Space Gypsy Chronicles

Chapter 7

Once his ship freed itself from the cling of the Earth's orbit, Rafe breathed a sigh of relief. I escaped, and all my parts are intact. Not only that, but also he'd managed to smuggle his cargo with him and an extra passenger.

A hard to forget passenger, and not just because he'd spent more than a few times lusting after her sweet ass. She'd certainly made his launch from the surface a lot more vocal than usual.

But now she was silent. A quick glance over his shoulder showed her gaping, eyes riveted to the screen.

Common courtesy demanded he ask, "Are you all right?"

She blinked, but didn't meet his gaze. "I'm in space."

"Way to state the obvious." His sarcastic reply drew her attention to him. He smiled at her, to which she scowled. Her irritation served only to widen his grin. "I told you we were going to space. Not my fault you didn't believe me. And now we're going to skip out of your star system before we have to deal with any more hunters."

"You mean there could be more?"

"I would assume so. I am, after all, a wanted man." For so many reasons.

"What happens next? Where are we going? What are you going to do with me?"

Do with her? He had all kinds of ideas for that, but first, as captain, he needed to check on things. "Annabelle, what is our status?"

"The hull maintained its integrity during our ascent. The second core is down to forty-three percent but charging rapidly. Life support systems are fully operational. The cloaking device and primary core are still in need of maintenance. Basic radar is functional, however, the energy signature reader is still - "

"Broken. I know. So, we're going to have to rely on our eyes. And ears. Be sure to sweep the auditory channels for other possible vessels in the vicinity. Let's try and avoid any big battles until we get some things fixed. What's our current course?"

"As requested, we will swing through the Saturn rings to acquire some of the dust, then as the captain commanded, we shall exit this galaxy for the next, making for the wormhole."

"A wormhole?" His delivery lady, who really needed a name if they were going to travel together, stared at him with wide eyes. "What is that?"

"They are folds in space and time that allow us to move rapidly from one spot to the next."

"Is it dangerous?"

"Of course. Everything in space is dangerous. Take the Milky Way galaxyÉ"

"Hold on a second, you call it the same thing we do?"

"Actually, it was originally known as Quadrant 718. I reprogrammed Annabelle to call it the Milky Way because I liked it. I found some of the names your scientists adopted interesting. Most uninhabited galaxies tend to only bear a nomenclature."

"What do aliens call our galaxy?" she asked.

"It's got a long boring stream of numbers for a technical name, but the spacefarers who originally founded it and added it to the galactic charters had a morbid sense of humor. They called it Feeding Frenzy."

She blinked. "You're screwing with me. No way they called us something that stupid."

"Actually, the true word wasÉ" He uttered the alien pronunciation, which translated was Planet with many tasty things for them to eat and become strong.

"You really aren't from around here, are you?" she said, stating the obvious.

"Was it the spaceship that gave it away?" He couldn't help the sarcasm. It was a specialty of his.

"There is no need to be a d**k, even if I realize that is probably a genetic trait of your kind."

"My kind?" He snorted. Little did she know humans and his kind had more in common than she thought.

"Since you refuse to take me back" - a hot glare his way - "then I guess I've got a lot to learn, starting with what is going to happen to me?"

"That will depend on you."

"What do you mean it depends on me?" Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "I'm going to go on the record right now stating that I will not submit to probing, of any kind, cooperate with any plans to sell me as a s*x toy, or get tossed from an airlock."

"You do realize if I chose to do any of those things, you couldn't stop me." He could have laughed at the frustration that tightened her lips. "But currently, those aren't things you need to concern yourself with." But he reserved the right to change his mind if she annoyed him.

"Exactly what do you have planned?"

"I have no plan. You weren't supposed to come with me, but now that you're here, I guess you could be useful. Currently, it's just me and Annabelle right now for crew." Because his old partner, Jo'rge, had met the wrong end of a certain reptile during a foray to collect crystals. "I could use an extra hand around here." Not entirely true, the ship pretty much could run itself. What he needed was another onboard mechanic, which he doubted she could supply. But there was more than one way for her to give a hand. And he wasn't talking about work...

"I'd prefer to go home," was her reply.

"Not happening, wench, so stop asking. As of now, you're part of my crew."

"Yay." The word emerged flat, and yet, as he looked at her, bedraggled and tense in her seat, he was surprised to note she didn't seem to exude any fear. It surprised him. A little was to be expected, after all - look at what he'd done to her - but was it him, or did her eyes shine with excitement?

Did a spirit eager for travel hide within her? They'd soon find out because there was no going back.

Unbuckling, Rafe stood from his seat and stretched, popping joints and muscles, noting with a certain male satisfaction how her eyes followed his movements. "Since Annabelle is fully capable of flying this heap, why don't I show you around the place?"

She didn't immediately move, and he noted her fingers still clutched the harness.

"You can unbuckle," he told her. "It's perfectly safe now."

The flesh of her lower lip was sucked between her teeth as she worried it. "What about gravity?"

"What about it?"

"Am I going to float around or something?"

"Float?" He laughed. "I always forget how primitive your planet still is. We have artificial gravity on board. Maybe a little lighter than you're used to, but enough that you won't go flitting about bumping into things."

