Chapter 31
Rokai sat in his ship holding his communicator, weighing the options of contacting Bart or not. Chances were he wouldn’t be close enough to get there in time to assist anyway, but then again he might. What he wanted was to make sure that Bart didn’t charge in and ruin any chance of him locating Mirilla. But, if Mirilla was Bart's, then he deserved to be there. And that last thought was the one that won out. If it were Rosalita, he’d be damned if he’d be kept out of rescuing her. He pressed the button.
Almost immediately Bart answered. “Did you find her?!”
“I think so. I’m on my way in now, well, in a few minutes. I have to cloak the ship first, then I’m on my way.”
“Where?” Bart demanded. He was like a crazy man, having lost all sense of control.
“Here’s what I don’t want…”
“Goddamn it, Rokai!”
“I cannot make the demands I get away with making if I look like I’m backed up by the Consortium! I need you to give me time to locate her. Once I do, then come in with both barrels blazing. Hey, what does that mean anyway? Why would you set barrels on fire before you destroy something or someone?”
“It’s guns, Rokai. The barrel of the gun. Both barrels blazing!”
“Ohhh, see I’d have never thought that. We don’t use such rudimentary weaponry. Lasers, blasters. Plain, old fashioned flames.”
“I’m aware, Rokai. That’s exactly what the Consortium uses. It’s just a saying left over from a long, long time ago.”
“So, when I find her, what are you going to do if she won’t have you? ”
“Spend my life begging, most likely. But she’ll be safe to refuse me repeatedly. I’ll never leave her unprotected again.”
“You know, I like Mirilla. She was always kind to me. Even when I was an ass.”
“It’s possible you’re still an ass.”
“I don’t want her to have to do anything she doesn’t want to do, Bart.”
“Neither do I, Rokai. At this point in time, I just want her safe. I’m really afraid she’s not.”
Rokai nodded as he looked away from the communicator. “Alright,” he finally said as he looked at the communicator again. “I’m sending my location. It’s a big port, but I’m sure you’ll have no problem finding me when you land.” Rokai disconnected the communicator, though he left it on and tucked away in its spot in the ship. He loaded up with more weapons than he could ever possibly use in one firefight and cloaked his ship. He left it and walked toward the inhabited part of the port. He reached the more reliable spots and acknowledged an acquaintance or two as he walked past. Once he reached the seedier parts of the port, he really put on the airs, puffing his chest out, painted a thoroughly disgusted expression on his face, and strutted like he was himself Sire of Cruestace, come to collect a debt.
When he reached the door of the drinkery Gaishon had said Ba Re’s band was in, he nearly tore the door off its hinges before he stepped through and came to a standstill.
Everybody in the place turned to look at him. Some knew who he was, others didn’t. But it was clear to all that they really shouldn’t fuck with him.
“You’re back. Welcome,” the barkeep said.
Rokai remained standing where he was. He glared at the barkeep, then slowly allowed his gaze to take in the features of every single person in the drinkery.
“Who else is here?” he finally demanded.
“No one. You see them, they’re here,” the barkeep answered.
Rokai smirked sardonically, and shook his head. “You see, that just can’t be right. Because I happen to know for a fact that someone I know is here, and that can only mean one thing. You’re lying to me. And I hate nothing more than being lied to.” Rokai ended the last sentence by pointing his blaster at the barkeep with his right hand, and another blaster with his left hand in the general direction of everyone else in the drinkery.
One male tried to raise both his hands and ease out of the drinkery.
“Did I tell any one of you worthless bastards that you could go?!” he demanded, firing his blaster at the floor, just an inch away from the male who thought to leave.
“I don’t want any part of this. I don’t know anybody that’s here and don’t care to!” he shouted.
“Sit your ass down before I remove it! Nobody is leaving here until I know for sure that none of you fuckers know anything I don’t.”
The man eased back to his seat, but kept his hands in the air.
“Now, just to be clear, I’d love nothing more than the opportunity to kill a couple of you fuckers. The messier the better. I’m really tired of having to come back to this fucking place. Yes, I do look familiar. You want to know why? Because I’ve been here twice already. And both times every fucking body in here told me that the person I’m searching for wasn’t here. Well, fuck me! I find out — when I’m clear across the fucking universe, mind you — that you lied. You fucking lied. So,” Rokai shrugged and feigned a joyful smile, “I’m back. And this time, somebody will tell me the truth, or I’ll kill every fucking body. Sounds good? Sounds like a deal to me. Who’s first?!”
At his explanation, everyone’s hands went up and more than half started rambling denials.
He tried to make sense of anything they were saying, but because they were all speaking at once, it was impossible. “Shut up! My gods, you people are irritating. Just shut the fuck up!”
One of the males sitting to his far left drew his own weapon, intent on killing Rokai, but Rokai saw him. He didn’t even seem to move, but fired the blaster he held in his left hand. The male fell to the floor dead, as everyone screamed and shouted .
