Page 17 of Escape from Nova Nine
Julke’s long, still silence began to worry him. Had he made another terrible mistake?
“Interesting, but not much of a solution if you’re dead.” Her soft tone sounded skeptical, but his talent caught a brief flavor of concern.
He disguised his relief with a shrug. “She’d have to catch me first. But in the meantime, she’d crack this place open like a shiny geode. Particular enemies excepted” — he waved a thumb toward his chest — “she hates kidnapping and slavery.”
Julke’s lips thinned. “Assuming she doesn’t accidentally blow up the whole asteroid, Nova Nine has defenses.” She sighed again. “I shouldn’t be telling you this because it’ll give you ideas. The mine has hidden energy guns and ship killers, old and new. Probably more that the guards don’t gripe about. And thanks to the xeronium we mine and refine, almost limitless energy to power them. She wouldn’t stand a chance.”
“She might if she knew what she’s up against. Jackers might sell everything else, but they keep armor and weapons for themselves. They out-gun CGC’s Space Div frontier patrols.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
He opened his mouth to speak, then stopped. It wouldn’t help his case to admit he tanked at making life choices, or that she inspired him to want to make better ones.
Corralling his thoughts, he tried again. “I’ve felt more at home here than I have in the last decade of being on any ship’s crew. It doesn’t hurt that I don’t have to hide being a minder. But it’s more than that. The prisoners squabble, and some are hard cases, but they look out for one another. Everyone listens to you, and they listen to Sutrio about the griffins because you do. And Lantham about materials. And Prughal about how to operate the work area enviro units. I could name others. Even some of the guards listen to you.” He caught her gaze. “The only way out of here is working together.”
Her fingers twitched as her face scrunched in thought. Finally she shook her head. “I’m areizigeramong my people. I’m no leader.”
“Aren’t you? I don’t know what ‘traveler’ means to the Volksstam, but you’re more than that here. You know everyone, even the three noobs I was caught with. Not as just a list of memorized names, but the individuals as people. The prisoners come to you. I’ve seen them at mealtimes.”
She blew out an exasperated breath. “Arbitrating arguments is not the same–”
The mine’s attention tone sounded throughout the facility.
“All clear. Return to assigned work areas. Clear the blast door thresholds. Refinery will begin operation in fifteen minutes.”
The guards stepped into and sealed their mech suits, then moved toward the prisoners. Lhap Cho strode toward their group.
Zade had already taken a cue from the other prisoners and was just sealing his helmet when Lhap Cho arrived.
“Lantham, Sutrio, go with Workgroup 23-A and work with them the rest of the shift.” He turned to Julke. “You and Lunaso, come with me.”
Zade didn’t bother looking at Julke’s expression to see if this was usual. His talent picked up on both her consternation and the edges of Lhap Cho’s irritation.
He kept a tight rein on the chilling dread that his earlier questions had brought both him and Julke to the attention of the warden’s interrogators.
6
NOVA NINE FACILITY • GDAT 3243.117
Julke felt Zade fight to contain his alarm as they followed Lhap Cho. If they were in trouble, she deserved the mega-share of the blame. She’d known Zade was too tempting to talk to, and felt remorse for crushing his dreams of escape.
However, Lhap Cho would have shackled them if they were headed to the punishment block. Instead, he led them to the lifts and entered a code to call a capsule. When the doors opened almost immediately, he ushered them inside, then stepped in himself.
“Hey, Lunaso,” he said with an overly cheery demeanor, “any experience in caves?”
Julke had a sinking feeling she knew where they were going.
“No. Some derelict recovery, though.” Zade’s voice was nonchalant.
Lhap Cho laughed. “Oh, is that what you space jackers are calling slice-and-hauls these days?”
Zade shrugged, his equanimity unruffled.
Lhap Cho chuckled again. “That’ll do. Admin thinks they’ve identified an old comms system in the Abyss. I’ll set an anchor at the access point and send you two out with a scanner to get readings.”
Thanks to Zade’s earlier use of his talent, she knew they were looking for something a lot bigger than a few old control nodes or exposed cables.
“What’s the Abyss?” Zade excelled at sounding innocent.
