A Dryden Collection, page 16
TIAN DARTED DOWN A narrow lane, ignoring the startled, "Hey," from Brent. What she'd give to get rid of these awful shoes, but they had a few more open places to cross and she might have to look the part. Now that the horrible collar was off her neck her body sensors were checking for damage. She could almost hear them tut-tutting over the sores on her neck and back. The pain had already been blocked.
Her proximity sensors were starting to function better, although they weren't at a hundred percent. Nothing was a hundred percent, not even her memory. How had this happened? How had she been captured? Later. She'd deal with it later.
She slowed at a corner between overhanging warehouses, holding her arm out to keep Brent back. He crowded behind her, his breath warm on her neck. She peered around, straining her ears for sound. The taverns in the industrial sector were all going full swing. A heightened noise level, shouts and splats was probably a brawl at Romero's. If the Yrmaks they'd passed were on the hunt for her, this time she wouldn't be fitted with a collar.
All clear. She strode down the lane to the right, which brought them out into the station's secondary hub and the entrance to the transit system. The moving walkways weren't quite as crowded as usual. The station kept standard galactic time, which meant this was the figurative middle of the night. Although that didn't matter to most travelers. Tian stepped onto the feeder track, Brent just behind her, balancing her body as the speed increased so they could merge with the main track. In front of her a child tugged at his mother's hand whining he was hungry.
"Yeah, me too, kid," Brent muttered.
Tian tensed when an Yrmak soldier wearing standard body armor came onto the track just behind them. But he was relaxed, both hearts beating at normal pace. Probably just someone returning to a ship. Nevertheless, she was glad he didn't come after them onto the exit to J dock.
"You go first," Tian said, stepping off the track.
Brent ran ahead. Something was driving him. His heart beat far too fast and his body temperature was elevated. She kept pace with him, letting him lead the way. Three bays, four... he skidded to a halt and slapped his hand onto the panel at the gate. Nothing happened. He gritted his teeth. "Come on. It isn't midnight." He pressed again.
Tian focused on the gate panel. All circuits in order. Recognition systems working. Which was more than she could say for Brent. He banged his hand on the surface. "Fuck." He grated the word, his lips drawn back. Anger, frustration, and bitterness all fought for dominance.
Tian took hold of his arm. "Steady. What's going on?"
"I can't get in so I guess my ship's been impounded." His lips curled. "Bastards. They set me up. They told me I had till midnight."
He was telling the truth, no doubt about it. "Why?"
"They gave me a berth. I said I'd have the credits to pay them, I had a job lined up. Only I was late and Narvak gave it to someone else."
Narvak. An up and coming junior crime boss in the Thukktar syndicate. Interesting. "What were you going to carry for Narvak?"
He scowled. "Hardly matters, does it? Got any ideas?"
"Maybe I have. I've worked on systems like these. Let me take a look." Tian moved over to the gate, standing in front of the access panel. She concentrated, connecting to the circuits. This was the old-fashioned type of circuitry, easy enough to follow, and easily avoided security. The system recorded ID details for anyone using the bay in a history file, and set payment status according to circumstances. Usually captains were expected to pay in advance, but docking a ship with payment owing was a common scam for some of the operators. They charged extra for the service, but the extra never went into the station books. Impounding a ship was even better. There were always pirates looking for good secondhand ships.
Brent's ship was still there, so his must be the last ID recorded. She toggled the setting from 'blocked' to 'paid in full', then banged the unit with the heel of her hand so he'd think she'd done something.
"I think something was loose. Try again." She stepped back.
He gave her the sort of look that said he'd do it to humor her, and pressed his palm on the panel. The bay door clicked and slid aside.
"Well... crap. I..." He stared around as if looking for a fairy godmother. "Yeah. It's a few minutes to midnight. We'd better get out of here."
Tian could almost feel the flow of endorphins as Brent's mood swung from fury to euphoria. Excellent. She didn't want him to dwell on what had just happened, ask difficult questions. He made to grab her arm, but thought better of it and jerked his head. She followed him down the tunnel to where the ship, a standard LX-340 light freighter, floated in its dock. There weren't many around anymore, but it was a good design, robust and dependable, if not the fastest.
