by Lily Thomas
Susan rolled her eyes. "There could be any number of people. I deal with hostile situations every day. I'm supposed to be the one who diffuses those situations, but that doesn't mean I give everyone what they want in the end. There are plenty of people who could be holding a grudge against me."
Too many to count. But anyone angry enough to risk kidnapping an ambassador? She couldn't think of anyone who would spend that kind of money to get their hands on her.
"But millions of credits?" Zoe rose an eyebrow. "Someone wants you, and they want you something bad."
Susan shrugged. "No one particular comes to mind. You'd think they'd prefer to get their hands on the president rather than the ambassador." He'd be worth more when it came to a ransom.
Zoe smiled suddenly.
"What?" Susan raised an eyebrow in question.
"We're all raised to think the president and the ambassador are these special people working on a higher level than the rest of us, and yet here you are in an escape pod with me."
Susan chuckled. "Well, I guess the truth is out. I'm sorry to disappoint you."
"Oh my god!" Zoe burst out.
"What? What is it?" Susan twisted in her seat, trying to look over at the display next to Zoe.
"The pod's sensors just picked up an outpost on an asteroid! It's small, but it's there."
"I hope they're friendly."
Zoe's brow creased. "Why would you even say that?"
"Sorry. In my line of work, you have to consider all the possibilities. The more angles you can see, the better you can predict people." But Zoe was right. She was a glass-is-half-empty kind of person.
"Well, we don't have much choice," Zoe said. "I guess you'll have to turn on your ambassador charm and convince them to help us."
Zoe turned back to the display and keyed in instructions to land them on the asteroid.
Susan sighed beside her. Hopefully, this asteroid really would be their salvation.
Chapter 3
"Are we landing?" Susan tried to peer over Zoe's shoulder.
"I have no idea what's going on. I'm trying to understand what the escape pod is telling me, but I can't read the written Daen'su language."
"Scoot over. I know enough to get us an idea of what it is saying probably."
Zoe wiggled to the side in the cramped pod and exchanged places with Susan.
"How do you know Daen'su?"
Susan shrugged as she settled into her new seat. "I've picked up the basics of a lot of languages. I have to to do my job. It's a bad idea to rely fully on translators. They can have an agenda, or be bribed or blackmailed."
Zoe let out a low whistle. "I never thought about how someone working for you might purposefully give you the wrong information."
Susan smiled. "Most of the time, if a translator skips something, they're just lazy, summarizing main points and ignoring things they don't think matter. But when you're working out agreements on behalf of billions or trillions of people, you want to know the details. I try to know enough of the basics to be able to point out a phrase that my translators didn't mention and ask for them to explain it."
"Someone's pulling us into their shuttle bay."
"What? Is it Je'lak's ship?" Zoe asked disappointment lacing her voice.
"I don't think so," Susan said. "This ship is about the same size, but it looks different." Susan pulled the ship up on their small screen.
Zoe peered at the image. "Maybe it's security for the asteroid?"
"Could be."
They watched as the ship's shuttle bay grew closer, like a mouth that was about to swallow them whole. The escape pod landed inside the ship and the shuttle bay doors closed.
"Should we pop the hatch and find out who pulled us in?" Zoe asked.
Susan gestured to the handle. "Go for it. They'll probably let themselves in any way." It was more than probable.
Zoe reached over, pulled open the hatch, and slid out of the escape pod. Susan exited right behind her, but she couldn't move.
"I think we might be in trouble," Zoe whispered.
"Why do you say that?" Susan asked as she plopped down next to her, then turned around from the pod. There were several Daen'su pointing plasma guns at them.
"Oh dear." Susan took in all the weapons that were trained on them. She loved her job, but this was getting out of hand.
"Yeah."
"A couple of human women?" A stocky Daen'su, obviously in charge, strode past the men with the guns. He regarded them with amusement. "This was an escape pod from Je'lak's ship, was it not?"
"Yes. We came from Je'lak's ship." Zoe informed the Daen'su standing in front of them.
