Muncy captained the Star Chaser, a heavily armed Xebec, which had scars of its own. He leaned back in his chair. One resound thud followed the other as he drew his boots to the tabletop. “The Heavens always seem to wait ‘til the very last minute,” said he, “and sometimes even beyond that. The odds are little better than two to one against us,” he added. “I say we restrain ourselves and give those boys a sporting chance.”
Everyone laughed.
“What are you saying?” said Chonri. “If we whoop them outright they might not again come back to play? That would break your heart, would it?”
Unconcerned, Muncy shrugged. “Come now. You know that whoopin’ up on the Confeds is my reason for living. Once they’re all gone, then what’ll I do? I’m not keen on fishin’.”
Captain Wolford stood and bumped Muncy’s chair, which knocked his feet from the table.
Muncy griped, but Wolford got right in his face. “Spoil the furniture in your own house if you want, but if ever I’m present, you had better act like you’re in my home even when you’re aboard someone else’s. Captain Kori deserves better from you, and you know it, Captain.”
Muncy knew better than to protest further. Wolford was as tough as nails, and like most ship’s captain in the room, she had earned his respect several times over.
She was the Captain’s wife when, one terrifying day, in the heat of battle her husband lost his life. Without blinking, she took command of the Solaris to save the ship and its crew from certain destruction. Today, she commanded it with a firm hand. And though Muncy is twice her size, she’d have none of his guff. Before her husband had died she would have just sat quietly by and said nothing—the dutiful wife. But not these days. Too many people relied on her to be tough and capable including Muncy, and she knew it.
“Good Captain Wolford,” Jordon interjected with a gentle smile. “Thank you for your kind words, but I would rather have your company and scuffed furniture than have pristine furniture and live alone because of it.”
Captain Wolford looked up and smiled. “My good Captain Kori. You can have both, our company and well-treated furniture.” Then she turned back to Muncy. “Isn’t that right, love?”
Through a grizzled face and a day’s growth of beard, Captain Muncy beamed. “She is a firecracker for certain, but she’s also right, friend Kori. My apologies to Mrs. Kori for my blundering conduct.”
To share the company of such people was quite a change from what Jordon had known. Before he had come to know such people existed, the company he kept took all, and gave nothing in return.
Jordon stood and stepped away from the table. “Gentlemen and good Lady, we face terrible odds and a ruthless opponent. If anyone wishes to leave our ranks he can do so freely. No one here will think poorly of you if you do so.”
The room fell strangely silent as each person looked to the other. Then from the back of the room Captain Norton began to laugh outright. He was the oldest among them and, up until then, he had remained silent. His deep, guttural voice seemed at odds with his small wiry frame, but it was kind nonetheless.
“My good Captain Kori,” he said with a grin. His eyes held a child-like playfulness. “You know what we have endured and sacrificed. You know about our exploits. They are common knowledge. Each of us has earned and deserves peace. Sure.” He looked around the room. “Terrible odds? A ruthless opponent? True, but the fight is just beginning. Who here would cut and run at such a time as this? Trust me when I say our hearts are in this. Theirs are not. And that gives us every advantage. Leave now? When it’s just starting to get fun?” His head rolled back as he laughed again. And the room erupted as it joined him.
When the room quieted, Captain Norton turned his attention back to Jordon. “The Confeds are the reason we are here, my boy. When Buck gave us the call to fly and fight agin’em, we jumped at the chance and hurried here to do so. Don’t you know that the reason we got into this messy business to start with was to take back what was lost by the previous generations.”
Few in this room were old enough to call Jordon “boy.” But old man Norton had earned the privilege several times over, and Jordon would say nothing of it nor deny him the freedom to do so.
Then Captain Miller got to his feet; his smile was faint, his face determined. There was no laughter in his voice at all. “Captain Kori, before you and your crew came along in Freefall; we were taking names and kicking butt. Fighting this enemy isn’t new to us. Look at us. We are a proud lot. Many of us have tackled the enemy alone and managed to live through it. Coming together like this to stand shoulder to shoulder with brave men and women, it’d be downright stupid to just up and walk away.”
