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sure? You’ve been flying with me .” Alisa grinned.
    “Something I’m even less keen to do now that you’ve got that artifact. As soon as the rest of the universe figures out it’s in your hold, you’ll have even more people trying to shoot this ship down.” Mica’s eyes narrowed. “That isn’t why that muscled-up freighter was flinging torpedoes at us, is it?”
    “No, its captain wanted to collect our taxes. By the way, can you retrofit our cargo hold to handle freight that needs to be refrigerated?”
    Mica lowered her arms—and her jaw. “Retrofit… refrigeration ? It’s not as if that’s as easy as dropping in some blocks of ice. Refrigerator freighters are specialized ships that are designed that way from the beginning.”
    “You said a lot of words there. What I heard was, ‘Yes, Captain, I can, and I look forward to the challenge.’”
    “You need to have your ears washed out.” Mica scowled at her. “Hasn’t your cyborg with his enhanced tongue been in there yet?”
    “No, and having my ears licked clean isn’t on my list of preferred foreplay techniques.”
    “Too bad. Because they need it. Refrigeration.” Mica grunted in disgust.
    “You can’t leave it here unguarded ,” Alejandro said, in the middle of his discussion with Leonidas. For the first time, his voice had risen loud enough to be audible from across the hold.
    “I have an appointment with a weapons installer,” Leonidas said, glancing at Alisa.
    “An appointment? The most valuable artifact in the system, all that we’ve been searching for, is sitting in my cabin on this ship, and you’re going to waltz off for an appointment ? Maybe you can get your hair and nails done while you’re out there too.”
    Alisa left Mica fuming and walked over to join Leonidas for more fuming. He and Alejandro were glowering at each other with equal intensity.
    “Is there a problem?” she asked, though she had already gotten the gist.
    She could understand Alejandro wanting a guard for the staff, but she would also prefer to take Leonidas with her. She would be shocked if she managed to wander around a mafia-run city without running into problems—they might be waiting for her as soon as she opened the cargo hatch. She would volunteer Beck to stay and guard the ship, but he had to physically go meet with Chef Leblanc’s people to see about getting them a cargo. Apparently, job interviews weren’t conducted over the comm here. Alisa would need Abelardus to lead them to the Starseers. Maybe Mica would suffice for Alejandro’s guard needs. After all, she knew her way around weapons and could make her own explosives. Given her grumpy mood, she might even enjoy a chance to pummel thieves.
    “This ship is entirely inadequate,” Alejandro announced. “A determined thief could stroll right in.”
    “The cargo hatch does lock.”
    “Yes, I’ve seen how well locked doors work on this ship.” Alejandro turned his glower on her.
    Alisa blushed, certain he was referring to the time she had sneaked into his cabin to steal his orb.
    “The locks aren’t for keeping the captain out,” she said, refusing to admit to being wrong. “If it makes you feel better, we can tuck it into the cubby over there.”
    Alisa waved to the secret spot where they had all hidden when the pirates in the T-Belt had forced their way aboard.
    “Nothing makes a man feel more confident than storing his valuables in a place called a cubby,” Alejandro said. Mica wasn’t the only grumpy one here. Maybe some of that toxic air from the atmosphere had seeped into the ship.
    “I can take it with me if you wish,” Leonidas said.
    “Oh yes. Let’s flaunt it on a moon full of cutthroats and villains.”
    “I won’t keep him out long,” Alisa said, resting a hand on Leonidas’s arm. “He has no need to stop for nail trims or haircuts. I can do that for him here.”
    Leonidas raised his eyebrows.
    “I’m excellent with laser clippers,” she informed him.