Chaos Space - Marianne de Pierres [93]
Bethany smiled, her face relaxing into a more natural expression. ‘I’m sure you don’t.’
Mira stared down at the floor. They had been thrown together and now, suddenly without a purpose, the moment became awkward.
Bethany covered it with a question. ‘Do you think the Entity will accept you into its tutelage?’
‘I know little of the procedure for being tested but I will find a way to convince it. Somehow. . .’ Mira tried to sound confident.
‘It may not be the Entity that you have to convince, Baronessa. I expect the OLOSS politics would be enough to shrivel your skin off.’
‘I’m afraid I’m naive about such things, although every society has its manners.’
‘Academics have more than a manner, especially with so much at stake. I would think it might be dangerous to go there unprepared.’
‘You are quietly warning me?’
Bethany gave a short laugh. ‘More than quietly, Baronessa Mira. With a very loud shout. You are used to a particular kind of etiquette and certain rules. Academics have etiquette but only one rule: the rule of competition. Their world can be more ruthless than a battleground.’
‘You speak from experience? And please call me Mira. Baronessa seems an unnecessary encumbrance in the wider worlds, but I confess I am used to it.’
‘Thanks, Mira. But don’t be too quick to dismiss your title. Anything that gives you an edge in the respect stakes is worth hanging on to.’
‘Do you think it does?’
‘Maybe. And yes, I studied for a year—an abridged grading in embryology at the Fuentes-Morales studium. Lasper paid for it. It was an accelerated course so we were treated badly by the purists who refuse compressed learning and ignored by the technocrats who believe in complete immersion with no abridgement.’ She sighed.
‘Humanesque embryology?’ asked Mira.
‘Not only. But it was a large part of what I learned.’
‘Can you detect if a foetus is healthy?’
Bethany’s curious stare made Mira immediately regret her question. She had given away too much.
‘Why do you ask? You’re not... you couldn’t be . . . pregnant? Are you, Mira?’
Mira glanced around for a reason to deflect the question; anything to prevent her having to answer. And it came to her like a gift from a munificent god.
Jo-Jo Rasterovich gave an almighty twitch and fell to the floor where he continued to spasm, a puddle of saliva collecting near his mouth. His eyes flickered open and with uncoordinated fingers he inserted his fingers into his nostrils to pick out the remnants of the inhaler.
Mira wanted to embrace him.
Josef Rasterovich accompanied them back to Insignia, forestalling any more probing questions from Bethany. To Mira’s relief the conversation steered in another direction: a back-and-forth between Josef and Bethany that sustained the same jolting rhythm as their taxi.
‘Time you told me about your brother.’
‘What do you want to know?’ asked Beth.
Mira thought she sounded defensive.
‘Start with how long since you’ve seen him and fill in the blanks around it.’ Rasterovich was peevish and kept scratching his nose. ‘I don’t like being manipulated—by anyone.’ Josef gave Bethany a level stare.
She reacted immediately. ‘I’m not manipulating you, Josef. But I want Djes back. I’m desperate. Even you must understand that. I thought I was going to die back on Dowl. It makes you sort through things.’
He took a deep breath as though he was unsuccessfully seeking patience. ‘Your brother is a power-broker, Beth. I’ve got an allergy to those sorts of people, but when I have to get involved with them I like to know what’s going on. So start talking.’
It was the first time that Mira had heard Josef Rasterovich be curt with Bethany, and the older woman’s face regained its worried expression.
‘I haven’t seen him since a while before I joined the Mio ship. Lasper paid for my education but he wanted me to work in his labs here. I didn’t like some of the things he was playing around with—’
Rasterovich raised his eyebrows but Bethany wouldn’t be stopped now that she’d started.