If you are reading, please review. I value readers' opinions, signed and unsigned. And guys ..... be tough. If I've dropped the ball or made absolutely no sense about something, let me know. Thanks bunches, Abraxis
THE MOTHER LODE BY ABRAXIS
Chapter 9 - INTO THE HOLE IN THE WALL
Some time had passed since the bus had entered the hold. Jenna had heard traffic in the gangway but neither Jeeter nor Riddle had returned to the bridge when the com beeped and then the speakers crackled to life.
"Tower to Cotton Candy. Over."
"Cotton Candy here. Over."
"You have your clearance. Countdown at ten, 1 0, minutes. Can you take it or do you need a later slot? Things are crowded up there. Over."
Jenna trusted the Butch Cassidy to lift an egg laying loose on the deck without breaking it. Whether everyone was completely secured or not, she wasn't passing on a quick slot and such a perfect set up. Heavy traffic would help cover the maneuver that they need to make.
"Count down in ten will be fine. Take the Gate with you and have breakfast at Mary's on my tab; all the trimmings. Ready to set mark. Over."
There was more than enough left in her deposit at Mary's to cover that and the remainder would make a nice surprise tip for Mary's crew.
"Set mark at 9 point 3 0 ............. now. Check in with me when you get back. I've got six more pod ferries for you if you want them. Over."
"Will do. Over."
"Open space and hot jets, Cotton Candy. Over."
"Going home, Tower. Cotton Candy, over and out."
Jenna had often exchanged those words with the man in the tower; once a pilot himself but now grounded by his age. But they had been nothing but the expected responses that she had learned in her research to make her masquerade believable. Now, it wasn't a masquerade any longer. The true poignant meaning of it twisted her heart and she had to stifle an urge to cry.
They had never seen each other's faces, knew each other only as 'Tower' and 'Cotton Candy'. But, during the months that she had spent transporting pods to the Hole, he had taken her under his wing; taught her the ins and outs of the business she was supposed to be trying to build, making himself her unofficial broker. She had put away a tidy sum from the transfer contracts he had arranged to fill the gaps in transfers to the Hole. True, he had done well in commissions on the deals but she had also added generous bonuses because he had taught her a lot more than the business. He had corrected her lingo, helped her refine her piloting skills and regaled her with tales of his life that had taught her the things that the books never could. She was going to miss 'Tower' very much.
She had been busy while she talked to him. She had locked off all controls in the second forward slot, sounded the lift-off warning, closed and sealed the hold doors and signaled the hanger control computer to prepare for lift. The hanger was already folding back on itself, exposing the BC to the soft night. She activated the BC's gravity grids to keep the deck where it belonged regardless of the attitude of the ship. The hanger gantry began rotating, lifting the nose of the BC to point to the stars.
She activated the special vid capabilities that she had installed after her first off planet flight. The nose of the Butch Cassidy seemed to disappear, even the aft wall and the deck. Only the stations and their controls remained. Jenna watched as reality rotated around her. It was a heady sensation as the planet became a huge mass at her back and she sat upon a throne suspended in air; the night sky displayed straight in front of her instead of above.
She heard a strangled gasp and turned to find Jeeter and Riddle standing in the hatch. They seemed to be standing in the end of a tube with nothing but a void to receive their next step. Jeeter looked frightened. Riddle, who could tell. With his shined eyes, the effect might be completely lost. She quickly cut all but the forward vid returning the walls and deck of the bridge to their normal appearance.
"Eight minutes to lift."
The mechanical voice brought them all back to the reality at hand. Riddick stepped onto the bridge.
"Mr. Sen sends the Captain his compliments and a message. 'The kettle will boil at Oh-Seven-Hundred and it seems prudent to be as far from the stove as possible by that time.' He also said that he will play steward and keep the others off of our backs. Which station is mine?"
Jenna waved him to the lead forward station and allowed him some time to settle in.
"The hyper controls are locked out. All your Keller controls are standard. The flight path is laid in on your display. You have the stick. ..... and Riddle, .. do it easy. Jeff and David have fiddled with the drives and even in Keller she has the best legs in town."
Riddle, already in his slot, turned. The movement of his head indicated a slow tour of her own legs. Then he grinned. She couldn't keep from blushing just a little. But something had changed.
She had changed. She had stepped across some basic internal dividing line when she had stepped into his arms in the gangway; had accepted this new aspect of herself that he had uncovered. She wanted the experiences he was offering; wanted to play the game. She tried to sound command tough.
"Keep it on business, Mister."
He turned away but she could hear that he was still grinning.
"Aye, Aye, Captain."
"Five minutes to lift."
She turned to check on Jeeter. He was just settling into the second front slot. His face was still pale and Jenna concluded that he could have a very heavy problem with vertigo.
"Are you doing all right, Jeeter?"
He smiled wanly.
"Oh, yeah. But please, Lady, don't do that again without letting me get my eyes shut first."
Jenna nodded to reassure Jeeter and then turned back to Riddle.
"Any questions about the course, Barrol?"
"Well, I'll bet that we go invisible when we make this swing around the third moon and head back for the high orbits. Does anything else happen?"
