Unloading took less time than Amelia had feared, much of the cargo having already been passed off to ships like the Legacy, but it was still a lot of work to empty the big freighter's holds. The cargo was moved off the dock bit by bit in levitating solar wagons, each consignment being kept together for inspection under the watchful eyes of Horrocks and the Tycho Voyager's first mate. Amelia waited for the last of the cargo to start being moved off, and saw the mate hand a clipboard to the bosun before returning to the ship. Horrocks then swung himself up onto the last of the wagons and bawled an order that set the small convoy in motion. She set off to follow the wagons as they made the short journey from the dockside to a large warehouse bearing the CPA crest. Amelia watched as the wagons were waved in through the open doors and were swarmed by a motley assortment of labourers, Port Authority officials and uniformed Customs staff. Through it all, she kept a close eye on Horrocks, watching his every movement. There had already been a dozen opportunities she'd seen for an item of cargo to be diverted between the ship and the CPA warehouse, but all of them would have been too obvious - at no time had there been less than a dozen people around, and they couldn't possibly all be in on the plot. No...something had to happen in the warehouse itself.

Now let's see if we can't find out what...

Fortunately, here on the dayside a naval captain's uniform did carry sufficient weight that, in combination with a purposeful stride, nobody seemed inclined to challenge Amelia as she entered the warehouse and looked around. The cavernous space was criss-crossed by crane gantries and walkways, and it was not difficult to find a stairway up to one that afforded her a bird's-eye view of the movements below. She watched as Horrocks disembarked from his wagon, handed the clipboard to someone, and made his way on foot deeper into the warehouse. Dressed as he was in civilian clothing, there was nothing to distinguish him and it would have been difficult from anyone at ground level to realise that he was gone. But from her vantage point three or four storeys up, Amelia was able to follow him as he walked among the piles of cargo distributed around the warehouse. As she did so, however, she began feeling herself becoming rather more conspicuous even as her quarry became more innocuous. The uniform which had got her into the warehouse was distinctly out of place up here and she resolved to make this as quick as possible, focusing her attention back on Horrocks rather than on herself. His movements were casual as if he had done this many times before, and knew there was little chance of anyone paying him any attention. He rounded the side of a sizeable piece of machinery that slumbered underneath a patchwork quilt of tarpaulins and Amelia looked up as a figure seemed to step out of the shadows to meet him. It was a familiar dark-haired young woman and Horrocks turned to greet her. Amelia strained her ears but there was no chance of overhearing their conversation over the sounds of the warehouse's cranes and workers as they hurried to move cargo around.

"'Scuse me, ma'am!"

A voice made her look around. A man was waving to her from an adjacent walkway, but she saw that his demeanour was friendly rather than hostile.

"Yes? What is it?"

"If you're looking for the office, it's back that way, ma'am!" The man pointed, indicating a walkway leading off. "This area's off limits because of the cranes!"

Amelia took the excuse offered to her and played along Another benefit of the uniform was that nobody suspected that you were up to anything unauthorised. "Ah. My mistake. Thank you."

"Not a problem, ma'am! You want me to come with you?"

"No, that won't be necessary. Go about your business." Amelia turned to go, casting a last glance back over her shoulder and down to where Horrocks and Lucas were still in conversation, just in time to see her pass him something but not in time to see what it was. To her relief, there was no sign that they'd heard the worker's helpful shouts and she left quickly, knowing that lingering would just attract more attention and wanting some time and space to think. That someone in the CPA was working with the smugglers had already been a suspicion, but she hadn't thought that it might be Lucas. Did that mean that Mott's office was compromised too? And Lucas worked for Mott - was Mott himself part of the conspiracy? It suddenly struck Amelia that perhaps having made enquiries there had not been wise...though the information that Lucas had given her had proven accurate enough. Or was that misdirection on her part? Or had she had no choice but to give her that information because Mott would have known if she hadn't, and did that mean that Mott wasn't working for the smugglers after all?

No point regretting all of that now, Amelia reminded herself as she descended the stairs to leave the warehouse, having checked that the helpful worker who'd directed her to the office wasn't still watching her. What's done is done. And now I have to find out what it means.

