“Making our life better I tell ya. No one seems to be hitting us much anymore. Guess they figure if they’ll arrest a noble then they’ll have no problem locking up a crewman. Folks think he’ll still get off, though,” Marshalla said.
Cyndora shook her head again. “I don’t think so. If he’s found guilty then they’ll shoot him.”
The other two women exchanged glances. “Really? The general’s going to have him shot for trying it on with you?” Jaydea asked in amazement.
“That’s only part of it. He also broke into the general’s quarters and had an illegal key card. So they’re throwing the book at him.”
“Even so, he’s still a noble and they get away with everything. This general of yours must have some clout,” her friend said wonderingly before adding, “and he must like you a lot to give you that kind of protection.”
Marshalla nodded in agreement. “That’s for sure, honey. Word is that ya protected from on high and no one messes with ya or ya friends.”
She looked at them both. “Been using my name, huh?” She smiled to show that she wasn’t upset.
“Use what advantages ya can.” Marshalla appeared totally unrepentant.
“Well, can’t hold that against you. And maybe I have a few more advantages.” She opened her purse and took out two new lipsticks, a small jar of blush and a tube of mascara. “Hopefully these will help, too. Make them last though. The general said I can’t cart in loads of stuff or someone will ask questions.”
They both nodded as they gleefully examined the small trove. “Yeah, they would. But even this is great. Would you thank the general for us, Cyndy? We know that you wouldn’t be able to do this without his help,” Jaydea said.
“And thank ya, too, girl. You’re making things better for everyone, and me, Jay and Xian especially.” Marshalla gave her a hug. Cyndora watched as the two women tried on the make-up.
“No need to ask if the general is still treating you good, I guess?” said Jaydea, smiling.
“Well, he is, but I’m having to nurse him at the moment. He was injured in a battle the other day. At first I thought he’d died.” Cyndora remembered how upset she’d felt.
“That had to be a bad moment for you, honey. We’d heard he was hurt, but not that it was that serious.” Jaydea put her arm around Cyndora to comfort her. “He’s recovering ok, though?”
“Yeah, I just have to help him around and make sure he doesn’t do too much. I probably need to head back and make sure he’s ok.”
“Ok, Cyndy. You take good care of him and we’ll see you soon.” her friend said.
“I’ll be back in the next few days. I don’t know about the few days after that though. I’m required to be available as a witness during the trial.”
“That’s ok, girlfriend, I understand. You take care of what you need to, then you can come back and tell us all about the trial.”
Cyndora hugged Jaydea “I will. You take care too, Marsh. Say Hi to Xian for me,” she said as she started to leave.
“We will. Kiss the general for us,” Jaydea said as Cyndora departed.
Chapter Twelve
By the time Cyndora arrived back in their quarters, Crineal was dozing on the sofa. Poor thing, she thought with a little smile and she quietly made her way to the bedroom to get changed. With that done she returned to the lounge, made herself a drink and sat down at the table to watch Crineal. He hardly looked like the ruthless killer pilot, just a tired man who appeared very alone because of his position. It struck her as very sad, to have all those pilots around him who adored him so much and not be permitted to find a companion amongst them and, at the same time, be too honorable to want to use the recreation assistants that were available to him for that very purpose. But how did she really feel about him? A lot of the man she had liked fourteen years ago was still there. He could be amusing and he was always caring and honest. The shyness was gone though, robbing him of that boyishness. She’d always felt that he’d have liked them to be more than friends, but she’d never let herself consider him in that light because she was attached to someone else. Now, she had no attachments, though. They were friends, and that meant she loved him at least a little. Her mind went back to that moment in the med bay where she thought he’d been killed. The sorrow she had felt was for that of a loved one. She realized that she probably could grow to love him as a lover if she let herself. Would he want her after the way she had been used? She didn’t want him to love her out of pity, like some abused, rescued pet. Honest love was still as important to her as it looked to be to him. Cyndora studied his face, his short brown hair, now all spiky from the cushion, the slight gauntness, but she liked his eyes best, the way they seemed to change color with his moods. He wasn’t classically handsome, but he was attractive in a quiet way.
The object of her attention stirred and opened those blue eyes. “Urrrm… Hi, Cyndy. I didn’t hear you get back,” he said, running his right hand through his hair.
“I’ve not been back long,” she smiled at him. “What did Major Strieger want?”
“She wanted to see how I was and bring me up to date on the doings of the pilots,” Crineal replied in an off-hand manner. Cyndora felt that he wasn’t telling her everything but then there would always be some things he couldn’t say due to security considerations.
Cyndora eyed him critically. “You still look tired. Let’s get you that shower and then settle you into bed for a nap.” She moved over to help him up.
“I feel like some geriatric when you say it like that. Am I getting gruel for dinner?” he complained.
She gave him a long look. “Yes, if you don’t stop whining.”