"Four minutes to lift."
Jenna was impressed with Riddle's quick understanding of the purpose of the elliptical detour of their flight path.
"When I engage the anti-detection defenses, I'll kill the ship id broadcast and launch a drone broadcasting it. It will continue on the course logged with Central Control. When it reaches Derius 6, instead of making orbit, it will continue on out-system. When you clear the moon, switch on the homing locater. It's already set for the id that the Hole is broadcasting. Just remember that we won't exist and dodging traffic is all up to us. If you start having problems with it, pass the stick."
"Three minutes to lift."
She heard Riddle chuckle. She was tempted to take back the stick right then and there. Instead she set her console for instant over-ride. All she would have to do was touch her controls and Riddle's station would go dead. She had to see his capabilities but she wasn't going to risk losing her ship, not to mention all the lives on board, just because he was too macho stubborn to admit it if he got into trouble.
She watched her board as Riddle adjusted the ships gyros, disengaged the gantry and began checking the drive status.
"Two minutes to lift."
The graceful play of his large hands and long flexible fingers across the controls was beautiful to watch. The thought that he might touch a woman's body with the same expertise that he caressed those controls turned her skin hot. She caught herself running her tongue over her lips in anticipation.
"One minute to lift."
He had the board totally green as quickly as she could have done it. Now, she watch him relax his body into the padding of the station. Only those erotic hands poised over the lift controls testifying to his concentration. The ten second count began. The count hit zero. He activated his controls at the same instant as the lift computer, over-riding it and taking the ship out on manual.
The books said that there was no physical effect at lift-off; that the artificial gravity nullified the effect of planetary gravity and acceleration; that the drive produced nothing that effected the human senses. For Jenna, the books lied.
As always, she could feel the beast unleashed as the drive engaged. She could feel herself being torn free from the grasp of the planet, free of the weight of its atmosphere. She could feel the approach of the limitless energy of the void; subtle energy that the soup of atmosphere cut off, destroyed. As the last of the atmosphere fell away from the Butch Cassidy and the full wonder of it touched her, she wished she could see Riddle's face; see if he could feel it.
As if he had read her thought, for a brief instant his face was turned toward her. Totally unreadable, then an almost feral smile, then turned away again. He laughed softly. She couldn't read that either. Forcing her attention back to her console, she smothered any thoughts that weren't directly concerned with the progress of the ship.
The flight went perfectly. Even though the traffic in the high orbits was a tangle of large and small transports and ship's skiffs darting between the huge freighters, Riddle threaded the gauntlet with ease. Jenna never had the least urge to reach for her controls. But, after laying the Butch Cassidy along side the Hole at a matched attitude and velocity, Riddick gave her the stick.
"Since I don't know where to lock on, you want to park it, Captain?"
Jenna laughed and hit a switch on her console. A section of the belly of the Hole opened and what had looked like four separate pods formed a large hold.
"No lock-on, hanger bay. Take her in."
Riddle matched with the bay and eased the BC up, relative direction, into it. He cut the drive and the 'Hole in the Wall's' automatics took over. The bay door closed and the gravity units of the bay gently settled the BC to the deck. When the gage read normal atmosphere in the bay, Jenna opened the BC's hold doors and locked down the BC's bridge controls.
As she lifted her eyes from the controls, Jenna found that both Jeeter and Riddle had rotated their chairs and were watching her, waiting patiently for her orders. She had to close her eyes for a moment as a storm of emotion washed over her. No one ever before had looked to her in that manner. Now, these two strong, capable, dangerous men were. Things were happening too fast. She needed some down time but she couldn't take it just yet. She stood.
"Welcome home, gentlemen. Barrol, you're with me to the bridge. Jeeter, help Mr. Sen get the rest unstrapped then join us. Fore hatch is bridge, starboard hatch leads to the rest of the ship."
She turned and headed for the gangway but Riddle's voice stopped her.
"Captain. Permission for Ben to join the bridge crew."
She turned to look at him and he continued the thought.
"Otherwise, he's going to kill Jeffie. No loss as far as pretty boy is concerned but probably not so good for the kid."
Before she could explore this new layer in Riddle, Jeeter chimed in.
"If pretty boy is the one with half his face turning purple, he needs to go for a walk without a pressure suit." Then he looked pointedly at Riddle. "The kid's fists didn't look that big to me."
Jenna was so curious she could hardly stand it but Riddle's closed expression made it very clear that he wasn't going to comment. She labeled the whole thing 'further investigation required'.
"Permission granted. Jeeter bring Ben with you."
Riddle added to that.
"Tell Syrus that I need hyper meds for him, too."
When they hit the bridge of the Hole, Jenna left Riddle on his own to study the stations set-up, took the command slot and opened the com. Central Control had a much newer com system than the small port where she had hangered the BC. She keyed the call signal for Central and waited for the two way connection to be opened. It took a few minutes.
"Central to heavy freighter Charis. What do you require?"
"I need out-orbit direct plot for Segundus sector, a-sap."
"You aren't going to get it Charis. We're coded on that side of the system for seventy-two hours; problems with the miners on Seven. Best I can do is give you a slot in the highest orbit and put you on the list unless you have the juice to waste on an elliptical plot."
