Disclaimer: The characters and worlds of Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick do not belong to me...And that makes me a very unhappy puppy…Riddick, Caroline, and Jack are not mine. Everyone else is.
Its rated R and NC-17 for Language, Sexual scenes and violence.
This fan-fic is set between the ending of Pitch Black and the start of tCoR...With a little creative license thrown in for good measure. This is my first one ever so, please be kind.
Chapter1
Rain.
It seemed on the more popular planets rain was a constant companion. Riddick glanced into a storefront window noting the curls of steam rising up off his head, arms and shoulders. He squinted into the overhead light flickering feebly, wiping a stray speck of rain off the lenses temporarily turning the world into an off kilter kaleidoscope. Turning, he started back down the alley. Hellion Prime wouldn't have been his first choice of planets that he would have visited on a vacation but finding the source of a substantial bounty on your head would hardly be a vacation. Riddick grinned in the darkness to himself, he was glad to see that out of the survivors at least Imam had put down roots and gotten into a convient little mess everyone else called matrimonial bliss. Riddick tugged off his goggles and scanned the surrounding area. He tilted his head slightly pitching his hearing to give him a better idea of what happening in the streets of this over- lit rock. A crackle like the crushing of a paper sack resounded through out the alleyway that Riddick happened to be standing in. Sounded a lot like plasma fire, and plasma fire meant violence. Riddick chuckled quietly to himself, no matter the world, no matter how polished the exterior, how clean the streets or its citizens, you could always count on the true nature of humankind to rear its ugly head. It sounded like someone was having a very good time, Riddick never missed the opportunity to join in the festivities
Riddick rounded the corner of the metal and brick building silently placing one heavy boot after the other and pulling out one of his Shiv's from behind his back. As leaned quietly against the wall,
Riddick lifted his head and sniffed the air.
Wet, sweat, adrenaline, vinyl, some sort of exotic cigarette and woman... It's funny how a woman smells when she's in danger. Well, at least a woman who knows what she's doing and isn't fucked by what's going on around her. Riddick looked down the alleyway at the scene. Another plasma burst took a chunk out of the mortar wall right above the woman's head and spraying fragments of broken brick and concrete on to the street where they darkened in the rain. She quickly reached up, ran her hand over her face, and returned a volley of fire down the alley ducking back around the corner looking over her shoulder and breathing heavily.
"So you gonna stand there in the shadows pretty boy or are you just someone who enjoys a good show?" She asked looking down to her lap as she loaded her gun.
" You know," she said as she stood again her vinyl pants squeaking as she did." I prefer the up close and personal to this duck and cover bulllshit but, with Merks you can never be too careful"
Riddick let out a deep grumbling laugh." Run into a couple myself… always did the up close and personal"
She looked around the corner shooting the gun twice "Yup. That's what I hear about you. It's an honor to finally meet the infamous Richard B. Riddick by the way, what brings you to the vacationing paradise of Hellion Prime?
Riddick face remained impassive. "How'd you know it was me?"
"Oh, the goggles. Figured it was you from the shadows when I saw you but had to see the goggles to be sure.
Riddick moved closer almost touching the woman leaning against the wall.
"How'd you see the goggles? He leaned over and took in a deep draft of air into his nose. "You smell human, no human could see me in the shadows couldn't see the goggles either"
She chuckled quietly to herself" you never miss a trick do you Riddick?"
She turned to face him. "Right on one account but, not on both. Human yes, but see the goggles and know it was you...normal human couldn't. She stepped out of Riddics shadow and into the dim illumination of the overhead light tugging a pair of sunglasses off her eyes squinting.
"Throw in a shine job and well, you're dealing with a whole different caliber of person now aren't you?"
Riddick stepped quietly back into the shadows as she slid the glasses up the bridge of her nose with her finger, looked back down the alleyway, and laughed giving Riddick a sidelong glance.
"Not that I've forgotten my back alley, really bad situation, probably going to be strung up by Merck's and sent back to Slam etiquette but what brings you down into my little slice of hell?"
Another blast of plasma struck the side of the building sending chunks of brick and twisted metal skittering into the street
"Goddamnit" she rocked back on her heels placing the gun at her feet.
Riddick pointed at her scalp where a thin crimson line was seeping underneath the rim of her glasses she quickly wiped at it her fingers coming away wet and sticky
She glared at the blood and quickly wiped her hand on her vinyl pants picking back up the gun.
"Business" Riddick grumbled "you?" he asked quietly
"Oh, you know I was really looking for a place to raise a little family, a house, some flowers you know, ""do the good girl thing for a while." she said grinning as she put her hand to her scalp and winced.
" It just seems there is always someone who has different plans for you. However, as much fun as it is to have an all out show down with a crew of merks well, "she said placing her hands on her knees breathing deeply.
"It just seems that today is just not one of my days". She looked over at Riddick, blood trickling down the bridge of her nose "So now that we have established that today is really not my day. It might not be the best thing for you to be in my company"
Riddick cocked his head to the side listening to the footsteps gaining momentum as they came up the alleyway.
"Yeah, I know" she said pulling her dripping hair out of her face.
"There coming, and by the sound fast." She reached down to her boot and pulled out a lethal looking Shiv.
" I guess the up close and personal choice has been made for me." She had the blade in her hand slowly turning it over and testing the balance.
"One more chance Riddick". She whispered blowing a breath out slowly and rising from a crouching position.
"Their coming around the corner and if you're here you're a good a target as any" she looked over her shoulder again to an empty black alley.
"Damn" she shook her head grinning "for a big guy he sure does move silently" she leaned against the wall lit a cigarette and waited for the Merks
………………………………...................................................................................................
Riddick stood on the rooftop, his heavy boots soaking in the puddle of rain. The rain wasn't what his attention was focused on; it was the fight going on it the alleyway below. He had to give it to her, she fought like a cornered rat, all flashing teeth, kicks and whickering blade but at the current odds he calculated quietly to himself, she wouldn't last long. Riddick shrugged and squatted down big hands resting easily between his muscular legs. Just another slam chickie who didn't have what it took to keep herself free. Still it would be interesting to see how she went out and just how many Merks she could take down with her.
She knew she was in it and deep. Three well armed Merks and her cornered with a Shiv and a plasma gun with a dead cell. Well, things could get worse she thought to herself. At least she knew that going back into that triple max shithole of a slam was not going to be one of the options left open to her. She looked up again panting from the force of her first attack and struck out at the nearest merk with her blade, going for his stomach right beneath the loops of his belt. The merk grunted with pain as the blade slid home with a sickening rip, like the sound of canvas being torn apart. She pulled back the blade feeling the warm rush of his blood mingled with the icy rain that was falling.
