(Hi-o! Lo siento if I kept you waiting but here it is...the next update! yay! So in this chap. Riddy has a conversation w.himself...his 'animal' side is in bold italics and Riddy's is in plain italics okey-dokey...I don't want anyone to be confused!)


Riddick pushed himself away from the nav console, ran his hands over his head and wrinkled his nose at the feeling of the short crew cut hair growing there. Having hair wasn't the issue, but having hair that came from a vamped up hair follicle stimulation injection was. The shit was itchy as hell. And the contacts...not being able to see in the dark was definitely an uncomfortable feeling, it was a disadvantage. But they do make a damn fine disguise, he thought to himself, if a crew of mercs haven't i.d me yet.

Altering my body for disguises, signing up with a merc crew, pretending to be someone else...shit, I've never been so deep in it ...well...I HAVE...it's just been awhile.

Thankful for the isolation of the control room/bridge he reclined the chair and pulled an apple out of his pocket. He felt like an idiot carting food around in his pockets when there was a fully stocked kitchen less than 40 yards from where he sat. But he and Jack had already had TWO uncomfortable run in's in the past two weeks on this ship, so as far as he was concerned...the galley wasn't neutral ground anymore. Anyways...SHE was in there right now. He knew because he could smell sausage, eggs, chocolate chips and pancake batter wafting up through the vents, and he knew that those chocolate chips had probably never even made it to the skillet. Damn it smelled delicious and here he was stuck here with a sorry ass piece of fruit.

He knew that Jack had needed to be put in her place. She had gotten beside herself the last time he'd seen her, and he wasn't about to tolerate her bullshit. Especially not in front of a group of fuckin' mercs. Still there was a nagging sensation in tha back of his mind that something between them had changed for the worst. He cared about her, he really REALLY wished he didn't but he did. But he knew that if she pushed him too far he would hurt her.

I would have to. Been runnin' my whole fuckin' life and I ain't about to go down because some girl doesn't know when to just shut up and go with what I say. I'm not fuckin' having that. Now Jack...she knows that. Or at least she used to.

He growled and tore into the apple, he frowned at the smell the emanated from the pierced skin...it smelled so much like her. What was he going to do about Jack? The question had denied him sleep for better part of two weeks.

The beast demanded that he take her, that he make her submit - she wants to belong to us Dickey boy, you know it...you FELT it.

She's probably planning ways to ex me out, he replied silently, I know she's been trying to catch me alone. Since she's grown up there's a line 'tween me and Jack...a line that NEEDS to be there. I stepped over that line. No, I took a fucking runnin' LEAP over that line-

- and it felt good...

- ...but it's not even an option. And that's not the problem. The problem is how the hell I'm supposed to get her away from Davis and this ass-backwards operation he's runnin' with her tryin' to run her mouth every fuckin' step of the way.

Over the past week Riddick had begun to notice slight discrepancies in the things that Davis talked about with his crew and the courses that he told Riddick to plot. Riddick had overheard (deliberately) Davis giving Farris an estimate of what their earnings for returning Counsel property to the station on Trelios 6 should be. He had found this strange because Trelios 6, being part of an independent mining system, had no Counsel set-up sites. Neither did Ipos, Ailad, Airam or any other destinations Davis had given him to plot. Something about it sent up the red flags.

To make matters worse, Davis was unknowingly testing the very limits of Riddick's waning self control every time he brought up Jack. Two nights ago, Riddick had come very close to blowing the whole operation and ending Davis's life.


Flashback

Riddick had been sitting up in the control room downloading information on available small transport units on Trelios 6 onto a portdrive when the door slid open. He quickly shut off the monitor and turned to look at Davis who was occupied with tugging up his recently discovered open fly.

Davis then flopped down next to him and he turned his head away clenching his teeth. Jack's scent was all. over. him.

"What're you doin' up here Frye," Davis asked jokingly, " you up here jackin' off or somethin'," he laughed again, "I'd save if for Trelios if I were you...they got some of the finest pieces of ass this side of the Mekanan system."

"I just finished inputting the next star jump," he replied dryly, "there should be no interruptions." The combined scent of Jack and Davis was driving him insane and not in the good way. Never before had he so badly wanted to cause someone pain. That dumb motherfucker he had ghosted back on Sona had pissed him off, but back then he knew he was going to kill the guy anyway, and grabbing on Jack like that had only sealed his death sentence. But for the time being, until Riddick knew for sure just how connected with the Counsel he was, Davis was untouchable...and it was killing Riddick.