"It was a valid question," she grumbled as she unlatched the buckle for her harness. She stood gingerly from the seat as if she didn't believe him. With good reason. He had not exactly been honest with her about who and what he was. Then again, he'd never expected they would end up together on his ship.

"A valid question would be to ask if I intended to eject you from an airlock or if I planned to freeze you and use you for meals."

Her eyes widened. "Are you?"

He might eat her, but it wouldn't be for food. "No. But I will remind you I am the captain of this vessel. Hurt me and I won't show mercy."

"And what if you hurt me?" she asked.

"I don't understand the question."

"I said, what happens to you if you hurt me?"

"Nothing." The perk of being in charge. But he wasn't a complete jerk. "How about we make a pact to not hurt each other and go from there?"

"A pact?" She arched a brow. "How do I know if your word is any good? I don't even know who you are. I only know you as Mr. Abaddon, the crazy dude who lives in the trailer in the middle of nowhere and orders s**t online."

"I am known as Rafe Abaddon." Nothing more, not anymore.

"And is that your real name?"

"More or less. The name I was born with is Ra'fhai Aba'ddon." He pronounced it with a flourish. "But over the years I've gotten used to it being shortened to Rafe. As you've ascertained, I am not from Earth. I am not from any planet actually. I was born in space to Zyngary parents." A clan within the Rhomanii people. There were twelve clans in total. Legend said there used to be thirteen, with the thirteenth clan being the one that ruled them all. But that legend was from before, way before, back when they had a world, a home to call their own.

Thick dark lashes blinked over her stunning eyes. She perused him, head to toe, not lingering on any one part for too long, even though he did thrust his shoulders back and gave her his most becoming smile.

After a thorough perusal, she shook her head. "I don't know what those zingo things are, but you look pretty human to me, unless you're hiding something impressive in your pants, which we both know you're not." The small smirk didn't entirely take the sting from her insult.

He knew for a fact he wasn't little. "I assure you, there are differences, not necessarily visual ones, but had your scientists gotten their hands on me, they would have creamed their underpants in excitement."

"If you say so. Personally, I am rather underwhelmed by your so-called" - and, yes, she air quoted - "alien origin. I mean look at you. You look like a regular guy, who speaks English with only a slight accent, and who is just as annoying as every other guy I know."

"And yet I am not like every other guy you know." For some reason, the comparison irritated. "Appearances are deceiving. My origin, as I already mentioned, is Rhomanii, a race of travelers. A people with no true home to call our own. And my clan within the Rhomanii is the Zyngary."

"So you're the equivalent of space gypsies." She snickered. "That explains a lot."

It was his turn to frown at her. She dared to mock him? It was one thing to have mirth at her expense, quite another when she utilized it against him. "We are nothing like the Earthen variety of gypsies. For one thing, we have traveled the galaxy a long, long time. Almost as long as your kind have feigned civilization. Some fables even claim that our kind might have farmed the seeds populating Earth today."

Her nose wrinkled. "So does that make you like a relative of mine then? Should I call you grandpa or cousin?"

"There is a chance we might be very distantly related."

"Or, maybe, what's more likely is some aliens kidnapped some humans and brought them into space. Those humans escaped, but never found their way home."

"I see you're one of those," he stated.

"What do you mean one of those?"

"There is a debate among our kind about whether or not we originated from Earth or whether we seeded mankind on it. It is a question long debated, but one without an answer."

"Is that why you were on Earth? Looking for answers?"

He snorted. "I'm not a scholar, and I don't really care. We exist. That's enough for me." Not the entire truth, but all he would admit.

"What were you doing on Earth?"

He stuck to the most obvious reason, the one he'd cultivated as a cover. "I was on your planet because I needed some rare goods. Given that Earth is out of the way and bound with restrictions on tampering with a developing species, any type of goods from your world fetch a high price at market."

"So you're in the import/export business? Funny, I would not have pegged you as a businessman."

"Don't say that." He recoiled at the very idea. The horror. Him, dressed in a suit and tie, his clothing perfectly pressed? He couldn't help but laugh. He gestured to his body. "Do I look like a businessman?"

"No, but then again, you also didn't look like a guy who was hiding a spaceship under his house," she retorted.

"Good point. But I will note that there are more spaceships hiding on your planet than you might imagine."

"All that superior technology and you can't help but crash land? And they say women are bad drivers." The tilt of her lips let him know she teased.

"Where I come from, the women don't drive at all."

"Why am I not surprised to hear that?"

"There are reasons we do the things we do." She would soon learn the universe was a harsh place, especially for females. Better if she began the process now of accepting her new status in life.

"Having a little pinky between your legs doesn't give you the right to dictate."

"Little? Lying isn't attractive, wench. We both know I'm more than adequately endowed."

To his surprise, she agreed. "Fine. You're hung, which probably explains why you're so stupid at times. All that blood loss."

TouchŽ. "If you're done insulting me, how about a tour of my ship?"

Without waiting for a reply, he exited the command center, only to stop as he realized she didn't follow. Upon poking his head back into the room, he noted her standing close to the view screen. The scene constantly rotated to provide a 360-degree view, and as it spun to show their rear, she pressed her hand against it. More specifically, she pressed her hand against the rapidly receding Earth.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Her reply was spoken in a soft whisper. "Saying goodbye."