by M. D. Cooper
“She can’t just walk around. People will know who she is,” Kylie said.
“But assassination?” Grayson asked. “Murder? Those you condone, Miss Devonire?”
Nadine’s head whipped around and she leveled an uncommonly harsh look at Grayson. Lana didn’t know her well yet, but the anger in her eyes took Lana aback.
“Don’t put words in my mouth,” Nadine hissed. “That’s not what I said.”
“Excuse me, then,” Grayson said. “I believe I’m doing more harm than good here.” He rose slowly and walked toward the door, but Lana had a feeling he really wanted to run.
Kylie twisted in her seat. “Gray…” her voice trailed off as he left.
“Oh, for the love,” Rogers said as he sliced his meat after pouring apple sauce on top. “High drama tonight. Guess it’s going to leave more food for me.”
“It’s not supposed to be soup,” Nadine said with a scrunched-up nose.
“I’m going to head out too and stretch my legs,” Lana said and pushed her seat back.
“You sure?” Kylie’s said, her eyes appearing concerned.
Lana really appreciated that about her. Kylie always cared, always seemed genuinely interested in Lana’s wellbeing.
Lana nodded. “Don’t worry, I’m okay. Finish your dinner and be with your friends.” Lana walked out of the galley, but instead of stopping at her quarters, she kept walking past the port airlock, and down toward the cargo bay. Winter almost always went in there when he wanted to be alone.
Lana raced into the cargobay and found Winter sitting up high on a stack of crates. His feet swung back and forth as he sipped on his beer.
“Hey girl, what you staring at?” he asked as she stopped and looked up at him.
She shrugged. “Nothing much. Think I can join you?”
Winter snorted. “If you can get up here. You’re free to do what you want.”
It didn’t take Lana long to scale the boxes and when she got to the top, she swung herself into a seated position with a flourish. “Was that supposed to be challenging?” she asked.
“I guess I should have expected that,” Winter said as he handed her a cold beer. “Here, you’ve earned it.”
Lana flipped off the cap with her finger and took a sip.
“Damn. I guess I didn’t give you enough credit,” Winter said as he pocketed the bottle opener he was holding. Everyone walks around here acting like you’re a naïve little school girl who has to be taken care of.”
“And what do you think?” Lana asked, crossing her legs.
“I think they underestimate you. I think they don’t see what I see.”
“What’s that?” Lana dared him to say it.
“A woman. A fine-ass woman at that.”
Lana laughed. “People don’t seem to trust you.”
“No, they don’t,” Winter said with a shrug. “Sometimes I give them good reason not to, you know? Kylie and Rogers are good people. Nadine is practically a damn porcelain figurine she’s so perfect. I wouldn’t take my side over theirs if I were you, but I do appreciate the gesture.”
Lana looked into Winter’s eyes as he stared across the bay. “I trusted you when you ‘took me hostage’. I trust you now, that’s all I know. Besides, things were really tense in there.”
“Noticed that too, did you?” Winter finished his beer. “Nadine just got back and I figured she and the cap would be busy in their room, know what I’m saying? Instead, they can barely look at each other.”
Lana shrugged. “Life’s complicated; that much I know.”
“Good lesson to learn young.”
“You were serious about being there when you take out Harken? If you are, I want to go with you.”
‘Even after all that, huh?” Winter sucked on his bottom lip. “Come with me, then. Do what I say, and we’ll come out on top.”
Lana liked the idea of that.
“Not that kind of top. You got a dirty mind or what?”
Lana laughed. “I’m a general’s daughter. Spent a lot of time around starship crews. I know all about dirty.”
Winter leaned in close to her and Lana could feel his hot breath on her face. “You flirting with me, girl?”
“Took you long enough to notice.” Her heart pounded with excitement and she surged with adrenaline. Lana knew it, she just didn’t care. She wanted him. Bad. Now.
Winter shifted closer and lowered his face to meet hers. Their lips were almost touching. “This is where I’m supposed to kiss you, huh? Is that what you want?”
“If you don’t, I might have to kiss you.”
“Dare you, baby,” Winter’s voice growled like a big cat; a predator.
Lana’s heart surged with hunger for it. Her face flamed hot with emotion, desire, and hormones. She couldn’t control anything; not how she was feeling, nor her impulses. Even if she wanted to stop, it would be impossible. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him close.
“Never dare me to do anything you don’t want me to do.” Lana kissed him with the passion she’d been holding inside since dinner, since yesterday, and all the little moments in between.
“Never said I didn’t want to, sweet stuff. Just wasn’t sure you really wanted it. Guess I won’t underestimate you again.”
Lana hooked her fingers on his belt and started to undo it.
“Damn girl, you’re not playing around,” Winter whispered as he kissed her. He caressed her arms and Lana pulled him in closer, pushing her tongue into his mouth. “Stars. You’re so hot, babe.”
She was burning up, that’s how hot she was. Lana lifted her shirt overhead and tossed it into down to the deck as Winter grabbed her torso and lifted her up onto his lap. Lana wrapped her arms around him, tilted her head back so he could kiss the soft rise of her breasts.