Jenna didn't want to make their exit conspicuous by taking the elliptical plot but remaining in orbit around Derius 4 that long after the 'kettle boiled' was unacceptable. She cursed herself for using the planned exit direction without checking for problems. It had nothing to do with where they were actually going but she couldn't change it now.
"I have no choice, Central. Seventy-two hours will kill me on every delivery deadline I've got. Switching on warning beacons, now. Feed me the plot."
Jenna switched to the nav computer display and watched as the plot was traced onto it. Not bad. They would actually be out of Central's sphere sooner than they would have with a direct.
"Plot received and locked, Central. Out orbit in forty-five minutes; 4 5 point 0 0 check mark ............. now."
"Check mark good, Charis. Open Space. Central out."
As Jenna closed the com and engaged the auto pilot, she couldn't stop a huge yawn from forcing her mouth open and escaping. Though Riddick was already seated at the lead pilot station, he must have heard her yawn.
"You need some sleep. We've got six hours before we'll be far enough out to hyper without them noticing. I'll babysit the auto and you sack out. I'll wake you in time to have breakfast before we jump."
Jenna's confidence in Riddle's abilities grew even further at his almost instant read of the plot. She had only noted that the route was shorter to out system but had not calculated the exact time involved. This lapse forced her to admit that her energy was beginning to sag now that everything had been done that could be done for the moment. But she couldn't give up to it just yet.
"I want something to eat and I want to be here when we leave orbit. After that I'll sack for three then you wake me and take your three."
"Not necessary. You get the full six. I sleep days. This is lunch time for me. Soooo, where do we get that food you mentioned?"
Jenna couldn't help but notice that Riddle had avoided mentioning her need to be in the slot when they left orbit. That made her certain that he suspected the reason for it; that she had never conned the 'Hole in the Wall'. It had been delivered to this orbit and she had done nothing but check to see that the auto was keeping it where it belonged. It had done such an excellent job that she had never had to make even the smallest adjustment. Just as Riddle had taken the BC off planet on manual, she intended to con the Hole out orbit.
"Port side hatch. It's not a full galley just a dial-it-up."
Jenna stood up intending to head for the galley but had taken only one step when Jeeter and Ben barreled through the port-aft hatch from the hanger bay.
"Lady, we need uniforms."
"He's on frequency, Jen. Uniforms are zero point."
"NO!" This explosive comment issued from Riddle.
"YES!" Double explosions from Jeeter and Ben.
"GENTLEMEN! We will discuss this calmly.
She saw Ben's eyes focus on her, saw the confusion and shock suffuse his face.
"Jenna?"
Then came the pain, the accusing eyes of the betrayed, the disgust and condemnation. Jenna reach her hand out to him. He jerked back, fear and hate on his face. Her stomach twisted. She took a step toward him but she couldn't see him anymore. She wondered what had happened to the lights. She felt the impacts as her hips and then the back of her head hit the deck. That hur...
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Riddick watched as Ben's reaction cut into Jenna like a shiv. He saw her reach out and then turn ghostly white as the kid flinched away. The quivering in her legs, as she took a step forward, told him what was happening but not soon enough for him to get to her to catch her. Kneeling beside her, he put his fingers to the artery in her throat. Her pulse was strong but she was clammy cold. Sitting, he pulled her into his lap and held her against his chest, trying to give her his own warmth. He was trying to pull that skimpy skirt down to cover more of her legs when Jeeter laid his jacket over them. Jeeter looked scared.
"She's just fainted. I need a hot towel or something to wash her face. The starboard hatch should be a head."
As Jeeter rose and hurried toward the hatch, Riddick found himself looking at Ben. If Jeeter was scared, the kid was terrified; terrified and in agonizing guilt. For all Riddick cared, after what he'd done, the little jerk could stay that way. But Jenna would care.
"Ben. Ben! She needs something to warm her up." Ben began to focus on what he was saying. "Coffee, maybe, with lots of sugar and milk and something to eat like soup or stew. There's a galley behind you. Can you do that? Can you get her some coffee first and then something to eat?"
"She likes a lot of sugar but no milk."
He still looked shocky.
"That's fine. Make it just the way she likes it. Now, go get it."
Ben stumbled toward the galley just as Jeeter held a wet hand towel in front of Riddick's face. While Riddick warmed Jenna's face with the towel, Jeeter wrapped a blanket around her legs, leaving enough bundled at her waist for Riddick to pull it up around her shoulders as well.
"There's kinda a mini bunk room and day room in there. Head's got a fresher and all the trimmings."
Then Ben was kneeling on the other side of her holding a steaming mug.
"First, ..... why is Jenna dressed like that?"
Riddick wanted to know more about where the kid was coming from before he gave answers.
"Like what?"
"Like a ..... "
"Like a whore?"
Jeeter stiffened but didn't interfere with Riddick's play.
"Yes."
"Now what would you know about whores?"
Ben had been looking at Jenna, his expression worried but thoughtful. Now, his head snapped up and he faced Riddick with defiance and anger in his eyes.
