The space below decks was tight. As he tried to crawl through to the power supply, Riks realized why grunts were hired to do this. They were small and they didn’t mind getting dirty. He saw the power supply in the dim light and wished he’d taken a flashlight. He strained against the darkness to try to see whether the grunts had attached all the coupling correctly. Everything seemed fine but there was only one way to be sure.
“Fire engines one and two!” Riks roared, hoping his voice would carry through the thick hull of the ship. For one agonizingly long moment he waited, hoping Hury had followed his orders and readied the engines. As the ship shuddered to life, the heat from the power supply began to fill the space he was in and he was overcome with relief.
The relief was short-lived, as Riks realized the heat building inside the small space would soon cook him if he didn’t get out of there. He pushed his body backwards, crawling the way he’d come, trying to outrun the heat that was building below decks and threatening to scorch him.
A searing pain tore through his arm and he looked back to see a gash through his flight suit, blood flowing from the spot his arm had snagged on one of the beams that supported the deck. Doing his best to ignore the pain, Riks scuttled backwards until he saw the light from above coming through the hatch. Hoisting himself up onto the ladder with his good arm, he strained, pulling himself through the small opening and collapsing onto the deck above.
Heat was pouring through the small hole and into the body of the ship as the engines burned hotter. Rolling to one side, Riks put a hand against the heavy hatch and pushed. The thing swung down then crashed shut with a massive clang. With what seemed like the last of his energy, he twisted the wheel that would seal it shut once, twice, a third time until he heard the familiar click of the locking mechanism seal the latch in place. He took a moment to catch his breath but there wasn’t much time to rest. With the way the helmsmen had been taught to fly, they’d be shot down before they could reach the outer atmosphere and the safety of open space.
Pulling himself to his feet, he ran down the corridor and bounded onto the bridge.
“Good work, son!” he barked by way of apology, pushing the young man out of the way. All across the panel green lights were turning yellow and yellow lights had turned to flashing red as sensors went off. He looked over at the young man who looked as petrified as he’d ever seen a person. Riks grinned. “Don’t worry. We don’t need any of that stuff to fly,” Riks said with a nod. The boy didn’t seem reassured.
Riks settled into the pilot’s seat, flipped the two switches for engines three and four overhead, and the ship shuddered again as the engines roared to life.
Outside, the militia had begun pelting the ship’s hull with laser gun blasts. It was only a matter of time before they managed to drag some heavier weaponry to the platform. Riks wasn’t planning on being around for that. “Everybody hold on!” he yelled as he jammed the throttle into overdrive. The engines screamed. The ship began to lift.
Chapter Six
Rena knew something was wrong. A ship wasn’t supposed to make the kind of sound the one she was currently on was making. If she’d heard her own ship sounding like that, she would have donned a crash suit and fired the life pod instead of waiting to find out what was going to happen.
Everything seemed to shake around her as she looked out the tiny starboard porthole. Outside, more militia had gathered. The men who’d been peppering the ship with laser blasts had moved out of view. She stared down at the ground, wondering where they’d gone. The answer came soon enough.
Rena watched as more soldiers appeared, dragging a massive cannon onto the platform. Her eyes went wide as she saw the barrel swinging up to point at the ship. One of the men standing to the side raised a hand. At that moment, the sound of the engines grew louder. Rena didn’t see what happened next.
Her body slammed to the floor from the force of the ship’s acceleration. She looked up to see the bars of the cage around her trembling and she wondered if this was the last thing she was going to see of this world. The view outside the porthole grew dark, the sound of the engines dimmed slightly. Then, there was nothing but black outside and a sudden silence filled the room.
Rena heaved a massive sigh of relief. Somehow, that crazy bastard had managed to find a wormhole and make a jump. Now all she could do was wait.
It took some time, but finally Riks emerged from the darkness of the corridor, walking slowly into the room.
A sudden pang of worry flashed through her as Rena realized his arm was bleeding. Before she could stop herself, she’d jumped to her feet, staring at the gash.
“What happened?” she cried, her voice betraying her concern. When his gaze fell on the soft curves of her body, she realized too late that she was still completely naked and looked away.
Riks leveled his gaze at her. “I don’t know whether to spank you or thank you,” he muttered, his voice sounding hoarse and tired.
Rena blushed. No one had ever said anything like that to her before. She fought the smile that threatened to crack across her lips. He was still the enemy. She still had to get away, though that seemed much more unlikely now.
Riks bent down and picked up her clothes that were lying just out of reach outside the cage and threw them in. She wanted to thank him but stopped herself. Instead, she dressed hurriedly, trying to ignore the ache his gaze ignited between her legs. When she was clothed again, she looked up at the gash on his arm once more.
“You need help,” she said, looking back into his eyes.
“Yeah, well, the doc’s long gone. It’ll have to wait until we find a place to land.”
“I can help you,” she said quietly. She caught the flicker of something in his eyes before he could suppress it, bury it back inside.
