Bad Rock Beat Down (The Milky Way Repo Series Book 2)

by Michael Prelee

  “Who is that?” He said to Eldridge.

  “Those two idiots you met this morning, Turtle and Daryl.”

  The small truck came to a stop next to Eldridge’s float bike and the maintenance vehicle. Both men got out and walked over to the camp, kicking up small puffs of dust with their steps.

  The taller one with greasy hair pulled out a bandana from his back pocket and wiped his forehead. “Eldridge, how’s things?”

  “Just fine Turtle. Your shift’s over, right? Shouldn’t you be headed back to Bad Rock?”

  “Yeah, we’re going there now. Just need to speak with your new arrivals first.”

  Eldridge pointed to them. “Be my guest.”

  Turtle and the smaller one, who Nathan assumed was Daryl, walked over to where they stood.

  “You Teller?”

  Nathan nodded. “Yeah, that’s me. You the one chewing Diamond K out by your pile?”

  “No, sir. I never touch that stuff.”

  Cole nodded at Daryl. “Must be his buddy then. Yeah, look at those teeth. He chews.”

  Daryl stopped smiling and closed his lips.

  “Let’s try and keep things friendly, okay?” Turtle said. “We’ve got no beef with you folks. I’m just here on an errand for my boss.”

  “That’d be Dodger?”

  “That’s right. He’d like to have a talk with you.”

  Nathan narrowed his eyes. “I think I’ll pass. I can’t imagine what the two of us would talk about.”

  “Well, hell, Mr. Teller. He’s just trying to be friendly.” He flashed a smile full of yellow teeth at Nathan. “Won’t take long at all. I don’t have the details but it’s my understanding that it’s a business opportunity and before you say no, you should be aware that people make all kinds of money with Dodger.”

  “Like you and Daryl?”

  “That’s right.”

  Nathan gave a small laugh. “Don’t you two sit in the sun all day supervising ‘bots? And aren’t you behind in your quota? How much can you make doing that?”

  Turtle bit his lower lip and held back whatever response had jumped up first. He took a moment, formulated a different response and finally smiled. “Why don’t you just get in the truck and ride in with us? If you think we work slow now, you should see what could happen if we really put our minds to it.”

  Eldridge cleared his throat and Nathan glanced at him. The younger man shook his head almost imperceptibly but Nathan understood. Any further slowing down in work would just make life harder on him. Nathan sighed.

  “Yeah, okay. Take us to your boss.”

  Turtle jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Right this way.”

  The ride into town led over a road in serious need of repair. The three of them jammed in the backseat, while Turtle drove and Daryl sat in the passenger seat. The truck bounced despite the fact that it floated half a meter off the ground, a fact that didn’t escape Duncan’s attention.

  “You’ve got a ground following sensor that is out of calibration. That’s why this thing rides like a three-legged donkey.”

  Turtle turned his head enough to talk over his shoulder. “Sorry about that. This old truck of mine needs some shop time but we’ve been busy out at the site working.”

  After that, they rode in silence until they finally entered the city proper. Turtle weaved down some side streets until he finally pulled into the parking lot of the club with a sign out front that said ‘Dodge ‘Em’s’.

  Cole leaned in to Nathan and said, “I could have driven all over this city, and I would have known to pull in here as soon as I saw it.”

  “Yeah,” Nathan said, “it’s exactly what I expected.”

  Turtle pulled into a spot near the door and parked. They exited the vehicle and followed him inside. Nathan scoped the joint out. A couple of stages with poles, where holographic dancers performed for customers, sat in the middle of the floor. Duncan nudged him.

  “You still like the holographic girls, Nathan?”

  “You can be kind of a jerk, Duncan. You know that?”

  The big man smiled at his boss. “You’ve got to loosen up, Nathan. Try and have a sense of humor.”

  They moved between the tables and walked across the club floor. A large bouncer got off his stool and stood in front of the door to a back office. Daryl moved off to one side and pulled his gun and holster from the small of his back. He opened a locker and slid them inside.

