Doctor Who_ Shakedown Part 16

Could have won.

'What about the rest?' suggested Robar. 'Any chance they'll up their stakes?'

Lisa shook her head. 'I've squeezed them till they squeak as it is. Zorelle's already having second thoughts; she'll use this as an excuse to pull out.' She sighed. 'I'm going to drown my sorrows. Coming?'

'When I finish up here.'

'Why bother?'

'You'll come up with something. You always do.'

Lisa went through the open airlock into the repair dock, and made her way along the metal corridors of s.p.a.ce Station Alpha to its bleak and functional bar. Good old Robar, she thought, he had more faith in her than she had herself. True, she'd squeaked through tight financial situations before. It was the last-minute nature of the let-down that was the problem.

Alexi had been due to arrive this very day, bringing his financial contribution with him. She'd been relying on it for last-minute stores, and for the all-important entry fee.

She perched on a stool, dropped the crumpled flimsy on the bar and tried in vain to attract the attention of the barman. He was busy with a party of wealthy tourists awaiting transfer to a s.p.a.celiner, and had no time for hard-up s.p.a.ce pilots. Lisa felt as if she had her credit rating tattooed on her forehead.

A voice called, 'Hey, barman. Over here.'

It was a low, rather husky voice, but somehow it caught the barman's attention.

Lisa turned and looked at the man standing beside her. He was middle-aged, medium-sized, st.u.r.dy-looking, with a pleasant, weathered face. He raised a hand and crooked his finger, and the barman, a burly four-armed Dravidean, came sulkily over, grumbling all the way.

'Doing my best, it's a busy time, only got two pairs of hands...'

'And I guess you'd like to keep them all in working order,'

said the newcomer amiably. 'The lady's waiting to be served.'

The barman opened his mouth, caught the stranger's eye and closed it again. He looked enquiringly at Lisa who stood with her mouth open. She'd been too preoccupied to think about what she wanted to drink.

'Champagne, cold, quick!' said the stranger and the barman hurried away. The man smiled at Lisa, a lazy pleasant smile.

'You look like a lady who needs champagne. I know the signs.

This the trouble?'

Calmly he picked up the flimsy and smoothed it out. He produced a pair of old-fashioned half-moon reading gla.s.ses and studied the message.

Lisa Deranne felt control of the situation slipping away from her. It wasn't something she was used to.

'Gentlemen don't read other people's mail,' she said severely.

The stranger peered at her benignly over his gla.s.ses. 'They don't?' he said in apparently genuine surprise. He put away the gla.s.ses, folded the flimsy neatly and returned it to her.

'Seems like you've been let down. Tough break.'

The barman appeared with the champagne, opened it with the usual flourish, put down two crystal goblets with his other hands, poured the champagne and disappeared down the bar.

The man handed Lisa a gla.s.s.

'Maybe I don't like champagne,' said Lisa perversely.

'Of course you do. Everyone likes champagne.'

Lisa drank some champagne. It was ice-cold, fizzy and delicious. 'You're absolutely right.' She took another hearty swig. 'Who the h.e.l.l are you?'

'Name's Kurt.'

'I'm '

'You're Lisa Deranne. Saw you winning the Algolian Cup on the holovids. You entering the Inter-Systems?'

'Not any more.'

'Why not?'

Lisa pointed to the flimsy. 'You just saw. My last crew member's just dropped out, taking his financial contribution with him. I could manage without the man at a pinch, but the credits are essential.'

'Maybe I can help.'

'Not unless you're an eccentric millionaire with a gap in his busy schedule and a taste for solar yacht racing.'

'Funny you should say that '

Lisa finished her champagne and stood up.

'Thanks for the drink and for trying to cheer me up. This is too serious for me to make jokes about.'

'Who's joking?' He nodded along the bar at the group of flashily dressed, noisy tourists. 'I'm booked on a luxury three-planetary tour with those creeps. If I have one more day of them I'll start chucking them out of the airlock. Sooner go with you.'

'Ever done any solar racing?'

'A bit. Amateur stuff, but good cla.s.s.'

Slowly Lisa sat down. 'You're serious, aren't you?'

'I could be. Who else is in the crew, besides you?'

'There's Robar, my engineer, Zorelle, the designer, and Nikos and Mari.'

'Who are?'

'Couple of the beautiful people, young, rich and madly in love.'

'Sounds like I'll fit in very well.'

'Solar racing's not cheap, you know.'

'I know.' He snapped his fingers for the barman and produced a small gold card. 'What's the deal?'

Lisa's eyes widened. A Galactic Gold Card was valid, without limit, on almost every inhabited planet. It meant serious money.

'Every syndicate member puts in a quarter of a million credits.'

'How soon do you want it?'

'Sooner the better. I've got to pay my entry fee today, and I still need more supplies.'

'How about I pay your entry fee right now, and give the stores a draft for the balance?'

Lisa gulped. 'That will do very nicely.'

'OK.'

He held out his hand and they shook.

'I'll get my gear sent on board. Where are you?'

'Bay Four. Ship's called Tiger Moth Tiger Moth.'

'What's the programme?'

'We set off for Station Beta as soon as we finish final checks. Just a simple shakedown cruise, shouldn't be any problems.'

'Right. See you back here as soon as it's all sorted.

Shouldn't take long.'

Kurt signed for the champagne, added a magnificent tip and moved away. Lisa sat staring into her champagne gla.s.s, trying to take in the last-minute reprieve.

Robar came into the bar and sat beside her. She looked up and grinned at him. 'Have some champagne, we're celebrating!'

'I'll take a beer.'

'One beer, coming right up,' said the barman. He seemed anxious to please.

Robar nodded after the departing Kurt. 'How come you were talking to him him?'

'He's our new crew member.' She told Robar about their meeting and Kurt's offer. 'Talk about luck!'

'You know who he is?'

'He said his name was Kurt. Do you know him?'

'Know of him. Appeared on the scene with a load of credits, did a few very shrewd deals on the commodity market and made a heck of a lot more. Started dabbling in solar yacht racing.'

'So?'

'Shady character. n.o.body knows who he is, where he comes from. Rumour's he was a smuggler, maybe even a s.p.a.ce pirate.'

'I don't care who he is, or what he was,' said Lisa Deranne.

'He can pay and he can sail and he's our new crew member.

So finish up that beer, you old soak, round up our crew and tell them to meet me here. I've got news for them. Then get back to the engine room. You've got work to do.'

Amongst the handful of pa.s.sengers who got off the shuttle from Megerra was one who looked far from well. He was very tall with long silver hair and a neat pointed beard, and he wore expensive-looking silk robes.

He made his way to Station Alpha's travel office and demanded details of all forthcoming departures.

The clerk checked his screen. 'The Tri-Planetary cruise liner has just left. Next one's the return shuttle to Megerra.'

'I do not wish to return to Megerra. What else?'

'Nothing after that until the Canopean s.p.a.celiner, late tomorrow.'

'Nothing? No departures at all?'

'Only the s.p.a.ce yacht Tiger Moth Tiger Moth. She'll be leaving shortly on a shakedown cruise to Station Beta. The captain's Lisa Deranne, you know, she's entering the Inter-Systems Solar...'

'I can book pa.s.sage on this ship?'

'I'm afraid not, sir, she's a private yacht, they don't carry pa.s.sengers.'

The traveller staggered a little and the clerk noticed that his face was pale.

'Are you all right, sir? Shall I call the station medical officer?'

'No, it is all right.' The pa.s.senger made a ghastly attempt at a smile. 'I have been rather overdoing it recently. Where can I find Captain Deranne?'