. "About an hour after we picked you and Lyad
up," he said, "we had a Council Order transmitted to the ship. Told us
to swing off course a bit and rendezvous with a fast courier boat of
theirs."

"What for?"

"The order said the courier was to take Lyad on board and head for the
Hub with her. Some diplomatic business." He scratched his chin. "It also
instructed us to treat the First Lady of Tranest with the courtesy due
to her station meanwhile."

"Brother!" Trigger said, outraged.

"Just too bad I couldn't read that message," said Holati Tate. "Some
gravitic disturbance! Rendezvous point's hours behind us. They'll never
catch up."

"Ho-ho!" said Trigger. "But that's being pretty insubordinate, Holati!"

"It was till just now," he said. "I mentioned that we had Lyad on board
to that Pilch person. She said she'd speak to the Council. We're to hang
on to Lyad and when Pilch gets to Luscious she'll interview her."

Trigger grinned. "Now that," she remarked, "gives me a feeling of great
satisfaction, somehow. When Pilch gets her little mitts on someone,
there isn't much left out."

"I had that impression. Meanwhile, we'll put the Ermetyne through a
routine questioning ourselves when she gets over being groggy. Courtesy
will be on the moderate side. She'll probably spill part of what she
knows, especially if you sit there and hand her the beady stare from
time to time."

"That," Trigger assured him, "will be hardly an effort at all!"

"I can imagine. You're pretty sure that thing will show up again?"

Trigger nodded. "Just leave the handbag with me."

"All right." He stood up. "I've got a hot lunch prepared for you. I'll
bring the bag along. Then you can tell me what happened after they
grabbed you."

"How did you find out I was gone?" Trigger asked.

"Your fac," he said. "The girl was darn good actually. I talked to
you--her--on office transmitter once and didn't spot a sour note. Mostly
she just kept out of everybody's way. Very slick at it! We would have
got her fairly fast because we were preparing for take-off to Luscious
by then. But she spilled it herself."

"How?"

"I located her finally again, on transmitter screen. There was no one on
her side to impress. She took a sniff of porgee."

Trigger laughed delightedly. "Good old porgee pouch! It beat them twice.
But how did you know where I was?"

"No problem there. We knew Lyad had strings on Pluly. Quillan knew about
that sealed level on Pluly's