Chapter 2
Nevil Danton was a very subdued young man when I first met him. The transfer had gone off without a hitch. He understood I would be taking him the rest of the way, and promised to be no problem.
Right... and pigs fly.
He took to his new surroundings like a duck to water. He tried to run a line of credit, but had none. I refused to advance him anything beyond that which came with his accommodations.
He somehow got hold of a fifty credit piece, and had entered a game of poker (which is always going on, aboard any ship). This is where I came into the scenario. He had been winning; but, as happens with poker, his luck changed. He started loosing. He lost more than he had, which meant a complaint from his fellow players.
I walked into the security station on deck 2, and saw Nevil sitting off to the side. He looked at me when I entered, and then looked away. I saw a slender young man of 22 with brown hair, blue eyes, and a weak chin. He obviously had a weak personality to go with that chin.
"Mr. Connor? You are the guardian of record for this man. A complaint of theft has been lodged by a fellow passenger. Restitution must be made. Witnesses at the game he was in, all agree he was light some 145 credits, at the end of the hand," a no nonsense security officer told me.
I frowned. I could pay it easily, but to what end?
"May I speak with Mr. Danton a moment?" I asked the officer.
He nodded and motioned for me to go into another room through a hatchway to the left side of the main reception room I was standing in. I entered and Nevil followed close behind.
"Where did you get the money for this game?" was my first question.
"Borrowed it from another player. Don't worry, I paid him back already from my winnings, earlier in the game. That was the mistake I made, paying that fifty back. I should have waited 'till the game ended to pay back," Nevil said sulkily.
Well, one worry out of the way. Now I had to figure out what to do with him for the remaining 8 days until breakout, and we both entered my ship to make the final leg of the trip to his home planet.
"Nevil, you're not a paying passenger on a pleasure cruise. You told me you understood what was going to happen. Just when I think I can trust you, you pull something like this. What do you have to say for yourself?" I asked him slowly.
"Don't worry. My family will make it right, they always do," was his reply.
I shook my head. He had learned nothing. I sighed. I left him in there with a terse command to wait.
"Officer? I will make good on his debt. However, I was wondering if I could prevail upon you to do me a favor?" I asked.
"What's that, Mr. Connor?" the security officer asked me.
"Would you do me the favor of locking up my charge for about 24 hours? Just long enough for him to realize his actions have consequences," I asked, and explained at the same time.
The security man grinned.
"I think something along those lines can be arranged, Mr. Connor. The boy is spoiled beyond belief, and maybe a night in the brig will shake him up a bit. Consider it done," he said, still grinning.
I nodded, and made arrangements to pay the debt. As I walked out, I heard Nevil raising his voice in shock at what the security people had just informed him. Well, tomorrow was another day. Perhaps he will have learned something, but I somehow doubted it.
When I was in the marines, we had had people like him. Men and woman who had been spoiled, or who just didn't seem to make the connection to the real world. The marines quickly adjusted those peoples' way of thinking.
Despite my having let Nevil spend a night in the brig, he still seemed to find ways to create problems for me. I think the crew of Engine/Ship 211 were happy to see the last of us, when we left.
I had sighed as Nevil had been met at the orbital station at New Walden, and led away by relatives. The way he was treated, you'd have thought he was a returning hero of some sort; instead of someone in disgrace, who had been expelled from Earth.
I also delivered my cargo of medical supplies, which was much appreciated. This left me free to pursue my new vocation, that of explorer!
I asked for and was directed to the galactic cartography section on board station. I wanted to know what had been explored from this position and reported, so as not to duplicate the efforts of others.
The GCI transcended national boundaries. What I mean is, they did not owe allegiance to the Terran Federation, or any of the star kingdoms, corporations, or political entities, anywhere. It was a group that was dedicated to exploring the galaxy, and mapping it for all. Of course, some governments contributed to this organization, which meant that the said governments received updated charts from GCI survey ships, as soon as they were made.
They would also know if any ships had explored beyond this system, and if so, in which directions. Of course, while the Terran Federation was a paying member, it seemed that individual members of said federation were not authorized anything more than general information, which said government released to its citizens.
I had already checked my data base, which had been updated prior to my departure from Earth. I read with interest that two ships were currently exploring out in this area, but had no further information on them.
I found the two rooms containing what I sought. I asked the station agent, who also was employed by the Galactic Cartography Institute, about explored space in this sector.
The agent was eager to get an agreement from me, to release any and all data to the GCI, upon my return from any of my expeditions past this point. I politely pointed out that his organization was reluctant to release any information to me. I was as reluctant to do the same.
This led to a mutual benefit agreement. If I would contract to release all information I acquired during my explorations, the GCI would be glad to be more forthcoming with what it knew. It was an agreement the institute entered into with all survey services and explorers, anywhere and everywhere that they could.
Or, as I found out, I could pay a yearly fee for information that the GCI routinely gave to my government. I decided to go ahead and pay for the information. I did not want any organization having a claim on anything I found out there, not even the charts I would be creating!
So that was another 250 credits. I sighed. Between these people, docking fees, and the loss of the 145 credits via Nevil's loss at poker (which still had not been reimbursed), money was flowing from me rather quickly. I needed to get busy with my exploring, and get away from the civilized sector of the galaxy!
