Faros

by Layla Nash

  Wyzak called after her, something about staying where she was, but Violet didn’t stop. She just walked faster. She had to get to Faros. He wouldn’t listen to her on the comms system, and she didn’t want to argue where everyone could overhear. Well, she’d argue in front of whoever was on the bridge of the merchant ship, but at least she’d be able to face Faros head on.

  And she still wore those stupid robes, which seemed to drive him a little crazier than her regular uniform, so maybe it was a good thing overall that he’d ripped up her pants. Maybe. She still preferred an actual uniform, and not something so baggy and flowy. Violet clenched her jaw and ignored one of the Sraibur crew who looked at her sideways and almost tried to stop her.

  She fixed him with a deadly look and said, “The cargo bay. Now.”

  And whatever it was he saw in her expression was apparently enough to convince him to point in the right direction. She nodded and walked faster, hoping Wyzak didn’t decide to chase after her, since there was no way she could fight him off or convince him to let her leave the ship. She half expected Faros had left the second-in-command behind to make sure she didn’t do… exactly what she was trying to do.

  Violet paused in the cargo bay to tap another message on the bracelet, hoping that Estelle or the space chickens would understand. On our way.

  She just hoped it was the truth.

  The Sraibur crew looked at her askance as she strode to the transport arm. Violet waited only a moment to make sure it was clear, then bolted for the other ship. Someone shouted at her to get a safety suit, but she knew she couldn’t wait.

  The transfer arm still felt like running a full physical fitness test at the Fleet, and she could hardly speak by the time she got to the other ship. The Xaravians on the other side stared at her in disbelief, and one got in her way. “It’s too dangerous.”

  “Where is Faros?” she demanded.

  “The bridge,” another said. They moved more crates to the transfer arm, and tried to shoo her back to the Sraibur at the same time.

  Violet used her steeliest lawyer glare. “Which way?”

  The two traded looks, then the first one sighed. “This way,” and he started at a half jog into the ship.

  She followed without another word, though she took the stunner that the second Xaravian offered on her way. They moved fast, until she feared she’d have to ask him to stop, but finally they broke through another security cordon to the bridge.

  The Xaravian pointed at the doors without a word, then headed back toward the cargo bay. She didn’t blame him for not wanting to face his captain, but that didn’t mean she had time to fuck around. Her panic and fear competed with fury that they even had to argue about doing the right thing. If he’d just listened the first time, the Lovelace crew wouldn’t be prisoners and on their way to a horrible, short existence in a Slasu slave crew.

  The doors opened and everyone turned to look at her, including Faros. His expression would have been comical if she hadn’t been so pissed. His dark eyebrows rose and he took a step in her direction. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  The gallery of observers, including several species she’d never seen before, all looked at him, then back at her. It was like an old Earther tennis match with the spectators waiting for the next hit. Violet put her hands on her hips, which drew his attention immediately to her waist. “The Lovelace was attacked. They need our help. We have to go.”

  Faros’s scales flared with a curious mixture of blue and silver and red—lust and anger all mixed up. Which seemed to be their normal. She couldn’t let it distract her though, and when Faros took another step toward her, Violet sidestepped and held the stunner on him as a real threat. “We need to go. The Tyboli have taken them hostage and are going to sell them to the Slasu. We can stop them.”

  “We are not going to discuss this here,” he snapped. Faros pointed at the door behind her. “Go back to the ship.”

  One of the aliens, decked out in the kind of uniform that only a captain wore, slithered forward on half a dozen legs. “Tyboli? They are nearby?”

  “We have the coordinates,” Violet said. She sidestepped again as Faros lunged in her direction. “There are three ships. They set an ambush and took another ship. We can go back and—stop it, Faros—we can help them because it’s the right thing and…Would you stop?”

