And then she was facing him.

  Delicate nose.

  Lips … he couldn’t notice any more.

  Because he was drowning in blue.

  The blue-est eyes he had ever seen.

  Humor in them.

  As if saying, I know you’re staring.

  Her lips parted.

  And Cade woke up.

  Chapter 19

  He was on his bed. In his ship, Andy.

  He blinked, disoriented, and sat up.

  What was that?

  He hadn’t remembered falling asleep.

  Heck, he didn’t even remember coming to his room.

  The last memory he had was of talking to Andy about the crates.

  Then, the dream.

  Was it a dream? It was so lifelike. Just like my holo-enactments.

  What else could it be?

  He felt a jolt when he remembered the woman. Her hair. Her eyes.

  He had never felt that reaction to a woman. Never. Sure, he had dated. Had some relationships. None of them had lasted.

  It was him, not them, tired though that cliché was.

  I might be owner of that bar, but I’m also a criminal. That’s no life for a partner.

  He looked around his room.

  Nope, no blacktop, no gas station, and for sure, no woman in it.

  He shrugged mentally.

  Just one of those things.

  Only problem with that is I never dream. Even if I do, I never remember my dreams.

  ‘Med scan,’ he called out and closed his eyes as Andy burned him with various hues of light.

  ‘You’re okay. Why the scan?’

  He hesitated, not knowing how to explain it to her.

  ‘I had this dream,’ he told her finally. ‘It felt so real.’

  ‘And you never have dreams.’

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘What was so special about it?’

  ‘There was a woman in it.’

  Andy appeared in front of him, in her dark-haired-woman avatar.

  She waggled her eyebrows, a knowing smirk on her face.

  ‘Not like that,’ he flushed in embarrassment. ‘It wasn’t an adolescent boy’s dream.’

  ‘Tell me.’

  He told her.

  ‘Blonde. Blue-eyed.’ She frowned and looked into the distance.

  He knew she was running through her membank searching for all those he had dated, all women he had interacted with.

  ‘You never met her before.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Lone Star Station. That could be in Texas.’

  ‘Yeah. I’ve been there, on a rescue mission. But never came across such a gas station.’

  ‘I can run a psych scan.’

  ‘No, thanks,’ he replied hurriedly.

  Andy took a lot of pleasure in analyzing him and putting forward her views on why he was what he was.

  ‘It was just a dream,’ he called out from his shower and turned the jets to full blast.

  But the memory persisted with him all day. It stayed fresh.

  He could hear the crunch of tires as the Mustang came off the road, rolled over gravel, and continued on concrete.

  He could remember a tendril of her hair floating behind her neck.

  Stop it.

  He looked at his messages.

  His saloon needed supplies. That meant visits to various stars to stock up on various drinks.

  His other business had more messages piled up.

  Requests for Human organs. He deleted those.

  A Gammelan wanted a Trox. Those were herbs available only on Pindar, sold through medical outlets.

  Some species used Trox for inducing violent tendencies. Such use was banned by the AGP.

  Cade scrolled through more requests and shut down the screen, feeling vaguely dissatisfied with himself.

  ‘Andy?’ he yelled. ‘Where are we?’

  ‘Still stationary. Waiting for you to get out of your funk and get to work.’

  ‘Let’s go home. Get those crates off us.’

  ‘Five sol days. We’ll take a different route. No more blackholes. I don’t think we could survive another such journey. However, now, we’ll be skirting the war. We’ll come across Calaran ships.’

  She looked at me as if she knew me.

  No!

  Cade gritted his teeth and forced himself to watch the route Andy was plotting.

  ‘Okay,’ he said when she’d finished.

  Maybe some danger would take his mind off the dream.

  On the third sol day, they were boarded by a Calaran military party.

  There were ten in the group, led by a military bot, a sentient AI in Human male form, wearing the colors of a major.