"I know quite a lot. My mother was one. She didn't dump me off on the government until I was nine years old."
Ok, now Riddick knew what was going on.
"Well, Ben, I don't know for sure if my mother was a whore or not. I got dumped in a trash bin before I was an hour old. We'll have to compare lives sometime and see who got the worse deal."
Ben looked like someone had just opened up the gates to hell and invited him to take a tour. Riddick was pretty sure that they wouldn't be having any further conversations on the subject. He continued.
"Jenna is dressed like a whore because she had to come to my world, had to walk in the sewer, to find a hyper jockey for you and the others. She's dressed like a whore because she had to look like she belonged there, because she couldn't take the risk that someone could trace her back to you and the others."
Ben's expression had grown more and more ashamed with each word.
"Oh God, First. I so sorry. I have to make her understand how sorry I am. Oh God, how do I do that?"
Now Riddick could get to the important part, the part that might keep the kid from doing this shit to Jenna again.
"You can listen very carefully to what I'm going to tell you. Listen to it and believe it. Jenna's dressed like she belongs in my world but she doesn't. We got that much straight?"
"Yes."
"All right. Then hear this loud and clear. She doesn't belong in your world any more either. I don't know exactly what's going on here, but from what I've seen, she got sent outside to do things nobody else wanted to do while the rest of you stayed inside all safe and comfortable. You can't do that to someone and expect them not to change. But that's exactly what you and the others are doing. And she knew that you would. She told us to keep all of you away from her because she knew it. But she cared about you enough to risk it and look what that got her. She's changed but not enough. She still cares. That's why she doesn't belong in my world, yet. You keep on twisting her heart out because she's changed and it won't be long before she does."
Riddick paused to let this idea sink in. Just as he was about to start in on the kid again, Jeeter took up the play.
"Barrol's right. I heard everything the others were saying about her and that's not the Lady I know. She's not their little mouse, peacekeeping doormat anymore. She's stronger and got more guts than all'a them put together. She belongs in the command slot. She belongs between orbits. And that Sasha bitch, where's she get off thinking she's so special compared to Lady. Oh, she's a cute little trick, all right, but Lady's all woman and so fine." Riddick and Ben both turned hard looks on him. "Well, she is. And I'll tell the two'a you something. Those uniforms we need to get better show it. Best way we got to tell the resta them that things have changed. Not all bare skin, but .... well, bad; strong, bad and showing what she's got."
Riddick felt Jenna stir and tightened his arms around her. Just as he suspected she would, she came conscious fighting. Once her eyes focused and she saw his face, she stopped struggling. Damn, she had a beautiful smile. Then her face turned worried, very worried.
"Ben? Where's Ben?"
Ben ducked his head but Riddick gave him points when he spoke up immediately.
"I'm here, Jen. God, Jen, I'm so sorry. I was so stupid."
Jenna did what Riddick expected her to do. She tried to take the blame.
"No, Ben. It's not your fault. I knew better. I should have changed clothes."
But Ben wouldn't let it happen. Riddick started to forgive him.
"No you shouldn't have. If you made any mistake it was being too good to me, too thoughtful already. Damn, Jen, I'm not a nine year old kid anymore. I'm almost twenty-two and it's time I grew up. Long past time. Time I realized that ... well, that I wasn't ... That you're not ....... Here, drink your coffee and tell me what you want to eat?"
Food became the focal point, giving everyone time to decompress emotionally. While Riddick helped Jenna to her feet, got her settled in her slot and started on her coffee, Ben and Jeeter checked out the galley and took orders. Jenna had called it a dial-it-up and it was automated but Riddick had seen a lot skimpier menus in hundred-credits-a-plate places with snippy head waiters and too many forks. It had serving size choices, too; everything from just-a-snack to a-Serrian-lizard-is-coming-to-dinner. Everyone went for full meals. On proportions, Ben was at the snack end of it, Jenna and Riddick hit various levels in the middle and Jeeter went for the Serrian special. Riddick wondered just here he was going to put it all. He was still working on it when the others were having after dinner coffee.
The bridge of the Hole was larger than the BC's. The command slot, fully capable of handling all functions, was in the same center position with the other stations spread across the bridge in an arc between it and the forward vid. The difference was that there were four front slots and, while all functions could be activated in every station on a emergency level, each was basically dedicated to one; from starboard to port; navigator, pilot, weapons and communications. Riddick was in the pilot slot, Jeeter in the locked off weapons slot and Ben was in the communications slot.
The one minute warning sounded. Jenna had already greened her boards. A sudden urge hit Riddick.
"Captain, do you have the same special vids here that you have on the Butch Cassidy?"
The look Jenna gave him was puzzled.
"Yes."
"Then, why don't you tell Jeeter to close his eyes and show Ben what your world looks like."
He knew she was getting ready to refuse when Jeeter made the difference. He clapped his hands securely over his eyes and pushed her the other way.
"Yeah, Lady. Let him see it."
Riddick watched as she engaged the vids and, with the same smooth motion, took the stick just as the auto would have engaged.
The bridge turned into five stations floating in open space that slowly began rising out of the jumble of freighters, transports and skiffs and then rapidly flew in formation toward the living darkness of between orbits. The only sound was Ben's awed whisper.