Capt. O’Dare spoke, but neither stood nor smiled. “Why—not just eight years ago Major Richardson came to our church to speak. He told us about a twelve-year-old girl in a lone ship saving the day at Los Dabaron. That ship was the Reliant, rest its soul. Even in the face of overwhelming odds, the girl who commanded it told Richardson that she would rather mix it up with the bad guys than hide in caves. Truth to tell, even as Richardson spoke, I believed his story was just a myth, a parable of a sort. But that parable inspired me to take a chance, several chances actually. So as for me and my crew, we are done with hiding in the lap of momma Providence, or any other place said to be safe and secure. We’ll fight. We may die. But we’ll give it our all anyways.”
O’Dare was newest to the group and had yet to build a reputation. He would be watched and rewarded if his efforts warranted. But Jordon was hesitant to believe anything coming from the man’s mouth. He took note of this news though, of Richardson’s blatant disregard for that which he himself had said was classified. But Jordon said nothing though his thoughts were busy. Had Richardson really exposed Reliant and her child crew to unnecessary danger by speaking publicly about Los Dabaron? Later, that danger had materialized to leave Ericca and Riley orphaned. Until Jordon happened upon them two years ago, he believed they had died with their parents. But this news about Richardson talking? Jordon could not believe it.
Captain Davenport stood. His face was soulful, his voice, sober. “When I first heard the tale of Reliant, which was only recently, I believed it was a fairytale designed only to encourage. Now I’m told Freefall has the same stuff in her as had that mythical ship? With or without her at our side, I say the time for talk is done. Let’s get this thing going.”
Just then Race and Josh come tearing in to the room. Rachel skidded to an abrupt halt, and Josh plowed into her.
“We found it!” Josh announced.
“Yeah, what he said,” Race agreed.
Jordon studied the adolescents. “You found the bug?”
“Yes, sir!” the two said in unison.
“Sir,” interrupted Freefall, “we are being hailed by the Archer crew.”
“Put them through on the conference speakers, please,” Jordon said.
“Aye, sir.”
“Captain Kori? This is Riley.”
“Yes, Riley. You’re coming in loud and clear. Go ahead.”
“I know where the tracking device is, sir.”
“Yeah? Where is it, Riley?”
“You should find it on Freefall’s hull near the starboard cargo bay door.”
“Hey, Riley!” interrupted Josh. “That’s right where we found it just a moment ago. How did you know?”
“No time to go into that now, but I’m sure you’ll find good use for it.”
“Yes, we will, Riley,” said Jordon, “count on it. Are you coming home soon?”
“Negative. Ericca wants to stick it out here until the last minute. The Prince has been a fair enough host.”
Jordon glanced up and caught Captain O’Dare’s expression. There was something disconcerting in it, but Jordon couldn’t say what it might be. “Roger, Riley. Stand by while I see our guests out, please.”
“Roger, Captain.”
With no further business to be conducted Jordon excused himself and held Buck back from leavin
g as well. He saw the other captains to the door then turned once again to his recon team. “Riley, I have bad news.”
Chapter Nineteen
After he learned what his captain had discovered, Riley closed the com, turned an angry face toward Ericca’s monitor, and shook his head.
Her eyes found his. “You okay?”
“I hope the captain is wrong, sis. You had to trust him. You had to! You had no choice. There would’ve been no way to take on the 5th Fleet without Richardson and his commandoes. You know that don’t you?”
Ericca turned to peer out at the stars. “I told him, you told him, Mom and Dad told him.” She shrugged. “I’m sure he heard.”
“You’d think a military man would understand the word classified? Did he really think speaking about Reliant in his church wouldn’t get back to the Confederation?” Riley hmphed.
Ericca twisted around in her seat and brought her eyes back to meet those of her brother. “Richardson heard us, I said. Whoever is saying he talked is a liar. It’s just that simple.”
