“Once we figure out who’skilling these girls and put a stop to it, I’ll help you finish thehull,” Cedar said. “Even if Lockhart is standing there watchingus.”
“That apromise?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Kali could not stir any enthusiasm forvisiting the local Han camp. But having Cedar’s undividedattention-and strong hands wielding a saw-for a week or two couldget her past the tedious work and on to what she wanted to do: installing the engine. Also, maybe if she got Cedar out alone inthe woods for a while, she could get him to reveal more detailsabout the San Francisco murder. She couldn’t talk this Pinkertonfellow out of hunting Cedar if she didn’t know the whole truth.
“Do you know where they’dbe this time of year?” Cedar asked.
“The Han? Yes. King salmonare running, so they’ll be in their river camp. Er, I guess that’sa town now. Moosehide.”
Cedar’s brow furrowed.
“The government put themthere, seeing as how Dawson grew up on top of the tribe’s oldsummer camp. I know it seems strange when you look around and seeall these buildings and people from all over the world, but therewas nothing permanent here when I was growing up. Except mud. Andmoose. Mostly mud.”
“You speak so fondly ofit,” Cedar said.
“You haven’t been stuckhere for an entire winter yet. You’ll see. It won’t grow on you.” Kali wanted tofinish her airship and escape before winter came again so badlythat an aching lump formed in her throat at times.
“Moosehide, then,” Cedarsaid. “I don’t reckon I’d be able to talk to them without you. Areyou willing to go?”
“That depends. Are youwilling to share your fancy blanket again?”
A smile softened his face.“Well, it did need a lotof attention from a seamstress after the lasttime you slept in it. Did no one ever educate you on proper thingsto do in bed? Setting off explosives isn’t one of them.”
“My upbringing wasn’tterribly proper. Besides, I dropped the smoke nutsoutside the bag. I can’tbe held responsible for stray shrapnel.”
Cedar’s smile broadened. “I see.”
Part IV
Low clouds hung over the Yukon River asKali’s self-automated bicycle-SAB for short-rumbled along the muddyroad, heading toward Moosehide. The fat, reinforced wheelsnavigated over and around roots, puddles, and horse droppingslittering the trail. Kali curled a lip at the latter, not wantingexcrement smashed into her treads.
Cedar sat behind her, and behind him smokefrom the stack rose into the air, mingling with a morning fog thathugged the banks. Summer was still in hiding, but at least it hadstopped raining. That meant a lot of prospectors were boating alongthe river, to and from Dawson. All of those people gaped at thestrange bicycle when it passed.
Kali barely noticed. Her mind was focusedinward, dwelling on the upcoming meeting with people she hadn’ttalked to in eight years. Though she didn’t expect a physicalconfrontation at the camp, she’d brought a vial with a couple ofher precious flash gold flakes anyway. They had proven useful tohave on hand in the past, when she’d made numerous tools andgadgets, using the alchemical ore as an easy energy source.
Cedar touched her shoulder and pointed to arowboat aground ahead of them. A few shards of wood floated nearbyin the river. Nobody stood near the boat, but the grass and foliagealong the riverbank obscured the view.
“Problem?” Kali peered upand down the river. At the moment, no other boats werevisible.
“Perhaps. Perhapsnot.”
Figuring he wanted to investigate, Kalislowed the bicycle. Cedar hopped off and jogged through theundergrowth to the boat. He stared down at something inside for amoment and then slung his Winchester off his back.
“Problem,” Kaliconfirmed.
She veered off the trail and set her machineto idle. Over its rumble, she almost missed the fact that Cedar wastalking to someone. She jogged over to join him and found himcrouching to help an older man lying in the bottom of the boat.Blood streaked his weathered face, and a bulbous lump rose from thecrown of his bald head.
“Don’t need no help!” Theman pushed Cedar away when he tried to help and clambered out ofthe boat by himself. “That boodle of mother-kissing lickfingerpirates got all my cussed gold. Shot my partner and knocked himinto the river. Lowdown, thieving cutthroats.” The man clenched afist and snatched a shotgun out of his boat. “Let them come backout of the clouds, and I’ll fix them. Pirates!” He spat, barelymissing Cedar’s boot. “Got me wrathier than a treedcoon.”
The old man took a step and tilted sideways,like he might topple back into the boat. When Cedar reached out ahand to steady him, he growled, “Don’t need no help,” again.
“Out of the clouds?” Kaliasked.
“Air pirates,” Cedar said.“Must be a new ship. The Mounties said they shot down the lastoutfit preying on successful miners.”
This was the first Kalihad heard about it, but it was hardly surprising. Not all ofDawson’s swelling population could strike it rich legitimately. Shegazed skyward. Though pirates might know about the reward for hercapture, and could be a lot of trouble, she found herself wishingto glimpse the airship. A completed, working airship. They were so rarein the Yukon. The last one Kali had seen, she and Cedar had beenforced to destroy, and she’d never gotten a chance to view theengines up close.
“It’s not appropriate tolook wistful right now,” Cedar murmured to her.
Kali blushed. The old man was still stompingabout, cursing over his losses. The missing gold seemed to beupsetting him more than the dead partner.
“I’m not wistful,” shesaid. “I’m just being observant…checking to see if it’s still outthere. That’s all.”
“Uh huh.” Cedar raised hisvoice for the old man’s sake. “Are you sure there’s nothing we cando to help you, sir?”
“Don’t need no help,” theman repeated.
Cedar shrugged and wavedfor Kali to lead the way back to the SAB. As they walked back, shegave the skies one last glance-and, yes, maybe itwas a wistful glance.She didn’t expect to see anything, but a dark shape stirred theclouds. Kali froze, mid-step. She blinked and the disturbance wasgone. Her imagination? Or simply an unusually shaped storm cloud?No, it had been too angular to be a natural part of thesky.
“I saw it,” Cedar saidwith another nudge for her back. “Let’s get out of here before theydecide your contraption is something they’d like tosteal.”
“Good idea,” Kalimurmured, hopping on. Though she and Cedar had taken down a shipbefore, it had been luck that they’d had the right supplies. Shehadn’t brought any kerosene for the trip to the Han camp, althoughshe did have her weapons, including a couple of-
“Go,” Cedar urged. Hepointed toward the clouds.
The craft had come into view again, itsshape distinguishable this time. Like a marine vessel, it had anopen deck, but instead of having sails above that deck, a vastoblong balloon hovered overhead, dwarfing the ship with its size.At either end of the deck, enclosed weapons platforms rose likecastle turrets poised over a moat. Open cannon ports ran along thewooden sides of the ship. Its size promised room for a crew ofthirty or forty with plenty of room to spare for cargo-or stolengoods.
“Going is good,” Kalisaid. She shoved the lever that controlled acceleration, and theSAB surged forward. Cedar hung onto her with one arm around herwaist, while he held his Winchester with his free hand, his torsotwisted to watch the sky.
The airship was heading downriver, whileKali and Cedar were heading upriver. If it didn’t change itscourse, they had nothing to worry about.
“It’s coming about,” Cedarsaid.