Brent opened the airlock and beckoned her inside. "The sooner we're out of here the better," he said as he sealed the hatch.
Tian wasn't arguing with that. If the operator hoping to impound the ship was watching his screens they might still be in trouble. But the fact the ship had been seized early might mean the shift had changed. After he'd told the inboard systems to air up the ship, Brent fidgeted, swaying from foot to foot as the gauge for the ship's airlock shifted from red to orange to green.
At last. The hatch clicked and swung open. Tian followed Brent into a cramped common room fitted with the usual bolted down bench and chairs, and a food dispenser in a corner. A large screen took up one wall. The fittings were scuffed and chipped, showing their age, but at least everything was clean.
"Would you like to..." Brent gestured. "Take a shower?"
Tian half expected him to suggest sex. He'd obviously been thinking about that earlier. Her sensors might not have been operational with the collar on, but she could still gauge the look in a man's eyes. Sorry to disappoint you, son. But not just now.
"I would. Do you have any clothes I could use? Standard ship suit?"
"Yeah, sure. I can do that. But it'll be too big for you."
"Doesn't matter."
He turned to an open hatchway, then looked back at her over his shoulder. "There's only one washroom."
She grinned. "I didn't expect anything else."
After he'd shown her where to go, Brent backed away, mumbling, "Gotta get her into an exit grid. I'll bring the clothes in a sec."
The washroom had a narrow shower cubicle, a lav and a washstand, perfectly functional if you didn't turn around quickly. She stripped, thought about destroying the garments, and decided to keep them. In her line of work costumes could come in handy.
Naked she stepped into the cubicle, which sensed her presence and started the water flow at just the right temperature. Ah, lovely. She pumped gel from the dispenser and massaged her entire body, reveling in the sensual pleasure. All the damage had been repaired. Hardly any marks on her neck, or bruising and swelling around her eye. She washed her hair, too, then rinsed and set the cubicle to dry mode.
The cycle had just finished when the washroom door opened. Brent stood in the doorway. Tian sensed heat, a speeding heart, admiration, and a hint of embarrassment. "Sorry," he stuttered. "I forgot. Should have knocked."
"That's okay. I'm sure you've seen a naked woman before. Did you bring me some clothes?"
"Oh. Yeah." He held out the ship suit and a pair of soft shoes. "I'll... er... I'll be on the bridge."
Tian took the suit from him and he turned away. She slipped the garment on and fastened it at the front. The suit hung on her, but she rolled up the sleeves and the trouser legs. At least it was clean and dry. Dressed, she headed up the passage to the bridge.
Brent sat in the captain's chair on the right side of the curved console. He swiveled to face her, tension etched into the lines of his face. "They've pushed us down the grid, they say there's a lot of traffic." He waved at the nav screen. "I'm not convinced."
Tian sat down in the co-pilot's seat and focused on the comms system interface to connect to the space station's system. No, not specially busy at all. Which meant they were deliberately delaying. Why might be another matter. That Yrmak patrol would have reported events to its master, whoever that might be. They'd be looking for her. And then there was the operator who coveted this ship. Maybe security was up to something. She tripped a switch in the system, suppressing the alarm her intrusion triggered.
Security had dispatched a squad to docking bay J-7.
Tian resumed her Human persona. "I think we'd better clear out. They've sent a squad to stop us."
He jolted. "Right. But what about the bay restraints?"
"I can disengage them."
His eyes widened. "You can? How?"
"I'll tell you later." Tian sank back into machine mode. This part was easy, simple relays telling locks and switches to engage or disengage.
Brent had the engines warmed up. Now he set the nav computer to back them out as soon as the restraints were completely withdrawn. Tian took a quick glance at the security cameras at the entrance to the dock and overrode the ship's safety to set her moving as soon as the equipment had cleared the hull.
