"Gorram it, Willow," Wyatt almost whispered, his voice unwontedly gentle. "You could have been shot and kilt, and there wouldn't have been nothing I could have done about it."

Willow looked away at his mildness,and hugged her ams around herself, knowing that the man before her was seething inside. Usha's histrionics had been hard to bear, but they'd been cathartic; once the storm had passed the actress loved everyone once more and all was well. Wyatt kept things bottled up until he needed the bottle itself, and Willow would have rather be yelled at, sworn at, slapped or shaken 'til her head rattled - anything that would be a release of the tension inside the Captain.

"And we've already got Pearson on board so we've got three days to figure out how to stop him from influencing the good folk of Frisco, " Wyatt continued in that maddeningly calm voice, " But that's only if we can get off this rock, and we've precious time to do that as it is. Now I've got to get that gorram dandy out of the lockup, and I doubt that sheriff will dance to our fiddle this time around. Now, where did you see Sam?"

"Just a few minutes from here, Edgar's Place. I could just see the mule in the distance as I spotted him, so it's along your path here. Sam's either in a fist fight or bedding someone by now...." Willow paused as a thought occurred to her, unpleasant as it was.

Wyatt stepped over to the comm, activating it with the ease of long practice. "All crew to the cargo bay, pronto."

Willow immediately began fixing her hair and adjusting her outfit, composing herself as she did so. it would not do for anyone to see her upset; it was bad enough that she'd upset the captain. While she did so, she carefully didn't look at the man beside her. When they'd first discussed Willow buying a share of the ship, they'd understood the complications that could ensue with a mixed crew. Over endless cups of tea, they'd agreed that Willow's amorous activities would not happen onboard, and never with any of the crew, on ship or otherwise. It was too small a ship to let jealousy and sexual tension aboard, and the Black was no place for grudges. What she was about to propose would go against her promise, but it would make the next three days easier for everyone else.

"Captain, if we want to keep Pearson away from the townsfolk, I could...you know, distract him. It would mean breaking our arrangement, but if it would help, I'll do it. "

Wyatt calmly looked Willow in the eye and gave a slow shake of his head.

"I'd sooner ask you to bed a Reaver, than that man, Willow. I conjure we'll figure somethin' out, just like always, without you havin' t' whore yourself out to the Devil." The statement was said softly, without malice or contempt. Wyatt knew what Willow had done--continued to do on occasion--and it didn't bother him none. He rarely used the word "whore" to describe any part of it unless he was really driving a point home. And in this case, the very thought of his little doctor alone with such a bloodthirsty killer was dirty.

The captain pushed his hat back on his head so that it rested along his hairline. This was going to be a trick hand of Poker if Wyatt had ever played one.

OOC: The way I read it and looked at timing, Wolf left before the meeting was called. If I misunderstood, then he can still be part of the meeting and the meeting with the dock manager can come afterwards.



Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, outside Asher's quarters, 1:25 pm, Day Three
The room that Andrew was given obviously belonged to a young man with a healthy libido and a great fascination with guns - judging from the decor. Neither imagery seemed to both the older lady showing him around.

“Thank you very much Ma’am! I hope to not be too much more of an inconvenience than I have already been.” Andrew said.

She wrote on her pad and turned it to Andrew "Passenger? Or staying? You know Wyatt from before?"

(you have time to answer before the call of the meeting)

Newhouse, Beylix, Inside Rocinante’s Cargo Bay, 1:40 pm, Day Three
Wyatt's call for all hands brought Ma and Andrew down the same corridor. Willow was already there, Sam was out in the town and Wyatt had seen Wolf leave the ship to talk to the dock hands about getting the fuelling going. The town folk had all vanished to their appointed quarters, except for John Blake who seem to be anxious about something. He moved quickly and with purpose to Willow's side.

"I'm sorry Miss Willow? Did I hear you say something about my son? I don't think I heard you right. Where is he?"

Newhouse, Beylix Outside Rocinante, 1:40 pm, Day Three
Wolf Looked around for someone to talk to but there seemed to be few dock workers around. He looked around for a few moment and spotted a pair of legs jutting out of an intake valve manifold on the Elephant class not far from Rocinante.