She looked around her as she stepped back outside, and turned to pass by the mouth of the alley by which Lucas must have arrived, keeping a sharp lookout for her. There wasn't yet a sign of her, but she did see a cart parked there, its crew lounging around as if waiting for something. It took her a moment to recognise it, but then the coin dropped - it was the same cart she had seen just after it left the Whitley warehouse on Nightside. And it occurred to her that she recognised the drivers too, especially the rangy-looking man who had seemed to be watching her when she had seen them for the first time. He was currently leaning against one of the wheels and smoking something, but Amelia quickly got out of sight anyway before there was any chance of being spotted.

Now just what are they doing here?

The answer was not long in coming. Lucas emerged from the warehouse, followed by some laborers carrying some small sacks and boxes which were loaded onto the cart. There was a brief exchange between Lucas and the rangy man before the latter mounted up and lashed the bullyadous into motion. Amelia ducked behind a stack of broken barrels as the cart rolled past her and turned into the street, heading for the elevator to Nightside with its drivers on board. Glancing back around the corner, Amelia was minded to go and confront Lucas, but the narrow alley was now vacant but for a few sad piles of discarded and decaying refuse.

It was still some hours before Tycho Voyager's cargo was fully unloaded. Amelia watched Horrocks as closely as possible, waiting to see if he returned to the warehouse. He did so periodically, accompanying more wagonloads of goods, but it seemed to Amelia that there was no subterfuge at play this time. The CPA workers took custody of the deliveries and moved them into sorting piles. No other carts arrived in the alleyway and there was no further sign of Lucas. The part of the operation involving them, Amelia thought, seemed to be fairly small - but of course, it probably had to be, otherwise it would be too obvious. She was pondering her next move, when it suddenly occurred to her that she hadn't seen Horrocks emerge from the warehouse for some time, though she had definitely seen his spacers head back to their ship. Cursing herself for her inattention, she looked around and even dared look into the warehouse door, but the big Cragorian was nowhere in sight. There had to be a multitude of ways out of the huge building and he could have taken any one of them. Returning to the street in a dark mood of self-recrimination, Amelia looked up at the sky where Montressor hung in the shadow of night, and wondered what the consequences would be.

Ko opened her eyes and found herself wide awake as she lay in bed, late at night. She had not been dreaming and had learned to trust her instincts well enough that she didn't immediately roll over and try to go back to sleep. Something had woken her, and she sat up in the dark as she strained her ears to detect it. For a moment she wondered if she was wrong, but then she heard it - a rustling sound from the direction of the living room as if of the movement of clothing, and the faintest crunch of glass underfoot.

Someone's here.

They didn't seem to be too close yet, so Ko slipped easily out of bed, leaving the blankets bundled up in the centre as if covering a sleeping body, and silently pulled on her boots before reaching a hand under the bed to where her bag was stowed. She felt for the laslock pistol stowed in there and eased it out before rising and making her way towards the door in time to hear the sound of footsteps outside as the unidentified interlopers began advancing along the hall past her room towards the stairs. They were trying to be quiet, but there were too many of them to succeed. Perhaps four, Ko thought, or even five. That was more than she was happy about, but Royal Marines were accustomed to fighting outnumbered and not for nothing was it said that all armies were the same size in the dark. With any luck, she'd be able to sneak out once they were past her door…

Unless one of them stops to check on it, she thought to herself as she heard most of the footsteps recede away. But there were fewer of them now, and she sensed a presence at her door.

Go on. Join your friends, she silently willed it, trying to control her breathing. The laslock was out of the question - the shot would be heard all over the house and, while waking Doppler might not be a bad thing, alerting the other uninvited guests probably would be.

Damn.

Ko sighed internally. This was going to have to go down the hard way. She waited as the doorknob turned and the door creaked open. A dark figure entered slowly, dim light from the corridor outside shining on the barrel of a drawn weapon aimed at the shape on the bed. The figure stepped into the room and Ko heard the click of the safety catch being removed and the high-pitched whine of the weapon powering up.

