Firefly - Carnival, page 16
part #6 of Firefly Series
Zoë looked at him. “You sure about that, Shepherd?”
He looked back at her, face hard. “God’s work, Zoë. I believe we can consider such to be God’s work.”
There was a sound in the corridor outside. Quickly, with the merest of nods between them, and not a single word, they each grabbed a billiard cue, and took up their positions by the door. When the two men entered, they didn’t stand much of chance against two such experienced—and deadly—professionals. Within a matter of minutes, both men were disarmed, back-to-back, and Book was tying them together. Zoë, meanwhile, was checking out their guns. When Book was done gagging them, she threw one of these to him.
“May I confirm,” said Book, “that this remains our secret?”
“I won’t breathe a word to a livin’ soul,” said Zoë.
* * *
At the diner, Mal got up from the table to pay for supper. The waitress said, “That kid with you, she yours?”
“Never met her before today,” said Mal.
“She okay?”
“Better for some supper.”
“Huh,” said the waitress. “You’re doin’ a good thing, lookin’ out for her. There’s people round here, wouldn’t lift a finger to help a girl like that. And those that would want to do her harm.”
“People, huh?” said Mal. “What kind of people?”
“Powerful people. And the sheriff’s office ain’t no help these days. Not since…” She looked over at the table, where the kid had folded her arms like a pillow and put her head down on them. “Well, no matter. Supper’s on me.”
Mal thanked her kindly and went over to the vidphone. Then he went back to join Kaylee and the girl. “Zāo gāo!” he muttered, watching her gently stroke the girl’s hair, “I wish somebody would make this gorram crew of mine understand how to take orders.”
“I’ll take it you’re gonna help?” said Kaylee.
“’Course I’m gonna help,” said Mal. “Think I’m gonna let the pair of you wander off into the night? There’s a car comin’ right now, take us where it is she wants to go.”
“Next time,” said Kaylee, “you think twice before interferin’ in my business.”
“Next gorram time, I will. And I’ll still come after you anyways, little Kaylee.”
Kaylee smiled at him. “I know you will, Captain. And that’s why I’ll always forgive you.”
Mal looked out of the window. “Car’s here.”
Ava lifted her head wearily and looked at them through heavy eyes. “Is it time to go?”
“Sure is, honey,” said Kaylee. “We’ll make sure you’re safe.”
They went out into the evening and got into the car. More money going down the drain. All told, this was proving a mighty expensive weekend, and Mal hadn’t even seen inside a casino, never mind started on making back the money owed to Roberts. Maybe when they turned up with this girl, someone would think of putting a little compensation his way for the pains he had taken. He looked again at the shabby urchin sitting in the middle, slumped against Kaylee’s shoulder. Not gorram likely.
The car took them into open countryside; sparse land dotted with tough little shrubs and succulents. A line of trees up ahead, stood out, and this seemed to be their destination. The car dipped behind these and came up to a gate. Ava gave her name, and the gate opened. The car deposited them outside a well-kept square-fronted house. Lights on behind the curtains, and a lamp to light the way to the entrance porch. Mal went up and hammered on the door.
There was something of a pause, and then a young woman, who looked all dolled up for a party, peered out. She was holding a pistol, the barrel of this poking out round the half-closed door. To Mal’s expert eyes, she didn’t look particularly comfortable with this fact, but that was worse in its own way. Amateurs were unpredictable. They made stupid mistakes. She said, “Who the hell are you?”
“Whoa, lady!” said Mal, lifting up his hands. “I’m friendly—”
A voice called out from further inside. “Mal? Mal, is that you?”
Mal blinked. “Inara?”
The door opened a little further, and Mal saw Inara coming down the hallway.
“Mal,” she said, “what are you doing here? And Kaylee?” She came up behind the woman at the door. “Katarina, these are friends of mine. Mal,” she said, more sternly. “Explain yourself.”
