Nebula Nights: Love Among The Stars

by Melisse Aires

  But maybe that was days ago. She didn't even know how long she'd been out.

  She let the tears come. Logan would know by now that she was gone. Did he care? Was he worried about her, or relieved that she was gone. 'She's no one important. Pretty and good in bed, that’s all.' That's how he'd described her to his own brothers.

  What about his tenderness, the way he smiled at her and laughed at her jokes, the way he made love to her, ensuring she found pleasure every time—did that all mean nothing to him?

  She couldn't think about that now.

  What about Rak? And Taara, was she all right? She'd have told Rak about Tal taking Kiri out of the club. And Rak would've told Logan immediately. Did they think it was her own fault, for trusting Tal?

  Maybe they even thought she'd gone with him voluntarily. That she'd chosen him over Logan. Logan. She wanted his arms around her. Wanted his deep voice assuring her he had her, and she was safe on solid ground, not on an old scow somewhere in deep space, where God only knew the perils that awaited.

  The slow tears leaking, she lay there, staring into the darkness. Damn Tal Darkrunner to the seven hells.

  He'd given her back a piece of her past, but he'd stolen her present and possibly her future.

  * * *

  Kiri worked through another long day of serving coffee and food, cleaning and serving more coffee and food.

  The sirens went off again as they were preparing supper. Gravia peered out a porthole and grunted, "Asteroids."

  Kiri fought the instinct to dive under the nearest counter. "Will we collide with them?"

  Gravia smiled cruelly, her jagged yellow teeth gleaming. "Yeah. And they'll rip big holes in the side, and you'll fly out and explode—"

  "Enough!" Gim bellowed. Gravia jumped, and so did the other workers, gaping at the stout cook. He shook a dripping spoon at the Mau. "You want java? Then shut up."

  To Kiri's surprise, the threat worked. The Mau closed her mouth and returned to her duties. Gim winked at Kiri and went back to stirring his vat of stew.

  "We ain't collided with any space rocks yet. Reckon Captain knows what he's doin'," he said placidly.

  Peering out a porthole as jagged, gleaming asteroids sailed by, each one appearing more deadly than the last, Kiri prayed Gim was right. But then they were through the belt, and the ship's engines still throbbed. So she guessed they were okay—until the next thing happened.

  By the end of the meal, Kiri was grubby, sweaty and tired enough to sleep sitting up. But she ate the food Gim gave her and then headed for her cubby. She needed a shower-dry, but she'd settle for washing off with cold water and rinsing out her undies before she collapsed on the hard cot.

  A knot of crewmen were hanging about in the corridor. A couple of them eyed her as she passed and the hair stood up on the back of her neck. She cast a hunted look back at them, and that's when the attack came. Rough hands grabbed her and yanked her into a sleep cubby. She was slammed against the wall and released.

  She whirled, ready to fight. Oh, quark. Her usual luck lately. She'd been grabbed by Serpentians, male and female, watching her with feral smiles. How had Rak phrased it? 'Too fast for you, so stay away from them.'

  The male flicked his long, forked tongue at her and smiled. "Hello, pretty. We want to play."

  Chapter 35

  Like hell the Serpentians wanted to 'play'. Cold sweat broke out in Kiri's armpits, and trickled down between her breasts. She knew what that meant, and it was no game.

  The only things she had going for her were her experience growing up in the rough and tumble of the state dorms, and her tiny gift from Rak.

  "Oh, yeah?" She sneered back. "Captain says I don't have to play. He says leave me alone."

  The female tossed her auburn-braided hair, taunting Kiri with a smile. "Well, then, little Earthling, we'll make a deal. Just you give me those fine leathers of yours. Look much better on me."

  Kiri slid her hand into her pocket. "Come and get them."

  "Drop the pants first," the male said, his hands on the fastener of his own pants. "Ain't making no deal."

  The woman shoved between him and Kiri. "I want her clothes in good condition. You'll rip them."

  Fear and rage spilling adrenaline through her in a flood, Kiri waited until the woman was close to twist the tube in her pocket. Between their bodies, Kiri jammed the tube against the woman's ribs.