“How the hell are you gonna help? You a medic?” he growled.
“I know a thing or two,” she answered with confidence. She’d taken care of her fair share of injuries. “I know enough that you’ll be sorry if you let that fester,” she said, pointing to his arm. “Get me some water, a cloth. Do you have a medic kit?”
Riks sighed, his eyes roving across her face. For some reason, she hoped he would trust her enough to let her see to the wound. He turned and walked back into the dark corridor. Rena stood by the bars of her cage, waiting for him to return. Relief washed over her when he did, carrying a red medic kit, a cloth, and a bowl of water. He put the items down in front of the cage.
“What next?” he asked, gruffly.
Rena shook her head. “I can’t help you through these bars, you big…” She trailed off in mid-sentence. It felt too familiar, what she was going to say. Riks glowered.
“I’m not letting you out of there again.” He seemed to mean it.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes this time. “What do you think I’m going to do? Jump ship?”
His brow furrowed. They were in hyperspace. Even if she managed to get past him, she couldn’t even launch a life pod if this old hunk of scrap metal even had any. They stared at each other for a few moments before he spoke again.
“No funny business,” he threatened, raising a finger at her.
She put her palms up. “No funny business.”
Riks turned and punched the seven digits into the dash that opened the door.
The gash was deep and Riks flinched as she pulled off his shirt. She let her gaze linger on the taut muscles that rippled across his torso. Shaking off the urge to reach out and run her finger across his hard body, she dipped the cloth in the bowl of water and brought it up to the cut to clean the wound.
“Ow!” Riks roared as she pressed the cloth against the gash in his arm. Rena leaned back at the sound. For a guy his size, he sure was being a wimp.
“Hold still, you big marmle,” she muttered, pressing the cloth against his arm again. She watched his jaw clench, watched the muscles of his back tense, then relax again as he eased into the sensation of the pain. Her imagination ran away from her. She
saw those rippling muscles poised over her, saw her legs spread open, felt his hips pushing against her thighs. She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of the unbidden fantasy.
“Hand me the kit,” she said, trying to keep her voice as steady as she could.
Riks passed her the tiny box and she opened it and began rummaging for a bandage. Once she found one, she wrapped it slowly around his massive arm. Her mind flashed to an image of her on her stomach, the same arm she was bandaging behind her, his hand gripping the back of her neck, holding her down. She felt his warm hand again between her legs, spreading her however he wanted. Doing whatever he pleased. She took a deep breath and tried to push the thought out of her mind.
* * *
Riks felt his cock swelling as Rena’s delicate fingers wrapped the bandage tightly around his arm. She was so close he could smell her sweetness, tinged with the now familiar smell of her excitement. Could she be… does she feel the same way about me? he wondered. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the curve of her breast moving slowly back and forth as she worked to fix the bandage on his arm. He felt the urge to reach out and pick her up, push his tongue into her mouth, then rip her clothes off and push himself inside the throbbing pussy he’d had his hand in earlier.
No.
She wasn’t his. She was theirs. Rena belonged to the Bani and he had to stop thinking like this. It was to them that she owed money. He had nothing to do with that. He would have no more to do with her.
“That’s enough,” he remarked gruffly, standing up and almost knocking her over. He couldn’t bring himself to look at her in fear that the sight of her would weaken him again. He would already have to do enough to train her for the Bani.
“Well, you’re welcome, I guess…” he heard her say. He could hear the hurt in her voice but he didn’t dare turn around.
“Rest now. We’ll begin your training later.”
“Training? What training?” she asked and this time he couldn’t resist turning around. Just one last glance at her beautiful face that he could take back to his cabin.
“The Bani won’t take you unless you’re trained. They like to play with their women before they breed them and they like it if their women know the rules of the game.”
“What are the rules of the game?” she asked hesitantly, as if she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.
“There’s only one rule. You are theirs and they can do with you as they please. They don’t like it if you fight back.”
He watched her eyes narrow as she folded her arms across her chest. “And how do you plan to train me to do that?” she asked, her tone daring him to try.
That helped somehow. It strengthened his resolve. “You’ll see,” he answered simply. Swinging the door to the cage shut, he walked back into the darkened corridor.
He wandered over to the bridge. Hury and Aamer were studying charts.
“Everything good?” Riks asked. The two young men looked up and nodded.
“It is until something goes wrong downstairs,” Aamer said, glancing at his friend. Riks knew the two were a little scared of him. He didn’t blame them. He did yell. A lot.
“You let me worry about that,” Riks said, glancing at the chart they were looking at. “What are you looking for?”
“Looking for a spot to jump out of hyperspace,” Hury answered. “Somewhere that isn’t too crowded.”
Riks nodded and patted the boy on the back. It seemed like they understood the deal. Riks hoped they wouldn’t bolt as soon as they set foot on solid ground. He was quickly turning into a fugitive himself and if he wasn’t careful, he’d be the one that ended up with a bounty on his head.