  The bouncer approached Nathan’s group. “You’ll have to leave your guns out here, fellas. Dodger doesn’t allow them inside his office.”

  “Then we won’t be meeting Dodger in his office,” Nathan said.

  The bouncer moved toward Cole with his hand out. “Don’t be like that, sir. Just let me help you with that.” He made a move with a meaty hand to reach under Cole’s coat for the pistol he had in a shoulder rig. Cole grabbed his hand, twisted it up behind his back and forced him to the wall.

  Nathan turned to Turtle and Daryl as they rushed to their friend’s aid and held up a hand. “Stop right there, guys.”

  Daryl stepped to go around him and Nathan caught him in the throat, hooked a foot behind his ankle and pushed him to the floor. Duncan and Turtle just stared at each other, neither of them moving.

  “Stop fighting,” Nathan said as Daryl struggled under him. “Your man shouldn’t have laid hands on Cole. He’s not giving up his gun and if you’d given us time to explain, I would have told you that. If it’s a condition of the meeting then take us back to Eldridge.”

  The door to the office opened and a man stepped out. Turtle held up a hand. “Morris, I can explain.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Morris said. “Dodger said they can keep their guns and to quit screwing around.”

  Nathan stood up and tapped Cole on the shoulder. “Let him up.”

  Cole released the bouncer and the man rolled over, rubbing his shoulder. Turtle offered him a hand and pulled him up. Daryl got up and glared at Nathan.

  “All right,” Morris said. “If you’re all done feeling each other up let’s talk. Everyone get inside.”

  Nathan’s group went into the office to see a stocky man with muscular arms standing behind a desk. He walked around and held his hand out. “You Teller?”

  They shook. “That’s right. You’re Dodger?”

  “That’s me,” he said and held his hands up. “Welcome to my club.”

  Nathan introduced Cole and Duncan. “You already know these two,” Dodger said, pointing at Turtle and Daryl. “This is Morris. He kind of runs things around here for me.”

  The man who had stepped out of the office nodded in their direction and took a seat at a smaller desk in the corner. Dodger offered them all seats and went back behind his desk. They all sat.

  “So what can we do for you?” Nathan said. “It’s your meeting.”

  “You like to get right down to it, don’t you?” Dodger said. “Well, that’s okay. I’m the same way. Can’t make any money sitting on your ass, am I right?”

  “Something like that.” Nathan noticed the man’s bloodshot eyes had trouble focusing when he tried to hold eye contact.

  Dodger clapped his hands together. “Okay, I assume Eldridge told you that he and I are sort of in business together so when I hear that you want to grab his ship I get a little worried.”

  “You’re shaking him down and keeping the unions off his back.”

  Dodger shrugged. “Call it what you will. I don’t hear any complaints. My question to you is, what can we do to make you leave without Eldridge’s ship? If you take it away my interest in his business is put in jeopardy.”

  “You could always shake down the next guy who comes out here.”

  Dodger pointed a shaky finger at him. “You see, that’s a dangerous assumption. First of all, Bad Rock is kind of back water. The g
ood folks running the Great Star Line may decide to abandon the Athena Star. I mean, really, who would care? We’re ten and a half light years from Earth. It’s not like that thing is sitting on the outskirts of Paris screwing up the view of the Leaning Tower.”

  Nathan opened his mouth to correct him and then closed it again.

  “Besides, if another group comes out maybe Great Star Lines will actually give them a decent contract instead of ripping them off like they did that poor kid out there. They may pay them enough to hire the unions here in Bad Rock and that’s not good for anyone.”

  “Not good for you, anyway,” Nathan said. “I’m guessing you have some juice but if you got between the union and a legitimate job you’d get crushed like a bug. That means you have every incentive to keep things just the way they are.”

  Dodger swallowed and grinned. “I’m glad we understand one another. So, what can we do to have you leave without the ship?”