(Assuming something like "hey! What's going on here")

The legs pull back inside and then the person jumps out of the manifold to land near Wolf. It is a woman, grease covered in her workman's overalls and sweaty white t-shirt. A scarf holds back her brown hair and she looks at Fenris with green eyes, "Yeah yeah partner. I know. Listen - I got three workers out today 'cause they all ate steak at the Dew Drop but didn't ask steak of what. So I'm doing three jobs plus neglecting my own. Do you know how to operate a winch hose?" She asks with a smile that is both sincere and mischievous at the same time. ""cause I'se got as Fury 6000 ahead of you that takes liquid fuel. You fill'er up and then you'd be next on my list and I'd be eternally grateful."

(Yes, you can operate a winch hose. Lot of mining equipment use it.)

Newhouse, Beylix, Inside Edgar`s Place, 1:40, Day Three
Sam finished his drink and started thinking about leaving. The company good and he felt better than when he came in, but the girls were starting to look better and after a few more drinks, he'd be here all night. Over the course of the last few drinks he picked up a lot from these people - mostly that they all hate the sheriff, fear Pearson and wished that Weaver was running things here.

Sam said his goodbyes and exited the bar into the afternoon sun. He didn't run, but he walked with speed towards the space dock where Wyatt was no doubt waiting for him to get them the hell of this rock.

Newhouse, Beylix, Jailhouse, 1:40 pm, Day Three
Sheriff Arness walked into the jail house while whispering a merry tune. "I dare say Weaver, I think Darla will be walking funny for a good portion of the day. But I feel like a new man. I take the people are gone?

Ken looked at the sheriff plainly, "Yep. Off and gone but they haven't left planetside yet."

"And why not?"

Well, this young man who you arrested - his name is James Blake. Son of one John Blake, who I believe just hired Pearson."

"Really? Well that is interesting." Arness looked in on the gentleman in the cell that bowman once resided. he was lying on the bed in prison orange overalls and holding his nose. "Oh! Where's the suit?" the sheriff asked with the glee of a child at christmas time.

"Over in the closet."

"Fine. Get the port on the comm Weaver and get them to patch me a wave through to the ship they were on. I'm gonna change - after all, I'll want to look my best." He laughed to himself merrily as he snapped the suspenders on his pants off.

Newhouse, Beylix Outside Rocinante, 1:40 pm, Day Three
Wolf was not happy, call him mad at the world, as he made his way out of the Rocinante’s cargo bay having listened to Wyatt say that Pearson was to be left alone.
The Mechanic knew that the Captain was wrong on this one but the Rocinante was his ship and on it his word was law.

However once back on Frisco things would be different and Wolf would deal with Pearson then. His mind in an angry place he looked around for someone to talk to but the dock area seemed almost deserted as there seemed to be very few dock workers around. As he continued to look he finally spotted a pair of legs jutting out of an intake valve manifold on an Elephant class ship not far from Rocinante. Making his way over he addressed the legs.

“Excuse me, where can I find the Dock Master?” Wolf called up to the pair of legs.

Within a minute a grease covered woman in workman's overalls and wearing a sweaty white t-shirt landed next to him. A scarf holding back her brown hair, Wolf was for a brief moment caught in emerald green eyes.

"Yeah yeah partner. I know. Listen - I got three workers out today 'cause they all ate steak at the Dew Drop but didn't ask steak of what. So I'm doing three jobs plus neglecting my own. Do you know how to operate a winch hose?"

She asked with a smile that Wolf found both sincere and mischievous at the same time.
Looking around at the almost vacant dock area, Wolf could once again see the truth of the ladies statement.

“Since birth” He answered smiling back at her.

“Cause I'se got as Fury 6000 ahead of you that takes liquid fuel. You fill'er up and then you'd be next on my list and I'd be eternally grateful."

Having nothing better to do and still somewhat mad at the world, and truth be told finding her smile and eyes interesting, thought why not.

“Ok sure no prob, where’s the hose?”.........