“Sir?” Hury’s voice drew him from his thoughts and back onto the bridge.
“What is it?” Riks asked.
“What happened back there? On Balon?”
Riks ran his palm slowly over the stubble on his chin. “I’m not sure myself, son. But it seemed like we were being set up.”
“Set up? By who? And why?”
“Don’t know the answer to that either. I do know that Bani that came asking about our… cargo was a long way from home. It’s not like them to go chasing after their own prey. They much prefer to pay someone else to do that for them.” Riks looked up to see both of the men looking worried. He’d already said too much. “Look here, men, I know I’ve made things a little more difficult for us. That wasn’t my intention, it’s just how things shaped up. If you two want to step off when we find somewhere you can catch a ride, I’m not going to blame you, you understand?”
The two looked at each other, then back at Riks. They both nodded.
“Good. Now find us somewhere to jump out of hyperspace before we run out of fuel,” he said, slapping each of them on the back. “I’ll be in the mess. All this bullshit has made me hungry.”
Chapter Seven
Jayne was sitting in the tiny mess in the center of the ship, huddled over a steaming cup. When she saw Riks enter, she jumped to her feet.
“Food? I’ll get you some!” she said, bouncing toward a pot bubbling on the heater.
“Hold on,” Riks said, walking up to the table and sitting down. “Sit back down. I want to talk to you.”
Jayne turned back around slowly and sat back down. Riks saw her studying his face.
“What the hell happened?” Riks asked quietly.
Jayne lowered her eyes. “It was stupid. I was stupid…”
“No.” Riks’ voice left no room for argument. He reached across the table, took her tiny hand, and squeezed it. “Nothing was your fault. If anyone’s to blame, it’s me. I should have known better than to hire grunts. They told me not to, with a woman on board. I didn’t listen. I wanted to save some money…”
Jayne looked back up at him and he had to look away. “No, Riks, please don’t blame yourself. You’ve done so much for me already. I was in the kitchen with my back turned. I didn’t hear them come in. They can be so quiet. Before I knew it, they were tearing my clothes off and I was on my back. That’s when Rena came in.”
Riks frowned. “You know her name?”
Jayne looked surprised. “You told me I could talk to her. Remember?”
Riks looked away. This was getting out of hand. If the two spent any more time together they’d soon become friends. No. He had to put a stop to this.
“You’re not to speak with her again.”
Jayne’s surprise turned to shock. “What?” she asked quietly.
“You heard me. She’s a prisoner. You’re not to have anything more to do with her.”
“Riks,” Jayne said after a moment of thought, “she’s the one who saved me. She could have run but she saved me instead. You’re not still… you’re not thinking of… you wouldn’t give her to the Bani after that, would you?”
Her words brought a tightness to his throat. She was right. If Rena had run instead of coming to help her… he couldn’t even imagine the possibility. But again he pushed the notion away. It wasn’t his problem that she’d borrowed credits from the Bani. This was how things worked. He was just doing what he needed to do to survive.
“You’re not to talk to her again,” he said, still unable to look up at Jayne.
She didn’t answer right away. When she did, it was in a cold whisper. “Jonas Riks, you’re a monster. I’m off at the next station. Until then, get your own fucking dinner.”
Jayne stood up and walked out of the mess.
Chapter Eight
Riks sat alone in his cabin.
They’d made the jump from hyperspace into the seldom-traveled Tani system and had swung into orbit around a moon that didn’t look like it saw much traffic. The helmsmen had needed a rest and Riks had too. He knew he’d have to do a spacewalk and reattach the heat shield that had been blasted off. He’d need all his wits about him and the only thing that would help with that was sleep.
But sleep didn’t come.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her. He saw her beautiful f
ace and the body he’d touched. He longed to claim her and tame her fiery spirit and make her his. The more he thought about her, the more he couldn’t stop thinking about her and the more he thought about her, the more he thought about Jayne’s words until he finally realized something he had somehow already known.
Of course he couldn’t give her to the Bani. Even before she’d saved Jayne from the grunts, deep inside himself he’d known that he couldn’t. It was a relief to admit it to himself.
But the question became, what could he do with her?
Riks rose from his bunk and peered out the porthole at the dark side of the moon they were orbiting. He couldn’t just drop her off at the next station like he could the helmsmen, or Jayne. She’d just end up getting caught by another bounty hunter. That was the last thing he wanted. The thing he wanted most was her.
Now that she wasn’t his prisoner any more, there was only one thing he could do. Claim her as his mate.
* * *
Rena sat huddled in the corner of the darkened cage. The lights had been turned down when they’d jumped out of hyperspace and she assumed the crew had needed sleep. She needed it herself, but her mind wouldn’t let her. All she could think of was him.
Every time she closed her eyes, she felt his hands on her body again, his firm grasp on the back of her neck, his fist pulling her hair, twisting her into the positions he wanted. She felt herself submitting to his every desire gladly, and how it made her pussy throb and wetness come between her legs again.
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