"You don't talk much do you," Davis had asked reaching forward and flipping on his own monitor, "that's good. I like that in a crew mate. Someone who knows when to just shut the fuck up, you know?"

Riddick grunted in response willing the other man to either shut up or burst into spontaneous flames...either way, his screams would be better than silence. Come the fuck on, he silently swore at the portdrive, hurry up and finish downloading.

"Most of my crews' got that so far," he continued scooting his chair up closer to the monitor, "'cept for Farris." He looked at Riddick and whispered conspiratorially, "I think that little fucker might be a playing for the other team if you catch my drift."

Riddick nodded. Every second sitting next to this man took a monumental amount of self control. Sex. He smelled like Jack and sex. Riddick had to fight back the snarl that came from both him and the beast inside who at the moment was screaming for release, for blood.

"Jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick, will you look at that," the man exclaimed rocking back in his seat. Riddick turned to look at the man and was surprised to see rivulets of blood streaming from his face and neck from a multitude of shallow but well placed cuts. His eyelids were gone, and his lips had been removed giving him the morbidly comic look of a grinning semi-deteriorated corpse. His throat was slashed so deep the spine was visible, his pretty boy golden blonde hair had been ripped out in clumps, and all of his finger tips had been removed.

"Frye," the corpse snapped making little clicking sounds as his teeth bumped together, "what the hell are you smilin' at?"

Riddick squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again Davis sat there, whole and healthy as ever, "Look at the screen, not ME."

Riddick shook his head and grunted before turning to look at the screen where an image of a petite blonde with huge breasts and an impossibly small waist lay draped across some expensive looking silk sheets. Davis let out a low whistle, "That's the kinda ass they have on Trelios, my friend."

Personally, Riddick had thought that the woman looked like she was in desperate need of a sandwich but he said nothing, he didn't trust himself not to tell Davis to go stick his dick in a socket and flip the switch. The light signaling the end of the file download still hadn't blinked. C'mon you motherfucker!

"Don't know about you," Davis said scrolling down the page," but I cannot wait 'till we get planet side. Jackie...she's a good lay and all but goddamn...will you look at the rack on this little firecracker. Plus, ole Jackie girls more of a convenience lay, you know. On a ship beggars can't be choosers."

By then Riddick was shaking with the effort of not planting his foot knee deep into Davis's ass.

Davis turned to him and smiled, not even knowing that he was literally about three words away from having his tongue pulled through his neck, "It's a good set up though. I picked her up hungry, wet and without a cred to her name; she got a job and some security and I got some cheap labor and free pussy!" He kicked back in his chair chuckling, "And I don't even have to share. The boys know she belongs to me."

The last four words to leave Davis's mouth rang in Riddick's head as he threw all plans to remain calm out the goddamn window. He was reaching for his shiv when the little light on the portdrive lit up. He wrapped his shaking hand around in and yanked it from the console before snapping up out of his chair to head for the door.

"Hey where ya takin' off to," Davis called from the console.

Riddick froze two feet from the door visibly shaking. He didn't dare turn around lest Davis see the fury etched into every contour of his face. Visions of him ripping out Davis throat and then sticking his hand into his chest cavity and ripping out his heart filled Riddick's head and he had to steady himself against the door frame and bite out a semi-normal sounding response, "Tired. I'll finish running updates on our location in a couple hours."

He left then, went to the gym and attacked the punching bag until the chain snapped and he had to spend the next hour taping up the casing. The animal wasn't sated...not in the least. Sleep hadn't come easy that night.

End Flashback

Riddick swallowed the last bite of apple, he was pissed and it left a bitter taste in his mouth. Fuck this shit, he thought pushing up out of the chair, I'm not hiding from anyone. Especially not Jack, she either runs with me...or I knock her ass out and drag her along for the ride. I'm going to the gym.


Jack rolled over in bed and pulled up her panties, wincing at the raw stinging pain emanating from between her legs. He'd been unusually rough this time...not that he was normally considerate of her needs. She had no idea what time it was, but in space it never really mattered anyways...all she knew was that the ship was powered down to auto system performance, so that meant that the rest of the boys were probably asleep. She looked over at Davis's sleeping form next to her and pursed her lips. Every day he became less tolerable, everyday she resented him a little more and - after Riddick had touched her - sex with him became almost unbearable. She couldn't even pretend to be interested anymore and yet she couldn't just start refusing him all of a sudden. He would raise too many questions, start too many fights. At least I don't have to worry about him noticing my disinterest, she thought listening to his raspy snores. She stared at the ceiling blinking back tears - How did I get myself into this shit, she wondered, I should've just stayed in New Mecca.

