If he had to listen to one more lie trickle so easily from that half boozed mouth, Zenik was going to do something he regretted. He was just about to suggest that Bright take a short nap when she sat down in her chair, hiccupped, and proclaimed that she was done.
“Back to the suite,” she ordered and pointed but made no move to actually stand herself. Zenik sighed. He would not doubt that the Bistra had actually increased the alcohol in their drinks in order to increase the amount she’d buy with a little coaxing.
Zenik nearly bowled over the squat little four armed salesman when he’d approached to ask if the princess required a med bay. They could easily provide it, at minimal cost.
That gave Zenik an idea. They had pondered how to get Bright aboard the ship without looking too suspicious. A princess would certainly find repairing the ship below her dignity so they needed another reason. If he had to sober her up using the med bay, both he and Bright could disappear for a good long time with a great excuse for doing so. After all, why should a princess have to suffer from a hangover, when a few nanobots could easily process the alcohol out of her system while she slept?
Zenik picked her up and hauled her to the ship. She hiccupped but offered no other signs of life. Strangely enough, he encountered no more guards or helpful Bistra to offer him assistance. Unless they had tech he was unaware of, they couldn’t get into the ship without the access code, but Zenik decided to leave nothing to chance. He would put Bright in the med bay and run a scan before Jane arrived. Once Bright had the nanotech running through her veins, Zenik grabbed a scanner and began to sweep the ship.
When the hatch ramp hissed open a good two hours early, a sense of danger rippled over his skin. Jane would not be back early unless there was trouble. Zenik pulled himself up into a corner, behind a crate, and focused. With effort, he could change his skin tone the way that Bright could, but it would only last a minute or so before he exhausted himself with the effort.
The grabby Krex slid past, but he was not alone. A large, red, beefy character entered, followed by a form that needed no introduction. Zenik recognized the Wine Merchant immediately. He nearly sprang from his hiding spot but realized that the red one was carrying something. It was Jane. She wasn’t moving.
“Your fee, your fee. Are you sure that no one else saw? I don’t want to delay the production of my double for a millisecond,” the Wine Merchant said to Krex.
“I have done all that you asked. I brought you to the woman and I even cleared the way so no one knows where she went. There will be no record anyway. For such good service, I deserve immediate payment.”
Krex was obviously nervous. He well knew the reputation of the man he was trying to make a deal with.
“Of course if I fail to report, all of the forces of Bistra will lock down the station until I am found.”
“Don’t I always honor my deals?” the Wine Merchant replied. He removed a tablet from his coat pocket and with a few taps, completed a transaction, showing Krex the receipt.
Krex didn’t answer. He simply turned and removed himself from the ship as fast as possible. Perhaps he was not as stupid as Zenik had first supposed.
The Wine Merchant simply ignored him and turned to his red minion.
“Wake her up. I want her alive and kicking when I strangle her,” the Wine Merchant ordered.
“Shall I bind her?”
“You think you can’t handle a Terran?”
“She did manage to kill your android,” he said.
“That was a lucky shot.”
The red one obviously knew when to keep his mouth shut. He shuffled a vial out of his pocket and waved it in front of Jane who responded with a moan. Every instinct screamed to Zenik to rescue his mate, but the Wine Merchant was devious and he was too close to Jane for comfort. If he had a second to respond, Jane would be dead. Zenik would not risk that.
“Okay, she’s awake. I kill her now?”
“I want to know what she knows” the Wine Merchant said, turning to Jane.
“I know what I know, I see what I’ve said. We come and we go, it’s a thing that I do in the back of my head. Whoop whoop whoop whoop.” was all the response he got from Jane as she continued to mutter and whoop. He couldn’t tell if she had her senses and was just faking it or whether she was still drugged.
“What?” he asked.
“It’s the whoop whoop song.”
“I did not ask you to sing.”
“I didn’t ask to be drugged either so I think that makes us even.”
“Tell me, little Terran, and maybe I won’t kill you. Who gave you my code words? It wasn’t that Etlonian bitch. She only knows half the story. You had a much fuller picture.”
“Oh, that? Seriously? That’s what you can’t figure out? That’s hilarious.”
Jane actually laughed at him. Dan did not enjoy being laughed at. He yanked the floppy Jane onto her feet. She reeled a bit, but Zenik could not tell whether she was still under the influence of the drug or acting. Not time to move yet, he told himself.
“Tell me!” the Wine Merchant demanded.
Completely unconcerned with the menacing grimace of her captor, Jane giggled and pointed at him.
“He can’t figure out who ratted him out. And let me tell you. This dude was so ready to rat you out, you know what it cost? A beer. And not even a good one one. Just a run of the mill watered down space guzzler.”
“Who?”
He gave Jane a shake and though she stayed loose, there was a look in her eyes that told Zenik she was back to full clarity. The main problem would be getting to the big red henchman before he could fire a shot from the laser pistol that he had drawn.