  ‘Mr. Stryker,’ Erasmus Solly, the officer, greeted Cade as he came onboard. ‘You realize there’s a war going on.’

  ‘Yes, officer. We wouldn’t have come anywhere near the front, but there was a solar storm on our original route.’

  That part was true.

  ‘What are you carrying?’

  ‘Supplies for my saloon. From Varuna.’

  ‘Varuna?’ the major frowned. ‘There’s nothing there.’

  ‘Their air—’

  ‘Is poisonous. Which is why no one lives there.’

  ‘Yes, officer. But that air, filtered, gives a special gaseous effect to Stryker Punch.’

  ‘Stryker Punch? What’s that?’

  ‘It’s one of the best-selling drinks in Stryker’s Saloon, my bar.’

  Someone chuckled.

  The major turned swiftly and glared at the sole Human, a female, in his party.

  She bobbed her head in apology and kept her eyes on the floor.

  ‘We lost a ship there. It got blasted. The enemy left no traces. You see any of that, Mr. Stryker?’

  ‘Nope. Heard about it. It was after we left. Varuna was deserted when I was there. Didn’t see anyone. Or anything.’

  The officer kept looking at him, as if waiting for more.

  Cade had nothing more to offer.

  ‘We’ll have to inspect your ship, Mr. Stryker.’ Major Solly turned stiffly toward Cade.

  ‘To check that it’s not just poisonous air you’re carrying.’

  ‘And to see if you’re lying about that Calaran ship.’

  Chapter 20

  ‘Sure,’ Cade replied, ever the willing host. ‘I wasn’t lying. You can see for yourself.’

  And crossed his fingers behind his back, hoping Andy could pull something off about the crates.

  Solly split his party into twos and they went in different directions.

  Three groups went to the engine room and the holds, one to his accommodations, and the last, led by the major, to the system bank.

  Solly hooked up several devices to various outlets and started running searches.

  He kept glaring at Cade all the while.

  It’s the effect of that uniform. And his programming.

  ‘You watch many holovids, officer?’

  ‘No,’ came the clipped reply.

  ‘Back on Earth, they used to have something called movies.’

  ‘I know what movies are.’

  ‘They had actors looking just like you. Strong jaws. Steely eyes. No emotion on their face.’

  ‘I am not acting.’

  ‘I know. You would have been a shoo-in for that place they had, Hollywood.’

  Solly turned away in disdain. Small talk wasn’t for him.

  He crouched over his screens and read the figures flashing on them.

  ‘Was I lying, officer?’

  Solly didn’t turn his way.

  One search party returned. Saluted and shook their heads.

  Nothing.

  Two more parties returned.

  Cade began to breathe easier.

  A shout from the Human soldier got Solly to his feet. He dashed into the living rooms with an eager face.

  This would be the aha moment for him, when he would prove Cade was lying.

  He stopped abruptly, his party almost crashing into him.

  ‘What’s that?’ he asked stupidly when the officer pointed the Colts at him.

  ‘Watch out!’ Cade roared, shoving Solly out of the line of fire and flinging himself away.

  ‘Those are Peacemakers,’ the officer said excitedly, lowering the barrels.

  ‘I know,’ he said sourly. ‘And they’re loaded.’

  ‘These are originals,’ she kept gushing. ‘I’ve seen holopics and vids. I think these would be the only pair on Calara.’

  ‘What’s so special about them?’ Solly demanded, grabbing them from her hands and examining them. ‘Are they illegal?’

  ‘No, sir,’ she stiffened to attention. ‘These are guns from Earth. Many thousands of years old—’

  ‘Paretsky,’ the AI interrupted sternly, ‘we’re here to inspect Mr. Stryker’s ship. To check his story and confirm that he’s not carrying contraband. Not drool over his weapons collection.’

  ‘Yes, sir,’ she dropped the Colts onto the bed.

  ‘Did you find anything suspicious?’

  ‘No, sir.’

  ‘So, you called me for no reason.’

