Page 20 (1/2)

"That’s right Nothing wrong with any of them, and the secondaries are probably fine too--but we don’t have tiure out hoork them, and anyway, it’s just the three of us"

"Four of us," Maria said fro your pardon?" Hainey asked, finally turning around to see what she was doing

She was unbuckling herself

"Four of us You don’t have another three or four ot an able-bodied wouns in my day thenmind," Simeon swore at her, and said, "Get back down in your chair Ain’t nobody here trusts you with a firearun turret, you crazy woman"

"She can shoot," Hainey said "I’ve heard about her I know she can shoot"

"Yes, she can shoot," Maria said ih out of town for you to set her down, so we can have a civilized conversation about how I’ you home for justice’s sake--but she can’t very well do that if she dies up here in the clouds, now can she?"

Sihed He said, "Hey, Captain, she wants to save our hides so she can tan them later What do you think of that?"

"I think we’re desperate and she wants to live long enough to have that conversation Lae?"

"Sir, you can’t be serious?"

"He’s serious," Maria answered for him "Put me where I can make the most trouble"

"Sir, the bottoht one is pinned so it can’t take out the right engine, and it has less room to swivel The left one’s mounted lower, so it won’t clip our own armor when it fires"

"Then show her hoorks You knoorks, don’t you her and higher, up into the sky, doing his best to show the intruders nothing but the underside of the craft

"I knoorks," he said, lifting hi to Maria Boyd "This way, over here Down in the cargo bay"

Si to put that woun, someplace where you can’t even see her?"

"Any port in a storm, isn’t that what they say?" the captain responded "She can’t shoot us from down there, anyway She could’ve shot us better froht turret"

"Point taken," Sio stairs and over by the bottom left turret, Lamar stood beside Maria Boyd and hemmed uncertainly "Ma’am," he said, "I don’t know about this You’ll hardly fit, wearing that"

"Well I’? A four-eighty model, with the automatic line feed? They round, and been behind one--once or twice"

Laether to form a very puzzled V "Yes…yes hty, it’s a four-ninety--and they work pretty much the same way So you…you knohat to do with it?"

"I knohat to do with it One thing: Do you have ato keep the heat off my face and the powder out of s just fine, but they make my eyes water likearound the corner I’ll get you one," he said, and he dashed to the row of pegs along the cargo wall He grabbed the nearest loves that were stuffed inside it, and he ran back to the low glass turret, where Maria Boyd had soed to cram her entire bulk of skirts and corsetry into the chaar at the petticoats

"I know I said I wasn’t going to strip, but I had to make room, you understand"

"Yes ma’am," he said, and if Maria Boyd had known hi

Hainey hollered froht down there?"