“There’s a special hell for men who do what I’m going to do to you…”
Lana couldn’t wait to find out what that was going to be.
* * * * *
Nadine set a stack of dishes back in the cupboard, securing them carefully with the tensioner. Beside her, Kylie scrubbed one of the pots, her short ponytail bobbing angrily as she scratched off the last few burnt potato bits.
Kylie had worn the same sullen expression the entire time they had done the dishes, and the tension between them had only increased.
It wasn’t as though Nadine wanted things to progress like this. She loved Kylie—even though she shouldn’t. Petra would be more than displeased if she found out that Nadine had fallen for her asset.
It made the betrayal she would ultimately deliver that much more difficult to contemplate. It also meant that she was constantly battling her own emotions.
And Kylie could sense it. The struggle within Nadine was going to end up pushing Kylie to Grayson—something that she suspected had already occurred to some extent.
Nadine let out a scream within the confines of her mind. She half-hoped that Jason had died when he fell. It would serve him right for screwing up her mission with Kylie so royally.
So much had changed during her ‘kidnapping’. The Dauntless now felt like an entirely different ship. Not to mention tha
t Kylie’s AI was going to be a massive complication. At least Grayson was something she could change. She’d have him off the ship within a day of their arrival at Freemont.
A small voice in Nadine’s mind asked her if her strong desire to get rid of Grayson had more to do with the jealousy she felt than the mission. Nadine pushed the worry aside. She had worked too hard, cultivating her relationship with Kylie for years, tending to her like a gardener tends to his award-winning roses.
Nadine didn’t lose. She had a mission that she would see to completion; and Grayson was putting it all at risk. She’d fight dirty and use every trick in her arsenal to ensure success.
“Is everything okay with you and Grayson?” Nadine asked as she grabbed the pot and dried it. She ensured that just the right amount of concern was in her voice.
“Sure,” Kylie replied without emotion.
“Kylie, I know you. It was all kinds of chilly in here tonight between the two of you. There’s no way everyone else missed it. I bet it’s why they all rushed out. Did you guys have a fight?”
Nadine knew it was disingenuous. Just as much tension had been between her and Kylie, but now was the time to fix that.
Kylie seemed oblivious to Nadine’s half-truth as she replied. “Not a fight, no. I mean, yes. We fought a bunch of times—starting with the day you were kidnapped. Well, before that too. Seems like our favorite pastime. I just really don’t want to talk about it.”
Kylie moved away and Nadine reached for her hand, widening her eyes and giving Kylie an imploring look. “Tell me. It’s putting a wall up around you. If you need to talk…”
“No. I really don’t want to talk about it. It’s in the past, all right?” Kylie’s voice was tense and a scowl marred her features.
Nadine hated to push Kylie’s buttons like this, but she had to ensure that she was the wounded party in future conversations. She also wanted leverage to drive the wedge between Kylie and Grayson deeper.
“Is it me, then?” Nadine’s eyes shone with crocodile tears. “Are you upset with me? I’m sorry I was kidnapped. I’m sorry—please don’t hold it against me, Kylie.”
“It’s not you, okay?” Kylie reached out and wiped Nadine’s tears away. “It’s never been you. Oh please, don’t say that.”
“Then, what is it?”
“Grayson…he…” Kylie held her jaw tight, “he kissed me. He kissed me more than once and I…I didn’t hate it. I’m sorry, Nadine. I just…”
Had kisses been all that happened between them? Nadine had to find out.
“He kissed you.” Nadine stepped back. “He kissed you and you let him? He knew you were with me! Did you even try to stop him?”
“Of course, I did. Of course! I pushed him away. He did it to mess with me…he even told me so later,” Kylie said.
Her words struck Nadine in the heart. How was she any different than Grayson? They just served different masters.
Nevertheless, she soldiered on. “There’s a big ‘but’ there, isn’t there? You wanted to kiss him, didn’t you? Maybe that’s not all you wanted.”
“You were gone,” Kylie pleaded. “Gone, and emotions were running high. I went to rescue Lana and wasn’t sure I’d make it back. We just reacted. It had nothing to do with you.”
“Yes, I can see that.” Nadine turned and strode toward the galley’s door. She slowed at the entrance she caught sight of an approaching figure out of the corner of her eye.
Grayson. Perfect. Time for the grand finale. She needed to play him as much as Kylie.
“That’s not what I meant and you know it. I was wrong, I’m sorry,” Kylie said as she rushed after Nadine.
Nadine let out a sad sigh. “I can tell you’re sorry, but it still happened, didn’t it? You being sorry doesn’t change how you feel. I can see how you feel when you look at him. I’ve lost you to him, haven’t I?”
Kylie shook her head. “No, don’t say that. It’s not true. I want to be with you.”
“Do you?” Nadine asked softly.
Kylie nodded solemnly. “Yes.”
Even though Nadine was working Kylie it still hurt that the woman she loved had kissed another—that she’d wanted to do more than just kiss. Didn’t that make her the biggest hypocrite born this side of the Inner Stars?
