Eclipsing Binaries: Family d'Alembert Book 8 by Goldin Stephen & Smith E.E.'Doc'

Author:Goldin, Stephen & Smith, E.E.'Doc' [Goldin, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Published: 2013-05-31T00:00:00+00:00

Helena managed to elude capture by staying in subspace for only about ten seconds, then dropping into normal subspace again and killing all acceleration completely. Ten seconds in subspace let her travel far enough to be out of range of normal detection systems; her boat would appear merely as a floating piece of space rock to any casual observer. And by dropping out of subspace before the Naval vessels could enter it, their subspace detectors would not spot her, either.

She spent a tense three hours watching her own screens nervously, in case Fortier caught on to her trick. When at last she was convinced she’d gotten away undetected, she began cruising – at slow, deliberate speed – back toward the planet Preis. The navy would send out warnings to all planets for a large radius around, but she hoped they would be a little less alert within the system she had supposedly escaped from.

Even so, she was careful not to land at a spaceport. She brought her lifeboat down well away from any populated centers and spent two days walking back into the nearest town. With the money she had at hand, she bought a tube ticket to the capital city of Aachen. Two days of walking through semiwilderness had left her face tanned and weatherworn enough to be unrecognizable to the people who normally knew her as the heir to this sector. A few subtle makeup tricks she’d learned at the Service Academy completed the job.

In Aachen she sold some of the jewelry she’d brought with her. She hated to part with some of her favorite pieces, but the situation was desperate. The money she got for the jewelry was enough to buy her some more clothes and a spaceliner ticket to the planet Evanoe, where the Circus of the Galaxy was currently performing.

The Circus of the Galaxy was one of the prime entertainment events throughout the Empire, a show offering more live thrills and excitement than even the wildest sensable adventure could match. More than that, though, the Circus was one of the primary weapons in SOTE’s formidable arsenal because it was the personal business of the d’Alembert family. All its performers, all its staff – nearly a thousand people – were members of that impressive clan from high-gravity DesPlaines. The d’Alemberts were noted for both their incredible talents and their fierce dedication to the Throne. Whenever there was a difficult and sensitive task, the Service naturally turned to the d’Alemberts to perform it. Now, in her moment of greatest need, Helena also wanted to call on the Circus.

The flight from Preis to Evanoe took a full week. Helena fretted the whole time. She knew that both the Service and the Navy would be looking for her, and that all sorts of things might be happening in the silent, secret war between the Empire and the conspiracy. Aboard a liner in subspace she was perfectly safe from outside intrusion – but at the same time she was effectively out of touch with any developments that might occur.

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