"There you go big boy" she said and kissed his cheek as she pulled the blade all the way out watching with interest as he struggled to hold his guts in with one hand.
She raised an eyebrow over the rim of her wrap around glassess."I'm wondering wich of you fucks want's to be next?" she crouched down switching the blade between hands and feeling the congealing blood snake its way down both her arms.
"Whoa there Wylie" one of the Merks said "Ain't looking to take you in dead. No bounty in that is there? And your slam boss will pay a pretty penny to have you back in one piece" the merk chuckled and elbowed his partner.
" She sure is pretty when she gets herself all worked up like that aint she?"
Wylie grinned and chuckled right back with them." How bout' this assholes? I'm not goin' back with you, him or any other piece of shit Rozemond sends out to "fetch" me"
"OOOhhh big words from the little girl "the merk said. "well Wylie the sad fact is… well, you don't have much of a choice." the merk reached down and adjusted his pants which had become increasingly tight. "And seeing as how Rozemond didn't particularly say we couldn't have fun with you before we returned you, I for one am looking foreword to it"
"You sick fucker! This is really twistin your balls aint it?"Wylie spat
The merk chuckled "yeah it is"
"Well then" Wylie replied," mind if I smoke before the festivities begin?"
She reached around to her back pocket and pulled out a crumpled pack of Vestiuvian cigarettes. Placing one in her mouth and pulling a silver cased lighter out of the other pocket she lit the cigarette pulling a lung full as the cherry began to smolder in the rain.
"Oh, where are my manners?" she asked quietly. "Want one?" she held the battered pack out to the Merk.
"I hear that there excessively expensive and on a Merks salary this might be one luxury you don't want to pass up," she said with a grin
The Merks looked at each other and shrugged "don't mind if I do" the big one said as he reached forward.
Wylie chuckled letting the Merk reach toward the cigarettes as he did she caught his hand dragging him forward and grinding the smoldering cigarette into his eye.
"Smoking is a fucking nasty habit you know," she yelled into his face as the Merk howled in pain.
Wylie reared back dropping the Merks hand and squarely planted her boot in his groin."How's that for twisting your balls?"
The last Merk standing advanced on Wylie.
"Listen very carefully girl." He drug out the last word like a profanity.
"I'm not fallen' for what I can get from you or what's between your legs I'm bringing you in, in one piece. Don't even begin to try to fuck with me," he said quietly as he pulled out a pair of restraints with the gun trained on her. " Now. Slowly empty your pockets and put down the blade"
"Right. Right "Wylie said sarcastically as she dumped her pockets on the ground.
She slowly raised her well-muscled arms over her head and stared into the drizzling sky.
"Gods not going to help you now girly" the merk growled.
Wylie grinned letting the rain patter into her face.
"I know "Wylie replied quietly as the merk advanced on her pushing her further into the wall behind her. The merk pulled down Wylie's arms slapping the restraints on them and laughing.
"Somehow I figured you were going to be harder to catch"
Wylie spit in his face and the Merk ground her into the wall.
"Easy girlie wouldn't do to get me pissed right now"
Wylie still looking up laughed and sprang up wrapping the chains of her restraints around a pipe jutting out of the wall behind her and pulling her body up. The merk caught off balance-toppled foreword and Wylie wrapped her legs around the Merks neck pinning it between the well-muscled crook of her leg and squeezing.
"You know" Wylie panted. "They say that women don't have as much upper body strength as a man but, I think its pretty much bullshit"
The merk let out a wheezing breath and Wylie squeezed harder.
"Looks like the fights all gone out of you my friend" as she pushed her back against the brick wall behind her and squeezed her leg even harder. The Merks hands began to flutter much like butterfly wings on her legs. In a last attempt to save his life he reached into his belt and pulled out a blade plunging it into Wylie's abdomen. She screeched and let the Merk go hanging limply from her restraints. The Merk wheezed and held his throat with the blade in his bloody hands
"Serves you right bitch" he leaned over and yanked her now lax body down off the wall letting her fall into a puddle with a wet slap. He straddled her body thrusting the blade up to the hilt into her chest. He looked up from her now cooling body, wiped his blade on his pants and looked around.
Someone was in the alley.
"Hey you" the voice from the dark corner of the alley said.
"Yeah?" said the Merk
"She dead?" the grumbling voice from the ally said
The merk looked down and kicked Wylie in the ribs. "Yup" the Merk said" just polished her off"
"Ill give you 100 credits if you let me fuck her before she gets cold"
The Merk looked down at his lost bounty "hey man, whatever you wanna do with her is none of my concern once the stuffs in my hands"
"Come on over and get it "the grumbling voice said.
The merk smiled and headed into the darkened corner where a pair of silver eyes waited for him
………………………………...............................................................................................................
Wylie woke to the sound of someone yelling in her ear and shaking her. Although the sound was far off, she could just make out the words. She began to try to focus on them when her head rocked back of its own accord and a stinging sensation took over the whole side of her face. Wylie gasped and the whole world swam back into bright focus.
She cracked one eye and looked up squinting against the light that she knew had to be there. The shadow of a large figure loomed over her. Wylie intuitively starting moving her hands slowly through the icy puddles looking for her Shiv that she knew she had dropped. Another slap rocked her head to the side and Wylie coughed up a mouth full of rainwater.
"Get the fuck up" a voice growled over her and shook her again
Wylie felt herself being lifted off the damp ground by one arm feeling as if it was being pulled out of the socket. Wylie mumbled something incoherent.
"Up" the voice urged again as she got her feet under her and swayed hardly able to stand.
"Well," the voice growled, "this is interesting. Didn't expect you to survive much less be standing"
The world swam in black and gray streamers as she tried to get her bearings. The pounding in her chest was unbearable and she felt like she had been gutted. Wylie staggered and felt her arm being jerked up again
"So this was your grand plan? Get yourself shivved by some nickel-slick merk's and let the life bleed outa you? Riddick clicked his tongue against his teeth "sounds like a waste of a shine job to me"
A wave of nausea swept over her.
"Whoever the fuck you are, let off on my fucking arm you're pulling it out of the goddamn socket" she managed to get out before she retched, falling to her knees.
Riddick looked down with a tilt to his head "I'm not pulling you up again. You choose, lay there in the puddle and wait for some merck to come along and collect the sorry bounty on you're ass or put your legs underneath you and walk." Riddick kneeled down staring her in the face "I'm only askin once and I know you can hear me." He reached behind him pulling out his shiv tapping her on the head with the handle
………………………………..............................................................................................................
