Free Gray Panthers Captain Short Blade by David Guenther Page B

ceremony to encourage the couple to have children.”
    “That’s very interesting. Have you got a price in mind for it?” Peters asked as he started doing arithmetic in his head.
    “Sir, because it’s so rare, I was thinking eight thousand a bottle. It could take up to four years to have a shipment this size again. The process is very long and time-consuming, since only one order of monks on the planet makes the wine.”
    Guns, who’d been standing off to the side along with Jimmy, flashed the officer a grin and started his own sales pitch. “Mr. Peters, imagine having a nice little dinner with the hottest ball-breaker you know. You pour her a little wine, and then you pour yourself a little, and the next thing you know, well … you get the picture.”
    As soon as Guns paused, Jimmy piped up. “In truth, Mr. Peters, this wine should be priceless—and when word gets out it’ll bring top dollar since it’s so hard to get.”
    “Gentlemen, I consider myself a good man, and it would be reprehensible to let loose something like this on Earth,” Peters replied. The disgust on his face made it obvious that he would be no help.
    Short Blade was angry that his crew had interfered. He felt certain that a more subtle approach would have worked. Then his ear began to vibrate with an incoming message.
    “Captain Short Blade, please give Mr. Peters a bottle of the wine and let him know it’s for Wolfgang Bauer. I want it chilled, as I have a special lunch planned today.”
    “Yes, Mr. Bauer. That won’t be a problem,” Short Blade replied.
    Turning back to the procurement officer, Short Blade said, “Mr. Peters, if you could wait one moment, we’ll get a bottle for you to deliver to Wolfgang Bauer. He wants it chilled for his lunch today.” He made it a point to sound neutral, not wanting to alienate the man or humiliate him in any way.
    Jimmy had already opened one of the boxes and pulled out a bottle. Handing it to the officer, he said with a straight face, “Here you go, Mr. Peters. One bottle of Dixie’s finest.”
    Peters nodded and walked away, obviously unhappy but with his dignity intact.
    “Guys,” Short Blade began, “that’s the last time you interrupt me during a negotiation. I was going to use a different approach. One that wasn’t so obvious about the aphrodisiac effect of the wine. That way, he would’ve been able to accept it with a clear conscience. I’m just glad that Bauer was monitoring the transaction. He’s a major playboy from way back. One of the Dart pilots told me last year that Bauer had to relocate to the U.S. to avoid a number of paternity suits in Germany. I’m not sure why I remembered that.”
    Straightening his jacket and pulling down the cuffs of his sleeves, he continued. “I’m going to grab lunch with an old friend. Secure the ship, and please stay out of trouble.” He wondered if he was wasting his breath, but he decided to focus on his lunch with Major Paulsen instead of worrying about what they might do while he was gone.
    When he arrived at the restaurant, the major had already been seated at a table. “Short Blade, I’m so glad you could make the time to have lunch with me,” she said as she motioned for him to sit down. Her smile made Short Blade feel genuinely happy—something that seemed to be happening a lot less lately. The major had captured his father during the war, and she eventually became the warden of the POW camp on the lunar base. Colonel Blade had been the senior officer among the captives, so they had come to know each other well.
    “I couldn’t visit here and not see you, Major. How are you?”
    “I want you to call me Patricia. I’m fine. The downsizing of the Gray Panthers luckily had no effect on my position. We even still get an occasional new body at the camp.”
    “Like the lieutenant that greeted us?”
    “He’s a good boy. His dad was one of the shuttle pilots we lost during the war, so they decided they would hire him. But he