Chapter 9
LYK
The mess was large enough to accommodate fifty or more, even though his crew was less than half that number currently. Rigellus’s crew were arranged in chairs in the center of the room, guarded by an equal number of Lyk’s men.
Lyk scanned the line of men in red livery. The security detail was easy to spot. All on one end, these men weren’t afraid to meet his gaze. He kept his eyes trained on them as he delivered his speech.
“Rigellus is gone, and he’s not coming back. You each have a decision to make that will determine your futures. You have a choice. Take the first option, and I will drop you off at the next outpost with enough credits to purchase transport to whichever world you like, no questions asked.”
He glanced down the line, noticing varied reactions among the men. One of the more attractive ones, the one with epaulets at his shoulders, looked up. “What happened to our captain?”
“He paid for his crimes.”
Rigellus’s crewman sputtered, then looked down, cowed.
The big man on the end shifted, rubbing a hand over his bald head. “What’s option two?”
“You join my crew. We can always use men who can handle themselves in a fight.” Again turning his gaze down the line, he laid out his expectations. “You’ll have a place to live and will be well fed. In exchange, I expect you to follow orders, and I will except nothing less than absolute loyalty.”
Epaulets spoke out in a shaky voice. “You expect us to believe you’re going to let us all go? You just admitted to killing our captain. How do we know you’re not going to toss us out the airlock or shoot us all in the back of the head?”
Lyk admired the crewman’s backbone. “There’s no need to waste more lives.”
“Aren’t you afraid we’re going to talk?”
Shrugging, Lyk responded. “Talk to whom? The men Rigellus bribed? You don’t think there aren’t other greedy men waiting to take Rigellus’s place?”
“Some people still care about justice!” It was clear Epaulets didn’t appreciate Lyk’s version of justice.
The bald crewman stood, coming up behind Epaulets. Addressing Lyk, his tone was brisk. “I wanna join up. And to prove my loyalty, I’m more than willing to solve your little problem.”
Epaulets turned around, his face going pale. “You… you don’t…” Turning back to Lyk, Rigellus’s crewman had a change of heart. “There’s no problem. Drop me off at the outpost. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
Lyk nodded. “Who else wants to be dropped at the outpost?”
Several hands rose. The ones that didn’t belonged to Burns and the other two members of the security detail.
“Good. Sit tight, and we’ll inform you when we reach the outpost.” He motioned to the security detail. “You three, come with me.”
Lyk exited the mess, followed by the crewmen, with Celdrake bringing up the rear.
He led them to the quarters earmarked for new crewmembers.
It was simple, small, and completely wired for recording.
He would set the ship’s intel officer on observation duty for the next couple weeks.
Turncoats might promise loyalty, but Lyk wanted to insure it as much as he could.
“These are your bunks. You’ll find a selection of clothing in the wardrobe. I suggest you change out of those bright colors. They won’t be much good for your new career as pirates.”
The men chuckled and filed into their quarters. “Stay put. I’ll send the sergeant along to give you your assignments soon.”
Lyk departed, Celdrake on his heels.
“That went well, considering,” the cyborg said. “Although one thing was surprising. I’m used to you letting some of our victims join up, but this time, you offered Rigellus’s crew credits to find transport. Why not just dump them and let them fend for themselves?”
“No need to engender any more resentment than we already have. They’ve just lost their nice cushy jobs on Rigellus’s ship. They’ll be stranded on an out-of-the-way planetoid with no way to get back to their homes. Angry men talk.”
“You’re worried about them telling the authorities? But you just said—”
“I’m aware of what I just said. The fact remains, if the authorities hear too many mouths all clamoring for the same thing, they might decide looking us up is worth their time. So we give them some credits and let them slink off home, defeated but not desperate.”
“Paying transport for so many is going to cost a pretty penny.” Celdrake hated to part with any of his money. Lyk teased him about still having the first credit he ever earned. Celdrake told him he was wrong. It was the first credit he’d ever stolen.
“We can more than afford it. Offloading even one of the luxury items we took off Rigellus’s ship will more than pay for the expense.”
Celdrake was still grumbling, and Lyk couldn’t help but smile.
He came to a stop outside the officer’s lounge.
Putting a hand on the cyborg’s shoulder, he gave him a task to keep him occupied.
“Find Jinx and get to work putting together a catalogue of buyers. I want bids on the merchandise before we make the Outer Rim.”
Celdrake nodded and started off down the corridor. Lyk turned to the door that led to the officers’ mess. Before opening the door, he closed his eyes, reaching out with his Vartik powers to the female behind the door.
He sensed two minds, but it was easy to tell which one belonged to Allandria. With no difficulty, he slipped inside, tuning into her thoughts.
I can’t remember when I’ve been this full, she was thinking, images of the treats she’d eaten scrolling through her brain like a three-dimensional movie. Lyk held back his laughter. He was glad they’d raided the cabinets and eaten their fill.
They’d also apparently stashed half his larder for later. This should be enough to keep us fed for a week. Now if I could only a find a way off this ship.
That made Lyk frown. He didn’t want her eager to escape his ship.
In fact, he was hoping for the opposite.
Having never fallen hard for a woman before, Lyk was unfamiliar with the tidal wave of feelings he was now experiencing, but one thing he knew for certain: Allandria was his and there was no way he was letting her go.
