Part 30 (1/2)

”You're sorry?” She laughed. ”I'm sorry. But we have a lot of days ahead, don't we?”

”Yes. Who's on tap to relieve you?”

”Well, we're a bit strung out. I told Ito I'd stay until midnight.”

”I think a new groom should have some consideration,” Rodrick said. He walked over and picked up the communicator. Ito's voice answered, husky, full of sleep. ”Ito, the brand-new groom needs a favor,”

Rodrick said. ”I'd like to borrow my brand-new wife for a while.”

Emi was with her husband when he came to the bridge, Emi all smiles, saying that she hadn't had a chance to kiss the groom, then remedying that omission as Ito shyly kissed Jackie on the cheek.

The house that had been built for the captain and his bride was on the south ridge, one entire side giving an un.o.bstructed view of the bay and the ocean beyond. Native stone had been worked in with the plastic building blocks, and Amando Kwait had, at Rodrick's request, filled a large atrium with some of the more attractive species of native flowers and plants. The entire house had a feeling of openness. Jackie dialed a soft, golden light from the walls after Duncan had carried her, laughing, over the threshold.

”Who's first for the shower?” Jackie asked, a little breathless after a very interesting kiss that had followed the act of threshold carrying.

”Who's captain of this s.h.i.+p?” Rodrick growled playfully. In the golden light she was more beautiful than he remembered. He felt almost shy, although he had known that tall, slim body, had loved every inch of it.

”We leave rank outside that door, Husband.” Jackie grinned.

”Well said, Lieutenant.” He reached for her, pulled her close. Perhaps he didn't love her, but she had always had the ability to heat his blood. It was more important than ever that he learn to love her now, because, when he'd learned of Rocky Miller's death, his first thought had been, ”Now she's mine. Now it is possible.” And the very fact that he had been pleased to hear of his first-officer's death had done more to put Mandy beyond his reach forever than anything that had gone before. Never would he sink so low as to betray the vow that he had made to this beautiful woman in his arms, looking up into his face with melting green eyes and inviting, moist lips.

”I have an idea,” he said. ”As a matter of fact, it did not just this minute occur to me. You yourself commented on the size of the shower I had installed.”

”I said it was very big,” she said, eyes widening. ”Big enough for two?” he asked.

”I think so. Why don't we find out?”

It was big enough for two.

Max came back to the detention cell just after midnight with sandwiches and coffee and a couple of the big, southern fruit with a figlike texture. The stickman saw the fruit, pointed, and made a whistling, clicking sound. Grace handed him a fruit, and he ate hungrily.

”Grace, it's after midnight,” Max complained.

”Max, listen to this,” Grace said, turning a dial on the translation computer.

Max heard Grace's voice counting from one to ten, and then a series of clicks and whistles. Then Grace's voice said, ”My name is Grace Monroe.”

Max listened to the clicks and whistles into which Grace s words had been translated.

”Grace, that's very impressive. But it's after midnight on our wedding night.”

”Yes, but listen,” she insisted. The machine clicked and whistled and then counted to ten. And more clicks and whistles and a mechanical voice said, ”I am called Chingclonk.”

”I have real martinis in the fridge at our new home,” Max teased.

Grace sighed and turned off the machine. It was, after all, going to take a long time to translate the whistling, clicking language of the stickman. She clung to Max's arm. ”Okay, buddy,” she said. ”I'm with you now.”

”I made the house totally robotproof,” Max said. ”There isn't a communicator in it, and I'm going to turn the alarms off.”

”Good idea,” Grace said.

They were just ready to step out the main hatch of the s.h.i.+p when Jacob West came running down the corridor behind them, yelling, ”Hey, Max, Grace! Hold up!”

”I don't hear a d.a.m.ned thing,” Max commented loudly. ”I do not hear an eager voice yelling my name.”

”I thought you two would like to have a look at this,” Jacob said. He had a parchmentlike scroll in hand.

”Just take a minute.”

They went over to a worktable, and Jacob spread the scroll. ”We found it in the downed airs.h.i.+p,” he explained. ”It was in a box that looked as if it was filled just with arrows. On the bottom. No one noticed it until just a while ago, and since the captain is already at home in bed I had to show it to someone.”

”If I don't say that I am eternally grateful, forgive me,” Max said pleasantly. Jacob grinned at Grace. ”You're already being a good influence on this old bear,” he said. ”He's mellowing.”

Grace bent over the table. The parchment was a very good map of the globe of the planet they called Omega.

”There's no writing,” Jacob said. ”Just as there was none at Stoner's Valley, but look at the pictures.

Here's Eden.”

The contours of the Eden peninsula were quite accurate, and at several spots there was a neat little drawing of a miner with his head and neck extending from a burrow.

”The jungle,” Jacob said, pointing to a little drawing of a fierce beast in a vast area of green. ”But here's what I wanted to show you.” He pointed to the largest western continent, which looked somewhat like a diving duck. ”Here, along the coast.”

”Definitely a river,” Max said.

”A river valley with buildings?” Grace asked, for the light was not all that good and the drawings along the river were tiny.

”There's a pyramid,” Jacob said. ”And there are other buildings here and there. You can see them pretty well with a magnifying gla.s.s. But look at this.” He pointed. A slightly larger drawing showed a group of five figures, all sticklike except the one in the center.

”There's a difference in body shape,” Jacob said. ”Stickpeople, but different. Females, maybe. But look at that one in the middle.”

Grace looked and saw a creditable drawing of a woman, nude, tall and slim, big breasted.

”Is there any way one of them could have added that picture today after seeing human beings for the first time?” Grace asked.

”I doubt it,” Jacob answered. ”Besides, it doesn't look like new work. See? The wrinkles in the sheet run through it just like the others, the stickpeople.”

”I think we should wake the captain,” Grace said.

”d.a.m.n it, he is not asleep, ” Max growled.

”Max, that's definitely a drawing of a human woman,” Grace said. ”Think what that means.”

”Grace, we are going,now , to our new home, where I am going to turn off all alarms-”

”Oh, Max,” she said.