  ‘I didn’t call, sir. I exclaimed,’ she replied patiently, meeting his eyes. ‘You came running, thinking that I had.’

  Solly turned his back on her and walked out of the room without another word. His bots followed him obediently.

  ‘He’s a—’ she whispered to Cade as she exited.

  ‘Yeah, I gather that.’

  ‘Nice guns.’

  ‘Thank you, ma’am,’ he said, eyeing the Colts, his humor vanishing in an instant.

  Where did she find them? The weapons cabinet is shut.

  ‘Ma’am? Where were the guns?’

  ‘On the bed. Beneath the pillows. A problem?’

  I don’t recollect taking them out. The modified Colts are with me. The originals should’ve been in the cabinet.

  He frowned, cast a final look and followed her outside.

  ‘You’re clean, Mr. Stryker,’ Solly told him, motioning for the bots and the Human to leave.

  ‘You seem disappointed, officer.’ Cade couldn’t resist.

  The AI turned on his heel and left.

  ‘Andy?’ he called out when the Calaran ship was receding into space. ‘Where are the crates?’

  ‘Where they always were.’ She made the partition walls transparent and outlined the containers.

  She had concealed them inside the walls of the hold and had applied a No-Det cloak over them.

  ‘Nope,’ she said, reading his look. ‘No Calaran equipment can sense that shield.’

  ‘Did you remove my Colts from the cabinet?’

  ‘No. You must have taken them out yourself and forgotten.’

  He put the guns out of his mind when she put on a burst of speed.

  He had to dispose of the crates. He had a saloon to run.

  On the fifth day, Andy docked in the station on Calara.

  Phoenix Terminal, as the station was called, was on the outskirts of the city and the largest on the star.

  Military vessels were docked at one end, all other ships near the terminal building.

  There were plasma generators fueling ships up, bot mechanics carrying out maintenance checks, pods ferrying passengers to and fro.

  ‘You’ve got to meet Deet,’ Andy reminded him as he got out of his suit and donned civvies.

  A white shirt made from the finest linen in the universe. Blue trousers made from linen spun on Titan. Shoes made from the skin of a dead serod, wild beasts that were found on Candida.

  Nothing but the best for Cade.

  Appearances had to be maintained. Not only did he run the most exotic bar in Phoenix, his other persona also needed a certain image.

  ‘Just why do I have to meet him?’ he said, shifting impatiently, waiting for his pod.

  ‘Tauxol’s instructions. You can’t just go searching for a rebel leader and announce you have weapons for him.’

  ‘He knows I’m coming?’

  ‘The general was unclear about that. He’s not taking any calls. Figure it out, were his last words.’

  Cade bit back a curse.

  Figure it out. Of course, Tauxol would say that. It’s not his neck on the line.

  He felt guilty immediately. He’s fighting for his planet’s survival. For his species to live.

  ‘We might have to leave in a hurry. Once we’ve transferred those weapons.’

  ‘I know,’ his ship replied.

  ‘Will you miss Calara?’

  ‘Home is where you and I make it.’

  Chapter 21

  His first stop was at his saloon.

  Dark was falling in the city when he entered his bar and greeted some of his regular patrons.

  He supervised the unloading of Varuna’s air, got it bottled, and personally served the first Stryker Punch made from the new stock.

  A loud cheer went up when the hulking Candidan smacked his lips, crashed his mug on the counter, and bellowed, ‘More.’

  I will miss this, he thought fleetingly, and then got busy as a line formed for his drinks.

  Sometime in the evening, a Human challenged him to a fast-draw competition. News of his dexterity with the Colts had spread.

  Cade removed the rounds from his modified Colts and tossed one to his challenger. He drew out a pair of belts and holsters and threw one at the Human.

  They stepped apart fifteen paces and faced each other, ringed by onlookers.

  A self-appointed referee stepped forward, waited till they were ready, and chopped his hand down dramatically.

