Unchained

by C. J. Barry

  "Good. Rule Number Two. I don't care to hear your opinion of me or Avion or anyone else.” Cidra's voice shook with the effort. Mora's eyes widened.

  "And Rule Number Three. Stay away from me.” It was a low, dangerous whisper.

  Mora stared at Cidra before slowly nodding again.

  Cidra stepped back and released her hold. Mora sucked air into her lungs, clutching her throat with one hand and bracing herself against the wall with the other. The red jumpsuit looked suddenly deflated. She gave Cidra a murderous look but said nothing.

  Cidra spun around and resumed her exit from the dining hall, now more disgusted with herself than Mora. The damage was done. She had barely boarded and already made a mortal enemy. At this rate, she'd go through the whole crew by tomorrow.

  Retribution left her shaking and confused. Anger had claimed her and won. Why had she let it? Mora had certainly struck a few nerves, but it was no excuse. Cidra had lost control, plain and simple. Syrus would not have been pleased.

  Clearing the doorway, she looked up to see Grey waiting and cringed. From the look on his face, he had witnessed the scuffle. As she approached him, she took a deep breath and braced herself for his reaction. Now she would find out how the Captain ran his ship. This could possibly be the shortest employment contract in history.

  "What was that all about?” His brow furrowed, his expression unreadable.

  Cidra halted directly in front of him. “Mora and I were just discussing a few things."

  "Such as?” His face darkened.

  "Rank. Avion. What type of women you prefer,” Cidra drawled. “She has strong opinions on all subjects."

  Grey swore. Cidra took a deep breath. “I'm sorry if I've caused any problems for you."

  He didn't seem to hear her as he took her arm and led her down the corridor. “Don't worry about it. Mora's leaving soon."

  Baffled, Cidra frowned and glanced up at Grey. “You wouldn't discharge Mora because of this incident, would you?"

  Grey said nothing as they made their way toward crew quarters. He guided her past her cabin. When the door slid shut behind them, Cidra found herself standing in the middle of the Captain's quarters as Grey walked to a low cabinet and opened a bottle.

  The room was larger with a similar layout as her own with one notable difference: the standard narrow bunk had been replaced by a spacious, freestanding bed. She stared at it for a second. Of course, it made sense. He was a big man; he needed a big bed but the intimacy of it all left her mouth dry.

  She pulled her attention to the rest of the room. Her eyes widened in disbelief. Shelves lining the entire cabin displayed an impressive collection of art and artifacts. Exotic, unusual, some breathtaking, some hideous. Each a striking example in fine craftsmanship from various alien cultures. She eyed Grey in astonishment and admiration.

  "Where did you get all these?"

  Grey poured two drinks from the bottle. “I'm a treasure hunter, remember? I wouldn't be one if I didn't appreciate art."

  He picked up the glasses and turned toward her. She was concentrating on an exquisite Krion statue in genuine fascination, her blue eyes shining. It was enough to stop him dead in his tracks. He suddenly realized that he had never brought a woman into his quarters before. This was his private space, a place he shared with no one.

  He tried not to think about what that meant as he handed her a drink. She accepted it, instantly fascinated by the luminescent green and blue swirls undulating gracefully through a clear liquid base. “What is it?"

  "Oeno, a Vaasa commodity. It's very good. Try it.” He took a big swallow, watching her over the rim of his glass.

  Cidra followed his lead, taking a generous sip. It was chilly, alternating sweet and sour on her tongue as she swallowed. Suddenly she gasped, her eyes watered. The coolness transformed to heat, spreading quickly, following the same path down her throat.

  Grey grinned guiltily. “It takes some getting used to."

  "Thanks for telling me,” Cidra sputtered. The burning subsided, replaced by a rush of pleasure. She watched the undulations with new respect. Barrios would love this stuff.

  She drew a deep breath. “I lost my temper. Mora said some things that cut too close, and I reacted poorly. I promise it won't happen again."

  "Don't promise things you can't deliver."

  Cidra blinked at him. That was hardly the reply she had expected. “Why would I do that?"