The light outside the hotel window was driving him mad, bathing the room in what appeared to be running rivulets of pink blood. Riddick wasn't used to frequenting places like this but, the girl needed some place to get dry and rest a while. He looked over at her prone body laid across the bed, sodden clothes with that unhealthy pink color sliding down her cheeks.
"Strange girl" he muttered to himself as he stood up from the threadbare chair next to the bed. He thought of the alleyway and the fact that after he had looked her in the eyes he saw something pop. He couldn't put a bead on it exactly but he knew it was this broad's will to survive. The way she had drug herself up from that puddle, blood trailing down the front of her white tank making it look like roses were blooming on it. The way she had shrugged him off when he tried to steady her faltering steps and the way she had, staggering made it to this rat-hole of a hide away and had managed to still keep enough presence of mind to keep her shiv pulled out and next to her on the rumpled wet sheets. Things could get interesting with this one he thought.
Riddick had seen what slam could do to women. Tear them down make them weak make em whores. She looked innocent he thought. "couldn't be more than 26" he mused aloud as he tilted her face from side to side noting the graceful line of her jaw and her high cheekbones. "Such a fine little thing to be in slam" Riddick said carefully. He knew that to be untrue. Repeatedly Riddick had learned through lessons hard taught that a killer, a liar, a thief can wear any mask; the most dangerous of those being youth and beauty. It was curiosity more than anything that prompted Riddick to pull off he tank and bra in one deft move letting them fall with a wet splat on the floor next to the bed
"What the fuck?" Riddick quipped softly looking at the body laid out before him. Where the blade wounds were was no more than a ragged bloody ridge of puffed tissue. Riddick ran his callused fingers under her breast over her ribs and down to the hollow of her stomach right above her navel where the second wound was. He took in the scene with a predator's eye for detail. Wide hips, flat stomach, large breasts, muscular shoulders, arms and soft, soft skin. He hissed in a breath fingering the piercing she had in her navel and the other two she had in each nipple that glowed dimly in the florescent light.
"Missed one" Wylie said quietly.
Riddick jerked back his head to glare at her, noting the pink tinged light bouncing from her shine under her glasses.
She slowly brought out her tongue showing a silver ball at the end of it and ran it along her teeth making a faint clicking sound.
"Planning on adding rape to your already impressive list of crimes Riddick? Wylie asked staring at him unblinkingly from behind her glasses.
Riddick stared at her expressionless and tilted his head to the side. Instantly he was kneeling on the bed between her legs grabbing her hips hard enough to bruise them and dragging her splay-legged to rest in his lap with a speed that knocked the breath out of her.
Riddick laughed harshly.
"Rape?" "Oh Wylie." He raised an eyebrow. "I can call you that cant I?" He looked up to the ceiling laughing quietly. He quickly focused his attention back down to her, leaning forward and whispering into her ear seductively…
"If I really had a mind for it.," he said pulling her tighter into his lap and grinding his crotch against hers.
" I'd fuck you up against the wall, on the floor and rip up that soft skin of yours for as long as I wanted to and you would come apart in my arms screaming for more."
Wylie stiffened in Riddick's grasp. It's what gave her away. Wylie whipped her arm over her head grabbing her shiv from the tangled sheets and put the edge right up against Riddicks neck, only to feel the cold edge of his biting into hers.
"Too close to the truth Wylie?" Riddick growled. "I got under your skin a little didn't I? Riddick pressed into her shiv's edge, drawing blood and moving closer until their noses were almost touching. He sniffed her hair. "I can smell it you know? Your lust, your fear." he sniffed again. "And fear. Is. A. beautiful thing." he said forcing her chin around to look right into his eyes
"Come on Riddick." Wylie barked. "Make a slice," she said pulling her neck taught against his blade. "My dance card's not full for the evening and I'm sure I can always use another partner."
Riddick laughed "got balls kid. I'll give you that" Riddick relaxed his hand giving Wylie a little more room to breathe. She gasped drawing a lung full of air as Riddick moved her hand away from his neck and rose off the bed.
Wylie sat up putting her shiv back down on the bed and leaning over holding her head. She swung her legs over the side standing slowly. She reached over to the rickety bedside table and pulled off her pack of smokes and her lighter. Her white tank and bra were still in a wet crumbled heap on the floor, a puddle forming around it. Wylie bent over carefully minding the ever-present pounding in her head which had now taken a life of its own and picked them up walking over to the window and putting them over the bedside lamp that was there. She faced the window looking out into the rainy street below and rested her arms on either side of it flexing the muscles in her back as she did.
"Wylie" Riddick grumbled behind her.
"Yeah?" she said looking over her shoulder to riddick.
"You really from a slam? He asked quietly the tenor of his voice rumbling
She nodded her head as she lit her cigarette the cherry glowing dimly reflecting in her silvered eyes.
"Triple max baby" she inhaled making the cherry glow, its reflection caught in the window she was faceing."Vesta 5. Too fucking cold and dark on that rock for much else."
"Didn't strike me as the slam type," Riddick said
"Didn't think I was till I went there." she exhaled sending the smoke dancing in little eddies around her pale face. "But, we are what we are. Not what we pretend to be."
"Wasn't pretendin' to be anything else"
She shot him a dirty look over her shoulder "not talkin' bout' you Riddick." she said quietly.
Wylie pulled open the window letting the rain damp air wash into the room. She took another pull off her cig and put it on the window ledge grabbing her tank from the lamp and wringing it out on the floor.
"You should be ghosted" Riddick said with amusement. He sat down in the chair leaning foreword the dim street light reflected in his goggles.
"Yep. Leave it to a woman not to have sense enough to die." she said
"So what's the deal?"Riddick asked steepeling his fingers. "Implants, alien antibodies, D.N.A. testing what? "or," he said calculating "is it in your genetic make up?"
"Don't know, you tell me. Grew up on Vestuvia, seemed pretty normal to me."
She said pulling on her cig again and rolling the smoke around in her mouth before blowing little smoke rings."
"Unless of coarse your daddy just happens to be working for a planetary agency trying to make soldiers less expendable." "Testing of course." she went on. "Was limited to a select handful of people and well, when they died, they dropped dad's funding. But, good ol' pops never stopped plodded right on using the family. My brother was the first to go."
She said looking down into the street. "Wasn't strong enough dad said. Couldn't hold up to the tampering and induction of strange D.N.A. Rejected it. Mom was next. She's gone too. And finally well there was lil' ol' me. High concentrates of clotting, cells, high concentrate of dermas and epidermis cells, and a dash of above average testosterone to bulk up the muscles and keep everything running quickly." Results?" she asked looking over her shoulder. "Someone who can get stabbed cut or has damage to major muscles and heals almost all the damage within a 2 to 5 hour timeframe." "ahh. The miracles of modern science"
"You said almost all the damage," Riddick said quickly
She pointed a finger at him. "See. I said you never missed a trick". Yeah the outside heals you know, holds everything in no loss of blood, but the inside, veins and arteries and such, that takes longer to heal.