"Beautiful."
THE MOTHER LODE BY ABRAXIS
Chapter 9 - INTO THE HOLE IN THE WALL
Some time had passed since the bus had entered the hold. Jenna had heard traffic in the gangway but neither Jeeter nor Riddle had returned to the bridge when the com beeped and then the speakers crackled to life.
"Tower to Cotton Candy. Over."
"Cotton Candy here. Over."
"You have your clearance. Countdown at ten, 1 0, minutes. Can you take it or do you need a later slot? Things are crowded up there. Over."
Jenna trusted the Butch Cassidy to lift an egg laying loose on the deck without breaking it. Whether everyone was completely secured or not, she wasn't passing on a quick slot and such a perfect set up. Heavy traffic would help cover the maneuver that they need to make.
"Count down in ten will be fine. Take the Gate with you and have breakfast at Mary's on my tab; all the trimmings. Ready to set mark. Over."
There was more than enough left in her deposit at Mary's to cover that and the remainder would make a nice surprise tip for Mary's crew.
"Set mark at 9 point 3 0 ............. now. Check in with me when you get back. I've got six more pod ferries for you if you want them. Over."
"Will do. Over."
"Open space and hot jets, Cotton Candy. Over."
"Going home, Tower. Cotton Candy, over and out."
Jenna had often exchanged those words with the man in the tower; once a pilot himself but now grounded by his age. But they had been nothing but the expected responses that she had learned in her research to make her masquerade believable. Now, it wasn't a masquerade any longer. The true poignant meaning of it twisted her heart and she had to stifle an urge to cry.
They had never seen each other's faces, knew each other only as 'Tower' and 'Cotton Candy'. But, during the months that she had spent transporting pods to the Hole, he had taken her under his wing; taught her the ins and outs of the business she was supposed to be trying to build, making himself her unofficial broker. She had put away a tidy sum from the transfer contracts he had arranged to fill the gaps in transfers to the Hole. True, he had done well in commissions on the deals but she had also added generous bonuses because he had taught her a lot more than the business. He had corrected her lingo, helped her refine her piloting skills and regaled her with tales of his life that had taught her the things that the books never could. She was going to miss 'Tower' very much.
She had been busy while she talked to him. She had locked off all controls in the second forward slot, sounded the lift-off warning, closed and sealed the hold doors and signaled the hanger control computer to prepare for lift. The hanger was already folding back on itself, exposing the BC to the soft night. She activated the BC's gravity grids to keep the deck where it belonged regardless of the attitude of the ship. The hanger gantry began rotating, lifting the nose of the BC to point to the stars.
She activated the special vid capabilities that she had installed after her first off planet flight. The nose of the Butch Cassidy seemed to disappear, even the aft wall and the deck. Only the stations and their controls remained. Jenna watched as reality rotated around her. It was a heady sensation as the planet became a huge mass at her back and she sat upon a throne suspended in air; the night sky displayed straight in front of her instead of above.
She heard a strangled gasp and turned to find Jeeter and Riddle standing in the hatch. They seemed to be standing in the end of a tube with nothing but a void to receive their next step. Jeeter looked frightened. Riddle, who could tell. With his shined eyes, the effect might be completely lost. She quickly cut all but the forward vid returning the walls and deck of the bridge to their normal appearance.
"Eight minutes to lift."
The mechanical voice brought them all back to the reality at hand. Riddick stepped onto the bridge.
"Mr. Sen sends the Captain his compliments and a message. 'The kettle will boil at Oh-Seven-Hundred and it seems prudent to be as far from the stove as possible by that time.' He also said that he will play steward and keep the others off of our backs. Which station is mine?"
Jenna waved him to the lead forward station and allowed him some time to settle in.
"The hyper controls are locked out. All your Keller controls are standard. The flight path is laid in on your display. You have the stick. ..... and Riddle, .. do it easy. Jeff and David have fiddled with the drives and even in Keller she has the best legs in town."
Riddle, already in his slot, turned. The movement of his head indicated a slow tour of her own legs. Then he grinned. She couldn't keep from blushing just a little. But something had changed.
She had changed. She had stepped across some basic internal dividing line when she had stepped into his arms in the gangway; had accepted this new aspect of herself that he had uncovered. She wanted the experiences he was offering; wanted to play the game. She tried to sound command tough.
"Keep it on business, Mister."
He turned away but she could hear that he was still grinning.
"Aye, Aye, Captain."
"Five minutes to lift."
She turned to check on Jeeter. He was just settling into the second front slot. His face was still pale and Jenna concluded that he could have a very heavy problem with vertigo.
"Are you doing all right, Jeeter?"
He smiled wanly.
"Oh, yeah. But please, Lady, don't do that again without letting me get my eyes shut first."
Jenna nodded to reassure Jeeter and then turned back to Riddle.
"Any questions about the course, Barrol?"
"Well, I'll bet that we go invisible when we make this swing around the third moon and head back for the high orbits. Does anything else happen?"
"Four minutes to lift."
Jenna was impressed with Riddle's quick understanding of the purpose of the elliptical detour of their flight path.