  "A-aah!" The Serpentian arched back, her eyes rolling back, body rigid, quivering like a laser beam. A strangled hiss of agony emerged from her throat. Kiri shoved her, hard.

  The woman toppled to the floor, gasping for breath, and Kiri dodged toward the door.

  "What'd you do to her?" the male demanded, his face contorted with rage. He strode toward Kiri, his pants gaping obscenely. "You bitch, now I'm gonna hurt you."

  Kiri opened her mouth and screamed like a banshee. "Help! Rape."

  The Serpentian sprang at her, and she braced her back against a cupboard and kicked her legs at him, hard. He fell back and she grappled for the hatch. "Help me!"

  He sprang again, on her in a flash, his hand closing around her throat in a painful vise. Kiri shoved the shocker against him, but although he let out a hiss of pain, he struck downward, knocking her arms down so hard they went numb. The shocker clattered to the floor and rolled away.

  He grinned ferociously, flicking his leathery tongue out to lick her cheek. "Now you're mine." His musky scent overwhelmed her and she turned her face away, grimacing as she struggled.

  The hatch slid open behind Kiri. "What the seven hells is going on in here?" a woman demanded.

  "Get out." The Serp grabbed Kiri by the arms, jamming his cock against her belly. "This one's mine."

  "Let her go, you stupid snake." It was the dark-haired Serpentian woman. Her face was tight with disgust—she clearly wasn't in on the attack.

  Kiri dug her nails into the man's ribs as hard as she could, choking on the pain in her throat and his fetid breath. She jammed her knee up between his legs, and he grunted in pain as her knee struck his balls.

  Kiri's rescuer whirled so fast she was a blur, kicking her tormentor once and again. His eyes bulged and he wavered, his grip loosening.

  Kiri shoved at him with desperate strength, and this time he stumbled backward. The woman kicked him again, laying him out on the floor with a thud. He fell over his partner, who groaned.

  "Next time I'll kill you both," Kiri's savior hissed. "I don't hold with rape."

  She turned to Kiri, who leaned against the wall, shaking, her limbs like water in the aftermath of adrenaline. Her throat hurt with every breath, her arms ached from being grabbed and her head and back where she'd been jammed against the wall.

  "Thanks," she croaked through her sore throat. "They were going to—"

  "Rape you and steal your leather," the woman finished, with a curl of her lip. "I know—or I can guess. Come on, let's get out of here."

  Kiri leaned over and picked up the shocker. The Serpentian led the way out of the room and glared at the crew members still skulking, now silent. "So this is how you welcome new crew?" She bared her teeth at them. "Captain will hear about this."

  Kiri stepped up beside her, one hand on her throat. "Wouldn't drink any coffee for a few days," she said hoarsely. "Never know what little surprises I may have for you."

  She set her jaw against the urge to crumple now that the danger was over. She would show no further weakness before these men.

  "Skrog crap," groaned one stocky man with a greasy cap. "Knew those two was gonna get us in a black hole."

  The Serpentian woman shook her head. "No more than you deserve. Space scum."

  A new pair of women came down the passageway. They paused when they saw Kiri panting in the open hatchway and the crewmen facing her.

  "What's going on here, Scala?" the older woman asked. She was a hard-faced human with gray hair.

  "Those two in there need to go to the brig," the Serpentian told them. "Tried to molest our ba
rista."

  The other woman, younger but equally tough, peered into the Serpentian's cubby. She let out a low whistle. "You're still in one piece? Must be tougher than you look," she said to Kiri. She grinned and held out her hand. "I'm Lottie."

  Kiri shook her hand. "Kiri te Nawa."

  "I'm Neda," the older woman said. "You're gonna have a nice shiner." She clapped Kiri on the shoulder, right where the man had grabbed her. Kiri sucked in a breath at the pain. "Nice work, girlie. Those two just signed on. Didn't like 'em, but we were short handed after Captain kicked off three crew for fighting."

  "They can sit in the brig til we drop them off on our next landfall," Lottie said with disgust.

  "Said they was just gonna take her clothes," a lanky youth whined.

  "Never said nothin' about no sexing," another man put in.

  "You fools really believe that?" Neda demanded. "She's an immi, doesn't take an Oculan to see that. Should've been looking after her, not treating her like a peep show."