“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Rokai bellowed. The entire place went quiet. He glanced at the male’s body lying on the floor, then grinned happily at everyone else. “You know what makes that a phenomenal shot? I’m right handed. Right handed and I still have perfect aim with my left. Okay, let’s see who dies next.”
“Just tell us what you want instead of killing us all!” a large, clearly not-to-be-fooled-with female at the opposite end of the bar said.
“I want a new credit band. It’s black. And unlike some of the newer models out there, it buckles. And it’s connected to a Cruestaci warrior’s account. And I want it. Now. I want it now.”
Everyone started looking back and forth at one another. The only person who didn’t was the barkeep. “Come on. Give it up. I know it’s here.”
“We don’t have it! If anyone of us had it, we’d have given it to you so we could leave!” the female said.
Rokai looked her directly in the eyes. “Where is the female called Mirilla?”
To her credit the female appeared to actually try to assign the name to anyone she’d ever met, but eventually shook her head. “I don’t know anyone by that name.”
“Who does? Because she’s here, and the Cruestaci credit band is here. I want them both. I’m selfish like that. I want the money. I want the female.”
“Is the female Cruestaci?” the larger female asked.
Rokai focused on her again. “She is! Isn’t it amazing that you just happen to know that?”
“Yeah, isn’t it?” she asked, glaring at the barkeep.
“Seems to me, that only one person didn’t look around the room when I said I wanted a black, Cruestaci, credit band. And that would be you!” Rokai said, pointing his blaster directly between the eyes of the barkeep.
“Eienir if you know where this male’s band is, tell him!” the female insisted.
“How would I know?” Eienir asked .
“Seems you know something. Everyone else looked suspiciously around, you only watched me and kept rubbing the bar top with that filthy fucking rag, most likely spreading purulent festering wounds to everyone brave enough to touch it!”
“You touched it!” Eienir shouted.
Rokai smiled. “I am purulent. I tend to gift everyone and everything with the sparkling infection that is my personality,” he said dramatically. “Especially when I don’t get what I fucking want!” he bellowed as he shot another male — this one preparing to draw his own weapon and try to get the drop on Rokai. “Why do people keep making me do that? Give me the fucking band. Tell me where the female is.”
“I don’t know for sure, but I’m fairly certain the female is nearby,” the larger woman said.
Rokai focused on her again, but did not move away from the door. He needed to remain near to it so he could hear if anyone tried to enter. “Expand on that statement.”
“More than a week ago, a Cruestaci warrior came in, looking for another warrior. I remember thinking the male wasn’t as large as I was used to. No offense, I just happen to like Cruestaci warriors, at least I can look them in the eye and not tower over them, you know. I don’t have to worry about breaking them in bed.”
Rokai glared at her, making it evident that he was losing patience.
“He went down, Eienir carried him out the back, then returned a few minutes later.”
“Why would you think the female is nearby?”
“You are looking for a Cruestaci credit band. And a female. What if they came in together?”
Rokai shifted his gaze to Eienir. “Where is the band?”
“I don’t have it.”
“Where is the band?”
“I said I don’t have it!”
“Where is the female?”
“I don’t know. ”
“Where did you take her?”
“I don’t have her.”
“I asked where you took her, not where she is. Where is she?” Rokai demanded.
The entire time Eienir had been engaging with Rokai, the female at the end of the bar had been moving closer and closer.
“I said I don’t know where she is, and I don’t have the band!”
The female grabbed the back of Eienir’s head and slammed his forehead against the heavy wooden bar top. The male crumpled to the ground and she went to the ground with him behind the bar. She’d barely had time to disappear behind the bar top with the unconscious male before she popped back up holding Eienir’s hand in the air, with the rest of his body hanging limply from it. “Got it!” she announced happily.
“Nice work,” Rokai said. “Bring it to me.”
“You got it,” she said. She retrieved a knife from the bar and used it to cut the band off Eienir’s wrist. “Here. It’s a little cut up, but it’s here.” She walked to the end of the bar and set it down on the bar top.
“These people can go now, right?” she asked.
“Nope. Not finished yet. Last thing I need is a bunch of help-me-please-the-bad-male-is-trying-to-kill-everybody’s running around here. I’m trying to accomplish something here!”
“Okay, just asking,” she said, taking a step back and holding her own hands up.
Eienir started moaning and reached up toward her.
“Hold on…” she said, turned around to Eienir, who sill lay on the floor, and stomped his face. He fell unconscious again and the female turned back to Rokai. “Done. What else do you need?”
“Who are you?” Rokai asked.
“Elspeth.”
“Elspeth?”
“That’s what I said. Who are we beating next. I’m really hoping it’s whoever has that female, because I think people who brutalize females deserve to die. ”
“I kind of need him awake. If the person you saw was the female I’m searching for, only he knows where he took her.”
