by Tom Jordan
Jade couldn’t help but smile. “Me too. You look so happy. Everything still going well?”
Cassie glanced behind her at the bay of starships in varied states of disassembly. A team of workers walked across the video’s frame, carrying a curved section of a ship canopy. “Yep. Always busy. Putting a lot of time in. But I love it. And guess what! Dingo says he’s going to promote me in a few months!” She pointed a finger behind her. “Some of these numbskulls will be working for me soon! Can you picture that? From flight-school dropout to team leader in one of the busiest—”
Jade patted the air with her hands. “Wait. Wait a second. Dingo?”
Cassie retied her hair while she spoke. “He’s the manager. You wouldn’t believe why they call him that. It’s such a funny story. He—”
“Sorry, Cass,” Jade said. “I’ll have to get it another time.” Jade glanced at the corner of her display. “The bill’s racking up quick. I’m pretty far away from where you are. I’m actually hoping you can tell me what you think about something.”
“Yeah, of course!” Cassie was verbose, and would tell stories without end if Jade let her. She normally didn’t mind—Cassie was her best friend after Tommy, and the pair had kept in touch after Cassie left flight school. She loved space travel and starships, but didn’t feel cut out to be a pilot. Mechanics suited her much better, and Jade had supported Cassie’s decision to drop out.
Jade drew in a deep breath and exhaled a sigh. “Where to start? Do you remember Marco Barreda?”
Cassie snorted. “Of course I do. Like I don’t picture him on nights when I need an—”
Jade raised a hand. “Um, I don’t think I need to hear this.” Her lips turned up in a grin. “But I guess I can relate. Well, would you believe I ran into him out here in the Socunda system on a cargo stop? Not only that, but he’s been working with Tommy.”
“Like, your Tommy? Wow! Jade, I don’t know why you didn’t hook up with Tommy back in school.”
Jade’s forehead wrinkled. “What do you mean?”
Cassie rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on. You’re not that dense. He’s good-looking. A goofy nerd just like you. You two were made for each other.”
“No, we’re not like that. He’s like my brother.”
“I’ll take him if you don’t want him. I bet he’s—”
Jade was going to be out of money if the conversation didn’t end soon. Transmission time through the micro-wormhole network required for this kind of cross-system communication cost a fortune.
“Cass, I’m sorry, but I’m running out of cash here. This is costing me a ton. I really need your opinion. Marco and Tommy have a business doing bounty hunting. They’ve got some method worked out so that they’re really safe, and they’re making so much money…” She looked down and cleared her throat. “They want me to join.”
Cassie blinked. “And?”
“Well, should I? I’m not sure if I should.”
Cassie rubbed her forehead with the sleeve of her coveralls, which left behind a smudge. “Why not?”
“I don’t want to get in trouble. It seems weird, messing with the law. But my cargo business is failing. I just got pirated and I—”
Cassie was the one to cut off Jade this time. She held up dirty fingers and counted. “Look. You got Tommy. Check. He’s a genius and you guys are close. And he’s cute. Two, you’re out of money. With this bounty thing you’re saying you could make a bunch of it. Check. And you have Marco Barreda. Check fucking plus.”
Jade sighed, looked Cass in the eyes, and nodded. “I guess you’re right. It seems pretty clear when you lay it out. So why am I hesitating?”
“JJ, you were always worried about consequences. You’re the queen of what-ifs. Maybe because your dad never approved of anything you did in school, even though you were a stellar student. I don’t know, whatever. But look at me. I went out of my way to do what felt right, not what I was supposed to do. I mean, it’s not glamorous, but I’m on my own, I’m earning well, I’m learning a ton, I have a nice apartment. My life finally feels okay. You know?”
“I want that. I need that. It’s so lonely out here. And cold. And I have no one with me. Scraping by doesn’t help.” It seemed clear when Cassie broke it down. She had that ability, to reduce a situation to its simplest form and find a clear perspective. Jade had what she’d hoped to get out of the discussion.