  Kiri listened gratefully as the woman promised to laser their balls if they didn't look after Kiri for the rest of the voyage. Neda was clearly a respected crew leader.

  "Come on," Scala said quietly. "You look pale as a moonhen."

  The thought of going back to her cubby alone made Kiri shudder, so she followed the Serpentian along the passageway and into a larger cubby cluttered colorfully with clothing, cushions and other items. Scala waved Kiri to one of the two bunks and shut the hatch behind them.

  Opening a trunk, she took out a bottle and two glasses, and poured two small glasses of Cremarté. Kiri took one and sipped gratefully. It burned her throat, but soothed her nerves.

  "I'm Scala," the Serpentian said, sitting back on her cot with her long legs crossed.

  She was very attractive, with sloe eyes and a sensual grace to her movements. Her gaze was guarded, as if she were accustomed to judging others' potential danger at all times.

  "Kiri te Nawa." Kiri sighed as the Cremarté burned down her throat and then soothed it.

  Scala leaned forward, bottle in her hand. Kiri held out her glass for a refill.

  "So tell me, Kiri te Nawa, how'd you end up on this space scow?"

  Kiri huffed a bitter laugh, and leaned her head back against the wall. "Shanghaied by a ganger lord on Earth II. Last thing he said before he iced me was that someone wanted me to disappear."

  Scala's winged brows flew up. "Really? Do tell."

  Kiri thought back over the last weeks of her life. "It all started with a wager."

  She started to talk, and before she knew it, she'd told her hostess about Stark and her meeting with Tal, to get her strongbox.

  "So who do you think wanted you to disappear?" the other woman asked.

  Kiri opened her mouth, and then shook her head.

  "Wild guess."

  "Sounds so ridiculous, but ... there's one person." Kiri told Scala about Haassea and her possessive attitude around Stark.

  Scala shrugged. "Rich people get the idea they can do anything. And we Serps can be vengeful."

  "That's what another Serpentian told me," Kiri said. "All I know is, when I get off this ship, I'm going to get a job of some kind. Then I'm going to get enough credit to go back there, and I'm going to kill Tal Darkrunner, if it's the last thing I do."

  Scala laughed, shaking her head as if Kiri were naive. "You're going back to that dirty planet to mess with a ganger? Girl, cut your losses and consider your luck starry that you ended up on this ship. There's a lot worse rides you could have landed on."

  "Like what?" Kiri looked around at the scarred walls of the tiny room.

  "Slave ships." Scala gazed at something only she could see, her nostrils flared. "I've seen them unloading their sorry cargo in some of the toughest space ports in the galaxy. Pretty young things, boys and girls, herded like filthy, whipped beasts."

  Kiri swallowed hard, as dark memories swamped her.

  Sibilant voices outside her sleep cubby. Murmuring in oily Galactic. "Here's a fine one ... bring a good price ... take him and go." Lying frozen in the light of the glowlamp, eerily cheerful in contrast to the red pool spreading under the door. A whimper, cut off sharply and then only receding footsteps ... and silence.

  Her empty glass hit the floor and rolled with a small clatter. "No."

  She clamped her hands to her head, slammed backward in time as if in a time warp. She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head. Which was real, that world or this?

  "Hey." A warm hand smoothed her back. Opening her eyes, Kiri came back to the present with a gasp. Scala knelt beside her, frowning at Kiri in concern. "Hey, where'd you go, little Earther?"

  "Slavers," Kiri choked. "They took ... someone. My brother."

  "Quark, you and yours have blackish luck, eh?"

  Kiri tried to laugh. "Yeah, guess so." And now she understood a little of how Kai must've felt when he was taken, as if he'd been ripped from his world and dragged into the void, possibly to be devoured.

  Scala squeezed her hands, and then let go. "Well, enough of that skrog crap. You'll be okay. We'll get you to Frontiera, good place for the law-abiding. They got a sat-com system now that spots strange ships as soon as they come in range, I hear."

  "Are you staying there?" It would be good to have a friend while she sorted out what to do.

  Scala smiled, although it didn't reach her eyes. "No. Let's just say I'm one of the ones the sat-com system is supposed to keep out."

