He leveled an unreadable glance at me. “You would not be the first to call me that.”
“I’m sure I won’t be the last, either,” I muttered under my breath.
Early the next morning, I dragged myself to the galley for a much-needed hit of caffeine. Our arrival at Bastion had been delayed by over an hour, so I’d had a very short night, and my head ached with the lack of sleep.
I scowled at my coffee cup and silently urged the stimulant to work faster. When Kee bounced into the room, bright and energetic, I transferred my scowl to her.
She winced in sympathy. “Short night?”
“Three hours. And Bastion is charging us a fortune to dock. The sooner we can leave, the better.”
“I saw Lexi messaged. Have you contacted her to let her know we’re here?”
I nodded. “I sent her a message a few minutes ago with our location, so she should turn up later. I also need to go round up some more supplies because General Fletcher says we might not be able to buy anything in Valovian space.”
Kee frowned. “He’s not going to feed us once we hit dirt?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll feel better if we’re prepared for the worst.”
Kee glanced toward the door, then leaned in and whispered, “Speaking of, now that we’re closer to the border, I checked on your Valovian bounty. It’s been temporarily suspended with no listed end date.”
That wasn’t as good as a total cancellation, but it was better than nothing. I would still have to be careful once we crossed into Valovian space because some less than reputable hunters would pick me up anyway, if they got the chance, just in case the bounty returned to active.
“Thanks for the update. Let me know if anything changes as we get closer. I’ve authorized Anja to buy a few things she needs for the repairs, so I’d appreciate it if you could also help her find the best deal and get her set up to draw on our funds—with a reasonable limit. And tell Eli to keep an eye on Starlight while I’m gone.”
“You should take Eli with you,” Kee said. “The station isn’t dangerous, exactly, but it’s rougher than it was the last time we were here.”
“Send him with Anja. The parts are more important. You stay and look after the ship, and I’ll look after myself.”
Torran entered the galley wearing his synthetic black armor, minus the helmet. “I will accompany you,” he said.
“Not wearing that, you won’t,” I said, waving at his armor. Bastion still carried scars from the war. Lucrative trade deals with the Valoffs had bought a measure of tolerance, but most of the people on the station were still understandably wary and suspicious.
Torran looked down at himself. “What’s wrong with this?”
“Everything. If you wear that, everything I buy will cost three times as much, and it’s already overpriced to begin with.”
His eyes narrowed. “I will pay the difference.”
“Or you can just remain here in comfort and no one will have to pay extra. I will return in an hour or two.”
Torran glared at me. “I will accompany you. If you can’t afford to purchase supplies because of my presence, then I’ll pay for them in their entirety.”
I bristled at the implication that I couldn’t take care of my people. In my peripheral vision, Kee shook her head. “Oof. Wrong move, buddy,” she muttered.
“I can buy my own supplies,” I bit out. “I neither require nor desire your assistance, General Fletcher. Stay here, stay out of trouble, and stay out of my way.”
I turned to storm away, but Torran stepped into my path. His eyes glinted in the light and his expression told me that he wasn’t going to back down. “I am merely protecting my investment, Captain,” he reminded me softly. “I will accompany you, one way or another. You should take the deal I’ve offered.”
The threat was clear, and my already simmering temper flared into an inferno.
Kee grabbed my arm and hauled me across the room before I could act on the riot of emotion. “He’s a client, Tavi,” she whispered urgently. “Venting your anger might feel good right now, but you’ll regret it later.”
“I definitely won’t,” I promised.
“Let him accompany you.” When I scowled at her, she held up a hand. “Hear me out,” she wheedled. “Get the food you wanted and the parts for the ship. All of them.”
It took a second for her words to sink past the fury. When they did, I turned to her with wide eyes. She gave me an impish grin. “You would’ve thought of it, too,” she said, “once you calmed down. I’m just speeding up the process.”
She was right. If I hadn’t lost my temper, I would’ve thought of it. Everything on the repair list would cost a fortune—even before the additional markup because he was a Valoff. But Torran had offered me the deal, and I was going to use his honor against him.
Eventually he would learn to stop threatening me or he would go bankrupt, and either way, I won.
“Keep an eye on the ship,” I told Kee. “And let me know when Lexi arrives. Make sure she knows I’ve put her in the room across from Anja. I’ll be a couple of hours, at least, so feed Luna when she wanders in. Any requests?”
“Chocolate,” Kee said at once. “Something good.”
I nodded and pivoted back to face Torran. “Very well, I accept. You may accompany me as long as you pay for the supplies. Are you ready to go?”
When he inclined his head, I dropped my coffee cup in the sanitizer, then led him to the cargo bay. Despite the early hour, I’d dressed to go out, so I was wearing flexible armor under my shirt, and I was carrying both a plas blade and pistol. I hoped neither would be necessary.
Torran did not appear to be carrying any weapons. Though when your mind was a weapon, everything else was a little superfluous.
I downloaded Anja’s list of parts to my personal comm. The screen was cracked, and the back was held together with composite tape, but it got the job done. Maybe if we found Torran’s missing ring, I would allow myself to upgrade to a model made sometime in the last decade.
Or maybe I’d keep using this one until it completely failed. We weren’t short on areas that needed an infusion of credits.
If Torran noticed the state of my comm, he wisely kept his mouth shut.
I pulled the levcart from its dock and opened the cargo bay door. None of Torran’s team had joined us. “Your people aren’t accompanying you?” I asked.
He shook his head. “They will remain with the ship.”
“I’m surprised they’re letting you out on your own. I figured they were your security team.”
A brief smile touched Torran’s mouth. “If anything, I’m their security team.” As if to prove his point, the levcart rose over my head, did a barrel roll, and then settled back to its normal hover height so gently and precisely that it didn’t even need to make an adjustment.