by Jake Bible
“Good to know,” Roak said. “I usually don’t sleep with women when I’m on a job. That would be one reason right there.”
“You’re on a job?” Ally asked and laughed. “This job of yours sure looks like running your ass off away from a shit load of danger.”
“That’s how most of my jobs end up,” Roak said. “Minus the running away part. Usually, I’m chasing the one that’s running away.”
“You good at it?” Ally asked.
“Catching runners?” Roak replied.
“Your job,” Ally said. “I assume you’re a bounty hunter. I think I may have even heard of you.”
“I doubt that,” Roak said. “I don’t work in circles that most small taverns like yours get too involved in.”
“Small tavern? Ouch,” Ally said. She pushed away and swam into the middle of the tub, letting the liquid hold her afloat as she arched her back. She took a drink of whiskey and let the bottle float next to her. It remained upright. “So what’s the job you’re still on?”
Roak was having a hard time concentrating as Ally floated there in front of him.
“What’s that?” he asked.
She laughed. “What’s the job you think you’re still on?”
“Getting what I’m owed,” Roak said.
“Oh, isn’t that ominous sounding,” Ally said. She waved a hand. “Come here and float with me. You’ll feel a decade younger.”
“Float with you?” Roak asked as he waded closer.
“It’s not code, tough guy,” Ally said. “I actually mean float with me. We’ll get on each other later. For now, we rest and recharge.”
Roak lowered all the way into the liquid and twisted around onto his back. He relaxed and let the liquid take him up. In seconds, he felt like he was completely weightless, like there wasn’t an ounce of pressure on any part of his body.
“Holy shit,” he whispered.
“There’re days where I don’t even want to leave this tub,” Ally said. “But I have a business to run. Again, thanks for the distraction out there so I could have an excuse for this time.”
“My pleasure,” Roak said. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Really. It’s my pleasure. Wow. I gotta get one of these.”
“Never gonna happen,” Ally said. “This is my retirement. When I’m too old to kick drunks out the airlock and stop perverts from grabbing my ass all night long, then I’m going to bring this tub to the galaxy and make my fortune.”
“Why not do it now?” Roak asked.
“Because right now I like kicking drunks out the airlock and fighting off perverts when they grab my ass,” Ally said. “Keeps me from getting bored.”
They lay that way for close to an hour. Without saying a word, Ally set her feet down and gently pushed Roak, still floating on his back, to the side of the tub. She got out and the liquid flowed off her, leaving her skin dry and glowing. Ally offered her hand and Roak took it.
The sex was slow, meaningful, and took the rest of the day and far into the night before they stopped and lay in each other’s arms.
“I could have been some psycho,” Roak said.
“You are some psycho,” Ally said. She tapped her nose. “I can smell it. Plus, I could have been one too.”
He tapped his nose then tapped her nose.
“Pretty sure you are,” he said.
“This has been fun,” Ally said after a few minutes of warm silence.
“But?” Roak replied.
“But, you have an elevator to catch in four hours,” Ally said.
She reluctantly pulled herself from Roak’s embrace and got out of bed. She slowly shimmied into underwear and a pair of sturdy pants. She hunted all over the room for a tank top, found it, pulled it on, gave Roak a wink as he watched the whole process, then grabbed up her boots.
“It takes two hours to get there,” she said. “Get dressed. We’ve got a long drive.”
“Drive?” Roak asked.
“Grav roller,” Ally said. “No way I’m riding one of those stank ass beasts that everyone rides. Not my thing.”
“And you’re going to drive me to the space elevator?” Roak asked as he got up and found his clothes and armor, which lucky for him, and anyone else in his general vicinity, Ally had set in the steamer to be cleansed while they’d gone at it in bed. “Why?”
“What?” Ally asked.
“Why are you going to help me?” Roak responded. “You barely know me.”
“I’d say I know you pretty damn well after all that,” Ally said as she laced up her boots. She found a short jacket made of some type of leather with patches of armor stitched into key spots and slipped that on. She studied Roak for a minute as he got dressed then laughed.
“You really don’t know?” she asked.
“Nope,” Roak admitted.
“I thought you would have gotten it when we first met,” she said.
“I’ve had a lot on my plate the past few days,” Roak said. “I could use a hint.”
Before Ally could respond, an earsplitting alarm began to wail.
“Shit, that’s Z,” Ally said as she hurried out of the room. “Come on and I’ll fill you in while I keep my best bartender from getting vaporized.”
Roak grabbed his boots and rushed after her. Ally was taking the steps two at a time, her hand working at the holo projecting from her wrist, while the siren wailed and a man screamed in severe pain.
The siren cut off, but the screaming didn’t.
“Z! Z, I’m so sorry!” Ally said as she rushed to Groshnel that was huddled by the airlock. “I forgot to tell the security protocol to include you!”
The Groshnel whimpered a few choice words and Ally nodded.
“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” she said. “Let’s get you up and into the tub, okay? A day of that will take care of all that hurt.”
Z glared at Roak as he was helped by and up the stairs. Roak found a bar stool and sat down, but declined to grab a drink for himself.
