Read Dragonback 04 Dragon and Herdsman for Free Online

Virge said with a theatrical
sigh. "Would it strain the duties of a proper host if I at least kept
an eye on her?"
    "Of course not," Jack said.
    "I agree," Draycos seconded. "Keeping a promise does not require
one to abandon caution."
    "Then we're in agreement," Uncle Virge said with false
cheerfulness. "How wonderful for us all."
    "Don't be snide," Jack admonished him, climbing out of the pilot's
seat. "And while you're being all vigilant, I'm going to get some
sleep."
    "Fine," Uncle Virge said. "Incidentally, I trust you realize
there's one other option."
    "About . . .?"
    "About those Braxton Universis men," Uncle Virge said, his voice
going a bit darker. "It could be they were looking for you ."
    "Why would they seek him?" Draycos asked.
    "Because he's crossed paths twice now with Arthur Neverlin," Uncle
Virge reminded him.
    "And both times Neverlin has come out the worse for the exchange,"
Draycos reminded him.
    "True, but Braxton may not realize that," Uncle Virge said. "If I were him, and I saw two people keep running into each other, I'd wonder
if there were dots that needed to be connected. At the very least, he
might want to borrow Jack for a nice cozy chat somewhere."
    "Which I really don't want to do right now," Jack said. "Actually,
Uncle Virge, that had occurred to me. But I don't see much I
can do about it."
    "I just wanted to make sure we were all on the same page," Uncle
Virge said soothingly. "Good night, Jack. Sleep well."

CHAPTER 5

    The trip, including fueling stops, took eight days.
    It wasn't nearly as bad as Jack had expected it to be. Alison kept
mostly to herself, coming out of her cabin for meals and sometimes to
play games on the dayroom computer terminal. Other than that she spent
most of her time sleeping or writing in a small notebook she always
kept with her.
    She didn't poke or pry around the ship in the middle of the night,
either. Jack had half-expected her to try that. Uncle Virge was clearly
annoyed that she didn't.
    Twice she accepted Jack's invitation to pair up for one of the
two-player games he hadn't played since Uncle Virgil's death. He beat
her both times, but by a much smaller margin the second time. Clearly,
she was a fast learner.
    For all her hermit tendencies, her mealtime conversation was
bright and cheerful. But it was mostly empty words, the sort of chatter
Uncle Virgil had taught Jack how to do when he wanted to fill time
without actually saying anything. Jack's efforts to get past the
surface froth got him nowhere.
    Which was extremely irritating, and not just for Jack. By the
fourth day Uncle Virge, who was as frustrated at Jack's failures to dig
anything out of the girl as Jack himself was, began pushing for Jack to
let him have a go at her.
    It was a ridiculous suggestion, of course. Even if Uncle Virge was
careful with his voice and mannerisms, Alison would be bound to notice
the sudden change in the computer's personality. But he kept pushing,
until Jack finally had to give him a direct order not to bring it up
again.
    That stopped the demands. But it did nothing to lower the tension.
Between Uncle Virge's sulking and Alison's useless conversation, Jack
was thoroughly sick of both of them by the time they finally reached
Rho Scorvi.

    "There," Alison said, pointing out the cockpit canopy at a large,
dark green forest at the edge of a wide plain. "That's where they'll be
putting down."
    "Nice," Jack commented, studying the area. The forest was about a
hundred miles across, lying mostly to the east of a range of
snow-covered mountains. A churning river rolled down the slopes,
widening as it went, cutting through the center of the forest and then
continuing eastward across the plain. "If you like that sort of thing."
    "I take it you don't?"
    "I prefer my nature in nice, neat layer gardens," Jack said. "So
what are they coming here for?"
    "There's a colony of nomads that travel around the edge of the
forest," she said. "My friends are supposed to be doing some trading
with