Read A Passage of Stars for Free Online

lifting off in the next rev?”
    There was a slight pause, pregnant with unspoken information.
    Lily lifted her head to look at Finch. He cleared his throat, rubbed one ear, and drummed his fingers on the console. The muted music swelled infinitesimally in volume, a melancholy voice singing about being trapped in a chain gang of tattoos sent to mine in the asteroids.
    “Finch?”
    “Not officially.”
    “Finch.”
    This office is not allowed to—”
    She threw herself at him, landing mostly in his lap, her hands on either side of his face. “Finch!”
    “You are filthy.” He put his arms around her and settled her firmly into his embrace. “Now listen here, my unclean one, this is serious. Harbormaster is a position appointed by Central, and it’s a good one.”
    “Then how do you know about unofficial lifts?”
    He regarded her thoughtfully, but seemed to be thinking of something else. “I don’t mind the berth taxes,” he said. “Or the old cargo taxes, based on percentage of profits and so on and so forth. But it’s the new cargo taxes and the destination taxes, not to mention the clearances, that are pushing the independents out of the good contracts. And the forced routes. And now Central is assigning what cargoes people can carry. It’s just not fair.”
    “So you help the booters.”
    “Never so noble,” he said with a slight grimace. “Bootleggers go up in the nonoptimum times. It’s more expensive for them, but they can’t be traced by Station or by Elly Port tracers, and for the same reason, we’re in no danger of being caught looking the other way, since at those times we’re their only monitor. But there’s never an authorized lift from Apron Port. Only unofficial ones. Even the booters go through us.”
    “Do your parents know?”
    He grinned again, that engaging blend of indolence and sensuality. “Mom and Grandmam Caenna set the whole system up. Dad doesn’t know—he’d feel duty-bound to turn them in.”
    Lily looked at him intently for some moments. He basked in the force of her appraisal. “I never took you for a revolutionary,” she said finally.
    He tightened his embrace to pull her closer. “Do you love me for it?” he asked softly.
    “No.” She pushed away from him. “I won’t lie to you. There isn’t a man I’ve met here who—I don’t know—I just feel like they’re all so—”
    “So predictable,” he said glumly. “I know. You’ve said it often enough. Even that hot-tempered asteroid miner you left me for last year?”
    She winced. “Don’t throw it in my face. You’re worth ten of him.”
    “You didn’t think so then.”
    She shrugged, embarrassed. “He had his—good qualities. But even a short temper becomes predictable after a while.”
    The admission brought a faint smile to his lips. “At least I’m not alone. The only man I’ve never heard you condemn with that quality is Master Heredes.”
    “Of course not. But Master Heredes isn’t—”
    He gave a short, ironic laugh. “Master Heredes isn’t the kind of person who propositions, or gets propositioned. Even if one was tempted.”
    “ Are people tempted?” Lily asked, abruptly curious. “I guess after all these years as his student, it had never occurred to me. I’m not sure why.”
    “Perhaps his unpredictability isn’t unpredictable enough for your tastes.”
    “Oh, Finch! Maybe he’s just too important to me as my sensei. Hoy. And I do like you better for it, for what you’re doing. I mean that.” He sighed and let her stand up. “I’m going to regret this,” he said, turning to the console. “Go shower yourself and your clothes. I’ll see if the booter who’s going up in half a rev will take you. But only to Station, mind.” He caught her movement toward him in his peripheral vision. “Don’t say it,” he said hastily, “because you won’t mean it.” She stopped. “Just go clean up.”
    Almost half a rev later she and Finch stood, Bach at her feet, by the