"I'm not clear," the ship's system complained. "There is a risk of damage to the hull."
Brent opened his mouth, but Tian was quicker. "There's an even bigger risk to our skins if we're not gone." She directed the image from the camera outside the dock to a screen on the bridge console. Six men clustered at the hatch. She'd stopped them getting in, but she wouldn't be able to stop the laser cutter they were using.
Tight-lipped, Brent nodded. "We're out of here, Vagabond. Underway, now!"
Power surged through the hull as the ship complied.
"Tell the system to do a proximity scan, anything powering up that might be a threat, anything already out there," Tian said.
Brent issued the order. While the images appeared, Tian did her own scan. The station had four patrol ships to carry out customs checks and generally keep the shipping in line. And line their own pockets, but that was another story.
"Vagabond you do not have clearance to leave. Return to your bay immediately." The station controller's voice was sharp.
Tian glanced at Brent. He'd have to play this one himself.
"Sorry control, this is an emergency."
"What sort of emergency? Return to your dock. If you do not, you will be in violation and we will impound your ship."
Vagabond picked up speed, squeezing through the last barrier and out beyond the space station.
"Ah, to hell with them. Turn 'em off," Brent said. "Get us on course for Gujarat."
"Acknowledge."
Tian pointed at the screen. "They've set the closest patrol ship in pursuit." A start of the art Viper, for which this out-of-date freighter was no match. The nav calculations were taking too long and the ship was dawdling out of the station's sphere of influence. "Brent, get this thing to move or it's all over."
Brent glared at her. "She's not as young as she used to be, but we'll get there." He turned his back to show her he was talking to his ship. "Speed it up, okay?"
She'd gone too far. Tian kicked herself. Men love their ships, even old ladies like this one. Vagabond? He should have called her Grandma. She slipped back into machine mode and kept a watch on the advancing Viper. Uh-oh. Red lights glowed on the ship's bow tractor beam ports. Tian took over Vagabond's drives and punched the power on so hard the acceleration slammed her body into the seat.
Brent's shout of, "Oh hell," resonated in the bridge as a bulk carrier filled the screen. Tian flipped the old ship over the vessel so it was between them and the patrol ship, then released control. "Well. The old lady's got some power when she needs it, hasn't she?"
Brent looked pleased and puzzled all at the same time. The ship forestalled any questions. "Prepare for shift space."
Tian's seat jolted and the nav screen went black. Safe so far.
Brent's shoulders slumped. "That was close. You seem to know your way around a ship." His eyes were slightly narrowed, speculative.
"I'm a qualified pilot. Up to Atlas class."
He turned to face her, his hands on his knees. "I accept you're not a prossy. So what are you? And why the collar?"
Of course he was suspicious. He didn't know anything about her. But she wouldn't tell him everything. Truth be told, she didn't know everything herself. The last thing she remembered with any clarity was easing into a warehouse in the dark.
"My name's Tian Axmar. I was doing some security work for Consolidated Agriculture Enterprises. Vetting a consignment from Brixton Enterprises going to CAE on Hillbor. Next thing I knew someone was fitting a collar to my neck." Dark rows of shelves. No sense of a person anywhere, wondering why the hell she'd been sent there. A sudden searing pain...
He stared at her. "Brixton Enterprises is a bit..." He chewed his lip. "What was the consignment?"
Tian had all this in her cover story. She didn't even have to think about it. "Power packs for farming equipment. CAE is upgrading its gear on Hillbor, so they can increase production." And yes, she knew Brixton was a bit dodgy. That was why they sent her. "What do you know about Brixton?"
He shrugged, but his eyes shifted sideways. "Just stories I've heard." He shoved himself out of the chair. "I don't know about you but I'm starving. It's not gourmet, but it'll fill you up."
Tian followed him to the common room and took a seat. He selected an option from the menu on the front of the dispenser and pressed the button.
"I asked for beef stew," he said, sitting at the bench opposite her. "I hope you're okay with that?"
"Sure. Whatever. So — tell me a bit about you. Married? Kids? Parents?"
