Maze caught up with him at the lift. The doors opened, and Veller and Kelis faced him. “Yammer is at the helm. I’m going outside.”
“We read the damage.” Kelis stepped back against the wall of the lift. “I’ll repair it.”
“Go to Control now. I have this,” Stag ordered.
“I’m going to monitor, and be suited up to retrieve you if there’s a problem.”
Stag glared at Maze.
“It’s my job. I’m the medic. I can overrule your orders. Kelis and Veller are here to assist Yammer. They don’t need me, but you might.”
Stag gave a sharp nod, then addressed the two other members of his crew. “Move.”
Both males exited the lift and rushed to Control. Stag entered the lift and Maze joined him. They went to the engine section and got the patches and equipment Stag would need. Stag decided to exit out a docking bay, and suited up. Maze did as well.
“You’re to stay inside.”
“Understood, but the repair would go faster if two of us worked together.”
“No, Maze. You are not to follow me out there. We both know I wouldn’t survive if a bomb attaches to me.”
“Let me go instead.”
Stag put on his helmet and turned on coms. “No.”
“I know what you’re doing.”
“Good. Hellion annoys me with his constant need for clarifications.”
“I’m the least-needed member of our crew. No one is hurt. I should be the one to risk.”
Stag wasn’t about to waste more time arguing with the male. “How much float time have you incurred in the past five years? Answer.” He already knew. Maze was his medic and had been assigned to him during that time.
Maze paused in putting on his suit. “None, but I’ve done it in the past.”
“On the Star. You were occasionally assigned visual-inspection duty when it isn’t grounded on Garden for repairs. This is different. I’m going to be working with a fusion wand to seal the patches. They can melt your suit if you’re not careful of the intense heat. I did this two years ago when we took a rock hit on a thruster. Stand down on this, Maze. That’s an order.”
Maze put on his helmet. “I’ll come after you if you’re hurt. Try to be aware of what is behind you. Can I turn on the exterior lighting in that section? It will help you see better and possibly avoid one of those bombs.”
“No.” Stag turned on the helmet lighting. “It would be too bright and we don’t know if the Markus Models entered the dead zone with us. I won’t do anything to give away our location to them.” He stepped into metallic boots, taking over the suit controls, and sealed the legs of the pants to the boots. “Decompressing. You ready?”
“Yes.” Maze gripped a handle and locked his own boots on, sealing them to the floor.
“Close the door after me. Don’t leave it open.”
“I could get to you faster.”
“Seal the door!” He was pissed as he hit the red button to shut off gravity in the small room. He turned, adjusted his boots, making sure he wouldn’t float from the floor. He gripped the two cases he needed, hooked them together, and clipped them to a line on his suit. The lights flashed red and then went solid red. The air was gone to the room, as well as all gravity.
Stag opened the docking doors and moved forward. He hated going outside but it could have been worse. At least the shuttle wasn’t in motion. He exited his ship, grabbed a handle on the hull, reaching for another one. He glanced back as the docking doors sealed. Maze had remained inside and had followed his order.
He looked forward, climbing the shuttle. The cases trailed behind him, the slight tug at his waist comforting where they were attached to the line.
* * * * *
Nala felt trepidation when the doors opened but it wasn’t Stag who stepped inside.
She stood up and her body tensed. She didn’t like the way the cyborg openly stared at her chest, then lower.
He held out a tray. “Food.”
She was leery of approaching him. “Stag usually brings it to me.”
“He’s busy.”
“What was that alarm I heard?”
“We experienced a small damage. Stag is repairing it.”
She walked forward and accepted the tray, then retreated. She wasn’t willing to turn her back on him. He was a man, and she’d learned from Stag that they had all their body parts. That made him potentially dangerous. “What kind of damage?”
“It requires an exterior patch.”
She trembled. That was bad. It was a fear to anyone in space. A breach could buckle an entire section of hull if it wasn’t patched fast, cause a chain reaction and take out other parts of a ship. “How? Metal fatigue?”
“No.” He leaned against the doorway, still taking her in from head to foot.
“I’m Nala.” She twisted and put the tray on the bed. “You are?”
“Parqel. We met before on your ship for a brief moment.”
“Sorry. I don’t really remember much of that.” So he’d seen her naked. That made her even more uncomfortable.
“You did seem a little disorientated. How are you now?”
“Better. So Stag is out there fixing it?” That was dangerous. If the section near the breach blew, he could be killed. She was pretty sure the engines were off. There were no vibrations at all that she could feel. It meant he wouldn’t float off at least, and possibly tear his suit if he were struck by any part of the ship.
“Yes. He always insists it’s his life placed in danger in these situations. He’s a good commander. I’m sure you did the same for your crew.”
She would have, if her father had allowed it. He hadn’t. “Thanks for the food.”
He didn’t budge. “I wanted to discuss something with you.” He glanced at her chest again then met her gaze. “You’re attractive.”
The fear increased. He was a cyborg. Big. Strong. Enhanced. What if he attacked her? She wouldn’t be able to fight him off. It was best to be polite and hope he remained the same. “Thank you.”