“Now, please explain to me why in hell I would give up such a good source of information? After all, I’m pretty sure that when you’re done with me, you’re gonna kill me. And I’m Terran. You know what happens when you kill a Terran?”
“I’ve never had the pleasure.”
“There’s a mythical creature on Terra called a hydra. You cut off its head and two grow in its place. We’re like that. So, I have no incentive to sabotage the Terrans behind me who will be following my tracks.”
Dan actually growled. Data chirped out a questioning mew drawing all attention on his ginger form. He sat in the doorway on the far side, nearest Big Red.
“Data! Data is loose?” Jane questioned in a new alarmed tone.
“What is a Data?”
All three looked down at the cat who made a rather unthreatening noise that indicated he was in need of food. Jane scrambled away from the animal like it was wielding a knife. Dan caught her and she practically scrambled into his arms.
“Don’t shoot at it, you idiot. That’ll just piss it off!” Jane cried out.
The Big Red actually put his gun down. Data chose that moment to yawn and stretch.
“Doesn’t look too dangerous. Itty bitty teeth,” Big Red said.
“Venomous claws. And it’s still a baby. You know what they say about venomous babies? No control. Just dump the poison in. Dead in minutes.”
“You got an antidote?” Dan asked.
Jane paused then shook her head. “No. Why would I travel with such a dangerous creature and an antidote?”
“She’s lying. She’s got an antidote,” Big Red said.
“Of course she’s lying!”
“I’m gonna get it out of her.” At that moment, things happened very quickly. Big Red grabbed Jane by the shirt front and lifted her up and out of Dan’s arms. He took one step back, too close to Data who turned into a ball of flying fur and claws.
Jane kicked her foot out, dealing a punishing blow to Big Red’s groin. He doubled over in pain. Data attached himself to the back of Big Red’s thigh and as he jerked back up again, Jane grabbed his neck and promptly used his own momentum to snap it. She let go and his body dropped with a thud.
Zenik took the opportunity in all the chaos to step up behind Dan, slide the knife into the Wine Merchant’s chest and give it a twist. Dan gurgled a moment before Zenik felt the life drain out of his enemy.
Zenik and Jane stared silently at each other for a moment with their enemies lifeless at their feet.
The Wine Merchant was dead, the one that had brought Zenik so much pain and shame. There was no sense of victory. No big release. The only joy he felt was that Jane was alive. Zenik stepped over the body and swept his mate up in his arms.
“Wow. You two must have been busy,” he heard Bright say as she approached from behind him.
“Not busy enough,” Jane muttered as she broke the kiss, giving him a pat on his ass.
She was right. There would be time for mating later on the voyage home. Perhaps, they would even take a side trip to pick up some cargo from Earth. Some new cats. Or the Labradors Jane had requested? If they were half as fearsome as Data, he would order a herd. Data deserved a much better name, one recognizing his prowess.
“What do we do now?” Jane asked. Zenik had thought little beyond the death of his enemy.
“We take advantage of the situation,” Bright announced before turning sharply and exiting the ship.
“We should probably follow,” Jane hinted when they realized Bright wasn’t coming back to explain herself.
When they caught up to her, Bright was standing in the main concourse and had turned a neon pink with pulsing blood red hair. She was also screaming her head off and drawing quite a crowd. There were at least four Bistra surrounding her, all begging, wheedling, offering her something, anything for her silence.
“He tried to kill me! An assassination attempt! Here!”
“We apologize but Bistra had no part in this. Would you like a drink to soothe your nerves?” Not that alcohol would do much with all the nanotech still floating around in her bloodstream, filtering and cleaning her body of toxins.
“Where is my host?” She looked around dramatically, but the smarmy host with all the hands was nowhere to be seen. He’d probably run the second he’d gotten his payment. “No Bistran involvement? Who do you think gave him access to my ship? The Bistra sold me out!”
That exclamation led to a dead silence where Bistra and guests alike considered the ramifications of such an accusation.
Bright turned white but kept her blood red hair. She stood up tall, the halo of her hair adding at least another six inches to her frame.
“By the ancient rights of Etlonian Law, I proclaim the rights, profits and possessions of the assassins forfeit and property of the rightful heir to the crown.” Bright’s demeanor was so regal that a few of the Bistra even bowed in response.
“Take me to my new ship!”
There was a scramble of Bistra out of her way. No one questioned as she headed to the row of hatches and paused to glare at a Bistra until he scrambled to point out the ship. The bastard had parked right next to her.
A moment later, someone opened the hatch and Bright strolled in to investigate her new acquisition. Dan apparently didn’t believe in keeping a large staff. The only person aboard was a small yellow pilot of indeterminable gender.
“You have two choices,” Bright said. “Get your stuff and willingly get off my ship or my guard will flush you out the nearest airlock.”