Riddick grinned knowingly" so, you could be bleeding to death from the inside and never know it"
"Yup."
Riddick laughed, "Oh, your daddy really fucked you up didn't he? "He leaned foreword lifting his chin towards her. "The shine job? "daddy hook you up with that too?"
"Nope. Slam operation." she grinned
She flicked the cigarette out into the rain and leaned back on to the window ledge her tank hanging like a shed skin in her hands.
"So why are you still here Riddick? Never been known to be the caring sensitive type."
He smirked at her "things might get a little fun with you around, chance to kill some merks and get into some trouble." he stood in one graceful movement. "Figured I'll be here till I get bored or kill you, one or the other."
"Then lets hope I stay interesting." she said.
"Do me a favor kid. Put back on the tank. It's distractin' as hell.
She ignored him turning back to the window. "Well, I guess we leave here, see if we can steal a transport.
"Leave?" Riddick asked. "And I was just takin' a shine to our luxurious accommodations. He said sarcastically. "Besides, already got one."
"Can it Riddick "she said walking over to the bed and slipping damp tank down over her head.
………………………………...............................................................................................................
The first time she had heard of Riddick she was about 22 and goin' into her first triple max slam. Not that she hadn't been in others before but this was the bottom. The worst of the worst. And why in the fuck they sent her into this shithole only god could guess. They had seemed perfectly happy keeping her in the phyck ward on Cigna's 1.
That was after the discovery of her "violent sociopath nature" the doctors had said. "Yeah. She thought to herself the "violent sociopath that appears when six prison bitches try to rape you." Not that she could remember much of it anyway between the injections of thorazone and animal tranks they slammed into veins.
Her life on Cigna's 1 was routine, Wake, shower, injection, lift weights, eat, injection. Life had passed that way since she had been seventeen.
"And removed for the overall protection of herself and the other inmates" she thought in her most clinical sounding voice. Now, sitting on her ass on the docking bay floor with enough restraint on her to hold back five men; Arms painfully pulled up behind her at an odd angle and a steel bit wedged into her mouth. She knew things were about to change drastically. Being a violent sociopath, killin people didn't mean shit here they were ALL violent sociopath killers. If she hadn't been so fucked by the shakes and withdraw she might of laughed at the fact that she had just slid into the depths of anonymity She curled herself into the smallest ball possible to avoid attention from the merks circling their new haul. She had tried looking around at her surroundings only to be roughly yanked up by her arms and flung into a corner by herself, merk looming over her.
"Hey shithead." the merk said. Pushing up her chin with the barrel of his rifle.
Wylie lowered her eyes trying not to make contact.
"Lookit me when in talkin' to you, you walking pile of shit."
Wylie glared up at him trying to say something around the steel bit in her mouth.
The merk laughed, "What was that?" "Yeah, women are always better off with something in their mouth." and gestured rudely to his crotch.
"Hey Ernie." the merk over her yelled.
"Yeah?" Ernie called back walking over, pulse rifle slung carelessly over one shoulder.
"You wanna go with me to take the "princess" over to see the slam boss? The merk said over her head
Ernie kneeled down in front of her staring into her eyes. "So this is Rozemonds new toy hunh?" Ernie looked over to the other merk. You know, I don't understand how that sadist manages to stay in charge of this shithole. What he do with the other one we brought in two months ago?
The other merk said sarcastically "Seems she took an untimely tumble down into a lift shaft."
'You know Rozemond, always careless with his toys"
Ernie scratched his head. "Yeah, I guess so. Just dropping her in front of his pit as usual?"
Wylie shrugged her shoulders trying to get the pressure to lessen in them some.
"Up bitch."' the merk said yanking her arms up until her shoulders popped sic kingly. She struggled to get her feet under her encumbered by the restraint chains
"Easy Brian" Ernie said looking at him "Rozemond wont appreciate broken merchandise"
"That bastard can shove it." Brian said pushing Wylie in front of him. "I give her three weeks at the most before he gets bored and is on our tails for another one."
"Be that as it may." Ernie said." I didn't drag this slut halfway around this star system to only get half the credits."
Wylie squinted, the sweat running into her eyes and body shaking from withdraws. They swiped their access card and called out to the slam guards pushing her past rows of cells with whistling cons in them. She hung her head making a conscious effort to place one foot in front to the other saying a quiet mantra to her. Don't fall, don't fall, don't fall, one more step, don't fall.
"So you hear about Riddick" Ernie said to Brian.
"you mean that piece of shit that escaped from that triple max a while back?" the guy who took out all them merks?"
"Yep. Thada be the one. You know Johns is looking for him. . Already killed seven." heard it all over the comm this morning.
"Riddicks gotta be worth a small fortune by now"
"Yep. About 2.7 mill."
Brian whistled "shit. Heard he had a run in with riddick earlier. Heard he almost put his light out. Johns was in the med lab for a while after that one. Brian said.
Both the merks slowed their pace. "Well, here you go sweetheart." Brian said kicking the legs out from under her. Her head hit the floor with a thundering crack, causing stars to burst into her vision.
The door of the office cracked open as Wylie was pulled back up by her hair. Vision swimming.
"It's always such a pleasure to see a young lady on her knees." the disembodied voice said.
From the time she found herself in the slam, and as the slams boss new toy, she read every report, sighting and com cast of Riddick she could find. Not that she glorified in his carnage or the things he did. It was the ideal really that a man. A one Richard B Riddick could go up against a triple max system…and escape. And from what she heard, Butcher Bay was no walk in the park. It comforted her in some small way. The fact that maybe she'd get out of this alive. Maybe shed get free…maybe she was full of shit. Pipe dreams for a little girl, stuck in a woman's body and growin' up excessively fast. Sometimes at night she remembered, when the rape, beatings and overall brutality would wear her down to nothing' she would hold that hope like a small guttering flame against the overwhelming darkness…before it swallowed her
She looked up lost in her thought but still following Riddick closely. He wove in and out of the back alleyways like running ink. Never slowing down but constantly alert moving quickly with that ground-eating stride of his.
Riddick stopped holding up a finger and quickly pulling out a shiv. Wylie leaned against the wall behind him breathing heavily and hanging her head, trundles of long soaking hair framing her face.
