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Trance's Gift - Chapter 5
Time: CY 10088 May 5166 – Day 2Location: Bathsheba spaceport
"What do you mean you can't release mycargo? " demanded Beka trying hard not to raise her voice.
"Just what I said, Captain Valentine," said the woman on the other side of the counter whose name-tag bore the unlikely name of Bernhildafreid. "Didn't you read the notice when you transmitted your request?"
"I read it and it made no sense," snapped Beka "That's why I'm here. No FTA cargo is to be released from FTA controlled warehouses until further notice. What sort of crap is that? I have a cargo to deliver. What am I supposed to do, just sit in port accumulating port fees and late delivery penalties until some high mucky muck in the FTA decides to release my cargo?"
The woman glanced down at her computer display completely unmoved by Beka's outburst. "According to this," she said more or less pointing at her computer, "you're under a six month contract with Tri Galaxy Shipping. That makes it Tri Galaxy's problem not yours."
"Can't you at least tell me why my cargo can't be released?" asked Beka thinking that if she knew why her cargo was being held up she might be able to find some reason it should be released.
"Well it's not exactly a confidential, but it's not supposed to be bandied about either," said the woman dropping a her voice and looking about as if she was about to share a secret and didn't want anyone else to know about it. "There've been a rash of thefts from the warehouses here. Apparently someone has been falsifying shipping orders and getting cargoes that should be transferred to FTA ships or other warehouses. The lock down was directed by the head of FTA internal security himself. He'll be arriving in person within a few days to take over the investigation. They call him the doctor. Rumor has it that when the doctor gets annoyed with someone they disappear, or else end up as an experimental bio war subject in an FTA armaments company. So if he says the goods stay in my warehouse that's where they're going to stay."
The woman's tone of voice changed from conspiratorial to 'just between us girls.' "What I'd do, honey, is if your boss starts to make a fuss about the port fees is to remind him that this is why his company pays dues. If the thieves aren't caught the next cargo that disappears could be one of his. And then tell him that if he has any complaints he can take them up with the executive committee."
"I see," said Beka realizing this was one argument she wasn't going to win. " I appreciate you explaining the situation." She spun on her heel and began walking towards the exit. "Come on, Harper, lets get out of here. I still have to break the news to Trance that I couldn't convince her friends to come with us."
Time: CY 10088 May 5166 – Day 2
Location: Bathsheba spaceport the Eureka Maru
As Beka had expected Trance was waiting for them in the Maru's staging area. The smile on the girls face turned to confusion then to barely controlled tears when she saw that her friends weren't with Beka and Harper.
"I'm sorry Trance," said Beka. "But they decided not to come with us."
"'But you said you'd bring them," cried Trance.
"I said I'd try. I thought you understood that they might not come. You.." She stopped speaking as Trance fled from the staging area. Harper began to follow but stopped when Beka laid an arm across his chest.
"Let me talk to her Harper. She'll need you later but right now I think I'm the one who should speak to her."
The door to the berthing quarters was open and Beka could her Trance's sobs emanating from it. She had never considered herself the motherly type but the past few years had given her considerable practice at it. She was about to see how well she had learned.
Trance was lying on the bunk that she shared with Harper crying into her pillow. Beka sat down at the edge of the bunk near Trance's feet and placed her hand on the girl's hip. Fortunately Aurora was asleep in her crib this talk was going to be hard enough without Trance trying to attend to her child.
This was the first time she had been in the berthing compartment since Trance and Harper had gotten married. The compartment was smaller than her stateroom but the couple had done their best to make it a bit more homelike. Harper had removed the bunks from the forward bulkhead and the upper bunk on the aft bulkhead. He had then replaced the lower bunk with a larger one and hinged it so that it could be swung up against the bulkhead when not in use. Beneath the bunk was a small loveseat that could be used when the bunk was triced up. Aurora's crib was located at the foot of the bunk. Someone, probably Harper, had created a mobile of spacecraft and had hung it above the crib to entertain the baby when she was in it. There were several posters depicting scenery from various planets on the bulkheads as well as a to do list attached to one of the lockers. A scattering of small potted plants completed the décor.
Beka let Trance sob for a few more minutes then decided it was time to talk.
"Trance, we need to talk about Jenni and Concepcion. I remember you telling me that one of your roommates, I forget her name, was a flash addict."
"Lita," sniffed Trance.
"Lita, yes. Now I remember. Where there times when she wasn't able to get her fix? A time when she couldn't locate a supplier for one reason or another? How did she act then?"
"She got really nasty," answered Trance.
"And, nervous?"
"That too."
"Nervous because of withdrawal or nervous that she was afraid she couldn't get more flash?"
"Both."
"Just like my father did when his source would get cut off."
At Beka's mention of her father Trance st up. Beka had never hid the fact that her father had died of a flash over dose but she almost never talked about it either. Seeing that she now had Trance's full attention Beka pressed on.
"Once Dad was addicted flash became the most important thing in his life My brother and I were important but not as important as his flash. There were times when we didn't have enough to eat because what money we did have went into his drugs. Dad actually turned down some job offers that would have brought in a significant amount of money because they would have separated him from his source of flash. He feared loosing his source more than he wanted the income. And that's what's going through Jenni and Concepcion's minds. To an addict a reliable source of their drug is the most important thing in their lives. At the moment they fear loosing their source of flash more than they fear Fagin and Sikes. And as unfair as it might seem there's really nothing we can do for them until they decide otherwise. That's what I need you to understand. This isn't your fault. I talked to them. They still care about you but they're not ready to be helped yet, and until they are there's very little you can do for them."
"What can we do help them?"
"At the moment nothing, except maybe pray to the Divine. It will be up to them to decide when they want help"
"You sound like Rev when you talk like that," said Trance attempting a smile.
"Maybe a bit of him wore off on me," said Beka returning the smile. She gave Trance one more pat on the leg then got up from the bunk. "Now why don't you clean yourself up a bit. I'm going to send Harper in. He's worried about you."
Harper was waiting in the common room a can of Sparky Cola in hand when Beka emerged from the berthing compartment.
"You can go on in, Harper. I think she understands the situation but it still hurts that she can't help her friends."
Somewhat to Beka's surprise Harper didn't rush into the berthing compartment. "I don't know what do do about her friends flash problem Boss," he said putting the can down on the common room table, "but the situation with the FTA inspection has given me an idea how we can put Fagin and Sikes out of business for good. But we'll need some help to pull it off. We're going to need to talk to that inspector again."
"I guess I’m going to have to apologize to Bailey then,"said Beka.
"Yep, you probably are," agreed Harper.
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