Riley inspected Ericca’s calm face for a moment. She had said more than once that she liked Richardson. He was a man she could trust. But Riley didn’t trust the man at all. Richardson was a former Confederate officer. Ericca said he was a fallen angel trying to get back on his feet. But for Riley this tore it. For Richardson to take such a cavalier attitude toward their secrets was beyond belief. Riley ran a firm hand over his face, but that did little to relieve his own building anger. That hellacious day those many years ago had nearly cost them their lives. Now, Reliant was gone. Mom and Dad were no longer alive, and Ericca had somehow gone blind to the facts.
He shook himself and made an effort to turn his mind to other things. “Captain took the news of those Talon pilots pretty bad. I think you should forgive him.”
Her head whipped back to him and her eyes narrowed. Her face was now a mix of anger and confusion. “Forgive him? For what? No, wait. You thought I was mad at him? Archer, what did you tell our captain?”
“I told him you were mad. He took it to mean you were mad at him. Frankly, so did I.”
“Great. Another fire to put out.”
“You did blame him for their deaths, didn’t you?”
“Archer, there was no way to soften the blow, so I told Captain Kori straight. I wasn’t upset with him, nor do I blame Jordon Kori for their deaths. Captain Kori wasn’t the pus rat who pulled the trigger.”
“Then what were you upset about?”
Ericca sighed. “Seriously? You don’t know?”
Riley sat slack-jawed. He had no idea what to say. He thought he knew Ericca, but apparently he didn’t.
“Fine. If I have to spell it out for you then, listen closely. I’ll only say this once. I don’t like Confederates. At every turn those retards give me reason after reason to hate them. We distracted those guys. We did. We took their ships. We did. None of that was the fault of those two men. None of that could they have helped. They did nothing to warrant being executed. Nothing! Now do you understand why I told Captain Kori?”
Riley hesitated. He was angry with Kori. How could she not be? “No. I don’t understand.”
Ericca blew a sharp sigh of irritation. “Jordon Kori twisted no one’s arm. Whoever runs this fleet, on his own, decided those men should die. Clearly the commander of this fleet is insane. Don’t you think Jordon Kori should know what kind of man is coming his way?”
“So, you were pissed at the Confederacy, not at Jordon Kori?”
“Jordon Kori is a gadget guy. He’s a genius. A bumbling, sometimes absent-minded teddy-bear. At times I find him frustrating, but he really is a good man. Now and again he just needs to be reminded why he hired us. That is all.”
Riley watched her face closely. She always surprised him. “You’re a loyal woman, Ericca. You never give up on your friends, do you? Richardson. Jordon Kori. Me.”
A faint smile flitted across her face as she turned away. Riley thought he heard her mutter, “And Tyson Blackhart.”
Did he hear her right? “Should I add that name to my list?”
There was a protracted silence. “Good job, Archer,” she said, wanting to be heard. “You figured it out after all. The bug and all, I mean.” It was clear Ericca wanted to shift the subject away from Tyson.
“Thanks, sis. It was the old illusionist’s trick. They had us so focused on their right hand; we didn’t notice their left. Like something, say, Tyson Blackhart would do.”
“You just had to mention him, huh?”
“But you said—”
“Can’t you give it a rest?”
Riley exhaled sharply. “Fine. Pirate or no, I liked the guy. And so did you.”
“I don’t need your teasing, and I don’t need you pressuring me for answers that don’t involve you. If ever I return to him, it’ll be on my terms, and on my terms only.”
“Him? Return to him? So it was Tyson you left? You said before it was Coredei.”
“Okay, okay. You know what I meant.”
“Yes, actually, I think I do . . . now.”
She sighed and shook her head. “On another note, regarding this mission, we thought it was just a chance occurrence that we nabbed a tagged ship. Right? I hate to admit it, but Freefall was their intended target all along. Maybe Richardson did talk—but if he did, it certainly wasn’t at any church. If he talked, and I’m not saying he did, it would have been after some serious torture. Regardless, with our cover now blown wide open we blindly fell into their trap. Not the other way around.”