“When you’re taken off this ship, a male will be assigned to care for you. I’d like you to consider me. I have a good temperament. I’d be willing to transfer my duties to remain with you. Stag always assigns single males. I won’t be permitted to return to this duty if you accept me.”
“I’m not really sure what that means.”
He pushed off the wall but didn’t come any closer. “You will be given to a male to live with. He’ll be in charge of your care. You won’t be allowed to live on your own. We could test our compatibility.”
“I also don’t know what that means. You mean like, see if we’d make good roommates?”
He took a step closer. “Sexual compatibility. No male would live with you and not demand you give him access to your body. I would like to have intercourse, and show you that it would be a good match between us.”
Nala backed up and bumped against the bed. Then she moved again, getting away from it, in case he gave him ideas. “No, but thank you for the offer.”
He frowned.
“Look, you’re attractive. I won’t lie. But I get to know people by talking to them. I don’t have sex with strangers. Understand?”
“You will be assigned to a male, and the only one you have had conversations with is Stag. He’ll never offer to keep you. He hates Earthers.”
“I’m aware.”
“He doesn’t want you. He’s made that clear. I’m a good choice. Are you concerned about your upkeep? I would never abuse you.”
Upkeep? She swallowed. “Let me think about it, okay? I do that. I need to let things sink in. I didn’t know I’d be given to someone. You people know I’m not an android, right? That’s just bullshit Stag said because I made him mad.”
“You’re an Earther. You can’t live alone. That’s how it will be. Other males will make the offer. I want you to consider me. I could show you how I would pleasure you.” He took another step closer.
“No.??
? He might be bigger but she’d still put up a fight if he tried to get her out of her clothes. “Please leave.”
He took a step back. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. That wasn’t my intention.”
“I need time to think. Alone. Thank you for the food.”
He inclined his head. “I’d take good care of you. Consider me.” He spun, left, and the door sealed behind him.
Nala walked to the bed and collapsed, relieved he hadn’t assaulted her.
Anger came next. She was to be given away to some cyborg as though she were an android. Worse, a sex bot, since Parqel made it clear she’d be viewed as one by anyone except Stag.
She glanced at the food but it held no appeal. She’d lost her appetite.
Some cyborg would collect her when she was taken off Stag’s ship and he’d demand she have sex with him. She’d seen some sex slaves on Belton Station. They were women who’d committed crimes there and been sentenced for at least a year of servitude. The highest bidders would buy them and they’d have no choice but to comply or more time was added to the sentence.
There were rules to be followed. The men couldn’t beat or maim the women. They also couldn’t make a profit by leasing out rights to her body to other men. The women had to be fed, housed, and clothed. Nala had pitied them. They were forced to sleep with the men who bought them, cook for them and clean their homes. It seemed that would be her fate.
“I didn’t even commit a crime,” she muttered. “My freighter was attacked. This is bullshit!”
Tears came next. It was all Stag’s fault. He could drop her off at some station and set her free, but he’d already sworn he wouldn’t. She wiped her eyes and got up, entered the cleansing unit, and just stood there.
“What am I going to do?”
She got tissues and blew her nose, washed her face, and returned to the bed. She ignored the tray, unmotivated to try to choke it down. She was too upset.
“Damn you, you cold-hearted bastard.”
Chapter Six
The doors opened and Nala bolted to her feet at the sight of two cyborgs. They carried Stag between them.
She grabbed the tray as they entered, moving it off the bed. She’d wanted to kill him, but seeing him limp, and bandages covering his shoulder, forehead, and one leg below his knee, made her instantly horrified.
“What happened? Is he okay?”
Maze and the bulky cyborg put Stag on the bed. Maze turned to her as he straightened. “There was an accident.”
A third cyborg entered carrying a large med kit. He set it down, glanced at Nala, then left.
The thick-chested cyborg smiled at her. It looked a little strained. “I’m Hellion. Pick me.”
“What?”
“Not now,” Maze snapped. “Go. I’ve got this. Someone has to make sure the patch is complete and do an exterior check to see if any more damage was done.”
Hellion nodded, flashed another smile at Nala—then shocked her by turning at the door, lifting his hand, and blowing her a kiss.
The doors shut, blocking her view of him, and she turned as Maze dropped to his knees next to the bed and opened the case.
“How bad is he hurt?” She evaluated Stag. He only wore the black underwear he seemed to like. His skin looked a bit off, paler than usual. “Is he going to be okay?”
Maze yanked out a scanner, a smaller one than he’d used on Nala, and ran it over Stag’s head. “I patched him as best as I could inside the docking bay.” He laid the scanner down and grabbed an injector, programming it with an efficiency that spoke to his knowledge of the equipment. “The leg and shoulder wounds are superficial. It’s his brain I’m concerned about.” He injected Stag with some kind of medication.
“What happened?”
“A bomb attached to one of our solar panels and blew. It sent shrapnel toward Stag and ruptured his suit. He managed to halt the leakage but lost too much oxygen before I could get to him. It also slammed him hard into our ship. It could have been worse.”
Ruptured suit? Loss of oxygen? Those were both usually causes of death. “How?”