“Oh. Um, my bad. Sorry. But I know how I can fix this.”
“And that would be?”
“There’s a room out back, well actually, it’s between the buildings, to the side there. And the owner of this place lives there. I can’t imagine that he had time to take her anywhere else. And if I’m wrong and the guy was really a small Cruestaci guy, they probably took him there, too. Or maybe just dumped him in the alley.”
“I have questions, Elspeth. If you know they’re stealing females, and you hate it so much, why do you allow it to continue to happen?”
“I don’t. I know sometimes they roll the males that come in here, take what they want and dump them in some other part of the port, pretending they’ve never seen them before, but honestly, how stupid do you have to be to fall into that? So I figure if they’re that stupid, they deserve to get rolled. Females, though, off the table. Someone hurts them, I’m pissed.”
“Which is why you killed Eienir.”
“I didn’t kill Eienir.”
“Pretty sure you did.”
“This is all entertaining and all, but when can we leave?”
Rokai turned toward the male who spoke. “When I fucking say you can. If I don’t kill you.”
“You got your band. You got a lead on the female. What do you need us for?”
“A guarantee that you don’t bring any other bastards down here.”
“Like we’d do that. We don’t do that to our own kind.”
“You don’t even know who I am,” Rokai said.
“You’re Rokai ahl. I’m pretty sure that even if we don’t know you, most of us have heard of you,” Elspeth said.
“Alright. Fine. And what does that tell you?” Rokai demanded.
“That you’re a crazy, deadly, sonofabitch that it’s not a good idea to get on the other side of,” Elspeth said .
“Can I trust you to hold them all here until I get back?” Rokai asked her.
“No. I think if they’re not involved, they should get to go.”
Rokai thought about it for a moment, then he turned to them with a bright smile. “Who wants to leave, and who wants to stay for a while and drink for free?”
About three quarters of everyone in the place raised their hands. “Drink for free!”
“Great. Drink all you want, for free. If anyone tries to leave, stop them.”
Rokai grabbed the credit band off the bar top and shoved his way through the kitchen door.
“It’s this way,” Elspeth said, quickly bringing up the rear and darting ahead of him. “That door over there.” She opened the door and stuck her head outside, looking both directions before she stepped out and held the door open for Rokai, who followed with both blasters drawn.
“Think maybe you should put one of those away so you can grab somebody if you need to?”
“No. I’ll just shoot them. If I think they need to be grabbed, that’s what I have you for.”
“Works for me,” Elspeth said.
They walked around to the side alley and when Elspeth stood by the stairs, Rokai thought she was setting him up.
“There are no stairs.”
“I’m looking down them.”
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not! Watch,” she said, going down three or four stairs so Rokai could see the opening on the ground level that disguised the steps.
“Ah, okay. You’re not lying.” Rokai hurried down the steps to stand by the side of the door so Elspeth could try to get them to open the door.
“Hey! Open the door!”
There was no answer .
“I know you’re in there old man! Eienir is laid out upstairs. He might be dead! You need to come see before everybody in there drinks all you have and leaves!”
“Alright, don’t say I didn’t try to warn you. I’m going to get a drink myself before I move on to the next filthiest place I can find.”
The tumblers on the locks on the door could be heard turning as the person inside unlocked them. After almost a minute and a half of unlocking locks, the door finally opened, just a hair.
“Hi. Remember me? Elspeth? Anyway, I think Eienir is dead. You should come check.”
The door swung open. “What the hell killed him?” the male asked.
Rokai, who’d slipped one blaster into his waistband reached out and grabbed the male by the throat. “She did.”
The male gurgled and tried unsuccessfully to pry Rokai’s hand off his throat.
“No, I’m not letting go. We’re coming in for a visit. It’s going to be a fun visit,” he said, shoving the old male back through his door. He heard the door close and glanced quickly over his shoulder to see that Elspeth had followed and closed the door behind them.
“Where is the Cruestaci female?”
The male tried to speak, but no air meant no voice.
“He has no air,” Elspeth said.
Rokai released the male’s throat, but grasped his hair with one hand, while pressing his blaster against the male’s forehead. “Where is the Cruestaci female?”
“I haven’t seen one,” the male rasped out.
A blaster fired, startling Rokai. “What the hell?” he shouted over the old male screeching and yelling.
“He’s lying,” Elspeth said with a shrug.
Rokai looked down at the tattered remains of the old male’s foot, then up at Elspeth.
“You had that all along?”
“Yep. ”
“Didn’t even try once to use it.”
“Nope. It gets boring around here. If Rokai ahl is creating havoc, figured I’d join in and see where it leads. Then I found out you’re looking for your woman, and she might be stolen. I’m helping.”