Riley envisioned Race’s frustration, and chuckled. “Race must have busted her chops to tear those Talons apart looking for that stupid tracking device.”
“Bit-by-bit, knowing her.”
Ericca glanced over her shoulder toward Riley once more. “This certainly is puzzling.”
“What? How those Inspectors got the bug past Mrs. Kori? Simple. First guy aboard caught and held her attention while the second inspector planted the bug.”
“No, no. The Koris are a piece of cake.” Ericca hesitated. “I just don’t understand why Freefall allowed it. I’m sure it was something obscure that no one would notice, but not even Freefall herself?” She turned back shaking her head again but only slightly. “You’d think that the ship would have kept a scanner locked onto them and would’ve noticed any odd behavior.”
“Perhaps Freefall did notice and told the Koris later. Maybe the captain and his mom had planned on the Confeds doing this all along. You think?”
“I don’t know, brother.” Ericca gave her head another slight shake. When she spoke, she sounded troubled. “Something about the sequence of events bothers me. And who in blazes is this O’Dare guy?”
Riley pressed back in his seat and gazed up at the stars, and then allowed his eyes to close. “Maybe Richardson thought that . . .” Riley abruptly sat upright. “Wait! You know Richardson.”
“Yeah?”
“No. I mean you know Richardson. You know the type of man he was. In your opinion, would he have talked about Reliant to anyone?”
Ericca twisted back toward Riley. “I doubt he would even if tortured.”
“But his commandoes, what were they, 120, 180 men strong? A good number of them were former Confed soldiers themselves. Given half a chance would any of them flap his gums? Who exactly is this O’Dare guy anyway? I’ll bet you dollars to donuts he was there.”
“At Los Dabaron? I suppose he could have been one of Richardson’s men.”
“Some of those religious types are descent folks. Some are jerks. O’Dare said he was at the church. Who says he wasn’t the one who’d gotten up before everyone to make himself look . . .”
“Important? Spiritual?” Ericca added.
“Who can tell what he was thinking, sis?”
“Yeah, but to give a sermon, Archer, to speak before a church body, that takes planning doesn’t it? It wasn’t as though it was a slip of the tongue.”
“I don’t know
O’Dare. But I know you, sis. You tell me Richardson was an upright guy, then he was an upright guy. For all we know, O’Dare has some hidden agenda only he knows. Maybe he’s to blame and simply wants to shift attention from himself. He might not even have wanted the world to know about Reliant. But if he’s the snitch, and we find out about it, then he screwed up royal.”
“I wish we knew more.”
“So do I. Right now it’s all conjecture. We’re just spinning our wheels in gravel.”
“Still, little brother. I don’t think Major Richardson gave Reliant away.”
Riley sat back in his seat and shut his eyes. “Next time we contact Freefall, we need to warn Captain Kori about O’Dare and tell him our suspicions.”
“Agreed.” Ericca turned back to face forward.
Riley rolled his head to loosen stiffening neck muscles, and then yawned big without opening his eyes. “Our guys seem to be in the catbird seat this time around, sis. Knowing where the bad guys are, where they’re going, and when they’ll arrive has given us every advantage. Richardson seems to be a side issue, but when this is over let’s find the guy and ask him, kay?”
“We should do that, little brother. He should at least know rumors are being spread about him.”
“The rebels are in control of this situation. But still, our guys are still outnumbered two to one. If we expect to win this thing, we still have to rely on Captain’s tech.” Riley drifted off for what he thought would be a quick catnap. He knew they could rest assured now that the bug had been found. But before any time had passed he heard a tap-tap on the side of the ship.
He and Ericca looked up to see a Confederate trooper.
With the butt of his gun, he rapped on Viper’s side again.
Living in Freefall (Living on the Run Book 1) Page 13