Trust and Treachery

by Charissa Dufour

  Chapter Eleven

  Bit had just reached the living level when the intercom clicked again.

  “XO to the bridge.”

  David emerged from his cabin, his eyes hazy with sleep, as he tugged a t-shirt into place.

  “C’mon, Bit. Let’s see what they want.”

  “You sure Cap won’t mind me up there?”

  The XO shrugged before taking her wrist and dragging her behind him. They arrived at the bridge and instantly became aware of the tension. Calen sat at the helm, sweat already beading on his forehead. The large display was still blank, but Bit spotted the blinking blip on the helm’s smaller display. Only this time it wasn’t just one blip, but four.

  “What happened?” David asked as he quickly realized the situation.

  “Four vessels came from behind that asteroid,” said Jack.

  “Didn’t know they were there until they were seven miles from us,” added Calen.

  “Current distance?” asked David.

  “Five miles,” answered Calen, flipping the display up to the large screen.

  The four ships were of various shapes and sizes, but Bit recognized the one that had attacked them before. Evidently, they had been recruiting.

  “Is that the ship from before?” David asked, pointing to the one Bit had noticed.

  “Output signals match,” said Calen.

  “Bit, you stay up here with us,” Jack ordered as he flipped a switch on the communicator. “All crew to your stations. All crew. This is NOT a drill.”

  “That should get them moving,” mumbled David.

  “Four miles.”

  “Shit!” exclaimed Jack.

  Even Bit could tell the pirates were coming on them with more speed than before. She moved to the corner, feeling the fear and tension of the others leak into her.

  In record time, Randal appeared on the bridge.

  “Commander, get your men to the skiffs,” ordered Jack without turning to look at him. “And get them launched.”

  “They’re already on their way.”

  “Ready on the cannon,” came Blaine’s voice over the intercom system.

  “Three miles.”

  Bit grabbed a pipe, knowing what would come next. The ship shook as it took a blow to its stern.

  “Take evasive action. Blaine, give 'em hell,” added Jack into his intercom.

  Suddenly the ship dipped forward and Bit worked to stay on her feet.

  “Captain, skiffs ready to launch,” announced the commander.

  “Two miles,” interjected Calen as he turned his ship to port.

  “Make it happen,” replied Jack to Randal.

  “Release in three, two, one,” ordered the commander.

  Bit was amazed at their ability to work and talk as they continually interrupted each other with more information. Her respect for Jack, who kept it all straight in his head, increased.

  “Land minds manned and ready,” announced Oden through the intercom.

  Bit took a deep breath reminding herself that she was not alone in this terror. She was surrounded by men who would fight for the ship, and so would she. Bit felt a resolution take hold. This was her home now, and she would fight to her last drop of blood to protect it.

  “Mark for two minutes,” Jack answered into his communicator. “And release.”

  “Skiffs, land mines being released. Watch out for them,” informed Randal into his comm.

  “One mile.”

  The ship took another barrage, shaking with each strike.

  “Damage report,” Jack ordered into his communicator, his voice resonating throughout the ship.

  “Engineering intact. Power levels stable,” came Dirk’s voice.

  “Primary haul intact. Life support stable,” announced Forrest over the communicator.

  Bit watched the displays as the skiffs circled around the stern of the ship. She began to gnaw on her bottom lip. How could one freighter and three tiny skiffs take on four pirate ships?

  The freighter shook again and the lights momentarily dimmed as the enormous cannon let off a shot. Via the displays, Bit watched as the shot blasted into what looked to be the bridge of the nearest pirate ship. The ship faltered and dropped back as the other three surged forward.

  “Nice shot, Blaine,” Jack called into his communicator.

  Without warning, the six land mines exploded, shaking everything within their vicinity, including their own freighter. Bit clung to the pipe as her feet were shaken out from under her. Whatever they put in those bombs, the shock waves had done more than anyone expected.

  Bit looked around at the others. They appeared to be just as surprised as she was.

  “Damage report,” Jack called, fear tainting his voice for the first time.

  “We’re good, Cap,” announced Dirk, sounding less formal but more frantic. “Only a minor leak in the plating. Forrest is on it.”

