“It’s easy. You pick a colour and an animal, and when I push this button, a computer randomizes the animals. For example, if you bet on pink Tharg, and there are five or more pink Thargs on the board, you win.”
She sat in front of a rack with various stuffed animals.
I think I get it. I want that large teddy bear, and I just might cheat to get it. The others want money, and they’re not able to cheat. Interesting...
“Okay, I want blue elephant. Is this enough?”
Her hand had been quite empty a second earlier, but now she held five silvery tokens.
“Oh yes. Blue elephant it is.”
~ 9 ~
Stephan didn’t notice that Maria wandered off until he started losing every game.
I wonder if she stacked the cards to make me win, or if she really brings that much good luck. Maybe the universe just favours her...
He glanced through the crowds but didn’t have to search for long. She was already on her way back, hauling a four-foot tall teddy bear in her arms.
A drunk in the crowd whistled after her, and people turned to look as she walked by.
I can’t blame them. The way that little black dress caresses her body...
She seemed oblivious of the attention, but it would probably be a good idea to meet her before something happened. The multitude of people worked against him, making him criss-cross between aliens and humans.
She beamed and waved when she saw him.
“Look what I got! Isn’t he gorgeous? He’s Mister Teddy, and he’ll be living with us from now on.”
It was impossible not to smile and he wrapped one of his arms casually around her shoulders at the same time as his other elbow hit the chest of a drunk grabbing for her ass. The man fell to the floor, gasping for air, and he steered her away from the mass of people.
I don’t think she noticed. Good.
“It’s a fine bear, babe. Want me to carry it for you?”
Holding the toy under his arm seemed a little silly, but she flashed him a smile making him want to fill the entire ship with stuffed toys just to get to see it again.
“He’ll be safe with me.”
“I know.”
She smiled and squeezed his arm, and her trust made him feel warm inside, even if it was just about a teddy bear.
“Would you like to...”
He didn’t get any further; a voice called out, “Stephan Forks? I’ll be damned, I didn’t expect to see you back here so soon, or like this. I mean, you’re all prettied up and heeeey, what do we have here?”
The man eyed Maria, disrobing her with his eyes.
There’s just no peace and quiet in this galaxy anymore...
“Hello Dean.”
“You always had an eye for the ladies, but where did you find this? I don’t suppose you’ll share?”
“Don’t make me hurt you. She’s off limits.”
The other man grabbed Maria’s hand and kissed it, and Stephan expected her to either smile or object to Dean’s advances. She just stood there with a distant look on her face and he squeezed her waist.
“Are you okay?”
She made a visible effort to return to the present, giving her head a slight shake.
“Nice to meet you, Dean. There’s something I’ve got to do. I’ll be right back.”
His arm fell off her as she turned and disappeared into the crowd. Dean nudged him.
“That’s the good stuff right there, I’m impressed. So, how ‘bout a drink huh? For old times’ sake? Seems like you’ve got a lot of stories to tell.”
Something’s up. Shouldn’t I be in on it, whatever it is?
He patted his old friend on the shoulder.
“Maybe later.”
*****
Maria would be the first to admit her entire species were suckers for the big picture, but from time to time, the need of the one must be tended to as well.
Ow, whomever’s doing that has to stop right now.
A soul cried out to her in agony, so close its pain teetered on the edge of becoming her own. She could shut it out, but no need to when she could remedy the problem instead.
She zigzagged through the crowds until she saw a young woman sitting on the brick edge of a fountain. The girl cried, and an ugly bruise was forming on her face.
A young man with a mop of brown hair and cold eyes leaned over her.
“We bought you fair and square bitch, and you’re going to obey. Running away will just make it worse on you.”
Maria opened her mouth to say something, but snapped it shut with surprise as he shoved the girl hard enough to make her fall backwards into the water, arms and legs sprawling. A couple of people passing by turned to look, but no one interfered.
Seriously? You won’t even tell him to stop? You should be ashamed of yourselves.
“Stop that!”
The stranger glanced back at her and frowned.
“This is none of your business. Get lost.”
“Well, I just made it my business. You should leave her alone.”
Her voice sounded like she made a friendly suggestion. He might back off, and she had to give him the benefit of the doubt. Meanwhile, the girl splashed around in the water and finally managed to get to her feet. She stood soaking wet, dripping water, clearly torn between despair and the faint hope that someone might speak up for her.
Her tormentor, on the other hand, was unperturbed.
“And what are you going to do about it, princess?”
Maria didn’t have a chance to answer.
The girl gathered courage and shouted, “Run! Save yourself while you can.”
She was instantly rewarded with a fist to her face.
“I told you to shut up.”
He whirled around when Maria’s finger poked his back. She had been too far away to reach him a split second earlier.
“And I told you not to do that.”
Behind him, the water took on a pink hue and the girl moaned with pain.
Sadist. You like beating women, don’t you?
“You know, Imma take you too. My customers will pay good money for you.”
