"Go get the treatment table ready for him," I said, pointing across toward thepile of sick-bay equipment. "Then stand by to assist Everett. I've got to getPax back to Ixil in case he needs him."
The excuse, lame though it was, was unnecessary. Chort probably didn't evenhear it as he took off at a quick jog across the sphere. I headed in the oppositedirection, toward my personal kit and the food supplies that had been storednear my cabin and were now conveniently piled nearby. I'd promised Cameronsome supplies, and this could very well be my last clear chance for a while to getthem to him.
I'd just finished filling my bag with food bars and water bottles when Everettand Tera emerged from the wraparound. Everett made a beeline for Chort and themedical setup; Tera, not surprisingly, made an equally straight beeline forme.
I met her halfway. "Well?" she asked in a low and anxious voice, herexpressionthat of someone braced for the worst.
I shook my head. "He's not in there," I said. "Not alive, not dead, notinjured."
The anxiety in her face eased, but only fractionally. "Then where is he?" sheasked.
"I don't know," I told her, a statement that was technically correct, thoughmisleading as hell. "Maybe he got off at Potosi after all."
She turned her eyes away from me. "He wouldn't have left the Icarus," she saidquietly. "Not voluntarily."
I thought about that one. Another technically correct statement, though shedidn't know it. "Perhaps," I said. "I wouldn't give up hope, though. If anyonecan find a place to hide where the Patth can't find him, it'll be yourfather."
She took a careful breath. "I hope so."
"I know so," I said, turning my eyes away from her in turn. The quiet pain onher face was tugging hard at my conscience, making me want to tell her that hewas all right.
But with a heroic effort I resisted the temptation. If I even let myself startdropping hints as to the true situation here, I would go from comforter tosuspect in nothing flat. Neither of us could afford that. "Look, I'd love to chat some more," I said instead. "But I have to get this stuff to Ixil beforeNicabar needs to turn the wraparound into an airlock again."
"Sure," she said automatically, her thoughts clearly still with her father.
Which for the immediate moment was all to the good. If I could get out of hersight before she thought to ask what I had in my bag, it would mean one lessthing I would have to lie to her about. Whistling for Pax, who was rootingaround the food stores, I headed out into the wraparound.
Ixil was drifting around the cramped space of the engine section like amassive cloud, checking and double-checking monitors and indicators as he eased thethrusters and stardrive back to life. "I'm glad to see you're all right," hesaid, dropping his eyes to Pax as I gave the ferret a nudge that sent himfloating through the air in Ixil's direction, squeaking happily as his clawsscrabbled through the air in search of a pawhold. "Both of you," he added asPax reached him and clawed his way up the tunic to his accustomed place on Ixil'sshoulder. "Any problems?"
"Hang on to your teeth," I advised, crossing toward the access panel into thesmall sphere, which Tera had thoughtfully left open for me. "I'll make you asmall wager you're not going to believe the ride Pax and I had."
The tangle of wiring on this side of the sphere was as bad as the matching seton the other side had been. Now, though, after Cameron's assurances that thestuff was stronger than it looked, I was far less concerned that an accidentalbump might irrevocably damage something. Accordingly, I plowed my way inside, pushing the wires and conduits aside with relatively reckless abandon, and asa result took only five minutes to reach the mesh instead of the hour it hadtaken me going in from the opposite side.
Hovering just inside the mesh, I pulled out a pad and scribbled a quick noteto Cameron, warning him again not to budge from his private hermitage until oneof the ferrets or I came for him. I stuffed the note into the pack, and withcareful aim sent the whole bundle dropping gently toward the end of thecontrol arm. At the last minute it occurred to me that perhaps having the pack bumpinto the end wouldn't be enough, that it might require an actual grip of some sortto trigger the mechanism. If so, I would have to figure out a way to retrieve thebag and send it back down with Pix strapped somehow to it. At that point Iwould also have to figure out how to explain the ferret's disappearance to the restof the crew, because the last thing I could afford would be for Pix to suddenlyappear in the center of the large sphere with the whole bunch of us in therewith him.
But evidently a grip was not required. The bag slid down the arm to the end, and without any fuss whatsoever it vanished. There was a faint, brief breeze asair rushed into the hole where it had been, and that was that.
I worked my way out back to the rim—another five-minute trip—and climbed outinto the engine section. Ixil was strapped into the control chair now, bothferrets on his shoulders, a look on his face that I'd never seen before. "So," said conversationally as I swung the hinged breaker panel closed again overthe access hole. "What do you think?"
With an obvious effort he focused on me. "It's unbelievable," he said quietly.
"Absolutely unbelievable."
"Isn't it though," I agreed. "But it's real."
Absently, Ixil reached up to rub Pax's head. "We can't let the others knowabout this," he said. "The Patth would be willing to topple whole governments iftheyreally knew what it was they were chasing."
"Yes, I've already worked through the logic," I assured him. "Including thefact that we can't tell Tera, either."
The ferrets did one of their unison twitches. "Because we work for Brother John?"
"And because turning the Icarus over to him would more than buy our way clearof the whole organization," I said. "She doesn't trust us as it is—she'd spot- weld our butts to the hull if she knew the bargaining chip we held here."
"Yes." Ixil was silent a moment. "Which unfortunately loops us back to thequestion of our immediate future."
I grimaced. "I don't think we have any choice," I said. "Unless we want to sitout here and watch Shawn die, we have to go get him some more borandis."
"I wonder," Ixil said thoughtfully. "We have only his word that he even hasthe disease, you know. As I recall, Everett was unable to either confirm or denyit.
What if he's faking all this, with these seizures his way of pulling us out ofhiding before we're ready?"
"In that case, we're back to the question of why he didn't betray us earlierand save everyone a lot of trouble," I reminded him.
"I suppose." He eyed me closely. "You wouldn't be holding out on me, wouldyou?"
"Holding out how?" I asked.
"Oh, I don't know," he said with a shrug. "Actually considering offering theIcarus to Brother John without consulting me first, for example."
"Don't be silly," I said, putting some huff into my voice. "Though you have toadmit that would be one way to keep it safe."
" 'Safe' being an extremely relative term."
"True," I conceded. "Still, Brother John could probably give even the Patth apretty good run for their money."
"And of course, turning such a plum over to him would give us a giant step upin the Antoniewicz organization," he continued. "Don't pretend that hadn'talreadyoccurred to you, either."
"Occurred, pondered, and dismissed," I assured him. "I have plenty of faults, but ambition on that scale isn't one of them." I cocked an eyebrow at him.
"Unless you'd like to take a shot at it."
"What, be the first nonhuman in Antoniewicz's direct line of command?" heasked dryly. "Thanks, but I think I'll pass."
I waved a hand. "Up to you. By the way, do you happen to know if Nicabar'sgotten Shawn back inside the ship yet?"
"Yes, they came in while you were inside the small sphere," he said. "Terawill let us know when the wraparound's been repressurized." He cocked his head tothe side. "She seemed rather annoyed you'd gotten yourself trapped on this side ofthe wraparound when you had work to do over there."