The yellow thing scrambled to gather a few things into a sack. Zenik guessed that some of the items didn’t actually belong to the yellow creature, but he was utterly willing to let it go if it got rid of a future mutineer, assassin or saboteur.
“Dan, Dan the man, you must have had a very small penis,” Jane said as she looked around the main cabin. Dan’s ship was over decorated in gleaming platinum and gold and gaudy rugs.
“There are very large cannons attached to this ship,” Bright called from the cockpit.
“Like I said, itty bitty penis.”
“I do not understand the connection between the size of his genitalia and-” Zenik started, but Jane silenced him with a kiss.
“That’s because you do not have a very small penis,” she said and then winked. “Bright, don’t get too attached. We’ve promised Terra a return on their investment.”
“I know,” Bright said with a sigh. “But I shall enjoy being captain for a brief while. I suggest we get moving before the Bistra get… antsy.”
Zenik and Jane headed over to their original ship. The pair severed their links to Bistra Station and headed off to a predetermined location. Zenik put the two bodies in storage, though he was sorely tempted to flush Dan out the airlock instead. But the information the Mahdfel and Terrans could glean off such a body outweighed his sense of revenge.
Once the ship uncoupled from the station and was far enough away that Jane was sure that no one but Bright was following them, Jane swiveled in her cockpit chair.
"You realize, we are back to the same question," she said as she eyed Zenik.
"What was that?"
"What do we do now?"
Zenik could definitely think of what he wanted to do next. Jane must have been reading his mind.
"I meant after that."
"After what?"
"After screwing ourselves senseless for a few days."
Zenik had been thinking for a few hours but he could happily alter his plan to accommodate his mate's drive.
"I must return to my clan," he told her.
"To Athen. Noven 90."
"Yes."
"And then what? Are you going to sneak off on another spy mission and try to leave me all high and dry while you get killed?"
"I was not killed."
"But that's because I was here."
Zenik doubted that but he knew better than to contradict her. It was better to distract her.
"Shall we get started on that screwing now?" he suggested.
She gave him a look that said she was not fooled. Jane crossed her arms and her beauty took his breath away.
"I will not leave you again," he promised.
“Even if I get fat with your baby?"
"Even after the fifth warrior."
"Five is a lot."
"The matter is up for negotiation."
"You bet your ass it is."
Jane stood up and sat on his lap. "Okay. Now, we can get started."
Zenik didn't wait to argue with her. He picked Jane up and escorted her to the main cabin. He stood there for a moment, perplexed by a new predicament. He had to put Jane down on the bed but it was currently being occupied by the feline. The entire bed. How could such a little form occupy such a space? And was it right to relocate such a creature that had fought so fiercely against their enemy? Surely, he deserved a full warrior status for such bravery. Zenik would honor him with a Mahdfel name. That was the least he could do for him.
"What's the holdup?" Jane asked.
"Sornam is currently occupying the bed."
"Who the hell is Sornam? And why is he in our bed?"
"The little warrior is-" Jane let out a huff when she realized he was talking about the animal.
"Sweetie. Dump the cat. And since when is he Sornam?"
"It is an honorable name. I was thinking of naming our second son Sornam."
Jane squiggled in his arms and he put her down.
She picked up the cat, gave him a kiss on the top of his head and then placed him on his own bed. Sornam let out a cry but settled down after a few circles.
"And you are not going to name our second son after a cat."
“But-"
He protested no further because Jane had put her tongue in his mouth and her hand on his cock which he found to be a delightful combination.
"My love," she said when she finally lifted the pressure of her mouth. "Off with it."
In less than a minute, they stripped and she was lying naked beneath him. She reached for his length once again but he denied her access. He had every intention of tasting his sweet mate thoroughly before he planted himself deep inside her. Her folds were slick and swollen with anticipation and just the scent of her made his cock demand completion. He was no unseasoned youth who could not wait. When his tongue slid into her, Zenik revelled in the way her thighs tightened around his ears and her hands grasped at his head. He could feel her moans from the center of his being. He took her with his fingers and was relentless with his tongue until he was sure Jane was wilting with pleasure.
Then he rose up, lifted her hips, and gave his cock the friction it craved. As he expected, Jane came back to full bloom and screamed out another pleasure before he emptied himself inside her.
Jane went back to her heap of contentment and curled against him as he laid on his back. It wasn't long before her hand creeped back toward his cock. He was happy to oblige her this time. And the time after that.
The transfer of ships to the Terrans was surprisingly uncomplicated. It was supervised by a friend of Jane's and a particularly scarred and bulky Sangrin who seemed to have everything under control. They pointed out where the bodies were stored and handed over control of the ship. The Terrans took it from there. With a Sangrin in charge, Zenik was sure the ship would be taken back and analyzed to an inch of its hull to get the most intelligence possible.
Bright moved back onto Clover's ship for the trip back to Noven 90 but did not seem offended when Zenik and Jane spent most of the two week journey home in their cabin, alone. She too had been that happy once.