With Cyndora supporting him, they headed to the bathroom. Crineal was still mostly asleep and hadn’t thought through how he was going to actually take the shower. In the bathroom Cyndora stood in front of him and eased the bathrobe carefully off his shoulders letting it drop onto the floor, and before Crineal could react, her fingers were inside the waistband of his shorts, pushing them to the ground. He stood there befuddled for a second before blushing at being at being stark naked in front of her; the bandages down his left side didn’t really count as clothing. Cyndora hardly noticed. She opened the door to the shower to turn on the water and check the temperature of it. Satisfied, she helped Crineal inside. The doctor had told her that the bandages were waterproof, but not to give them a prolonged soaking. The warm water felt good to Crineal and he closed his eyes, enjoying letting it run over him. As he opened them again he realized that the shower door was still ajar and Cyndora had kicked off her sandals and was unbuttoning her top.
“Uhh… what are you doing?” he asked as she dropped the sleeveless silk shirt to the floor, her breasts in full view.
“Well, I’m not going to help you shower with my clothes on, am I?” she replied, undoing the buttons on the waistband of her shorts before pushing them off her hips and letting them slide to the floor, her breasts hanging there slightly as she bent forward a little. Crineal stood there dazed at the sight of her naked except for the small white panties that were part of her assistant’s uniform, his body starting to respond to the view. He watched as she casually slipped her panties down to her ankles and stepped out of them, his eyes drawn to her neatly trimmed pubic area.
“I think I can shower myself…,” he started as she stepped into the cubicle with him.
Cyndora snorted softly. “Don’t be silly, you can barely walk, never mind bend and stretch. Now stay still and let me start with your hair.” She stood to his rear and lathered his hair using the shampoo.
Crineal was fully erect now as he felt her behind him washing his hair, her breasts brushing his back as she worked. He tried not to think of how she must look, with beads of water running down her trim body, dripping from her nipples… Quit That! he chided himself.
“Ok, head under the water so I can rinse it now,” she ordered him. Crineal ducked his head a little and even this caused him discomfort down his injured sid
e. He guessed she did have cause for saying that he couldn’t wash himself. The feeling of her massaging the soap out of his scalp was wonderful and he almost groaned in disappointment when she stopped. Then she started on his right shoulder and back, soaping and rinsing. He almost jumped when she moved to his bottom. Finished with his back, she moved to his side to start on his upper chest. This was the part Crineal had been dreading. Knowing that her recent sexual experiences hadn’t been good he didn’t want her to see how excited he was. He gritted his teeth and tried to think calming thoughts.
Cyndora wasn’t anywhere as clinically detached from the experience as she was pretending to be. She was enjoying feeling his body under her hands, especially his nice tight buttocks as she washed. It was difficult keeping her mind on her self-appointed task. Cyndora started soaping his chest but couldn’t help noticing his body’s rather obvious reaction to her ministrations. She felt a little pleased that he obviously wanted her; it was reassuring that he didn’t seem to think of her as damaged goods. She carefully worked downwards to his stomach and then to his crotch. At her first touch there he groaned a little and she realized that perhaps this wasn’t fun for him in some ways. Crineal must be very uncomfortable being that erect and not wanting or feeling able to act on it. She nodded to herself after a moment’s thought and then gently began to stroke him.
Crineal’s eyes flew open at her actions. “Cyndy? What are you doing?”
Pressing her wet body gently against his right side she asked, “You need me to tell you?” her right hand continuing to tease him.
“No! But I….”
She stopped him. “Shush, Crin. You need this. I’m your friend and I want to help,” Cyndora breathed into his ear and then planted a soft kiss just below it on his neck. “If you really want me to stop, I will,” she offered tightening her grip just a little. His groan was answer enough.
“Just let me help you feel better, Sweetie,” she whispered, nibbling his earlobe. He was all out of objections at this point and he turned his head to kiss her. Cyndora returned his kiss gently and felt his right arm slide wetly around her back to cup her bottom and pull her in closer, her pubic mound pressing nicely against his hip. She heard his breath grow faster and he moaned against her lips. Cyndora quickened her strokes and felt him respond, suddenly shaking as his climax hit him. She reached up and cradled his head to her neck and shoulder as he shuddered against her. Cyndora was thankful she wasn’t a man; her own arousal would have been as equally obvious as his had been.
“Better now, Hon?” she asked softly as he stopped shaking and just rested against her.
“You have no idea,” he gasped. “You didn’t….”
Cyndora gave him a quick kiss on the lips to silence him. “I wanted to.” They stood there holding each other for a minute before Cyndora shut off the water and reached for a towel. She first dried him off and then herself before going to find clean under shorts for him. She helped him put them on, thinking that if she hadn’t relieved him he probably wouldn’t have been able to get them on at all. Without stopping to dress herself, she assisted him to the bed and tucked him in. As he looked up at her, Cyndora thought he looked more peaceful than she had seen him since she’d arrived. Ahhh, the joy of hormones.
Crineal lay there staring at her still nude form, not feeling embarrassed to enjoy the sight of it now. He wanted to invite her into bed with him, but despite what had just happened, he still wasn’t sure what she wanted. She’d used the word ‘friend’ not ‘lover’ and he was reluctant to push it.