  “Keep us flying, Dirk,” replied Jack.

  The ship shuddered again as Blaine let off another mighty shot, hitting the next nearest ship. Though the displays showed that the shot had done damage, the ship didn’t falter as it worked its way forward. The one behind it, though, appeared to be struggling. Slowly, it backed off. Evidently, the shock wave of their land mines had done their job.

  “Two down,” David said, more to himself.

  The skiffs continued to fly circles around their stern, firing at the two pirate ships still giving chase, but their tiny guns did little to the ships. They were flies to the tigers. Blaine’s cannon, on the other hand…

  Bit clutched the pipe as the freighter shuddered again. Blaine’s shot nicked the nearest ship, doing little more than surface level damage.

  The nearest ship looked to grow as smaller turrets emerged from the sides of the vessel, telescoping outwards. The smaller guns began firing at the skiffs. Before anyone could react, they hit one of the skiffs.

  Bit clamped her mouth shut to keep from crying out as the skiff’s speed plummeted. The turrets gave out another barrage and the stalled ship exploded. This time, Bit couldn’t keep herself from gasping.

  “Who was that?” asked Jack, glancing at Randal.

  The commander swallowed. “Isaac Pratt.”

  Bit could recall what Isaac had looked like, but along with most of the security team, he had left her to her own devices. All the same, she felt the pain of his death. Would there be others before the end of the fight?

  “Four hundred meters,” announced Calen. “They’re preparing to dock.”

  “What? Evade them!” snapped Jack.

  “I can only do so much without damaging the cargo,” Calen snapped back.

  Jack growled a curse word Bit had never heard before. Had she not been scared witless, she would have blushed.

  The captain glanced around the bridge, taking in her presence.

  He made an adjustment on the communicator and said, “Prepare for the possibility of being boarded. Skiffs, return to the ship.”

  “What about the security device on the docking bay?” asked Calen.

  “Should work. But better safe than sorry. Bit, come here,” he added.

  She released the pipe she had been gripping and slid toward him as the bow of the ship dipped downward in another evasive move. Jack caught her, holding her shoulders so that he could look at her.

  “Time for you to earn your keep, Bit,” he said, staring into her frightened eyes. “The code to the armories is 967211. I need you to get everyone armed. Start with the engineers. Then get everyone else armed. Make sure you close and lock the armories. Got it?”

  Bit nodded with each instruction. “Got it.”

  Without waiting, she scurried out of the bridge, nearly flipping over the railing when the ship made another sudden lurch. She gripped the railing as tightly as she could as she made her way down the staircase.

  Calen jerked the ship to starboard, sending Bit flying past Oden and into the door of the captain’s cab
in. The other pilot followed her, barely catching himself with his strong arms to keep himself from slamming into her body. Oden stood there, surrounding Bit with his own body as though he could protect her from flying into something else painfully solid.

  “Where are you going?” he gasped.

  “Armory,” she said as she ducked out around his protective stance. “C’mon.”

  He followed her down to the galley level. Vance was already there, waiting for the armory to be opened.

  Evidently, neither of the men knew the code, as they both stared at the locked doors.

  “Engineering first,” she ordered as she punched in the code to the first door.

  She left them to that small armory as she slid down to the next door. Part of her wanted to open the other three armories, but they would just have to close them when they left this hallway.

  Bit turned to run back to the others just as the ship bucked under their feet. She lost her footing, banging her head against the metal wall. Stars danced before her eyes. Bit shook her head and scrambled back to her feet in time to see Oden stumble down the steps toward the engineering level, a load of guns in his arms.

  Bit crossed the threshold, planting her feet as best she could, and took a pistol and holster from Vance. She strapped the belt to her waist, pulling it down over her hips as she had seen Blaine do, and holstered her weapon. Next, Vance handed her a vest, which she strapped to her chest, amazed that it could cinch up tight enough for her slight frame.

  “We need to get weapons to the bridge,” said Vance as he handed her a few more belts, guns already strapped into the holsters. “Get some shotguns from the other armory, and a box of shotgun flechettes.”