"Ah, she speaks." The Daen'su clapped his hands together. "Now what was Je'lak doing with two human women?"
Susan stepped up beside Zoe and opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Zoe blurted out, "I am a doctor from Guit're, and this is my assistant."
Susan barely refrained from sending Zoe a puzzled glance. Good thing she'd abstained, or she would have blown whatever Zoe was trying to do.
"And why would Je'lak need a doctor and her assistant?" The Daen'su sent them a skeptical glance.
Susan got the feeling this Daen'su was going to be difficult to fool, but she hoped it would work. No need for more Daen'su to know who she was.
Susan pinched the back of Zoe's left arm causing her to turn in surprise. Susan continued to stare forward at the Daen'su with interest, but her hand hovered at Zoe's side in warning.
"Merchant," Susan said, "You have us at a disadvantage. We were indeed on Je'lak's ship, but we are not familiar with this vessel or her captain. As you can see, we present no threat to you. Can we not discuss this without the weapons?" Susan gestured at the Daen'su around them who continued to point the plasma guns in their direction.
The Daen'su listened carefully while Susan spoke. When she finished, he smiled and shook his head. "No. You will answer my question." He held up a hand before Susan could speak. "And before you ask, I will kill both of you if I don't get answers."
Zoe stepped out of Susan's reach. Now it wouldn't be easy for her to give Zoe subtle hints with a pinch. Hopefully, Zoe didn't say anything that would get them into any more trouble than they were already in today.
"I'm a prominent doctor from Guit're. I can only assume that Je'lak planned to sell me for my skill." Zoe informed him, her voice never waiving or giving away anything.
The Daen'su's silver eyes slid away from Susan and over to Zoe. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I don't believe you." Turning away, he called back to his men. "Let's take them to the brig. We'll see if a few days without food makes them any more cooperative."
"What!" Zoe and Susan backed up against the hull of the escape pod. "We're telling the truth!" Zoe insisted to the two Daen'su who came up and grabbed her.
"Don't fight it, Zoe," Susan called out, as they dragged her out of the shuttle bay. She hoped Zoe would follow her advice since they were outnumbered and outgunned. No need to cause a ruckus when they couldn't do anything.
The Daen'su led Zoe and Susan through the ship until they came to a room with multiple cells in it. The Daen'su tossed them into the cell nearest the door. Almost immediately, a blue force field activated over the cell entrance, and their captors began to exit the brig.
"Wait!" Susan called out. "Can we at least know who captains this ship?" She hoped he'd be a levelheaded man.
The stocky Daen'su stopped at the doorway and waited for the rest of the group to exit. He walked up to the cell entrance and examined them for a moment. "I captain The Lance. My name is Zrirc."
Never mind on the levelheaded captain. This man had been pointing guns at them in the cargo bay.
"You seem pretty interested in the ship that was holding us," Susan said. "May I ask why?" That kind of information could help them to get out of this situation. At least she hoped so. How much rotten luck could she have?
Zrirc stepped closer to the force field and met each of their
gazes with a hard stare.
"He has something I want," he declared.
"Could you be any vaguer?" Zoe arched an eyebrow.
Zrirc smoothed a strand of silver hair behind his ear. "I heard he had the ambassador of Earth on board his ship."
Susan didn't so much as flinch at the captain's words. This was no time to show that Zrirc's information was correct.
"That's absurd," Susan scoffed. "No one could steal the ambassador of Earth. She has to be one of the most guarded people in the Earth Alliance." Or at least she was supposed to be one of the most guarded people, but she was starting to doubt that. It had been too easier for her captors to grab her.
Zrirc shrugged his shoulders. "Let's just say I find it at least somewhat possible that one of you could be the ambassador. I happened to hear that Je'lak's buyer is willing to pay quite a hefty sum for her safe delivery."
Susan crossed her arms. "There could have been other captives on his ship. We weren't exactly afforded the luxury of a tour."
Zrirc smiled at her. "I suppose not."
Without another word, he turned on his heel and left the women alone in their cell.
