Chapter 20
Twenty
Sam’s expression brightened at hearing that he would not have to deal with guests. “Good. As soon as I’m done with this incoming ship, I’ll work on those cleaning bots.”
Holly waited on the landing pad as the ship descended. It was a midsize transport, very pretty, but its hull was scorched in places that suggested a long journey through rough space. The landing struts groaned as it settled onto the pad.
The hatch opened and six people of various species emerged, looking tired and irritated. They hurried through the decontamination unit, grumbling to one another, and came out on the other side looking no happier.
Holly stepped forward with her most hospitable smile. “Hello, and welcome to Moone’s Landing. I’m Holly Greene-Moone, the new owner. I understand you’ll be staying with us while your ship is repaired.”
The group exchanged glances. One of them, a tall woman with close-cropped silver hair and a single eye in the middle of her forehead, spoke for the group.
“We didn’t plan to stop here. We are building consultants on our way to Saga-1, the new station under construction. How long will we be stuck here?”
Ah, so the mega-station under construction had been given a name: Saga-1. She glanced at Sam, who held up two fingers, then three. Then shifted his hand back and forth as if to say, I’m not sure.
“Two days. Three at most.” She put on a cheery smile despite the groans going up among the group. “I’ve heard about that project,” she said. “It sounds impressive.”
“It will be, when it’s finished.” The woman looked around the landing pad with barely concealed dismay. “We didn’t expect to be stuck in a place like this. No offense.”
“None taken.” Actually, a little offense was taken, but Holly kept her smile firmly in place. “I hope we can make your unexpected stay a pleasant one. Let me show you to your rooms.”
The walk to the hotel was quiet, the six travelers too tired and too annoyed to make conversation.
But as Holly led them through the square, she noticed a few of them looking around with curiosity.
The fountain was still broken, but the plants lining the walkway had perked up.
The light in the dome was warm and golden, and extra beautiful at the moment, due to the gas planet being in partial view.
She showed them to their rooms on the second floor of the hotel, explaining the amenities and pointing out the lounge downstairs. By the time she finished, a few of them seemed less annoyed.
“Thank you,” the silver-haired woman said, though her tone was still cool. “The last time we had to stop here, which was several years ago, no one greeted us at all. We were wandering around for hours before someone helped us.”
“I understand,” Holly said, meaning it. “When I first arrived here, I experienced the same thing. But you won’t have that problem this time. I’m here if you need anything,” she promised.
She hurried back to the spaceport, where Sam was already suited up and approaching the damaged ship with a radiation scanner.
“How bad is it?” she asked.
“Manageable.” Sam didn’t look up from his scanner. “Leak is contained. Should have it cleared by tomorrow. The other repairs will take another day.”
“I’ll let them know.”
Holly returned to the hotel and went straight to the lounge. The kitchen was clean and waiting, and she had an idea.
An hour later, she was pulling a fresh batch of blueberry muffins from the oven just as the six travelers wandered downstairs. The scent had reached the upper floors, apparently.
“What’s that smell?” one of them asked, a young man with tired eyes.
“Muffins.” Holly arranged them on a plate. “Fresh from the oven. Please, help yourselves.”
They approached the counter with cautious interest. The silver-haired woman took one, bit into it, and her single eye widened.
“This is good,” she said, sounding surprised.
“Thank you.” Holly felt a small glow of pride.
The muffins depleted quickly, and the mood in the lounge shifted. The travelers settled into chairs, their postures relaxing, their expressions softening. But after the muffins were gone, they began to look around expectantly.
“Do you have anything else?” the young man asked. “Something more substantial? We haven’t had a proper meal in days.”
Holly’s glow dimmed slightly. She glanced at the kitchen, then at the bar tucked into the corner of the lounge. “I can offer you drinks from the hotel bar. The first one is on the house.”
“That would be a start,” the silver-haired woman said.
What was she thinking? Holly cursed herself for offering such a thing. She had no idea how to tend a bar.
She excused herself and ducked into the hallway, pulling up Mish’s contact on her wrist comm. The call connected after two rings.
“Holly?” Mish’s voice was slightly breathless. “Is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine. Well, mostly fine.” Holly glanced back toward the lounge. “I have a favor to ask. A big one.”
“What is
“I have six guests at the hotel. First new guests since I’ve been here.
They want drinks from the bar and I have absolutely no idea how to make them.
” Holly winced. “You mentioned you were a bartender before you had the children. Is there any chance you could come to the lounge and help me out? Just for an hour or two?”
Mish was quiet for a moment. “You want me to tend bar?”
“Please. I’ll owe you. I’ll watch your children for a few hours one day. Whatever you need.”
“You’d babysit my children?” There was a smile in Mish’s voice now. “That’s a generous offer.”
“I’m desperate.” Holly paused. “Wait. They won’t kill me, will they?”
Mish laughed. “No, no. They like you. All right. Let me put the kids in their happy room and I’ll be right over.”
Holly decided, once again, not to ask what a “happy room” was. “Thank you, Mish. You’re saving my life.”
“See you in a few minutes.”
Holly ended the call and returned to the lounge, where the travelers were waiting with varying degrees of patience. “Drinks are on the way,” she assured them. “Our bartender will be here shortly.”