Two weeks had passed since the incident in the galley and Jack was at her wits end. She had no idea how mercs could track Riddick down from across the universe and she couldn't even manage it on a ship! Sure, she had seen him...once, about five days after he had kissed her on the floor by the table. And now she wasn't sure if she wanted to see him ever again.


Flashback

She had dragged herself into the galley sweaty, dirty, starving and reeking of engine fumes only to run smack dab into Farris.

"Hey babe," he smirked backing up," you look like shit."

She smiled back sweetly, "Well, fuck you very much Ryan Reginald Thurman Farris the Third." He glared at her and she glared back.

"P.M.S much," he asked sarcastically. She growled and brushed past him,"Bite me, Fairy-Ass" she snapped and then stopped, almost choking on her words.

Riddick was sitting in the booth where he kissed her with his back turned towards her. She knew it was him though, it had to be. She also knew that he knew that she was there. She grabbed a energy shake out of the cooler unit and slid in the bench across from him, noticing how his eyes never left his plate. "Don't like the food?"

He shrugged and muttered, "I've had worse."

She looked up as the galley doors slid open and Gerod and Riley walked in. She ignored them and they ignored her as usual. She leaned in closer to him, "Kinda hard to hide on a ship huh?"

His eyes snapped up to meet hers and before he could reply she held up a hand, " Don't bother lying, I know you've been hiding."

He put his fork down and leaned in too, "I don't hide from anyone but money hungry mercs, and that's only because they're like cockroaches...can't kill them all."

She threw his own smirk that she had perfected over the years back into his face, "Well, I'm a merc now and I definitely like money," she whispered, "and you could kill me...but I know you won't."

She watched him look out of the corner of his eye to gauge the distance between them and the crew. And then she felt cold metal slide up her leg. Shit how did his hand get under the table!?

"You sure about that," he growled almost inaudibly. She wasn't about to let him win, so she locked eyes with him and pressed her leg up until she could feel the blade cutting into her skin. She watched his face and almost smiled …he was backing down. "You're pushing your luck, kid."

"Why did you kiss me?" Now I'm pushing it, she thought. His eyes returned to his plate.

"I don't know."

"You're lying." She knew it meant something because...because it just had to.

He stared silently at her and relaxed back into his seat fixing her with a detatched gaze. His dismissal was worse than a slap in the face and it made her blood boil.

"I know the runnin' is your M.O.," she said contemptously, "but maybe this one time you can actually explain why you bitched out... I mean I'm used to it by now of course. I mean first, you left me in a cave to die, then you left me in New Mecca to fight for myself, and this time you left me just wondering what the hell was going on. I have to admit it's getting easier. Next time you leave - and I'm sure thaty you will - I may not even notice you're gone." Her face was the picture of cool, calm and composed...but in her head...in her head her common sense was pleading for her to ' for-the-love-of-god-Jack-just-shut-the-fuck-up'!

If she had expected a blow-out scene she wouldv'e been sorely dissapointed. Riddick merely smirked, but in his eyes she could seen a spark of something that promised pain. If they had been anywhere else she was sure she wouldv'e been unconscious half way through her little speech.

"It won't happen again." His attitude was so cold and that had hurt more than the comment itself. He was shutting her out, little by little, but she was determined to have her answer. She leaned forward across the table wishing she could get right in his face. "Why. Not?"

The slight trace astonishment that passed over is face pleased her to no end, it wasn't every day that one surprised Riddick, " Why won't it happen again," she pressed leaning in closer, "Because I'm too young for you?" She could almost see him retreating into himself and she was frantic to get a response, ANY response out of him...even with Gerod and Riley sitting across the room.

"Sure."

"Bullshit," she laughed quietly, stealing looks over to Gerod and Riley who were across the galley, " half the girls in those brothels you used to hit were just barely legal and I'm almost two years older than that, three if you add in the time spent in cryo, so don't give me that crap." Anger had filtered into her words without her knowing it. "Why the fuck have you been avoiding me like I have the goddamn bubonic plague?"

"This is not the place-"

"Oh please-"

"This is not the fucking time, Jack."

"Fuck that," she whispered viscously," you can lie to everybody else but you can't lie to-"

"Jack c'mere for a second," Farris called from across the room, "I need your help with somethin' darlin'."