  "I'd vouch for you," Kiri said. "In case anyone wants to listen to a barista."

  Scala gave her an odd look. "You've more pull than that, starry girl. Logan Stark is known throughout the galaxy. His ships are famous. Flew on one myself for a few months."

  Bitterness twisted her mouth, but then she moved her slender shoulders as if shaking off a bad memory. "Anyway, you see him again, you tell him Scala helped you out. Maybe that'll even the score a little."

  Kiri wanted desperately to ask what the woman had done to anger Stark, but it was none of her business. The Serpentian had saved her when the loutish crewmen wouldn't, so the least she could do was leave her privacy intact. She nodded.

  "I will." If she ever saw him again. If he wanted anything to do with her.

  "Tell you what," Scala offered. "Why don't you bunk here with me for the rest of the voyage?"

  Kiri looked at her in surprise. "You wouldn't mind?"

  Scala shrugged, a sly twinkle in her eyes. "You liven things up, you know?"

  "Oh, great," Kiri muttered.

  Scala chuckled and Kiri found herself laughing with her. It hurt her throat, but it felt good. Really good.

  * * *

  Kiri confronted Captain Argo the next morning, bringing him a carafe of coffee flavored just the way he liked it, along with some bakery treats she'd found in a freezer and heated.

  "I can get off on Frontiera, right?"

  He gave her an innocent look that didn't sit well on his rogue's face. "Of course you can. Didja think you were a prisoner or somethin' like that?"

  She sighed, weary and bruised and unwilling to pretend with him. "I know Darkrunner paid you to take me," she told him. "I just don't know why."

  He frowned at her over his coffee mug. "Why, to keep you safe," he said as if she were the stupidest crewman aboard. "From that old flame who was threatening to off you."

  So that was what Tal had told him. "Yeah, sure am glad to be safe from him." She looked around at the cockpit of the ship. "Listen, say we actually make it to Frontiera, I want to know about another ship that will be landing, the Orion."

  He raised his grizzled brows. "Oh, wanting to ride high on the comet tail, are we? That's one o' them ships the rich ones ride, girlie. Not the likes o' us."

  She managed a tight smile. "Yeah, I'm aware. Just need to know if she'll be docking anywhere near us."

  "Frontiera City, that's where all the big ships put in." He gestured to a holovid. Kiri recognized the blue, green and white ball—it was Frontiera. A red las
er dot blinked near the coast of the biggest continent. "Right here's the port. And here's us." A yellow dot hung in space near the planet. "We land in four days. They land about … say five hours after us, not 'cause we're faster, but because they gotta stop on Cirrius and Indigo."

  He took a big bite of one of the pastries and sighed happily. "Oh, forgot. Darkrunner said to give you this." He pawed through a pile of items on a desk, and handed her a small object.

  "My comlink," she said, holding it in her palm. Her heart lifted. She could link Stark and Taara and Rak—everyone. Let them know she was safe and well. And ask for their help getting home

  "Thank you," she said. Smiling at the captain, she pressed an impulsive kiss to his leathery cheek and then dashed away for the privacy of Scala's cubby.

  Her elation didn't last long. Her comlink had been erased of all links, except one. When she tried to open the galactic directory, a tattooed face appeared on her screen.

  Kiri closed the link and dropped the com in her lap, clenching her fists to her forehead. Her one remaining link was to the one being in the universe with whom she least wished to speak.

  Chapter 36

  Finally Kiri peered at the com again, to find the icon indicating a recorded message. Reluctantly, she opened it.

  Tal gazed at her. "You got this, star baby, you know I erased your com. Before you link anyone, be sure you want to involve them. This is bad shit goin' on. Get yourself where you're goin' and then link me. We'll talk."

  Scala walked into the cubby as he was speaking. She stopped dead, staring at the image of the man hovering in the air. "Who in the seven hells is that?"

  "The man who shanghaied me," Kiri said bitterly. "Tal Darkrunner. Ganger lord and all-round black hole of male-dom."

  Scala sank onto the edge of her bed, running her tongue over her lower lip as if to capture the last taste of something sweet. "Huh. You forgot to mention how meteor-hot he is."