"You all right kid?" Riddick asked amused
Wylie looked over at Riddick."yeah." she sounded out of breath.
Riddick leaned back against the wall crossing his arms over his chest, shiv hanging loosely in his right hand."Lissen kid. If you don't think you can make it, or pace with me drop back now. Once we start runnin and the killin starts your ass is your own. If you fall I will not stop for you." he said looking into the night sky.
Wylie shook her head "Got it" she said quietly
Riddick loomed over her his goggles and stillness made him seem like a snake getting ready to strike "What happened to your mouth?" he said running a callused finger from her chin to the corner of her lip. The tip of his finger coming away dark and slick. Riddick sniffed his finger, tongue snaking out of his mouth to trace it. "Tastes arterial," he said quickly moving closer to her.
"Don't know what you're talkin' about." Wylie said stubbornly.
"Hey," Riddick grinned. "It's you're funeral. Just remember what I said."
Riddick turned quickly from her leaving a cold void where he had just stood.
"You comin'?" Riddick asked
"Might as well" Wylie replied looking him in the eyes. "Besides this fuckin rain is really making my underwear chafe," she said with all the bravado she could muster.
Riddick plunged into the gloom ahead.
The area where the abandoned merk ship was buried was quiet. No sign of life stirred around it. The air move fitfully making the rain slash up against them like a thousand stinging needles. Riddick raised his shiv keeping it close to his body as he sprinted to the dune where the ship laid undiscovered in the wet earth. Pulling out his locator, he quickly punched in a code. The sand on the dune began to stir as the merk ship pulled itself to the top.
Wylie nervously looked around. It seemed too quiet. If the bounty was still on her head and his, where was the welcoming party? She thought to herself. A small breeze blew a wet strand of hair in front of her vision. She restlessly moved pulling out her shiv, scanning the dunes around Riddick and her self. Wylie tilted her head to the side slowing her breathing and pricking up her ears for any sound. Nothing just rain.
The plasma blast hit the dune with a deafening crack scattering bits of sand and rock over her head like hail Wylie hit the sand knocking the breath out of her and scrambling to wipe the wet grit from her glasses.
Riddick she yelled through the dune listening to her voice echo off the sand. Riddick she yelled again pulling herself to her knees. Riddick goddaminit. If you're there fucking answer me. Wylie stood shiv glinting dully in her hand. She ducked her head and began to run across the dune heading towards the ship.
"RIDDICK" she screamed looking around frantically. She slowed her steps taking in the scene in front of her. Riddick had managed to make it to the loading ramp of the ship only to be stopped by two merks in heavy armor. One was holding Riddick at point range with a gun pointed at his face while the other peeled his goggles from his face shining a torch into his eyes. Wylie was sure the third was out there lurking in the dunes a sight trained on her.
"What to do. What to do" Wylie said quietly to herself. She looked up checking the merks position around Riddick.
"Who the fuck was screaming for you Riddick?" one of the merks asked bringing the torch closer to his eyes. "Your partner? The other chimed in.
Riddick barked laughing squinting his eyes against the phosphorescence of the torch. "Come on now bounty man. You know I work alone."
The merks looked around moving their head from side to side. Wylie then realized that she had the advantage. With the phosphorous torch, they couldn't see beyond the circle of the light and the pouring rain had muffled her approach. As long as she stayed out of that light, she could pick them off one by one. She moved quietly around the ship towards its nose. Keeping as small a target as possible. The merk with the plasma gun was about 20 feet in front of her just to the left of the ship. "Bastard" she thought. " Fucking cowards all of you" she crouched down and moved silently behind him.
There was a moment where she thought she had been spotted. Sure that the merk with the gun had seen her. She stood still slowly pulling off her glasses and hooking them in the dip of her tank. The pale reflection of the phosphorous torch bounced off the hull of the ship making her silvered eyes glow green. She stood over the merk crouched on the sand swallowing hard the rainwater making icy rivulets down her back.
She leaned over and blew into the merks ear "hello there beautiful" she said seductively as she pulled the blade of the shiv across his neck spilling out his life in a warm, steaming rush. No fuss, no muss, lotta mess. Wylie pulled the rifle out of his flaccid hands and slung it on to her shoulder jogging quickly through the sand.
She threw herself into the dune right in front of the loading ramp. Just out of the ring of light that the torch threw off.
The com on the merks vest crackled to life. "Jenson, Daniels you there?
"Yeah go ahead." the merk with the torch replied.
"Have you achieved the target?" the com crackled
"Yes. Riddick, Richard B is in custody." the merk shouted over the wind.
"Be advised that there is an update on bounty targets in your sector. Wylie S. L. last scene on transport to Hellion Prime. Be advised armed and dangerous.
"What's the bounty?" the merk shouted back
"2.3 mil the com crackled back. Payable in cash once she is returned to Vesta 5 triple max slam.
"Who do we get our pay from?
"Wait a minute" the com spat."Uhhh. Rozemond Edward, J"
"Where the fuck a slam boss get that kind of cash?"
"Were not in the business of asking fucking questions, Jenson. Put Mr. Riddick in cryo on board your ship and get your cracked assess back out there looking for her. Docking records also indicate another merk party landed just under six hours ago. Three guesses who the two people on their most popular list are. Williams and Troy are set to meet with you in less than fifteen, so keep your coms on and for the love of god, don't fuck this one up.
"Come on silver eyes" one of the merks jibbed. I bet if we put out his eyes, the prison would pay us double bounty. Riddick jerked his head back chuckling as the merk brought the torch closer to them.
Wylie trained the scope of the rifle on the merks head and squeezed down on the trigger "bang" she said silently as the merk who was holding the torch head exploded into a cloud of blood and bone spraying Riddicks face. Riddick ran his tongue over his lips laughing, "Looks like someone else found their own sweet spot."
The last merk looked around fear glossing his eyes "Where the fuck is she?," he yelled moving behind Riddick pulling his head back.
Riddick laughed again closing his eyes. He quickly reached to his leg pulling out a hidden shiv and fell back on the last merk. The merk bellowed in panic lighting up the air with plasma fire. Riddick wrenched the gun out of his hand laughing as he flipped him over burying the shiv deep in his back.
" Fourth vertebra." Riddick growled pulling the shiv out of the merks back with a wet sucking sound and wiping the shiv on the corpses vest.
Riddick stood up stretching, shiv in his hand slowly rotating his back cracking his spine and neck.
Wylie walked up kicking up clods of wet sand with her boots the rifle strap wrapped around her hand.
"You all right Riddick she asked tilting her head to the side. Her eyes still catching the dim green glow of the torch.
Riddick shrugged walking up the gangway of the ship, heavy boots echoing on the steel.