“I should run.” She gestured with her chin. “I have to meet the guys for sushi. They’re waiting for my answer. Thanks for the call.”
“No prob, JJ. Good to see you. Give Marco a kiss for me.” She put on a huge, gleaming smile.
Jade would never reach the end of the conversation if she spilled that Marco had showed some signs of romantic interest in her, so she resisted the urge to share it.
“And bring Ghost out my way, will ya? I’ll do any wrenching you need. No charge.”
Jade touched the screen. “Thanks, Cass. Love you. I’ll call you soon when I can.”
“One thing I’m still not clear on,” Jade said, shifting atop her stool. “Why exactly do you guys need me if you’re doing so well already?”
Tommy started mumbling around a mouthful of sushi, and Henning gave him a whack on the shoulder. “Chew your food, mate.” He turned to Jade. “One more set of eyes out there makes it safer,” he said, taking a sip of beer. He’d ordered them all beer and sake to go with the sushi, which was surprisingly good despite the station-grown fish.
“And more efficient,” Marco said. He glanced sideways at Henning, then smoothed his hair and continued to explain. “It’s logistics. An additional ship will increase our scanning range and allow us to track targets faster. We can get more bounties turned in with a fourth team member.” Jade nodded as she listened and contemplated how gorgeous he was. He was like some kind of model. She found it difficult to pay attention to the discussion.
“And no offense to these gentlemen,” he said, referring to his comrades, “but you’re an outstanding pilot. Having you with us will round out the team’s skill set and maximize our capabilities.”
Tommy swallowed his sushi. “Faster, better, safer,” he said. “Say yes, Jade! Come on! You gotta get in on this.”
Jade didn’t know Henning well, and he hadn’t shared too many thoughts about her. She wondered what his opinion was. He caught her watching him and he nodded to her as he chewed.
Jade felt a hand rest lightly on her thigh and give a gentle rub. She started in surprise. It was Marco, but he made no expression to indicate anything was happening. A rush of excitement surged through her.
Jade took a big swallow of her beer and slammed her bottle down on the table. Tommy jumped.
“Ugh,” Jade put a fist to her mouth and coughed. “Why is beer so gross?”
“Beats me,” Tommy said.
Henning snorted a laugh. “Careful. You’re about to lose the coffee-snob points you earned.”
“I’m sticking with sake,” Jade said, pouring more into the tiny cup. She let out a long breath.
She imagined herself staring down two roads, then projected out a vision of the path she’d been on, the path of her cargo career. It lacked an appealing future. At least, not for years to come, until she could afford a larger ship and trade in higher quantities of goods. She would be scraping by for the better part of a decade, with a high probability she’d encounter a string of bad runs, another pirate who succeeded in disabling her ship, or a mechanical failure to consume her liquid funds.
The second road had friends, money, and some unknowns, including this thing with Marco. She was sure Tommy would be there to help with anything she needed, and she would be able to rely on the team to deal with any challenges.
In that moment, her mind buzzing with beer, sake, Marco’s attention, and the laughter of friends, the choice seemed to make itself.
“Okay, I’m in! It’s my honor to accept. Thank you for having me.”
Henning smiled and twisted the cap off another beer, then fill
ed Jade’s cup of sake. Tommy said something excited, but Jade couldn’t pay attention. She put her hand atop Marco’s on her thigh. He flipped it upside down and their fingers intertwined. Jade’s heart fluttered, her nerves alight like sparkling fireworks.
Perhaps it was the alcohol, but she’d never felt so pleased about where her life was going.
Chapter 6
Jade lay on the hotel bed and stared at the ceiling. Installation of her ship’s new upgrades was scheduled to be completed today. Tommy had picked out the new weapons and modules, and Marco had said to consider the upgrades a signing bonus. It was just as well—after getting paid for her recently-delivered cargo and fixing her hull, Jade doubted she had money left to finance another trade run.
Reviewing the specs and operating instructions for of Ghost’s new equipment was interesting reading, but she needed a break. She chastised herself for being so distracted, but her mind raced in circles with thoughts about Marco. He was obviously interested in her. How far would his interest go?