“Nothin’ to explain. We gave someone a lift,” Mal said, nodding back at Ava. “Certainly wasn’t expectin’ to see you here, Inara, and while your company’s always pleasant this place doesn’t seem the kind of set-up you’re accustomed to—”
Inara rolled her eyes. The woman with her, Katarina, looked at Ava. “Are you the missing one?”
Ava inched forward. “I’m sorry, ma’am,” she said. “I nearly got caught. These folks said they could help me. I didn’t know what else to do.”
Katarina sighed. “This safe house is looking leakier by the minute.” She opened the door wider and said, “Get the girl inside, will you? I need to take a look at her… I’m a doctor, sweetheart, you’re in safe hands now… As for you lot…” Her eyes flicked between Mal and Kaylee and settled on Inara. “These two. Can we trust them?”
“Yes,” said Inara.
Mal opened his mouth to come back on that one, but one look from Inara made him change his mind about that. You didn’t have to fight every battle came your way. “Ma’am,” he said to Katarina, “I don’t like to turn down an invitation, but me and my friends here are on a schedule, and now this young lady is in your tender care, we should be on our way—”
“Get inside,” Katarina replied. “And shut up.”
* * *
The main gaming hall of the Golden Balloon casino was overlooked by a gallery that ran round the whole upper floor. This was an exclusive space to which the very rich paid for the privilege of access to the more expensive champagne bars, and quieter booths to play for higher stakes. The owner of the casino, Joseph Liu, had spent most of the evening walking round here, greeting his guests, making sure his face was seen. Sometimes he would stop and look down at the hall, making sure the money was flowing his way.
There was a balance to be struck in a place like the Golden Balloon. People weren’t fools. They knew that the scales were tipped in favor of the house. This was a business, after all—and Joseph’s suit and watch and lifestyle were very expensive—but patrons were very good at ignoring this fact, as long as they knew there was a chance that some money of the money flowing around might splash back in their direction. Every so often, you could hear a shout of triumph as someone made a minor killing at the wheels or the tables, or over at the holo-slots. Fifty platinum here, eighty platinum there—enough, perhaps, to pay for the winner’s whole weekend here in Neapolis, with a little pocket money for drinks all round. The house barely felt these losses, the spectators felt they’d seen something special, and the winner was in seventh heaven. Everyone was happy.
But every so often a winning streak began to unfold that needed more careful monitoring. Such was the case at the Big Wheel right now. Joseph, looking down from the gallery, saw a man in a hideously gaudy shirt, another in a fine vintage dark blue velvet tux—and a girl in an exquisite dress, infinitely better dressed than either of her companions. How the hell did that set-up work, wondered Joseph. Were they her brothers? Her minders? Who the hell were these people?
“How much has she won?” he asked the very big man standing next to him.
“So far? Just over a thousand platinum.”
“What was her initial stake?”
“She arrived with a single platinum slip. Stood and watched a while. Then… she just started betting. She’s been doubling up every single time since.”
Another huge cheer went up from around the Big Wheel. The girl pulled a huge pile of chips toward her and stared intently at the wheel.
“Two thousand, now,” said the very big man. “But the thing is, Mr. Liu, we ain’t losin’.”
“No?” said Joseph.
“The folks around her—they’ve taken her to heart. Matching her bets.”
Joseph laughed, quietly. As long as people round the table kept on doing that, and kept on losing, they were fine. And yet—and this was the magic of gambling—every single time the girl won the crowd round her seemed to consider it a personal victory against the house.
“Come on, sugar!” cried the elderly gentleman standing next to her. Emory Braxton. Joseph knew him well and knew he could stand to lose a fortune or two. “What’s it gonna be next?” Braxton was already coaxing his fellows to match her bet, and a couple seemed to be up for the game.
“How many more times,” said Joseph, “before she hits the record?”
“If she keeps on doubling up like this—five more bets.”
Joseph calculated some odds. “It’s not very likely, is it?”
“No,” said his companion, unhappily. “It ain’t.”
“But?”
“But…” Another cheer went up. “Sir, she just keeps on gorram winnin’!”
