The Bright Black Sea Read Free

closed. 'Grab a seat
and take a load off your soles,' I said, slipping around the desk.
I wanted to be on the captain's side of the desk if (or likely
when) thrust came to blast.
    Chairs in free fall are not strictly necessary but
standing anchored to the deck on one's magnetic soles for long
conversations is wearisome. Floating has its place, (honeymoons in
orbit are quite popular) but can be awkward and undignified. So
even in free fall, parking your trouser seat magnets on chair is
still the most natural way to relax.
    'Can I offer you a drink?' I asked as he settled into
one of the chairs. 'A globe of Ysent rum?' A Jann favorite.
    'Thanks, but business first. I take it you received
the radio-packet from Min & Co ordering you to wait on my
arrival?'
    'Aye, I'm still here though I'm up against delivery
contracts,' I replied with a slightly bitter laugh, adding, 'And
without explanation, I might add.'
    'We thought it best for me to deliver that
explanation in person. Radio-packets can be lost, misinterpreted or
ignored,' he remarked giving me a wink. 'I trust you've read the
trade advisories and analytics Min & Co has been sending
out.'
    'Aye. Not that they matter. I can no longer avoid
Calissant and the beach.'
    'Well Captain, we've a plan to help you avoid the
beach. Tallith Min, Pilot and Purser's daughter is back and now in
charge of Min & Co. I've been in contact with her. Together
we've devised a plan we hope will save the Lost Star from
being paid off and keep the Night Hawk Line operating while
Vinden's estate is sorted out.'
    'Sounds very encouraging,' I assured him, trying to
keep my sudden wariness out of my voice. 'What's the plan?' What
lay behind his obviously rehearsed sell? He certainly didn't need
one merely to hand over half a dozen boxes...
    'As you can imagine, the Ministry of Death has
neither the expertise nor interest in running tramp ships.'
    'That's clear enough.'
    'Moreover, the Ministry has only started the process
of cataloging Hawker Vinden's holdings, so the details of the
distribution haven't been released. Given the tangled web of
cross-ownership and the shell companies our Calissant tramp ship
owners love, the process will likely take many months. The key
issue is that any losses incurred by the shipping line comes out of
the assets of the estate, possibly reducing the inheritance of the
legatees who do not inherit the ships. Given the Ministry's duty to
protect the interests of all the legatees you can see why, with
shipping prospects so dismal, the Ministry is laying up Captain
Hawker's ships as they arrive home...'
    I nodded. 'Makes sense – assuming the ships'll
operate at a loss.' Which, I must admit, was a discouragingly
likely assumption.
    'Exactly! Tallith Min believes she can use that logic
to keep profitable ships running,' he continued enthusiastically.
'If a ship is making a profit, those profits and future profits
should benefit all the legatees. Plus, taking profitable ships out
of service, dispersing crews and abandoning customers will make it
much harder for the eventual legatees of the ships to get the Night
Hawk Line up and running again when the estate is cleared.' He
paused and gave me a measuring stare before continuing, 'Of course,
for this line of reasoning to work, you need ships showing a
profit, which is where the Lost Star comes in...'
    'But certainly not all of the other five ships
they've laid up were in the red?' I didn't think it was simply a
matter of profit. Convenience had to have something to do with
it.
    'Their profits hardly covered the expenses of paying
them off and laying them up. Plus those ships were laid up prior to
Tallith Min's return. However competent Kardea is at managing Min
& Co, she wasn't in a position to question Ministry's orders.
As the firms's owner, Tallith Min is willing to challenge the
Ministry to keep a profitable ship sailing.'
    'That sounds encouraging.' Still something still did
not chart right. 'We kept ahead of the collapse