In A Starship's Wake

Chapter 56: Questions Delegated

Before heading to the shower, Joseph checked his computer. He'd opted to go to sleep before they came in range of the Instant Communication Network. Several messages had arrived while he slept.

The most important was from Justine. It contained a brief update on her and Tyrone and the rest of Great Mandan Laker's schedule before their fist two weeks off. Joseph already had the next two loads, but the rest had been unknown until now. He was glad Justine took care of that. If he had to try and solicit business himself while spending four days at a time unable to communicate he'd tear his hair out.

He lingered at his desk long enough to scan through the news and the schedule, then headed for his little washroom. Garden Variety Animal's trips were going well. They were sticking to Teton Sector space now, but still found comparatively lucrative runs. He and Tyrone built a reputation for the ship and there were plenty of less secure parts of the Teton Sector. A ship seen as a hard target would be in demand.

The schedule pleased him as well. Kalleta had not managed to wind up on the roster before he could tell Justine to blacklist it. Even better, Four Machines had made the list. Not only a safe stop, but a chance to visit new friends.

Savannah's last message had reached him just before they went beyond the ICN. He'd prepared a reply before they reached Kalleta, and he ought to update it before he sent it. He'd been too preoccupied to do that while they were off the grid.

Their trip to Four Machines would be the last freight run before their vacation. It was a short trip from the refinery to Frontier Terminal, where they would dock. None of the crew lived on the station, but everyone but Rebecca and Joseph were within a few systems. They'd only have a few hours' flight on a passenger shuttle to reach home. Rebecca wouldn't be much further, and Joseph would stay with the ship.

Joseph dressed and was about to head down to the commons deck to make coffee when he got a call. One look was enough to make him groan. Teton Sector Border Patrol already wanted to speak with him, and it would undoubtedly take a while.

By the time they were finished he could feel the start of a caffeine withdraw headache. Finally on the commons deck, he dropped a notescreen on the dining table and headed for the coffee pot. Mercifully someone had already been up to start it. He poured a cup and grimaced appreciatively as the first sip passed his lips, hours after it should have.

"Took you long enough to get down here," Rebecca commented. She was seated cross-legged on a couch across the room reading with her own cup. "Did you sleep in?"

"No." Joseph knew the sullen tone betrayed his irritation, but he didn't care. "My morning routine was interrupted by Border Patrol. I need to keep another coffee pot in my quarters."

"For the one day a year that you're interrupted by an important two-hour-long call before you can come down for coffee? That makes sense."

"I'm not in the mood for sense," Joseph grumbled.

"No, you're in the mood to hastily implement an impractical solution to a non-problem. Good thing we've got a few more days in transit."

Charlie laughed from the doorway. "That's a good way to put it." His response didn't help Joseph's irritation, but Charlie changed the subject. "What did they want to talk to you about that it took two hours?"

"Our report. Police investigators always manage to think of a few more details they want."

"You're the same way you know." Charlie was absolutely correct.

Joseph shook his head and let go of his irritation. "Of course I am, I didn't say they were wrong, I'm just complaining about their timing."

"Make yourself some breakfast. That should fix it." Rebecca hadn't looked up from her notescreen once. His crew was apparently used to his grouchy moods now.