members, Jonah.” His face was unyielding, and Jonah finally nodded. “Good. Lovely to meet you, Miss Dechiara.” He smiled politely at Charlotte, then turned and headed toward the dancers, Cody and Thérèse firmly in tow. Jonah and Kelly were left with Charlotte, who turned and led them back through the crowd.

Jonah smelled his destination before he saw it, the tent exuding a particularly harsh blend of tobacco that he knew Kilroy favored. The whole of theGondolahad reeked with it. And there Kilroy Dechiara was, sitting on a chair under a bright-red canopy, an assortment of robotic parts laid out on a blanket on the ground beside him. He was tall like Jonah, broader through the shoulders, and had the same red hair as his daughter. He stood up as soon as he saw them.

“Jonah Helms! Well, you’re a sight for sore eyes!” He pulled Jonah into a rough embrace. “Who’s your company, then?”

“Corporal Kelly, with the governor’s marine guard.”

“Ah … so it’s true, then.” Kilroy’s grin showed a few too many teeth. “Charlotte, why don’t you take the corporal to have a drink over at Mindy’s?”

“No, thank you,” Corporal Kelly said immediately. “I need to remain with Mr. Helms.”

“Then perhaps you could do us the courtesy of givin’ us a little space?” Kilroy suggested quickly, not at all put off. “Just a few extra yards for a private conversation. I’d be greatly obliged, sir.”

Kelly waited for Jonah to give him a reluctant nod before letting Charlotte draw him a little way off. Kilroy motioned to the empty chair next to his, and they both sat down. “I’ll be damned. I’d heard you found a Alliance man out on that colony of yours, I just didn’t know he was quite so important. A member of the governor’s family, no less. Pretty, too, or so I’ve heard. A man like that doesn’t have to work to live, I reckon.”

“He’s a climatologist,” Jonah snapped, offended for Garrett’s sake. “He doesn’t get by on his looks. And if that’s the tenor of what you have to say to me, I’m gonna be going now.”

“Slow down,” Kilroy said calmly, holding out his hands. “I didn’t mean to upset you. Lord knows you’ve got reason to want something different after what your mama put you through. I was just makin’ an observation.” He poured two cups ofgrinout of a dented metal pot on a little table between them and set one down in front of Jonah. “Proper brew. Been awhile, huh?”

Hell, it had been a while.Grinwas a purely Drifter drink, a mélange of whatever happened to be in the stores, usually bad coffee, cocoa powder, old tea leaves, berry crumbs, and caffeine extract if you had some. The maxim was that you just had to grin and bear it when you drank, hence the name. Jonah took a swallow, felt the lining of his throat start to tickle and had to cough. Kilroy laughed. “Can’t hold it anymore, boy?”

“Only you would add juniper berries togrin,” Jonah said hoarsely. “That’s terrible.”

“Wakes you up in the morning, though.” Kilroy swallowed his own cup down, then sighed with satisfaction. “S’pose you wake up to coffee every morning now.”

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