“He didn’t float off. He wedged his arm into one of the travel handles before he lost consciousness. It would have taken me more time to retrieve him otherwise.”
“How long did he go without oxygen?” She noticed that Stag’s chest rose and fell but that didn’t mean he’d be okay. He could have suffered brain death.
“It took me three minutes and forty-two seconds to bring him in. Another thirty-two seconds to reinstate life support in the docking bay. Add in at least sixty seconds to clear him of his helmet, open his suit, and revive him.”
“Did he wake up? Say anything? Was there any air left in the suit?”
Maze grabbed the scanner, slowly running it over Stag’s head again. “He was down to four percent but he’d stopped breathing by the time I was able to work on him.”
That information hit Nala hard. No one could survive that long out in space if they weren’t breathing. He’d have suffered brain death. Her knees almost gave out and she bent, grabbing the end of the bed.
She was so sure she hated Stag…but the pain in her chest said otherwise.
“I had to turn off all his implants when I ran an electrical current through him to restart his heart rhythm. They will be down for hours, since I had to force the shutoff. I’m not reading any real damage, so we’ll have to wait.”
“English,” she got out.
Maze glanced at her. “That was in English.”
“I don’t know what that means!” She was upset and frustrated. “Is he brain dead? Just tell me.”
“I’m reading some activity. It would be easier if I could access his chips, but I panicked.”
She just stared at him, confused.
“I’m a medic. Every cyborg in my care has allowed me a pathway to hack access to their bodies in emergency situations like this one. I can shut down their implants and chips. Otherwise, sending a current of electricity through them can damage those cybernetics permanently. Stag matters too much to me, and I think I may have drained the power to them completely.”
She tried to make sense of it. “I get that electrocuting them is bad, but power drain?”
Maze twisted, grabbed another scanner, and ran this one over Stag’s chest. “Our bodies generate power for our cybernetic components. As a medic, I was designed to be able to drain that power to care for other cyborgs if they give me access to do so. I think I overdid it. I panicked. I wasn’t calm. It means it’s going to take hours for his cybernetics to recharge enough to work again.”
“What does that matter? I mean, how would they help you figure out what’s wrong with him?”
“We have three chips implanted inside our brains. They could tell me if there’s any damage around them. They’re off, and not responding to me trying to turn them back on. Recharging.” He grabbed another injector, pressing it against Stag’s side.
“What was that for? Is something wrong with his heart or lungs?”
“I’m not reading any damage to his organs. I just gave him a sedative to keep him under.”
“Don’t we want him to wake up?”
“He’ll heal faster if he’s immobile.”
She felt frustrated. “If he survives.”
Maze finally put his gadgets away and closed the case. He stood. “He’s a cyborg. We’re tough, and we heal faster than you do. It’s how we were designed. I am reading brain function.”
That calmed her. “So he’s going to be fine?”
“He was lucky. The drug will keep him down for an hour. I’m going to give you access to direct coms with me. Just press your hand on the panel next to the wall and say my name. I have to go. Another crew member will leave the ship to check Stag’s work on the patch and seek out any other damage. I want to be there in case there’s another medical emergency. Will you watch over Stag and contact me if he’s in distress?”
“I don’t have much experience with injured people. Ho
w will I know?”
Maze walked over to the door and pressed his hand on the panel. “Just contact me if you become alarmed with anything. Watch him.” He pulled his palm off the sensor. “The computer will now transfer your calls to me. Just say my name. It’s Maze, if you’ve forgotten.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
He regarded her with a stern look. “I’m trusting you not to do him more harm. I’d have put him in my room to heal, but I hate to leave him alone in case his condition worsens. He saved your life when we took you off the Pride. It wasn’t in our orders to save anyone on that ship. Just to investigate if it was in fact the Markus Models that had attacked it, and to see if we could gain any information of why they would target it.”
“I’m not going to hurt him.”
He continued to watch her.
“I swear. He’s an asshole, I won’t lie. But I’ve seen some good qualities about him too. I don’t want him to die.”
That seemed to alleviate any of his doubts because his expression softened. “Stag is a good male. He’s been emotionally damaged by Earthers. It’s impossible to forget the abuse we suffered while they were in control of our lives.” He picked up the case. “There’s a med kit in the lower bunk wall drawers. Can you wash the blood off him and redress the wounds? I sanitized them but I didn’t have time to do that.”
She nodded. “I can handle that.”
“I’ll check in when I have time. It will be a while though.” He left.
Nala turned, staring at Stag. He still looked too pale, and she knew he’d hate being vulnerable to her, since she wasn’t tied to the bed while he slept. She bent, crawled under the bunk, opened the drawer, and slid out the med kit, placing it by his feet at the end of the bed. A trip to the cleansing unit and she returned with warmed, wet clothes.
“Look, we might fight a lot, but I want you to wake up and be okay.”
She removed the hastily applied bandage below his knee with care, his skin warm to the touch. The cut made her wince. It was jagged, about an inch long, but not deep. It wasn’t actively bleeding anymore but she didn’t expect it to be. Sanitizing wounds meant it hadn’t only been cleaned out, but the injured blood vessels had been sealed.