He reached out to touch her hair, and she punched him right in the face, without thinking. She didn’t hit him very hard, but it was enough to hurt him, and definitely harder than he expected. When he lifted his fingers to touch his lip they came back drizzled with blood, and he stared as if something completely unthinkable just happened.
Maria crossed her arms, challenging him, waiting for him to hit her back.
“Feisty, but you’ll change your tune when you get on the receiving side, bitch.”
She didn’t even blink when the thug tried to hit her, but smirked when Stephan caught the fist in a grip that wouldn’t budge. He closed his fingers around the other man’s hand, crushing it, and the pain was enough to bring the assailant to his knees.
I didn’t see that coming, but I like it.
“We do not hit women. I’m not saying I’m perfect, but hitting them is just wrong.”
He handed the bear to Maria.
“You take Mister Teddy, babe, and look after your friend. I’ve got this.”
The younger man seemed too preoccupied with the pain from his hand to resist much. He was trying to protect it, and Stephan shook him a little.
“Don’t you faint on me you little wimp.”
I have a very able protector. I like it.
His willingness to defend her satisfied her ego.
*****
Stephan grabbed the man’s shirt and pulled him towards a back door.
“Space idiot. If you were to attack me I could forgive it, but her? You’re not even worthy to step on the same floor as her.”
As they got closer to the door, the man fought to pry Stephan’s fingers open, struggling to get loose, but it only resulted in the grip on his shirt tightening further. He kicked Stephan’s leg, and was rewarded with a shake.
“Don’t do that.”
The d
oor led to an open space behind a restaurant.
“Please don’t hurt me anymore, man, it was just a girl.”
Stephan dropped the would-be slave dealer on the floor and watched him crawl backwards, holding the damaged hand in front of his chest.
“You can have her, you don’t even have to pay. We have more of them, lots, and pretty.”
“It’s my lucky day, huh?
The irony was wasted; the other man nodded fervently.
“Yeah, man, all yours, just let me go. Wha’cha say?”
What am I going to do with this idiot? She’s probably perfectly able to take care of herself, but he tried to hit her.
The very thought of someone attempting to harm his Goddess made his hands itch for breaking something. There could be only one punishment, and her ancestors or whatever would probably approve.
“I’ll pay you. Everything’s for sale, name your price.”
Glancing around, there weren’t any people in sight, and the area seemed clear of cameras. That was a very fine dumpster just a few feet away.
“It’s not your lucky day pal. She might have let you live, but I won’t.”
It was over in a couple of seconds. Someone would get an unpleasant surprise when it was time to empty the container, but oh well.
He shrugged, dusted his hands off, and went to look for his girl.
*****
Maria gazed after Stephan and mumbled, “Hurry back.”
It took a couple of seconds for her to remember what she should be doing. Up close, the young woman’s face was even worse than she expected. One eye was swelling closed and she had bruises everywhere.
Her poor nose, poor jaw... How can so many people pass by without even lifting an eyebrow?
She helped the girl out of the water and sat down next to her on the edge of the fountain. The perpetrator would get what was coming to him and there was no need for her to go kick anyone, but a good kick might have been satisfying.
Oh well, I did get to hit him, and I’m sure Stephan won’t let him off easy.
“Close your eyes for a moment and focus on my voice. Everything is going to be alright. You are safe now.”
No one even looked their way and it seemed safe to assume no one would pay attention. Maria healed the girl’s wounds and bruises and did her best to sound cheery.
“Open your eyes and look at me.”
The girl clung to Maria’s arm with one hand and touched her own face with the other.
“I’m Maria Callaway. Remember my name. If you’re ever in real trouble again, you can call for me, and I’ll hear you. Okay? Want to tell me what brought you here?”
“You healed me. How... How’d you do that?”
“Trade secret. Don’t tell anyone or I’ll get a queue of people with toothaches and splinters. What’s your name?”
The younger woman still didn’t answer; she threw her arms around Maria and started to cry.
“Thank you.”
Oh no, don’t cry. What do I do?
She patted the girl on the pack.
“You’ll be okay. It’s over now.”
It took a while, but Maria eventually learned between sobs and thank-yous that her new friend’s name was Chrys. She ran away from home just over a year earlier, seeking reprieve from poverty on a desert planet.
“I could have run forever to get out of there, and now I just want to be back.”
Only fifteen years old, she had been poorly prepared for life in space. The slave dealers caught her quickly. Bought and sold several times over, used and abused, she ended up on the station and finally gathered courage to make a run for it.
Stephan returned before the story was over. He stood next to Maria with his arms crossed over his chest, towering over the sitting women.
“It’s not an unusual story. That man won’t bother you again, but what are you going to do?”
Chrys shook her head. She was crying again, and Maria produced some tissue out of nowhere. Stephan nodded to the side and she placed a hand on Chrys’s arm.
“I’ll be right over there, okay? Just a few meters away, and I’ll be right back.”
Stephan said, “That guy won’t be back, but he was hardly alone.”
“Does this happen all the time?”
He gave a slight shrug.