  Nathan held up his hands. “Look, I feel for you and I even kind of like the kid. He’s doing a good job, despite a whole host of problems but the thing is, we have a job to do too. We’re here to repo that ship. It’s probably all a misunderstanding but that’s for Eldridge to sort out and your problems are just that. Your problems.”

  Dodger gave him an oily little smile. “Yeah, my problems are my problems and your problems are your problems.”

  Nathan slid his eyes sideways. Morris sat at his desk and Turtle and Daryl leaned against the wall to his right. If they planned to throw down, they seemed pretty nonchalant about it. “Okay, I’ll play. What are my problems?”

  Dodger tapped his desk, drumming out a little beat as he pointed at Nathan. “You have the same problem lots of small businesses have. Cash flow, as in, you don’t have any.”

  Nathan shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I’m not following you.”

  Dodger smiled at Morris. “You don’t have any money, Teller. You’re broke. Flat busted.”

  “And yet here I am in Bad Rock on a job.”

  Dodger held up a hand. “No, you’re right. You do have this one job. Of course, that’s no guarantee there will be another and I imagine that’s got you in a bit of a twist. I mean, it’s got to be expensive doing what you do. Gassing up your ship, paying your crew,” he gestured to Cole and Duncan, “insurance, food, and whatever else I’m missing. To do all that you need to have some credits in the bank and you don’t have any. You’re busted, chief.”

  Nathan could feel the stares from Cole and Duncan but he ignored them. He had to deal with one problem at a time. He swallowed hard and said, “You’ve been doing your homework.”

  “Well, we may be out here at the ass end of nowhere but that doesn’t mean we’re stupid or lazy. Yeah, we did some digging. You see, you grabbed a ship from Mars last week that we had an interest in.”

  Nathan nodded. “The Hell’s Breath? That idiot Bone Daddy worked for you?”

  “He did and when you grabbed his ship you kind of screwed things up for me.”

  “Diamond K?”

  Dodger nodded. “Diamond K.”

  “So Bone Daddy and his little band of clowns distributed for you?”

  Dodger nodded. “When you grabbed the ship you flew a ton of product through Customs and landed it on Earth for me. As helpful as that may seem, it we needed it delivered to other places so now I have a whole mess on my hands. Now I have to find someone there to move it for me and I have to get a new shipment out to the guys who are short.”

  Nathan closed his eyes and pinched his nose. “And that’s where we come in?”

  Dodger smiled. “You should be happy. This is quite an opportunity. You bring your ship down, we load it up and you make a few stops on your way home. I don’t know exactly what you’re making repossessing Eldridge’s ship but I’ll be paying you more. Much more.”

  Nathan considered it for a moment. If the pallet he saw on the Hell’s Breath had been the total shipment it meant that it would be split up between three stops. “Where is it going?” Duncan turned to look at him but didn’t say anything.

  “Interested?”

  “I haven’t gotten up yet.”

  Dodger nodded. “Okay, it’s three drops, all in the Sol system; one on Mars, one on Ceres and one of the stations in orbit around Europa. We have agreements with dock masters and Customs officials at all three places that will allow you to get in.”

  Nathan leaned back in his chair. “I’ll need some time to think about it. Can you give me until tomorrow morning?”

  Cole shifted in his seat and faced him but didn’t say anything.

  Dodger smiled and stood up, extending a hand. “That works for me.” He noticed the sour faces on Cole and Duncan. “It looks like you may have some convincing to do. Factor that into your cost, that’s my advice.”

  Nathan shook his hand. “Yeah. See you tomorrow.”

  “Turtle, take them wherever they need to go,” Dodger said.

  “Will do.”

  They stepped outside to the majestic orange of the setting sun. Turtle got in the truck and started it. Nathan got in the front seat and Duncan and Cole sat in the back.

  “We need a decent hotel that has a restaurant nearby,” Nathan said. “You have something like that?”

  “Yeah,” Turtle said. “I can do that.”