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, outside Asher's quarters, 1:25 pm, Day Three
The room that Andrew was given obviously belonged to a young man with a healthy libido and a great fascination with guns - judging from the decor. Neither imagery seemed to both the older lady showing him around.

“Thank you very much Ma’am! I hope to not be too much more of an inconvenience than I have already been.” Andrew said.

She wrote on her pad and turned it to Andrew "Passenger? Or staying? You know Wyatt from before?"
His stuff stowed for now.. Andrew smirked slightly at the ‘décor’ of his apparent room mate… he couldn’t wait to see with whom he was sharing a cabin.

Reading the pad presented by Ma… he understood that she couldn’t talk… or maybe she could but chose not to… in either case he read it and then smiled slightly as he turned with her to head towards the cargo area.

“Yes I know Wyatt,” he said with a knowing smile, “I guess you could say I’m family… his wife was my niece.” The last words caused the smile to fade from his lips… at the mention of the her.

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Cargo Bay, 1:40 pm, Day Three
Wyatt released the button from the ship intercom just as Blake posed his question. Turning to face the townsman, the captain adopted a soft smile.

"It would seem that your son thought it wise to skin his hog leg in a very public bar and got himself bound by law." this is where the friendliness left his face even though the smile remained. "Funny thing was, Mr. Blake; he drew with the intent to do harm to my crew. Now, tell me why I shouldn't let him rot on this dirt ball while we make our merry back to Frisco, collect our pay, and leave the likes of him to his fate."

If Blake had been standing any closer the cool drifting on Wyatt's wind would have frosted him up real pretty like.

Willow nearly jumped out of her skin when Blake appeared at her side - her nerves were that frazzled. Even though she'd been getting herself ready for the crew, she didn't expect the round banker to pop up like a child's toy.

"I'm sorry Miss Willow? Did I hear you say something about my son? I don't think I heard you right. Where is he?" the man asked anxiously, and Willow recalled how excitable the man was. She was about to respond when Wyatt turned back from the comm.

"It would seem that your son thought it wise to skin his hog leg in a very public bar and got himself bound by law." Wyatt began in the same mild tone he'd used with Willow, but then it turned decidedly frosty.
"Funny thing was, Mr. Blake; he drew with the intent to do harm to my crew. Now, tell me why I shouldn't let him rot on this dirt ball while we make our merry back to Frisco, collect our pay, and leave the likes of him to his fate."

Willow blinked at the captain's words...it simply hadn't occurred to her that they wouldn't retrieve James, as unpleasant as it would make the return trip. She decided to take a few deep breaths and decide how she felt about it, while watching Blake closely for the onset of an angina attack.

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Cargo Bay, 1:50 pm, Day Three
"Funny thing was, Mr. Blake; he drew with the intent to do harm to my crew. Now, tell me why I shouldn't let him rot on this dirt ball while we make our merry back to Frisco, collect our pay, and leave the likes of him to his fate." Captain Wyatt asked the banker.

The smaller man didn't seem to upset by Wyatt's words, "Well Captain, I understand you position and can't say it isn't a thought that hasn't cross my mind. But I don't know if you have children Mr. Sung, but either way, they are hard to leave behind. Miss Willow? you mentioned the gun, could you describe it for me? I don't wish to sound like I doubt you but I paid for Jimmy's indulgences and I have a passing familiarity with it."

(Assuming Willow answers. She knows it is small, shoulder holstered, silver and the sheriff said it was a Newtech)

" Wuh de ma!" the Banker curses, " Kao! Alright. I need to send a wave to the sheriff and talk to him. Though I am not hopeful that it will work out well. My wife is going to kill me."

Newhouse, Beylix, Port Authority, Outside Rocinante, Cargo Bay, 1:50 pm, Day Three
Sam approached the ship and noticed there was a man waiting outside the doorway on the cargo bay. He recognized that it was the man he saw with Willow before but other than that the short oriental man was a stranger to him. Up close he could see the man was someone who liked his drink too much and must have been luckier before because he had a nice jacket, but that was about all. The man nodded a greeting as Sam came close.