"You did good"…Riddick jumped back as a blast of a concussion rifle rocked the ship sending Wylie sliding forward on her chest and chin.
Riddick ran forward hitting the cargo close hatch, dragging her in before the rear door slammed shut on her feet.
Wylie was laying face down on the floor of the ship when she felt the engines rumble to life beneath her
Riddick looked back into the bay. "hold on to something.' He yelled over the voice of the engines as they strained to break the atmosphere.
She looked around scampering on hands and knees to where the cargo netting was and twining her hands into it
She leaned back against the hold, sweat running into her eyes.
……………………………….........................................................................................................
He sat in the captains chair and stared down at the planet they had just left its rolling clouds and stormy atmosphere. Space could be peaceful he thought to himself. He squinted his eyes against the glare of the power beams that emerged from the surface of Hellion Prime. Reaching over to the control panel he easily hit the switch for the gravity modulator and plot a course to one of the barren moons in the Hellion star system. Riddick leaned back in the chair, his superior bulk easily fitting into it. He could feel the twinges of a headache coming on.
"Goddamn merks". He ground out. "Always sniffin on my tail like a bitch in heat." running a hand over his face he felt the stubble there and realized how tired he was. It had been what? Five, six days since his last nights sleep? Not that he slept much anyway. Years in the slam had taught him the invaluable art of catnapping. He put his booted feet on the control panel and crossed his arms over his head. Creasing his brow deep in thought as he stared out at the stars speeding by the cockpit window.
"This heap gottta a shower" a voice behind him asked.
"This heap just saved your tight pink ass." Riddick replied without taking his eyes off the window in front of him.
"Oh, that's what it was doing"? "Well while you were sitting on your knees playing, I spy with Daniels and Jenson I was saving yours." She said resting her hands on the back of the chair.
He shrugged "all right." Whatta ya want from me.?"
"Nothing" she replied. Quietly.
"Come on Wylie, Everyone has a price". He said swiveling in the captains chair nearly knocking her off balance. "What's yours?" He said quietly eyeing her coolly.
"A shower". She replied plucking at her ripped, bloodstained top and muddy pants.
"Down the main hall, first door on the left, shower cubicle. Don't expect any luxuries".
"Ok so perfume and a change of clothes are out of the question."
"No like soap." Riddick wrinkled his nose in distaste." I think the mark I stole this ship from didn't believe in it."
Water hot or cold would be a luxury. She thought. The dirt, sand and blood was really starting to piss her off.
She turned walking down the main hall to the shower cubicle her boots wringing hollowly on the steel plated hull.
God she had a nice ass he thought as he watched her go. Her muscular thighs rippling underneath her skintight pants.
Fighting had always made him horny; he shifted uncomfortably in the chair trying to ease the pressure on his swelling cock.
Riddick pushed the palms of his hands to his eyes willing the headache to go away. He thought of her in the shower cubicle stripping off the pants, tank and bra her muscular legs stepping into the shower, the spray sluicing over her pale skin, and the water beading on her flat stomach running down into the v in-between her legs. He shut his eyes and rolled his head back and forth to relieve the pounding pressure in it.
Women were strange beasts. Beautiful. Soft. Needy.
Every woman he met, hell he leveled with himself, everyone he met wanted something from him. The whores in the brothels wanted his money, the merks wanted his body and even Caroline and Jack they wanted something in the end, Caroline wanted him to be the hero that he knew he wasn't, and Jack wanted him to save her life. And Wylie well, Wylie wanted a shower. Didn't seem an even trade for his life. He was beginning to think that Wylie couldn't be bought and people who couldn't be bought meant trouble. People were always more forthcoming with information when they were venerable, yes wet, naked, and venerable was just what Wylie was right now. Riddick rose from the chair deciding it was time for some interrogation.
………………………………...............................................................................................
She stepped into the shower waving her hand over the temperature panel. "Warm" she said quietly as the shower hissed to life. She stuck her head in the stream and sighed. Watching the rivulets of fetid water run over her and gather in a merkey pool at her feet. She loved the feeling of cleanliness even if it was only an illusion. She winced inwardly at the thought of putting back on the clothes lying in a heap by the shower door. She began to feel anxious about being in the shower with Riddick roaming around the ship. Quietly she chided herself as she reached out the shower door and grabbed her shiv that had been carelessly discarded on top of her pile of dirty clothes. Instantly she felt comforted kinda of like the special blanket that everyone has when he or she is little she thought.
She moved to put the shiv on the soap dish next to the temperature panel and made an amazing discovery. Soap! A small silver, but soap nonetheless.
"The gods of cleanliness are shining on me today." She croaked, holding her new found treasure.
She began to lather the soap between her hands when she smelled something. It was Riddick. She fought the immediate urge to tense. No, not in the shower she thought throwing her senses out trying to locate him. But, more than likely leaning against the door of the bathroom. It was funny how she had smelled him before she had heard him. Not that Riddick made much noise anyway. She took another deep breath letting the ventilating system over her head blow his scent to her. Sweat. Musk. A feral smell. Testosterone and underneath it all, excitement. She pulled in through her nose again. Yes, it was right there. Excitement. As long as he was looking, she might as well make it that way.
………………………………........................................................................................................
Riddick leaned in the bathroom door looking at it spartan contents. The small bathroom on the merk ship was built for function and not for any astatically pleasing form… There was a small counter to the left with a wash basin in it. Below that was a toilet and to the right was the shower stall made out of plexiplastic. The three clear walls jutted out of the side of the hull. However, neither the bathroom nor the shower was what was holding Riddick's attention; it was the wet writhing creature inside.
She had her back turned to him, her dark hair falling in-between her shoulder blades coming to rest right on the round swell of her ass. Her eyes were closed; head tilted back into the spray of the shower. The bathroom light was set at around five percent Riddick guessed, too dark for normal eyes but light enough for his to make out every moist curve of her body. She slowly turned to the side showing her profile. Her hands lightly running soap over the mounds of her breasts and making tiny circles. Soap? Riddick thought, and then shook his head returning to the scene in front of him. She ran her fingers feather light to the tips and slipped her fingers through the steel rings there lightly tugging on them. She arched her back and shuddered, moaning softly.
A bolt of lust sliced through Riddick as he gripped the metal doorframe of the bathroom and felt his cock hardening painfully. Riddick thought of his callused hands running over the soft skin of her tits and tugging on the rings there, making her back arch and mouth moan.
