Smuggler's Luck

by S. W. Gunn

  “Or, you could release Elyse and I’ll fully cooperate with you.” Jarron said.

  The man laughed before saying, “I think we shall keep things as they are now and then go from there.”

  Jarron frowned.

  “Alright, how about this then,” Jarron said, looking to negotiate, “Her abilities to tap me as a battery only work at certain distances. If you take her out of that horrible stasis box and place her in a normal cell at least half a ship’s length away from me then she wouldn’t be any more danger than any other person with the Gift.”

  The man said, “And then you will fully cooperate in every way I ask? Answer any question?”

  Jarron nodded and firmly said, “Any question.”

  “Very well, I agree but I wish to ask one question before I release her.” He responded.

  “Ask away.” Jarron said.

  “Did you have sex with her?”

  Jarron nodded as he answered, “Yes.”

  He frowned before saying, “That might explain why the Kalan did not cause a reaction. Oh well, I am a man of my word.”

  Jarron pointed to the cell that was across from his cell but more than far enough away for her to use her powers as he said, “Put her in there, I must see her to assure you are keeping your half of the deal. It’s more than far enough away.”

  “Fair enough, but I have a man ready to dispense the same gas that knocked you out if you are lying, and if you are lying I will kill her outright afterwards.”

  “I understand.”

  The man signaled to someone on the right again and the box that Jarron knew held her was wheeled back. They brought the box to the cell that he indicated and the man walked up to it. He slowly worked the controls. The box opened and they removed Elyse from the box. She was still unconscious. Jarron could not feel her presence due to the distance but at least he could see her and knew that she was safe. Two of the guards carried her into the cell and set her on the bunk. She slowly stirred as she awoke. The men hurriedly walked out of the cell and activated the shield. Jarron watched her intently as she slowly rose from lying down to a sitting position. Her face read openly with confusion. Finally she recovered her senses and as she looked around she finally caught sight of him.

  “Jarron!” She said excitedly.

  “Everything is okay Elyse.” Jarron told her.

  “What happened?” She asked with a confused look on her face.

  The man interceded, “You are my prisoner, along with your friend Jarron. He has agreed to fully cooperate with me in exchange with having you placed in that cell. Can you use your powers?”

  She sullenly shook her head. Jarron knew she could not but he was just relieved to see her safe and aware, especially out of that nightmarish box.

  “Very well,” The man said, “Now we have work to do so if you could sit there quietly while Jarron and I try to discover why he is so special.”

  The man waved to his left, which brought back the woman with her tray.

  He announced, “She is going to place more sensors on you and we shall again bring more out with the Gift to see what happens.”

  Jarron nodded and immediately removed his shirt. He was so relieved to see Elyse that he would cooperate as he said he would.

  Chapter 12

  After a long day of constant testing and scans the man and his assistant left. Jarron stood and moved as close to the energy shield as he could. He looked over at Elyse and saw that she was sitting on the bed in her cell, looking right at him.

  “Hey there.” He said to her.

  Her face was downcast as she asked, “What happened? The last thing I remember is barely losing a footrace to you up to the church doors and then being in that horrible box.”

  He answered, “Some bounty hunters attacked us. They hit poor Brother Renard instead of me. Since I had no weapon to fight them I ran to Father Lapella. They left with you.”

  “I’m so sorry.” She said sullenly.

  “What for?” Jarron asked.

  “If I’d let you bring your pistol, we might not be here.”

  He firmly stated, “I doubt that Elyse because I’m not even that good with it. There were seven of them that attacked us. Once they hit you with a dart we were doomed, no matter what weapon I had.”

  He doubted that his words cheered her up but he knew that he was right. Even with his weapon he would not have been able to stop them.

  “How’d you get here?” She asked.

  “Well it turns out that Father Lapella used to be a fighter pilot for the GDF. He had his ship hidden in the church. He let me take it and I hunted you down. I got all the way into the building we’re in before I was overcome.” Jarron explained.

  “Why didn’t they kill you and why are they testing you?”

  “It turns out that I’m the one that they wanted the whole time.”

  She looked very confused about his answer.

  “Why?” She asked.

  Jarron explained everything to her that the man said. He initially had a hard time believing it but everything that he had been through with Elyse confirmed what the man had said to him. She took in his words evenly and then nodded.

  “Everything he said fits our experiences.”

  He nodded at her.

  “What all has he asked you?” She asked.

  “He wanted to know about my dreams and oddly enough, if we had sex.” Jarron replied.

  “And you told him?” She said in an almost panicked tone.

  “I had to in order to get you out of that box.”

  She nodded sullenly before asking, “What is he going to do with us once he’s done with his tests?”

  “He claimed that once he got what he wanted he would have no need for us and would release us.”

  “Do you think he really will?” She asked hopefully.

  “I don’t know but right now what choice do we have?”

  She nodded and after a long pause said, “I love you.”

  He grinned at her as he replied, “I love you too. Just hang in there, I’ll cooperate fully with him and maybe he’ll be a man of his word and release us once he gets what he is after.”

