“Turn off the lights, Belle.”
In the darkness he wondered how Catherine had cast such a spell on him.
And if he ever wanted to break free.
Chapter Eleven
He woke up when the alarm went off this time. It jolted him into full awareness as the cabin lights rose to full intensity. For a terrifying second he was disoriented and blind, flailing around in the sheets.
Then he remembered who he was and where he was.
It wasn’t an improvement.
A fast glance at the clock showed he’d only been asleep for a few hours.
Belle’s voice was firm. “All crew members please return to their quarters immediately. All crew members please return to their quarters immediately.” There was a pause, enough to send a chill down his spine. “Please secure all loose items and prepare for impact.”
In all his years on Mercy ships he’d never heard that before.
Sean rolled off his bed and sprinted for the hatch, his heart hammering in his chest.
Catherine.
He yanked on the handle.
It wouldn’t move.
“Belle, unlock the door.”
“Negative.” There was no explanation, no negotiation offered.
“What’s going on?”
There was another long pause, enough to send Sean’s pulse soaring higher.
“Let me get to Catherine.” He tugged on the handle again, used all of his strength to force it to move. “She’s going to be terrified. Let me at least get to her quarters and make sure she’s not having a fit. She got the message, there’s only one thing she’s got to be thinking about.”
Silence.
“You can lock us both in there. Consider it a two-for-one deal,” he offered, unsure if Belle even knew how to negotiate.
He knew what Catherine had to be thinking, what had to be foremost in her mind.
They’ve come to finish the job.
“Belle you know how important she is. The captain told me to take care of her and keeping me locked in here isn’t letting me do my job.” He pulled on the handle again. “Let me get into her cabin and you can lock me in there, lock us both up until the crisis is over.”
Another few seconds of silence.
“Belle?”
The snick of the lock opening was faint, almost inaudible.
He heard it.
Sean pulled the door open and ran into the hallway. A sharp turn and he was at Catherine’s door.
He turned the handle, finding it unlocked.
“Please stay inside your quarters until further notice.” Belle’s voice echoed down the corridor. “Please stay inside your quarters until further notice.”
Sean moved inside. The door clicked shut behind him, cutting off the only source of light.
He stood in darkness.
“Lights. Dim.” He wasn’t going to risk smashing his shins on furniture flailing around looking for her.
The automatic system turned on the overhead lights at the prescribed setting, illuminating the arrival room. The table and chairs stood there, empty.
There was only one other place she could be and it wasn’t the business suite.
“Catherine?” Sean stepped toward the private quarters. “Catherine, it’s Sean. Are you okay?”
A sniffle answered him. “No. Not really.”
He stepped inside the room and forced himself to stop. It took a concentrated effort not to throw himself into the bedroom to get to her. Falling and tripping in the dark could injure both of them and he didn’t need another medical crisis.
It took only a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to the new lighting, enough to see her crouched in the far corner, the quilt around her shoulders. She wrapped her arms around her knees and pulled them closer, pressed against the wall.
He crossed the room in a flash and sat down beside her.
She let out something akin to a whimper, shaking perceptibly. The light traveling in from the receiving room cast her in the shadows and gave everything in the room an eerie, otherworldly appearance.
“Here, here.” Sean put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. “It’s nothing to worry about. Probably going through an asteroid belt or something like that. Belle likes to keep us all safe and doesn’t need us falling about in the galley or the landing bay if she needs to make some sharp maneuvers.”
It was all bullshit but she didn’t need to know that. The last time Belle had locked them all in their quarters had been when one of their own had been murdered. He didn’t feel like sharing that bit of information with the traumatized executive.
This was far, far worse than that.
Catherine looked at him, her eyes wide and sad.
She wasn’t buying his lies.
“I was watching more of that damned soap opera and fell asleep. The alarm went off and—” She shook her head, the tremors running through her body. “I was back on the ship in the fire and the smoke and I couldn’t breathe—”
“Ah, now. You should have been dreaming about handsome men seducing beautiful women if you were watching A Thousand Nights. What else?” He chuckled, seeing the first whisper of a smile on her lips. “It’s okay. You’ve been through a lot lately.”
She curled against him, still shaking. “I’m not used to this.”
“Being on a Mercy ship?”
“Not being in control.”
He could feel her low body temperature through the quilt, her instinctive search for warmth pulling him closer. Catherine let out a sigh and put her head down against his chest. The executive pressed against him, head tucked under his chin. She made a noise of some sort, something mumbled.
A vibration went through the ship, enough to send Sean’s pulse skyward again—and not for the obvious reason. He felt a warm flush and the sweat starting to bead on his forehead.
He was afraid.
For all the years he’d spent on the Belle and elsewhere as a courtesan on the Guild’s ships, he’d never felt anything like this.
Not since Sara.
