M Kappa was a desert planet. It looked uncomfortably similar to T2. They docked there to pick up Riddick's shipment of what was most likely illegal goods. They took smuggling jobs as often as possible; it was safer than being a hired killer.

"Order supplies and fuel, do the regular check-up and stay low. I'm going out," Riddick told her while putting his goggles on.

"K," Jack shrugged. It was always like this. She knew he'd be back the next morning. Riddick's inner animal needed to be let loose, either with killing, fucking or serious pub crawling. Usually, it was all of it combined. Jack didn't mind. She had always known what Riddick was about and had accepted it since the day one.

He was gone the next second. It still freaked Jack out a little how Riddick could move soundlessly and that he does it faster than the eye could catch. Jack strapped out of the co-pilot's seat and went to change clothes. It was a hell of a heat out there! They always stayed near the suns and avoided winter planets. It took darn much of fuel to keep this baby in space anyways, so no need to waste its energy on the heat system. That was another thing Jack found to her liking. Freezing and heavy clothing 24/7 was not her kind of a thing.

So Jack put on her usual white tank top and low cut light blue jean shorts. Once upon a time they had been new and nice, the usual jeans. But as they ripped and ripped some more, she cut off the legs. It looked cool to wear something like hot pants with combat boots. Jack didn't mind showing quite a lot of skin – and her long legs and slim figure were often stared at in admiration. If anyone did try to put his hands on her, Jack had learned enough form Riddick to defend herself.

Jack headed over to the port's offices, where she ordered everything they needed. She got the timeframe, when she would have to be back at Mortimer Nova to sign some papers; and took off for the small city. Having some time for just herself was wonderful. She walked around, pretending to be the girl she wished to be. Not a care in the galaxy or worry on the mind. Head held high and her stride confident, Jack didn't look like a wanted criminal at all. If she had learned anything at all, it was that the attitude is everything.

She got back a little while later. Jack pushed in the code to open the ramp and took off her big sunglasses. It was time for the darkness again. Jack placed the few things she had bought on her bed and went to the cockpit to ask via radio about the supplies again. The more you annoyed them, the faster they got their job done.

"Finally!" she muttered a few hours later as she could see someone waiting on the ramp. Jack turned down the loud angry music she liked to listen to when Riddick wasn't around. She opened the ramp and took a look at the relatively young man standing there. "Yes?" she asked with what she recognized as the Riddick's voice.

"I have two weeks supplies on the name of Will O'Connell, captain of…Mortimer Nova?" the guy finished after looking at the papers he was holding. Then he smiled at her so sweetly, letting his perfect teeth shine in the afternoon sun.

"I'm Page, his co-pilot. I can sign it," Jack told him. He nodded and pointed at the right line to her as she reached for the papers.

"What's your name, pretty face?" Jack asked the man while walking with him to the cargo hold. Asking for a name had become a routine for her whenever she spoke to strange people, because she needed to do their background search later. And they all were strange to her. Jack just found it easier to flatter them a little and get it over with faster and with less hassle.

"Lev Tigner," he told her with yet another wide smile. Seemed like he had already fallen for her. But Jack had to admit that Lev was a sexy man – about 23 years of age, well tanned, hunky and easy-going. "Nice to meet you, Page," he told Jack.

By the time the boxes had been loaded down to the far end of the cargo hold, Lev had already asked her out for a coffee.

"Umm… Thanks for inviting me and all, but I've got to keep an eye on the ship," Jack said regretfully. She would have loved to go for a coffee, but Jack wasn't going to let the only link between her and Riddick – Mortimer Nova – out of her sight. And Riddick would have a fit if he found out what Jack had been doing.

"How about having that coffee on board then?" Lev pushed it further. He liked ´Page a lot and wasn't going to let her go that easily.

"Never gonna happen. Sorry but the pilot doesn't want anyone he doesn't know to get on," Jack explained. She had a feeling it must have sounded really weird to Lev, so she added: "Will is very strict about that."

Lev seemed a little disturbed. "What? Is he like a tyrant or something?" he asked with evident distain.

"Nope, just my brother," Jack came out with a little lie. It would be no good if anyone suspected that something fishy was going on. She had to laugh when she saw how fast Lev lost his high and mighty attitude. Insulting the girl's family is never a way to get into her pants. "But we can sit on the ramp if you want – that way I haven't left the ship and you're not on it," she told him.

"Sure!"

Riddick was about to turn around the corner to head over to his ship straight ahead. Something in him made him stop in his tracks. Carefully he looked around. No evident danger. His back was pressed to another ship's wheel, hiding Riddick in the shadows. Turning slightly he looked at his ship. And if looks could kill…

"What the fuck are you doing?" Riddick roared. He was standing in front of the two laughing people who were sitting on the open ramp. Riddick was vibrating with fury.

Lev let go of Jack's fingers he had been playing with and stood up as stung by a bee.

Jack looked up at Riddick with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open. "Why are you back here so soon?" she managed to ask weakly.

"I asked - WHAT THE FUCK?" Riddick demanded again. This time quieter. But it sounded even more dangerous. He seemed to be on verge of a major rage outburst.

Lev stepped back a little. "You must be Will. Hi," he stuttered. Then he looked down at Jack and said accusingly: "You didn't say your brother is so...big."

Jack was still in shock. "Lev, you should go. Like – now!" she advised him. Jack had a pretty good idea on what might happen if he doesn't leave right this second. Definitely not something pretty…

"Yeah. Later, Page," he told her, already turning to leave. He was wise enough not to look at Riddick again. As Lev was disappearing behind the ships, Riddick grabbed Jack's wrist to pull her inside. She had been so surprised, that she hadn't been able to stand up during the whole…incident. Now he was dragging her forward in a rather painful way. Riddick closed the ramp from inside. His every move spoke volumes of his mood. Not good…

Only when the ramp had closed and locked, did he yell: "Explain!"