I was almost back to the section of station where my ship was docked, when I was approached by a representative of the station.
"Captain Connor? A representative of the Danton family is here to meet with you. If you have the time, I can escort you to an interview room, so that the two of you can talk," he said.
I nodded, and he led the way through a maze of corridors. Some were crowded with people, and others were deserted. While this planet did not have a 'home world' to belong too, and was slightly off the regular route for the huge star lines, it was still fairly busy for a colonial world.
It was actually in non-claimed territory. It was an independent, which is why it had a representative on Earth. We finally arrived at a room that looked much like any other, but this one was occupied by two men.
One was an elderly man with a magnetic personality. I mean, when you entered the room your eyes were drawn to him, right away. The other was a short man who seemed to have a problem sitting still.
"Captain Connor? I'm Jeffery Danton, and I want to apologize for my grandson, and for his actions while in your care. I have already transferred 200 GSC into your account on the station, here. Keep the extra for your troubles.
"What I want to do is make you an offer. My grandson, Nevil, has been spoiled rotten by his parents. I am not excusing what he did on Earth, or his subsequent actions with you.
"Now then, while several family members want to string you up for having put Nevil in the brig," here, he grinned, "I personally think you did the right thing! Discipline! That's what that boy needs! We should have tossed him in the brig, years ago!" he said in a booming voice.
"While I thank you for the repayment, the extra is not necessary. I entered into a deal with the Terran Federation to bring your grandson home, and I was paid well enough for it," I told him in a deprecating way.
"Nonsense! Nevil is a trouble maker, and needs a firm hand! I believe you have that hand! You showed good judgment in the way you handled him! Swift, decisive! Showed him who's boss!" he said, punctuating each statement with an explosive slap to the table.
I had a sinking feeling. He wanted me to take the brat with me! I just knew this was what was coming, and I was right.
"I want you to take him out with you. Let him see what responsibility is. Be good for the boy!" he boomed at me.
"Mr. Danton, while I appreciate your wanting to 'make a man' out of Nevil, an exploration ship is hardly the place to do it. I have a small ship, and while I have room for up to three more people, I have to admit I was glad to see the last of young Danton. No offense meant," I hastily added.
The old man grinned at me.
"None taken. I wanted him to join the military, but we are not members of any political organization that has one. The only thing this world has, is a small planetary police force to control crime, and a couple cutters to watch our space.
"Now, I was thinking. Give the boy a chance. Just one run out is all I'm asking. Long enough of an experience without his parents being there to run interference for him, to do him some good. Make him responsible for his own actions," he finished, almost in a begging tone.
I felt uncomfortable. Here was a man who was not used to begging. I saw his side of it. Hell, I had seen first hand that a disciplined environment had changed people for the good while I was in the Terran Marines. I saw the quiet desperation in his eyes, as a loving grandfather was fighting for his grandson's rehabilitation. I sympathized.
"Sir," I stopped as he told me to call him Jeff. I started again. "Jeff, while I understand your point of view, I don't think this is the best solution for your grandson, or for me. To be honest, I don't like your grandson," I said and waited for the explosion.
He snorted and said, "I don't blame you. There is not much to like about the boy... now. But I see something in him. I see a young boy who was raised wrong. I see a little of me in him, when I was young.
"He has not had to make his own way in life. I'm very rich, Captain Connor. I treated my family differently than how I was treated when I was growing up. I got into the development of this world early in my life, and it was the best thing I had ever done!
"Look. At least think about it. Go out, make a run, do some exploration. Come back here and refurbish," he said. "Take my grandson back out with you, and I will pay for the entire refurbishing of your ship! Even if it's for a short time out, it will be worth it to me," he added with a constant stare into my eyes.
I sighed.
"I will give it due thought while I am out, but I'm not promising anything," I finally answered him.
He rose to his feet, and gripped my hand firmly.
"That's all one can ask! You do your thinking out there. Think about a boy who needs to grow into a man. He's already a man by law, but his mental and emotional growth stopped, years ago. He needs to have it kick started, to get it going again," he finished and let go of my hand.
As I made my way back to the room assigned to me, I thought about what Jeffery Danton had said. I stopped in the lobby of the local version of 'Travelers Rest', and thought. He was a good man. He was concerned for his grandson. He was willing to go to extreme lengths to try to straighten the boy out. Damn it! I was seriously thinking of saying yes! I think that old man could talk a bear into buying a fur coat!
Sometime during the day, a freighter had entered the system, and was in the process of heading for the orbital warehouses. I glanced at the arrival board, and saw it was of the Tri-planet Line, which services the three planets of the Erlington Confederation.
They were close to the frontier worlds, and also close enough to the more built up and established planets, that they had a nice little circle of trade going. The three planets that made up the Erlington Confederation's hub were the beginning and end of the circle. They did quite well, and were listed on the galactic stock exchange.
I noticed with amusement that my ship was also listed on the arrival board, also. It listed me as owner/operator, and had a departure time listed as unknown. Well, I knew. I was going to leave tomorrow.
I really had no more reason to stay. I had done what I wanted and had too. As soon as I downloaded the information I had just bought from the GCI, I would be finished here until my return.
Edited By TeNderLoin