Alastair (Ghosts of Ophidian Book 2) by McElhaney Scott

Author:McElhaney, Scott [McElhaney, Scott]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub, mobi
Publisher: Superluminal
Published: 2013-04-01T16:00:00+00:00

Twelve

The ship turned out to be nothing of the freighter for which it was classified. While it may have been designed as a freighter and used for that purpose for two decades, it was now flying under a false flag. The cargo hold, which should have taken up three quarters of the ship’s interior, was cut down to half its size, as it needed to be converted to support a crew of three hundred instead of thirty. The extra crew was needed in order to fly or offer support to the fifty heavily armed attack craft hidden in the cargo bay.

Mutt led them across the catwalks of the false cargo hold, which now resembled something of a hangar bay, bragging proudly about the adjustments that had been made to the freighter. He was like a child showing off his new toy.

“Did they deliver our bags to our rooms?” Jill asked as they were led back into the main portion of the ship.

“Space is limited as I’m sure you can appreciate,” he said, “And until we can manage with a smaller crew, we need the two of you reside in the dry goods storage. Before you get upset, this is something that happens often in the merchant fleet. I’ve got a half dozen currently bunking in the aft laundry. If you carry too large a crew, cots are either set up in the quietest rooms or mattresses are tossed on empty shelves in the storage rooms. Most will agree that the shelves make a much better bed than the foldable cots. Besides, storage rooms are quieter at night.

“Now, I know that brothers and sisters don’t always get along and I know they definitely don’t want to share a room with each other. And privacy is a coveted thing in space, but for now, it’s all we have to offer. And to answer your question from earlier, yes, your bags are in your room.”

Theo and Jill shared a look, but neither of them spoke. Theo realized in that moment that the leadership had probably accepted them onto their crew believing that they were brother and sister. To reveal the truth now could pose a problem. He could see in Jill’s eyes that she realized the same thing.

Mutt brought them to the room labeled “Dry Storage” and handed them each a map as he began leading them through the tightly packed storeroom. He explained how to navigate the maze of passageways throughout the ship and how to locate the back entrance to the kitchen. Although lunch would be served in a half hour, they would not be required to report for duty until the dinner shift. Then starting tomorrow, their shifts would go from 6am to 7:30pm everyday with plenty of spare time between meals to do whatever they wished. On average, Mutt said, the job titled “Cleanup” could expect about two hours of free time between breakfast and lunch, and two hours of free time between lunch and dinner, so the schedule wasn’t as bad as it appeared at first glance.

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