"When I engage the anti-detection defenses, I'll kill the ship id broadcast and launch a drone broadcasting it. It will continue on the course logged with Central Control. When it reaches Derius 6, instead of making orbit, it will continue on out-system. When you clear the moon, switch on the homing locater. It's already set for the id that the Hole is broadcasting. Just remember that we won't exist and dodging traffic is all up to us. If you start having problems with it, pass the stick."
"Three minutes to lift."
She heard Riddle chuckle. She was tempted to take back the stick right then and there. Instead she set her console for instant over-ride. All she would have to do was touch her controls and Riddle's station would go dead. She had to see his capabilities but she wasn't going to risk losing her ship, not to mention all the lives on board, just because he was too macho stubborn to admit it if he got into trouble.
She watched her board as Riddle adjusted the ships gyros, disengaged the gantry and began checking the drive status.
"Two minutes to lift."
The graceful play of his large hands and long flexible fingers across the controls was beautiful to watch. The thought that he might touch a woman's body with the same expertise that he caressed those controls turned her skin hot. She caught herself running her tongue over her lips in anticipation.
"One minute to lift."
He had the board totally green as quickly as she could have done it. Now, she watch him relax his body into the padding of the station. Only those erotic hands poised over the lift controls testifying to his concentration. The ten second count began. The count hit zero. He activated his controls at the same instant as the lift computer, over-riding it and taking the ship out on manual.
The books said that there was no physical effect at lift-off; that the artificial gravity nullified the effect of planetary gravity and acceleration; that the drive produced nothing that effected the human senses. For Jenna, the books lied.
As always, she could feel the beast unleashed as the drive engaged. She could feel herself being torn free from the grasp of the planet, free of the weight of its atmosphere. She could feel the approach of the limitless energy of the void; subtle energy that the soup of atmosphere cut off, destroyed. As the last of the atmosphere fell away from the Butch Cassidy and the full wonder of it touched her, she wished she could see Riddle's face; see if he could feel it.
As if he had read her thought, for a brief instant his face was turned toward her. Totally unreadable, then an almost feral smile, then turned away again. He laughed softly. She couldn't read that either. Forcing her attention back to her console, she smothered any thoughts that weren't directly concerned with the progress of the ship.
The flight went perfectly. Even though the traffic in the high orbits was a tangle of large and small transports and ship's skiffs darting between the huge freighters, Riddle threaded the gauntlet with ease. Jenna never had the least urge to reach for her controls. But, after laying the Butch Cassidy along side the Hole at a matched attitude and velocity, Riddick gave her the stick.
"Since I don't know where to lock on, you want to park it, Captain?"
Jenna laughed and hit a switch on her console. A section of the belly of the Hole opened and what had looked like four separate pods formed a large hold.
"No lock-on, hanger bay. Take her in."
Riddle matched with the bay and eased the BC up, relative direction, into it. He cut the drive and the 'Hole in the Wall's' automatics took over. The bay door closed and the gravity units of the bay gently settled the BC to the deck. When the gage read normal atmosphere in the bay, Jenna opened the BC's hold doors and locked down the BC's bridge controls.
As she lifted her eyes from the controls, Jenna found that both Jeeter and Riddle had rotated their chairs and were watching her, waiting patiently for her orders. She had to close her eyes for a moment as a storm of emotion washed over her. No one ever before had looked to her in that manner. Now, these two strong, capable, dangerous men were. Things were happening too fast. She needed some down time but she couldn't take it just yet. She stood.
"Welcome home, gentlemen. Barrol, you're with me to the bridge. Jeeter, help Mr. Sen get the rest unstrapped then join us. Fore hatch is bridge, starboard hatch leads to the rest of the ship."
She turned and headed for the gangway but Riddle's voice stopped her.
"Captain. Permission for Ben to join the bridge crew."
She turned to look at him and he continued the thought.
"Otherwise, he's going to kill Jeffie. No loss as far as pretty boy is concerned but probably not so good for the kid."
Before she could explore this new layer in Riddle, Jeeter chimed in.
"If pretty boy is the one with half his face turning purple, he needs to go for a walk without a pressure suit." Then he looked pointedly at Riddle. "The kid's fists didn't look that big to me."
Jenna was so curious she could hardly stand it but Riddle's closed expression made it very clear that he wasn't going to comment. She labeled the whole thing 'further investigation required'.
"Permission granted. Jeeter bring Ben with you."
Riddle added to that.
"Tell Syrus that I need hyper meds for him, too."
When they hit the bridge of the Hole, Jenna left Riddle on his own to study the stations set-up, took the command slot and opened the com. Central Control had a much newer com system than the small port where she had hangered the BC. She keyed the call signal for Central and waited for the two way connection to be opened. It took a few minutes.
"Central to heavy freighter Charis. What do you require?"
"I need out-orbit direct plot for Segundus sector, a-sap."
"You aren't going to get it Charis. We're coded on that side of the system for seventy-two hours; problems with the miners on Seven. Best I can do is give you a slot in the highest orbit and put you on the list unless you have the juice to waste on an elliptical plot."