  He shrugged. “From my experience, most people don't honor their promises. They make them casually. They break them casually. Besides, there's something important I want you to promise me.” He pinned her with a stern expression. “Really promise me."

  Cidra could almost feel the precise moment impending doom descended upon her. “What's that?"

  "I don't need to tell you how most people feel about Avion and the Kin-sha. It's not a topic you want to bring up in casual conversation. It also turns off potential customers, contacts, and employees. In other words, it's lousy for business.” He spoke purposely, his gaze unwavering. “No one on board knows I'm from Avion or that I'm a trained Kin-sha. I would like to keep it that way. If anyone asks, I'm from Vaasa."

  Cidra stared sadly into her drink. So much for loyalty. “I can understand your predicament. I promise I won't say a word."

  He shifted against the table. “There's something else. That move back there. With Mora. She probably didn't recognize it as pure Kin-sha, but I did. Someone else might pick up on it, too."

  Cidra argued, “It was a simple self-defense move. Anyone could have done it."

  He nodded. “Granted, but keep the Kin-sha for emergencies. No need to raise any suspicions."

  "You never use it?"

  Grey lifted his eyes to meet hers. “I had to give it up ten years ago. It wasn't a choice."

  Cidra's mouth dropped open as his words hit home. “My father didn't betray the Kin-sha. You saw Syrus’ note."

  He smiled wryly. “I saw it. So far I have your word and his."

  There was a heavy silence. Frustration choked Cidra as she stated flatly, “You won't help."

  "I didn't say that."

  "You didn't have to."

  Grey took a big swallow of Oeno. “I'd like to see what's on the holo recording."

  As Cidra stared at him, she realized what he was doing. Stalling. And there wasn't a thing she could do about it. He certainly didn't look in the mood for negotiation.

  "Of course, Captain. Well if there's nothing else, I'll return to my quarters.” She placed her glass on the table next to him and headed toward the door.

  She was across the room when he announced, “Mora's a spy."

  Cidra stopped and turned to look at him. Barrios’ statement of a leak aboard ship rushed to mind. “Are you sure?"

  "Positive. She works for Sandor Wex. Another treasure hunter. At least that's what he calls himself. A scavenger is more like it.” He glowered, his fists clenching.

  "He jumped your last two finds,” she deduced quickly.

  He brightened and saluted her with his drink. “Very good."

  Much to her chagrin, she blushed. Memories of Syrus’ gentle instruction flashed in her mind. She could see his influence on Grey.

  "I marked the first incident up to coincidence, but I knew I had a problem after the second one. The odds were astronomical that he'd hit us twice. Not these finds. No one except the crew even knew I was working on them.” He shot down the rest of the drink and turned to pour himself another.

  She found herself watching him, fascinated by the way he moved. He glided from position to position, purely, powerfully male. It called to her on a level she couldn't explain. Cidra frowned, disturbed that these thoughts were developing with more frequency.

  Turning back around, Grey's tone darkened. “Now he's apparently decided jumping my finds aren't enough. He wants Calíbre, too."

  "How do you know that?"

  "Decker confirmed it was his Victor that attacked us over Avion.” He shoved a hand
through his hair.

  Cidra was stunned and appalled. “They tried to kill us!"

  "Actually, I believe they were trying to kill me. Easier to take Calíbre with me out of the way. Mora must have tipped them off that I would be alone. I don't think they expected any trouble taking me out. They certainly didn't count on your flying skills."

  "What are you going to do about it?” Cidra whispered, almost afraid to ask.

  "I have a plan.” Grey stared at the floor, his mind elsewhere.

  She took in his hard eyes, hard face. “Are you going to kill them?"

  A corner of his mouth raised. “No. Just teach them a lesson and get them out of our way for a while. A long while.” He paused and said pointedly, “If Mora finds out we're on to her, the plan won't work."

  Cidra relaxed. “I won't breathe a word.” Then she added with a laugh, “And remind me not to cross you."

  She never saw him coming. He slammed his glass down, shoved off the cabinet and closed on her swiftly. Slipping a hand under her chin, he held her fast, warning flashing in his eyes.