Jade’s wrist computer hummed from the side table, snapping her out of her reverie. Its display showed the goofy picture of Tommy she'd taken yesterday when she added him to her contacts. She hurried to pop the earpiece out from its corner of the device and put it in her ear.
“Answer,” she said. “Hey, Tommy. Is Ghost ready to go?”
“Everything but the fuzzy dice! But guess what? I have some news. We have a target.”
“You mean, like, a bounty target?”
“Yep. Marco got a call from the bounty office. He has a girl there that’s pretty sweet on him, and she called him before the bounty even got posted. It’s one of the biggest we’ve seen yet. I think we’ve only had, like, one bigger!” Tommy’s enthusiasm came clearly across the call. She found it infectious, but her excitement was tempered by a rush of jealousy thinking about the girl in the bounty office interested in Marco.
Where did that come from? Was she even entitled to feel that way?
“Ready to make some money?” Tommy asked.
Jade decided to put her best foot forward and bring all her optimism to this new turn of events. “Totally,” she said. “It won’t do my bank account any good if I hang around here taking lavender bubble baths forever.”
Tommy laughed in an off-guard way. “Well, if we get enough jobs of this caliber we can all retire and take bubble baths all day. Though I’m not sure that’s Henning’s kind of thing. Anyway, are you ready for this? The bounty is 7.6 million SCU!”
She sat upright, a shock lancing through her mind. “Are you serious? What is that, like—” she looked upward as she ran the mental math, “—1.8 million each?”
“One point nine exactly.”
Jade exhaled slowly. “That’s more than I made in the last year and a half. Easy.”
“Yeah, the guys are pretty pumped up about it too. But we have to leave right away. How soon can you be ready?”
She took a mental inventory of what she’d need to do. “I can make it to the dock in half an hour. Just let me check out of the hotel. Wait! Can you give me another few minutes to run an errand on the way out?”
“Sure. Cool. See you soon!”
“Okay. Right.” Jade tapped her earpiece to end the call. Her eyebrows raised and her mouth curled into a smile as she thought of the money she’d make by helping out with this job. Completing it would also alleviate her feelings of guilt over Marco and Tommy’s financial assistance and the purchase of the new ship modules.
Joining this team was turning out to be the right decision.
Jade bounced off the bed and grabbed her shore-leave bag out of the drawer. She undressed and crammed her casual clothes and the rest of her things into the bag, which caused the overstuffed duffel to bulge. She scooped all her toiletries from the bathroom on top of the clothes, then wrestled the zipper shut. She forgot her dress and shoes from the dinner with Marco, and unpacked the entire bag again so that she could layer them safely at the bottom atop her kimono—a keepsake she’d picked up on her travels but never found occasion to wear. Still, she valued it as part of her Japanese heritage.
“Sorry, luxurious hotel room. I have to leave you,” she said as she wiggled into her flight suit and pushed her fingers into the attached gloves. She fastened and zipped until everything was secure and snapped the helmet to one of the suit’s attachment points, remembering that she’d need it handy when she returned to the depressurized ship dock.
Jade hooked her hair behind her eyes to get it out of the way and then squeezed the hidden ridge next to her collarbone to test the suit’s collapsible emergency visor. It deployed from the collar and assembled itself around her head with a series of clacks, its small plates unfolding and locking into position. ENGAGE EMERGENCY MODE? read tiny letters on the clear faceplate. She disregarded the message and squeezed the control once more, and the helmet deconstructed itself back into the ring around the suit’s neck.
Satisfied the emergency visor was in good shape, she tightened and tweaked the straps all over the suit and, with everything in order, closed her bag one last time and made for the door. She couldn’t resist taking a final look of longing around the room, knowing it could be a while until she had accommodations other than her ship’s cramped cabin.