"What now?" Zoe turned to glance over at her.
Susan shushed her quietly. Susan rushed over and brought Zoe into her arms for a hug.
"Um…Susan…" Zoe said. "I'm all right."
"Careful, Zoe," Susan whispered into her ear. "They could be listening in."
"Okay, what now?" Zoe whispered back, as she raised her arms to look like she was comforting Susan in return.
Zoe was catching on quickly, and Susan was glad for that.
"We sit and wait," Susan replied. "Maybe that oaf believes our story, but even if he does, he might try to sell us to a different buyer instead." Susan sighed. "Worst comes to worst, we tell him what he wants to know."
Zoe pulled away from her embrace and looked her directly in the eye. "That's not an option," she said. "I didn't go through all the effort to save your life and get you off that ship only to watch you get sold by someone else."
Zoe smiled crookedly. "You sure do attract a lot of problems."
Susan smiled back. "Maybe you're the one attracting trouble," she teased. She'd never had such ill luck until she woke up in Zoe's care.
Her expression sobered quickly, though. "Look, Zoe, I knew the risks of my job when I accepted it. I can handle being sold, but I'm not about to put your life in danger if we can avoid it."
Zoe hung her head. "Great. I tried to get you back to safety, and all I did was land us with a different bunch of money-hungry Daen'su."
Susan lifted up Zoe's chin. "Usually, I'm surrounded by a lot of bodyguards to handle these sorts of situations." Susan looked away thoughtfully. "Your Je'lak took my ship and my guards entirely by surprise. He is good at what he does." She hated to admit it, but the truth was the truth.
Zoe pulled back, releasing Susan from their feigned embrace and crossing her arms defensively. "He's not mine," she insisted.
"Oh, come on! You were a lot more than just a captive." Susan wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "I know what you did to get 'rid' of Je'lak so we could escape." Something naughty probably and Zoe didn't seem to be bothered by what she did, which made Susan think there was something more going on there.
Zoe threw her hands in the air. "Sure, I slept with him, but it wasn't anything special."
Susan's green eyes pierced straight through Zoe. "Pfft, don't lie to me. I was trained to read other humans, and you loooove him."
"You're acting like a child." Zoe rolled her eyes.
"I have nothing else to do." Susan ticked off on her fingers. "I'm trapped in a cell, going to be starved for several days, and will most likely give myself up in defeat." Susan winked at Zoe, as she slid down the wall to sit on the floor. "Too bad I don't have better company."
"We can't tell them," Zoe repeated.
"We might not have a choice." Zoe might not know about torture, but it had crossed Susan's mind. Zrirc didn't seem like the patient kind, and she was sure he'd resort to any tactic he had to get the information out of them.
"At least give Je'lak a chance to find us," Zoe urged.
"One day." Susan countered. She wasn't a patient person either. She had that in common with their captor.
"How are you going to tell when a day passes?"
Susan frowned at Zoe. "Fine, I'll give him until I get bored just sitting here in this cell." Which wouldn't take long, but she wasn't about to admit that to Zoe.
"Ok. It's been long enough." Susan was tired of staring at the grey walls and the blue force field. She'd taken a nap, counted the screws in the wall, and even tried to remember all the reasons she chose this job in the first place.
"What?" Zoe raised her head from where she'd been resting. "It hasn't been more than a couple of hours."
Susan stood up and started banging on the side of the cell. Time to get herself out of here and admit who she was. It couldn't be any worse than sitting in a cell staring at grey walls. Zoe might say it had only been a couple of hours, but it felt like days. It wasn't like either of them had a watch, so no one knew for sure how long they'd been in here.
"Hello!" Susan called out at the top of her lungs. "I'm the ambassador of Earth! Did you want me? Ok! Here I am!"
"Susan, give it a few more hours," Zoe pleaded.
Susan shook her head. "There's no point in drawing out the inevitable, Zoe," she said. "If we wait much longer, I'm fairly certain that unpleasant Zrirc fellow is going to get impatient. There are more direct methods of obtaining information than slowing starving us. Do you want him to start torturing us?"