"Hi. Just waiting for Willow." he said with a shrug.

(insert interaction but I am going to assume it is short and sweet- as in no killing)

Sam left the man behind and entered the one place he felt as home. He walked in on a staff meeting of sorts as he see Wyatt and Willow standing close to Mr. Blake the Banker. The captain looks pissed and Willow was looking like someone had spilled coffee on one of her best dresses. Ma and the guy they freed from prison - Andrew, were coming up fast from the catwalk. no sign of Wolf though, but he might be busy with the ship. Sam hears the banker saying "...I need to send a wave to the sheriff and talk to him. Though I am not hopeful that it will work out well. My wife is going to kill me."

Newhouse, Beylix Outside Rocinante, 1:50 pm, Day Three
Wolf twisted the sealant ring on the hose, and turned on the vacuum pump to suck the air out. Once the gauge showed negative pressure, he turned on the flow regulator for the liquid hydrogen, slowly at first because these units were old and could spring a leak - and no one liked super cooled liquid gas in the face.

"Hey!" Wolf heard behind him. He turned to see four men watching him from the shadows. Three were really big guys holding large industrial work tools. The other was very short, and the one doing the talking. In his hands was a sand belt grinder. "Hey you! You don't look like guild. Stacy knows better than to get non-guild workers. they tend to have, you know, accidents."

OOC: They are about 20 feet away but they cut you off from the Rocinante. You don't see guns but a lug wrench is a lug wrench.

Newhouse, Beylix Outside Rocinante, 1:50 pm, Day Three
As Wolf twisted the sealant ring on the hose to turn on the vacuum pump he waited for the gauge to show a negative pressure, turning on the flow regulator for the liquid hydrogen, at first slowly because these old units had a tendency at times to spring leaks, and no one liked super cooled liquid gas in the face.

As the liquid slowly started to make its way into the ship before him his thoughts strayed back to the female Dock Master and her eyes.

Tzao gao! I did'nt even ask her, her name But then a cynical smile crossed his face as he realized it did not matter as he would not be staying long enough to investigate the possible promise in her smile.

"Hey!" Wolf heard quite loudly behind him, and turned to see 4 guys watching him all holding work tools in their hands. Judging from the fact that three were large and one small, Fenris knew what they were at once.

How things never change Here before the mechanic was the classic goon squad, the small guy the ‘Boss’, the three large guys his muscle but what did they want with him?, Wolf got his answer quickly.

"Hey you! You don't look like guild. Stacy knows better than to get non-guild workers. they tend to have, you know, accidents."
Oh, ze zhen shi ge kwai le de jing jun... So this was a guild/non-guild worker’s issue huh, maybe those ‘sick’ workers were not really that sick after all.

“Is that her name?, thanks, I had forgot to ask”
Wolf replied as he stood up making sure the 4, now to his front, could clearly see the 2 holstered machine pistols and the handle of the sawed off pump action on his back.

“Look gentlemen I’m no dockie, union or non-union. I’m just trying to get this ship fueled so I can get my ship fueled and get the hell off this rock, Dong ma?”............

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Cargo Bay, 1:50 pm, Day Three
" Wuh de ma!" the Banker curses, " Kao! Alright. I need to send a wave to the sheriff and talk to him. Though I am not hopeful that it will work out well. My wife is going to kill me."
Andrew heard the Banker exclaim as he walked into the Cargo Bay with Ma. He took in the situation with a glance and knew that he was missing something.

“What’s going on?” he asked Wyatt, “I thought we were done with the Sheriff and ready to blast off this rock.”

(Assuming he receives and explanation regarding the Banker’s son in jail)

“That’s a pickle,” he said with a shake of his head, “The Sheriff doesn’t seem like a man your going to be able to move so easily.” He looked to the worried Banker.

“I think…” he trailed off a bit as he seemed to be thinking … then turned and headed back up the ladder towards the crew quarters.. “..I have to check something.”

He headed back to the room that Ma had showed him to… where he had put his gear… there he grabbed up his bag and sat down wherever he could… hopefully a desk if available… there he pulled out his Personal Cortex terminal … activating it he started a program to access the Cortex.