  "I wouldn't recommend it. You don't want me for an enemy,” his voice was as hard as his face.

  Cidra swallowed, unable to break the connection, his close proximity generating more heat than the Oeno. Alarmed, she placed her free hand on his chest to keep him from coming any closer. He didn't budge and made no move to release her.

  Grey had only meant to reinforce his position on the subject, but the lines were quickly blurring. He suddenly found himself enthralled by her clear blue eyes. In an instant, he was drawn into their bottomless depths. There he uncovered her inner strength and courage, her innocence and absolute trust. In the calm mirror lay his own reflection.

  Out of nowhere, a thunderous awareness gripped him. He ran his thumb slowly along the edge of her lower lip, enchanted by the fine line. Cidra parted her lips and inhaled sharply. He lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her gently, denying her escape. As he tasted her, each kiss became deeper, more demanding, intoxicating.

  Her lips were as soft and sweet as they appeared. Lush and inviting, a perfect foil for his own. He found himself swallowed up in her softness, her heat, unable to pull himself away.

  She moaned softly, her palm splaying across his chest. He felt the second she relaxed, the moment when she gave in, her wordless gift of sweet surrender.

  Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered if she understood her full affect on a man or what she was offering. Although her kisses were eager, there was a definite innocence in her reaction to him.

  Reality invaded with its cold edge. He was in charge, the Captain of the ship, her employer. It was up to him to curb the situation before it went any further. He was failing miserably.

  He groaned. Under a crush of obligation, Grey released her and stepped back, thoroughly disgusted with himself. He half-turned from her, running a hand through his hair and down the back of his neck.

  "That was wrong. I shouldn't have...” he started and stopped, blowing out a long breath. “That won't happen again."

  Cidra stared at him, flushed, out of breath and astonished by his sudden withdrawal. Her outward composure returned rapidly along with a healthy dose of anger while her mind struggled to catch up.

  "Tell me, Captain. Do you always seduce your new crew members?” she snapped, trying to regain some semblance of dignity after her moment of emotional abandon.

  He stiffened, his eyes pure fire. “I didn't seduce you. You would know it if I did. I said, it won't happen again."

  Cidra blurted out, “And do you always make the rules?” Immediately she regretted letting her mouth work without benefit of her brain.

  His eyes narrowed at her. “Are you mad at me for starting the kiss or for stopping it?"

  Cidra glared back at him, unsure what else to do. His advance had shattered her self-control and she deeply resented it. On the other hand, she wanted desperately to try it again.

  With cold conviction, Grey said, “I'm your employer. Period."

  Mercifully, his room comm blared. They stared at each other a second longer before Grey hit the comm. “What!"

  "Ah, I'm glad I found you, sir. Barrios and I just broke the code on the holo recording. We're ready to run it,” Decker announced with cheerful innocence.

  Cidra froze. Finally, answers. Her ire vanished, the past few moments displaced by exhilaration and a new fear. She had not realized until this moment that the answers might not be the ones she wanted to hear.

  "We'll be right there.” Otherwise distracted, Cidra missed the distinct note of relief in Grey's voice.

  "We?” Decker questioned.

  Grey cleared his throat. “Cidra's here."

  There was a pause.

  "Yes, sir!” Decker replied, a little too enthusiastically.

  Grey winced and flipped off the comm. It would be all over the ship in minutes. Still he was grateful for the reprieve, and one look at Cidra told him she was looking toward the future again. He was off the hook, at least for now. Gallantly he swept a hand toward the door.

  "Shall we?"

  * * * *

  Decker smiled up at them from the round holo deck table as they entered Grey's office.

  Cidra slid into the seat next to Barrios at the table. He patted her hand gently as if sensing her turmoil. She smiled at the only man in the room who truly understood what this meant to her.

  Decker addressed Grey, “I didn't even break a sweat on this one, had the encryption key for the holo recording on file. Standard Avion military format. Ages old."

  Grey dropped into the chair next to Decker. The holo cartridge's raw data dump scrolled down the display screen. “Find anything interesting in the data section?” Grey asked.

