"I'm the treefeeding Chairman, and if 1 go the expedition is official. Besides that, I've got to see to it that you return the CARM and the silver suit. The citizens would be crazy to settle for less. I hereby appoint you my Chairman Pro Tern until I return."

Coolly Gawing asked, "Anything else?"

"Yes. You don't get both Booce and Ryllin. One of them stays. There has to be some reason for the Serjents to bring us home."

"We can't do that," Ryllin said. "Booce takes care of Logbearer. I take care of business. I do all the buying and selling. Anyone who sees one of us in the Clump will expect to see us both."

Clave was massaging the lump on his thigh. Sometimes that helped him think. Think! "The citizens you deal with, the ... merchants? If they deal with Booce, what will happen?"

Ryllin said, "My husband is very good with machinery, not so good at trading. He did much better after he had the good sense to marry me. But Logbearer understands him, he-"

"Without you they'll get a better trade?"

"Damn right they will," Booce said bitterly. Then:

"Yes, they will."

"They'll like that? They won't be too curious about where their luck comes from?"

It was Ryllin who nodded. "It's all right, love. Think of a story. They'll want to believe it."

"But we're missing three daughters too!"

"The house. They must have finished building our house by now. The girls and I are with Logbearer or we're at the house, wherever you're not. Maybe I'm somewhere in the Market buying furniture. That was the whole point of this last trip, we were going to-we were-" She turned away suddenly.

Emotional displays weren't needed here! Clave said, "We're not hiding anything but the silver suit and the CARM. Otherwise we can tell any story we want. What's next? Gawing, Lawri, Ryllin, you back each other up when you go back to the tuft. Whoever's asking, the Chairman had to be talked into this, but I did agree, and I put the fine details in."

Rather called from aft. "Jeffer, the pipe's moored to the hull. We've got everything else, but it all has to be moored."

"Go ahead. I'll check you later. Gawing, are you willing?"

"Treefbdder. Well, it'll probably keep Minyafrom killing me ... Clave, will this work? Is it enough?"

"Only if we come back. We come back with the CARM and something else too. It almost doesn't matter what."

"Stet. I'm the Chairman Pro Tern."

Jeffer killed the main motor. "Somebody go out and get our lines untied."

Rather went. Debby joined Booce aft. They began mooring what remained of the cargo: two big hooks, spare clothing, sacks of undyed cloth, harpoons, crossbows.