Page 43 of Veiled Vixen

CHAPTER SEVEN - VALOR

The walk over to Dicker in the next bay feels like it flashes by too fast, yet takes an eternity at the same time. And the next thing I know the airlock to Dicker is sliding open.

The first thing I see is Luck sitting at the navigation table, pieces of a plasma rifle spread out before him. I walk towards him, glancing to my left at Delphi, then focusing back on Luck.

But he doesn’t lift his head and he doesn’t speak to me. No greeting at all.

“About fucking time.” That comes from Jimmy behind me.

I turn and find him lying in a hammock, hands behind his head like he hasn’t got a care in the world. “Jimmy,” I say, smiling. “Fuck, it’s good to see you guys.”

Jimmy swings his legs out, hops down to the floor, then grabs Delphi’s hand and says, “We’ll be over on Lady if you need us.”

I assume he’s talking to Luck. But Luck says nothing in return. Then the airlock closes and when I turn, I see that Nyleena has left as well. Which makes me feel a little better. Because those fucking princesses are all crazy and dangerous and I need to figure out what’s going through Luck’s head without their interference.

There’s a stool on the opposite side of the navigation table from Luck, so I take a seat and say, “I… I’m sorry.”

He still doesn’t look up. Just says, “About which part?” as he starts screwing a piece of the rifle barrel back together.

“W-well,” I stammer, then take a deep breath and continue. “All of it, I guess. Ignoring you after you came back with Jimmy. Hooking up with Tray.”

Now he looks at me.

His eyes are ringed with dark circles, his violet irises simmering with heat and anger like there’s a storm brewing inside him. His hair is too long, and messy, and there’s dirt or maybe a scorch mark from a plasma rifle marking an ugly line across his throat.

“Huh,” he huffs. “Hooking up with him?”

And I know what Luck’s asking. Did I hook up with him or did I hook up with him? I don’t know what to say, so I decide on nothing.

“Is that what you did, then?” Luck asks. “You just chose him over me?”

And this kinda pisses me off. “Why not?” I say. “You had Nyleena. Right? You were all set, Luck.”

“That was after, and you know it.”

“But it was coming. We all know there’s no way to fight that bond.”

“So you just quit? Just bowed out early like a fucking pussy? Left me wondering what the fuck I did to make you hate me?”

“Don’t be dumb. I don’t hate you.”

“No,” he says, narrowing his eyes at me. “You just left me. Where the fuck have you been?”

I run my fingers through my hair. Which is also too long and probably a mess. I want to say all kinds of things. Things like… I didn’t leave you. It was the plan. And even though I did leave you in another way, that was self-preservation.

But I don’t feel ready to have that conversation. So instead I say, “It’s a very long story.”

“Start at the beginning,” Luck growls. “And don’t leave a single fucking thing out.”

So I do.

Kind of.

I start at the point where Luck and Nyleena walked Tray and I through the spin node on level one twenty-two. “We came out on that station. And there were ships in the docking bays. And the whole thing kinda reminded me of Harem, you know. When we first got here. All dark and empty, but still you had this feeling that people had been there. Maybe just a few minutes ago. Does that makes sense?”

Luck is staring at me. And he doesn’t blink. Just gives me one nod as encouragement to go on.

“Well, anyway. Tray left some very crucial details out of that plan.”