Joseph signaled to one of the waiting staff and asked for champagne to be sent over. Then he made his way down from the gallery and across the hall. The wheel spun round and sung its tune. The folks round the table began to sing along with it, “Wheeeeeee…!” Joseph inched his way forward until he was behind the girl. She was humming. The ball settled. The girl won. Everyone cheered. The girl raked in more money. The house raked in more money. Joseph came to stand just behind the little man in the bad shirt, which, at closer quarters, proved to be not clean. The little man was already white with terror, and he jumped visibly when Joseph tapped his shoulder.
“Rén cí de fó zǔ, my poor heart,” he muttered. He sized up Joseph immediately. “Please,” he whispered. “Don’t kill us. I didn’t think she’d get this far…”
“Don’t worry,” Joseph murmured to him. “Everything’s fine.” The champagne arrived, and glasses were handed round. “And everything will remain fine,” whispered Joseph, to the very frightened man in the truly awful shirt, “as long as you folks stay at this table and don’t stray an inch until I tell you.”
“What?” whispered the little man.
Joseph handed him a glass of champagne. “Right now,” he whispered, “none of us are losing. Let’s keep it that way.” He tapped the glass. “Drink up. You’re going to be rich.”
* * *
Mal was taken down the hallway further into the house. Kaylee followed behind, talking to Inara. Womenfolk were always mutterin’ and talkin’ and schemin’, with one notable exception. Zoë Alleyne was a rare find.
“You all right, Inara?” said Kaylee. “Thought you’d be at some party or other.”
“It’s been… an interesting evening,” said Inara. “And, no, it hasn’t turned out remotely how I expected. You’ll find out, in a minute.”
They were taken into a warm kitchen, where another woman was waiting for them. Another gorram woman with a gorram gun. In Mal’s opinion, this had long since all got out of hand. The woman walked over to Ava.
“Are you our missing one?” she said.
“Yes, ma’am,” said Ava. “I’m so sorry to have been the cause of so much trouble—”
“These things happen,” said the other woman. “As long as nobody finds out about this place—” Her eye fell on the others. “Kay,” she said, “who are all these people?”
“It’s okay, Anna,” said Katarina. “They’re friends of Inara. They brought the girl here; they’ve been looking out for her.”
Anna watched them cautiously as they came in and, when her eye fell on Mal, she lifted her gun. “Lǎo tiān yé, Kay, this guy was at the docks yesterday!”
“What?” said Mal.
“What?” said Inara.
“What?” said Katarina.
“One of the people guarding the girls at the docks,” said Anna. “They shot at us!”
Mal looked round the room. “Whaddaya mean, girls?”
“Oh, Mal, for heaven’s sake!” said Inara. “What is wrong with you?”
“Now, whoa whoa whoa,” said Mal. “Everyone here needs to back up, just for one second.” He was achingly conscious of being the only fella in this here room, and he didn’t like the way that all these womenfolk were lookin’ at him and what that might ultimately mean for his personal safety.
“Do you just take on any job?” said Inara. “Do you not do any checks?”
“I was paid to make sure a load of whatever-they-call-it, minerals, got from the station to the docks,” said Mal. “Not girls—” He thought about the shipment. “Though now I come to think about it, they were some big crates—”
“They were cryo-cases,” said Inara. “Each one contained a girl. They were shipping them off world! Oh, Mal!”
“Cryo-cases, huh? Is that right?” said Mal. Then, more coldly, “Zao gao, that son of a bitch Jacob Roberts—”
“Inara,” said Anna. “Who is this exactly?”
“His name’s Malcolm Reynolds,” said Inara. “He’s the captain of the ship I travel on and he’s a yú bèn de idiot.”
“That ain’t nice,” said Mal. “People have not been particularly nice to me today—”
“That’s because you’ve been particularly annoyin’ today,” said Kaylee.
“But he wouldn’t be involved in trafficking girls,” Inara said. “Not knowingly, at any rate,” she finished, pointedly. “Mal, you are hopeless.”