  Bit slung the belts over her shoulders like a purse and scurried down the hallway, just as the grav-plating gave a low rumble. Before she knew what was happening, she began to float upward. In any other situation, she would have found the weightless sensation entertaining, but, in her need to hurry, it was nothing more than terrifying.

  She reached out and grabbed the wall, using it to propel herself down the hallway to the open door. Bit had just gripped the door when a low rumble warned her that something else was about to go wrong. Before she could prepare, the grav-plating kicked in again, sending her crashing downward. Her grip on the door forced her body to fall feet first. She bashed her knee against the door jam and gulped down a cry of pain.

  At the same time, she heard a loud crash from the first armory as Vance fell to the ground.

  Bit wasted no time getting into the armory and grabbing a couple shotguns. She slung them over her shoulder, crossing opposite from the belts. She had just opened a box of flechettes to make sure it was full when the grav-plating went offline again.

  She and half the box of flechettes floated upward. Bit scrambled to grab the shells before they could float away and stuff them back into the box. She had just jammed the first handful into the box when a recognizable groan came to her ears.

  “Oh shit,” she mumbled just as gravity returned.

  Bit dropped like a load of bricks, the straps of the guns digging into her chest as she landed painfully on the metal flooring. She moaned, matching the sounds coming from the battered ship. As quickly as her bruised body could manage, Bit climbed to her knees and grabbed a few more of the shells as they rolled across the floor.

  She was just climbing to her feet when the grav-plating went on and off in rapid succession. The result was Bit tumbling into the doorway and banging her head and shoulder against the frame. She wiped away the blood coming from a cut on her head as she slammed the door shut and scurried to the next armory. Vance was crumpled against a footlocker, a little blood trickling down the side of his head and mixing with his beard. She saw his chest rise and fall.

  Just knocked out, she thought as pulled the door shut. At least he would be safe inside the locked armory.

  Bit ran to the stairs, grateful to find the gravity working correctly, and raced up them. She had just reached the split in the next staircase when the ship tilted again. Bit was barely able to grab the railing before she toppled backward.

  A loud clank deafened her as the ship gave a mighty shudder. She glanced around, wondering if the enemy ship had managed to attach itself to them.

  Using the railing and ignoring her growing panic, she dragged herself up the last couple steps and stumbled onto the catwalk just as Blaine slid down the ladder from the ship’s turret. He pulled her to her feet, taking the shotguns off her shoulder and the box from her hand.

  “Get to the bridge,” he ordered as he stationed himself above the stairwell, his feet wedged against a wall and a railing, and began loading the shotguns.

  Bit scurried onto the bridge and began handing out the pistols.

  “Report,” Jack said to her.

  She wasn’t sure what he wanted to know.

  “Blaine is at the stairwell with five shotguns. Oden is in engineering, with…umm… six or seven pistols. Vance is unconscious but alive, locked inside the first armory. I haven’t seen Reese or Nathyn.”

  “Dammit,” cursed Jack.

  “You think they got hurt on the catwalk from the front docking bay?” Calen asked as he fought the ship’s controls; clearly, something was broken with the ship, testing his skills to keep it level.

  “Hopefully not. They come out in engineering so they may be there with Oden,” said Jack as he grabbed Bit’s chin and turned her head. “You okay?”

  Bit paused long enough to assess her body. Her head ached and she felt a trickle of warm liquid on the left cheek. Her shoulder throbbed from colliding with the doorframe of the armory, and she felt a few other bruises forming, but beyond that she was intact. She gave him a brisk nod.

  “You stay here. Randal, help Blaine protect the staircase. David, get the door locked.”

  “Let me help,” called Bit before she could censure herself. “I can at least load for them.”

  “It’s too dangerous.”

  “I’m no good locked in here. If they get past Randal and Blaine then I’m dead anyway. Let me do what they’ve trained me to do.”

  Jack growled another curse she didn’t recognize before nodding to the door. Bit scurried out, hearing the door close and lock behind her.

  Randal and Blaine were already at the stairwell, a shotgun in position, pointing down at the ship’s entrance.

  “Bit, shit, what’re you doing here?” Blaine demanded, only giving her the barest of glances.

  “What can I do?” she asked Randal, ignoring Blaine’s protectiveness.

  “Kill anything that comes through that door,” Randal said, his eyes never leaving the airlock.