Now or never.

She struck from the shadows, claws unsheathing as she grabbed the intruder by the back of the head and slammed them down, neck-first, onto the iron railing of the foot of the bed. There was an unpleasant organic noise and the figure went instantly limp. Ko took its weight to avoid the noise of the body collapsing to the floor, kneeling to spare her back as much of the load as possible. Resting it at the foot of the bed, she looked around to the door to see if any of the other intruders had doubled back. Fortunately, they were either very intent on their mission or else were already upstairs and out of earshot. On the basis that there was no such thing as too much firepower, she tucked the dead man's laslock into her waistband and crept out of the room towards the stairs.

"Dr Doppler, I presume?"

The voice was a low growl and it took Doppler a moment to realise that he hadn't dreamed it. He sat up in bed, heart racing.

"Wh-what? Who's there? Who are you?" He scrambled for the bedside table to switch on the lamp and put his spectacles on. His wide eyes focused on two figures at the end of the bed. One was a bullet-headed Cragorian, the other a human male with the lower half of his face concealed behind a scarf. A third man, similarly dressed, was lurking in the doorway, a laslock rifle in his hands lazily aimed in Doppler's direction.

"You need to fix the carpet on them stairs, doctor," he said casually, depositing a gob of chewed tobacco onto the fine if threadbare rug at his feet. "Could cause an accident one day, that torn bit."

"And it'd be a shame if anyone got hurt around here, would it?" leered the scarfed man, fingering the edge of a cutlass.

"How did you - who are you?" Doppler stared.

The Cragorian tossed something onto the bed. Doppler looked down in shock as he recognised Amelia's prize cadet sword, taken from the mantelpiece in his own living room.

"Where is she?"

"Where is who? A-Amelia? I don't know, she isn't here."

The Cragorian traded glances with the rifleman. "You sure about that?"

"Of course I'm sure! Why do you want to know?"

"Because she's got something that's ours. Something she's not supposed to have. And because she's asking questions she shouldn't be asking."

"What are you talking about? I don't know anything about-" Doppler paused. "Wait. Is-is this about the three dead bodies on her ship?"

"You could say that. And I'm here to tell you there'll be a fourth body on her ship if she doesn't let the dead lie in peace." The Cragorian stepped around the side of the bed. "I don't suppose you've got kids?"

"K-no, of course not!"

"Pity." The Cragorian leaned forward, drawing a long-bladed knife. "But you're here. You'll tell her. Tell her to drop it. Drop everything. And give back what she's stolen. She'll know where to take it."

"But-"

"You ask too many questions. Just like her." The Cragorian loomed closer. "But you're a smart man, right, doctor? You won't forget the message?"

"N-no, I-"

"Good. Cause otherwise, I'll have to carve it into you." The point of the knife lowered towards Doppler's forehead, making him cringe. "In fact, perhaps I'll give you a reminder anyway. She took something of ours…only fair if I take something in return…"

There was a strangled noise of alarm from behind him as the man in the doorway disappeared briefly. There was a thump, and then his head reappeared somewhat lower down as if he were suddenly kneeling against the frame. The door, an inch and a half of solid oak, slammed twice with snakebite speed to the audible crack of bone each time, and the man slumped motionless to the floor. The Cragorian turned around in time to see his other companion go down, half his head blown away by one of a volley of las-bolts to punch through the timber of the door. He span around, his bulk belying his agility and raising the knife ready to throw even while Doppler stared dumbfounded in shock at the sudden bloody violence in his home's inner sanctum.

"That you, Amelia? Coming out to play, are you?" But there was a note of hesitation in his voice now that he was alone. And, Doppler suddenly realised, he had his back to him. After Treasure Planet, he hadn't given much thought to having to take on an armed opponent and the Cragorian seemed a lot more capable than the slovenly Meltdown had been, but under the circumstances he didn't feel like he had much choice. He gathered the blanket in his hands and sprang forward with a desperate yell as he wrapped it around the intruder's head, sending Amelia's sword clattering to the floor. The man bellowed furiously and lashed out, turning back to him. The knife went wide but Doppler had to duck under the arc of his long arm and found himself tumbling off the bed as the trailing edge of the blanket caught under him.