He resisted the urge to call out and ask Belle what was going on. While the computer AI could easily multitask, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to have that discussion in front of Catherine.
The Belle didn’t carry life pods.
One lucky shot and the ship would explode, taking them all with her.
It’d be the best way to make sure she never lived to testify and after killing the crew of her previous ship these killers wouldn’t see any problem taking out a Mercy ship.
Catherine shivered against him. “How tough is the Belle?”
Sean forced out a chuckle. “She’s a tough old broad. She can take a lot and dish it right back out if need be.”
Her tone shifted to a no-nonsense one. “Don’t lie to me, Sean. The captain said you don’t carry any weapons. No Mercy ship does.”
“The ship doesn’t. We do.” He dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “Besides, Jenny’s on the job and I’m sure she’s rigged up something to throw at the bastards. I’ve never seen a better mechanic in my life—she’ll find something.”
They sat in silence for another minute. Sean listened to the steady breathing against his chest, sensing the tension in her body beginning to lessen as she came fully awake and came to terms with the situation.
Another few minutes passed.
“I didn’t want to sleep with him.” The quiet words echoed around the room.
“What?” Sean said, unsure if he’d heard right.
“I didn’t want to sleep with Harry.”
Sean cleared his throat. “None of my business. As you said.”
“It’s not that I don’t like men,” she said, a bit too quickly. “I like men. A lot.”
He laughed, despite the circumstances. “I never thought that for a second.”
“It was good to talk to him.” She sighed. “I needed the boost, needed the reminder that real men and women died on those ships. It made my presentation stronger knowing I wasn’t doing it for a group of faceless corpses. I was doing it for Max and Harry and his family and friends.”
“Good,” Sean replied. “It might have been cathartic for Harry as well. Get it off his chest and all that. I’m sure when he found out who you were and what you were doing he must have been chomping at the bit to get you alone.”
She snuggled against him and he couldn’t find any more words.
The ship shuddered again, not as hard a jolt as previously.
He wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or not.
Another five minutes of silence.
Another five minutes of quiet bliss with a beautiful woman in his arms.
A loud click announced Belle’s return. “The situation is stable. Please resume your previous activities.” Belle’s voice was emotionless and flat.
“You see? Nothing to worry about.” Sean didn’t move. “It’ll take a lot more to upset Belle than a handful of thugs knocking on the door.”
Catherine let out a sigh. “I guess so.”
She made no attempt to climb out of his lap.
He cleared his throat. “Belle?”
“Yes?” The friendliness returned.
“What happened?”
“The captain is on her way to your location right now. Please stand by.”
Sean crooked a finger under Catherine’s chin and brought her face up to meet his. “We should get up.”
She didn’t move, eyes locking with his.
He didn’t move.
He didn’t breathe.
“Thank you,” Catherine whispered. She hesitated before moving forward, brushing her lips against his with a feather-light touch that scalded his skin and branded his soul.
A second later she scrambled out of his lap and got to her feet, tugging at the quilt around her shoulders.
He exhaled, missing her touch already.
“We should meet her in the other room. The receiving room, I mean.” Catherine didn’t look at him as she turned away. “I need to know what’s going on. I don’t want you to be in any danger because of me.”
“Too late for that,” Sean mumbled as he stood up.
* * *
Catherine adjusted the blanket, taking deep breaths to try and calm herself. Her heart was racing and she had broken out in a cold sweat, seconds from a panic attack when Sean had come into the cabin and gathered her into his arms.
This wasn’t good. Not that she minded Sean seeing her at less than her best but she couldn’t be seen as a weak, whimpering baby by the captain—she was Catherine Rogers, one of the most important women in the business world. She ground lesser men and women under her heels for breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea. She was not going to be found crying and sniffling after another attack on her life.
Her first steps toward the front of the cabin were wobbly. She slowed down and focused on each step, gathering her emotions as she slapped on her mental armor.
There’d be plenty of time for a breakdown later. Right now she needed to know what was going on.
A rapping came at the front door. Catherine sat down at the table and drew a deep breath.
“Come in.”
Sam brushed one hand over her short red hair before sitting down at the table. Her expression didn’t change as Sean walked through the bedroom door and leaned against the wall, arms crossed.
Sam spoke first. “We picked up a ship on our sensors, right at the edge of our coverage. It wasn’t a drone, we detected life signs. Obviously they didn’t know their Mercy ships as well as they thought and we were able to get readings on them before they ducked back out of range. Belle judged it to be a civilian build, not a military ship.”
“Not a UNS ship.” Sean interpreted.
“No.” A wry smile appeared. “Given the situation we didn’t try to communicate.”
“You think it was a pirate ship?” Sean said.
Catherine sat across from the captain. She intertwined her fingers to keep them from shaking.