  “Will they actually get through?” she asked as she positioned herself just as Blaine had taught her, unholstered her pistol, and aimed at the airlock.

  She felt her muscles tremble as she thought about what she was doing. Suddenly she realized she was more afraid of actually killing someone than getting killed herself. It was foolish, and she knew it. Bit took a deep breath and steadied her aim.

  The ship began tilting again, moving at a much slower pace than before. No doubt there was only so much Calen could do now that another ship was attached to them. What would happen if the new security device failed?

  She heard a loud clank and worked to relax her strangle hold on her weapon.

  Gentle touch, gentle touch, she chanted to herself.

  “They won’t get past David’s device,” said Blaine with complete confidence just as they heard the airlock creak.

  To their amazement, the door to the airlock flew open. Like the others, Bit squeezed a few rounds off, their flechette bullets mostly dissolving as they struck the metal of the ship. Bit spotted a man or two duck back behind the entranceway before emerging and firing back at them. Blaine, Randal, and Bit ducked back.

  Despite her efforts to stay quiet, Bit let out an oath as she fell back, hitting her head again.

  “Dammit,” gr
umbled Randal. “They’re using regular bullets. What’re they thinking?”

  “Bit,” Blaine called from his covered position as he cracked the shotgun up and began reloading it. “See what I’m doing?”

  She nodded.

  “Good. You reload for us,” he said with a grunt as he hoisted himself back up and fired back at their enemy.

  Bit took Randal’s gun and set to work as he took up another one and fired. She had it ready in time to trade, but loading for two men was pushing her ability to keep up.

  Another barrage flew up at them. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted three men sneak to the downward staircase while their comrades kept them pinned down.

  Randal grabbed the mobile communicator from his hip and whispered, “They’re heading down.”

  “Copy that,” came Reese’s voice from the communicator.

  Bit let out a soft sigh. At least one of the security team was down in engineering.

  Randal and Blaine went back to shooting, and Bit continued loading guns, barely keeping up with their demand.

  More gunfire sounded from the lower levels.

  As another volley came, Randal and Blaine ducked back, but not fast enough. Randal took one in the shoulder, blood quickly spreading across his shirt. Bit scurried to his side as Blaine stood and fired again.

  “What do I do?” she asked.

  “Plug the hole. Use the sleeve of my shirt,” he said.

  She took Randal’s knife and cut off the sleeve of his shirt, using the fabric to wrap tightly around his wounded shoulder.

  “You’re gonna have to shoot,” Randal said as he grabbed up one of the empty shotguns.

  Bit grabbed up a loaded gun, pressed it against her shoulder, and took Blaine’s position. Her aim was horrible as the shotgun jerked painfully into her shoulder. She winced as she squeezed the trigger again. All she had to do was keep them busy while Blaine loaded a fresh gun. After all, Randal couldn’t keep up with both of them with one arm not working properly.

  To her astonishment, a pirate popped out just as she squeezed the trigger. Sheer luck directed her aim and the pirate fell with a thud against the metal floor. He didn’t get up again.

  She gave it one more squeeze before she heard the click of an empty gun.

  Blaine popped up beside her and she ducked down.

  “Last one,” Randal said as he handed her the shotgun.

  “Cover me,” Blaine ordered as he dropped his empty shotgun and drew his sidearm.

  Bit began firing, taking her time in hopes of drawing the last pirate out of his hiding place. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Randal dragging himself backward toward the door of the bridge.

  She fired off another round just as Blaine began his careful descent of the steps.

  Three more, she thought as she counted her shots. Those three shots went fast.

  Bit fired her last round just as the pirate ducked out of his hiding place to fire at Blaine. She wasn’t sure which happened first. Her bullet struck the pirate in the leg, tearing his calf open, and he collapsed, trying to staunch the flow of his blood. Bit let out a scream as she watched Blaine grab his own arm, blood flowing through his fingers, and he fell back onto the bottom step.

  A thousand thoughts clouded her mind as her muscles struggled to get her down the steps fast enough. He couldn’t be dead. He hadn’t kissed her yet and, to her amazement, she wanted him to. At the same time, she felt guilty for so quickly abandoning her vow to steer clear of all men, who would just use and abuse her as they had done to her sister.

