Galaxy's Way

by E. R. Paskey

  Colin made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat and released Berenger’s collar, stepping back from him in one fluid motion. “A likely story, if ever I heard one.”

  “Hey,” Berenger shrugged, “you got a murder warrant out for you. I may know a guy, but this ain’t exactly going to be easy.”

  Tatiana raised a hand. “Maybe I’m just slow this morning, but for the life of me, I still can’t figure out how Lobai is planning on smuggling a bomb into Ydris. He’ll never get it past security.”

  “I wouldn’t put it past him,” Berenger said grimly, straightening his shirt with his good hand. “The man’s nothing if not resourceful.”

  Colin sent him a withering look. “You don’t say.” He looked at Anna, who had wrapped her arms around herself and was now staring pensively at the far bulkhead. “Something on your mind, lass?”

  Instead of answering, Anna looked over at Berenger with troubled eyes. “You weren’t just checking coordinates, were you? You were also checking for messages.” She barreled on before anyone could speak‌—‌including Berenger. “Of course you were. This was an old mining complex, which means they had comm relays, and you want to know what’s going on, or if you’ve got a message from — ” she cut herself off in time, though Berenger did not even flinch, “ — somebody.”

  She propped her hands on her hips. The entire compartment was silent; everyone was glancing back and forth between her and Berenger, including Colin. “Except you probably didn’t know that Viktor disabled the comm relay the last time we were here.”

  Berenger remained motionless for about five seconds longer before he abruptly slumped and shook his head. Carefully. “I wondered why nothin’ was coming through.”

  Colin inhaled sharply, but pressed his lips together in a thin line and said nothing. His eyes, however, spoke volumes. Deek growled low in his throat and took a threatening step forward; Mondego and Tatiana both looked equal parts concerned and disappointed.

  Apologetically, Anna glanced over at Colin. “Meant to mention it yesterday, but it slipped my mind in all of this … ” She waved to Berenger.

  “Understandable.” Colin tipped his head in a nod, before giving her a wry look. “Is that all?”

  Their eyes met‌—‌and held‌—‌and for a second the rest of the compartment and everyone else standing in it disappeared. “No. I think I know how we’re going to get onto Ydris.”

  Berenger popped the bubble in which Colin and Anna were both immersed, sending them crashing abruptly back to reality. “And how is that, Anna?” He sounded half-interested, half-irritated, but she had no time to think about it.

  Comprehension was dawning in Colin’s sea-blue eyes‌—‌it was beautiful. He grinned and it went straight to her gut. “You think we ought to team up with a few more people Lobai double-crossed.”

  Anna nodded. “Exactly. One of them is bound to be able to — ”

  “ — smuggle us in, murder warrant or no.”

  They exchanged conspiratorial grins, and then Colin clapped his hands together. “All right.” He addressed Deek. “Take him — ” he tipped his head toward Berenger, “ — back to his cabin and ensure he stays there this time. Tatiana — ”

  His mechanic perked up when she heard her name.

  “ — go with Anna and get the comm relay back up.”

  “Just long enough for us to check messages,” Anna warned.

  Colin inclined his head in a gracious nod. “Naturally.”

  Mondego stuck his hand in the air. “What about me, Captain?”

  Colin spared him a grin. “You can make sure we have lunch. An army‌—‌or a ship’s crew‌—‌travels on its stomach, after all.”

  “True enough, that,” Mondego agreed, before exchanging a few words with his wife and hastening back to the galley.

  Anna waited for the flurry of movement following his issuing of orders to abate before drawing closer to Colin. “And what will you be doing, Captain?”

  Colin gave her another devastating smile, though its wattage was reduced due to the grim concern in his eyes. “I, darling, will be preparing to check for messages.” He paused. “How much of a window do you expect we’ll have?”

  She thought back to the snippets of conversation she recalled overhearing between Viktor and Hugo, as well as the few words she and her brother had exchanged on the subject, and shook her head. “Not long.”

