Transformation Space - Marianne de Pierres [44]
They quietened as one, waiting for him to speak, but their excitement was unmistakable. He wanted to reach out and take Djeserit’s hand for reassurance, but she was next to the korm, and now wasn’t the time for a physical display of need.
He took a breath. ‘You would all be hoping that the lights that we can see are the precursor to an OLOSS rescue.’ He glanced up. ‘I would too … but you must know that it’s not so.’
Everyone spoke at once, a clamour of questions and protests.
‘Quiet!’ he cut across them sharply. ‘On the day of our arrival at the caves, Djeserit and I climbed to the peak. From there, while you rested, we saw a craft enter the atmosphere and land. It was alien in shape to anything in OLOSS.’
‘Could it be an ally still, Principe?’ asked Tivi Scali.
Trin regarded Joe’s younger cousin. He had a quick resourceful mind, and had not been affected – disturbed – by the Saqr invasion in the way that Joe had. ‘It is possible, Tivi. But unlikely. The look of the craft – it was round like a disc, but deep as well.’
‘How would we know what’s out there, stuck on this backwater planet? Could be OLOSS has a whole fleet of ships shaped like that. What makes you so sure it’s not them? I say we start a fire on the beach. Let ’em know we’re here,’ said Innis Mulravey.
Trin shot him a quelling look, but its impact was lost in the moonlight.
‘I saw the ship as well,’ said Djeserit. ‘And I agree with the Principe.’
‘Yeah, but you would.’ Innis’s laugh was deprecating, almost dirty.
‘Innis!’ Cass Mulravey placed a warning hand on her brother’s shoulder.
‘There will be no fires lit. It is more imperative than before that our presence goes unnoticed,’ said Trin. ‘If the ship that landed is part of the Saqr invasion, then it is only logical that the lights we can see in the sky are more of the same.’
Innis pushed Cass away and stood up. ‘You just wanna keep us here, so you can play lord. Well, I’m sick of takin’ orders from Your Highness of Nuthin’ and your half-breed missus.’
Trin’s body went rigid at the insult, his mind narrowing to a single point of fury. He stood up slowly and took a step towards Innis.
Tivi, Juno and Joe all jumped to their feet as well, but Kristo, Mulravey’s man, beat them all. He threw a quick hard punch at Innis, which sent him sprawling backwards.
‘Shut yer stupid mouth,’ said Kristo. ‘If it hadn’t been fer the both of them, you’d be dead. Like as much, we’d all be. I don’t hold to their royalty, or whatever it is, but like it or not he’s made good decisions. I’d listen to him and quit yer mouthin’.’ He kicked Innis in the thigh for good measure. ‘And don’t badmouth women. Last time you treated a woman bad, you nearly got yourself killed. That merc was gonna rip yer guts out. Woulda thought you’d learned from that.’
After his long and vehement speech, Kristo turned and stalked back into the mouth of the closest cave. He stood there staring at the sky, arms folded and legs apart.
Innis climbed groggily to his feet and backed away into the darkness.
Cass Mulravey didn’t move from where she sat, nursing Mira Fedor’s adopted baby Vito. Trin couldn’t see her expression clearly, but her inaction was enough for him. She did not support her brother. And what did Kristo mean by ‘last time’? What had Innis done to a woman? He would tell Juno Genarro to find out. His trusted carabinere had become friendlier with Kristo over the last few days.
Trin shifted back to the centre of the circle and executed a slow turn. ‘We must take great care to be sure nothing of our presence can be seen from the air. Hide the entrance of the caves and keep water and food supplies inside. We need be able to survive several days without leaving the caves, in case the island is searched.’
‘How do we hide