  Faros caught her arm and started to march her to the door, his voice a low growl that made the hair on her arms stand on end. “I am in the middle of taking over a ship, and you being here is undermining—”

  “I don’t care,” she said. She tried to pull her arm free but his grip was stronger than titanium. “They’re going to be slaves, Faros. They’re my friends.”

  His expression didn’t change; she almost didn’t recognize him. “You are endangering yourself and my ship. Go. Back.”

  Violet’s sinuses burned. She didn’t want to cry. She hated it when she was so angry and upset that she lost control. She put her hand on his chest, right over his hearts, and dropped her voice to match his. “Please. They’re my friends. Please. You have your cargo. We can help them now.”

  The muscles in his jaw jumped as he ground his teeth, but his scales lost the hints of red and instead swirled blue and purple. She held her breath and hoped it was enough.

  Chapter 36

  Faros

  Faros almost lost his mind when Violet appeared on the bridge of the merchant ship, her expression wild and almost frantic. He immediately wanted to kill Wyzak and the rest of the crew for letting her take a risk, although part of him didn’t blame them for getting out of her way. With the way she looked, he probably would have stood aside, too.

  He’d almost gotten her off the bridge and heading for the safety of the Sraibur when she touched his chest and asked him in a soft voice to please help her friends. Between her wearing his robes and touching him and that hint of red around her eyes that he knew meant strong emotions… He was lost. He couldn’t have told her no again for any amount of Lukkan silk in the universe.

  At least he already had enough in his cargo hold to pay off Kryken, and more besides. Faros squeezed her hand and muttered, “You are going to do so many things for me to pay me back for this…” and gave her a dark look to show exactly what kind of payment he expected.

  She turned red, like he knew she would, and started to stutter a denial or a refusal, but he’d already turned his attention back to the Uilik captain.

  Faros didn’t release Violet as he faced the merchant crew. “So. A change of plans. There are apparently three Tyboli ships that have attacked some of our colleagues. We will release all of your ships if you aid us in attacking the Tyboli and freeing the captured crew.”

  The Uilik scowled. “Why should we help you with anything?”

  “Because otherwise we will leave you adrift,” Faros said, as calmly as he could with Violet about to object beside him. He squeezed her hand until she sucked in a breath, but she didn’t start spouting legal precedent or excuses. He waited for the Uilik to go on, and when the captain didn’t, Faros shrugged. “Time is of the essence. We will come back and assist in restarting your ships, although that assumes we will be successful against the Tyboli on our own. If we aren’t, of course, that leaves you still adrift.”

  The Uilik looked at his crew and spoke rapidly in his own language, then grumbled more before he looked at Faros. “I will discuss with the other ships.”

  “You have very little time to make your decision.” Faros didn’t look at Violet as he spoke into his own comms device, telling the crew to wrap up and meet him at the bridge so they could escort Violet to safety. By the time Wyzak was done making excuses for letting the Earther leave the Sraibur, the Uilik had come to a decision.

  “We will assist you,” the captain said. “Because we hate the Tyboli, not because we are afraid of you pirates.”

  Faros smiled without humor. “Doesn’t matter to me. We will send the coordinates to you once we are back on my ship. We can di
sable you just as easily as we did the first time, so do not attempt to attack us and get your cargo back. Think of it as a… tax.”

  The Uilik grunted. “Just go. We will hold off the Tyboli until you can aid your friends, then we will go on our way.”

  It was the most he could have hoped for. He nodded and retreated to the door, though he didn’t dare turn his back on the crew. Once he was certain that the Sraibur crew were there to protect Violet, Faros let the doors shut and started moving as fast as possible to the transfer arm.

  Violet started to speak, to say something that no doubt would have angered or inflamed him, but he just shook his head and walked faster.

  Chapter 37

  Violet

  Violet still wasn’t sure why he’d agreed to help the Lovelace, though she suspected it was more with her being the one asking than it being the right thing to do. She didn’t press her luck. The one time she thought to thank him for the change, he squeezed her arm and hustled her even faster back to the Sraibur.