She smoothed a fingertip under the valley of her breasts making them sway gently, disturbing the water beaded on the tips and causing it to slide slowly down the lower side of her breast making a glimmering trail down her ribs
Riddick snapped his eyes shut seeing her pushed up against the wall while he used his tongue to lap the water off her nipple and follow its trail down her ribs. He growled inwardly
Her hands slid down her ribs coming to rest on either side of her navel. She scored the flesh of her hips with her nails leaving red welts across them.
He thought of her on the floor, him thrusting deep inside her and her nails scratching his back and body bucking while she screamed his name. God, fucking her would be so sweet. He thought.
She turned her eyes still closed to the plexiplastic panel and moved her hands lower pushing herself up against it.
Riddick moved farther into the bathroom. Her eyes snapped open giving him a disdainful silver stare.
"Tisk,tisk,tisk ". She said behind the boundary of the plexiplastic. It's fucking impolite to spy on people in the shower.
"My ship. My shower." Riddick shrugged. His face remaining impassive.
"Didja think…"He said quietly as he traced his long fingers down the side of the shower stall, coming to the door and opening it. His large shoulders blocking the entrance.
"That I would just sit there like a pussy and let my dick get hard?" He tilted his head slightly looking at her from the corner of his eyes.
He reached out and grabbed her arm running the tip of his tongue up the muscle and collecting the drops of water that beaded there. She looked down at him. His eyes making contact with hers looking as if he had been caught in something intimate.
He tugged on her arm moving her closer.
"Didja think…" He ground out. "That I was just some dumb animal, in a cage that you could tease through the bars, one that would never get out and touch you're Soft. White .Skin? "
He said darkly. Putting his other hand behind her neck pulling her tightly against him, her chest making dark, damp circles on his dusty black tank. He released the back of her neck.
"Fucking look at me!" He almost shouted pushing her chin up and causing her eyes to stare into his.
"Didja?" He asked quietly clicking his tongue on the back of his teeth.
He ran the back of his hand down over the side of her cheek and skimmed along her jawbone letting it come to rest in the divot at the base of her throat. He moved his face foreword and buried it in the nape of her neck. His breath moving the tiny hairs there. She tried to slowly back away and his grip tightened painfully on her arm as he growled.
"Don't move." He said forcefully
.
"You know," he said in a calm voice. "You're a funny woman". He moved his lips from the nape of her neck to the shell of her ear his lips brushing it as he spoke.
"I can only smell your fear when I'm close to you like this. Funny, you're not afraid to die; I didn't smell it then, not afraid of pain didn't smell it then either."
"But fucking", he laughed slowly "you're afraid of."
He jerked his head up. The look in his eyes was feral.
"What are you afraid of? That ill fuck you to death?" He said between clenched teeth. He pressed on her arm forcing her into the shower, her back pressed up against the plexiplastic wall.
"I could you know," he said pulling both of her arms over her head and holding them with one of his.
"Fuck you to death. That is." He said in a whisper.
He leaned to her face again. The water dripping off the bridge of his nose. He pulled in a large breath causing his nostrils to flare never taking his eyes off her the whole time. He ran his other hand down her neck over the mounds of her breast to the tip lightly fingering the ring there he tugged on it gently. She arched into his hand hissing between her teeth. Riddick smiled out of the corner of his mouth. His nostrils flared again
.
"I can smell you Wylie." He said seductively. "You're wet for me."
"And you're hard for me." Wylie spat back angrily. "Yeah. Maybe I am a little afraid of fuckin but if you're going to, please do so, cause all this talkin is borin me to fuckin tears".
Riddick threw his head back and laughed. "You are a hard ass aren't you?" He said letting her arms down easily.
She rubbed at the bruises on them and looked up "Yeah, tough as nails." "That me." she said sliding out from behind him.
"Wylie." Riddick said.
"Yeah." She said not looking at him.
"You know id fuck you…you know you'd like it." He said stubbornly.
"I bet you say that to all the girls." she shot back over her shoulder as she stepped out of the bathroom and into the hallway nude, slamming the door behind her.
Riddick walked down the hallway his boots ringing on the steel walkway. He ran the towel over his freshly shaved head and face letting it rest around his shoulders. He grabbed his goggles out of the pocket of his cargo pants sliding them back to the top of his brow. He looked into the cockpit seeing the top of Wylie's head, her dark hair resting over the back of the copilot's chair. She had her knees pulled up under her chin.
God she looked tiny like that riddick thought. He fell into the captain's seat next to her tossing the towel on the floor. He looked over at her noticing the dark circles under her eyes. She must have been sleeping like shit too. Riddick mused. He leaned back making the leather of the chair squeak with the dampness of his clothes.
"Where'd you get that ridiculous shirt?" he asked looking at her.
She plucked the merks oversized zipper front shirt away from her looking down at it. "In the overhead on top of the gun safe.", She said looking back out at the cloud of gas they were passing.
"So, who is this guy Rozemond. And why is he payin out the ass to get a hold of you? "Riddick asked, not looking over at her.
"A slam boss." she said quietly. "I was his toy."
"Why were you in the slam in the first place?"
"Killed my father. The government tends to frown on you when you go around offing leading scientists. What is this twenty fucking questions?"
Riddick ignored the question. "So they sent you directly to Vesta 5?"
"Nope. I first started out at Cigna's 1. Phyck ward. Rozemond had me transferred to Vesta 5 when I was 22."
"Do you know what kind of strings he had to pull to get you transferred?"
"No string attached." Wylie said laughingly
"He was my fathers half brother. Same mom different dad. Told the board of directors I was his lost niece and all this other shit. They had me transferred in the name of family duty. But it was the merks who found me there first. I had been misplaced while in the wards lost records or some such shit. So he sent his lapdogs after me."
"Why?" Riddick looked confused.
"My "uncle" knew about my dads experiments. He wanted to find me to get the genetic information out of me."
"Why didn't he just go to the lab?"
"Cause I burned it. All of it right after I killed my dad."
"There are always buyers; all over the star system, war goes on some backwoods planet. People are always willing to pay for black market technology. Anything that will give em one up on the other guy. Besides, he didn't know exactly what my abilities were. And that made me the perfect "toy" when he found out what they were."
Riddick looked over at her.
"Oh, you didn't hear?" She said quietly. "Roszemond is a sexual sadist. My abilities kept me alive. I could take a lot of damage. She said sarcastically. He likes dangerous toys, the younger the better. Eventually I got too old for him. So, he placed me as a guard."
"Didn't have slam guards?"
She laughed. "Come on Riddick". She rolled her eyes. "You know as well as I do that guards can be bought, or bribed. I couldn't on the other hand. He needed me especially after the merks got wise to his appetites and threatened to turn him in. funny isn't it? Merks with a sense of justice. He started searching on the inside of the slam for fresh young talent. Male or female. Didn't matter and if there is one thing a con hates its a…."