“I’m back, big guy. Lower the access ramp, please,” Jade said. Her earpiece picked up the request and routed it through her wrist computer to the ship. The ramp folded down without sound—due to the docking bay’s lack of atmosphere—and folded down on the dock floor with a force that reverberated through the deck plates. Jade hurried up the ramp and into Ghost of Jupiter’s small central corridor, dim and lit only by running lights. On her way to the cockpit, she stowed her shore-leave bag in her small cabin. It was joined by a shopping bag containing a canister of tea leaves—there was no way she could have resisted picking up that small luxury from the shop she’d marked on her way into Gibson City.
“Alright, buddy,” she said to the ship. “Raise access ramp and give me some atmo.” There wasn’t any sort of personality in the ship computer, but Jade enjoyed speaking to Ghost like he was a friend. It helped on lonely flights. She was sure Tommy would have a good laugh over that habit.
A tone sounded, alerting Jade that the access ramp had been raised and atmosphere restored. She went to her cabin, pulled off her helmet, and placed it over her makeshift hook—a latch that had snapped off a cargo container on one of her first jobs. She’d found it worked perfectly to hold her helmet, and so she'd just glued the piece of polymer to the bulkhead.
Once in the cockpit, Jade smiled at the stuffed animal secured in the second flight seat’s harness. The sloth wore its perpetual, lazy smile of contentment.
“Hey, Mosso. Did you miss me?”
As usual, Mosso made no reply. Jade flopped into her seat and the holomenus flickered to life. The information window displayed status updates and statistics about the new deflection field and weapon modules that’d been installed. She patched her earpiece into the ship’s communication system and saw a message from Gliese Voyager—Tommy’s ship.
“Answer call,” she said. The communicator chimed, indicating the line was open. “Hi, Tommy. You there?”
Tommy’s voice came back clear. “That’s affirmative! Henning and Marco are suiting up now. You ready to go?”
“Just have to run my preflight check. I’m seeing the new modules are installed. What do I need to know? I only made it through the d-field manual.” Jade ran her fingers through her hair—which swished slowly in the low gravity of the docking bay—and pulled it back into a ponytail to keep it out of the way.
“I’ll explain en route. We have a good lead on our target, so we need to get going.”
“Roger that. Solid copy, Cobra Two,” she said, knowing Tommy would love hearing her say it. Tommy had been endlessly criticized by his instructors while on training flights for using military lingo picked up from action films. He’d also done it extensively while playing VR space-combat sim
s with Jade in the local arcade.
Laughter cut into Tommy’s transmission. “Oh, man! Cobra Squadron flies again! I’m sending you a systems-link request.” It popped up on Jade’s holomenu.
“Received.” She accepted the request while she strapped into her harness. A location marker blinked into existence on her radar holo. The icon showed a position somewhere outside the station.
“You should have my waypoint. Let’s meet there. Go ahead and launch as soon as you’re ready,” Tommy said.
“Okay. See you there.”
“Roger. Fly safe, Cobra One,” Tommy said.
Jade began her standard preflight checks with a wide grin, testing her thrusters, modules, and subsystems. She and Tommy’d had some training flights together, as well as plenty of virtual flights in gaming simulations, but now they were about to fly their actual ships together—the fulfillment of a dream they’d talked about for years. They’d come a long way.
Jade took a moment to examine her new flight stick. Her throttle and pedal controls were still the same, but the stick was new, and had been swapped to a different model with some added inputs. There was a squeeze trigger for her index finger, and a bright-red thumb button with a clear cover over the top, likely a safety measure to prevent an accidental button press. The stick was made of a sturdy composite with a textured grip that felt good under the gloves of her flight suit.
Jade looked around the cockpit, exhaled, and rubbed her palms on her thighs. What lay ahead now? This new venture was a huge departure from the work she’d been doing. Oddly, she didn’t feel any anxiety about the possibility of combat. She knew Marco and Tommy were skilled pilots and that Henning had some sort of combat experience. Plus, Marco and Henning were armed to the teeth. Those factors would collectively mitigate any danger she faced. Her weapons were all legal for private use—in most star systems—and Tommy said he’d chosen a high-end deflection-field module. Nothing illegal there.