Rokai’s brows narrowed as he considered working through everything that had just happened, but then he changed his mind and focused on the male again. “Here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to tell me where the Cruestaci female is, and I might not let her kill you, one shot at a time, slowly. If the female is alive and unharmed, I might not let her kill you at all.”
“Aw, you’re no fun,” Elspeth grumbled, aiming her blaster at the old man’s other foot.
“Hold on, give him a chance to speak,” Rokai ordered.
Elspeth shrugged and pulled her blaster back to rest against her shoulder, pointing at the ceiling.
The male kept shrieking and sobbing while reaching for his leg as best he could with Rokai still gripping him by the hair.
“You’re going to stop that shit, and you’re going to tell me where the female is, or I’m going to let her shoot your other foot.”
“No, balls. Let me shoot his balls,” Elspeth said.
“No! No, don’t do it,” the old male sobbed. “It was Eienir. He beats me. He said if I don’t do his bidding he’ll sell me, too. I’m old. I’ll die if I’m sold into slavery! I had no choice.”
“Where is she?” Rokai demanded coldly.
“I don’t know. He took her from here two days ago. Those that bought her specifically asked for a Cruestaci female. I didn’t want to do it! He made me!”
“Where do I find them?”
“At the ports. There’s a blue ship that arrives twice a month. He loads whatever females he’s managed to steal onto their ship and they deposit credits onto his band.”
Rokai canted his head, listening to the bullshit the old man was spewing. “Where do you keep them until the blue ship arrives? ”
“I don’t know. He brings them down here at first, then the first chance he gets he moves them.”
“Rokai, I know that ship. It hasn’t been here at all this month, but it is usually here twice a month just like he says.”
“Last chance, old male. Where do you keep them until they’re picked up?”
“I don’t know!” he cried, playing the part perfectly.
Rokai let go of his hair and shoved him away. “Kill him. He lies.”
Elspeth’s eyes lit up and she aimed her blaster at his opposite foot and fired.
The old male fell to the ground screaming his hands trembling as they reached for the shreds of what used to be his foot.
Elspeth stepped in front of him and kicked him backward, then aimed at his balls. She smiled at him and pulled the trigger, sending a blast of plasma to shred his balls and penis.
The male shrieked only for a moment longer then passed out from the pain.
“You really don’t like males, do you?” Rokai asked from the far corner of the male’s room. He turned boxes upside down, yanked dirty mattresses off the floor, and at a loss of anything else, found himself stomping on the floor, and pounding on the walls.
“Males are vipers that can’t be trusted.”
“I think I found something,” Rokai said, tapping on the wall. He stood back and started kicking the surface of the wall as hard as he could.
Elspeth watched for a second before she joined in. Her thighs were bigger than his, muscular and strong. Her arms and her trunk were the same way, and her height rivaled his. She was a big, muscular woman. Strong and capable. And together they kicked the wall until it finally splintered, revealing a hidden space behind it.
“There’s three of them,” Elspeth said.
Rokai tore down enough of the wall to be able to fit through to the other side and stopped near the first woman. He felt for a pulse, then moved on to the next. He felt for her pulse, then did the same with the third. “There’s only two,” Rokai said. One of them’s gone.”
“He knelt beside the second woman once more and smoothed her hair out of her face. “Mirilla? Honey, can you hear me?” he asked, his voice louder than usual.
Mirilla gave no response.
“Come on, don’t do this to me, Mirilla!” he shouted, shaking her awake.
Mirilla appeared to rouse just a bit, then fell right back into unconsciousness.
“At least she is still alive, all is not lost yet.”
Rokai’s chest rumbled a bit, but he went to the other female who was still alive. “Can you hear me? Wake up! We’re going to get you out of here.”
The woman, though still alive, didn’t respond.
“He probably drugged them,” Elspeth said.
“Yeah. Let’s get them out of here and back to my ship before all hell breaks loose.”
“You expecting trouble?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“Well, why didn’t you say so?!” she asked, hurrying back over to the old male who was now conscious again and moaning pitifully. “Hey, asshole! Found the females! Want to know how we knew you had them? Eienir wouldn’t have stolen a credit band from a Cruestaci warrior if you paid him enough. So, we knew it was you. Say hello to all your fellow fuckers in eternity!” she put the gun in his mouth. He started crying and obviously trying to beg for his life. “I’m sorry, can you beg a little more pitifully. I think it’s getting to me.”
The male was sobbing, his hands together in prayer in front of his chest.
Elspeth started laughing. “Oh, wait, I was wrong. You deserve to die — twice. If I can figure out how to do that, I’ll be back.” She fired the blaster, taking off the back of his head, and sending him to hell or whatever hellish afterlife he might have believed in, just like she promised. Then she ran over to where Rokai was still trying to wake either female and grabbed the one he had not called by name, throwing her over her shoulder. “Let’s go.”