  A spot smack dab between her shoulder blades began to itch persistently; her heart rate increased. They both knew she was the one who would be getting the most important messages, but she was also the only one who knew where the comm relay was located. Swallowing, she balanced on one foot and made her decision. “We don’t have much time. I’ll turn the comm relay back on and you’ll be able to retrieve anything that’s been sent to the Galaxy’s Way.”

  His expression shifted subtly, though she was too nervous to pick up on every nuance of it. “Are you sure?”

  Anna nodded. “We don’t have much of a choice.” Besides, it wasn’t like she wouldn’t get to read the messages as soon as she was back onboard. A few minutes’ delay would hardly kill her.

  Colin shifted forward, as though he was about to step closer, but stopped himself. “Thank you, lass.”

  “You’re welcome.” His eyes really were fascinating, she decided, that deep sea-blue with darker flecks of navy.

  “Anna! Are you coming?” Tatiana’s voice floated down the corridors‌—‌and effectively snapped both of them back to their surroundings.

  Anna brought a hand up, jerked her thumb vaguely over her shoulder. “I’ve gotta — ” She didn’t finish, but spun and took off out of the compartment as fast as she could manage without breaking into a flat run. Her face felt like it was on fire.

  She pressed both hands to her cheeks and willed herself to calm down. Get a grip, girl. He’s just a man. You haven’t even known him that long.

  Another corner of her mind helpfully pointed out that in some circles, a few weeks was practically a lifetime.

  She snorted softly to herself. If you’re a Federation fighter pilot, maybe, which you are most definitely not.

  Her face still felt flushed when she finally caught up to Tatiana at the docking hatch, but by then she had herself mostly under control. Imagining what the other woman would say had done wonders for her restoring her composure.

  ~oOo~

  “Where exactly did you say this comm relay was?”

  Anna winced; deep skepticism filled the other woman’s voice. In all honesty, she supposed she couldn’t blame Tatiana; they had been wandering around the mining complex for the better part of a half an hour. Her shoulders hunched; she forced herself to straighten her spine. “Look, I’m sorry it’s taking so long, but you’re just going to have to bear with me. I haven’t been here in a very long time.”

  She’d been wracking her brain with every step, trying to remember which combination of corridors and intersections led to the old, now mostly defunct, nerve center of the complex. Viktor’d had her memorize this part too, but it was taking her longer to recall the directions.

  “Left, right, straight for three,” she muttered under her breath, shining her penlight ahead of them. The remainder of the directions dropped into place in her brain, and equal parts relief and satisfaction flooded her. “Got it.”

  “Finally,” Tatiana sighed. She shone her own penlight on an open doorway; in the dim light it looked like a cavernous mouth gaping at them from the wall. “This place is kinda creepy.”

  Anna had to agree. “It’s like a ship, or a house. Some places are just meant to have people in them.”

  Five minutes later found them in the old control room. Anna toggled her comm. “Colin? We’ve found the control room.”

  “Glad to hear it. We were beginning to wonder if you’d gotten lost.”

  She would have bristled, were it not for the teasing tone that carried through his tinny voice. “You can hold off the rescue squad a little longer.”
/>
  “If you’re done flirting,” Tatiana broke in, “could you hold the light for me?”

  Anna rolled her eyes, but decided not to dignify that with a response. Instead, she moved over to the other woman, who was bending over a panel of switches on a semi-circular display. “You found it?”

  “Think so.” Tatiana shot her a sharp look. “Don’t suppose you have any idea how your brother went about disabling it?”

  “Sorry.” Anna shook her head. “I wasn’t with him.”

  “Oh, well. It was worth a shot.” Tatiana poked around for a moment, trying this and that, before she let out an approving sound and yanked the panel up to get a look at the wiring. “Good. He wasn’t stupid.”

  Anna frowned. “Thank you?”

  Tatiana just shook her head. “He only unplugged a couple of wires. Easy to fix, and it effectively keeps anybody from using the relay. Move the light to the left, will you?”