(PM to follow GM)

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Cargo Bay, 1:50 pm, Day Three
Wyatt met the older man's pleading gaze with a passive, dead look. Thoughts of being forced to leave his daughter Summer and his wife Eden behind flooded his mind like a cloud of dust on burn. For a moment, his heart was filled with an unspeakable ache, and the thoughts of giving up shriveled his heart. How he'd like to return home to that little patch of dirt, curl up on their graves and drink himself dead. Lost as he was in his own misery, he failed to catch any of the conversation between Blake and Willow until the banker made his exclamation, snapping the captain back to the present.

" Wuh de ma!" the Banker curses, " Kao! Alright. I need to send a wave to the sheriff and talk to him. Though I am not hopeful that it will work out well. My wife is going to kill me."

Andrew heard the Banker exclaim as he walked into the Cargo Bay with Ma. He took in the situation with a glance and knew that he was missing something. Wyatt glanced at the door as it swung open admitting Sam, and gave the pilot one of those looks that spoke volumes without needing to say a word before turning his attention back to the others.

“What’s going on?” Andrew asked Wyatt before the captain could respond to the request for a wave, “I thought we were done with the Sheriff and ready to blast off this rock.”

"Mr. Blake's son has gone and acquired your old room, Andrew," Wyatt drawled quietly while immediately beginning to contemplate their next course of action. He had to get Blake out of the room so that he and his crew could discuss what they were going to do about this current situation, if anything. He wasn't lying when he had asked why they shouldn't leave the man in the bed he'd made, but oh how he'd sorely love to make him pay for his mistreatment of Willow in a more personal way...

“That’s a pickle,” Andrew said with a shake of his head, “The Sheriff doesn’t seem like a man your going to be able to move so easily.” He looked to the worried Banker.

“I think…” Bowman trailed off a bit as he seemed to be thinking … then turned and headed back up the ladder towards the crew quarters.. “..I have to check something.”

Wyatt watched his wife's uncle depart back the way he'd come for a moment before turning to the older Blake. "You can send the wave from the cockpit, Mr. Blake. Ma? Will you please show the man the way, and the way back to his quarters once that wave's sent and received? Much obliged."

He didn't doubt that Blake was going to try and finagle his son's release through some bit of what passed for cunning, and he wasn't about to leave the man privacy when his kin had already showed them so much courtesy. Besides, if they were going to get mixed up in trouble, the retired actress would likely try to talk some sense into them. With Sam back, now all they needed was Wolf and they could be dusting this dirt ball...unless...

"OK," Wyatt began softly once Ma had escorted Mr. Blake from the cargo bay leaving just crew. "The short and sweet version is we've got a man that's surely gonna cause us no end of grief in trying to git back, and I'm not so inclined to hit that bee hive with a stick. Unless one of you feel partial to seeing what we can do to help Mr. Blake spring his son, and can convince me that Merciful Buddha will condemn my soul for an eternity should I not leave him to rot, then I say we find Wolf, make sure we're settled up here ,and burn Atmo' afore that sheriff gets another bright idea in his head that we're in league with Blake Jr."

Willow had been watching Blake closely, but other than a spot of high color on each well-fed cheek, the banker was actually dealing with the situation well. She revised her opinion of the man and wondered how many other scrapes he'd had to pay Jimmy's way out of. Perhaps she hadn't been so hard on her father, after all. There had been the incident with his best friend and business partner, though...

"What’s going on?” a man asked Wyatt as he entered the cargo bay from within the ship, “I thought we were done with the Sheriff and ready to blast off this rock.”

(Assuming he receives and explanation regarding the Banker’s son in jail)

“That’s a pickle,” the man responded with a shake of his head, “The Sheriff doesn’t seem like a man you're going to be able to move so easily. I think…” he trailed off a bit as he seemed to be thinking … then turned and headed back up the ladder towards the crew quarters.. “..I have to check something.”

The former Companion had already supposed that this must be Pearson, and decided to dislike him on the spot (despite the entirely yummy laugh crinkles around his eyes) when his comment about the sheriff gave her pause. Pearson would know the sheriff and not have to guess, wouldn't he?

