Part 21 (1/2)
”My Stripe has a long tradition of honoring its promises,' Nrrna said with a swift sideways glance toward him before returning to her inventory check. Halfway between checking off a film tape for educating small children about bacteria control and reaching for the next film in the stack, she heard an annoyed snort, and the Treaty Controller swept away, holding the small doc.u.ment box. She sighed with relief.
”My goods are all accounted for,' she told the grid operator.
”Will you transport me and this s.h.i.+pment now to First Village?” The gesture with which the irritated technician directed her onto the platform showed that he would be very glad indeed to get rid of her.
For her sake, he had nearly had to annoy the Treaty Controller.
No male, not even a Treaty- Controller, should persist when a female has made her disinterest so plain. He would be glad to see the last of both of them and the end of a possible disgraceful incident.
The moment that the village coalesced around Nrrna, she shoved the crate off the grid and tapped the code to open it. Kelly exploded up in the midst of a snowstorm of plastic packets. They were plastered all over her like wet leaves.
”Oh, my poor neck,' she groaned. ”This was such a good idea but neither of us counted on sweat and plastic suffocation. I hope I don't offend your nose.”
”I am so glad you are all right,' Nrrna said, trying hard to keep her nostrils from flaring at the reek of the Hayuman. She couldn't help her current odoriferousness and Nrrna helped Kelly out.
”I would not have left you in it so long, but that wretched ol' cat'-and Kelly blinked at such an epithet coming from the gentle and polite Nrrna-'of a Controller was revoltingly offensive!” Nrrna almost spat in outrage and Kelly could see every single hair of her stripe was standing up.
Nrrna began to pick the static-charged packets off Kelly's hair and clothes. Each time she tried to put a pile down, they seemed to spring back to adhere to her fur. when Kelly tried to help, it only made matters worse. The packets merely transferred themselves from Nrrna to Kelly. Frustration gave way to laughter and then Nrrna thought of moistening her hands, and when that seemed to help, Kelly wet hers and they began to divest themselves of their unusual decorations.
”I heard him, the old tomcat,' Kelly said, grinning at Nrrna.
”But he's a persistent b.u.g.g.e.r, isn't he? I thought males didn't bother females without permission.
”It's partly my fault,' Nrrna said. ”I used too much of a provocative scent.”
”Not to get his attention, I'll warrant.” Nrrna wrinkled her nose. ”The operator was too well mannered to pursue me, but it kept him interested until white muzzle interfered.”
”All's well that ends well. But remind me not to ride in a crate again,' Kelly said when the last of the gloves were stuffed back into their container, and the top was clamped down again. ”I also caught that bit about you reconsidering him so he could provide for you when you had to return to Hrruba.
What's happened since I left here?”
”Nothing,' Nrrna said, but she was as worried about his phraseology as Kelly was. Possibly more than Kelly was, for she had lived on Rrala all her life and the quarters of her clan on Hrruba were very crowded.
”what was he waiting to collect? Did you see?”
”A doc.u.ment box.
Well covered with Third Speaker seals, that much I did notice.”
”Neither the Treaty Controller nor Third Speaker is a supporter of the colony. Strikes me as odd that that Stripe should be in control with Treaty Renewal approaching. I wonder what kind of doc.u.ments were in that box. ”I don't know how we'd find out, but I'd better complete this s.h.i.+pment without any more delay.” Nrrna spoke into a radio unit which was hooked to her belt, contacting the Health Center's operator.
”They will send a flitter for the s.h.i.+pment. Now, did you have any luck on Terra?”
”I sure did, Nrrna. We've got a Poldep inspector on our side, willing to look into certain oddities that came to light. I want to tell the Reeves, but I'll meet you later at Hrriss's so I only have to tell this twice, but tell him I got good news.” She was stretching and working her arms and legs to relieve the kinks. ”I never could have found out so much without your help, Nrrna. You've been a star! See you soon.” With a final wave, Kelly jogged off toward the Friends.h.i.+p Bridge on her way to collect Calypso and make her way to the Reeve Ranch.