"Damnit, doc!" Ko was in the doorway, trying to get a clear shot as the Cragorian moved, slicing through the blanket and reaching down to pick up Doppler with a gnarled fist the size of his head.

"Come 'ere!" The intruder dragged Doppler up and turned, bringing the dazed canid in front of him as he turned back to Ko, whose eyes narrowed as she gripped her pistol tightly.

"Let him go before I have to kill anyone else," she said coldly.

"I'm not that stupid." The Cragorian brought the knife up again. "So you're Amelia, then?"

"Whoever sent you here's given you some very bad information. What you're looking for isn't here. And I'm not Amelia. I'm worse." Ko kept her gun trained on him. "You don't scare me. People like you run the streets I grew up on. I know what you are. And the only reason you're still breathing is 'cause you're marginally more useful to me that way. But that'll change real quick if you don't let him go."

"Why would I let him go?" The Cragorian growled. "Where's what I want?"

"You're keen on that, aren't you? Like you're worried about a debt being called in?" Ko spoke evenly and quietly. "You might be able to get help with that if you cooperate."

"Too late for that." The Cragorian hefted Doppler. "I'm walking out of here. You won't follow me if you want the good doctor to live."

"I'm not going with you!" Doppler protested.

"Only as far as the way out. Then you'll tell Amelia what I told you. You'll be doing her a favour, remember. Stopping her from getting hurt." The intruder kept his eyes on Ko. "And you'll stay well back, kitty-cat. Get too close to me and you'll be the one who has to explain what happened to him."

Ko gritted her teeth, but there was no way to get the shot she needed to be certain even at this close range. Doppler saw the look on her face.

"D-Don't worry about me, Ko. Let's just-just get him out of here and everyone will be all right…"

"That's the spirit, doc." The Cragorian nodded. "Well…Ko, was it? What's it to be?"

"Please…let's just get him out of here." Doppler looked at her pleadingly. Ko relented with a grimace, lowering her pistol.

"You leave him in the living room," she said to the Cragorian.

"Fine. And you don't follow. I'll be looking to see if you do." The man began edging out of the room, keeping Doppler firmly between himself and Ko as he stepped around the two bodies on the floor and out of the door. Ko stayed where she was, glaring furiously as the Cragorian gave her a grin just before they disappeared out of sight.

"Move slow, doc," the Cragorian muttered in his ear as he manhandled him towards the landing. "No sense in letting your feline friend see."

"My…friend…she's still in the bedroom, you can see that," Doppler said, looking back down the hallway to the open door. "So there's no need for this. Just let me go."

"No. There's a need for this all right," said the Cragorian grimly. "Because I know people like her too. I'm keeping you with me all the way. Now step carefully. Don't want to lose you on these stairs."

"You really can just let me go, you know," Doppler repeated, his voice high-pitched with alarm, feeling for the right footing as he stepped down almost backwards. "I don't know who you are. I don't know anything that you want. Or where you're from. Or anything!"

"Not the point, doc." The Cragorian moved carefully, with a dexterity of foot that even Doppler in his fear recognised as the mark of a spacer.

"But-" Doppler felt the carpet underfoot move slightly and remembered what the rifleman had said - in mockery, true, but…there was a loose edge on the eleventh step…which they should be reaching in two steps' time…

Ko started moving as soon as she heard the shout - whether it was Doppler's or the intruder's she didn't know and didn't consider important. She arrived at the top of the stairs and looked down to the landing, where Doppler and the Cragorian sprawled in a tangle of limbs.

"Bloody snake!" The Cragorian pushed himself to his feet a little unsteadily and bore down on Doppler, who scrambled away, looking up as he saw Ko descending the stairs, metal shining in her hand - Amelia's sword, recovered from the floor of the bedroom..