“Neither knowingly nor willingly,” said Mal, hotly. “Ma’am,” he addressed Anna, “if you think I would be mixed up in that kind of business…” He shuddered. All them girls, in them tiny boxes. What kinda fella did that kinda thing? What kinda fella even thought of that kinda thing? “No way. No gorram way! We answered a call on the Cortex for some folks to take on a security job, guarding a shipment of minerals, but… No. Absolutely not. Are we clear on that? Because I want everyone to be very clear on that—”
“There’s a lot I could say about Mal that wouldn’t be complimentary,” said Inara, “but he wouldn’t be involved in trafficking in any way—”
“Well, thank you, Inara,” said Mal, “for that nearly glowing recommendation.”
“Please,” piped up Ava. “He did help me. Him and Kaylee. He didn’t have to, and I know he’s worryin’ about some of his people who’re in trouble, and he didn’t really have the time to help—but he did. And he paid for supper.”
The waitress had paid for supper, but Mal thought he could correct the record later. “Well, that’s all something, ain’t it?” he said.
The two other women—Katarina and Anna—were looking at each other. By some unspoken means of communication (And how, exactly, did they do that, womenfolk? What could a simple fella like Mal do in the face of powers like that?) they came to a decision. To Mal’s relief, that decision seemed to be that while he might well be a fool, he wasn’t an evil fool.
“Sit down,” said Anna, and Mal, who despite evidence to the contrary wasn’t in fact so much of a fool, obeyed.
“I’m going to take this one upstairs,” said Katarina, putting an arm around Ava’s shoulder. “Get her comfortable.”
Anna sat down opposite Mal. “And I’ll try to find out exactly what’s going on here.”
As Mal (with helpful interjections from Kaylee and pointed commentary from Inara) explained the series of events that had found him and Anna on the opposite sides of a heist that morning, he saw the woman’s expression harden.
“Jacob Roberts hired you?” she said.
“Like I say, we heard a call go out on the Cortex for the job. Came in knowing not much about the place,” said Mal.
“You do that a lot,” said Inara.
“Regretting I ever got involved,” finished Mal.
“You do that a lot too,” said Inara.
“You know, Jacob Roberts isn’t a nice man,” said Anna. “Anyone here could’ve told you that.”
“I worked that out when he took two of my people hostage,” said Mal.
“He was most likely behind the deaths of my parents, three years ago,” said Anna. “Not that the sheriff’s office able to prove anything, of course…”
“The sheriff,” said Mal. “We met him, over at Roberts’ place. How deep is he in all of this?”
“Hard to tell,” said Anna. “He was very friendly with my parents when they were alive… They owned some of the biggest sites on the Mile. But his investigation into their deaths went nowhere.”
“Fairweather friend, huh?” said Mal.
“It’s certainly looking that way,” said Anna. “You know, we thought the Guild was behind the trafficking ring. But from what you’re saying, Roberts is deep in the whole business as well.”
“Much as it pains me to say it,” said Inara, “the Guild house here must be recruiting young women up-country—”
“—and Roberts providing the means to get them off world,” said Mal. “I’m starting to think I don’t like this fella, nor his way of doing business. And I most certainly don’t like being made party to his way of doing business.” He shot Inara a quick look. “Tough, hearing the Guild’s involved, huh?”
“I think there’s more going on than that,” said Inara.
“Guess we’ll see soon enough,” said Mal.
The door opened, and Katarina back in, joining them at the table.
“How’s Ava?” said Kaylee.
“She’s fine,” said Katarina. “I think she’ll sleep now.”
“Look,” said Mal, “I don’t want to make too big a deal of this, but thanks to your intervention this morning—which I ain’t sayin’ you didn’t do the right thing, miss—but thanks to that nonetheless, I owe Jacob Roberts five hundred platinum, and he’s got two of my people held as collateral. And time,” he glared at Kaylee, “is starting to run out.”
“When do you have to pay him by?” said Katarina.
“Tomorrow night,” said Mal. “By the Big Bang.”
“That’s why Simon is at St. Freda’s,” said Inara. “We needed the money.”
“Oh!” said Katarina. She laughed. “Simon should have held out for double what they’re paying him. He’s worth every penny.”