  The spectators wanted a show, and Cade gave them one.

  He sensed that his rival had no experience with the weapon. Neither did he know much about what went into drawing a gun.

  It wasn’t just about speed. It was about the palm closing around the butt smoothly. Gripping it just right. Not too loose, nor too tight.

  Drawing in a way that the barrel didn’t drag against the holster. Straightening it out in the smallest possible arc.

  Cade waited a beat. He let the Human grip his Colt clumsily.

  He allowed the man a proper head start.

  And then drew and fired, blindingly fast, the trigger falling on an empty chamber.

  His rival took his loss sportingly.

  He clutched his chest theatrically and fell to the ground, drawing applause and more cheers.

  The crowd surged around Cade, some spectators clapping him on his back, others urging him to get behind the bar and serve them.

  It was late when the saloon closed. In a few hours, a new sol day would start dawning.

  Cade leaned against the wall of his bar, letting the cool air dry his sweat.

  A ship hovered above him and flashed him with a light.

  A police vessel. Checking who he was.

  He waved and the ship flew away.

  Tauxol didn’t say anything about how to contact Deet.

  Maybe it’s a test. The general wants to see how I’ll go about it. He wants to see how I win the rebel leader’s trust. Meet him in person, to set up the delivery.

  He scowled heavily.

  Test for what, though? He’s known me for years. Why make me jump through hoops?

  No explanation came to him.

  A thought came unbidden. A rumor. Gossip that he had heard but had never verified. Had never asked Tauxol.

  They say Neathans can see the future.

  He chased the thought around. Trying to figure out how that instinct, if true, fit into the deal he had with the general.

  Gave up in frustration.

  How does it matter?

  I’ll have to go into the dark systems. Seek out the rebels and make contact.

  He could play it safe and send a holo of himself.

  Nope. Holos leave trails. I can bury them, but the trail never disappears. I can’t risk that.

  Besides, Cade was old-fashioned.

  He liked to get a feel for the situation himself.

  Holos had their uses, but not in such situations.

  Not for him.

  Decision made, he hailed his pod and got back to Andy. Who listened silently to his plan and turned off the lights when he crashed on his bed.

  Cade had forgotten the heat.

  Her eyes—they drew him in. That smile in them … he realized he was beneath the forecourt’s roof when he felt its shade.

  He didn’t know when he had moved.

  Her eyes drifted to his mouth. He brought his jaws together in an audible click.

  Her lips quirked.

  The blue in her eyes enveloped him.

  Her dress swirled around her legs. Above them, the Lone Star Station sign creaked and clanked.

  And Cade opened his eyes.

  It was light. A new day had begun.

  He was in his room. In his ship. On his bed. His Colt in his hand.

  He looked at it dazedly.

  It was beneath my pillow.

  He sat up and looked around.

  No woman in the room.

  No female of any kind.

  Heck, there was no one else in the ship, if he didn’t count Andy.

  I need to get that psych done.

  Something’s happening to me.

  But first things first.

  He showered and then sat down in front of a holoscreen.

  He researched Deet Kaplan for a couple of sol hours. Looked up most recent sightings of the rebel—taking them from police reports—and projected them against a map of the city.

  Red dots covered the city when he had finished. No dots overlapped.

  He read the latest police report.

  Deet was at the top of the Most Wanted list. There was a substantial reward offered for information on him or his associates. Any Calaran found to aid the rebel would face severe consequences.

  Cade stopped reading.

  He created a false persona and gave a history to it. An address. Several holopics and vids. Attached a ship—a real one that he knew was lying in a scrapyard—and then went underground.

  Brock controlled Calara.

  That was true to a large extent.

  However, there was an underworld system that the super-AI was unaware of.

  Cade’s theory was that Brock knew of the dark systems.

  It’s just that he’s not monitoring it much. Because he doesn’t have unlimited resources. He’s running out of Esmalt. He takes an interest only when a threat rears out of the underworld.

 

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