Jenna didn't want to make their exit conspicuous by taking the elliptical plot but remaining in orbit around Derius 4 that long after the 'kettle boiled' was unacceptable. She cursed herself for using the planned exit direction without checking for problems. It had nothing to do with where they were actually going but she couldn't change it now.
"I have no choice, Central. Seventy-two hours will kill me on every delivery deadline I've got. Switching on warning beacons, now. Feed me the plot."
Jenna switched to the nav computer display and watched as the plot was traced onto it. Not bad. They would actually be out of Central's sphere sooner than they would have with a direct.
"Plot received and locked, Central. Out orbit in forty-five minutes; 4 5 point 0 0 check mark ............. now."
"Check mark good, Charis. Open Space. Central out."
As Jenna closed the com and engaged the auto pilot, she couldn't stop a huge yawn from forcing her mouth open and escaping. Though Riddick was already seated at the lead pilot station, he must have heard her yawn.
"You need some sleep. We've got six hours before we'll be far enough out to hyper without them noticing. I'll babysit the auto and you sack out. I'll wake you in time to have breakfast before we jump."
Jenna's confidence in Riddle's abilities grew even further at his almost instant read of the plot. She had only noted that the route was shorter to out system but had not calculated the exact time involved. This lapse forced her to admit that her energy was beginning to sag now that everything had been done that could be done for the moment. But she couldn't give up to it just yet.
"I want something to eat and I want to be here when we leave orbit. After that I'll sack for three then you wake me and take your three."
"Not necessary. You get the full six. I sleep days. This is lunch time for me. Soooo, where do we get that food you mentioned?"
Jenna couldn't help but notice that Riddle had avoided mentioning her need to be in the slot when they left orbit. That made her certain that he suspected the reason for it; that she had never conned the 'Hole in the Wall'. It had been delivered to this orbit and she had done nothing but check to see that the auto was keeping it where it belonged. It had done such an excellent job that she had never had to make even the smallest adjustment. Just as Riddle had taken the BC off planet on manual, she intended to con the Hole out orbit.
"Port side hatch. It's not a full galley just a dial-it-up."
Jenna stood up intending to head for the galley but had taken only one step when Jeeter and Ben barreled through the port-aft hatch from the hanger bay.
"Lady, we need uniforms."
"He's on frequency, Jen. Uniforms are zero point."
"NO!" This explosive comment issued from Riddle.
"YES!" Double explosions from Jeeter and Ben.
"GENTLEMEN! We will discuss this calmly.
She saw Ben's eyes focus on her, saw the confusion and shock suffuse his face.
"Jenna?"
Then came the pain, the accusing eyes of the betrayed, the disgust and condemnation. Jenna reach her hand out to him. He jerked back, fear and hate on his face. Her stomach twisted. She took a step toward him but she couldn't see him anymore. She wondered what had happened to the lights. She felt the impacts as her hips and then the back of her head hit the deck. That hur...
***********************************************************************
Riddick watched as Ben's reaction cut into Jenna like a shiv. He saw her reach out and then turn ghostly white as the kid flinched away. The quivering in her legs, as she took a step forward, told him what was happening but not soon enough for him to get to her to catch her. Kneeling beside her, he put his fingers to the artery in her throat. Her pulse was strong but she was clammy cold. Sitting, he pulled her into his lap and held her against his chest, trying to give her his own warmth. He was trying to pull that skimpy skirt down to cover more of her legs when Jeeter laid his jacket over them. Jeeter looked scared.
"She's just fainted. I need a hot towel or something to wash her face. The starboard hatch should be a head."
As Jeeter rose and hurried toward the hatch, Riddick found himself looking at Ben. If Jeeter was scared, the kid was terrified; terrified and in agonizing guilt. For all Riddick cared, after what he'd done, the little jerk could stay that way. But Jenna would care.
"Ben. Ben! She needs something to warm her up." Ben began to focus on what he was saying. "Coffee, maybe, with lots of sugar and milk and something to eat like soup or stew. There's a galley behind you. Can you do that? Can you get her some coffee first and then something to eat?"
"She likes a lot of sugar but no milk."
He still looked shocky.
"That's fine. Make it just the way she likes it. Now, go get it."
Ben stumbled toward the galley just as Jeeter held a wet hand towel in front of Riddick's face. While Riddick warmed Jenna's face with the towel, Jeeter wrapped a blanket around her legs, leaving enough bundled at her waist for Riddick to pull it up around her shoulders as well.
"There's kinda a mini bunk room and day room in there. Head's got a fresher and all the trimmings."
Then Ben was kneeling on the other side of her holding a steaming mug.
"First, ..... why is Jenna dressed like that?"
Riddick wanted to know more about where the kid was coming from before he gave answers.
"Like what?"
"Like a ..... "
"Like a whore?"
Jeeter stiffened but didn't interfere with Riddick's play.
"Yes."
"Now what would you know about whores?"
Ben had been looking at Jenna, his expression worried but thoughtful. Now, his head snapped up and he faced Riddick with defiance and anger in his eyes.
"I know quite a lot. My mother was one. She didn't dump me off on the government until I was nine years old."
Ok, now Riddick knew what was going on.