After a few minutes, Ally came back down and sat next to him, also refraining from grabbing a drink.
“He is pissed,” Ally said. “I gave him the next two days off. No need to keep the tavern open while everyone is still fighting the fire.”
“It hasn’t gone out?” Roak asked.
“Out? No. Fires don’t go out on Ligston,” Ally said. “It’s contained, but it’ll be at least a week before they can smother it and keep it from popping back up. You really had no idea what you were starting when you did what you did.”
“All I knew was I needed a distraction so I could get here without Mott seeing me,” Roak said.
“Because someone told you I could get you off this planet,” Ally said. “Care to tell me who?”
“Sure,” Roak said. “A guy named Sha Tog.”
“Good,” Ally said. “I was hoping it was him. That means you did something for him and were successful.”
“That’s exactly what it means,” Roak said.
“Good, because I need you to do something for me and you will have to be very successful at it,” Ally said. “Anything else means I’m a dead woman.”
“Okay. What do you need me to do?” Roak asked.
“You still don’t know,” Ally said as she shook her head. “Think about it for a minute.”
“Just tell me,” Roak said. “We have that two-hour ride and all.”
“Okay, take the fun out of it,” Ally said. She leaned in, kissed his lips, then leaned back. “I need you to fucking kill Mott.”
Roak stared at her for a second then burst out laughing. Ally kissed him again and kept kissing him until he shut up.
“Is that a yes?” she asked.
“Baby, that’s the biggest yes I could give,” he said.
She bit his lip. Hard.
“Don’t call me baby,” she said after pulling away, nearly taking his lip with her. “Come on. Best get a move on.”
“You sure you don’t want to tell me what was in that
tub?” Roak asked as she pulled him to a back door behind the bar.
“Shut up,” she said as they went through the door. “Don’t ruin our good vibes.”
13.
Getting to the grav roller was not exactly easy, despite the cover of chaos the burning jungle presented. People were occupied, distracted with the danger, but they were also on high alert, their senses dialed up to look for any new threat. At least twice, Ally had to deflect attention from her and Roak as they hurried through the backstreets to the garage where she kept the vehicle.
“You couldn’t park it outside?” Roak asked as they navigated the last street, thankfully without observation from any of the town’s citizens. “You do own that tavern. You could paint a parking spot right out front just for you.”
“I don’t tend to go many places,” Ally said.
Roak didn’t like the quaver in her voice when she said that. It spoke of something painful in her history, and despite himself, Roak felt some need to squash whatever caused that pain. He shook his head. What was wrong with him?
“Not a traveler, huh?” Roak asked, trying to sound casual and disinterested. They crossed the street and headed to a low building covered in vines with weeds sprouting up from the plasticrete sidewalk in front. “I understand. I’d be a homebody too if I had a tub like that. And someone to share it with.”
“You’re cute,” Ally said. “But that’s not it. I used to travel when I was younger. A lot. I never settled in one place for longer than a couple months. Until I got here.”
She sighed.
“Haven’t left since that day,” she said. “Probably won’t ever.”
“This have anything to do with Mott?” Roak asked.
Ally nodded. “Kill him and maybe next time we’ll go off planet together.”
Roak stopped walking as Ally continued to the building. She placed her wrist against a control panel and a wide airlock door slid open. She was halfway through the door when she paused and looked back.
“What?” she asked.
“Does he own you?” Roak asked.
“That doesn’t matter,” Ally said and waved him off. “Come on. We need to leave now if we’re going to make the right elevator. Small window here, tough guy.”
Roak let the subject drop. She was right, they needed to hurry. By the way she said “right elevator,” he had a feeling he wasn’t going to be riding up out of the atmosphere with a group of tourists.
The grav roller was unimpressive. It looked rusted and old. The undercarriage sagged and the cockpit was barely big enough for two people. It had a decent-sized cargo hold, but even that was flawed by several large holes in the canopy.
“You really don’t get out much, do you?” Roak said.
“I’m married to that tavern,” Ally said. “I get too far away and it gets separation anxiety.”
“I bet it does,” Roak said.
It took Ally about twenty minutes to go over the vehicle and make sure it was road worthy. Roak tried not to seem impatient, but by the constant glares he received from Ally, he guessed he failed. It was hard not to be impatient with the increasing bustle outside.
“You’re right. I may have started something your people can’t stop,” Roak said as clouds of smoke wafted by the garage. “Sorry about that.”
“Don’t worry,” Ally said, finally done checking the roller. “It’s not even close to the worst fire. They’ll get it contained.” She hopped into the cockpit and patted the narrow passenger’s seat next to her. “Come on. Time to go.”
Roak obeyed and hopped into the roller. It smelled of must and sweat. There was also a deeper tang. Blood. No way he could miss that smell.
“Who’s is this?” Roak asked.
“Mine,” Ally said.
“You buy it a murder sale?” Roak asked as Ally started up the roller, the grav engine whirring to life under them. The roller rose, its hydraulics kicking in as its gears engaged the wheels. “It smells like you did.”
“Things happen,” Ally replied in a tone that told Roak that any further questions would be met with stiff resistance.
“Gotcha,” Roak said.