"Captain-san? Did we pick up more passengers?" Willow asked, throwing a meaningful glance at Bowman's retreating back. " Aren't we going to be a little crowded if we do manage to free James? I think we need to determine something that the sheriff wants more than holding James. Perhaps Blake could insist that if James stays, so does he, and Pearson with him. Wouldn't it make perfect sense that a wealthy man like Blake would want his hired gun close by for protection?"

"While Blake has his call with the sheriff, I do have some unfinished business that James so rudely interrupted. You'll excuse me for a moment?"

OOC: Leaving room for interaction, but if DM wants to move us forward, Willow's next actions are to retrieve Grandfather's credits from her room, and return outside to pay Benny and obtain the chess piece.

Newhouse, Beylix Outside Rocinante, 2:00 pm, Day Three
“Look gentlemen I’m no dockie, union or non-union. I’m just trying to get this ship fuelled so I can get my ship fuelled and get the hell off this rock, Dong ma?”Wolf faced the dock workers with a cold hard look that he had used many times while serving time. A look that said I’d soon as kill you as talk to you.

The three guys in the back lost interest immediately. “Umm Boss?” they said taking a step back.

“What? You guys scared?” he retorts back without looking at them, his eyes on Wolf.

“Ummm Boss...that winch hose has a habit of leaking.”

“Yeah so....” the short man says but his voice trails off. “He’s not gonna use the guns because he’ll go up with them.”

“Yo Biggs!” A feminine voices shouts none-too-lady-like from behind. The woman that Wolf had spoken to before was coming up to them at a fast walk and looking pissed.

“Stacy! You know you can’t hire scabbies!”

“Ain’t hired no one Biggs! Now get back to work or help out.”

“Regs say you need a level four to operate a winch hose. I ain’t got one and neither does he?”

“Really? Did you check? Ask? Or just looking for a fight? Cause if you want one Biggs, I’m willing and able!” She stares down at him hard and the small man stares back. After a few moments, the three guys pull Biggs back.

“Come on boss. You touch her and you know what happens.”

The four exit the scene grumbling. Stacy wipes her brow with a rag from her pocket and then turns to Wolf, “Sorry about that. You know dockies, can’t live with them and not enough will fit in the turbine shafts.”

(comment, or question for her)

“Well I better stay with you so no one can complain about you doing guild work. Thanks for the help though. You minding the Firefly? Nice boat, reliable but got spunk.”


Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Cockpit, 2:00 pm, Day Three
Trish escorted John Blake to the cockpit of Rocinante. As they walked in, she immediately noticed the flashing light on the console noting there was a wave coming in. She stepped lightly to the console and checked the bearing – sure enough, local law enforcement. She looked back at John who took the pilot’s seat as it was closest to the screen.

“That’s him, ain’t it?” he asked.
Trish nodded her head.

“Do you have kids Miss?”

Trish stared for a moment as if thinking and then nodded.

“it ain’t easy is it?”

She shrugged and shook her head, and then, put her arm on John’s shoulder and gently gave it a squeeze. She then pointed to herself and the exit door.

“No. If I hit the wrong button in here I’ll need someone to help.” He sighed heavily, “Go ahead.”

Trish hit the connection button and moved quickly and silently to the shadows of the back of the room. An image came up immediately of the sheriff, sitting at his desk with feet up, looking very proud of himself. “Mr. Blake! So good of you to call!”

“Spare me the small talk Sheriff. You are holding my son.”

“Correct.” He answered slowly as if not expecting the answer, “My my my, news does travels fast around here.”

“What are the charges?”

“Beg Pardon?”

“What are the charges against my son?”

“Well. Carrying an illegal weapon for one and then threatening a young lady, a saloon owner named Darla and another person with said weapon.”

John pondered that for a moment. “And how do you wish to proceed?”

The sheriff smile a self indulgent leer of a grin, “Well, you transfer 5000 credits into an account I’ll give you and he is all yours.”

“I want to speak to him.” John asked evenly.