In one smooth motion, he unlocked the door via the touchpad and entered, his gaze immediately seeking out the woman he desired more than money, notoriety, or power.
She turned her head, meeting his eyes with a confidence he’d seldom seen in a female.
That confidence only served to turn him on even more.
He could feel the blood rush to his cock and had to steel himself to avoid an erection that would be visible beneath his tight pants.
“I’m glad to see you’ve eaten,” he said, making a show of glancing at the piles of crumbs on the small table he’d left them at. “If you’d like to follow me, I will take you to your quarters.”
Allandria stood, turning to face him. “Quarters won’t be necessary. You can drop us off at the nearest colony or space station and we can find our way from there.”
Lyk looked down at her. “I’m sorry, but we won’t be making any stops until we reach the outpost at Nexus 8.”
“Then we’ll get off there.”
Biting back the urge to grab the female, sling her over his shoulder, and carry her back to his quarters until he could fuck all thought of leaving from her mind, Lyk pulled out a chair and took a seat. They might as well get this discussion out of the way now.
“I’m going to give you ladies the same offer I gave the remnants of Rigellus’s crew. I can drop you off at the outpost and give you enough credits to find your way to the Rings, or you can stay on my ship and become members of my crew.”
Allandria burst out laughing, but her sister looked confused. “Join your crew? You mean, become a pirate?”
Lyk nodded, which only made Allandria laugh harder. “Stop,” she gasped. “You’re killing me.”
“Not everyone considers it a ridiculous offer. My men are well fed and have plenty of credits to illustrate the benefits of their choice.”
“Credits earned by thievery! Why would anyone consent to become a criminal?”
“You must admit, playing by the rules isn’t guaranteed to improve your life. With risk comes reward.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be rewarded for stealing from innocent people.” Allandria’s tone was arrogant, her grin more sneer than anything.
“I don’t rob the innocent.” He didn’t like the edge in his voice, but she’d struck a nerve. “I target other criminals, like Rigellus. People who have too much and made it in ways that hurt others.”
“Rigellus did deserve what he got,” the blonde muttered, almost as much to herself as to Lyk and her sister.
“My sister and I aren’t criminals, and your gang didn’t hesitate to steal from us.”
“For the thousandth time, I never stole from you, and neither did my men!” After their talk at the plant, Lyk had gathered together his men, demanding that they tell him if they’d had any interactions with Allandria or if anyone had stolen an object from a young Territhian female. No one had.
“And this is why we won’t join your gang. Because you’re a liar. I’ll never again give my allegiance to someone I can’t trust.” Allandria’s tone was as cold and stiff as steel.
That was when he heard it. He hadn’t gone looking for it, but he couldn’t help but overhear it.
Maybe it was the little bit of Kara’s empathic powers that rubbed off on him.
The blonde’s face heated, and as clearly as if she’d spoken the words, he could hear them in her mind.
I wish she’d give up on that necklace. I’m tired of feeling so guilty all the time.
Lyk probed deeper, surprised to discover that Allandria’s sister was the one who’d taken the necklace and blamed it on the Raven’s gang. He withdrew before worrying about her motivation. It was a matter between her and her sister, and he didn’t like to intrude in people’s minds.
The mystery was solved, but Lyk wouldn’t expose the female. He sensed this was something the siblings needed to resolve between themselves. No stranger to inter-sibling strife, Lyk knew better than to get between the two sisters over a matter that was clearly highly sensitive.
Still, it was clear he’d never convince Allandria to stick around if she still thought he’d stolen something from her and lied about it. Maybe he could help things along without his efforts beings seen as interference.
Turning to the blonde, he gave her a polite grin. “My name is Lyk. May I ask your name?”
She blinked several times, then spoke haltingly. “My… my name is Evie.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Evie. Your sister is under the impression that a member of my crew has taken something that belongs to you both. An heirloom of some kind. Is that correct?”
Evie nodded, and he could see a blush starting to stain her cheeks.
“Allandria has, as of yet, refused to tell me what kind of heirloom you are missing, although I have promised my support in finding the lost item. Could you describe it to me?”
While her sister rolled her eyes, Evie nodded and started to sketch out the details of the missing item.
“It’s a necklace. It’s very old. The chain is silver, and it has a charm at the end with a small button recessed in its surface.
If you press the button, the charm lights up.
It’s been in our family for as long as anyone can remember. ”
Lyk nodded sympathetically. “I’ll be sure to put out word among my contacts to be on the lookout for the necklace you describe. Just one more question. Your sister seems to think that someone in my gang stole it. Could you inform me as to why that is the case?”
The blush now covered most of her face. Evie glanced down at the table, then at her sister, before putting her eyes back on his. “I… I was at the market near our room when… um, two men, they took the necklace. The one who grabbed it… he had… had the tattoo. A black bird.”
“Where was this tattoo?”
“On… on his… his hand.” She pointed to the area above her right thumb.
“I see.” Lyk stood. “I think I might be able to get to the bottom of this. I’ll assemble all of my men in the corridor outside the mess, and you can point out the one that took your necklace from you. I’ll see to it that it is not only returned to you but that the perpetrator is severely punished.”
He glanced at Allandria, who was watching him with hooded eyes. “If you’ll both follow me, let’s go solve the mystery of the missing heirloom.”