Page 127 of Throwing Fire

“If he’s within three klicks of the Deeps, yes. Further than that, no, I’m sorry. Our tech isn’t as good as yours. Do you have any way of tracking Kez?”

Kez doesn’t have a tracker. Because I refused to let her have one implanted. And I turned her viewie into a fucking ghost. “No. Tee, can you get your people to the ports? A ship that big, it can’t land just anywhere.”

“I can get eyes and ears to the bigger docks, but I can’t leave the Deeps undefended. If Ojoshave Acker and Kez, I can’t ... we won’t have the manpower to get them back.”

“That’s okay. Just keep eyes and ears on them. As soon as we know where they are, I’ll be there.”

“How do you intend to do that?” Exeter asks me, very low.

“TheInfinitycan have us on the Clouds in seven minutes.” It took Kez eleven minutes to get us from the Cloudline to Nock, but she’s only rated for Mach Three. I’m rated to Mach Five. Even if I wasn’t, C.P. doesn’t have anything fast enough to catch me.

Exeter lifts an eyebrow. “Fast ship.”

“Believe it. Payton, get theInfinitymoved from wherever she is to the pad on Hemos Tower and get me clearance for the Cloudline.”

“Yes, sir,” she confirms.

“Tee, as soon as you know where they are, you let me know.”

“Will do,” Tiancha replies. “Match says he’ll meet you wherever they dock.”

“Tell him if he gets there first, not to hesitate.”

“He says, um neither.”

I blow out a long breath, ‘cause that’s the first time I’m sure we’ve still got friends on the Clouds.

“Sawhet, maintain the channel with the Deeps,” I say.

“Yes, sir,” she says in her own voice.

I check the chrono. Still ten minutes to Hemos. “Game plan when we get to Hemos. Sawhet, you’re on comms.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Payton, how are you coming with the Cloudline clearance?”

“Still working on it. Cloud Authority is reluctant after your previous departure.”

“Offer ‘em more,” I say. Fuckers are like every other bureaucracy. Just throw more credits at them.

“They’re already demanding triple the usual fee.”

“Double that and tell ‘em to stop fuckin’ around,” I say.

Payton nods and taps on her palmtop. “I assume you will interrogate Miz Hata?”

“Yeah.”

“I offer my assistance in that interrogation.”

I rub my chin with my good hand. “I don’t think you want to watch.” I glance at Exeter. “You, neither. This ain’t part of your contract.”

He meets my eyes. Tips his palmtop to show me the screen, which contains my SAWL service record. He’s got his thumb next to the advanced interrogation training I did fifth year. He flicks his thumb to the next screen, which contains his own service record. Fucking Space Ranger.

“Fine,” I tell him. “You can watch.”

Payton clears her throat. “I didn’t offer to watch. I offered to assist.”