Baldwin, Bill - Helmsman 04 - The Mercenaries by Baldwin Bill

Author:Baldwin, Bill
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf

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Just before a slightly woozy Brim turned in that evening, he heard a light tapping at his door. Barbousse was in the hall with a sealed envelope. "Personal message for you, Cap'm," he said quietly. "I thought I'd seal the hardcopy and deliver it personally on the way to m' cabin."

Brim nodded. "Which is all the way at the other end of the hull," he observed with a frown.

"Beggin' the Cap'm's pardon," Barbousse said, handing over a sealed blue plastic envelope, "but... well, it was a personal message, an' all."

Brim squeezed the man's forearm. "You take damned good care of me, Utrillo Barbousse," he said.

Barbousse grinned. "Don't want anythin' to happen to you, Cap'm," he said. "It'd be too easy goin' back to the Governor's privateer—an' then I'd probably get myself killed."

"What makes you think it'll be any different with me?" Brim asked. "We went through some pretty hairy times during the last war."

"Well, Cap'm," Barbousse replied emphatically, "there's no way I can refute that, now.

But if I do have to get myself killed, at least with you I'll go in service to the Empire. An' that's mortally important to me." He shrugged. "Besides," he added, "we have had some excitin' times together, haven't we, sir? Like when we captured that bender with the little spin-grav launch from I.F.S. Intractable."

"It's rarely been boring," Brim chuckled, recalling that they had nearly been vaporized a number of times during that desperate action.

"Good night, Cap'm," Barbousse said, interrupting Brim's reverie. "You'll want to be woken early so you and Polkovnik Ursis can work on settin' up that covert supply line to Commissioner Gallsworthy at the Atalanta Fleet Base. Sacha Muromets is scheduled to lift before midday."

"Thanks, Chief," Brim said, starting to shut the door.

"Oh, an', Cap'm..." Barbousse added.

"Yes, Chief?"

"Probably, you won't want to wait until morning to read the message I brought," the big rating said with a quick salute. Then he hurried off down the hall.

Brim settled wearily into an expensive ophet-leather recliner. It was one of the few luxuries he afforded himself in Starfury's commodious Captain's cabin. He peered at the envelope. No clue there: Barbousse had sealed the message into a standard unclassified hardcopy container. Frowning, he ripped off the side of the envelope, puffed it open, and extracted a single sheet of common message plastic used to record unclassified KA'PPA messages. It was from an old acquaintance, and its short message made his heart feel as if it would burst from his chest.

QQOW-97RTRV762349HUSE GROUP KJ64L 132/52010

FROM: H. AMBRIDGE, RUDOLPHO, THE TOROND

TO: LCDR. W. A. BRIM, R.F.F.

CAPTAIN, R.F.S. STARFURY

VARNHOLM HALL, ORDU, FLUVANNA.

COMMANDER BRIM:

HER SERENE MAJESTY, GRAND DUCHESS MARGOT EFFER'WYCK-

LAKARN BIDS ME INFORM YOU OF HER PLANNED MORNING

ARRIVAL IN MAGOR 136/5210 ABOARD T.S.S. KATUKA FOR THE STATE

CELEBRATION OF NABOB EYREN'S FIFTIETH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY.

THE DUCHESS WILL REPRESENT THE TOROND IN LIEU OF GRAND

DUKE ROGAN WHOSE SCHEDULE PRECLUDES HIS ATTENDANCE. SHE

SENDS THESE WORDS FOR YOU:

O' THAT 'TWERE POSSIBLE

AFTER LONG GRIEF AND PAIN

TO FIND THE ARMS OF MY TRUE LOVE

ROUND ME ONCE

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