Cyndora leaned forward and kissed his cheek, further adding to the ambiguity of the situation for him. “You get some rest. I’m going to finish up my shower and tidy up in there.” Actually, she really wanted to look after her own needs and then think about how things had just changed between them. Cyndora turned and went back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
Commander Del’Tarim sat waiting in an interview room. As seemed usual lately he was less than pleased. A few days ago he thought his recent run of bad luck had changed when he heard that Crineal was dead. He was ready to do cartwheels. But just a few hours after that came the counter rumor that he was still alive. The least desired story was the one that turned out to be true. This morning Del’Tarim had finally decided that he could delay things no longer and sent a message to that cretin Junon, requesting a meeting. The hatchet-faced legal commander finally deigned to arrive and seated himself across the table from him, activating his data pad.
“Good afternoon, Commander. I understand you wish to see me?”
“Yes, I want to enter a plea of not guilty at the court martial,” Del’Tarim said haughtily.
Junon appeared unsurprised at this as he tapped away at his data pad. “Very well, Commander. And what line of defense do you wish me to pursue?”
“That I was set up by the general and his bitch. She lured me to his quarters and he was waiting there to trap me,” he said self-righteously.
“Would you give me the basics of what happened then, please?” Junon asked, trying not to let the amazement show on his face.
“I was in the corridor near the recreation dorm when the woman approached me and said that she thought I was handsome and would like to entertain me. She exposed herself for me to fondle and told me to be at the general’s quarters just after nine the following morning as the general would be busy. So I went there, she let me in and then the general and the security squad leapt out at me to put me under arrest on these trumped up charges,” Del’Tarim finished indignantly.
The legal officer stared at him in utter disbelief and then put down his data pad. “Commander, I think I need to make something clear to you. If I am to give you a credible defense then I need to know the truth. When I question the various witnesses I have to know what they are going to say. If you tell me something that isn’t true then they will give me an answer that will hurt your case. I’m sure that you’re aware that all the witnesses are monitored and if any of them are lying then that will be indicated to the court.” Del’Tarim’s face went red as he realized the Junon was implying that he was lying to him. “So, for example, if I go into that court room and ask the girl if she approached you and she says ‘No’, you can see how it would look as regards your case if all the sensors show that she is telling the truth.”
“If you don’t believe me then what is the point of you being here?” blustered the noble.
“My believing you or not is immaterial. But I have to know what really happened so that I can find something to work with to defend you.”
“I just told you what happened,” Commander Del’Tarim replied stubbornly.
Regarding him coolly Junon picked up his data pad again. “So let me make sure that I have this right. The girl approached you and invited you to the general’s quarters? You did not approach, assault and threaten her as stated in her submission?” Del’Tarim nodded. “And the following morning she let you into the general’s quarters? You did not threaten her or use an illegal key card to gain entry?”
“That is correct,” he said stiffly.
“But you did have an illegal key card in your possession that you had just happened to find?”
“Yes, it was lying on the floor outside of the door. Likely planted there to incriminate me.”
Junon looked at the man, trying to remember when he had last heard such a complete load of drivel. “Very well. If that is the case, then their lies will be exposed by the court monitors and you will be acquitted. Is there anything else you feel I should know that is relevant to the case, Commander? Like why General Crineal should want to frame you?”
“It’s because he hates me after a misunderstanding when I first arrived. I was perhaps a little hasty and did not show him the respect due his rank. I believe he has had a grudge against me since then.”
Commander Junon consulted the notes on his data pad. “This was the incident in Fighter Bay Alpha Ten?”
“Yes, I wasn’t aware of the gen
eral’s rank or the local regulations in place. I admit I was remiss in not establishing these things.”
Having read the reports of the incident gathered by the prosecution, that was the understatement of the year, Junon thought. But it did give him a tiny sliver of a chance, if what Del’Tarim had told him was true. “I think I can use that to help your case, Commander. Now, do you intend to take the stand as a witness? I would advise against it.” If Del’Tarim was being as honest as Junon thought he was, then he didn’t want the commander anywhere near those monitors.
Nodding, Del’Tarim agreed. “I will trust your professional judgment on that, Commander.” Junon gave a mental sigh of relief.
“Then I think we’re done here, Commander. If I have any questions, I’ll be in touch. If you think of anything else that might be relevant, please contact me,” and with that he nodded to Del’Tarim and left the room.
By the time that Cyndora had finished in the bathroom she was feeling much better and ready for a nap herself. Crineal was already asleep so she quietly placed a clean robe on the bed next to him, stripped down to her panties and climbed into her own bed. She was only dozing lightly when sometime later she heard an “ow’ from the direction where Crineal was laying. Cyndora propped herself up to see Crineal trying to lever himself out of bed. Stubborn idiot, she thought, and she got up to assist him.
“Sorry, Cyndy, I was trying not to wake you,” he said apologetically.
Helping him get up and get his robe on she replied “You didn’t, I was just drifting in and out.”
After a quick visit to the bathroom, she settled him down onto the sofa in the lounge. Cyndora had gotten dressed whilst he was using the toilet, not wanting to get him all worked up again by running around mostly naked. They sat there with the drinks she had made, trying not to look at each other, unsure what to say.
Cyndora took a breath and broke the silence. “About earlier… I’m sorry if I embarrassed you.”
Crineal Chronicles 1: In Hera's Service Page 21
