"Um, I only wanted to give you the inventory and supply list you requested." Ignoring the sprite, Noli thrust out the piece of paper is if it were a shield between them.

"Oh, thank you." Vix took the list from her.

Noli took a moment to admire the panoramic view from the small bridge, gazing at the blue sky and the white clouds. "It's so pretty up here."

Jeff nodded from his place at the helm. "That it is. Is there anything you need? I can't guarantee I'll have time, but I'll try." His eyes fell to her waist cincher tool-belt. "Oh, now that's a good idea. I can see a few people wanting one of those."

She smoothed the brown leather. "It's useful. My friend made it. Mama hates it." A pang of sadness shot through her. No. Her mother was better off in Boston without her. Noli thought for a moment. "I forgot my toothbrush. Also, I'd like a plant, if you please-a little one is fine."

"A plant?" Vix scoffed as she tucked away the list. She eyed Noli's tool-belt. "I can see Hittie and Hattie wanting matching ones."

More female air pirates? She met Vix's eyes not about to be made to feel embarra.s.sed for her request. "I miss being around plants and trees."

"Perhaps Noli could design a shipboard garden, like the one they have on the Vertragus?" Jeff suggested. "It would be nice to have fresh food."

Vix tilted her head, a lock of blue hair nearly covering her eyes. "Perhaps. Conditions up top can be tempestuous; it would need to be st.u.r.dy."

"I can design something along the lines of a green house ... " Noli could almost see the structure in her mind-light, durable, and making good use of s.p.a.ce.

Jeff grinned. "I know you'll come up with something, you're an ace engineer."

"We're headed toward Denver, right, Captain?" Noli rocked on the heels of her boots.

Vix sighed, running her hand through her hair as if trying to tear it out. "Yes, and if we have time you may be able to get off ship, but don't count on it."

Noli bit back a pert retort. Always with the a.s.sumptions. "Actually, I need to spend some quality time with the engines and do a complete diagnostic, which means the engines will be out of commission for at least a day, possibly two."

"What's wrong with the engines?" Vix frowned, one hand on her hip as if she were unsure if Noli were fabricating this or not.

"I ... I'm not sure. Something feels-and sounds- off." Noli clasped her hands behind her back and tried not to fidget, since her explanation sounded rather ridiculous. Winky kept a.s.suring her nothing was the matter. "I want to head off any problems at the pa.s.s. Also, depending on what it is, I may need parts-or have to make parts, so it might be beneficial to be in a place where at least I have access to items I can re-engineer or repurpose."

"We don't have time for you to muck around with the engine simply because," Vix huffed from her captain's chair. "Is there a problem or not?"

"That is why I need to run the diagnostics, Captain," she returned. "In order to accomplish that I need to take the engines apart."

"What are your suspicions?" Jeff asked as he steered the ship.

"Engines in raven-cla.s.s ships are notorious for overheating. I'll start there. It could be as simple as a motor being out on the multi-fan cooling system."

"That's easy enough to fix, right?" Vix's look dared her to say anything but yes.

"Of course it is, Captain." That was an easy fix. In all honestly, Noli didn't think that was the problem. But she had to tell them something other than it felt wrong.

Vix waved her hand in dismissal. "I'm sure you have something to do. As you were."

"Yes, Captain." Noli returned to her quarters. Now that she'd attended to all her a.s.signed tasks, perhaps she'd finally have time to make her little room more comfortable, and darn a small mountain of socks.

Yes, darning socks was infinitely better than cleaning the head.

Noli attached a wooden box to the door of her little room. There were two boxes, one said in and the other out.

"Might I be of a.s.sistance, Miss Noli?" Winky appeared with a crate under his arm, hat askew, gla.s.ses halfway down his nose.

"I'm almost finished, though I appreciate the offer. These are sewing boxes. The in box, the one on top is for things you need me to fix, the out box is for things I've finished. That way no one needs bring their mending to supper." Noli grinned at Winky as she tightened the last screw holding the box to the door. At supper last night the captain had not been amused when Thad brought a bag of socks to the table.

Winky nodded and held up the crate. "Smart idea, Miss Noli. I found a few things on the ship that might be of use to you."

"You did?" She tucked the screwdriver into the loop on her tool belt and peered into the crate which seemed to hold a mound of burgundy fabric.