It didn’t take them long to get out of town and on their way. Roak glanced over his shoulder at the plume of smoke that filled the sky. He shrugged, trusting Ally’s assessment of the situation, and turned back to focus on the road ahead of them.
Ally kept the roller at a steady speed, whether by design or because the roller couldn’t go any faster, Roak didn’t know, but after a few minutes, he settled in and tried to get comfortable in the cramped space.
He was slipping into a doze when Ally spoke.
“I was ten or eleven when I met Mott,” Ally said. “My family had emigrated to the Colporri System. You ever been there?”
“Yes,” Roak said. “More than once.”
Ally glanced over at him, surprised.
“What?” Roak asked. “I’ve been almost everywhere in this damned galaxy.”
“So you know that Colporri has one planet and that one planet has one industry,” Ally said.
“Mining,” Roak said. “Almost any mineral needed. Crazy place.”
“The planet regenerates every decade,” Ally said. “Everything mined is replenished and the corporations start all over. They make more credits than the Eight Million Gods off that planet.”
“Except during regeneration,” Roak said. “A full year of massive upheaval. The planet is unlivable.”
“Yes,” Ally said. “That’s why all personnel live on the stations above it. Work crews stay down on the planet during the shifts. But no one lives on the surface during the regeneration.”
“What did you parents do?” Roak asked. “Tcherians aren’t exactly mining stock. That’s usually left to the heartier of races. Or the ones with eight arms.”
“Security,” Ally said. “Our chameleon abilities make us uniquely suited for that vocation. My parents were experts. Three tours each with the Galactic Fleet. A decade in the private sector. They had a reputation. One that paid well.”
“They were union busters,” Roak laughed.
Ally gave him a sharp look, anger in her eyes. Then she relaxed and laughed with him although it was hollow and pained.
“Yeah,” she admitted. “They were there to spy on the miners and make sure no one got any ideas of organizing into something the corporations couldn’t handle.”
“Who was Mott? Was he an organizer or a corporate stooge?” Roak asked.
“Which do you think?” Ally responded. “You’ve met the guy.”
“Corporate stooge,” Roak said.
“Exactly,” Ally said. “But with a twist. He was a plant. Put in with the miners as a voice against organizing. He worked the same shifts as they did, ate the same meals, was accepted as one of them. But when any of the men or women started to complain, he’d put that seed of doubt in their heads about how much worse it could be and that they should be thankful.”
“I know the drill,” Roak said. “I’ve watched it happen on plenty of planets, stations, systems.”
Ally went quiet. They drove on and it was a long while before she spoke again. Roak just waited out the silence, his eyes studying the jungle canopy that loomed over them and the narrow road. There were some strange creatures up in the branches. Hungry-looking creatures. Without a pistol on his hip, he was glad he had the roller cockpit around him.
“My mother was killed first,” Ally said. “When the riots started.”
Roak continued to study the jungle. He didn’t want to focus too much attention on Ally. Part of his job was getting people to tell him things they didn’t necessarily want to tell him. Most of the time that just meant paying for information. Some of the time it involved a little physical discomfort and violent persuasion. Then there were times when people just wanted to talk. They had intel they no longer wanted to keep bottled inside. That’s when you shut the hell up and let them talk.
Roak shut the hell up and let Ally talk.
“It took me a long time to realize that the riots weren’t an accident,” Ally said. “I mean, I know riots are never an accident, there’s always a catalyst that sets them off. But, the catalyst was intentional. It was designed to rile up the miners and create nothing but destruction. My mother just happened to be on the surface when the riot broke out. She was down there interviewing suspects in a supply theft case. It was as routine as anything.”
Roak nodded to show he was listening, but his lips remained sealed.
“She usually didn’t bother with that type of work,” Ally said. “It was routine and should have been handled by corporate HR. But my mother was doing someone a favor. Wrong place, wrong time.”
A large bird swooped down from the jungle canopy and came within centimeters of colliding with the roller’s cockpit. Roak flinched then laughed. Ally didn’t seem to even notice, she was lost in her memories.
“When news of the riot reached the station, we had no idea my mother had been caught up in it,” Ally said. “I think if we had, my father would never have gone down. He would have gathered me up and gotten us on the first shuttle out of there. Make our way back to corporate headquarters to regroup and clean the mess up when everything was over.”
Roak watched her out of the corner of his eye. There was no sadness in her voice or in her posture. There was barely any anger, either. Just a resignation born of many years spent in defeat. He knew the mindset well.
“But he did go down,” Ally said. “Last time I saw my father was while he strapped on his pistols and stepped into the surface lander. I waved. He waved. That was it.”
The sky opened up and rain came pouring down onto the roller. The sound of amphibians filled the air immediately. They were loud even through the plastiglass covering the cockpit, so Roak couldn’t imagine what they sounded like outside the roller.
“Mott said he worked for the corporation and was there to take me home,” Ally continued. “He said he was supposed to accompany me back to my people for the corporation. We never even got close to my home world. He dragged me across the galaxy, putting me to work wherever we landed.”
She glanced over at Roak quickly then looked back out at the soggy road ahead.