  She nodded at him. They sat there looking at each other for some time, this time he was not looking out of compulsion but because he did indeed love her. She was far enough away that the spell of their bond was not in effect. He longed despairingly to hold her close to him but this was still a vast improvement from before. The woman returned, this time she had two trays of food. She had two large goons give Elyse one tray and she brought the other tray to Jarron. It was a basic dinner meal but it was filling enough. The woman left again.

  Elyse spoke, “Jarron.”

  “Yes?”

  “Can we get married if we get out of this?”

  “Yes.” He replied.

  She smiled at him softly. Jarron could read the despair on her face; it was the same that he felt. Suddenly something on his left wrist buzzed lightly. Jarron glanced at his wrist and saw the bracelet Hain had given him. He grinned wickedly before taking at look at Elyse and saw that she was looking at her wrist. She glanced back at him and their eyes met. She cracked a huge grin as well.

  Jarron then laughed heartily before declaring, “Dang it you got me now, did you have anyone you were going to invite?”

  Giggling at his response she asked, “Can we have Father Lapella do it at the church? I want Ramona to be my maid of honor.”

  “Alright, Hain is gonna have to be my best man.”

  “Of course.”

  Jarron could see that she was as happy as he was. Hain had tracked them and Jarron had no doubt that within a day or two he would be knocking on the door of this building to save them.

  “Let’s get some sleep Elyse, tomorrow we have a very busy day.”

  She nodded and then laid down on the bed. Jarron moved back to his own bed and settled as comfortable as he could on the bed there. He was feeling greatly relieved. He never considered himself the marry
ing type but he now was excited about the prospect. He closed his eyes and eventually sleep finally found him.

  * * * * *

  Jarron woke early the next morning to a soft touch against his chest. He stirred awake to see that he was still in his cell but it was dark which was very confusing. Once his eyes adjusted he realized that the person touching his chest was the assistant of the man holding them prisoner.

  She whispered, “You’re a handsome man; surely you know that Tiberius will not ever release you.”

  Jarron nodded at her since he had highly suspected as much.

  “Since you know this then instead of planning a wedding with a woman who will soon be dead you should be focusing on the here and now.” She said quietly.

  “What are you saying to me?”

  “Perhaps you should be seeking what little pleasures you can find while you still can find them.”

  She slowly ran her hand over his chest softly. Jarron was shocked when he realized that she was trying to seduce him. He thought that maybe he should take advantage of the situation but he decided to just wait on Hain, especially since he had no desire or interest in this woman. His heart was completely committed to Elyse.

  “I think I’ll pass on your offer.” He said resolutely.

  The woman stood and stated, “Your loss, I have no doubt that your girlfriend will be dead soon enough and you will spend the rest of your life as Tiberius’ test subject.”

  “Fiancée.”

  “What?”

  In a confident tone he told her, “She is my fiancée and once we escape this place we’ll be married. As for your employer, his time of reckoning will come and you best pray that you’re not there when it happens.”

  The woman mumbled and then left the cell. Jarron shifted on his bed and listened as the woman’s shoes tapped slowly away from him.

  Once it was clear that she had left the area he heard Elyse’s voice say, “I love you so much. You passed an opportunity to escape just out of loyalty to me.”

  “My love isn’t so easily purchased away from you.”

  He could not see her face but her voice was filled with joy when she said, “And neither is mine. Let’s go back to sleep since you have another long day of being a pin cushion.”

  She giggled at her own words. Jarron was glad to hear joy returning to her. Soon his friends would arrive and they would be escaping this foul place. Jarron settled down on his bed and fell back to sleep.

  * * * * *

  He woke the next morning to the same woman returning again, this time she brought a tray of food and left. The unhappy look on her face let him know that he made the right choice. He suspected her interest in him was either a manipulation of Tiberius or fascination over Jarron’s uniqueness. He really did not care what she had thought because he just had no interest in her, even though he had to admit that she was attractive and before he met Elyse, he would have readily agreed. But things had changed, especially him. He ate the simple meal in silence and then took off his shirt on command. Again sensors were attached to him and Tiberius returned.

  “Jarron, I am curious as to why there seems to be no reaction when you are exposed to women who have the Gift.”

  Jarron shrugged at him before asking, “Maybe I’m not so special after all?”

  The man laughed heartily.

  He then declared, “Oh no, you are definitely what I said you are. We are going to do something a little different.”

  The man turned to the left and again waved for his assistant. She approached with two large men. She was holding another metal tray, which Jarron could not see what was on it.

  Tiberius said, “We are going to test some things with your half breed friend now. I hope you can convince her to cooperate because it would be unfortunate for anything unbecoming to happen to our sweet lovers. Will you cooperate?”

  He asked the last part to Elyse. She nodded without a word. The woman approached her with the two men, both of which simply stood behind the woman as she approached. They blocked Jarron’s view. After a few minutes the men moved to let the woman exit. Jarron could now see Elyse. She was unconscious and laying on her bed.

  “What’d you do to her?” He asked nervously.