“Slavery is illegal in this sector, but still rather common. They usually drug the girls to be docile. Some are sold over a hundred times each year.”
She hugged her bear, burying her chin in its soft and furry head.
“I hate slavery. We can’t just leave her here, poor thing.”
“Well, I could.”
She narrowed her eyes and he made a soothing gesture.
“Why don’t you just teleport her home?”
“No... She has been through so much already. I think she needs some normalcy, and some time to calm down before she meets her family. We need someone who can be trusted, someone who’ll take her home safely...”
Their eyes met, and Stephan filled in, “...and I know just the man for the job. It would keep Dean occupied, off my back, and far away from you.”
Was that a slip? I don’t know if I want to hit you or kiss you...
“You know you don’t have to worry, right?”
He looked a little guilty.
I should probably take the encouraging approach. I’d be much more upset if he didn’t care.
“Thank you for helping me with this.”
“I’ll go find Dean.”
When he turned to leave, Maria watched his back for a second.
“Stephan, wait.”
He sent her a puzzled glance, and she wrapped her free arm around his neck, pressing her lips firmly against his and slipping him some tongue.
Took you by surprise, didn’t I?
His arms around filled her with heavenly warmth, and for a moment she forgot all about the abused girl waiting. Stephan pulled himself back to the present quicker than her, put his hands on her hips, and pushed her gently away. His eyes glittered.
“I’ll be right back.”
“You’d better be.”
This time, she let him go, and on the way back to Chrys, she took her bracelet off. To her it was a shiny trinket, but to a human the diamonds could buy a lifetime of luxury.
“You two look very happy.”
Maria smiled and fastened the bracelet around the girl’s slender arm before producing a wad of money.
“I think we are. Do you want to go home?”
The tear-drenched face nodded.
“Okay. We know someone who can take you and look after you, you’ll be safe with him. I’m going to pay you, so you don’t have to worry about that. Take this...”
She pushed the money into the girl’s pocket.
“It should get you by for some time. Now, if I was you, I wouldn’t show the money or this bracelet to your pilot. Keep it a secret for now, just to be on the safe side, okay? Everything’s going to be alright.”
Chrys stared at her.
“Are you an angel?”
Angel? I’ve been called many things, but that’s not one of them.
“No. I... Don’t worry about it.”
“How can I ever repay you?”
Maria touched her cheek.
“That’s easy. Keep safe, and take care of yourself. Live a happy life. That’s all I need.”
Our paths will cross again. I just don’t know where or when.
It was a matter of minutes before Stephan returned with Dean, the latter babbling.
“So you mean you’re paying me to transport a girl? A real girl? Not a statue or anything?”
Stephan rolled his eyes.
“Yes, a girl.”
He stopped and let a heavy hand fall on the other man’s shoulder.
“No fooling around. No detours. Pretend she’s your sister or something.”
Dean sighed and sounded exasperated.
“Man you’re serious nowadays.”
&n
bsp; Maria waved them closer and held up a wad of money. Dean grabbed it and leafed through the bills.
“For you I’d do it for free, but this helps...”
She held up a finger, wanting to get his attention; he seemed somewhat preoccupied by the feeling of money in his hands.
“This is Chrys. I want you to fuss over her, treat her like a princess. Can you do that for me?”
“Baby, toss in a little kiss for me, and my ship will be her palace.”
He bent forward, puckering his lips, but Stephan’s hand fell down on his neck and pulled him away.
“Yeah, man, that’s not happening.”
“Wow, she’s really got you. Where did you say you two met?”
Stephan grinned.
“I got drunk and rammed her ship.”
~ 10 ~
To Stephan, it seemed to take forever before Dean and Chrys were on their way.
When Maria wanted to walk them to Dean’s ship, he whispered, “They’ll be fine.”
She stopped abruptly with the teddy bear dangling under her arm.
“Oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were so eager to get rid of them.”
“I’m not, I’m eager to be alone with you. But, if you really want to go wave them off we can catch up.”
It was clearly the right thing to say; she flashed a smile.
“No. We’ll see them again.”
What?
“Why? When?”
“I don’t know. I try not to pay attention to the future.”
God, I love her, but sometimes talking to her gives me a headache.
He put his hands on her shoulders.
“Don’t go picking fights with guys that big if I’m not around, okay?”
Her mouth twitched.
“Why? Don’t you think I can take care of myself?”
“Of course you can, but it’s my job now. You shouldn’t have to deal with it.”
She’ll probably just teleport out of the way, or turn them into cotton wool or an ear ring or something, but why risk it? Dammit, I want to hug her, but that bear is the size of a bus. Maybe I’ll always have to fight it for her from now on.
“Would you mind sending Mister Teddy home? He can wait for us in the ship.”
He expected her to say something cheeky, but the bear disappeared and she stepped closer, wrapping her arms around him. A part of him wanted to suggest they return home too. Her little black dress was darned sexy, and he wanted to unzip it and take it off. The closet they’d borrowed wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t their own bed, or even the kitchen...
Goddess's Saga 1: Touch of the Goddess Page 6