“In good time. Now shall we arrange....”

“I want to speak to him now or with a simple wave to an associate of mine, you will find every account with your name attached to it frozen from here to the core planets. Now Sheriff, and then we will discuss your money.”

The sheriff loses his grin rapidly as the scene is not playing out as he planned. He signals over to the deputy who goes over to the cell in the back. Soon, father and son face each other electronically. James’ face is bruised badly and he is dressed in orange overalls, not the suit he had on when John had left.

“Daddy? Help me.”

“Don’t Daddy me James. What is going on?”

James looks ready to cry, “It was that woman’s fault. Wllow. She’s not what you think Dad. She is an evil manipulator. She tricked me and stole what was rightfully mine. I think she’s some sort of government agent attempting to...” he trails off.

“Attempting what, James?”

“It’s hard to explain Dad but trust me, she is the one. She is manipulating me, you, that captain and the sheriff into believing her.”

The sheriff snorts loudly, “I came into the bar, and three witnesses say you pulled a gun on them and there is a pretty boy gun on the floor. This Willow must be some agent, junior!”

“Dad, you gotta believe me. Get me out of here.”

“That’s enough.” The sheriff waves to Ken who comes and takes James back to his cell. “Boys will be boys, I guess. Now, about the money?”

John stared at the screen for a moment without answering. He thinks about his son, of how he has grown up, of his wife’s need to give their child whatever he wanted. But blame his wife as much as he wanted, he was responsible for this. He didn’t teach James right from wrong; he taught him that he had a lot of rights and privileges.

“Excuse me Mr. Blake? You still with us” the sheriff asked after waiting for an answer.

John drew in a deep breath and made a decision, “No.”

“Fine, the account is ... what did you say?”

“I said no. James is an adult now and it is about time that he faces up to his own actions and their results. He can wait for the trial.”

The sheriff looked dumbfounded, “But....but...the council is on vacation. It could be months.”

“No it won’t sheriff. I will send a wave immediately to my good friend JW McClarrin. He is a senator and he will recall the council, especially given his personal connection to Newhouse.”

The sheriff stood up and leaned into the monitor, “McClarrin? How do you know McClarrin.”

“He’s a close friend and owner of the mine that Frisco was build around. Now sheriff, I expect that my son will receive the best medical attention for the injury I see he has, as per the alliance charter of rights.”

“Medical! Now see here!”

“And he will be treated in a humane and decent way or so help me sheriff, I will contact every close friend of mine across the ‘verse and make sure they know what type of sham you are running here. Do you get my meaning?”

“But...what about ...”

“And you will be able to gather up all your witnesses. Especially the young lady who was threatened and the other man?’

“What? I don’t ....she...that is...”

“Good day Sheriff. Oh, and I expect to speak to my son every 24 hours to make sure he is doing well. We can do that before or after your former deputy calls you.” John presses the button to disconnect the transmission. Not knowing which button to push however, he turns off the navigational computer. He flips another switch and the flood lights activate in the cargo bay. Trish is by his side in a moment and turns off the transmission. Once again, she gently taps John’s shoulder in sympathy.

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Asher’s Room, 2:00 pm, Day Three
It didn’t take long before Andrew was on the cortex. Piggy backing on the spaceport’s carrier wave, he stripped off any ID markers attached to his trail and slipped into the shell of the port authority courier interface. Most subsystems on the cortex had a back door routine built into the firmware for courier transmissions or else they would slow the bandwidth to a crawl.

I’m a little courier, short and stout. Don’t check my handle, no need to doubt. Andrew mentally chanted in his mind a rhyme a friend had told him about using this method. The problem with it was if another person tried to piggy back at the same time, and then you become obvious to every alliance security bot and engine within listening range – but he was sure not many people in Newhouse would be surfing the ethers courier style.

Sheriff Arness, first name Conrad, at first glance seemed to be nothing of interest: A rim sheriff with no attachments, unmarried, no family of record, clean record – too clean actually. Andrew activated a sniffer subroutine and then went digging himself. As soon as he started looking into the council and their history, security alarms began to sound and he was forced to use chaff programs to draw them off while he found the info he wanted to find.

