I should have guessed, Leoh told himself. Aloud, he said, “Well, lieutenant, we’d better get to the shuttle before it leaves without us.”
They took to the slideway. Half a second later, Hector jumped off and dashed back to the communications desk for his traveling kit. He hurried back to Leoh, bumping into seven bewildered citizens of various descriptions and nearly breaking both his legs when he tripped as he ran back onto the moving slideway. He went down on his face, sprawled across two lanes moving at different speeds, and needed the assistance of several persons before he was again on his feet and standing beside Leoh.
“I ... I’m sorry to cause all that, uh, commotion, sir.”
“That’s all right. You weren’t hurt, were you?”
“Uh, no ... I don’t think so. Just embarrassed.”
Leoh said nothing. They rode the slideway in silence through the busy station and out to the enclosed berths where the planetary shuttles were docked. They boarded one of the ships and found a pair of seats.
“Just how long have you been with the Star Watch, lieutenant?”
“Six weeks, sir. Three weeks aboard a starship bringing me out to Perseus Alpha VI, a week at the planetary base there, and two weeks aboard the cruiser SW4-J188. That is, it’s been six weeks since I received my commission. I’ve been at the Academy ... the Star Watch Academy on Mars ... for four years.”
“You got through the Academy in four years?”