"Ko! Don't-"

Ko struck viciously. But instead of biting deep, the blade merely made a metallic thud as it connected with the Cragorian's neck. He seemed as surprised as anyone else, and so wasn't quite prepared for Ko, hissing spitefully, to catch him on the backswing with the hilt. He collapsed sideways, sliding down the rest of the stairs to land on the main hallway floor just at the foyer door.

"Bloody thing's not even bloody sharp," muttered Ko, glaring at the sword as if it had personally offended her. "Should have known they wouldn't trust officer cadets with the real thing. I'm losing my touch."

"K-Ko? What's happening?"

Ko looked at him and saw the fear in his eyes. She opted for an answer that was, at least, not an actual lie. "They broke in through the living room window. Must have a longboat out there."

"They were looking for Amelia…why? Is she all right?"

"I'm sure she is." Ko nodded. "Or they wouldn't be looking for her, would they? You'd better call the constabulary for now, though, doc. And a medic or two."

"R-right, yes, of course…" Doppler got to his feet. "Is…was there any more of them?"

"There's a dead man in my room," said Ko, matter-of-factly.

"What? How did he get in?"

"Well, he wasn't dead then." Ko knelt by the Cragorian's body. "This one's not, though. Good. We needed at least one of the bastards alive. What happened with him?"

"Hm? Oh, the carpet on the stair up there is torn and loose. I just avoid it most of the time. I moved it just as he stepped back onto it and we went down together." Doppler scratched his head.

"Bold move." Ko nodded, a glint of respect in her eyes. "How'd you come out of it?"

"Just bruises, I think. I was lucky that I landed on top of him. Mostly."

"Good. Go make that call, doc. I'll keep an eye on this one." Ko nodded.

"Oh." Doppler swallowed hard. "Yes. I see. So you…right. I'll call the police. I just…wish I knew what to tell them about all this…"

Ko took a deep breath and sighed, turning back to the Cragorian to hide her face. "Listen, you…might need to ask Amelia about that next time you see her."

"Does she know that they're looking for her? Whoever they are?"

"Just talk to her, doctor." Ko glanced around at him. "And make it soon."

Amelia approached the manor in some trepidation, Doppler's telegram still balled up in her fist. She knew that this was not going to be an easy conversation. There was a tension about the place, underlined by the presence of a robotic autoconstable patrolling up and down outside the door, its eyes lit up like torches to scan the area. It issued a metallic challenge as Amelia approached, but let her past when she announced her credentials. A police wagon was drawn up by the front door and a Benbonian officer was supervising two more autoconstables in loading up stretchers - three of them, Amelia saw, on which lay cloth-wrapped bodies. Her blood ran cold, though she knew that both Doppler and Ko were alive and well. The scene - and the blood soaking through the cloth on two of the corpses - spoke of violence and death, two things she had never wanted to associate with the stately house that she had, to her own surprise, begun to think of as home.

"Delbert? Ko?" She stepped into the main hallway, catching sight of a dark stain on the carpet at the bottom of the stairs. Seeing lights on in the living room, she headed towards it. The door to the downstairs guest bedroom was still open and she couldn't help glancing inside as she passed. In the living room, Ko was standing to one side in the 'at ease' position and looking remarkably composed given the fact that she was, in Amelia's estimation, almost certainly responsible for the bodybags she'd seen being loaded into the police wagon. The two felinids traded professional nods, in recognition of a difficult and unwanted job nevertheless done well. Doppler was sitting on the couch, shoulders slumped, until he looked up at Amelia's entrance and sprang to his feet.

"Amelia!" his voice and face were hard to read - a combination of anxiety and anger that sat uncomfortably with the canid, who was clearly struggling to control both and failing. He almost threw himself at her to embrace her.

"Delbert, I-" Amelia hugged him back.

"Wait. Please." Doppler stopped her and looked past her shoulder to Ko. "Sergeant - I mean, Ko? Would you mind…?"

"No problem, doc. I think the police will probably want a few more words with me anyway." Ko nodded and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.

"She's not going to be in any trouble, is she?" Amelia asked quietly after she'd gone.

"No, no. No, I consulted with my solicitor and the laws of self-defence are very much in her favour," said Doppler. "But, Amelia…we need to talk about…us. Or more specifically…you."