The sheriff was a friend of a number of council members, and he had once made an attempt to become a council member before, except JW McClarrin blocked his efforts, using a majority vote and a number of his friends to vote against Arness. This was shortly before JW left Newhouse for Frisco, and reading between the lines. JW probably thought it was the end of Arness. He was gone when they set up Arness as sheriff, and he barely got that by a single council vote. For a year after that, those who had voted against the sheriff all either died or moved on to another planet. Once Luke came aboard, the council took to taking long vacations.

The sheriff had money – a lot of it. He had squirreled it away in a number of accounts and there was no way Andrew was going to try a bank hack without a day or two of prep. He was running his money through two shell companies to clean it up before depositing it into a number of accounts, ghost companies and paid a significant amount of money to a “registered” companion named Arlene Conrad, who Andrew was willing to bet didn’t exist or was dead. Companion accounts were considered sacrosanct, so authorities tend to leave them alone. This leads to some people using fake companions to hide money or finding a companion who passed away and maintaining the fiction of their existence. The Companion Guild would be very interested in knowing about Arness and Arlene, and a mislaid courier package would make that very easy....

OOC: I will stop here because I need Robert’s post in the cargo bay. Just keep in mind that at some point the flood lights will come on in the cargo bay and then shut off.

YeOlde – up to you what you want to do at this point. You can try to reveal to the guild what Arness is doing but it might not work, could back fire etc etc – there is risk. At this point, I have assumed you are only collecting data.

Newhouse, Beylix, Rocinante, Asher’s Room, 2:00 pm, Day Three
Andrew Bowman was surprised at what he was able to uncover about the illustrious Sheriff … he thought he might be able to use this if necessary … at the moment he was just snooping with no intention of doing anything with the information … but maybe it might help if Wyatt couldn’t find a way out on his own.

He made copies of what he found… ran off a copy onto a data disc and then backed out making sure that he covered his tracks and hide any sign that someone had been int the secure areas. Once safely out he shut down his cortex terminal and stored it all away … he slipped the data disc copy into his pocket as he got up and returned to the cargo area to see if things had improved or it the situation had worsened. He hoped that his information wouldn’t be needed as he wasn’t sure how the Sheriff would react to a blackmail attempt … it could make matters worse.

Returning to the cargo bay he noticed that tensions still seemed to be high… walking up to the group of Wyatt… Mr. Blake and the woman who Andrew assumed was part of the crew but who had not yet had a chance to be introduced to … he asked, “Well… How are things going?”

As Wolf watched the four men in front of him, ready to act as violently or not as needed, they began to argue amongst themselves. It was not long before the voice of the female named Stacy entered the mix. As Wolf remained silent a new exchange of words took place.

“Yo Biggs!”

“Stacy! You know you can’t hire scabbies!”

“Ain’t hired no one Biggs! Now get back to work or help out.”

“Regs say you need a level four to operate a winch hose. I ain’t got one and neither does he?”

“Really? Did you check? Ask? Or just looking for a fight? Cause if you want one Biggs, I’m willing and able!”

As Wolf watched with a hint of admiration, Stacy stared at the four dock workers hard with the small man trying to match it and failing. After a few moments, the three guys, deciding they had had enough pulled the one called Biggs back and quickly left the area.

“Come on boss. You touch her and you know what happens.”

As Wolf kept his eyes on the men until they were out of sight out of the corner of his eye he saw Stacy wipe her brow with a rag from her pocket and then turn to him,

“Sorry about that. You know dockies, can’t live with them and not enough will fit in the turbine shafts.”

Having a hard time concealing a smile Wolf decided not too as he answered

“No problem, kinda enjoyed in a strange way, it’s been one of those days.”

“Well I better stay with you so no one can complain about you doing guild work. Thanks for the help though. You minding the Firefly? Nice boat, reliable but got spunk.”

“Sounds good, by the way, the names Fenris Apollo, and yeah, I’m the mechanic on that Firefly. So if ya don’t mind my asking what’s the deal with your dockies?”..........