“Wasn’t sure but we weren’t interested in finding out. Belle pulled us off course and diverted us through a known debris field to play havoc with their sensors if they tried to follow.” She focused on Catherine. “There are clumps of debris throughout space made up of junk and crap that either fell off ships or their garbage dumped illegally before they made landfall. It’s easy to see on radar so it’s more of a nuisance than any real danger.”
Catherine nodded, hoping the captain didn’t see her shivering.
“If they do follow us they’ll have a hard time getting a clear reading and finding us until they get to the other side. It’s not a perfect defense but it’s the best we can do.” She looked at Sean. “Etts did a good job of running defense, blowing a path through the worst of the field. We still took some hits but the damage is minimal.”
“And we still have those men on our tail,” Catherine added. “If they know I’m still alive they won’t stop at a garbage dump to get to me. To us.” She sighed. “I’m so sorry for this trouble.”
Sam waved a hand in the air. “Nothing we can’t deal with. Anyone willing to take on the Belle is taking on the Guild and the UNS.” A sly smile appeared. “We’ll make them work for their money. I wouldn’t be surprised if your enemies aren’t getting a demand for higher payment, given the trouble we’ve been so far.”
A laugh escaped Catherine’s throat and it felt good, felt natural. “I wonder what the assassination of a vice president costs these days.”
“A hundred million wouldn’t be enough.” Sean stepped forward to stand behind her. “We’ll get you safe to the Justice base, count on it.”
Sam looked up with an odd expression, something Catherine couldn’t place. After a lifetime of negotiating deals and second-guessing people for a living, here was someone she couldn’t read and it was infuriating.
“I thought Belle told everyone to stay in their quarters.”
Sean stood his ground. “I wanted to make sure Catherine was okay so I asked Belle to let me in.”
“Okay,” Sam answered. The one word held a handful of emotions from anger to curiosity to humor.
She turned her attention back to Catherine. “I’ll be briefing the rest of the crew in a few minutes over the general channel but wanted to talk to you first. I think it’s best you stay here in your cabin from now on. Don’t go wandering ̓round the ship in case we have another encounter.” She pointed at the walls. “These cabins are supposedly the strongest areas on the ship. Plenty of armor on all sides and structurally sound, at least from what the manual says.” Sam smiled. “This is on Belle’s advice. If there’s a microleak and we start losing atmosphere Belle can seal you in and keep you alive until Jenny can do repair work.” She looked at Sean. “Same goes for you and the rest of the crew. Don’t ask me for much more technical stuff. It was hard enough for Jenny to explain that much to me.”
Catherine nodded. “Understood.” She paused. “Did you listen to my testimony before you re-transmitted it?” She was curious as to Sam’s reaction to having one of her crew included.
“Not my job. Not my concern. Right now my priority is keeping you safe and getting you to court.” She looked at Sean, her lips drawn into a tight line. “Be careful.”
Before anyone could respond Sam was gone, the hatch locking behind her.
“What did she mean?” Catherine asked. “Be careful about what?”
“She was talking to me,” Sean said. “Private message.” He looked over his shoulder. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”
He walk
ed back inside the bedroom they’d just left and went to the small bathroom. “Belle, a warm face towel please.”
Sean looked at his reflection in the mirror as the panel hummed and opened, revealing a neatly folded cream-colored square.
He knew what Sam was trying to tell him.
You’re playing with fire.
She didn’t have to be a Mercy woman to figure out what was happening here.
Catherine was sitting on the bed when he came out.
“I thought I told you to stay at the table.”
“I don’t like being told what to do.” She chuckled. “Besides, this is still my cabin. You want to give me orders, you take me back to your place.”
Sean blinked away a series of images, each more sensual than the other.
Tying her to the bed with silk scarves and devouring her until she cried for mercy.
Naked and on his knees in front of her, obeying her every command.
You didn’t work with a Domme next door and not absorb a little bit of naughtiness somewhere down the line.
He cleared his throat, imagining himself sitting on a glacier. “Here.” He unfolded the towel. “You’ll feel better.”
She took the cloth and patted her face and neck. “I never thought they’d do this. Be upset, yes. Hire the best lawyers to take me apart in court, yes. Send assassins after me and leave a trail of bodies behind, never.” She sighed as she wiped her eyes. “I can’t understand.”
“People are strange creatures.” He tugged the quilt away from her shoulders and spread it on the bed, taking care to smooth out the wrinkles. “I’ve seen people do things I’d never thought they’d do under normal circumstances. Reasonable people become unreasonable when you threaten something they love—not necessarily other people but items and money.”
“That’s the second time you’ve said something like that.” She looked at him. “Do you want to talk about it?”
He gave a choked laugh. “That’s usually my line.”
“If you want to talk about something I’d be willing to listen.” Her impish grin spread. “I can guarantee you total confidentiality.”
“Ah, now. Turning the tables, are we?” He couldn’t help smiling back, giving way to her infectious attitude.
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