  Anna obliged. “Well, that doesn’t surprise me. He wasn’t interested in rendering us deaf and blind if we ever had to come back here for anything. He just wanted control of when things commed home.”

  “Like your friend Bear?” Tatiana asked tartly.

  Anna clenched her teeth together briefly, but nodded. “Yes. Like Bear.” She closed her eyes in a silent prayer. Who, thankfully, did not know about the comm relay.

  Or if he had, he’d been hoping they had already reconnected it, but whatever the reason, they’d caught him before he actually managed to do anything.

  A minute later, Tatiana straightened and brushed off her hands. “All done.” She triggered her own comm. “Captain? You should be good to go.”

  “Thank you, ladies.”

  “We’ll wait here until you get done,” Anna told him. “I don’t think we ought to leave this up and running.”

  “Agreed. Wait for my mark.”

  That spot between her shoulder blades was itching again. Anna bent her arm around trying to reach it, while she tried not to let her imagination run wild envisioning what kind of messages awaited her. It’s nothing too horrible, she assured herself. Another message from Mal, probably, and hopefully one from Viktor.

  After what felt like a small eternity, Colin’s voice sounded in their ears again. “Tatiana, you’d best leave that comm relay up for now. Anna, I need you to get back to the ship as fast as you can.”

  His voice was odd‌—‌a strange blend of grim purpose and something that almost sounded like resignation.

  “What is it?” she asked, before she could stop herself.

  He hesitated. “You’ve got a few messages. You’ll understand when you see them.”

  Anna and Tatiana exchanged glances.

  “Well, that wasn’t cryptic at all,” the other woman commented, slightly exasperated.

  “Look at it this way,” Anna said as they left the control room and retraced their steps. “At least we know where we’re going on the way back.”

  ~oOo~

  Her thoughts tumbled over themselves the entire way back to the Galaxy’s Way; by the time she actually set foot aboard the freighter, Anna had almost convinced herself that Viktor had found Lobai and everything was over.

  It was not to be.

  She half-ran, half-slid into the cockpit, catching herself on the doorframe with one hand when her momentum proved a little much. Behind her, Tatiana only just barely managed to avoid colliding with her. Colin wasn’t there; the cockpit was empty save for Deek, who looked grumpy and irritated. “Where is he?”

  Deek jerked a thumb toward the corridor. “Said he’d put it up on the screen-table for you.”

  The main living compartment, then. Anna spun on her heel, slid around Tatiana, and dashed in that direction.

  She found Colin seated at the screen-table, staring down at it with an implacable expression. For one, irrational moment, something about him struck her as so very, very, alone. Anna leaned up against the doorframe while she caught her breath. “How many have I got?”

  He looked up at her, before almost immediately looking back down and sweeping a hand toward the screen. “See for yourself.”

  Tatiana lingered on the edges of the compartment while Anna approached him. She almost sat across from him, but rejected the idea‌—‌she was probably going to show him whatever she found anyway and it would be easier if she didn’t have to flip it upside down‌—‌and took the seat next to him.

  If this surprised him, he did not show it.

  There were several windows open on the screen-table, but the one front and center held the inbox Colin had set up for her. Anna’s breath hitched in her throat. There’s more than I thought there’d be.

  She had no less than three messages from Viktor‌—‌and two from a nameless source she knew instinctively was Mal.

  Her fingers hovered over the screen-table uncertainly; she almost didn’t know what to read first. Stalling for time, she glanced sideways at Colin. “Have you read them?”

  Chapter 24

  COLIN REARED BACK IN HIS seat, looking borderline affronted. “Of course not. Why do you think I called you back to the ship?”

  Anna bit the inside of her lip; she’d ruffled his feathers without meaning to. “No offense,” she muttered, glancing sideways at him before making an abrupt decision.

  She tapped the oldest message, which was dated a day after they’d talked to Mal, and Viktor’s words appeared on the screen-table before her.

  Saw our mutual friend. Thank God you’re okay. Also following trail. Will find you.