"Me?" Amelia blinked in surprise.

"Yes. What you're doing. What led to this. They were looking for you, Amelia. And for something you have. What's this all about?" Doppler held her gaze.

Amelia returned it for a moment, then relented. There was no way she could lie to those dark brown eyes, so filled with conflicting emotions.

"It's my investigation. Into the bodies on the Legacy."

"What about them?" Doppler's voice was calm but insistent.

"I'm getting closer to tracking down the gang responsible for the drugs that killed them. Or…some of it, anyway. I think I know who they've been working with inside the CPA. But…I also think that they're onto me." Amelia sighed and looked away. "The Legacy was boarded and searched behind my back by someone who was looking for the drugs. That's probably what the attackers here were looking for as well."

"And they wanted you to stop your investigation. They threatened…" Doppler swallowed.

"Yes. I can imagine. I'm so sorry, Delbert." Amelia raised her eyes and brought up a hand to stroke his furry cheek. "I didn't think that they'd come for you. I thought they'd only be after me."

"But you must have suspected something," said Doppler. "Arranging for Sergeant Ko to be here? What was she, my bodyguard? She asked a lot of strange questions when she arrived, as if she was anticipating something like this."

"I…yes." Amelia saw no point denying it. "Ko grew up tangling with criminals. She warned me that something like this could happen so I asked her to make sure that it didn't. Just in case. I didn't know for sure that it would happen and I always hoped that it wouldn't."

"But it did. How?"

Amelia grimaced. "I have my suspicions. Did they say who they were?"

"No, of course not. But there were four of them. Three humans and a Cragorian, who seemed to be in charge."

Amelia raised an eyebrow. "A Cragorian? Tall for his type?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

"Because I think I know who he was. His name was Horrocks. He was the bosun from the Tycho Voyager, the ship whose cargo I took on. I think he was working for the gang on Crescentia. Bringing their drugs in from Briga."

"I suppose we'll find out," said Doppler. "He's been taken away for questioning. Alive."

Amelia looked surprised. "You took him alive?"

"It was a joint effort. Between Ko, the staircase and myself. Yes." Doppler smiled thinly. "Despite appearances, Amelia…I'm not completely useless."

Amelia felt her heart flinch a little as she caught his meaning. "Delbert, I…I've never thought of you as useless. You've saved my life more than once already."

"Then why not trust me with all of this?" he asked quietly, pain evident in his eyes. "Why not tell me that there was a risk that someone would come here? That that's why Ko was really staying with me? Did you think I was too weak to handle that?"

"Think you weak? After I've seen you take on an armed pirate without so much as a toothpick? Never, Delbert, I swear it." Amelia cradled his cheek.

"Then why?" Doppler took her hand and held it away from his face.

"Because I…" Amelia's green eyes wavered. "I was…afraid."

"You were afraid?" It was Doppler's turn to be surprised, and his hold on her hand softened. "Afraid of what?"

"Afraid that…you wouldn't want me to keep investigating. That you'd tell me to stop. That you'd…that you wouldn't be able to accept me if I refused." Amelia swallowed and looked away. "I…put you through hell, Delbert. Don't try to deny that, because I know I do. Every time I sail away. You know my job is a dangerous one. And…I thought that taking on more danger by doing this…I wasn't sure that you'd accept that."

"Amelia, I…" Doppler blinked. "Have I ever given you that impression?"

"I just know how much you worry about me." Amelia squeezed his hand tenderly. "I know that this relationship is hard in so many ways. I didn't want to make it harder on you. You…mean so much to me."

"Oh, Amelia…" Doppler's eyes watered a little. "You think I'd have just walked away? Forced you to choose between me and doing what you felt - what you knew - was right?"

"N-no, I just…didn't want to run that risk…even the slightest risk of losing you…" Amelia swallowed hard to control her emotions. "And now I've done something so much worse in hiding something from you."

Doppler nodded sadly. "But…I forgive you. Because no matter what else, Amelia…I love you."

There was no way Amelia could stop her own eyes starting to glisten at that. "Oh, Delbert…I love you too. So much."