Todd took one look at her and yelled, ”what did you do to your hair?” ”My hair?” she shrieked back at him, hand to her head before she remembered the rinse. ”I couldn't go back to Earth in my own hair and expect to be unnoticed!”
”To Earth?” he roared, white-faced with shock.
when he had finished bawling her out for the risks she had taken, she got just as angry right back at him for not letting her deliver her good news.
”In the first place, I was never in danger, Todd Reeve. In the second place, I got more information than I ever thought I'd get, and thirdly, we got Inspector DeVeer actively pursuing an investigation on our behalf.”
”Is that Kelly Solinari with you, Todd?” Pat called, and rushed into the room, her expression both anxious and relieved. ”Young woman, where have you been? Your family's been worried sick about you.
And what have you done to your hair?”
”It washes out and I left my parents a note to say I'd be away a few days. Didn't they get it?” At that moment, Ken Reeve came bursting into the room. ”Robin was right.
It was Calypso tearing up the road. where have you been? And what did you do to your hair?”
”I dyed it! And if you'll all drop out of panic mode, I'll tell you why I dyed it and where I've been and what I've been doing,' Kelly yelled back, glaring at all of them. Then she turned less aggressively to Pat. ”That is, if I can have a drink to soothe my throat after all the shouting I have to do in this house to get listened to.” It was Todd who provided the jwce and then sat down at the table, where she began the recital of her inquiries.
”Nrrna helped?” Todd interrupted as she began.
Then, ”How well did you know this Dalkey? Can you trust him?”
”I probably shouldn't have mentioned his name, Kelly said tartly, ”but I trust you not to repeat it.
And not to get stupid about me approaching the only one I felt could help us. And he's still helping us, or rather Inspector DeVeer is.” ”Cool it, Todd,' Ken said in an aside. ”Continue, Kelly.” She did but was aware that Todd was uncharacteristically morose until she got to the part about DeVeer taking her with him to interrogate Klonski.
”You see, we were all working on the wrong a.s.sumption,' she said, looking at Ken, ”that the brands had been altered somehow. Even Kiachif thought Klonski might be able to do that but he didn't. In fact, he burst out laughing at the very notion that he was being accused of rustling.” The others didn't quite seem to see the humor in that, so she continued. ”He did much worse. .. all to incriminate you,' and now she turned her gaze to Todd to see the dawning of hope in his eyes.
”Klonski altered the log tapes . . . By the way, which of you handed them over to Rogitel?”
”Neither of us did. He removed them from the unit himself,' Todd said.
”Well, then, that's when he switched them.” Todd opened his mouth to protest. ”You know, you're right. He bundled the log box into a plastic sack and carried it off in a proprietary fas.h.i.+on. I didn't think about it till now and I was certainly too shocked at all he was flinging at Hrriss and me to think his manner odd. Kelly nodded. ”It had to be Rogitel subst.i.tuting the altered tapes and at that moment, since the s.h.i.+p had been properly sealed. I wonder where your real log went.”
”Into the nearest vat of acid,' Todd said with a deep sigh.
”Possibly not,' Ken suggested thoughtfully. ”Go on, Kelly. what else did Klonski do?” Her eyes glowed. ”This is sort of the best part.
He altered satellite security modes.”
”He what?” Ken lifted off his chair and Todd stared at her as if she had suddenly changed shape.
”Don't know how, do know why,' she went on.
”To let the rustlers in and out,' Ken continued, throwing both arms in the air at such an obvious explanation.
”Klonski was rather proud of that. And DeVeer has it all on tape!” Kelly said, grinning broadly.
”Is DeVeer really on our side, Kelly?” Ken asked, his expression grim.
”I think so, sir,' Kelly replied. ”He admitted he doesn't really like the Doona Experiment. He was alive when the Siwanna Tragedy occurred but he also admitted that colored his opinions. But,' and she waggled her finger at all three Reeves, ”he's out to crush the rustling because too many uninoculated animals are being transported illegally.
And he said the incidents of rustling had increased all out of proportion. He couldn't figure out why.”
”I brought the illegal hides to him .