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Authors: Katie MacAlister
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moving to stand next to me. She shook her head. “It’s not possible. Tell me it’s all a joke, Jack.”
“Sir! Madam! You must return to the ship now,” Al said, almost dancing with agitation behind us.
“You said this was Marseilles?” I asked him, not taking my eyes off the town. It was a busy seaport, the streets clogged with horses and carriages, big open wagons hauling cargo, a couple of traditional sailing ships in the harbor, and people everywhere—women in long skirts like the one Octavia wore, men in frock coats and hats, or shirtsleeves, vests, and derbies. Most of the activity was centered around the piers, where men loaded cargo onto a seemingly endless line of empty wagons.
Beyond the busy port area, the streets stretched out in a fan shape, the buildings just a few stories tall, but beautifully built with cream stone, tall arched windows, and all those fiddly, fancy bits stuck around the front that tourists oohed and aahed over.
A Klaxon sounded from above. We turned just in time to see the long metal chute that spouted from a water tower withdrawing from the airship.
“No,” Hallie repeated, her face set in a shocked, disbelieving expression. “I am dreaming. I will wake up and go to lunch with Luis, and the after- lunch sex will be really fabulous, and then I will call you and tell you about this amazing dream I had. That’s all. It’s a dream.”
“I wish it was that easy,” a woman’s voice said. Hallie turned toward Octavia, standing in the doorway of the ship, the kid behind her. “Mr. Fletcher, would you please escort your sister back to the ship? Our schedule is very tight, and we need to leave immediately if we are to not fall behind.”
“I tried to tell them, Captain,” Al said, scurrying over to her, his hands wringing and gesturing wildly as he pointed to us. “I told them you don’t allow anyone to disembark during refilling stops.”
“Wake up, wake up, wake up,” Hallie said, scrunching her eyes tight and pinching her arms. “It’s not real. Time to get up and get dressed.”
“Hallie—”
“What’s goin’ on here?” The man named Piper with the odd hitch in his walk pushed past Octavia, the teenage kid right behind him. “What’s the thuggees doin’ out here, Captain?”
“Thuggees?” I asked, distracted for a moment.
“They’re escaping!” the kid shouted, fumbling with something in his pocket.
“We’re not doing anything,” I said, turning around to help Hallie back into the airship. She sidestepped me when I tried to take her arm.
“Escapin’, are they?” Piper grimly hobbled toward us. “That they’ll not do.”
“We’re just standing here taking a look around,” I protested. “And since Octavia asked us to return to the ship, that’s what we’re going to do, isn’t it, Hal?”
“I don’t care what you do,” Hallie said, her eyes wild. “I’m getting the hell out of here so I can wake up and have a rendezvous with Luis.”
“Take her!” Al said as he flung himself at me.
A chunk of dirt flew up at Hallie’s feet as I was knocked to the ground.
She stared for a moment at the kid holding the same sort of odd gun that Octavia had pointed at me, then turned and ran screaming down the hill.
“You idiot,” I yelled, rolling over to shake the skinny first officer at the same time Octavia shouted something at the kid with the gun. “Get off of me! She’s in no shape to be running around on her own.”
“Ye’re not goin’ anywhere, ye murdering canker,” Piper yelled as he, too, threw himself on me.
“I haven’t murdered anyone, although I’m sure as hell thinking about it right now,” I snarled, trying not to hurt the old man too much as I shoved him off me. I was a bit less careful with Al, getting a good right hook in that sent him flying backward with a dazed look on his face.
“Mr. Piper! Restrain yourself! Dooley, for the love of God, if you fire that Disruptor one more time, I will remove it from
“Sir! Madam! You must return to the ship now,” Al said, almost dancing with agitation behind us.
“You said this was Marseilles?” I asked him, not taking my eyes off the town. It was a busy seaport, the streets clogged with horses and carriages, big open wagons hauling cargo, a couple of traditional sailing ships in the harbor, and people everywhere—women in long skirts like the one Octavia wore, men in frock coats and hats, or shirtsleeves, vests, and derbies. Most of the activity was centered around the piers, where men loaded cargo onto a seemingly endless line of empty wagons.
Beyond the busy port area, the streets stretched out in a fan shape, the buildings just a few stories tall, but beautifully built with cream stone, tall arched windows, and all those fiddly, fancy bits stuck around the front that tourists oohed and aahed over.
A Klaxon sounded from above. We turned just in time to see the long metal chute that spouted from a water tower withdrawing from the airship.
“No,” Hallie repeated, her face set in a shocked, disbelieving expression. “I am dreaming. I will wake up and go to lunch with Luis, and the after- lunch sex will be really fabulous, and then I will call you and tell you about this amazing dream I had. That’s all. It’s a dream.”
“I wish it was that easy,” a woman’s voice said. Hallie turned toward Octavia, standing in the doorway of the ship, the kid behind her. “Mr. Fletcher, would you please escort your sister back to the ship? Our schedule is very tight, and we need to leave immediately if we are to not fall behind.”
“I tried to tell them, Captain,” Al said, scurrying over to her, his hands wringing and gesturing wildly as he pointed to us. “I told them you don’t allow anyone to disembark during refilling stops.”
“Wake up, wake up, wake up,” Hallie said, scrunching her eyes tight and pinching her arms. “It’s not real. Time to get up and get dressed.”
“Hallie—”
“What’s goin’ on here?” The man named Piper with the odd hitch in his walk pushed past Octavia, the teenage kid right behind him. “What’s the thuggees doin’ out here, Captain?”
“Thuggees?” I asked, distracted for a moment.
“They’re escaping!” the kid shouted, fumbling with something in his pocket.
“We’re not doing anything,” I said, turning around to help Hallie back into the airship. She sidestepped me when I tried to take her arm.
“Escapin’, are they?” Piper grimly hobbled toward us. “That they’ll not do.”
“We’re just standing here taking a look around,” I protested. “And since Octavia asked us to return to the ship, that’s what we’re going to do, isn’t it, Hal?”
“I don’t care what you do,” Hallie said, her eyes wild. “I’m getting the hell out of here so I can wake up and have a rendezvous with Luis.”
“Take her!” Al said as he flung himself at me.
A chunk of dirt flew up at Hallie’s feet as I was knocked to the ground.
She stared for a moment at the kid holding the same sort of odd gun that Octavia had pointed at me, then turned and ran screaming down the hill.
“You idiot,” I yelled, rolling over to shake the skinny first officer at the same time Octavia shouted something at the kid with the gun. “Get off of me! She’s in no shape to be running around on her own.”
“Ye’re not goin’ anywhere, ye murdering canker,” Piper yelled as he, too, threw himself on me.
“I haven’t murdered anyone, although I’m sure as hell thinking about it right now,” I snarled, trying not to hurt the old man too much as I shoved him off me. I was a bit less careful with Al, getting a good right hook in that sent him flying backward with a dazed look on his face.
“Mr. Piper! Restrain yourself! Dooley, for the love of God, if you fire that Disruptor one more time, I will remove it from
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