"Pedophile"…Riddick finished for her.
"Things passed like that for a while… me learning to shiv and shoot and fight with the best of the cons and guards. My little fucked up family. Not that I ever trusted any of them really." She tilted her head, letting her dark hair curtain around her face. "One night a con bribed his way past the slam guards, seems they like their pound of flesh too. The fresh piece of meat my uncle was with happened to be his lover. I got a shiv in my stomach for my troubles. I can still remember that kid screaming as I took his scrawny neck in my hands and snapped it. Like a chickens. It was after that my uncle decided to dredge up a doctor in the slam to get a shine done on me. Not that I wanted it. He wouldn't go to a regular medical doctor cause he couldn't flaunt his dirty little secret. Me."
"He couldn't trust you could he?"
"Told you. I couldn't be bought. Not that there wasn't times when I would sneak in his room and stand over him in the dark, looking at some little kid he had beaten or cut to a pulp layin next to him and reach out to strangle him. My thoughts always ran the same path on those nights. Kill him then myself. Cause I knew once he was gone, the people who were looking for me, for my fathers research would fall on me. And I would end up in some lab, in test tubes, on slides and little pieces for study. So I hid as many of the little ones as I could, before my uncle got a hold of em, use my connections on the inside of the slam or hacking into his computer to get em transfers. But I couldn't save em all."
"I'm sure if I stayed there, Rozamond would have killed me. The genetic info in me would have run out, people would have stopped buyin, and I knew too many of his nasty little secrets that would have him buried ass deep in cons on some triple max planet somewhere."
"So that's me, the walkin liability. Don't know why in the fuck I told you all this shit anyway."
She stood from the chair slowly pulling the shirt down around her knees. She walked over to his chair and stood next to it. "G' night Riddick" she said. He didn't respond, brow furrowed deep in thought looking out at the stars passing by. She leaned over and brushed her lips across his. A chaste kiss. He remained unresponsive still looking out the cockpit window.
She started to walk away from his chair towards the back of the ship.
Shit..Riddick thought to himself as he looked out the window. He knew what he wanted to do. His body was already responding to her scent, the pressure of her lips, the way her heartbeat sped up whenever she came close to him, instinct, the predatory part of his mind was screaming for him to strike, bite down on the soft flesh, make it squeal like a little trapped animal and bask in the carnage of it.. Logic was singin a completely different tune. She was strong, no not as strong as he was physically but she was mentally strong, he knew that assuming her weakness could be a deadly mistake. By the looks of things she could give as good as she could take. So the idea of a pliant little cowering thing beneath him was quickly dismissed. Besides Riddick, since when have you had an itch for a compliant lay? He was thinking of all the reasons not to get up out of the chair and follow her. Riddick had decided that he was very much a creature of instinct and his instinct was to follow her.
He got up. Running his hands over the muscles in his large arms. Shaking off the fatigue. He began walking, passing the bathroom on the left and across from that the gun cabinet. Full of merk toys he grumbled to him self. Concussion rifles, nets, gaph sticks, plasma guns and percussion batons as well as an assortment of bits and restraints and tranks. There was a small thunk in the back of the ship. Sounded almost like a pillow hitting the floor. That or a body. He sped up his steps to investigate rounding the corner of the main hall. He leaned his head into the sleeping berth and glanced around. The room seemed to be in order. Until he smelled something wrong, very wrong. He walked in. Bells and warnings singing in his head, heavy boots clanging on the floor with each careful step. She was there, he smelled her, the Vestavia cloves clinging to her skin like a rich perfume but that was buried by the smell of her blood, thick richly sweet and coppery. He could almost taste it the scent washed down his thought and in through his nose clinging there.
She was crumpled in the corner like some spoiled kids dolly that no one wanted. Riddick reached down and pulled her chin up looking into her face.
"Wylie" he said the deep bass rumbling out of his wide chest.
" Wylie" he said again more instant this time.
She jerked awake, her eyes normally the perfect mirror reflection of his glinted dully, like tarnished nickels.
"Wha?" She said slurring the edges a little.
Riddick leaned over scooping her up in his arms. He sniffed her, the copper, sweet scent was coming from her . Shit, she's bleedin he thought, but how bad he couldn't tell. He shook her trying to get some semblance of coherent conversation out of her
"Wylie." He said gruffly holding her in his arms.
"What?" she snapped at him
.
"You're bleedin, don't tell me you're not, I can smell it on you. How bad?"
"Bad enough." It came out in a whisper. "Probably got blood in my lung. "She coughed turning her head to the side and spit. "Might heal she laughed, might not."
Riddick looked down at her. "Why is it that every time I get involved with a woman I end up in some fucking emergency?"
"Involved?" she jibed quietly. "Is that what we are? Thought I was just along for the ride."
Riddick turned and began walking out of the room with her in his arms.
"Where we goin?" she asked sleepily.
"Goin to stick you in a cryo tube," he said. "Take this heap down to see a doc, get you patched up."
"Why?" she asked bewildered.
"From what you told me you're worth a lot of money on the market. I'm a murderer and an escaped con but not stupid. Wouldn't do to loose all the credits."
She stiffened in his arms looking at the floor. Trying to find a way down
.
"Relax." He grumbled. Pushing the cryo tube open with one hand he placed her inside. He looked at her and slowly closed the clear lid with an audible snap, set the control, and walked away.
"Maybe I like you kid." He said over the hissing to the machinery that was lulling Wylie into a deep dreamless sleep.
I live my life for the now. Not what could be, or what was. He thought to himself snapping the autopilot off and guiding the ship on a trajectory towards the Adhara system. Looking with one eye in the future and one in the past leaves no eyes for now, none too look out for number one. Life with people in it was complicated. Full of opinions and fights. Life with himself wasn't, his opinion was right and there was no one to argue with him. He shook his head clearing the cobwebs. Shit. Get people, get problems. She did save his life. So he guessed he owed her one, but he recognized other feelings there besides lust, …lust was what you felt for a whore, scratch the itch move on. He recognized it went beyond lust with Wylie, it was more…and less. He knew she could probably take care of herself, she was strong, agile and a good survivor. The mixture of these qualities in a man would almost insure a friendship. The problem was that he hadn't found anyone with them. Well, not many with them. And then she shows up. And just happens to have a pretty face, a great set of tits and a nice ass. Plus she's dangerous. He could feel himself being drawn into thinking about her and snapped himself out of it. All the walls he had put up all the time blocking out everyone, she was starting to weasel through, and that was aggravating , not to mention she wasn't even trying. That was irritating.