"These were left by one of the previous occupants. Yer a bit more... refined, but I thought you might appreciate them."

Noli took the offered crate. "That's very nice of you to think of me."

Winky blushed to the roots of his white hair. "Just trying to make this place feel a little more like home. It's probably not what yer used to."

No it wasn't. "I'm getting adjusted."

"The previous owner used the fabric as curtains. I thought you could drape it around the walls to make it look ... fancy." He blushed again.

"What exactly did the previous owner do?" Noli's lips pursed, trying to think of why someone might need curtains on an airship.

Winky looked at the ground and stammered, "Why this was before Captain Vix took the helm, but this ship has held a soiled dove or two in its time."

Soiled dove? Winky turned so red that Noli was afraid if she asked him what it meant he might explode. Besides, she had a good idea what a soiled dove could be.

"I'll help you ... If you'd like" Winky added.

Noli could already imagine how much nicer the room would look with the fabric on the walls. Decorating also made the sprite happy. "Why, Mr. Winky, that sounds like an excellent idea. Let's get started, shall we?"

Noli sat at the workbench in her room, frowning at the open magazine. A large wire spool sitting on the worktable served as a base, since she needed something round with a hole in the center in order to weave her watch chain and had no hatbox to sacrifice. She put her finger on the red strands she was weaving together and re-read the previous step in the article.

Ah, that's what was wrong. She undid the last row, redid it, and continued on. Weaving the watch chain out of Charlotte's hair was going to take longer than expected. Fortunately, the sprite adored this craft and Noli used it as a bribe to keep her in check, especially since she detested thinking or getting dirty-pretty much everything an engineer did. The last thing Noli needed was the sprite attempting a takeover as she tried to make repairs.

Someone knocked on the door. "Noli?"

"Come in, Jeff." Noli continued weaving the red hair in the intricate pattern. "How did everything go?" They'd gone aloft awhile ago, presumably headed for Denver.

"Very good." Jeff strode in and surveyed her handywork, hands behind his back. "Amazing what you did you this place. Where did the fabric come from?"

The burgundy fabric, only a little faded and dusty, had been draped about the walls along with the accompanying swags and ribbons. The effect was quite fancy, like living in a spice box.

Noli looked up at Jeff as she wove. "Is a soiled dove what I think it is?"

Jeff's lips puckered. "Where did you hear that term?"

"Winky brought me a box of things that belonged to a soiled dove who once lived aboard. That's a woman of ill-repute, right?" She marked her place with a cog so she wouldn't lose her spot in her intricate weaving.

"Um, yes." He squirmed in place, obviously uncomfortable with the topic. "And I should talk to Winky," he muttered under his breath.

"I thought it was sweet, it was only a few baubles, the fabric, a hair brush ..." Some very risque novels she wouldn't mention. "I'm not actually sure what this is." Noli held up a cylindrical object about a foot long made of smooth, hard material.

Jeff s.n.a.t.c.hed it out of her hand. "I'll take that."

Noli blinked. "But what is it? I've never seen anything like it before."

A look of terror spread across his face as he tucked it in one of his vest pockets. "Um, I'll let Vix explain that to you."

Like she'd ever ask her. Her brother's discomfort at the plain object seemed odd. What could it be?

"You like the room then?" Noli changed the subject. The sprite preened, quite happy with her decorating, given what they had to work with. Her books, tools, and few toilette articles shared shelf s.p.a.ce with books and tools left by the previous occupants. Clothing had been stowed in her footlocker. The doll Jeff won her sat on her hammock along with her pillow and blanket.

Jeff took everything in, one hand rubbing his chin, which was in need of a shave. The other hand stayed behind his back. "How much did you manage to fit in that bag? A pillow and blanket, several dresses, books, hats ... is that father's tool box?"

Whoops. "I ... I told you, it's bigger than it looks." She didn't meet his eyes.

"I brought you a present." He held out his other hand and presented a pot of tiny pink roses, each bloom a minuscule replica of what she grew in her garden in Los Angeles.

"For me?" She took the pot and inhaled their sweet scent. "Oh, Jeff, I appreciate this so much. When I asked you to bring me a plant, I didn't think you'd bring me roses. I've never seen ones this small before. They look like doll roses."