  She dropped her empty shotgun and raced after him, collapsing next to him on the bottom step to assess his wound.

  “What are you doing?” his hissed through clenched teeth.

  Bit felt hot tears roll down her cheeks as she saw the life in his eyes, despite the blood soaking into his shirt. She suspected the actual wound was on his arm.

  Before she could comprehend the idiocy of her actions, a loud bang resonated through the ship’s entrance and a pain erupted across her side, causing her to collapse across his chest. At the same time, Blaine hoisted himself up off the bottom step, despite her deadweight, and trained his sidearm on the pirate. Without pausing to think, Blaine buried a round in the man’s head, making sure his movement didn’t hurt Bit again.

  The small girl groaned as she rolled off of his chest.

  “You okay?” Blaine asked.

  “Yeah. I thought these vests were supposed to protect you.”

  “You’re not dead,” he said as he sat up and spun her around until he could see her back.

  With gentle hands, he helped her remove the stiff vest. The bullet had grazed across her side, the Kevlar effectively protecting her flesh, though it had still left a large, dark bruise.

  “Can you feel your toes?” he asked.

  She wiggled her bare toes.

  “Let me get your arm wrapped,” she said before turning back to face him.

  “It’s fine.”

  “Blaine. Don’t be a dumb ass!” she snapped as they heard another cascade of shots from the lowest level.

  Like she had with Randal, she took Blaine’s knife from its sheath on his hip and sliced his t-shirt open. With his help, she got it off and wrapped his arm in it, tying it tight enough that he grimaced. Bit tried not to notice how attractive he looked without a shirt, even with the blood and sweat spreading across his chest.

  “Go back and stay with Randal,” he ordered as he climbed to his feet.

  “Like hell, I will!”

  Blaine glared down at her, fire dancing in his blue eyes. “Then stay behind me.”

  He turned and began making his way down the steps, his gun at the ready. Bit copied him, staying a step or two behind him.

  They reached the turn in the lowest staircase and Blaine stopped. Bit couldn’t see beyond him, but she suspected he was just being cautious.

  According to what she had seen, there were at least three more down in the engineering level.

  Blaine began moving again, finally reaching the bottom of the stairs. He checked the hallway to the left, then the right, before motioning her to the infirmary door. She hopped down behind him, flipped the door open, and scanned the room from corner to corner.

  “Clear,” she said, just as she had seen in the few movies she had watched.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Blaine smirk as he inched toward the open door of engineering. From within, they heard the shouts of men.

  “Come out or we kill you,” one of the pirates ordered.

  Bit slipped up to the other side of the door, grasped the handle of the door, and waited for Blaine’s cue. On his nod, she flung the door open and jumped around the door just behind Blaine. He was already firing at the backs of the three men. Bit didn’t stop to think as she raised her weapon and shot at the man in the far corner, hitting him in the neck, the rest of her bullets striking the far wall.

  In seconds it was over and the others were emerging from their hiding places. Blaine holstered his weapon and turned to look around the room. Bit copied him.

  “Anyone hurt?” he asked, noting the way Reese and Nathyn were kicking the weapons away from the bodies.

  The three engineers stayed near their hiding places, visibly shaken.

  “Next time I give you an order, you follow it,” he snapped, taking her completely by surprise. “Is that clear?”

  Bit swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. Before she could do more, Blaine grabbed the collar of her vest, dragged her to his chest, and pressed his lips to hers. Bit was too surprised to do more than let her mouth move mechanically against his warm lips. She felt an excited tingle run up her spine, making the muscles between her legs clench.

  Long before she was ready to release him, he let go of the vest and stepped away from her.

  “Nathyn, stay here. Reese, come with me. We need to blow the hatch of the other ship,” ordered Blaine before grabbing his
communicator. “All pirates down.”

  The two men left, running up the steps to deal with the hatch.

  Bit spotted Oden staring at her, his face flicking from shock to anger and back again. She knew her cheeks were burning with embarrassment, both for having been berated and for having been kissed.

  “So,” Oden said from, his position on the other side of the room. “Guess I lost.”