Dex still couldn't move. And he was trying. As the man he thought he'd left back on Beaumonde charged him, he only had time for one thought—there was no way it could really be him. As soon as the greeter started running, Rachel's hand snaked instinctively to her holster, but the man's shoulder knocked her off balance as he made a beeline for Dex. Barely able to right herself in time, Rachel could only watch in confusion as the man scooped Dex up off the ground, laughing. "Carl Dexter, you can huen dahn! I can't believe it's really you!" Dex tried to smile from his position hanging a foot off the floor. "You haven't change a whit, boy!" Dex gritted his teeth. "Yeah, and you're still strong as an ox…" As if it had only now occurred to him that his old friend might have trouble breathing, Woof loosened his grip and Dex slid to the floor. As soon as his feet touched the plating, the redhead's hands clamped onto the man's massive arms. "Never thought I'd see you again, boy, what you been doin' with yerself?" Dex gestured to Artemis' cargo bay with a certain sense of pride. "Own half this pretty little ship right here. I'm a real live mechanic now." "Ai ya, din't I always tell ya them fancy books was gonna come in handy?" Woof tightened his grip again, and Dex pushed away. "Hey, easy, easy, I still ain't breathin' right from the last one." "Sorry, I'm just…been a damn long time." "Yeah, last time I heard from you was…" "…right after you left when me and Rooster sent you that wave…" "…with the box turtle!" When they said the last line in tandem, both men broke into laughter. "Oh, it's great to see you, look better'n ever…" "So," Rachel turned toward Mariah in the loudest voice she could manage, "I think it's conceivable that Dex and this here fellow might have met before now, what do you think, Mariah?" "Actually, I think I'm rather inclined to agree with you, Captain." Dex blushed and shook his head. "Aw, ru he wu si, I'm sorry. Woof, this's Rachel Wu, cap'n of this here ship, and that's Mariah Boleyn. Rach, Mariah, this is—" "Addison Fenway Collins the Fourth, but y'all can just call me Woof." Rachel extended her hand, then immediately regretted it as her arm pumped up and down in the greeter's grip. "Mighty pleasure…Woof." Mariah watched Rachel rubbing her arm and offered her own hand only briefly. "So…how do you two know each other?" "We worked together," Dex muttered absent-mindedly before turning back to his friend, "but that was years back. How'd you even get off Beaumonde? Did the fam…" Dex's face darkened. "Did somethin' happen?" Woof squinted. "You didn't hear?" "Hear what?" "'Liance stepped in. Made a example, let everybody go." His white grin reappeared. "Twenty credits and a brand new suit for evry single soul, you imagine that sight? 'S all over the news waves for a spell, too." Mariah's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, 'let everybody go'?" The color drained from Dex's face, and Woof's grin faded. "Aw, wu dai, I, I thought…" Dex's lips pressed into a line. "Why don't we wander elsewhere?" Mariah tried to follow as the two men passed from the cargo ramp into the steel-ribbed mining complex, but Rachel's arm held her back. "Guessin' you aren't quite readin' the point o' their exit, are you, ci wa?" "Wait a minute, I think I deserve—" "An awful lot, seems t' me." Rachel dropped her hand and turned to the comm button. "Saul, you got walkin' to do, now's the time." "Roger that, sir. Be right down." Rachel nodded and cast one glance back at the debutante. "Man wants to tell you, he'll tell you. Dong ma?" As the captain's footsteps echoed back into the ship, Mariah watched Dex and 'Woof' fade into the half-light of the mine. Then, shaking her head in confusion, she turned back to the ship. The corridor was mostly empty, only a few miners and technicians shuffling back and forth as Dex and Woof walked. Looking down into the pain on his friend's face, Woof sighed. "I'm real sorry, man, I don't know what I was…I thought you woulda told…" "Rach knows. And our cook too. Guess it's my fault for never tellin' t'others." Woof nodded, walking for a moment in silence. "So how long you been with this Rachel?" Dex let out a long breath. "Must be…just about a year, now, since we bought the ship." Woof shook his head, smiling. "Carmen's gonna be all manner o' si yu jing you went and got yourself attached." Dex coughed. "What, Rach and I ain't like that, ce xin, we're just frien…" He stopped walking. "Carmen?" Woof smiled. "Carmen's here?" "Works in the saloon. Been lookin' for the right time t' bring it up. I'm gonna be her hero, too, bringin' you in." "So? How's she doin'?" "Not bad, not bad. Guai dan tried to look up her skirt some weeks back. Broke a whiskey bottle over his head." Dex shook his head. "Th' more things change…"