Page 47 of Shielded in the Shadows

She snorted. “A reenactment seems excessive. Maybe just the story.” She stroked my tail where it wrapped around her thigh. “So we go in, get the ship checked for trackers, and see what Byx can find out about the bounty?”

“Yes.” I flicked the very tip of my tail. “And I’d like to show you around the outpost.”

“We need to keep our heads down,” she reminded me. “We’re wanted. Or at least I know I am.”

“I know.” I leaned forward. “I’m going to talk to Byx and try to make some arrangements that’ll keep us safe. You have my word I will do nothing that puts you in danger.”

“I don’t mind a reasonable amount of danger.” She toyed with the tip of my tail, which had a predictable effect on my cocks. “Even an unreasonable amount if the situation calls for it.”

“If in the end you say we stay aboard the ship or in Bay 2406, that’s where we stay. But I’m hoping we can do better than that.”

Keela squeezed my tail gently in a move that had rapidly become one of my favorites of her little habits. “Then we’ll see what Byx can come up with and go from there.”

She sipped her coffee and pulled up the set of Trakhan Outpost schematics on her main display. She’d studied them during our journey here. I’d refreshed my memory as well despite my many visits to the outpost. I wouldn’t leave anything to chance when it came to Keela.

By the time the outpost appeared on the viewer, we’d left open space and joined the shipping lane. A few ships passed us by, including a frigate so large that it made the Nivilus feel like an escape pod and several merchant vessels, but the lane was one of the least busy in the sector and none of the ships were exiting toward the station.

As we got closer, I noticed there didn’t seem to be more than a dozen ships in port on the outpost’s docking rings. Trakhan was a fraction as busy as Ghira Station. I was counting on that because I had a hidden agenda for our visit.

Byx would have intel on everyone docked at the station. He always did. If the coast seemed clear of bounty hunters, I wanted to walk with my mate on the outpost’s promenade, take her shopping, and provide her a fine meal in my favorite place not only on the outpost but in the entire sector.

Our visit to Trakhan might be my one and only chance for a proper courting outing in the midst of this bounty business and whatever had forced Keela to emerge from hiding and risk her life at Ghira Station.

My mate deserved more than fighting mercenaries and dodging bounty hunters. She deserved the very finest a former spy and privateer could give her.

I intended to make the most of our time here, and I needed the help of a hard-drinking, hard-loving outpost deckmaster who’d melted down a reactor on behalf of his own mate to show Keela I could be so much more than a weapon and a shield.

CHAPTER 12

KEELA

Bay 2406 was utter and complete chaos.

When Jarrix and I opened the Nivilus’s cargo ramp to reveal Byx’s cavernous domain, we found a half-dozen ships in various stages of being dismantled—or rebuilt; it was impossible to tell. There were teetering stacks of cargo crates, towering scrap piles, a motley crew of deck workers of all different species, and a dozen repair ’bots, all hard at work accompanied by some kind of cacophonous music I’d never heard before and hoped to never hear again.

And in the center of it all, an enormous Wundi grandmale with more than a dozen tentacles directed the entire circus from a large, open-topped tank of water that smelled surprisingly pleasant, like the ocean.

“Garon!” Byx boomed as we descended the Nivilus’s ramp. “I see you’ve upgraded the company you keep, you scut. Who do we have here?”

I’d chosen a different disguise than I’d worn on Ghira, one that matched this particular false identity: black hair, dark eyes, and a maroon flight suit with matching weapons holsters for my plasma gun and dagger.

“Adelaide Shaw,” I said, giving Byx a nod. “Captain of the Bandit’s Blade.”

“And a very fine ship she is.” His tentacles moved pieces of equipment where they needed to go while three of his eyes remained focused on us as we approached the tank. “Niven class, if I’m not mistaken. They don’t make them like this anymore. Looking to sell, Captain?” His enormous mouth stretched wide in a very toothy grin that I read as friendly and nonthreatening. “I can make you a very generous offer.”

“Not even in your dreams,” I said with a smile. “She and I are much too fond of each other.”

“Fair enough, fair enough.” He burbled. “Garon here said she needs a thorough cleaning. It will be my privilege to sort her out as a favor to one of my best and oldest friends. If she needs maintenance or any special features, Garon’s companions always get my best rates for all services.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I had a lengthy want list of upgrades—all ship captains did—but with my credits depleted until my next job, I’d have to settle for fuel and a modest restock of supplies.

Thinking about what that would leave in my account made my stomach hurt.

Beside me, Jarrix moved restlessly, his tail twitching and wings stretching before he folded them tightly to his back. He’d probably scented my distress and had to fight the urge to wrap his tail around my leg or coo. I didn’t want to broadcast that we were anything more than crewmates in public, so he kept a respectful distance.

I’d gotten used to the sensation of his tail wrapped around my leg, and I missed its warm reassurance.

“My best crew will see to your vessel’s cleanliness,” Byx was saying, drawing my attention back to our host. “You mentioned you were looking for some fine cloth?”