[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
way back. his anger had been building. Flint had blown their best chance to track
the enemy.
She let go of the ladder halfway down and dropped to the deck beside him,
pulling off her flight helmet to reveal a grin. Score s twenty now, Colonel, she
said. Davie ll have his escort soon enough.
Only if you re flying, Lieutenant, he said, his voice low but harsh. And I m
not sure how long that s going to be, after what I saw out there today.
But ×
You talk when I say you can talk, Lieutenant, he cut her off. First you listen.
I gave you a direct order to stay on my wing when I engaged that second Darket.
Instead, you went charging after the other one. I expect that kind of attitude from
Maniac or even a rookie like Flash but not from the pilot I pick as my wingman.
But, Colonel, you didn t need me to deal with a Darket, she protested,
looking stricken, and I was able to make it a clean sweep.
A clean sweep, he repeated. That s what it was, all right. Of course, if there
had been one survivor running for cover we might have been able to lie back at
extreme sensor range and track him back to his mother ship. Maybe we d find the
whole damned Kilrathi fleet. But a clean sweep . . . that s certainly worth passing
up a result like that for, isn t it?
She took a step back. Oh, God . . . Colonel, I never thought . . .
No, you didn t, he said. You never thought. Well, Lieutenant, think about
this. Intelligence thinks the cats are planning an all-out attack on Locanda Four,
not just a raid but something big and nasty. And if we don t find their fleet and
pinpoint it pretty damned soon they will have a clear shot. So when your pretty
purple skies are filled with Kilrathi missiles, you think about whether we could
have nailed them today if you had just obeyed orders instead of playing your little
revenge game.
She looked down. I . . . I don t know what to say, sir, she said slowly. I m
sorry. Were you serious . . . about yanking my flight status, I mean?
He didn t answer right away. I don t want to, Blair finally told her. You re a
damned good pilot, Flint, and you know how to make that Thunderbolt dance.
But I told you before that I need a wingman I can trust. He paused. Consider
this a final warning. You screw up again, Flint, and I ll have your wings. You get
me?
Yes, sir. She met his angry eyes. And. . . thanks, Colonel, for giving me a
second chance.
As she turned and walked slowly away, Blair hoped he wouldn t regret the
decision later.
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Flight Wing Rec Room, TCS Victory Locanda System
Blair paused at the entrance to the rec room and glanced around. This evening
the lounge was fairly busy, the Gold Squadron particularly well represented.
Vagabond, Maniac, Beast Jaeger, and Blue Squadron s Amazon Mbuto were
playing cards. Judging from the stack of chips in front of Lieutenant Chang, he
was ahead. Vaquero was alone at another table with headphones over his ears, his
eyes closed, and his hands tapping out a beat as he blissed out on his rockero
music. Hobbes and Flash were talking earnestly at a table by the viewport, and
Sandman was sharing drinks with a blonde from the carrier s weaponry division.
Lieutenant Buckley, alone at the bar with a drink in her hand and a half-empty
bottle on the counter in front of her, looked up at Blair. She stood with
exaggerated care and walked over to him.
I hear you re down on Flint, she said, the words slurring a little. What s the
matter, Colonel, you only like pilots who ve got fur?
He looked at her coldly. ÑYou ve had too much to drink Lieutenant, he said.
I think you d better head back to your quarters and get some rest.
Or what? You ll ground me? Like you threatened Flint? She jabbed a finger
at him. You save your high-and-mighty Colonel act for the flight deck or the
firing line. I m on down-time now . . .
He grabbed her shoulder as she staggered, steering her back to the bar. I
don t know what set you off, Lieutenant, but. . .
What set me off? I ll tell you what set me off, Colonel, sir. Flint s one of the
best damned pilots on this tub, and you treat her like dirt. Just like you treat all
the pilots, Ñcept your furball buddy over there. After she came off the flight deck
this afternoon, she was ready to find an airlock and cycle herself into space. I
spent the whole damned afternoon trying to straighten out the damage you
created, chewing her out that way.
She screwed up, Blair said softly. And we can t afford any mistakes.
Can t you let her be human once in a while? Do you have any idea what kind
of strain Flint s under? This is her home system, you know . . . and everybody s
talkin about the cats planning to use bioweapons here.
There have been stories about bioweapons, he said guardedly. Inwardly he
wondered who had been talking. Probably not Rollins; he d sounded sincere
when he promised not to spread the story. But everyone at the squadron
commanders briefing knew about the rumors now, and some of them × Maniac,
for example × wouldn t think twice before sharing the stories with the rest of the
crew. Right now they re just that: stories. Whoever s been circulating them
probably wouldn t know a bioweapon from a biosphere.
Oh, come off it, Colonel, Cobra said. The cats ve been working on these
kinds of weapons for years. They use human test subjects from their slave camps.
They ve tried their bugs out on other human planets already. It s only a matter of
time before they start using them routinely. If the grapevine says it ll be here, I
wouldn t argue with it.
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
You know a hell of a lot about what the Kilrathi are doing, Lieutenant, Blair
said Maybe you should spend more of your time talking to Intell, and a little less
on telling me how to run my Wing.
Intell! I ve had enough of Intell people and their questions! She shook her
head. Anyway, you re just trying to change the subject. The simple fact is,
Colonel, that there are some damn fine people on this ship who deserve better
than what you re givin Ñem. Flint s jus the worst case. But if I was you, I d start
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]