"I thought you were taught ways to withstand torture," Zoe insisted stubbornly.
"Yeah, but you aren't, and even I won't last forever. Let's deal with this on our terms. There's a good chance he'll let you go, and then maybe you can get the word out to the Earth Alliance."
The door to the brig opened, and Zrirc strode in. He grinned widely as he eyed Zoe and Susan in their cell.
"I hear one of you has confessed to being the ambassador of Earth." He leaned forward on his toes. He was practically bouncing in excitement. Probably couldn't wait to sell her and get his money.
Zrirc hooked his thumbs in his belt. "I can't tell you how pleased I am that we'll be able to deal with this matter civilly." A smile teased his lips. "Now, which one of you is the ambassador of Earth?" He glanced back and forth between the women.
"Me. I am." Susan stepped forward.
Zrirc eyed her. "Can you prove it?"
"Show my face to the buyer, and he'll know it's me." Susan raised an eyebrow. "Assuming the buyer knows what he's purchasing."
Zrirc laughed. "Good point!" he admitted. He rubbed his hands together in obvious excitement. "Well," he said. "Let's find out if you're telling the truth."
Chapter 4
"I can't believe you did that." Zoe's voice filled with absolute disbelief.
"At least we have food now." Susan munched down on one of the bars Zrirc had tossed into their cell.
"I wouldn't call it food." Zoe eyed her bar dubiously.
"Hey, if you don't want, then I'll take it." Susan was starving.
"No, you're right," Zoe said. "We have to keep our strength up." She tapped her ration bar, or whatever it was, against Susan's in a sarcastic toast.
"Then stop complaining about it." Susan grumped.
The door to the brig opened. Zrirc walked in, followed by two of his Daen'su crewmen.
"Time to go, ambassador." He announced.
"Wait." Zoe put down her bar. "You don't have to do this. I'll give you money if that's what you want."
"You have twelve million credits?" Zrirc asked her.
"No."
"Then stop talking."
The force field fell, and the crewmen stepped forward, each of them grabbing a woman.
"What are you doing with Zoe?" Susan's green eyes went wide. She hadn't thought about Zoe's safety. They had no use for Zoe.
She was the valuable one since someone was willing to pay twelve million credits for her, but no one was offering up money for Zoe.
"We have no use for a human woman on this ship." Zrirc shrugged indifferently. "She will be placed inside your escape pod and blown back into space."
"To float around and die?" Susan glanced over at Zoe. She shook her head frantically, sending her frizzy red hair bouncing. "She could come with me. Give the buyer a two for one deal."
Zrirc shook his head. "My buyer doesn't like surprises." He gestured to the Daen'su holding her. "You can help me escort the ambassador to our buyer." He turned away, waving over his shoulder to the Daen'su holding Zoe. "Take the other woman to the pod and release her."
He pulled a gag out of his pocket and tied it around her face before she knew what was happening. Susan mumbled some curse words from behind the gag, but it came out as a jumbled mess of sounds. He took out some rope and tied it around her wrists.
She glared at Zrirc over her gag. When she got out of this situation, she'd see that he faced justice.
Susan looked up at Zrirc, as he pulled her through the corridor. She was about to be sold to her buyer, and her heart thundered away in her chest at the unknown that faced her.
Zoe had been taken to another part of the ship, and Susan hoped Zoe would continue to breathe. This Zrirc was a heartless man. He would be willing to do whatever to get money and get rid of people if they weren't of value, even if they were women.
He led her up to an open hatch where another silver-haired Daen'su waited by an airlock. Was he her buyer? She didn't recognize him, and she'd figured she would know the person who wanted to buy her.
But this Daen'su standing in front of her didn't ring any bells.
"Where's my money?" Zrirc kept a firm hand on her upper arm.
The Daen'su standing across from him threw a chip over to Zrirc. Zrirc placed the chip into a device and whatever he saw on the screen caused a large slow smile to grow on his lips.