"Well, Ben, I don't know for sure if my mother was a whore or not. I got dumped in a trash bin before I was an hour old. We'll have to compare lives sometime and see who got the worse deal."
Ben looked like someone had just opened up the gates to hell and invited him to take a tour. Riddick was pretty sure that they wouldn't be having any further conversations on the subject. He continued.
"Jenna is dressed like a whore because she had to come to my world, had to walk in the sewer, to find a hyper jockey for you and the others. She's dressed like a whore because she had to look like she belonged there, because she couldn't take the risk that someone could trace her back to you and the others."
Ben's expression had grown more and more ashamed with each word.
"Oh God, First. I so sorry. I have to make her understand how sorry I am. Oh God, how do I do that?"
Now Riddick could get to the important part, the part that might keep the kid from doing this shit to Jenna again.
"You can listen very carefully to what I'm going to tell you. Listen to it and believe it. Jenna's dressed like she belongs in my world but she doesn't. We got that much straight?"
"Yes."
"All right. Then hear this loud and clear. She doesn't belong in your world any more either. I don't know exactly what's going on here, but from what I've seen, she got sent outside to do things nobody else wanted to do while the rest of you stayed inside all safe and comfortable. You can't do that to someone and expect them not to change. But that's exactly what you and the others are doing. And she knew that you would. She told us to keep all of you away from her because she knew it. But she cared about you enough to risk it and look what that got her. She's changed but not enough. She still cares. That's why she doesn't belong in my world, yet. You keep on twisting her heart out because she's changed and it won't be long before she does."
Riddick paused to let this idea sink in. Just as he was about to start in on the kid again, Jeeter took up the play.
"Barrol's right. I heard everything the others were saying about her and that's not the Lady I know. She's not their little mouse, peacekeeping doormat anymore. She's stronger and got more guts than all'a them put together. She belongs in the command slot. She belongs between orbits. And that Sasha bitch, where's she get off thinking she's so special compared to Lady. Oh, she's a cute little trick, all right, but Lady's all woman and so fine." Riddick and Ben both turned hard looks on him. "Well, she is. And I'll tell the two'a you something. Those uniforms we need to get better show it. Best way we got to tell the resta them that things have changed. Not all bare skin, but .... well, bad; strong, bad and showing what she's got."
Riddick felt Jenna stir and tightened his arms around her. Just as he suspected she would, she came conscious fighting. Once her eyes focused and she saw his face, she stopped struggling. Damn, she had a beautiful smile. Then her face turned worried, very worried.
"Ben? Where's Ben?"
Ben ducked his head but Riddick gave him points when he spoke up immediately.
"I'm here, Jen. God, Jen, I'm so sorry. I was so stupid."
Jenna did what Riddick expected her to do. She tried to take the blame.
"No, Ben. It's not your fault. I knew better. I should have changed clothes."
But Ben wouldn't let it happen. Riddick started to forgive him.
"No you shouldn't have. If you made any mistake it was being too good to me, too thoughtful already. Damn, Jen, I'm not a nine year old kid anymore. I'm almost twenty-two and it's time I grew up. Long past time. Time I realized that ... well, that I wasn't ... That you're not ....... Here, drink your coffee and tell me what you want to eat?"
Food became the focal point, giving everyone time to decompress emotionally. While Riddick helped Jenna to her feet, got her settled in her slot and started on her coffee, Ben and Jeeter checked out the galley and took orders. Jenna had called it a dial-it-up and it was automated but Riddick had seen a lot skimpier menus in hundred-credits-a-plate places with snippy head waiters and too many forks. It had serving size choices, too; everything from just-a-snack to a-Serrian-lizard-is-coming-to-dinner. Everyone went for full meals. On proportions, Ben was at the snack end of it, Jenna and Riddick hit various levels in the middle and Jeeter went for the Serrian special. Riddick wondered just here he was going to put it all. He was still working on it when the others were having after dinner coffee.
The bridge of the Hole was larger than the BC's. The command slot, fully capable of handling all functions, was in the same center position with the other stations spread across the bridge in an arc between it and the forward vid. The difference was that there were four front slots and, while all functions could be activated in every station on a emergency level, each was basically dedicated to one; from starboard to port; navigator, pilot, weapons and communications. Riddick was in the pilot slot, Jeeter in the locked off weapons slot and Ben was in the communications slot.
The one minute warning sounded. Jenna had already greened her boards. A sudden urge hit Riddick.
"Captain, do you have the same special vids here that you have on the Butch Cassidy?"
The look Jenna gave him was puzzled.
"Yes."
"Then, why don't you tell Jeeter to close his eyes and show Ben what your world looks like."
He knew she was getting ready to refuse when Jeeter made the difference. He clapped his hands securely over his eyes and pushed her the other way.
"Yeah, Lady. Let him see it."
Riddick watched as she engaged the vids and, with the same smooth motion, took the stick just as the auto would have engaged.
The bridge turned into five stations floating in open space that slowly began rising out of the jumble of freighters, transports and skiffs and then rapidly flew in formation toward the living darkness of between orbits. The only sound was Ben's awed whisper.
"Beautiful."