  The man answered, “Do not worry, she is just unconscious. We cannot have her throwing around our lab equipment when we expose you to her. She will be perfectly fine. I just want to see how your physiology reacts to being exposed to her. You do not seem to respond to others with the Gift.”

  Jarron felt quite a bit of relief. It would have been hard to escape without her. Jarron watched as the goons of the man lifted Elyse and set her on a cart. One of them slowly wheeled the cart to the energy shield. Tiberius picked up his computer. As soon as Elyse got closer Jarron could sense her. The man laughed.

  He said excitedly, “There! A reaction.”

  Jarron looked curiously at him.

  The man explained, “Your neural pathways have begun to react with quite a bit of movement as soon as she got closer to you. I suspect that some of it might be the excitement of having your lover so close but not this much. This will greatly speed up our work. I need to understand how you work if I want to somehow emulate it.”

  “Can I touch her? She is unconscious and can’t hurt you.” Jarron requested.

  “I had planned on it as I want to see how your pathways react to her at every distance.”

  The man tapped the energy shield, which responded by deactivating. He nodded at one of his goons. They slowly brought her closer. Jarron could tell that they were very hesitant to be around her. He could not blame them. If she were awake she would be able to tear the whole room apart. Jarron stood up and slowly walked to her side. She looked peaceful to him as he reached out and softly touched her cheek. He felt great relief just having her nearby, even unconscious.

  “Tell me Jarron, what do you feel?” Tiberius said.

  “Relief.” Jarron replied.

  “Why? Outside of your personal emotions, what causes relief?” He asked.

  “For some reason whenever she’s not nearby I constantly feel an urge to be near her. And it’s not normal attraction as you had stated. There’s something between the two of us that draws us to each other.”

  “The Eal’tain made no mention of this but it must have been the sex.” Tiberius rubbed his chin thoughtfully before continuing, “Maybe it has bonded you and keeps others with the Gift from using you.”

  Jarron laughed. The man looked curiously at him.

  “What is so funny?”

  “I guess Elyse is more important than you thought?” Jarron said sarcastically.

  “Now she is but it doesn’t matter to me who can or cannot use your abilities. I just need to see them active so I can figure out how they work. I just wish I could see your neural pathways when she uses you.”

  Jarron smiled evilly and said, “Such a shame for you. I suspect if Elyse could use them it wouldn’t turn out so well for you.”

  The man nodded and said, “Indeed, but I believe we should be just fine. I have a few ideas of ways we can test it with her awake. We’ll find out the range of her powers and then go from there.”

  The man continued to play with his computer.

  After some time he said, “Bring her back to her cell.”

  “One second.” Jarron said.

  He softly kissed her on the lips and then said, “Alright.”

  The two goons rolled her away and brought her back to her cell. Jarron took a seat back on his bed. Tiberius nodded at the woman and she walked into Elyse’s cell. Jarron watched as the she attached two sensors to Elyse, one on her head and the other on her chest, both in the same location as his. The goons brought her back out of the cell and in front of his cell. Jarron could again sense her as she got close.

  “Interesting, her neural pathways are on fire as well.” Tiberius declared.

  He stared intently at his computer terminal for a while. After some time he waved to his goons, who wheeled Ely
se away and back to her cell. This time they placed her back on the bed and then left her.

  “How long will she be unconscious?” Jarron asked.

  “She should awake very soon. After we feed you lunch I wish to perform an experiment with her awake, hopefully you both will cooperate.” He announced.

  “You know you might not have had to worry about us if you had chosen a different way to find me.”

  Giving another one of his annoying laughs Tiberius asked, “So if I had simply approached you before you met the half breed you would have believed everything that I had told you and then let me run a bunch of tests and draw blood?”

  “Alright you have a point, I guess I would’ve thought you a crazy man. Hain probably would have shot you on sight.”

  “Exactly, I do not know if you know this but it was random luck that you even met the half breed. She was one of many that I used to test on other subjects to find you. I knew you were who you are as soon as I had you brought down from the cockpit of your ship. Your reaction to her presence was written clearly in your body language. It could have been any of the others. In retrospect it was bad luck that it happened to be her because now I can only use her as a test subject.”

  Jarron looked again at her. It might have been random luck but he was glad it was her. Gift or not he knew that his emotions for her were real. She stirred and slowly sat back up. She looked a little groggy but she appeared unharmed.

  “Ahhh, she has awakened. Attach the device to him.” Tiberius said.

  His assistant deactivated the shield to Jarron’s cell and entered. She had an unusual looking sensor, which she attached to the center of his chest. She turned and left, reactivating the shield once out of his cell.

  “Now please listen carefully, the both of you. I have attached to Jarron’s chest an explosive device.” He announced and stopped to let his words sink in.

  Jarron glanced down at the device in horror.

  Continuing to speak Tiberius said, “Now I want our half breed friend to stand outside of your cell and use her powers, maybe to lift a chair or something. I wish to see how both of your neural pathways react to the use of her powers. Keep in mind that all I need to do is push a button to cause Jarron here to explode into tiny little pieces. I would hate to do it but if we cannot continue with her awake then you both become useless to me.”