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that being efficient enough for trade work,
like we talked about. You're still wantin'--"
    "Bring her up to true spec," Midj
interrupted, which she'd decided already and, dammit, she wasn't
going to second-guess herself at this hour. If she was a fool, then
she was, and it wouldn't be the first time she'd made the wrong
call.
    Not even close.
    Vashon was nodding, making quick notes on
his keypad. "Bring her to true-spec, aye, Cap, will do." He looked
up.
    "You'll be wanting the upgraded vents, then,
Cap? If you're going to be running at spec, I advise it."
    She nodded. "Take a look at the mid-ship
stabilizer, too, would you? Moving her just now, I thought I
noticed a slide."
    "'Cause you come in without cans," he said,
making another note. "But, sure, we'll check it--ought to ride
stable, cans or no cans." He looked up again.
    "Anything else?"
    "That's all I know about. If you find
anything major that needs fixing, I'll be at the Haven."
    "Haven it is," he said, entering that into
the file, too. "Cash, card, or ship's credit?"
    "Ship's credit."
    "Right, then." He gave her a crabbed smile.
"She ought to be good to go by the end of the week, barring we find
anything unexpected. You can check progress on our stats channel,
updated every two hours, local. Ship's name is your passcode."
    "Thanks," she said, and shifted the bag into
a more comfortable position on her shoulder. "I'll see you at the
end of the week, barring the unexpected."
    She nodded and he did and she let herself
out the door that gave onto the open Port.
    * * *
    "Going where ?" Su Bonner paused with her
beer halfway to her mouth.
    "Shaltren," Midj repeated, trying to sound
matter of fact, and not at all reassured by the other woman's
decisive headshake.
    "Shaltren's not the place you want to be at
this particular point in time, Captain Rolanni, me heart." Su put
her beer down on the table with an audible thud. "Trust me on this
one, like you never have before."
    "I trust you plenty," Midj said, spinning
her own beer 'round the various scars on the plastic tabletop, that
being a handy way to not meet her friend's eyes. "You know I
do."
    "Then you've given over the idea of going to
Shaltren." Su picked up her beer and had a hefty swallow.
"Good."
    Midj sighed, still navigating the bottle
through the tabletop galaxy. "So, what's wrong with Shaltren?
Besides the usual."
    "The usual being that it's Juntavas
Headquarters? That'd be bad enough, by your lights and by mine.
Lately, though, there's more. Chairman Trogar, they say, is not
well-loved."
    Frowning, Midj glanced up. "Must break his
heart."
    "Not exactly, no." Su had another swallow of
beer and shook two fingers at the bartender. "What I heard is, he
means to keep it that way. Anybody who talks across him or who
doesn't rise fast enough when he yells 'lift!'--they're dead right
off. He's got himself an aggressive expansion plan in motion and he
doesn't mind spending lives--that's anybody's but his own--to get
what he wants."
    Midj shrugged. "The Juntavas always grabbed
what they could."
    The new beers came, the 'keeper collected
Su's empty, looked a question at Midj and was waved away.
    "Not always." Su was taking her last comment
as a debating point. "I'm not saying every decent spacer should
sign up onto the Juntavas workforce, but I will say they've been
getting carefuller in later years. They're still trading in all the
stuff nobody ought, but they haven't been as gun-happy as they were
back in the day..." She raised a hand, showing palm.
    "Cold comfort to you and yours, I grant. The
fact remains, there was a trend toward less of that and more
...circumspection--and now what rises to the top of the deck but
Grom Trogar, who wants a return to the bad old days--and looks like
getting them."
    "Well." Midj finished her beer, set the
bottle aside, and cracked the seal on the second.
    " So ," Su said into the lengthening
silence. "You changed your mind about going to Shaltren, right? At
least until somebody resets