"I'll square it with him," I promised Ixil, though how exactly I was going todo that I couldn't quite imagine at the moment. "It was three grand, after all.

How was I supposed to turn that down and still keep up the facade that we'reimpoverished independent shippers?"

Ixil didn't react, but the ferrets on his shoulders gave simultaneoustwitches.

Sometimes that two-way neural link could be handy if you knew what to lookfor.

"Anyway, there's no reason why Brother John should get warped out of shapeover this," I went on. "You can take the Stormy Banks the rest of the way to Xathruby yourself. Then he can have his happyjam and guns and everybody can relax.

I'll look at Cameron's flight path in the morning and leave you a message atXathru as to where the most convenient place will be for you to catch up withus."

"Regulations require a minimum of two crewers for a Capricorn-class ship," hereminded me.

"Fine," I said shortly. It was late, my leg and head were hurting, and I was in no mood to hear the Mercantile Code being quoted at me. Especially not fromthe one who'd ultimately gotten me in this mess to begin with. "There's you, there's Pix, and there's Pax. That's three of you. The details you can work out withthe Port Authority in the morning."

With that I stomped out of the living area—being careful to stomp on my goodlegonly—and went into the bath/dressing room. By the time I'd finished my bedtimepreparations and rejoined Ixil I'd calmed down some. "Anything new?" I askedhim.

He was still staring out the window, the two ferrets perched on his shouldersstaring out right alongside him. "More aircraft seem to have joined in theactivities," he said. "Something out there has definitely piqued someone'scuriosity."

"Piqued and a half," I agreed, taking one last look and then heading for mybed.

"I wonder what Cameron's people dug up out there."

"And who could be this interested in it," Ixil added, turning reluctantly awayfrom the window himself. "It may be, Jordan, that our discussion of BrotherJohn's cargo will turn out to be moot. You may reach the Icarus in the morningto find it already in someone's hands."