“I guess only time will tell. Everyone used to mock me as the princess who fell for the junker, and I was fine with that. Fine with you. I didn’t think you’d end up breaking my heart, Kylie.”
Kylie bit her lip and tears filled her eyes. “I don’t mean to. Forgive me, Nadine. Please.”
Nadine didn’t reply. She simply turned and fled, wiping tears—even she didn’t know if they were fake—from her cheeks. She passed Grayson who tried to slip by in the shadows, but their eyes met anyway, and Nadine rushed by with a sob. When she was in the clear, she glanced back at his shadow and couldn’t help giving a small smile.
A smile for a performance well done.
FREEMONT
STELLAR DATE: 09.23.8947 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Dauntless, approaching Freemont
REGION: Gedri System, Silstrand Alliance
Kylie watched through the bridge’s clear dome as Rogers eased the Dauntless into its final approach vector.
One thing was for certain, if Krenko had been a fiery hell, Freemont was its antithesis.
The planet was a grey terrestrial world covered in vast ice fields. Excepting for some light water extraction, the world looked much as it had the first time humans had ever laid eyes on it: frozen and inhospitable.
The large, high-gravity world wasn’t a profitable location to extract water. It was, however, rich in heavier elements, and its crust was honeycombed with millions of kilometers of mines.
The world’s mineral wealth was a part of what made Freemont the capital of the Gedri system—even though Jericho’s settlements were much older.
Kylie also suspected that the Gedri Freedom Federation at least wanted to appear to be legitimate. Operating off Jericho—home of multiple crime syndicates run by the old families—would have made even the appearance of a real government impossible.
Because of the world’s mass, few people lived on Freemont, and the seat of the government was in the Freemont United Trans-System orbital habitat, commonly called the Futz by the locals
As far as orbital structures went in Gedri, the Futz was the top of the heap. It consisted of a two-hundred-kilometer-long spire with twenty-seven rings wrapped around it, some over a thousand kilometers in circumference.
Once, in the distant past, the entire structure had spun, but now only the largest rings rotated around the stationary spire and inner rings. Those rings were used by the larger ships, which docked on the insides of the rings, resting their mass against the centripetal force.
The Dauntless’s berth was not on the outer docks, but on one of the smaller rings close to the top of the spire with the diplomatic vessels and fast couriers.
“Nice digs they have us at,” Rogers said as he eased the Dauntless toward the enclosed dock where they had been directed by Freemont’s Space Traffic Control. “A lot nicer than the last time we were at Freemont.”
“We’ve never docked at Freemont before,” Kylie replied.
Rogers turned and grinned. “Exactly. They don’t normally let riffraff like us in the door.”
“There’s a note from Vaax,” Nadine said from the comm console. She hadn’t warmed up entirely, but just having Nadine there made Kylie feel like things were moving in the right direction. “She said that she’s bought off the local SSF garrison commanders, but not to stray off Ring 2 or the upper spire, she’d also like us to arrive early if possible to have a chat.”
Kylie sighed. “I’m sure it will be a joy.”
“Sad I’ll miss it,” Winter said. “She puts out a great spread.”
Nadine frowned. “Is that some sort of really weird euphemism?”
Winter laughed and Kylie sighed. “No,” she said. “Vaax believes in lots
and lots of good food. Winter is a fan.”
“You bet I am. She even got me to eat craps.”
Kylie shook her head. “Seriously, Winter. Crepes!”
“Whatever, they were amazing.”
“I better go get ready,” Nadine said as she rose from her console and left the bridge.
Rogers looked back at Kylie. “Still working through stuff, I see. You OK?”
Kylie nodded. “Yeah, I think so. We’re getting there. The catty insinuation phase is almost over.”
Winter laughed and Kylie gave him a mock scowl as she left the bridge to prepare for the hearing.
On the way to her cabin, she walked past Grayson’s to see his door open and an open duffel on his bed. She stopped and peered in to see him pulling shirts from the wardrobe and folding them up.
“Going somewhere?”
He paused but didn’t turn around to look at her. “Don’t make this harder than it needs to be. I don’t belong here. These past few days have just reinforced that further.”
“Dinners have been awkward, yeah, but it’ll get better.”
Grayson shook his head. “No Kylie, it won’t.”
“So, you’re just leaving? You’re going to walk off the Dauntless onto the GFF capital?” It didn’t sound like a good idea. Most of all, it didn’t sound like him.
“There are other ships. I can get passage to one world, then another.”
Her face darkened as a deep blush crept over her and anger built in her chest. “I have a ship. You don’t need another ship.”
“I can’t stay here, Kylie.” His tone was biting as he shoved the shirts into the duffel and zipped it up. “I’d explain it to you if I thought you’d understand but you won’t. You’ll only try to get me to stay.”
What was so wrong with that? “Sounds like there’s nothing for me to say then except that you’re being stupid. The SSF has a presence here, and Harken has contacts in the GFF. Neither side likes you much. At least with us you have Vaax’s protection.”
“Are you serious?” Grayson asked. “Protection from the corrupt, probably murderous, president of the GFF? I’d rather take my chances.”