  An hour later they checked in to a small motel and sat at a booth in a mostly deserted diner as night fell, Nathan on one side, Cole and Duncan squeezed together on the other. A waitress took their orders and left them drinks on the table. Nathan pointed to Cole. “You look angriest so you go first.”

  “What are we doing here? I don’t understand. Why aren’t we halfway home by now? And why are we listening to that skell, Dodger? What is going on with you?”

  Nathan started to answer but Duncan interrupted. “You’re really broke, aren’t you? Dodger didn’t have that wrong.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, I didn’t want to say anything to you guys but I’m pretty much running paycheck-to-paycheck now. After our last job, I made enough to pay my rent, buy instant noodles and pay you guys.”

  “Why?” Duncan said. “We’ve been working steady.”

  “Yeah, but the paydays are getting lighter. We used to be the only game in town. Now there are at least three outfits repossessing vessels either full time or part time. It’s pushing the rates down.”

  “Well, that I can understand,” Duncan said. “I mean, it beats financing holographic fantasies.”

  “You’ve got to let that go.”

  “I haven’t noticed a drop in my pay, Nathan,” Cole said. “Why is that?”

  Nathan exhaled loudly and ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t want you guys to know how rough things had gotten. I didn’t want you finding other jobs.”

  Cole shook his head. “You’re a moron sometimes. We’re supposed to work on shares, no matter what the job pays. I don’t need charity from you.”

  “It’s not charity. It’s an investment. Lower rates are one thing but losing crew just makes things more difficult. I know you can both get other jobs. Kimiyo would be just fine with you having a job planetside that kept you nearby.”

  Cole waved him off. “That’s not something you need to worry about.”

  “Look, the business is basically the ship and the crew. If I lose either one then I’m done. I’m finished.” Nathan paused, sipped his coffee, and reached for the sugar on the table. “Duncan, you keep the ship flying and Marla is my co-pilot. If you guys go I have to fill two spots.”

  “There’s always Richie,” Duncan said.

  “He’s coming along but he’s not ready.”

  “No, you’re right about that.”

  “Cole,” Nathan shrugged. “I need you because every once in a while we run into guys like Dodger and they can be too much to handle on my own.”

  T
heir food came and they dug in. It had been a long time since lunch back at Eldridge’s worksite. Nathan chewed his meatloaf and stared out the window.

  The street outside had that same run down look he’d seen on so many colonies and settlements. Storefronts, some occupied, some empty, lined the opposite side of the road. It didn’t surprise him that the Syndicate had a drug making operation out here. He scooped up some mashed potatoes and noticed Cole eyeing him. “What?”

  “I’m trying to figure out why you didn’t tell Dodger to screw off when he offered you a job moving his product. We’ve never hauled anything, let alone drugs. I get that you’re having some money issues but you aren’t seriously considering this, are you?”

  “What do you think?”

  Cole appeared uncomfortable. “I’m really not sure. I don’t know if you said that to give us a way out of that office or if you’re really considering it.”

  Nathan leaned back and shrugged his shoulders. “What’s the big deal?”

  “It’s illegal, for one thing.”

  “Drug running? Yeah it is, but only because the drugs themselves are illegal. Otherwise carrying them would be as legal as hauling any other kind of freight. It wouldn’t pay nearly as good though.”

  “Nathan,” Duncan said. “Drugs like Diamond K are illegal because they’re immoral. Look what they do to people. They make people addicts, they break up families and they fund criminals.”

  Nathan nodded in agreement. “I can’t argue with you there. I mean, Diamond K or any of the hundred other things people put into their bodies are terrible for them but isn’t it really their choice?”

  Cole’s face screwed up. “Who, junkies? Are you insane? They can’t make a good decision on their best day. You know how I know that? Because they choose to put that crap in their bodies.”

  Nathan shook his head. “You’re not following me. It’s their choice. What right does the government have to tell people what they can do with their bodies? If some dumbass wants to waste his life chewing Diamond K and getting high, it’s their choice.”

  “Libertarian nonsense,” Cole said. “Duncan’s right. That crap is a plague on society.”