  Decker's eyebrows raised. “I sure did and I still can't believe it. Looks like a complete cargo manifest. Serial numbers for almost a thousand ampoules of Ximenes vaccine in the shipment. Do you have any idea how much that's worth? We could all retire,” Decker marveled. He shoved Syrus’ holo cartridge into the holo deck unit. “OK, here comes the show."

  A cylinder-shaped grid surged up from the holo deck in the center of the table to a height of roughly two meters. Cidra's eyes adjusted as the luminous holo recording came alive, filling the grid. A surreal, three-dimensional space battle burst forth, complete with statistics scrolling up underneath. The skirmish was chaotic and it took a few seconds for her to assimilate what they were watching.

  "That's one of ours. An Avion freighter,” Barrios blurted out, pointing to the largest vessel. “And that's a Kin-sha escort.” He pointed to the smaller, silver ships hanging tightly around the freighter. “Four of them."

  "Looks like they are under attack by these little fighters.” Decker scanned the players as he tried to dissect the players on each side. “Are those Saurelian ships? Nasty little units. There must be twenty of them. Looks like they are swarming and firing on the escort ships.” Decker shook his head. “Trying to take out one of those is like trying to swat gypsy wings, there's always more."

  Grey frowned. “Decker, what are we watching here? Can you catch some of these stats?"

  As the Kin-sha escort was being soundly pummeled, Cidra grimaced. She prayed this was only a simulation. The first Kin-sha escort burst into flames and disappeared from the image. She swallowed, hope shattered.

  Decker picked out the details carefully. “The freighter is the Galena. She generated this holo recording from her sensor readings. Left Avion...” his voice faltered. “This can't be right. According to the autodate, this holo recording is ten years old."

  Next to Cidra, Barrios’ voice was no more than a rasp. “The Galena?"

  "Original destination?” Grey asked.

  "Got it. My Lord. It's Dakru,” Decker said in awe. He stared wide-eyed at Grey. “Are we watching what I think we're watching?"

  Grey's jaw set hard.

  Cidra looked at Barrios. He didn't move a muscle, but she could see his pulse throbbing at his temple
s. Another Kin-sha escort exploded and she was riveted again to the recording. She watched the silent, historic battle rage before her. Not a simulation, not a recreation. The destruction of the Avion vaccine shipment bound for Dakru ten years ago. It was raw. It was real. It was the turning point in her life.

  Decker continued his commentary. “Their location is just outside Dakru's outer region. So much for the rumor that they never left Avion."

  The freighter was fighting back with everything it had, guns blazing unceasingly, scoring some hits, trying desperately to assist the overwhelmed escort. A third Kin-sha ship vanished in a ball of fire. The Saurelian fighters outnumbered the last escort twenty to one. It didn't last long.

  Cidra watched in horror as all the attackers turned on the freighter when the last escort was destroyed, bombarding it relentlessly. They were so tight that the freighter couldn't maneuver, couldn't jump to hyperspace. The Galena endured hit after hit.

  "They're taking a beating,” Decker reported, intent on the statistics. “Systems are shutting down all over."

  The freighter slowly rolled left, its port side guns firing constantly. The image flickered strangely before flashing back.

  "Hull breach,” Decker announced gravely. Cidra knew total destruction was inevitable.

  The big guns ceased firing. Internal explosions lit up the Galena. Suddenly, there was a burst of static and the image died.

  All four sat in stunned silence for a long time staring into the empty holo grid. The office felt as cold as a morgue.

  Decker rubbed his forehead and swore an oath for all of them.

  "Well, now we know what happened.” It was Barrios who finally said it. “All these years and no one knew."

  Cidra closed her eyes. She should be analyzing the situation, but her mind wouldn't cooperate. Someone had deliberately destroyed that shipment and purposely dishonored the Kin-sha, Avion, and her father.

  "Why would anyone destroy that shipment?” She didn't realize she'd spoken aloud.

  "My question exactly,” muttered Barrios. “What do you think Stone?"

  Grey stared into the empty holo deck, deep in thought. “Definitely not pirates. They weren't holding anything back. They wanted to make sure there was nothing left to that ship."