Moments later, Mish bustled through the door in a clean shirt and small basket of fresh fruit from the gardens. Her orange hair was arranged in a precarious bun on the top of her head that somehow managed to look arty. She smiled at Holly, then turned to the guests with professional warmth.
“Good evening,” she said, sliding behind the bar. She made a show of washing the fruit, which was very appealing and added some much needed color and life to the bar. “What can I get for you?”
Holly watched in admiration as Mish worked. She moved with practiced ease, pulling bottles from shelves and mixing drinks with a confidence that suggested years of experience. The travelers perked up as colorful beverages appeared before them, garnished with fruit and served with a flourish.
Holly retreated to the kitchen and began cleaning up.
But she kept one eye on the lounge, watching the six visitors as they ate muffins and drank Mish’s creations.
Their earlier hostility had evaporated. They were laughing now, talking amongst themselves, looking around the lounge without naked disgust. It was something.
A warm feeling spread through Holly’s chest. This was what Moone’s Landing could be. Should be. A place where weary travelers could rest and feel welcomed.
One of the guests waved for another round, and Mish obliged. When she was finished, she deftly produced a payment tablet and held it out. The guests tapped their currency chips against it without complaint, and Mish caught Holly’s eye from behind the bar.
She winked.
Holly grinned back. Babysitting Mish’s brood was a small price to pay for a successful evening with happy hotel guests.
On a whim, Holly pulled up Rasker Vipp’s contact on her communicator. She entered a message: Never got to thank you for your help with the muffins. So, thank you. Have any more recipes? She hit send.
A response ticked back moments later: You’re welcome. There was a file attached. She opened it to find a long list of recipes that looked like they came from a number of species’ cuisines. Some of them, she’d never heard of before.
Can I make these with what I have in the lounge kitchen? she asked.
Yes. But I should sample your efforts before you feed them to hotel guests.
She grinned. Are you trying to score a free meal?
Consider it a fair trade.
Deal.
She couldn’t quite wipe the grin from her face as she closed the connection and returned to cleaning.
The hours passed pleasantly. The travelers ordered more drinks, paid for each round, and eventually began to yawn and stretch.
One by one, they made their way upstairs to their rooms, calling out, “Thank you,” as they went.
When the last of them had gone, Mish emerged from behind the bar and stretched her arms over her head. “That was fun,” she said. “I’d forgotten how much I missed it.”
“You were amazing,” Holly said. “I can’t thank you enough. One day, when your children are older and if we can get this place fixed up as it should be, I’m hoping this place will be filled with customers. You have a job here if you want it.”
“I like the sound of that.” Mish gestured toward the bar.
“I hate to say this, but the bar is missing a lot of basic spirits and mixes. I got creative to compensate, but the supplies back there are very low.” She narrowed her eyes at the bare shelves behind the bar.
“I remember it being better stocked. Before he went into serious decline, Charles spent time in here. He was fussy about the bar, believe it or not, and ran it pretty well. He kept it well-stocked and organized. It did not look this empty when he was well. Things started to disappear after Cody took over the kitchen, starting with the most expensive and rare liquors. Now, there’s only the cheapest spirits left, and not much of them, either. ”
So, her cousin stole from the bar. Maybe he drank it all. Maybe he sold it all. Holly’s lips compressed. “Another reason I was right to let him go.”
“I have no proof he took anything,” Mish said quickly.
“If you’ve seen bottles disappear, you have proof.” Holly shook her head. “If you make a list of what you need to take the bar up to standard, I’ll put it in for the next supply delivery.” She winced. “Maybe hold off on the top-shelf varieties.”
“I’ll do that.” Mish’s eyes twinkled and she wagged a finger. “Just remember your promise. Babysitting. A few hours. I’m going to hold you to it.”
Holly grimaced inwardly. “I won’t back out. You’re sure they like me?”
Mish laughed and headed for the door. “Goodnight, Holly. This was a good night.”
“It really was.”
After Mish left, Holly closed up the lounge for the night and returned to her unit. She felt accomplished. Proud, even. The first new guests since her arrival, and she had made them feel welcome. It wasn’t much, but it was something.
She pushed open her door and stepped inside. Bean lifted his head from the couch, regarded her with sleepy interest, then hopped down and waddled over to her. He made a big show of stretching, then sniffed her legs, appearing very curious about what she had been up to.
“Hi there,” she murmured, dropping to a crouch to scratch behind his ears. “You’ve never greeted me before. Does this mean you’re starting to like me?”
The little dog looked up at her with big brown eyes and leaned into her touch. Today was definitely a day of accomplishments.
Holly settled onto the sofa and Bean hopped up beside her. She petted the dog and pulled out her d-pad, intending to review the day’s income and update her records. But when the screen flickered to life, a notification was waiting.
A holo-call was waiting to be answered. From Beenan. He had attempted to call her fourteen times, this being the fifteenth. The transmission request blinked there, waiting for her to answer.
Holly stared at the name, her good mood curdling in her stomach. She had not heard from Sol-Arc Industries since she’d left. Had not expected to hear from them for months yet. Her three-month reflection period was just over a month old.
She tapped the screen, and Beenan’s miniature, three-dimensional avatar materialized above the screen in rendered pale blue light. He sat at his office desk. His expression was pleasant and professional, but his eyes were cold.
“Hello, Holly. Kind of you to finally answer my call.”