They are darling, the sprite gushed. Even the high queen doesn't have tiny roses in her gardens.

Jeff beamed at her praise. "I knew you'd like them. I bought them off a Swiss merchant. The windows of his ship were full of them."

Window boxes on an airship? What an excellent idea.

"They're wonderful." She sat them on the workbench next to her weaving.

"What are you making?" Jeff squinted at her project.

Noli repositioned the roses. So, so pretty. "A watch chain."

"Oh, is that what it is?" He made a face as if he'd never seen hair weaving before-which he, being a boy, may not have. "Supper's about ready. Asa isn't a bad cook, he just prepares strange meals."

She stood, smoothing the wrinkles from her dress. "I'm still wearing my work dress, should I change?"

Her cheeks warmed. How idiotic she sounded.

Jeff made a concerned face that was becoming all too familiar. "No, Noli, you don't have to dress for supper here."

"Of course, how silly of me." Part of her wanted too. The sprite had slipped a couple of nicer gowns into the bag.

He offered her his arm. "Let's see what strange concoction Asa made tonight."

They strolled into engine room. Noli frowned and went over to the hybrid engines which were part inside and outside the back of the ship. The off-kilter hum filled her ears.

"Can't you hear it, Jeff?" She put her hands out, not quite touching the large one in the center. "Something sounds wrong."

Jeff shook his head. "I'm a pilot, not an engineer. If you think something's wrong, I'll make sure you get time to do your diagnostic."

"That would be helpful," she replied as they left the engine room. "I'd hate for something to go wrong with the engines when we need them most."

"And some for little sister." Asa put a spoon full of yellow stew on Noli's plate then pa.s.sed the bowl on to Thad. His face screwed up in distaste, but he plopped several spoonfuls on his plate anyway.

"What is it?" Noli took a piece of flat bread off another plate then pa.s.sed it to Jeff.

Asa smiled at her, dunking his bread in his food. "Just try."

She tentatively took a bite of the thick stew. The strange spices exploded across her tongue and she nodded. "This is delicious. Not like anything I've tried before, but very good."

Everyone talked about their plans for Denver. Apparently they were docking in Denver for a few days. Excellent. First order of business, figuring out why the engines were unhappy.

After supper Thad brought out a bowl full of apples.

Vix eyed them dubiously, then took one. "Did h.e.l.l freeze over?"

"I just thought I'd share. Got them in port." He offered the bowl to Noli. "Little sister?"

Noli took one of the shiny red apples. "I appreciate your generosity, Thad."

He pa.s.sed around the bowl. Winky took his and retreated into the bowels of the ship where he spent most of his time. The captain bit into hers. Noli withdrew her knife from her boot, cut a piece off, and popped it in her mouth, savoring the sensation of the sweet, crisp flesh.

"Mmm, these are so sweet." Noli cut off another piece and ate it. She realized everyone stared at her and squirmed. "Did I do something wrong?"

"You cut your fruit with a knife before eating it?" Vix sneered.

"Of course." She didn't see the problem, though she should be using a fork as well.

"She can cut her apple with a knife if she'd like." Jeff squeezed Noli's shoulder. "Every time I bite into a piece of fruit I can hear my mother lecturing me in my head."

Noli chuckled, imagining her mother snapping Jeffery Cornelius Braddock, what sort of gentleman are you from across the table.

"That's an exquisite knife. Where did you get that?" Jeff peered at the little knife. Green stones formed a pattern on the golden hilt.

"It belonged to Charlotte." Noli sliced off another piece of apple.

"That is quite fancy," Asa replied as he cleared the table.

"Eh, it's a girl's knife, so little and sparkly." Thad took a swig from his flask. "Couldn't even clean your nails with such a bitty thing. Not good for nothing but playing darts and slicing apples."

Noli examined the bejeweled, filigreed knife about as big as her index finger. "Well, Charlotte was a girl, though she preferred cribbage to darts."

After Charlotte had died, James gifted it to her, saying Charlotte had wanted her to have it. Noli loved it because it was Charlotte's. The sprite liked it because it was shiny.

Also, wouldn't an air pirate have a boot knife?

"We should teach her how to throw knives," Asa replied. "So she can defend herself."

Thad nodded. "And win money in air terminal bars."