  No one else spoke. Most of the Xaravians were a grayish orange-yellow color as they reached the Sraibur, probably because they were terrified of Faros, and she didn’t want to press her luck or get them more in trouble.

  Bursting out of the transfer arm brought a whirlwind of activity. Nokx started retracting the arm and sealing up the Sraibur, while Faros released her and took off for the bridge. Violet didn’t know whether to follow or let him stew in his bad mood, but Nokx said under his breath, “Go. Fast. Or he might kill Wyzak.”

  “Right.” Violet nodded and took off at a run. She held her side and made a mental note to start working out more, though not anywhere that Faros would find her and distract her. Her cheeks heated at the thought. And what had he meant by her doing things for him to pay him back?

  On the bridge, Faros and Wyzak were in a heated argument that ceased the moment she appeared. Violet ignored the awkward moment and instead sat down at the nav station. “I have the coordinates already.”

  “How do you know where they are?” Faros demanded. “How did you get the message about what happened?”

  She held up her wrist and the silent bracelet. “This. Flashed a code. The coordinates are in and programmed. We should go.”

  “Send them to the other ships,” he said, irritation in every line of his body. “Since my navigator is elsewhere, apparently.”

  Violet figured out how to send the coordinates to the merchant ships, and once they’d confirmed receipt, Faros and Wyzak did whatever it was they did to un-freeze the ships. And then they were off, racing through the ungoverned stars, and she felt like a real spacefarer for the first time in a long time.

  Chapter 38

  Violet

  She intended to avoid Faros, based on his mood, as the ships sped off toward the Tyboli fleet, but the captain very quickly turned his attention to her. Violet refused to back down as he stalked toward the navigator’s terminal. His scales stayed blue, at least, and didn’t reveal any red or other terrifying colors. “Explain why you felt it was necessary to put yourself in jeopardy to get on that ship.”

  “Because you wouldn’t have listened if I used the radio,” she said.

  Wyzak snorted a laugh, then made himself scarce when Faros growled and glanced in his direction with distinctly crimson lightning flashing through his scales.

  Faros pressed his fists to the navigation console, leaning forward until he loomed over her. “You will not put yourself in danger again.”

  “You can’t know that,” she said.

  “I do know that,” he said, very calmly. Faros’s words came out through clenched teeth, but he kept his voice low and calm. “Because if you do it again, I’m going to chain you up in my quarters for the rest of your life. Understood?”

  Violet folded her arms over her chest and arched an eyebrow. “I beg your pardon? You’re not the boss of me.”

  “On this ship, I’m the captain. You do what I say.”

  She wanted to throw something in irritation. That again? Seriously? Violet could have yelled at him or cursed, maybe pitched an epic fit to distract them all from the fact that they raced through ungoverned space to confront a superior force. She could have, but she didn’t. She leaned forward, took his face in her hands, and said just as calmly, “You can think that I’ll do what you say—and sometimes I might—but I will do what the fuck I want, when I want. And nothing you say or do can change that. Understood?”

  And she kissed him.

  Faros stared at her when she finally retreated, as if he couldn’t quite comprehend what had just happened, and Violet smiled. So that was the trick to get him to shut up and listen. Violet turned her attention to the navigation console. “So. What’s the plan for dealing with the Tyboli?”

  He cleared his throat and frowned at her. “Well…we fight them.”

  Violet gripped the edge of the console and tried to remember that she liked the pirate captain, and that normally he was squared away and knew his business. “We have to figure out where they’ve got the Lovelace crew, and rescue them first. Where are they likely to keep the hostages?”

  “Probably still on the Lovelace,” Wyzak said. “Takes too long to transfer them to another ship, although they run the risk of the crew getting loose and hiding in a familiar ship. It hasn’t been quite long enough to justify moving them, though.”