  His words were short and to the point, but his concern bled through, effectively punching her in the gut. Swallowing a hard lump in her throat, Anna clicked on the next message. It was dated a few minutes later, almost like an afterthought.

  Don’t worry‌—‌they won’t even find pieces of him.

  She laughed at that, though her eyes welled with tears and it very nearly turned into a sniffle. “That’s my big brother.” She discreetly swiped beneath her eyes.

  “He’s a man of few words, your brother.” That strange blend of grim resignation still suffused Colin’s features, but he managed to infuse his words with a lighter, almost humorous air.

  “Yeah. Whereas you’ll use ten words where four would do.” Anna nudged him in the ribs with her elbow, without really thinking about it. She tapped the last message from Viktor, which had been dated just the day before. “This should be interesting. Surely he’ll figure out that I brought you here.”

  Colin’s shoulder brushed hers as he leaned closer, and remained that way. She could feel the heat from his body in the cool air of the main compartment, but it was a dim, distant sensation compared to the sudden roaring in her ears.

  As usual, Viktor had written nothing that would identify either of them or anything they were talking about‌—‌when it came to communication among their crewmembers, context was everything‌—‌but what he did write left Anna reeling in her seat.

  Heard about the captain’s troubles‌—‌stay low. You know where to go. Will collect you as soon as we meet up with likeminded individuals, and we’ll take care of business.

  “Take care of business?” she repeated aloud, bewildered. “What business?” Unless he’d gotten another job in the last couple of weeks between Lobai’s double-cross and today, Viktor didn’t have any other business. She read her brother’s cryptic words again, but they did not rearrange themselves into something that made any more sense. “Likeminded individuals?”

  Tatiana was still leaning up against the bulkhead with her arms crossed over her chest. She had yet to say a word, but at this she stirred and let out a soft little snort.

  Colin shot her a look. “Something on your mind?”

  Tatiana shrugged. “Don’t mind me, Captain.”

  Turning back to the screen-table, Colin tapped the older of Mal’s two messages with a long forefinger. “Perhaps your friend will shed some light on the situation.”

  “I sure hope so.” The first possibility to pop u
p in her mind involved Colin. Involuntarily shuddering, Anna looked down at the screen-table.

  Mal’s first message was also short and to the point.

  Your brother dropped by; told him you were safe and told him how to reach you, but didn’t tell him the happy news. He’s also following the trail‌—‌should catch up to you soon. Stay out of trouble.

  “Happy news?” Colin sounded amused.

  Anna shot him a wry look. “He’s old-fashioned.”

  “Well, lass, if he’d told your brother, at least we’d know what he meant by ‘taking care of business’.”

  Groaning, Anna propped her elbows on the screen-table and dropped her head into her hands. She could just imagine the kind of reception her brother would give her accidental husband. It wasn’t a pretty thought. “I’m glad you think this is funny.”

  “Hysterical.” Colin nudged her shoulder with his. “What’s the other one say?”

  Anna opened it‌—‌and immediately straightened in her seat. “It’s about time we caught a break.”

  Figured your brother would try to keep you out of it, so thought I’d mention that there’s been an influx of customers with demands for the specs similar to yours. Looks like they’re having a convention in Polly’s old stomping grounds. Try not to have too much fun.

  “Polly’s old stomping grounds?” Colin arched a black eyebrow at her. “One can only assume that’s code.”

  “Of course it is.” Anna drummed her fingers on the screen-table. “Short for polygon.”

  “Polygon?” Colin and Tatiana said together. The two exchanged glances, and then Colin shifted in his seat to face Anna. “You’ll have to explain that one, lass.”

  Anna waved a hand. “Ever heard of the Hellion Asteroid Ring?”

  “Heard of, yes. Been there, no.”

  “Well, there’s a space station there, of a sorts, called the Polygon, on account of how it looks when you’re on an approach vector to it.”

  Colin just stared at her. “What did they do? Hook a bunch of asteroids together?”

  “Pretty much.”

  Shaking his head, Colin turned to look at Tatiana. “Did you know there’s a space station there?”