The smell of cooking wafted through the ship.
"I have a couple of sisters."
"Is that why you rescued me?"
"Huh? Oh. Yes, I guess so. Men beating up women... it's not right." A shadow passed across his face. "That's what I heard first. Fists on skin."
There was more to it than that. But Tian let it pass.
The dispenser pinged. Brent fetched the two plates and tucked in, while Tian ate as much as she would need to restore her energy levels. Certainly this was better nutrition than the scant rubbish they'd fed her at the brothel. He eyed her left overs and she pushed the plate across. "I've had enough."
He ate quickly, scooping up the food and shoveling it into his mouth. Brown hair down to his shoulders, hazel eyes, a strong jaw. No stubble so he'd probably had the facial hair treatment. A nice guy trying to make a go of it in a harsh universe. But was that enough to trust him with more information? Let alone ask for his help.
He picked up both plates and put them into the dispenser's recycle slot, then wiped the table down. She leaned away to give him room and he grinned. "My momma taught me to be neat."
She smiled. "Is she still alive?"
He hid the expression fairly well, but not well enough for her sensors. Sadness. Guilt? "No. She... died years ago."
That little hesitation between 'she' and 'died'.
"And your sisters?"
His smile reflected his pride and affection. "One's at college, studying to be an engineer, and the other one just got married. She and her husband are teachers. I'm real proud of both of them."
"Seen them lately?"
He shook his head, his eyes glancing away for a microsecond. "Nah. I've been busy. Anyway, you haven't told me about the collar. What was that about?"
"The collar is a dominance thing. That brothel isn't just a kink establishment, where people role-play with whips and binders and things. They cater to people who get a thrill out of brutality. The collar meant I had no chance of escape and they could inflict nerve pain whenever they wanted. I think in a few days one of those depraved bastards would have tortured me to death. Just for fun. As a matter of fact, I think I might not have survived the thug I was with when you rescued me." Maybe that was the intention. Somebody wanted her dead. But who? And why?
He gazed at her, not surprised, angry. "There are some sick bastards in this universe."
She shrugged. "There are."
And there were, plenty of them. Yrmaks were quite happy to round up a bunch of Human women for the brothels on the lawless mining worlds. But they didn't usually go out of their way to trap an agent in a deserted warehouse. Also, whoever had set this up knew enough to know that there was no point in sending a couple of toughs to grab her. Which raised all sorts of issues. She'd always believed that no one in Imperial Security knew she wasn't quite Human. Maybe that wasn't true. Maybe Kest had set her up. He'd pulled her off her main assignment for the Brixton thing. She'd wondered why at the time, but Colonel Kest didn't answer questions from subordinates, especially her. He certainly didn't like her. He sent her to the warehouse, knew the time she'd be there, knew she wouldn't be easy to take down. Whoever it was hit her from the side with what she surmised was a disrupter. They didn't kill but inflicted terrible pain. No wonder the things were illegal. She remembered a moment of agony and then a hazy memory of the collar being fitted. The device had almost destroyed her internal communications. Almost.
Brent shifted in his seat and licked his lips. "Listen, do you want to play a game of Empire?"
"Sure." He was right. Let's do something different. Besides, she needed to get this guy on her side.
He pressed a control on the table between them, which slid aside. The 3D game arena appeared, showing territories and displacement of troops. "Which side do you want to play?"
"I'll play the Yrmaks." Which left him to play the Humans.
Tian enjoyed playing the aliens. It helped her to understand them better, an important part of her current job. The biggest problem Yrmaks had in any war was their tribalism. It was rare that any two Yrmak armies would fight together, and when they did the possibility of an internal feud was always hanging in the air. That was one of the probabilities in the game. She played an Yrmak admiral and did well until some of her ships rebelled.
Brent shifted his fleet into position on the game board, grinning. "That's it, lady. I've got you by the short... I've got you in a corner."
She signaled surrender. "You have indeed. Well played." Leaning back in her chair, she added, "Maybe this is when I work off some of that debt I owe you."