Her eyes never left Riddick's. Years ago when she had been reading a Bible that she had come across in Imam's study , she had become entranced in this story where a man named Peter was able to walk on water because he focused his mind, his thoughts and his eyes on God; but when he looked away when he lost focus, he sank. He lost that ability. That power. She wasn't about to sink.

Granted, to most Riddick was about as far away from God as you could be without actually crossing the fiery gates, but not to Jack. He wasn't her god - not close- but she drew power from his strength. From the raw, untamed power of the animal entity that resided deep inside to very core of him. From his eyes. Never in her life had she felt as invincible as she did in this moment, staring down the beast. She was not afraid; for the first time in years she felt no fear.

"In a sec, Farris."

"You really wanna know, Jack," he was just toying with her now, she could see the malicious little smile that played around his lips, "you wanna know why it'll never happen again?"

"Jack I really need your help," Farris called again.

"IN A GODDAMN SECOND," she barked loudly, drawing attention from Gerod and Riley who had been until that point oblivious of the little war in the corner, and Davis who had just walked in. Well shit, she had thought then, we have a crowd now.

"Yeah, I really wanna know," she whispered to him trying her best to keep a straight face. She didn't want Davis to suspect anything weird but she felt as if she were dangling by a thread over a black hole. She wanted to know, she NEEDED to know. And the thought that she may not like the answer never crossed her mind.

She felt the electric high she had been on dissipate as Riddick tore his eyes from hers and spotted Davis who was glancing at them over the rim of his coffee tin, "Because you're fuckin up," he growled lowly so only she could hear him, "and I'm not about to let some stupid bitch get me killed." He pushed up away from the booth and dumped his plate in the washing unit and walked out leaving her speechless in her seat. Suddenly being sucked into a black hole didn't sound quite so bad.

End Flashback


She slid out of the bed slowly and pulled on a pair of loose work-out sweats and her favorite black tank; it was one of Riddick's that she had snatched out of his drawer before he left. By now it was faded to gray and had lost all elasticity but she loved it none the less, it was comfortable and sometimes she swore that it still held his scent. She tried hard to hate him. She really did.

My dear Jacqueline, you are fighting a losing battle. You know in your heart that the bond between yourself and Mr. Riddick is as if cast in stone. As far and as long as he runs…he knows…that you will forever be a part of him. And you know, my child, that as hard as you fight, as angry as you may become…he will forever be a part of you. She could swear that Imam was standing next to her his voice was so clear, so strong; but in her heart she knew she was alone.

"That doesn't mean I have to like it though," she muttered to herself as she pulled her tresses up into a messy bun and made for the door. She could hear his booming laughter in her head- No, my child. But like it or not, it is the way God intended it to be. Forgive him, Jack. For all the pain he has caused you trust that he has borne it as well. Forgive him and forgive yourself.

That's not something I can do, she replied silently. She turned to see Davis roll over and flop his arm onto her pillow before she slid the door shut.

He doesn't even know I'm gone.

For reason beyond her understanding this thought brought six years worth of pain flooding back in. Memories that she had painstakingly covered and repressed came surging up with a vengeance that terrified her.

Memories of her screaming as she sat hunched over the body of a woman with long curly hair and hollow brown eyes laying cold and stiff on a bathroom floor with a needle sticking out of her arm; a balding man with nervous watery eyes and pointy rat-like nose telling her to 'just come sit on uncle Bernies lap'; hacking off her hair in the dim flickering light of a transport station and binding her breasts painfully with a roll of elastic bandage wrap; the sound of flapping wings, darkness, the smell of blood and screams; and collapsing exhausted and empty at Imam's feet as the man who had made the monsters go away, who had become her anchor, who she…loved, left her. Alone. He didn't even care that she was gone.

I can't do this, she thought as she willed her chest to relax enough to draw in breath, I can't do this anymore. I'm so tired of thinking about what 'could've been', if he would've stayed. He doesn't owe me shit, and he'll never let me in. I'll never be more than some idol worshipping naïve little girl to him… and I'm done playing that part. I can't do it anymore. I quit. Gameover…

"Check please."

(Why don't you butch up, stuff a cork in this fuckin' kid and let's go.)

She smiled a little at the memory of some of the last words she had heard from the 'Billy Bad Ass' merc William Johns. "Fuck you Johns," she laughed bitterly as she began walking down the hallway that led to the gym, "But yeah, I'm 'mushin' on'."