Jack tried unconsciously to make herself smaller under his fuming glaze. She didn't even know what she had done wrong, so how could she explain anything? "What's there to explain? Lev brought the supplies and we got along."

Riddick wanted to shake her, but kept his hands deep in the pockets of his trousers. "You left the ramp down and talked to a stranger! Are you trying to get the mercs on our necks?" he bellowed.

Jack was so scared of this Riddick. "His name is Lev Tigner," was all she managed to say in her own defense. It seemed better to let Riddick's anger to blow over and give him a chance to cool down.

"That's not enough!" he said. Or maybe not...Jack had to correct her previous decision about him calming down.

So Jack sat there on her mattress like a little girl and Riddick's tall frame lingered over her. "We can leave…" Jack tried to offer.

"No, we can't! Merchandise is not here yet. We have to wait till tomorrow with this fucking axe above our heads!"

Jack didn't know what to say. It felt so bad to be such a screw-up, even if she didn't understand why Riddick was making such a huge deal out of her talking to a guy.

Riddick couldn't take this anymore. "Let's go."

"Where are we going?" Jack asked as they left the ship.

"To find a place for the night. If the guy sold us out, then the mercs will come to look for me from Mortimer Nova," Riddick explained. Jack nodded and tried to keep up with him. After many turns and sidetracks to loose the possible tail, they reached a shabby little old motel. Riddick went in, Jack followed.

"A room," Riddick said to the old man behind the desk. He looked like a rotting tomato with glasses, gray hair combed over his bolding head. Jack still felt a little sorry for the man.

"Yes, sir," the man said quickly. Then he looked back and forth between Riddick and Jack as if trying to make up his mind. "Err… Sir? Will that be a single bedchamber or a double room?"

"Single. My girlfriend and I also need dinner," Riddick informed the man without any expression on his face.

Jack could see how the rotten-tomato-man sent her a look full of sympathy, before turning back to Riddick. What is a pretty little lady doing with a scary man like him? Jack could read his mind. "Yes, sir. I'll send it up. Room number 11, sir," he told in a hurry while handing Riddick the key. There was just something about Riddick that made people jumpy. Wonder why's that…Jack humored herself.

Without a single unnecessary word, Riddick took the key and turned to the stairs. He could feel the old man looking at them, so he placed his other hand on Jack's lower back. No need to raise questions.

Jack looked at the room. If the outside looked shabby, then she didn't know how to call this. The bed against right wall was dirty and bumpy, the curtains were ripped, bathroom smelled like a week old corpse and there was no rug in the room. Jack had a very bad feeling about this asscrack of a room.

Riddick had locked her in for now. He had to stroll around a little to make sure everything was safe. He got back 20 minutes later.

"Why did you take a single room?" Jack asked after watching Riddick staring into the empty air for a while. He hadn't paid her any attention since he had entered the room.

"Because you told the guy I was your brother."

Jack understood. She didn't ask any more questions, so they just lay on the bed for few hours as darkness settled over the city. The dinner the old man had brought them, threatened to come back up any time. Jack groaned and wished for the millionth time that she could fall asleep ASAP. Se believed that the tomorrow would come faster that way.

"I'll go take a look at the ship," Riddick told her. "Got your shiv?" he asked as he stood there in the doorway, ready to leave.

"Yeah. One in the boot, the other in the belt pocket," she said quietly. Jack felt guilty and scared. Riddick always managed to make her feel so stupid and small. She was constantly wondering why has he let her tag along for all those years. It's not like she did anything but get them in trouble.

Riddick nodded and left. He kept his eye on the port and on his ship for a long time to see if anything seemed out of place. But there weren't any suspicious people moving around and everything looked to be in order. Sitting on rooftops gave him plenty of time to think about stuff.

Riddick wasn't pleased with himself about how he had handled the situation with Jack and her little boyfriend. He knew that Jack was growing up and wanted to stretch her wings a little. Riddick could honestly understand that, even though he didn't like it not one bit. Something about Jack growing up made him uneasy- Riddick didn't want to admit how he feared that if Jack stretches those wings of hers, then there just might be a day she uses them to fly away from him.

And why wouldn't she? Riddick thought bitterly. All I do is yelling at her; boss her around like she wouldn't have a mind of her own and keep her away from the things she likes. Like the singing for an example. Hell – she has loads of credits; yet she seems to want to stay on my lousy ship! But for how long anyway? Riddick gritted his teeth in realization that Jack was doing him a favor by staying. Jack gave Riddick a purpose, made him think twice before making something really foolish and all in all made him see the other side of living, the beautiful part of life that he had grown so distant to with the Slam-years. Riddick just wished Jack would know about this all somehow and quit putting herself down like she did.

Finally he returned to the motel room. Jack was stretched diagonally across the bed, sleeping. Looked as if she hadn't dared to take off her clothes. Might be because she wanted to be ready to escape as soon as needed; maybe because of the undistinguishable ugly dirty spots on the bed itself; maybe because she knew Riddick would come and join her later. The last option was not very likely, because Riddick had held her often enough when she had the nightmares; and on Mortimer Nova she usually wore only underwear as her sleeping garments. No big deal.

Riddick took his boots off and shifted Jack's limp body a little to make some room for himself. As soon as his head rested on the pillow, Jack crawled closer to him. It didn't startle Riddick. He just put an arm around her shoulders and held her tight. Riddick could feel goosebumps all over her bare arm. She is cold and you're just a warm body, Riddick smiled. He pulled her closer and the both of them sighed with gratification.

That's how it should always be…