Infinity Beach - Jack McDevitt [53]
At the foot of Morghani, the ocean was restless. The surf pounded the rocks, gulls moved in everlasting circles, and along the stony beaches, children collected shells.
The cab crossed the face of the Black Hall and sailed in over the bay. Here, piers and docks pushed into the water, and warehouses lined the shore. Civilization had moved south after the wars, so the structures were crumbling and largely unattended. Some of them were built atop ruins that dated back half a millennium. Vandals and thieves had been at work for centuries, but teams of archeologists were now trying to retrieve details of everyday life during the age of the dictators.
The vehicle dropped low toward the water, skirted the shoreline moving west, and set down finally among a cluster of modular shelters beside a couple of battered flyers carrying the markings of the Seabright Historical Union. Kim opened the hatch and dropped down onto a surface of hard-packed clay and sparse grass. A damp, cold wind blew in off the sea.
Several people were working around the edges of an excavation pit, from which they’d hauled timbers and broken concrete and steel beams. A couple of the males looked up, appraised her, and exchanged approving glances.
A young man, probably a graduate student, had been brushing earth from a piece of electronic equipment. He broke off and came over. “May I help you, ma’am?” he asked.
“I’m looking for Dr. Kane,” said Kim.
He punched a button on his link. “Tora,” he said, “you have a visitor.”
A female voice responded: “Be right there.” Moments later a woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat and coveralls came out of one of the shelters and walked toward her. The grad student accepted Kim’s thanks and went back to his brush.
“Dr. Brandywine?” the woman asked, holding out a hand. “I’m Tora Kane.” The hat, Kim noticed, carried a Glory logo. Tora followed her gaze. “The Arbuckle,” she said.
The Arbuckle was a freighter that had gone down on Glory almost five centuries earlier, making it one of the oldest artifacts in the system. Kim knew that the crash site was a preserve, and that only certified scholars were allowed to go near it.
Tora was about Kim’s height, with auburn hair drawn back, full lips, full breasts pressing against the coveralls. She had her father’s dark, intense eyes. Looking into them, Kim could almost focus down, eliminate everything else, and believe she was seeing the old starship captain. “I appreciate your making time to talk to me,” she said, taking the outstretched hand.
“My pleasure.” Tora glanced from Kim to the taxi. “Have I won something?”
A gust of wind blew across them. “I was wondering if I could ask some questions about your father,” said Kim.
“Ah,” she said, as if she should have realized. “May I ask what your interest is?”
“Emily Brandywine was my sister.”
Muscles worked in her throat. “I should have recognized the name. And the face.”
“I’d like very much to find out what happened to her.”
“Of course.” Tora turned back toward the bay entrance and Kim could not see her expression. “I wish I could help. But I just don’t know anything. When they came back on the Hunter, my father stayed on board to see to the entry procedures. The other three got off, and he never saw them again.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but may I ask how?”
“Because he told me. Don’t you think he was upset by it all? Everything happened at the same time, the disaster at the village, the loss of Tripley, the missing women.” The wind tried to push them toward the excavation. “Why don’t you send the cab away and come inside?” she said.
Kim did and Tora led the way back to the shelter. “It’s not very comfortable,” she observed, “but it’s out of the cold.” She opened the door, and Kim stepped into a flow of warm air.
It was musty and cramped. One room plus a washroom. Maps of the waterfront area covered the walls. Two tables were stacked with jars, electrical artifacts, coins, tools, candles, toys,