  “So they’ve got four ships total now,” Violet said. She used the console to bring up the coordinates where they were headed, as well as the space surrounding it, and plotted out where the Tyboli ships were likely to be. “And there are four of us, although three are slightly less motivated.”

  “I wouldn’t assume that,” Faros said. “They’ve probably run afoul of the Tyboli in the past, so we’re capitalizing on that.”

  “You should give them back the cargo to thank them,” Violet said. She didn’t look at him, because then she would have laughed at his outraged expression. “You know it’s the right thing to do. It’s not like you can use it to pay off Kryken after attacking him.”

  Faros grumbled. “I was going to pay him off first, make sure he canceled the debt, then attack to get the Lovelace free.”

  “You know that’s not really going to work, right?” Violet glanced over at him, suddenly pensive. “This ship is going to be on the wrong side of a broken Tyboli contract.”

  “I know.” Faros turned his attention to the viewing screen and thousands of stars that streamed past as the Sraibur headed out on the trajectory that she’d insisted on.

  It was all on her. She made him break the contract in order to save the Lovelace crew. If anything happened to the ship or the crew or him during the fight with the Tyboli... it was all on her. Violet cleared her throat and struggled to find a way to reconcile all of those competing feelings.

  “Hey,” Faros said. He was suddenly next to her, squeezing her shoulder. “Do not be upset. I don’t like the way it makes your face look.”

  Violet laughed and smacked her forehead. “Don’t ever tell me that you don’t like how my face looks.”

  “You know what I meant,” he said. His thumb smoothed over her forehead and wiped away the worry lines. “It’s just a contract. You are perhaps right that it is more important to keep your friends out of slavery than to worry about the safety of my ship. Maybe.”

  “I knew you were a good guy,” she said under her breath, although he was very grudgingly a good guy.

  Faros gave her a sideways look. “Don’t say that too loudly.”

  Violet took a deep breath and caught his hand, playing with his fingers as she imagined the fight ahead and the suddenly real possibility of losing him. “Thank you for doing the right thing.”

  “I’m not doing the right thing,” he said. But he squeezed her hands back. “I’m doing the thing my nixtava wants me to do, which is more important by far. Even if it were the wrong thing or the worst thing or…anything, I would do it. If you asked.”

  She swallowed a sudden knot in her throa
t. “That’s a lot to take on. I’m not sure I’m ready for that kind of responsibility.”

  The corner of his mouth crooked up in the pirate grin she’d found so irritating for so long. “Then don’t ask me to do anything. Problem solved.”

  “You’re impossible.” Violet shoved to her feet and tried to look like she was fully prepared for flying into battle. “But since I like you, make sure you’re okay at the end of this.”

  Faros sketched a mocking bow and winked. “And lose the chance to let you pay me back for this terrible idea? Don’t think you’ll get out of it that easily.”

  Her cheeks burned but she didn’t respond, shaking her head and muttering, “Impossible.”

  Violet tied the robes more tightly around her and returned to the navigator’s chair, ready to help pilot the ship as Faros hailed the merchants and conveyed his plan. She tried not to hold her breath, but nothing made her feel ready for the confrontation with the Tyboli.

  Chapter 39

  Faros

  The merchants initially objected to the plan, though it didn’t take long to convince them to play along. The larger ships stayed almost out of range while the smallest one appeared tethered to the Sraibur. Faros hailed Kryken—or tried to. The Tyboli ship didn’t respond to the hailing calls, and Faros started to think nothing would have worked to get Kryken to fall into the trap. The wily bastard must have sensed something awry.

  Faros had Violet send a message on that damn bracelet to the hostages, hoping to uncover what ship they were on, and while they waited for a response, the Sraibur hailed the other Tyboli ships in range and asked about Kryken. It wasn’t long until the bastard’s ship appeared on the radar, and Faros braced himself for a hell of a fight. The Lovelace approached with Kryken on the bridge, his previous ship crewed by someone else.