"Then…no more secrets like this, please," Doppler said gently. "You're part of my life. I want to be part of yours. All of it. Including the dangerous bits."

"I don't know how many more there'll be," Amelia said apologetically. "Even before this is over, let alone anything else."

"I know. I don't care. I love you." Doppler held her hand tightly as he looked into her eyes. "And I will always, always support you in what you decide is right."

Amelia searched his gaze. "I believe you. I'm so sorry."

"I already said that I forgive you," Doppler smiled sadly. "So no more apologies, all right?"

Amelia gave a small smile in return. "I promise. For now."

"For now?"

"I'm sure I'll do something to warrant them later. And I will always be sorry for this." Amelia rested her hand on his chest. "There's nobody in all the etherium that I trust more than you and I'm sorry that I let my fear make it seem otherwise."

Doppler kissed her softly. "I'd take on the universe for you, Amelia."

"And I'd never knowingly hurt you." Amelia caressed his cheek and kissed him back. "You are my anchor, Delbert. The guiding star that brings me home. The reason I have more to look forward to than my ship and the next cargo run."

"And you're my brave captain, ever ready to take the risk of doing what's right." Doppler nuzzled her warmly, holding her close and breathing in her scent. "I may not be able to be with you on the deck of the Legacy every time you take her out, but that doesn't mean I don't want to share this life with you. The ups and downs. The delights and the dangers. Together."

"Together. I swear it." Amelia kissed him.

Doppler sighed happily and gazed into her eyes. "So. What happens now?"

"I think the smugglers' contact in the CPA is Mott's assistant. A woman named Lucas." Amelia said. "I saw her meeting with Horrocks - the Cragorian who attacked you here. She knows I stay here so she must have given him the address to come and find the drugs."

They were gathered in the living room, chairs pulled up to the fireplace. Ko was leaning forward and listening intently.

"Makes sense," she said. "If they searched the Legacy and drew a blank, they'd come to the only other place they know you'd be."

"Do you think they'll be back?" Doppler asked.

"It's a possibility…" Amelia frowned. "I mean, they didn't find what they were looking for."

"And they'll be wanting it," said Ko. "Criminal gangs don't tend to be lenient to people who fail them. Horrocks seemed to be taking it pretty personally."

"Why would that be?" said Doppler.

Ko shrugged. "Maybe he's in debt to the gang. Or maybe he would be in debt if he screwed up a shipment. Either way…it's a good reason for him to be cooperative when the police start talking to him."

"You think he'll spill the beans?" Amelia looked doubtful.

"Not all of them, ma'am. But it's possible, given that the alternative might involve a short drop and a sudden stop."

Amelia grinned wryly. "I suppose the prospect of a hanging does concentrate the mind wonderfully. But that still leaves us with the question of our next move if the smugglers are now investigating us."

"Yes, where are the drugs, after all?" Doppler looked at her. "I assume you don't have them."

"Of course not. They're with Dr Gray. But they can't stay there." Amelia shook her head. "Aside from the risk of the smugglers cottoning on to her role in this, having a stash of illicit substances stowed in her desk drawer is not a good idea on a naval base."

"Right." Ko nodded, grimacing. "Because that sounds exactly like something she'd do."

"So we should move them. The question is…where?" Amelia sat forward.

"Well…it's obvious, isn't it?" said Doppler.

"Is it?" Amelia looked around at him.

He nodded. "Of course. Put them on the Legacy. The safest place to hide something isn't somewhere they won't look, because they still might. You hide it somewhere they have looked. You said they'd searched the ship already. Why would they go back?"

Ko grinned appreciatively. "You've got a devious mind there, doc."

Doppler chuckled. "Just trying to make a contribution."

"Well, it's a good idea. Because there's something else we have to do." Amelia took a deep breath before continuing. "I think it's about time we smoked the smugglers out into the open. Got them to show themselves. Otherwise this could go out of control."

"And you've already got something they want," said Ko.

Amelia nodded. "Exactly. If they want those drugs…they can come and get them. But this time, we'll be ready and waiting for them."