Nobody said it would be easy.
Kris let Sam get her talking about how her one fishing expedition almost landed her in the water with sharks. ''And while some folks talk about us Longknifes and sharks in the same breath, I don't think I would have gotten any professional courtesy from that big mouth.''
That had him laughing, but she noticed that as she talked, he'd glanced more and more toward Aholo. Not that Kris could blame him. She was an eyeful, and she did carry herself with all the poise you'd expect of a soon-to-be-reigning queen.
''Do you think she'd like to dance?'' Sam finally blurted out.
''I know that after an hour or more of yakking, I'd kill for a chance to get out on the dance floor.''
''Do you mind if I leave you?''
''I've enjoyed talking with you.'' But it is his planet, and Aholo is the local girl, seen from the distance of twenty-five light-years, Kris reminded herself. And it wasn't as if she was really letting this one get away.
So he slipped off, and when the noise around Aholo paused for a second, he asked her for a dance, and she said yes without looking too relieved to slip out of the conversation straitjacket. As Sam led her away, the bubble around her broke up. The mayor of Stanley cadged a refill for his wineglass and a refill for Kris's sparkling water before taking the still-warm chair beside Kris.
''Sam keeping you company?''
''He has the makings of a first-class politico,'' Kris assured the father of the topic at hand.
''He doesn't dance too bad, either.''
''Considering that he's probably having to teach her the steps,'' Kris said, taking a sip.
''I understand you had to learn some pretty fancy steps a few nights ago,'' he said with a raised eyebrow.
Kris decided to ignore the reference to her going native—or to her stopping someone from blowing up the native treasures—and chose to cut to her chase. ''How long is everyone going to keep saying what everyone knows, and when are you going to start solving the problem everyone knows has to be tackled?''
''You are one of those damn Longknifes, aren't you,'' he said, raising his glass in salute.
''All one word,'' Kris saluted back.
''Well, your daddy must have taught you the importance of letting folks vent.''
''When I was still in diapers,'' Kris agreed.
''And what we said here today will be in all the news out on the Islands and all over the Mainland. Lots of folks will say, ‘Right, you tell ‘em,' and we're doing it here, in Port Stanley where things won't get too hot, ‘cause we all know what really needs to be done.''
''You do.''
''Yeah. While we have some hotheads here, and they have their hotheads there, just about all of us agree we need a government that respects both the majority and the minority. Say a House that's popularly elected and a Senate that represents specific locals. Problem is, which locals? They have some mighty small islands and we have some mighty small towns. They don't have many more islands to settle, and our population is growing, and there's a lot of land up here on the Mainland that hasn't been touched yet.'' He scratched his head. ''I sure don't know how we're going to juggle all that, I just know we have to.''
''Where does my grampa's United fit into this picture?''
''At the heart of it. Money.'' The mayor's grin was all teeth. ''As soon as Earth folded its Society of Humanity, we eliminated that tax from our budget or started spending it on something local. Now, if we have to pay for that fleet your grampa wants—and don't tell me that hasn't been decided; I can read the need as good as any blind man—that means taxes. If Queen Ha'iku'lani took us into United without a popular vote, there'd be riots here on the Mainland and … well, I think even Stanley would be voting for independence from Nui Nui.''
''It's that bad?''
''No, not so long as you keep the status quo. It's only if you try to change anything that things get interesting.''
''But things are changing.''
''You noticed that, too.''
''So you can't change just a little bit,'' Kris said.
''We got to eat the whole apple, core, seeds, and all.'' The mayor sighed. ''Damn, if my boy ain't talked your girl into a second dance.''
''If it was dance or talk politics, which would you do?''
''Dance at their age.'' He sighed. ''So, Longknife, what you going to do?''
''My grampa sent me here to hold an old war buddy's hand while she dies. She asked me to help her great-granddaughter try to make her heart light as she lies dying, so I borrowed a gig to get things moving fast.'' Kris eyed the mayor sideways, ''But this isn't my world, so I'm sitting here like a good wallflower.''
''Like you did on Turantic.'' He grinned.
''That being the subject of several legal proceedings, I am advised by counsel to reserve comment for my day in court, if I ever get one,'' Kris said dryly. They both laughed.
He went his way, no doubt to report on their conversation. She warmed her seat. There were several other young men at the dance, but none so much as looked her way. What was it about her that scared them off: the Princess, the Longknife, the money, or the target painted on her … front and back?
At eleven, Aholo called it quits; there were early meetings next morning. Back in their room, as Abby got them out of their formal rigs, Kris got to dissect the night with another girl for the first time in her life. Beyond the ''Wasn't that wonderful,'' and ''Oh, my feet hurt,'' and ''I wondered if they'd ever stop talking,'' Aholo got in ''What did you think of Sam?''
''He's got a good head on his shoulders.''
''He dances well. For a Big Islan—Mainland guy.''
''Both of you danced well. What did you talk about?''
''He has a sailboat. Not an outrigger, but a sailboat with a keel. He loves sailing with the wind in his hair. I didn't think any Mainlander was like that.''
''People surprise you,'' Kris said. Why hadn't he mentioned that to her? She loved sailing. ''Too bad we'll be losing Sam when we leave Port Stanley tomorrow.''
''Oh, but we may not. He's asking his papa if he can come along as his secretary. The Mainlanders have decided to start forming a Constitutional Convention by kind of rolling up the members from the cities where I've been. That way when we hit the last ones, the more difficult ones, we'll have not only my elders with me, but also the Mainlanders who support me.''
That was news to Kris. Maybe she needed to rethink being a wallflower. Or maybe she was finding out things just about the time she needed to. After all, this was these people's show.
Not mine. Remember that, girl. Not mine.
By the fourth city, four days later, Kris was ready to draw some conclusions. The cities were big, and they'd flown over quite a few small towns. In all of them, recent urban renewal had replaced the last remnants of the refugee camps and hasty occupation with centrally located city services, arenas, and gleaming shopping opportunities. Progress.
The fourth city also had demonstrators.
Oldsters in proudly mismatched clothes lined the street with signs saying, It's Our Land, We Worked for It, and similar sentiments. Another line of protesters was more worrisome to Kris. Youngsters in spiked hair in a riot of colors and dressed in somber long-sleeved shirts and pants, buttoned at the neck despite the heat, showed signs demanding, Don't Give the Nudies Nothing. Since attitude toward skin didn't prevent a young mom from nursing her baby without so much as a blanket to block the view, Kris suspected the issue was all political.
It was time to get ready for trouble. The tight lines around Jack's eyes as he studied the crowd along the street their motorcade drove showed his vigilance had gone up a notch. Kris leaned forward, signaling Penny and Tom to do the same.
''We got a problem?'' Tom asked softly.
''None I'm more aware of than you, but…'' Kris nodded toward the show outside their limo. They nodded back. ''Jack stays with me. Penny, you connect with the local constabulary and plug into their command center. Tom, that leaves you with the princess. First chance you get, draw a body stocking from Abby and start hanging as close to Aholo as the situation allows. If someone takes a shot at her, try to take it on your backside.''